Curriculum
At Eldene School, we are topic-based and our ambition is to meet the changing needs of each child to ensure equity. We see our curriculum as a balance between knowledge and skills which lead to learning more and knowing more. We often use cross-curricular teaching, using the Cornerstone resources, to make the curriculum both relevant and to put the knowledge into context.
Some children enter at age-related expectations and are ready to embrace learning. However, many others begin their educational journey with limited experience of language, few basic skills and little knowledge of the world around them. As an inclusive school, we recognise the needs of groups will be different, including those of disadvantaged and SEND children; significant groups in our school community.
The ambitious and varied curriculum motivates and engages children with the essential knowledge and skills to fulfil their potential. At the end of Year 6, the success of the journey through our curriculum can be seen in the progress that children make in national assessments.
Provision to ensure all children are given equal opportunity to succeed is wide and varied. Social and emotional support are an integral part of the curriculum. Embedded practices are in place to support both children and their families, offering the support that the children need to meet their potential.
During EYFS and in Year 1 the curriculum coverage focuses on the basic building blocks needed to develop the characteristics of effective learning (engagement, motivation and thinking) and to prepare children to access the National Curriculum. From later in KS1 and through KS2, the curriculum becomes more knowledge-engaged, although we know that there will always be a need to teach some knowledge and skills discretely. Our choices are logical and systematic through the layering of new content, and the continual practising of a progression of skills so that we at least cover the statutory requirements of the National Curriculum.