At Willow Primary School, we aim to provide a broad and balanced curriculum that meets the needs of all children. Through our curriculum, we want to enable children to meet their full potential, make progress through their learning journey and develop in to well rounded citizens.
Pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural (SMSC) development is at the heart of our school ethos. At Willow Primary School, we recognise the importance of developing children’s general knowledge and understanding of the world. We believe that our children deserve and need us to provide more than just the National Curriculum. The journey through life is a wonderful thing and the children have so much more to learn and experience through each stage of their school life. With this in mind, we have prioritised the things we want our children to experience during their time with us.
We use our curriculum drivers to underpin the learning we do in all areas of school life and to ensure that the curriculum we offer is personalised to our children, community and context.
Our aims are to deliver a curriculum which is accessible to all and that will maximise the outcomes for every child so that they know more, remember more and understand more. Our personal, social, health and economic education enables our children to become healthy, independent and responsible members of a society. It aims to help them understand how they are developing personally and socially, and tackles many of the moral, social and cultural issues that are part of growing up.
The fundamental British Values are promoted through the overarching aims and objectives of SMSC by supporting our children to become healthy and responsible members of society, as well as preparing them for life and work in modern Britain. We provide our children with opportunities for them to learn about rights and responsibilities and appreciate what it means to be a member of a diverse society. Our children are encouraged to develop their sense of self-worth by playing a positive role in contributing to school life and the wider community.
Our intention is to build a SMSC curriculum which develops learning in the acquisition of knowledge and skills which enables children to access the wider curriculum and to prepare children to be a global citizen now and in their future roles within a global community.
We seek to promote a caring, compassionate and fair environment within which all pupils are valued and enabled to flourish. We facilitate this by fostering the values of Friendship, Kindesss, Perseverance, Respect, Responsibility and Creativity. Emphasis is placed on the traditional values of hard work and self-discipline.
Beyond our documented curriculum, it is hoped that the school’s ASPIRE values provide a culture that contributes equally towards the spiritual, moral, social and cultural development of our children. Pupils are encouraged to exercise a measure of personal responsibility for their own learning through our ASPIRE Values. The delivery of the curriculum is underpinned by these values and is delivered predominantly through good quality texts. The Pupil Leadership, consisting of pupils elected from each class, provides a forum for pupils to contribute to the decision-making process in the school.
Our curriculum demonstrates subject knowledge, skills and understanding to fulfil the duties of the Relations Education (RE), Relationship and Sex Education (RSE) and Health Education HE) whereby schools must provide a ‘balanced and broadly-based curriculum which promotes the spiritual, moral, cultural, mental and physical development of pupils and prepares them for the opportunities and responsibilities and experiences for later life'.
Aspects of Personal, Social and Health Education and Religious Education within the curriculum provide pupils with opportunities to develop spiritually and morally in a supportive atmosphere. Spiritual and moral themes are also explored in regular whole-school and class assemblies.
At Willow Primary School, we use Jigsaw to teach PSHCE which is a comprehensive scheme of work in line with the National Curriculum.
The scheme of work includes:
Click the link below to view our Whole School Curriculum Map which includes the following strands:
At Willow Primary School, we believe that PSHE plays a vital part of primary education and needs to be taught frequently. Our PSHCE curriculum starts in Reception and follows the children through to Year 6.
Our scheme of work (Jigsaw) includes opportunities to link the fundamental British Values and RE. The distribution of the lessons complements national events throughout the year such as Anti-bullying Week, Children in Need, Remembrance Day, Road Safety and many more!
There are often occasions where teachers may feel it necessary to teach PSHCE as a result of an issue arisen in their own class. Our teaching approach places a great emphasis upon respect, collaboration and cooperation. Beyond this, pupils are encouraged to develop and show leadership in their class and school community through the Pupil Leadership Ambassadors teams.
Whole school, Key Stage and class assemblies make a links to PSHE, British Values, SMSC and our school values. PSHCE is an important part of school assemblies were children's spiritual, moral, social and cultural curiosity is stimulated, challenged and nurtured. PSHCE, British Values and SMSC displays throughout school reinforce the PSHE curriculum enabling children to make links.
At Willow, we deliver the PSHCE curriculum by utilising first hand experience and sharing good practice. We are aware that the delivered curriculum must reflect the needs of our pupils. We expect teachers to use a PSHCE map and scheme to equip pupils with a sound understanding of risk and with the knowledge and skills necessary to make safe and informed decisions.
Our aims:
We believe that PSHCE plays a vital part of primary education and as well as discrete focused lessons, it is also embedded throughout the curriculum. PSHCE is integral to the development of children’s values in order for them to become a positive citizen in a forever changing community.
Safeguarding Curriculum
At Willow, we weave all aspects of wellbeing and safeguarding into our curriculum so that children have a good knowledge and confidence around how to keep themselves and others safe.