Our Curriculum
Curriculum Intent
At St Joseph’s, we intend to provide our children with the learning and experiences which will allow them to develop the firm foundations of knowledge which can then be used to deepen their understanding, leading to success. This allows them to develop into independent thinkers who have a thirst for knowing more and therefore expands their love of learning. We intend to do this in a safe and stimulating environment where every child is valued for their contribution and their successes are celebrated as a child of God.
Implementation
At St Joseph’s we will implement this:
Through faith – As a Catholic School, all of our teachings are underpinned by our Catholic virtues and are embedded in the gospel teachings where we place Christ at the Centre of all we do.
Through purpose – Our curriculum has been developed to make sure that the children have the opportunity to learn about things that are not only built on knowledge, but also have a meaning and purpose for them. This includes incorporating opportunities to learn about their locality, both past and present, as well as welcoming, celebrating and valuing differences that contribute to our society.
Through sequential learning – Every part of the curriculum is planned and delivered as a building block to provide the firm foundations for the skills and knowledge they will need in later life. This incorporates a spiral curriculum which allows the children to make links with prior learning and use their knowledge to learn more and challenge their own thinking.
Through fun and engaging opportunities - As a school we also want the children to enjoy their learning. Our curriculum is enhanced through a variety of interesting and engaging trips, visits and opportunities. These include local visits to Pudsey and Pudsey park, through to residential visits to Ministacres on a Spiritual retreat and Ingleborough Hall for outdoor activities. We have visited places such as the Armley Mills when studying the History theme of Victorians Yorkshire Arboretum when studying maths in the outdoor environment. We also enjoy having visitors to school and often introduce our history units with a history experience, or have speicalists in for PE, but also enjoy using our own parents and community to bring teaching and learning to life in the classroom. This exposes our children to a range of experiences, including cultural experiences that will equip them with cultural knowledge to support them in later life.
English is an exciting, engaging journey through the world of stories, the craft of writing and the joys of the imagination. Leap in, open your eyes and dance with the words.
Our English curriculum at St Joseph’s ensures that the children achieve their full potential. To accomplish this, the children are provided the opportunity to engage with, be inspired by and develop a love for literature through purposeful and engaging fiction and non-fiction texts, which subsequently influences their reading and writing.
Maths is a challenging yet powerful tool to grasp through exploring creatively, practically and methodically. Thus allowing a secure understanding to battle mathematical problems not only in lessons but in everyday life. Dive straight in, find that solution.
We value a maths curriculum that is creative and engaging where all children can access the curriculum and make progress in lessons and by sequential learning. We want to develop a sense of curiosity about the subject with a clear understanding.
Children will experience a curriculum with an approach that embraces mastery for all developing their skills using concrete, pictoral and abstract images. They will make rich connections across the areas of maths and use their knowledge in other subjects.
At St Joseph’s we aim to promote a love and enthusiasm for science and to master new skills and knowledge when working scientifically.
We want our children to be able to notice patterns and observe changes within their learning. Our teaching will also enable children to use their mathematical knowledge to analyse scientific data from experiments. Children will embrace science through practical tasks and in the outdoor environment.
We aim to challenge children’s pre-conceptions of what science is and remove barriers that make them think that they cannot enjoy or understand scientific concepts. We want to remove the idea of barriers surrounding gender, race, disability or aptitude in relation to accessing science and make children aware the importance of diversity and that all types of learners can achieve in science.
Geography is a subject that all children love, sometimes without even realising! The study of Geography leads not only to the understanding of our place in the physical world, but also places our community within a cultural, religious and economic framework. The children learn to contextualise our society, initially on a local and national scale, culminating in detailed comparisons with international communities by Year 6.
At St Joseph’s we want children who leave us to have a curiosity to explore other countries, cultures and languages, and understand what a valuable skill it is to be able to communicate with others in another language. It will open up new horizons for them and provide the foundation for learning further languages, equipping them to continue to study language in Secondary School and, maybe one day, work abroad!
In the Early Years Foundation Stage we aim to promote the spiritual, moral, social, cultural, and emotional well being of all our pupils as they begin their school journey.
We intend to make our curriculum a fun, stimulating one within an environment that fosters a love of learning which promotes confident, resilient children.
Art is a subject that all children love, even when they don't think they are creative! The study of Art encourages children to express themselves in a wide range of media. The children learn the skills needed to work in a wide range art forms, so they can plan and execute their own individual pieces.