Curriculum Intent

At Leedstown we base our curriculum upon the Chris Quigley's Essential Curriculum and have designed our topics around this to inspire every child to be a passionate learner.

At Leedstown School we plan units of work in a cross-curricular, thematic approach which is meaningful and engaging for the children.

At Leedstown there is an emphasis on experiential learning, including the opportunities for outdoor activities, visits and visitors.

The curriculum at Leedstown is the vehicle through which children learn. This is not just about academic learning. We believe it is much wider than this; it has a real impact on both children's academic and personal development.

"The curriculum is skilfully planned so that pupils enjoy stimulating practical activities which motivates then to learn well in class." (Ofsted 2013)

"Visits to local places of interest inspire pupils as well as giving them a good sense of their local heritage." (Ofstead 2013)

"The curriculum promotes pupils' development well. Pupils have numerous opportunities to work in groups and to enjoy sport and music." (Ofstead 2013)

Please click on the item below to see our Curriculum Impact Report.

Curriculum Implementation

Leedstown School uses Chris Quigley's Essential Curriculum as a basis to plan units of work with a cross-curricular, thematic approach which is meaningful and engaging for the children.

The school curriculum has two elements; to provide opportunities for all pupils to achieve; and to promote Spiritual, Moral, Social and Cultural development and to prepare all pupils for the opportunities, responsibilities and experiences of life.

At Leedstown there is an emphasis on experiential learning, including the opportunities for outdoor activities, visits and visitors.

In addition, we place a large emphasis on cross-curricular links, which leads to an immersive approach, where the children ask questions, take ownership and develop a love for learning.  Please click on the link to find out more about this, through our use of ‘Big Books.’

Please see the subject areas below to see what your child will be learning and the skills that they will be developing whilst at Leedstown School.

Some key aspects of our curriculum implementation

Personalised Learning At Leedstown, we endeavour to find out what interests the children and how they want to learn. Children have the opportunity to contribute to their learning with ideas for their projects. We plan and design learning opportunities that are relevant and engaging and have real world outcomes

Project Based Learning Children gain knowledge and skills by investigating and responding to an “essential question” across a term. Project based learning involves several skills and stages which are embedded across the curriculum, enabling clear links to be made.

Environmental Stimulus Learning environments take on the appearance of a time, place or event being explored and are changed with every new theme. Classrooms have a variety of flexible learning spaces, which can be adapted for different lessons and which allow children to make decisions about how they would like to learn.

Challenge Based Learning Children apply skills to real life problems and are encouraged to use a range of resources and approaches; the children start with a challenge and can then make their own choices to solve the problem, often working with others to do so.

Engagement Pedagogy The curriculum is planned around a termly theme which drives the children’s learning and the teachers’ planning ensuring an integrated, cross-curricular approach. Themes are complemented by visits / visitors and real-life tasks. Core subjects are integrated into the theme.

Rolling Programme

Our school operates a rolling three year programme of topics. This ensures that each year group will cover different topics based upon the three themes during their time in classrooms containing multiple year groups. The 'discover' theme is during the autumn term, the 'explore' theme is during the spring term and the 'create' theme is during the summer term.

Here are the 3 classes topics with information on the topic objectives for our parents as well as suggested homework activates to further support and enhance your child's learning. 

This table shows each of the topics within the three themes that each class learns about across the rolling academic years. Click on the links below the table to learn more.

 Tips for parents:

 

 

 

Growth Mindset

Decades of scientific research has started a Growth Mindset revolution….

"Anyone who has never made mistakes has never tried anything new" – Albert Einstein

 "Amateurs call it genius. Masters call it practise" – Thierry Henry

 "There is no magic to achievement. It’s really about hard work, choices  and persistence" – Michelle Obama

 

Below is an overview of the curriculum by year group:

 

To view more information about the subjects in our curriculum, please click here.

Please click here to view the Equalities Statement, Accessibility Plan, Racial Equality Policy and the Equality and Diversity Policy.  Please also refer to the Everyone's Included pages of the website where you can find an information report detailing how our school identifies, assesses, and makes provision for children with Special Educational Needs and disabilities.

If you would like to find out more information about the curriculum at Foxhole Learning Academy then please contact the school office.