Our curriculum

Intent

At Foresters Primary School, we are committed to providing a curriculum which is broad and balanced, and provides our pupils with opportunities to gain essential knowledge, skills and understanding. We intend that all children should enjoy their learning, achieve their potential and become independent life-long learners. We will aim high, striving for every child to achieve more than they thought possible. Our curriculum will promote cultural capital, nurture curious minds, stretch the imagination and provide opportunities for every child to discover their particular talents. We believe that education should take place in a fully inclusive environment with equal opportunities for all where children feel safe to try new things.

Implementation 

At Foresters Primary school we believe that children deserve a balanced curriculum that enables them to develop a deep understanding of all subjects and the interconnections between them. The rationale for the Cornerstones Curriculum takes the form of 10 big ideas that provide a purpose for the aspects, skills, knowledge and contexts chosen to form the substance of the curriculum. These big ideas form a series of multi-dimensional interconnected threads across the curriculum, allowing children to encounter and revisit their learning through a variety of subject lenses. Over time, these encounters help children to build conceptual frameworks that will enable a better understanding of increasingly sophisticated information and ideas. Teacher will refer to the big ideas throughout projects.

We build cultural capital through our curriculum developing well rounded global citizens. Every year, children complete three termly projects (six half termly projects in EYFS) and progress through four distinct stages of learning in each ILP – Engage, Develop, Innovate and Express. 

Engage

At the "Engage" stage, children:

• Gain memorable first-hand experiences, such as going on a visit or inviting a special visitor into school.
• Enjoy ‘WOW’ experiences.
• Get an exciting introduction to a topic or theme.
• Begin researching and setting enquiry questions.
• Get lots of opportunities to make observations.
• Develop spoken language skills.
• Take part in sensory activities.
• Have lots of fun to fully 'engage' with their new topic.
   

Develop

At the "Develop" stage, children:

• Improve their knowledge and understanding of the topic.
• Develop and practice their new skills.
• Write an extended cross-curricular piece of writing.
• Compose, make, do, build, investigate, explore, write for different purposes and read across the curriculum.
• Research their own questions and those set by others.
• Follow new pathways of enquiry based on their interests.
• Complete homework activities that support their learning.
   

Innovate

At the "Innovate" stage, children:

• Apply skills, knowledge and understanding in real-life contexts.
• Solve real or imagined problems using everything they’ve learnt.
• Get inspired by imaginative and creative opportunities.
• Revisit anything not fully grasped at the ‘Develop’ stage.

Express

At the "Express" stage, children:

• Share their achievements with parents, classmates and the community.
• Become the performers, experts and informers.
• Evaluate finished products and processes.
• Link what they have learnt to where they started.
• Celebrate their achievements.
   

Foresters Primary School Curriculum Map

We are currently on Cycle B

Impact  

Children will leave Foresters Primary School ready for the next stage in their learning at secondary school. The curriculum will have provided a range of knowledge and skills to support them in their future endeavours. The children will be able to work collaboratively with their peers and independently as inquisitive learners who are motivated to excel and who have a thirst for learning. The children will have a strong desire to embrace challenge and to be resilient learners. Our curriculum will also enable our pupils to become good citizens and demonstrate an appreciation for others. Our children will be respectful and will show tolerance and acceptance to those from different faiths and backgrounds.