At Morley Memorial Primary School, our aim is to provide children with a curriculum that is broad, balanced and stimulating, and that encourages a love of life-long learning. Put simply, we want to make learning irresistible.
All children study the National Curriculum, the main elements of which are English, Mathematics, Science, Information and Communication Technology (ICT), Art and Design, Geography, History, Music, Physical Education (PE), Personal, Social, Health Education (PSHE), Modern Foreign Languages (MFL), Design Technology and Religious Education.
Class Teachers use a range of different teaching strategies to support learners, and we have a clear focus on experiential learning. Drama is often used to support learning, with children having the chance to meet all sorts of different characters, from the Big Bad Wolf to Romeo and Juliet, as part of their learning.
Learning is organised in topics, which may have a particular focus on a certain curriculum area. The topics are often presented under catchy titles such as ‘Into the Wilderness’ or ‘Up and Away’ and children are asked to consider a key question for the topic: Why does the earth erupt and quake? Could a polar bear survive in the Sahara? Were the Vikings really vicious?
Topics are introduced through ‘Wow’ days, where the children get to be involved in an exciting and engaging activity to stimulate their thinking and get them excited about the topic and the learning. Children have discovered dinosaur footprints in their class room, met scientists and created playdough bacteriophages, modelled their own canopic jars complete with preserved contents, dressed and eaten as the Romans and have been ‘evacuated’ like children in the 1940s – all designed to bring the curriculum to life and provide children with rich and memorable learning that deepens their knowledge and understanding.
Children are supported in developing their reading skills through the use of phonics-based books which support children’s acquisition of key reading skills. Daily systematic phonics sessions are conducted in Reception and Key Stage 1 using the Floppy’s Phonics Programme and Y1 children undertake the Phonics Screening check in the Summer Term. Any children in Y2 who did not attain the pass mark when they were in Y1 will also undertake the phonics screening check. As children progress in their reading journey, they are introduced to an extensive selection of books and authors – from Naughty Bus to Beowulf and from Neil Gaiman to Shakespeare – as part of shared class reading. Children also take part in daily reading activities including a weekly guided reading session with their teacher. Children are also encouraged to practise their reading at home, building fluency, comprehension and enjoyment through repeatedly revisiting texts.
Writing is a core component of the English curriculum which is based on high quality, engaging texts and a wide range of genres which enhance and complement the topics covered. Children have opportunities to practise and refine their writing skills for a range of different purposes, for example, balanced arguments, newspaper reports and job applications as well as narrative, poetry and detailed explanation texts.
We follow a Mastery approach in Maths, making use of resources from the National Centre of Excellence in the Teaching of Mathematics and the White Rose Maths Hub. The maths curriculum provides strong foundations for children’s mathematical thinking, fluency and understanding through practical small steps that lead to more complex abstract concepts using a range of models, images and processes.
Further details on the curriculum for each year group can be found under ‘Classes’ tab and selecting the required Year Group.