All Saints’ Church of England Primary School

Learning Challenge Curriculum

At All Saints we aim to provide our pupils with a unique and innovative Learning Challenge Curriculum that promotes curiosity, develops basic skills and ultimately raises standards. The children complete a number of exciting topics throughout the year to ensure all non-core subjects are delivered in an exciting and stimulating manner.

What are our aims?

We want our pupils to

• Enjoy their learning
• Feel successful in their work and to promote their self esteem

• Become creative, independent learners
• Be given significant time to learn new skills and have time to practise those skills
• Have the flexibility to decide how best to learn in different situations
• Have the flexibility to decide what they are going to learn and how
• Be given the opportunity to decide upon the final outcome of their learning
• Be able to set own targets for learning
• Know what their strengths are and areas of development are
• Become successful lifelong learners who are able to reach their full potential
• Be able to evaluate and assess their own learning

How is The Learning Challenge Curriculum taught?

A wide range of teaching and learning styles are adapted to deliver the Learning Challenge Curriculum. The topics are enquiry based and are driven by the pupils’ own questions. Within each topic ‘WOW’ moments are carefully planned for to capture the pupils’ imagination and to inspire them in their thinking.

Planned around the distinctive needs of our children at All Saints, the teaching and learning of the Learning Challenge Curriculum aims to:

• Be enquiry-based and promote curiosity

• Be outcome driven to raise standards
• Embed the application of basic skills
• Allow writing to be meaningfully embedded across the curriculum
• Be cross-curricular in a meaningful context
• Integrate empowering learning (‘learn to learn’) skills
• Incorporate the latest thinking about quality learning and brain-based learning

Within school we have developed a long term plan to ensure that topics are not repeated in different year groups.

When planning topics for the Learning Challenge Curriculum teachers consider:

• What pupils already know about the topic and what they want to know about the topic by carrying out pre-learning tasks.
• What the justification and context for planning and delivering the topic is in terms of the objectives covered and the school’s locality.
• How tasks will be differentiated to ensure that the right degree of challenge and support is set.
• What WOW experiences could be included to capture imagination and inspire pupils.
• How opportunities for the pupils to reflect on their learning can be built into the topic.
• How links can be made to incorporate English, Mathematics and Computing skills into the topic.
• How to ensure skills progression within each subject across the topic.

How is The Learning Challenge Curriculum assessed?

• At the end of each topic children present what they have learnt through a variety of ways to demonstrate their progression throughout their learning journey. This may be through the form of a specific a piece of writing, a class assembly, by creating a gallery to showcase some of their best pieces of work or through other innovative mediums.
• Pupils are assessed against the objectives laid out in the National Curriculum for all of the non-core subjects that make up our Learning Challenge Curriculum topics.
• Subject leaders collect evidence through data, work scrutiny, lesson observations, pupil interviews and photographs to assess the quality and coverage of how their subject is being delivered throughout the school to monitor progress.
• Parents and carers are kept informed of pupil progress in all subjects through 2 Parents Evenings, 3 written reports. They are also invited into a variety of open days and class assemblies to celebrate achievements.

Resources

Each year group has its own annual budget to ensure that all Learning Challenge topics are fully resourced to support and inspire the children in their learning. Money is also allocated to spend on ‘Wow’ experiences for the children to inspire them further within each Learning Challenge topic.

In addition, subject leaders also have a budget to ensure that their subject is also fully resourced.

How can you support your child at home?

• Talk to your child about their Learning Challenge topic.
• Visit museums/galleries and other local resources that link to the topic.
• Visit the library to borrow books that are linked to the topic.
• Enjoy completing art and design tasks linked to the topic.
• You are always welcome to speak to your child’s class teacher to discuss any other ways in which you can help your child with their topic work.