Haslemere Primary School

Our Vision and Values

At Haslemere, we INSPIRE. We are Inclusive, we Nurture, we provide a Safe environment, we Persevere, we promote Independence and Respect and we Educate.

Our Values Curriculum, incorporating the British Values, teaches children to be moral, responsible citizens who take responsibility for themselves and their world. We celebrate our achievements, to instil a sense of pride and appreciation. We actively teach and embed the important life-skills of maintaining a healthy mind and body through making sensible choices. 

Intent 

Curriculum Structure and Objectives

Reading is at the heart of our curriculum; inspirational and engaging texts are the foundation of our learning at Haslemere. Our topics are based on high-quality, age-appropriate texts, which allow for cross-curricular links where appropriate. We teach a carefully sequenced, broad and balanced curriculum which promotes the development of fluency in reading, a rich vocabulary, strong oracy skills and critical thinking. Reading and language acquisition are closely linked. Development of spoken language and, specifically, vocabulary acquisition, are essential for academic success: vocabulary is a huge predictor of how far children from any background will succeed at school and beyond. Our approaches to English, Mathematics and the ‘VIPERS’ approach to teaching Reading, immerse the children in a language-rich curriculum and promotes opportunities to develop spoken language. 

Our curriculum design is centred upon the theory that deliberate practice leads to fluency. The idea that learning is a change in long-term memory is integral to our curriculum design. In each subject, links are made to prior knowledge and new knowledge is imparted in small steps. We use the theory-based approach of retrieval practice, embedding ‘knowing more; remembering more’ activities and quizzes in the teaching sequence to improve memory and recall. Key concepts and skills that have been taught in the previous weeks, months or even years, are revisited, so that knowledge can be developed and refined in increasingly complex ways. The structure of the curriculum allows for continuity and progression, equipping the children with the skills and knowledge to maximise their choices and aspirations in the next stage of their education.

It is our goal that when pupils leave Haslemere, they will be equipped not only with good academic achievements, but also the ability and confidence to problem solve, collaborate, ask questions, challenge themselves and others, and to do so in a manner which reflects our vision and values. 

Personal Development

In the design of the curriculum, there are two questions to be considered: What is it like to be a pupil at Haslemere? How does our curriculum prepare our children for their future beyond primary school? Cultural capital is developed through learning experiences that extend beyond the classroom. While at Haslemere, all pupils will be given the opportunity to:

• Be readers: develop confidence and enjoyment in reading, read aloud to others, have access to a wide range of high quality texts and be guided in their book choices.

• Be confident speakers: access a language-rich curriculum, have opportunities to speak in front of peers, adults, visitors and audiences.

• Be mentally and physically healthy: access the research-based, high quality content of the Jigsaw PSHE curriculum, support from a range of external agencies, PE lessons and learning to swim.

• Be experts in the subjects that they learn: children will have the knowledge and skills to see themselves as Historians, Artists, Scientists etc…, 

• Be outdoors: local trips, outside space, outdoor learning.

• Be independent: take risks and learn from mistakes in learning, undertake positions of responsibility e.g. Pupil leadership team and Well-being pupil leads. 

• Be performers: take part in performances to parents/carers, choir, leavers assembly. 

• Be team players: compete within school, and against other schools, in sporting fixtures. 

• Be charitable: take part in fundraising events, both within school and globally.

• Be appreciators of The Arts: visit galleries, museums, the theatre, have visiting performers. 

Meeting the needs of our pupils

Our curriculum is tailored to meet the needs of our learners, supporting them to develop a positive self-identity and teaching them to appreciate the diversity of our community and wider society. We have planned our curriculum to incorporate:

• Jigsaw PSHE scheme

• Our work with The Black Curriculum project and Diversity and Equalities Forum

• High-quality core texts

• Links to the local community

• A strong focus on vocabulary and language development

• A broad and engaging extra-curricular offer

• British Values and Haslemere Values 

Implementation

Teaching and Learning

• Opportunities to revisit and review previously learnt content are planned to ensure a focus on “knowing more; remembering more.”

• The Little Wandle Letters and Sounds approach to teaching Phonics is followed from Nursery, through to the autumn term of Year 2 (Where required, ongoing Phonics support is delivered via the 7+ Rapid Catch-Up interventions.)

• Reading Practice sessions are prioritised on class timetables and take place three times a week from Reception to Year 2.

• The teaching of Reading using the VIPERS approach is prioritised on class timetables from spring term in Year 2, through to Year 6.

• Our Writing lessons are planned using high quality texts; teaching sequences are used and adapted to ensure highly engaging sessions, which maximise opportunities to write. Units of work and lessons are carefully structured to incorporate the explicit teaching of handwriting, spelling, punctuation and grammar.

• We use the mastery approach to teach Maths and use the White Rose curriculum content and teaching approaches. 

• Themed Weeks and days allow for previously taught knowledge to be revisited, strong cross-curricular links to be made and learnt skills to be applied in a range of contexts (Maths week, Science Week; Well-being week etc) 

• Planning in Science and the Foundation subjects is a collaborative process. Where possible, links are made to the text used in Writing lessons.

• Children’s metacognition skills are developed; they are taught how to think about and reflect upon their own learning.

• Support staff are timetabled to work in classes specifically with children who have an EHCP and also to deliver interventions that will help children work towards their individual targets.

Subject Knowledge

• All class-based staff throughout the school have completed the Little Wandle training modules. Ongoing monitoring and support is in place to develop and enhance subject knowledge.

• Staff meetings are used to develop teachers’ subject knowledge and include support from local authority subject specialists. 

• Subject Leaders attend termly network meetings within Merton.

• ECTs and ECT mentors are supported through the Wandle Teaching Schools Hub Mentoring Programme.

 Assessment

• Nationwide Reception Baseline Assessment (RBA) has been undertaken for the past three years.

• From Reception through to the end of the Little Wandle Letters and Sounds programme, children are assessed every six weeks in Phonics. Children who are identified for the Keep-Up and Catch-Up programme are assessed every four weeks.

• In all subjects, formative assessment (through questioning, quizzes, observations, marking and feedback) is ongoing and allows teachers to make judgments about progress and attainment, as well as identify next steps.

• Summative assessments for Maths are conducted through White Rose end of unit assessments programme. Summative assessments for Reading are through PM benchmarking and NFER assessments in Year 3 - 6. These assessments are conducted termly and are used to evaluate and assess pupils’ learning as well as to inform planning and structure of the curriculum. 

• In Science and the foundation subjects, KWL grids are used alongside knowledge organisers and quizzes to ensure ongoing teacher assessment and the adaptation of planning where necessary.

• In Writing, teachers assess independent work with reference to the statements outlined on the Merton Progression Map for writing.

• Moderation of teacher judgements in Writing takes place internally with support of an in-house Merton trained writing moderator. Moderation is also planned externally alongside partnership schools. 

• Year 4 and Year 6 teachers attend the Local Authority consensus moderation sessions annually.

Impact 

Monitoring

• A termly monitoring schedule is shared with all staff which documents planned monitoring activities, including planning looks, book looks and learning walks.

• All pupils’ progress and attainment is tracked across the school with pupil progress meetings held termly.

• Pupil data is triangulated with learning walks and book looks, in order to monitor the quality of teaching.

• Progress and attainment data is recorded on SIMs allowing for analysis of outcomes and a specific focus on key groups.

• Subject leaders are given time to conduct pupil interviews in order to monitor the teaching and learning in their subject.

Assessment Outcomes

• Knowledge and skills in the foundation subjects are assessed using KWL grids (What we know, What we want to know and what we have learnt), knowledge organisers, quizzes and questioning. In the Core subjects, class teachers use summative and formative assessments and then record results to record attainment against the National Curriculum objectives.

• Marking and feedback is used to ensure that misconceptions are addressed and work is improved upon. 

• Pupil progress meetings are held termly to track and review progress, with targets set accordingly.

• Where gaps are identified, teachers, SLT and support staff will put additional support in place through Ordinarily Available Provision and through targeted interventions. 

Pupil Outcomes

• Our Pupil Leadership Team is established to ensure that our pupil voice is heard. We encourage children to think critically and reflect upon their learning. 

• At the end of Year Six, we encourage children to reflect on their time at Haslemere and highlight their memorable experiences. 

• Through our comprehensive and well-planned monitoring programme, we are able to monitor children’s engagement in their learning and ensure the development of strong behaviour for learning skills.