Curriculum

At Bletchingley, we promote three core values:

Always be kind and caring
Always be respectful
Always use your self-discipline

We aim to help our children, with the co-operation of their parents:

To develop into happy and confident individuals with a secure foundation in learning that will last throughout their lives
Develop enquiring minds through knowledge with understanding which questions the world in which they live
Establish a command of the subjects contained in the National Curriculum
Develop a respect for the views of others
Appreciate human achievements and aspirations
To always aim higher
To build independence.

Our curriculum is designed to support children to make informed choices now and in their futures around their health, safety, wellbeing, relationships and financial matters. We firmly believe in addressing a child’s individual need (using Maslow’s Hierarchy) whilst remaining inclusive.

At Bletchingley, all the experiences we plan for the children are reinforced by our core values and on developing these key areas of a child’s learning:

reading skills
understanding of numeracy
understanding of the world and their relationship with it

We believe that these, and our core values, underpin and meet all of a child’s core development areas.

Our curriculum

We do this by providing:

A school environment in which we develop the 'whole' child
Whole school and individual staff professional development which ensures the highest quality of teaching and learning
Opportunities to work with other children and adults in a friendly atmosphere and so develop social skills in co-operating with each other.
A range of strategies that build and promote independence.

Our curriculum includes not only the formal programme of lessons, but the 'informal' programme of extra-curricular activities, gaining cultural capital, as well as the features which produce the school's ethos and build the child as a whole.

We have built our curriculum to support the needs of our children and we use well researched schemes to ensure a high quality of teaching and learning based on a well sequenced and clear progression in skills. We review our curriculum regularly to ensure it continues to meet the needs of our children. Our teaching is child-centred in that our pupils are central to all our planning. We have high expectations of our children. We are committed to enquiry based learning which encourages critical thinking and empowers pupils to question the hows and whys of the world around them.

Hooks are used to immerse the children into the learning to stimulate deeper thinking and to activate prior knowledge. These elements require the children to be curious, independent and resilient, as well as be able to communicate effectively. Through our stages of enquiry, pupils are able to record and present their learning in their own way and at their own level providing a curriculum that all are able to access.

Essential knowledge and skills are revisited with increasing complexity, allowing pupils to revise and build on their previous learning. A range of engaging recall activities promote frequent pupil reflection on prior learning, ensuring new learning is approached with confidence.

We do this because we want children to be happy, productive, curious and interested citizens who are excited to contribute effectively to the wider world. We want them to accumulate the skills, knowledge and attitude to navigate the complexities that life brings. We want them to feel supported in becoming confident individuals that can look after themselves as well as be active members of their community.

Mrs Fletcher is our Deputy Head and Curriculum Lead

s.fletcher@bletchingleytlt.co.uk

Leaders are passionate about ensuring that all pupils, regardless of their background or special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), achieve their full potential. In their words, they aspire to ‘level the playing field’. Pupils successfully build detailed knowledge and skills as they get older. They thoroughly enjoy high-quality learning that is carefully planned and sequenced in all subjects. Teaching excites and engages pupils, promoting interesting discussions.

For example, in art, pupils have recently developed their skills through a whole-school global art project. Their vibrant work, beautifully displayed around the school, reflects the global influences and relevant issues they discussed, as well as their technical abilities and their attention to detail. Teachers accurately understand how much pupils know and learn because they use assessment very well. As a result, pupils receive work that challenges them to really think. Leaders are striving to ensure that teachers have excellent subject knowledge in every single subject. Close work with other schools in the trust allows expertise to be effectively shared.

OFSTED 2020

"Dear Mrs Gregori,

We wanted to let you know how impressed we have been with the students at Bletchingley Village Primary School. Our team at Merstham Library have thoroughly enjoyed each class visit this term. The students were so engaged and enthusiastic about the library and the books. We were impressed with the intelligent questions we were asked and their class behaviour in a public place was exlempary. We have discussed regular visits for Years 3 and 5, including topic specific visits with the teachers. We look forward to welcoming the students again soon."

Samantha Ball, Merstham Library

Some quotes from some of our children:

"The teachers are really kind"
"We get to do lots of outdoor learning because we have loads of outdoor space"
"I like using the laptops"
"We have lots of grounds to play in"
"The teachers give you lots of support"
"We have fun lessons"
"We do lots of different activities"
"We get to do a lot of PE"
"The games are really fun"
"The food is really nice"
"We have a great selection of books"
"I really like the teachers"
"I like cooking things on the fire in forest school"
"I like eating lunch outside"
"I love doing gymnastics with Chris"
"We get rewarded for good behaviour"