Our Curriculum Intent

At Winterbourne Earls CE Primary we believe that our purpose is to support and develop the whole child, valuing each individual, so that all children flourish and are well equipped for life in the 21st century.

To enable this to happen, our curriculum is broad and balanced, building knowledge, encouraging independence, active learning, curiosity and creativity. We believe in collaboration, learning from others in our school and recognising our place in the community.

We strive to provide engaging, memorable opportunities for each child to enable them to recognise their own uniqueness, fulfil their potential and be proud of their achievements.

Good mental health and wellbeing is at the core of our offer; we appreciate that children need to feel happy, safe and cared for before they can learn. Our core Christian values underpin all that we provide, with faith a thread that runs through the curriculum, encouraging children to be inquisitive and enthusiastic about their learning but most importantly to be: courageous, honest, respectful, inspirational, committed to stretching their learning and thankful.

In the Early Years Foundation Stage (Reception Class) teaching challenges children to become independent, motivated learners full of curiosity about the world around us. Within our happy environment, our children experience engaging hands-on learning in a child-centred curriculum which ensures the consistent development of skills across all areas of learning. Children are encouraged to explore, take risks and form positive relationships in a setting celebrating the uniqueness of every individual.

Our Primary (KS1 and KS2) curriculum is ambitious for all children. It has been built around the objectives set out in the National Curriculum and designed with progression in mind; this ensures that children build on existing skills and knowledge which, over time, enables them to know more and remember more.

Our curriculum focuses significantly on the core areas of reading, writing, speaking and listening, maths and science. These underpin all of our termly projects and are key to providing our children with the skills needed to access a wide range of learning.

Foundation subjects are delivered using a mastery model where children are able to explore content in increasing depth and complexity as they move through school.  Knowledge and skills are developed through termly projects that begin with a philosophical enquiry question.  This approach allows us to make connections across the curriculum, whilst also developing the children’s understanding of what makes each subject distinct and unique. 

Curriculum Ambition

We strive to bring the curriculum to life for all children from all background and all abilities. We believe our children deserve inspirational learning opportunities and our curriculum planning ensures that children become immersed in exciting relevant projects which lead to authentic outcomes. They are challenged to work creatively whilst deepening their knowledge and understanding.

• From the National Curriculum content, we begin our planning by identifying philosophical concepts and big ideas that will be drawn out and explored through individual subjects. We thoughtfully explore concepts that:
  • Matter most to our children
  • Are relevant to their daily lives
  • Are linked to our local community
• The philosophical concepts are framed with an enquiry question which provides the thread of thinking across the subjects for the unit. RE and PSHE remain central to these questions making learning relevant and purposeful.
• All our projects are knowledge-rich, aspirational and contextualised. Children work towards authentic outcomes and engage with critical audiences; they undertake projects which involve complex issues which encourage an understanding of what is possible and a belief that they can make a difference.
• Throughout all our work we have high expectations, encouraging an ethic of excellence. Our curriculum is designed to encourage high levels of engagement which, when combined with a process of critique and redrafting, ensures that our children are instilled with the desire to produce beautiful work.
• Experts and professionals are invited to work alongside our children providing opportunities to inspire. Classroom environments are designed to encourage children to work collaboratively and with high levels of independence.
• We further enrich the curriculum through carefully chosen trips, visitors and learning in the outdoor environment; this additionally gives children the memorable experiences that bring the learnt knowledge to life.

“Bringing the curriculum to life for children of all backgrounds and academic abilities through a combination of exciting and authentic real-life experiences, coupled with teaching children the skills of peer critique, mastery, thinking for themselves and taking a huge amount of care and pride in their work.”

Jonathan Lear

(Updated and expanded May 23)