Curriculum

At Wold Academy we offer a curriculum which is broad and balanced and which builds on the knowledge, understanding and skills of all children, whatever their starting points, as they progress through each Key Stage. The curriculum incorporates the statutory requirements of the National Curriculum and other experiences and opportunities which best meet the learning and developmental needs of the pupils in our school.

The aim of our knowledge-based curriculum is for pupils to have the requisite knowledge, skills and wider understanding to be successful, independent and motivated learners in readiness for their next stage of education. Within this curriculum the pupils will develop their learning of key facts, important events and will develop their understanding of the world around us.

By adopting this whole-school approach to teaching and learning across our school, we aim:

To enable children to deepen their understanding of age-related subject content
To give children the knowledge and skills they require to become effective lifelong learners in modern Britain and the wider world
To provide an inclusive education where every child is capable of anything
To support teachers in delivering high quality lessons which allow all children to succeed
To deliver an engaging and thought-provoking curriculum which promotes children’s wellbeing and involvement in all subject areas
To learn from each other, through the adoption of a collaborative approach to teaching and learning

The whole purpose of education is to turn mirrors into windows.

For further information about the curriculum followed at Wold Academy please contact us.

Curriculum Overview knowledge-based curriculum

The knowledge-based curriculum is progressive, building from historical and geographical knowledge of their immediate locality and then developing a wider understanding of Great Britain, Europe and the rest of the world.

The knowledge-based curriculum also includes a progressive science element. This is structured to allow clear scientific skills to be developed through scientific enquiry and experimentation, and to encourage pupils to develop lively, enquiring minds.

Assessment of the curriculum

The pupils at Wold Academy will continue to be assessed against the national curriculum for maths, reading and writing for reporting purposes. Children have specific targets linked to the learning objectives expected in that subject.

Science, geography and history are assessed through a multi-faceted approach including half termly quizzes pre and post units of study, skilful questioning lesson by lesson and weekly retrieval practices. Evidence of this learning will be recorded within the pupils’ books and the basis of moderation within the year at school and trust level.

Reading

Home reading books are banded according to the book banding levels in Key Stage 2 and for some Y2 children. For children in EYFS and Key Stage 1 their books are matched to the RWI scheme that we use to teach reading and phonics.

In Key Stage 2, children take books home which are a band below their reading level, at an independent reading level (95%+ accuracy).

Reading is taught as whole class in KS2 and at the end of Y2 in some classes following the Talk for Writing (T4R) framework. We use a wide variety of quality texts including whole novels, poetry and non-fiction.

Home readers are a mixture of many different schemes. The children choose their books at the appropriate level, building confidence, independence and developing their likes and dislikes.

There is also a recommended DRET reading lists for each year group which is available on the school website. One copy of each of the books is also to be found within the classroom and all children are able to borrow these as part of our library book scheme.

Writing

Writing is taught using a Talk for Writing (T4W) approach from Nursery to Y6. This allows pupils to learn a quality story or text that they can then imitate in their own writing before innovating in a different context. We look at many different forms of writing across the school such as stories with imaginative settings, instructions, recounts, humorous poems and so on. We apply these writing genres across the curriculum to ensure the children gain lifelong skills and are prepared for writing in the wider world.

Speaking and listening

Oracy skills are a key component of all our lessons at Wold and 'talk' is used in all lessons. This may be in the form of class discussions, paired talk, choral responses, oral rehearsal, debates and all other forms of speech. Our writing is taught through T4W and reading is taught through T4R, both schemes are based on children doing lots of talking which helps them frame their written work. These skills are then applied across the rest of the curriculum.

Phonics

Phonics is taught in the foundation stage, Key Stage 1 and, if needed, in Key Stage using Read Write Inc. (RWI). Children learn to recognise and say sounds, to blend and to spell and write using the same strategies. Regular assessment allows children to work at a level appropriate to them. The Phonics Screening Check takes place in June in Year 1 and if necessary is repeated in Year 2. These results are reported to the parents.

Grammar, Punctuation and Spelling (GPS)

GPS is taught across the school in literacy lessons and is embedded into the writing. We focus on spelling patterns and common exception words, how to use the different forms of punctuation and how to construct sentences using the appropriate grammar. There are end of key stage GPS tests in Y2 and Y6.

Mathematics

Mathematics is essential to everyday life. It teaches children how to make sense of the world around them by developing their ability to calculate, reason and problem solve.

At Wold Academy, we believe that every child should achieve in mathematics. To drive us towards this goal we use a mastery approach to the teaching of mathematics, using the ‘Effective Maths’ programme as our main vehicle, supplemented by other resources to support and challenge all learners. Lessons have a strong focus on developing conceptual understanding, promoting pupil discussion through active partner work and looking at different strategies to solve problems.

The mastery approach focuses on depth rather than breadth from early on. Children from the earliest opportunity are given a comprehensive diet of core number facts and concepts. Mastering these early on means that other concepts can be taught quickly in other year groups.

Children experience concrete, visual and abstract representations during a lesson in order for their conceptual understanding and fluency to be strengthened.

The overarching principle that Effective Maths follows is ‘Know’, ‘Know Why’ and ‘Apply’. Children need to be taught a concept and shown it in many different ways. They also need to know why – their conceptual knowledge is only secured when pupils can explain their understanding of that concept. Following this, children can then apply their knowledge in different contexts.

In addition to the daily maths lessons, there is a fluency lesson to help develop rapid recall of number facts.

Wold Academy subscribes to ‘TT Rockstars’ – a fun and challenging programme designed to help students increase their fluency and master the times tables. Children have their own ‘avatar’ and log in details and are encouraged to compete against him or herself to move up to ‘Rock star’ status!

Computing

At Wold Academy we understand how vitally important it is that children are digitally literate. At Wold we have adopted a topic based approach and computing is used across the curriculum to help consolidate and enhance concepts and ideas. There is ample opportunity for collaborative work, where children are equipped with the programming skills and aspects of computer science which will help them acquire the skills and understanding of how technology is used in society and the wider world. Children will also develop the necessary skills to stay safe online, be responsible and also respectful.

Religious Education

RE at Wold Academy follows the agreed syllabus for Religious Education for the Humber region. This develops children’s knowledge, skills, understanding and attitudes in RE. These are necessary for pupils' self-fulfilment and development as active and responsible citizens. Each of the major world religions are covered within the units for the agreed syllabus.

First hand experiences, the use of artefacts, visits to local places of worship and visits from local religious leaders are all planned to enhance enjoyment and understanding in RE. We also enable pupils to develop their own sense of identity and knowledge, understanding and sensitivity to the needs and contributions of all citizens and to understand that that we live in a diverse society.

Design Technology

DT is taught throughout the school through our curriculum topics. This can involve the children carrying out projects over a series of lessons, as they design, produce and evaluate their products, or individual lessons focussed on refining the skills needed for each of these stages.

David Ross Education Trust and British Values

The Trust is very supportive of the ethos of promoting British Values, and preparing our pupils for success in a modern Britain.

A heavy reliance is placed upon broadening horizons for each and every child and this includes developing the core skills of tolerance, respect, teamwork, resilience and building self-esteem. These are all values and qualities that we feel are relevant in order to play a full and meaningful role in society, and are promoted via our extensive house system that lends itself to cultural and sporting competition, democratic principles, social mixing, the development of greater pastoral care and enhanced PSHE.

Click here to find out more about British Values at our academy