Aldermaston C of E Primary School

The curriculum at Aldermaston CE Primary School

Approach to the curriculum

We use an approach to the curriculum that satisfies our statutory requirements and at the same time enriches the children’s experience and makes the best use of our children’s interests, our resources, our relationships with people all over the world and our environment. This approach includes visits, trips and theme days for groups, classes or sometimes even the whole school, which allows rich first-hand experiences that will stick in the memory.

To understand the school's approach to teaching and learning, please have a look at the document "Putting learning at the heart of our community" which makes clear what the expectations are for learning and teaching from all involved: school staff, children, parents and governors.

Learning Skills

The curriculum content is taught alongside the aquisition of learning skills: those of a self manager, reflective learner, resourceful thinker,effective participator, independent enquirer and team worker. In this way children use the context of the statutory (and wider) curriculum to develop transferable skills applicable to any future curriculum, in secondary school and beyond, and to prepare them for any employment situation that the future might hold. We want to ensure that whatever our children need to face the challenges of the future, they will have it, and whatever our world will need in ten to fifteen years' time, Aldermaston children will have the capacity to provide it. An overview of these Learning Behaviours and recent changes to the curriculum is available here. Watch this space for a relaunch of the six skills using children's superhero designs!

Statutory Curricula

We teach the primary curriculum  to our children from years 1 to 6.

For their first year at school at age four to five years, our reception children are taught under the statutory Early Years Foundation Stage Framework.

Religious Education is taught according to the West Berkshire Agreed Syllabus, which can be found here. We use an enquiry approach which starts with a question - often the same question across the school considered through different religions at an appropriate level to challenge children at their particular stage of development.

An overview of the topics covered under these curricula can be found in the curriculum maps, which give an overview of the year, and more information about the current term along with useful information for parents (and how you may be able to help your child and their class) can be can be found in the term planners, published soon after the beginning of each term. Please understand that children's needs, and our understanding of them, change over time, and that plans will be adapted accordingly.

Phonics

Fundamental to all learning throughout the school is the teaching of phonics. Phonics underpins reading and writing throughout primary school. As children progress through their schooling, the ability to read becomes crucial to attainment in all subjects across the curriculum.  Click here for a document aimed at parents that explains our approach to phonics.  

Reception Class (part of Early Years Foundation Stage)

Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2