The Fleet Curriculum

The key tenets of our curriculum at Fleet are: 

• creating experiences which bring learning to life
• immersing the children in rich literature
• enabling children to share and celebrate their learning with others

We pride ourselves on our topic based learning approach and each term, teachers plan a stimulating and immersive topic for their class using the topic framework as reference. Learning will be integrated as much as possible and link in with the topic so as to make the learning purposeful and engaging for the children. This approach also enables teachers to tailor the learning to their class’s needs and interests.

When planning a topic, teachers' will choose key texts relating to the theme, upon which they can hang a sequence of cross curricular lessons. These texts are carefully researched and teachers collaborate regularly with each other in order to share expertise. We’ve found this approach ensures enthusiasm from the children and gives their learning a real sense of vibrancy and purpose.

As part of each topic, teachers will also plan trips and visits to enhance the learning or provide additional stimulus. We ensure that wherever possible the children are given ample opportunity to experience their learning as part of  the wider world. 

In order to celebrate each topic, every class performs an assembly for their parents and the rest of the school, showcasing their learning as well as their performance skills. Throughout the term children's learning is shared and praised through our weekly Sharing Assemblies, the newsletter and Twitter. 

Each term the topic will either be history, geography or science based with other subjects dovetailing in, to ensure balanced curriculum coverage over the course of the year. Whilst our creative approach enables most lessons to link in with the class’s topic, some lessons will be taught discreetly rather than forced to fit. 

Read on below and visit the links for more in depth information on our curriculum approach. To learn about each individual subject's intent, implementation and impact see the subject information pages linked here.

Fleet Curriculum Principles - July 2019

Curriculum Overviews

The documents linked to below contains the curriculum overview for each year group. Each presents an outline of the content of the National Curriculum for each subject by year group at Fleet.

In the National Curriculum, core subjects (English, Maths & Science) are presented in a year–by-year or paired year group format. All other subjects are divided into Key Stages. The statutory basis of the National Curriculum (under the Education Act 2002 and subsequent legislation) does not permit the government to specify curriculum content other than by key stage. Therefore, this curriculum allows schools to move content around within each key stage.

As a school we have collaboratively made a decision on the most appropriate ordering of each Key Stages content and inlcuded this information when creating these overviews to show what objectives are covered in each subject in each year group.

EYFS CURRICULUM OVERVIEW

EYFS to Year 1 Progression OVERVIEW

year 2 curriculum overview

year 3 curriculum overview

year 4 curriculum overview

year 5 curriculum overview

YEAR 6 CURRICULUM OVERVIEW

The Integrated Curriculum

At Fleet the curriculum is planned and delivered through cross-curricular topic work. We aim for our curriculum to be creative and stimulating at all times and for it to ensure that the children really engage with and enjoy their learning in order to achieve high standards of academic attainment.

Our children bring considerable and varied backgrounds of knowledge and experience to school and this is often not differentiated, at least in the child’s mind, into subject areas. An integrated curriculum provides a means of building on such experience and provides a vehicle to introduce children to important areas contained within subjects in a contextualised and integrated way.

We want learning to be based on real experience and to recognise the importance of children’s independence and autonomy. Providing such experiences underpins our approach to curriculum planning.

The topic overviews - topic letter and snap shot which is sent home every term (see link further down this page to see them) sets out the content of our school curriculum for each acdemic year. 

Teaching and Learning Policy

Curriculum Organisation

Each class in the school focus on three topics (one per term) over the course of the year.
At the beginning of each academic year, teachers use our agreed topic framework (click here) to decide on their three topics and map out the year’s work in each subject area, ensuring that full national curriculum coverage is attained. This topic framework was developed to accommodate the new national curriculum introduced in September 2014.

Within each topic, teachers will plan to link as much of the learning as possible in each subject to the term’s theme. Of the three termly topics, it is usual for one to have a history emphasis, one geography and the third science.
In terms of subject distribution this means that a class may cover, for example, a large amount of their year’s geography curriculum in the term when they are focussing on their geography based topic meaning less emphasis on the subject in the other two terms. Within this flexible framework, it is the teacher’s responsibility to ensure there is an appropriate balance and full coverage of each subject over the course of the year.

The topics each term are driven by the English curriculum and much of the children’s writing and reading will use the topic subject matter as content while targeting the learning objectives set out in the English curriculum. Other areas of the curriculum will integrate to varying degrees in different topics and there are inevitably some parts that will not fit in appropriately with any of the three topics planned over the year. Teachers will then use their professional judgement on when appropriate to teach subjects (or parts of subjects) discretely at different points of the year. Subjects such as maths and physical education will generally be taught discretely and in parallel to the main topic focus throughout the whole year.

Teachers are encouraged to come up with interesting and engaging names for each term’s topic and recent examples include ‘Extraordinary Explorers’, ‘Hop on Board’, ‘Raiders and Invaders’, ‘Wild About Animals’, ‘Sparks, Rhythm and Robots’ and ‘Active Planet’.

For more detail on our current topics being taught in each year group use the link below.

For more information on the Fleet curriculum contact the school office via the contact page on this website and they will pass your enquiry to the teacher who leads on Curriculum to respond.

Current Topic Overviews

How we make sure children with SEND enjoy a broad and balanced curriculum

We provide a curriculum that is broad, balanced, motivating and accessible to all children. We want our exciting curriculum to be one of the many reasons our children love coming to school! We work hard to ensure that all of our children achieve in lots of different ways as well as academic learning – for example, in drama, sport, music, dance, showing leadership and taking on responsibilities. We encourage children with SEND to play a full part in the life of our school.

Educational visits are an integral part of the curriculum at Fleet with all classes undertaking at least 3 visits per term. Children go on a week long residential visit in both Year 5 and Year 6. With visits having such importance within the curriculum, careful planning and risk assessments are undertaken to ensure that all children with SEND can be fully included on all visits and enrich their learning experiences.

Our Provision Map* shows additional specialist interventions* to accelerate children’s progress in, for example, reading, writing and mathematics: we choose these after looking carefully at the research on “What works?” These sessions run for a limited time, they are frequent (for example four sessions a week) and short (for example 20 minutes). They are well taught by a trained Teacher or Teaching Assistant. 

 Our SENDCO monitors the quality and effectiveness of these interventions every term. We measure a reading level at the start of a reading intervention and then assess progress over time and levels of attainment. If a child is not making sufficient progress and/or is falling short of national expectations, we will consider other forms of support in discussion with you and your child. We also adapt the curriculum to include children with SEND, for example:

·           Providing quiet time out for a student with emotional needs

·           Providing a visual timetable* and clear explanations of tasks for a child with autistic spectrum disorder

·           Providing assistive technology (including where necessary Augmentative and Alternative Communication*) to ensure effective communication

Additional staff provide support for learning in the Classroom and sometimes in small groups away from the main part of the lesson for a short period of time. We know that high quality teaching and well-matched support will make a big difference to the progress of children with SEND. Making sure that this happens in all classrooms is one of the most important things that our school leaders do. We make sure that all Teachers and Teaching Assistants have a clear understanding of the learning needs of the children in their class.

 Fleet school leaders – including the SENDCO - work with teachers and support staff to provide effective teaching and support for children with SEND in a variety of ways. These include:

 ·           carefully differentiated* (taking account of different needs) planning which ensures that all children are able to make progress

·           supporting the Class Teacher to take full responsibility for the learning and progress of all children

·           using a wide variety of teaching approaches, including guiding learning through demonstration; providing  visual support material

·           providing a stimulating, rich and interactive classroom environment

·           using regular, clear and rigorous assessments that help teachers to track pupils’ progress and identify gaps in their understanding

·           using our marking policy to make sure that children know how to improve their work

·           providing additional adult support from well-trained and well supervised Teaching Assistants

·           making available specialist equipment and digital technology to support access and participation in learning

We help all children to develop their skills as learners – and to persevere when they find learning difficult. You can read more about how we support good learning in our whole school teaching and learning policy.

Out-of-classroom Experiences to Support the Curriculum

Throughout their time at Fleet, we aim to give the children a range of experiences beyond the classroom. Each class will participate in at least five outings, all linked to their current topic, over the course of a term to a range of galleries, museums, historical buildings and innumerable other places of interest. Obviously it is important that the children enjoy these experiences for their own sake but the key point is that the trips build on their learning in the classroom and help bring the curriculum to life.

An added advantage of such outings is that they open the minds of the children (and often those of their parents and carers) to the variety of opportunities that both London and the wider world have to offer and how places such as museums and galleries are open and accessible to all.    

Each class also perform a termly assembly, watched by the rest of the school and their parents and carers, in which they ‘showcase’ their current topic through song, dance, drama and presentation of learning.