Our Curriculum

Our Mission Statement Love God, Love Each Other, Love Learning reflects our Christian Vision and is deeply embedded in our school curriculum. As a result, our children are well motivated, positive, caring and resilient. Supported by our strong Christian values, the school’s curriculum is designed to nurture children’s physical, spiritual, social, cultural and moral development. It enables them to become confident, self-assured individuals with excellent attitudes to learning and a good understanding of how their education equips them for their next steps in life.
St Wilfrid’s broad and rich curriculum provides memorable experiences together with carefully planned opportunities for high-quality learning. In addition to observing statutory requirements, we develop meaningful ways in which our local context can be merged into the St Wilfrid’s curriculum.  The children’s learning is rooted in Morecambe Bay Curriculum Principles, preparing them for ambitious ranges of further study and future employment.
We follow the 2014 National Curriculum for England, and believe that:
  • All pupils are entitled to a curriculum that provides rich opportunities for them to learn and achieve.
  • The curriculum should build on pupils’ strengths, interests and experiences and develop their confidence in their capacity to learn and work independently and collaboratively.
  • It should develop enjoyment of and a commitment to a lifetime of learning.
  • Education needs to be about fun as well as serious study. Enjoyment leads to better learning.
  • Our curriculum will equip pupils with the essential skills of literacy, numeracy, and computing technology, promote an enquiring mind and capacity to think rationally.
  • Our curriculum provides a broad and balanced education that gives pupils the opportunity to be creative, innovative and enterprising.
  • Our curriculum promotes pupils’ tolerance, inclusiveness, self-esteem and emotional wellbeing to enable them to form worthwhile relationships with others and develop the capacity for leadership.
Throughout the school, we actively promote the development of a range of higher order thinking skills in our children. We are a Values Education school and believe that this impacts strongly on their attainment as well as their personal development and understanding of their role as British and global citizens.
The Early Years Foundation Stage Curriculum (Reception classes)
In the Early Years Foundation Stage there is a strong emphasis on the three prime areas which are most essential for children’s healthy development. These areas are: communication and language, physical development and personal, social and emotional development. Learning in the specific areas of literacy, mathematics, understanding the world and expressive arts and design build upon learning in the prime areas.
We aim to offer an individual and experiential curriculum where the children have fun, are engaged in their learning and actively prepared for the National Curriculum. We use a thematic approach and learning is built around a varied range of topics. We use our lovely outdoors as much as possible as a stimulus to engage, imagine and explore. In Early years we follow the a Phonics Scheme published by Pearson. Our reading material acurrately matches the phonics stage of the child.
St Wilfrid’s English Curriculum
At St Wilfrid’s we aim to develop key skills in English and to foster a love of reading and writing, bringing lifelong pleasure to our children. We enthuse the children in reading by, reading challenges and providing a good quality range of books. We develop their skills by reading in many different forms, with a strong emphasis on guided reading and lots of “book talk”. We hold reading information sessions for parents each year to explain our reading scheme at KS1 and about how children’s reading can be supported at home.
We believe in developing writing skills through strategies which engage children in writing for a purpose. Telling into Writing is another strategy we use, building on children’s use of spoken language in developing their writing skills.
In order to ensure that our provision for English complies with the new National Curriculum, we have reviewed current practice. The main changes in 2014 are encompassed in higher expectations of pupils at earlier stages and more emphasis on the teaching of spelling, punctuation and grammar.
Within Key Stage One and through Lower and Upper Key Stage Two, we ensure that we have sufficient balance of text types across a range of Narrative, Poetry and Non-Fiction. These are then planned to be taught alongside and within relevant topics building on previous skills taught and introducing new ones as appropriate.
St Wilfrid’s Mathematics Curriculum
Maths is a life skill. It is an essential element of communication, widely used in society, both in everyday situations and the world of work.
Our aims in teaching mathematics are to nurture a fascination and excitement of the subject, to equip pupils with the mathematics they need to become numerate and apply skills learnt in other areas of the curriculum. We believe in making learning fun and use lots of practical resources and strategies in maths lessons.
Within the National Curriculum 2014, expectations have increased across the key stages. In many cases it can be seen that what was expected as extension work for higher ability children is now being expected for all children. In addition to this, some aspects of areas of learning are to be taught at an earlier stage e.g. formal written methods, introduction of standard units of measurement, tables to 12 x 12 to be learnt by the end of year 4. The number work in Key Stage 1 is taught in such a way as to allow each child to develop at their own rate. Calculators, computers and maths games are used alongside to develop a deeper understanding of mathematical ideas and their practical application.
The scheme we use for Maths is White Rose Maths. The Calculation Policies are included in the links below so you can see what methods we use across school.

wrm-addition-subtraction-calculation-policy-july-2022-compressed

Multiplication and Division calculation policy July 2022-compressed

 

St Wilfrid’s Science Curriculum
We teach a wide range of scientific knowledge alongside skills of scientific enquiry. Our aim is to make science accessible and engaging across the curriculum and aim for every child to think of themselves as a scientist. Many of our science lessons are led by topics and these can be revisited in different year groups to deepen knowledge and skills.
St Wilfrid’s Religious Education Curriculum
As a church school, we follow the Blackburn Diocese Board of Education Religious Education syllabus. This was revised in 2017. The aim of the curriculum is to give pupils a sense of being on a quest of discovery. A key feature of the syllabus is the large number of questions included in each unit. The purpose of these questions is to give pupils opportunity to investigate, reflect, evaluate and make meaning. In doing so, the intention is that they will discover more about themselves, their relationships with others, their relationship with the world around them and their relationship with God. Pupils will experience, explore and encounter a wide range of creative and challenging activities that will help them to discover the answers to ultimate questions such as these:-
Who am I and what does it mean to be me?
In what ways do/can I relate to others?
How/where can I encounter God?
How can I make a positive contribution to the world in which I live?
What values, attitudes, beliefs and behaviour are important to me?
What does it mean to have faith?
Who/what influences and inspires me?
The aims of Religious Education in our Church school are:-
  • To enable pupils to encounter Christianity as the religion that shapes British culture and heritage and influences the lives of millions of people today;
  • To enable pupils to learn about the other major religions, their impact on culture and politics, art and history, and on the lives of their adherents;
  • To develop understanding of a religious faith as the search for and expression of truth;
  • To contribute to the development of pupil’s own spiritual/philosophical convictions, exploring and enriching their own faith and beliefs.
The outcomes for pupils at the end of their education in church schools are that they are able to:-
  • Think theologically and explore ultimate questions;
  • Reflect critically on the truth claims of Christian belief;
  • Develop the skills to analyse, interpret and apply the Bible text;
  • Recognise that faith is a particular of understanding and responding to God and the world;
  • Analyse and explain the varied nature and traditions of the Christian community;
  • Make a well informed response to Christianity;
  • Respect those of all faiths in their search for God;
  • Reflect critically on the on all areas of shared belief and practice between different faiths;
  • Enrich and expand their understanding of truth;
  • Reflect critically and express their views on the human quest and destiny.

Further details can be found at http://www.bdeducation.org.uk/

Personal, Social, Health and Economic (PSHE) education
PHSE is strongly valued at St Wilfrid’s School as an important and necessary part of all pupils’ education. It encompasses relevant strands such as Fundamental British Values, Global Learning and Values Education.
The PSHE curriculum reflects our belief that God loves us all and every child who attends St Wilfrid’s will develop their faith, their abilities and know how to develop in the world ahead as global citizens.
Our PSHE education at St. Wilfrid’s is designed to reflect our Christian Vision and we aim to:
  • support pupils’ spiritual, moral, cultural, mental and physical development, prepare them for the opportunities, responsibilities and experiences of life and to ensure children are taught about safeguarding, including online, through teaching and learning opportunities, as part of providing a broad and balanced curriculum
  • develop pupils’ understanding and awareness of HEALTH AND WELLBEING (Core Theme 1)  This core theme focuses on: 1. what is meant by a healthy lifestyle 2. how to maintain physical, mental and emotional health and wellbeing 3. how to manage risks to physical and emotional health and wellbeing 4. ways of keeping physically and emotionally safe 5. about managing change, including puberty, transition and loss 6. how to make informed choices about health and wellbeing and to recognise sources of help with this 7. how to respond in an emergency 8. to identify different influences on health and wellbeing
  • develop pupils’ understanding and awareness of RELATIONSHIPS (Core Theme 2) This core theme focuses on: 1. how to develop and maintain a variety of healthy relationships, within a range of social/cultural contexts 2. how to recognise and manage emotions within a range of relationships 3. how to recognise risky or negative relationships including all forms of bullying and abuse 4. how to respond to risky or negative relationships and ask for help 5. how to respect equality and diversity in relationships
  • develop pupils’ understanding and awareness of LIVING IN THE WIDER WORLD (ECONOMIC WELLBEING AND BEING A RESPONSIBLE CITIZEN, Core Theme 3) This core theme focuses on: 1. about respect for self and others and the importance of responsible behaviours and actions 2. about rights and responsibilities as members of families, other groups and ultimately as citizens 3. about different groups and communities 4. to respect diversity and equality and how to be a productive member of a diverse community 5. about the importance of respecting and protecting the environment 6. about where money comes from, keeping it safe and the importance of managing it effectively 7. the part that money plays in people’s lives 8. a basic understanding of enterprise
St Wilfrid’s Computing Curriculum
There are 3 strands within the new curriculum:
Digital Literacy – focusing on skills using and developing their ideas through computers and technology .
Computer Science, in which pupils are taught how programs and digital systems work, developing skills to correct problems.
Information Technology, where pupils will build on their knowledge and understanding to create programs, systems and applications to control and program.
There is also a strong emphasis on  Online Safety throughout the Primary Key Stages.

St Wilfrid’s Foundation Subjects

For details of the foundation subjects in Key Stage One and Two for: History, Geography, Art, Music, Design Technology, Modern Foreign Languages and Physical Education please click here.

Foundation subjects are often taught through topic based approaches, with a rolling programme in place for mixed age classes. Please click on the following links for details:

St Wilfrid’s KS2 Curriculum Coverage 21-22 Sycamore & Oak

St Wilfrid’s KS2 Curriculum Coverage 21-22 Beech & Pine

Cherry & Chestnut Curriculum Topic Year A

Ash and Willow Curriculum Topic Grid Year A

Further information for parents/carers
If parents have any questions about the curriculum then the first port of call should be the class teacher. It is very likely that the class teacher will be able to respond to your query. It is possible that you may be referred to the member of staff with specific responsibility for the subject area or to a member of the school’s Leadership Team.