Curriculum

At Framework Federation we believe that the curriculum is a powerful tool that promotes a love of learning and willingness to explore as any opportunities and experiences as possible. We use the National Curriculum as a starting point for a wide and varied learning experience for our children. We enrich this by our strong ethos based on respect for ourselves and others, equality and a sense of wonder at the world we live in. We are committed to developing the whole child. Our children have the opportunity to be creative, physically active and academically challenged. We are continually reviewing and improving the curriculum we offer to the children, often learning being led by the children. The curriculum is evolving according to the needs and aspirations of our children, staff and community.

At Wessington Primary, our curriculum is designed to recognise and embrace our Vision:

Learning, Enjoying, Achieving

Looking after our Mental & Physical Health

We want you to embrace the love of learning and enjoy coming to school.

We want you to build your resilience and determination to achieve your best in all areas.

We want you to become independent, confident, use your initiative and make the correct choices, to be successful in life.  To take responsibility for your own choices.

We want you to embrace being a British Citizen in modern Britain demonstrating tolerance, acceptance and respect for all.

We want you to be responsible for the world we live in and endeavour to look after our environment. 

We want you to be proud to be a pupil at our school.

The curriculum is designed to recognise pupil’s prior learning, provide quality and fun learning experiences for all, allow pupils to develop their knowledge, skills and vocabulary, build independence and resilience and become responsible, caring citizens. We foster an ethos of high expectations, aspirations and challenge for all. All children have access to the broad and balanced curriculum with additional support, challenge and adaptions made to ensure all can engage.

Our curriculum has been carefully developed to ensure children become lifelong learners. We recognise that every pupil is individual and we celebrate differences within our school community. We also embrace the need to provide our children with life experiences and cultural capital opportunities which run alongside and compliment the curriculum to fully engage in the real world. We want to give them the tools to overcome barriers to learning and find the curriculum area that they can enjoy and achieve.

Teaching and Learning Strategies and Additional Support

Research, predominantly by the EEF, has highlighted the interventions and strategies which help children and have greatest impact in catch-up and make accelerated progress. Many of these are just adapting teaching styles for whole class teaching and most teachers incorporate the vast majority of these suggested strategies in their excellent provision on a daily basis.

In addition to this, some children need to access additional support, either 1:1 or in a small group. However, we need to remain with our beliefs, which is also proven by EEF research, that taking children ‘out of class’ to catch up can have a negative effect – both academically and on their mental health. Therefore, although for some children this is very much needed, it will be kept to short focused sessions each week to ensure a positive learning experience.

The following strategies are recommended to have proven high impact on accelerated progress and are often used as an integral part of the teaching and learning at Framework Federation:

Collaborative and Peer Assisted Learning

• A common overall outcome where pupils either work together on a shared task often in competition to drive more effective collaboration.
• The children incorporate termly Using and Applying Challenges which embed this strategy.

Immediate Feedback

• Either verbal or written, immediate feedback has extremely high impact on learning

Mastery Learning

• No limits on learning – open ended tasks with children choosing their level of learning. Children are able to choose their own level of challenge and lead their own learning with a common lesson content for all children.

Oral Language Intervention

• Targeted reading aloud and book discussion explicitly extending pupil vocab
• Use of structured questioning to develop reading comprehension
• The use of purposeful, curriculum focussed dialogue and interaction

Metacognition and Self-Regulation

• Children are taught specific strategies for planning, monitoring and evaluating learning.
• They have a repertoire of strategies to choose from:

       3 parts – Cognition- Mental processes involved in knowing, understanding and learning

                 Metacognition – also defined as ‘learning to learn’

                 Motivation – Willingness to engage our metacognitive and cognitive skills

Outdoor Learning and Physical Activity

• Good for mental and physical health and encourages the enjoyment of learning

Peer Tutoring

• Cross ability tutoring in which one learner takes the tutoring role
• Common characteristic is that learners take the responsibility for aspects of teaching and evaluating success

Additional Phonics

• Additional phonic sessions to catch up missed or forgotten knowledge

Reading Comprehension Strategies

• Reading comprehension strategies focus on the learners’ understanding of written text. Pupils learn a range of techniques which enable them to comprehend the meaning of what they read. These can include: inferring meaning from context; summarising or identifying key points; using graphic or semantic organisers; developing questioning strategies; and monitoring their own comprehension and then identifying and resolving difficulties for themselves
• Strategies are often taught to a class and then practiced in pairs or small groups

Reducing Class Sizes – all children are taught in classes less than 23 for English & Maths

• Reducing class size is an approach to managing the ratio between pupils and teachers, as it is suggested that the range of approaches a teacher can employ and the amount of attention each student will receive will increase as the number of pupils per teacher becomes smaller.

Pre-Learning

• Giving a child the insight into the lesson before it happens so they start the lesson confident and with prior knowledge which enables them to actively participate

1:1 Tuition

• This may include: Daily reading, additional phonics, oral interventions and vocabulary extension, additional basic maths facts, reading comprehension strategies, pre-learning tasks, nurture, Lego therapy, yoga, mindfulness and drawing & talking.

With all these important factors in mind, our vision and curriculum intent weave within all subject areas and cross-curricular whilst continuously building on knowledge, skills and vocabulary.

Each subject starts with a pre-learning task to ensure knowledge is being built upon. Continuing from our EYFS example, we follow the child led learning approach where children are given the opportunity to express questions or areas of interest they would like to extend their learning in. they take an ownership of their learning.

With the end product in mind, the teachers then plan to teach the build up of skills, knowledge and vocabulary, make sessions as fun as possible and adapting activities to suit the differing learning styles, putting learning into context using ‘real life’ scenarios and giving them a sense of purpose. We teach using the mastery approach wherever possible – no limits on learning. Included in this are also challenge opportunities or questions so that ALL pupils have the opportunity to further extend their knowledge and understanding.

Learning is consolidated and embedded through a weekly ‘Framework Flashback’ when knowledge organisers from past learning are used to recap on past learning.

Post learning tasks ensure that learning has been built upon, including the common themes throughout the topic areas.

There is a strong focus on reading, writing and maths cross curricular, wherever possible,  throughout all subjects areas. However we also develop the passion for the love and enjoyment of reading across the school too. 

In addition to the planned curriculum structure, focus days and weeks take place throughout the year – World Book Day, Safer Internet Day, Science Week, Enterprise Week to name but a few. These, alongside our Cultural Capital Activities, help to develop the whole child and embrace the vision and learning intent:

Curriculum Intent:

Learning, Enjoying, Achieving!

Learning is fun. 

We achieve high standards.
We build independence and resilience.

We give opportunities for appreciation and application of real life.

We encourage a love of the outdoors.

We are also extremely proud of the Curriculum Enrichment Curriculum which links very carefully with the PSHE, British Values,  the 16 Sustainable Development Goals, Assemblies and School Council Leadership and underpins all of our values across the school:

Framework Federation also incorporates child-initiated projects whereby children are able to direct their own learning, answer their own pre-planned questions in an area of learning that fascinates them and present using their preferred learning style in a topic that interests them beyond the National Curriculum. Giving the child a sense of ownership and pride in their learning. These run alongside our curriculum maps.

As a federation, the children are taught using our staff expertise. All classes are taught by their own class teacher for English and Maths but in KS2 many of the curriculum areas are taught by the Subject Leaders thus ensuring continuity, progression and a great level of skill. Staff work together to continually monitor and reflect upon practice, identifying strengths and areas for development.

At both Lea and Wessington Primary Schools, we have strong partnerships with others. We meet with others in the Matlock Cluster to give children a variety of enrichment opportunities.

Teachers meet for joint training and moderation of children’s work. Headteachers also meet together – to share good practice and to ensure the highest standards in all areas.

We strongly believe in the benefits to the children and society if strong community links are made, in particular between generations. We actively encourage volunteers, from all generations, into school and for the children to visit the local community. Pre-covid, the Women’s Institute were working with the children to develop their knitting and sewing skills!

We also have a strong partnership with Holloway playgroup, the Executive Headteacher being the Vice- Chair. Both schools have good links with the church and other community organisations

Click on the links below for further information on our curriculum subjects:

If you require any additional information to that included on our website, please contact the school office.