Curriculum
Curriculum Intent Statement
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Here at Highfield Farm Primary School, we are very proud of our nurturing, key skills based, broad, balanced and knowledge rich curriculum, which our staff have carefully developed with our children, families and context in mind. The children’s development is at the heart of all aspects of our curriculum. We offer all our children the opportunity to grow as individuals and gain a true sense of belonging. The curriculum celebrates diversity and inclusion. Our pupils are taught and encouraged to care about themselves, each other and about their education and future. Our highly inclusive school is matched by an equally adaptive, personalised curriculum. We see the curriculum in its widest sense as the entire planned learning experience. This includes formal lessons as well as events, experiences, routines, and learning that take place outside the classroom. While great importance is placed on children learning the core skills of English and mathematics, here at Highfield Farm Primary School we place great value on developing the ‘whole child’ by providing a rich programme of study across all curriculum areas. Children leave Highfield Farm Primary School as confident, articulate, knowledgeable and respectful members of the community who have made excellent progress from their individual starting points. Each year they are with us they learn more, remember more and know more.
At Highfield Farm, we aim to provide a broad, balanced and language rich curriculum that meets the diverse needs of our children. We have created a curriculum that is bespoke to us and meets the unique needs of our children and community. Each subject taught is underpinned by current research with the ambition that our children will be well-rounded individuals who are prepared for the next stage of their education. Together, these subjects create a tapestry of education that addresses not just academic growth but also emotional, physical, and social development. By embracing these subjects delivered by passionate, nurturing staff in an inclusive environment, Highfield Farm Primary sets the stage for a future where our students excel individually and contribute positively to their communities.
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Our curriculum has been designed in four elements that are complimentary, but also interdependent. These are:
· The core
· Wider Curriculum
o The Foundations
o The Specialisms
o The Developmentals
All our children receive the full entitlement to our broad and rich curriculum offer delivered through high quality, inclusive teaching in a stimulating, nurturing environment. Our expectations of the children and each other are high, reflecting the ambition for the community that we serve.
The core subjects
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The core subjects are English and Maths which hold a priority position in the school day. They aim at teaching the children the knowledge and understanding needed as life skills and to access the wider curriculum areas. As a school, reading has a particular ‘weighting’ within our English curriculum, as we believe it to the fundamental academic skill to unlocking the wonders of the wider curriculum and succeeding in later life. We are unrelenting in our ambition for every child to read and to do so with confidence. Our staff are adept at making adaptations in the delivery of English and maths, ensuring that all children make the necessary progress they need to make.
The foundation subjects
The foundation subjects are geography, history, art, DT and science. They provide a rich tapestry of knowledge for our children to learn and draw upon. We teach these subjects independently and cultivate a love for the subjects in their own right without diluting them unnecessarily. We believe that a knowledge -rich based curriculum is a thing of immense power, capable of taking children beyond their lived experience and immersing them in the beauty of subject disciplines. Our foundation subjects draw upon the resources outlined in the Primary Knowledge Curriculum (PKC). The units of study are highly sequenced and provide not only the core knowledge required but also the interconnected knowledge which may provide future contexts in learning. All the units within these subjects are meticulously spaced out across the whole school curriculum, making allowances for retrieval of core knowledge, providing context in other subject disciplines and making authentic connections between subjects and units where they exist. Our aim is to inspire the next generation of learners through teaching them essential background knowledge, so that they can embark on their next step in their journey filled with confidence, able to form their own opinions and develop a deep love for learning.
The specialism subjects
The specialism subjects refer to PE, Computing, Modern Foreign languages and music. We regard them as specialist subjects as they require a specialist form of pedagogy which may differ from other subjects. It is within these subjects where we may draw upon the expertise of other adults such as coaches and musicians in teaching. We also deliver the curriculum in these subjects through various published schemes such as Real PE, Charanga and Teach Computing.
The developmental subjects
​The developmental elements of our curriculum offer includes PSHE, RE including British Values. These subjects cultivate the moral compass required for children to be successful within their communities and wider society. We place such a high value on this aspect of the curriculum owing to the fact that they contribute significantly to educating rounded pupils. British values are taught explicitly through Personal, Social, Health and Emotional (PSHE), and Religious Education (RE). We also teach British Values through our broad and balanced curriculum, and ensure they are a key driver in the Spiritual, Moral, Social and Cultural aims for our children. The school takes opportunities to actively promote British Values through whole-school and class-based assemblies and whole school systems and structures such as playground leaders.
How do I find out more about the curriculum?
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If you would like to find out more about our curriculum or have any queries please contact Mrs Mackinnon (Head teacher) or Mr P Scotton (Deputy head teacher and curriculum leader) using the contact details below.
How do I find out more about the curriculum?
If you would like to find out more about our curriculum or have any queries please contact Mr A Krabbendam, Interim Headteacher, using the contact details below.