'We were all delighted with your wonderful children, how good they were and how well they participated.'
School Visitor
ART
All children at Somerford Primary School are artists, designers, crafts people and creators. They are inspired and influenced by Art through history and culture, as well as by current designers and makers. The children understand that Art is a process of research, experimenting, designing, making and evaluating. The children also use personal experiences, feelings and opinions to inspire creativity. It is understood that Art is skilful and it is necessary to learn how to apply techniques to their work. Vocabulary is used to describe the skills, techniques and processes that are applied.
Every half term the children are introduced to an artist or style of Art, as well as a skills focus. The skills taught are grouped into: drawing, colour, pattern, form (3D), texture (different materials) and printing. Initial work is produced in sketchbooks, culminating in a final piece of artwork, which could be produced collaboratively or on a bigger scale. A photograph of this is recorded in the children’s sketchbooks, along with an evaluation of their work.
COMPUTING
At Somerford Primary our aim is to provide a high-quality computing education which equips children to move from being just users of computers and software to becoming confident and creative explorers, inventors and problem solvers of computers, systems and software.
In this growing and ever changing world of technology the safety of our children when accessing content online is paramount therefore E safety is a significant part of our curriculum.
By the time they leave Somerford Primary, children will have gained key knowledge and skills in the three main areas of the computing curriculum: computer science (programming and understanding how digital systems work), information technology (using computer systems to store, retrieve and send information) and digital literacy (evaluating digital content and using technology safely and respectfully).
At Somerford Primary School we have chosen a whole school scheme of work to support the teaching of the Computing curriculum to our children. We believe this scheme will ensure that our children will receive high quality lessons and guidance, as well as help them to build on their computing skills, with a planned progression, as they move through the school.
The implementation of the curriculum ensures a balanced coverage of computer science, information technology and digital literacy. The children will have experiences of all three strands in each year group, but the subject knowledge imparted becomes increasingly specific and in depth, with more complex skills being taught, thus ensuring that learning is built upon.
DESIGN TECHNOLOGY
“Design is a funny word. Some people think design means how it looks. But of course, if you look deeper, it’s really how it works.” Steve Jobs
Through Design Technology at Somerford Primary, we intend for children to become independent, creative, problem solvers and thinkers as individuals and part of a team. It enables them to identify needs and opportunities and to respond to them by developing a range of ideas and by making products and systems. Lessons will be hands on and engaging, with the children having access to a range of resources and materials. The cross curricular nature of Design and Technology offers meaningful contexts for the children to apply knowledge and skills across a variety of subjects including art, language, maths and science.
Children are encouraged to think critically in order to evaluate their prototypes and when testing their designs. This will allow the children to build upon their prior knowledge and become more resourceful. We want the children at our school to develop their imagination, their critical thinking and their understanding of the world around them through their love of Design and Technology. We aim for our children to question and think innovatively about the world around them in order to design and develop their own products with a purpose in mind.
Cooking and nutrition at our school provides opportunities for children to learn about where food comes from, how food is grown, reared or caught and the effect of seasonality on the availability of food. At Somerford Primary we also learn about the principles of healthy eating and how to prepare and cook dishes safely and hygienically using a range of techniques and cooking skills.
ENGLISH
We want all children to develop a love of language for language sake. We aim to develop children’s ability to use spoken and written language to communicate effectively – to listen, speak, read and write for a wide range of purposes. We follow the National Curriculum 2014 to deliver lessons rich in reading, writing, phonics, spelling, grammar and punctuation.
As soon as children enter Somerford School, we place a great emphasis on developing their oracy skills. We have a firm belief that if children “can’t speak it, they can’t write it” therefore children are constantly encouraged to articulate their sentences before beginning to write them down. The focus on oracy continues as children progress through the school with Storytelling, Text Telling and Talk for Writing strategies used from YR to Y2 and further Talk for Writing strategies used in KS2.
We work on promoting a love of reading in all children and fostering a text rich environment where children understand how language works. Our daily reading lessons, in KS1 and KS2, help children to develop the skills they need to be proficient readers and to interpret texts accurately. Children in KS1 have a daily phonics lesson where they learn to apply their knowledge of sounds in a fun and interactive way. This focussed phonics teaching continues in KS2 for those who need it. Our English lessons are planned and taught using high quality fiction books by established and current authors, enabling children to enjoy a range of stories and fostering a love of reading.
During the summer term, every Year 1 child takes part in a phonics screening test where they are asked to read 40 decodable words. In 2017, 60% of the children passed the phonics test and further support will be offered in Year 2 for those children who did not reach the required standard.
Spelling, Punctuation and Grammar is taught throughout the school in context through our weekly lessons as well as our spelling sessions at the start of every English lesson. On Fridays, we have our ‘Slow Write’ Lesson, in which children practise using a variety of sentence types to write about a picture of film stimulus. Children have regular opportunities to undertake sustained writing tasks throughout each term.
We adopt a cross-curricular approach throughout the school to enable the skills that are learnt through the English curriculum to be applied in all other subject areas
READING
HOW WE TEACH READING AT SOMERFORD PRIMARY SCHOOL
Learning to read is one of the most important things your child will learn at our school. Everything else depends on it, so we put as much energy as we possibly can into making sure that every single child learns to read as quickly as possible.
We want your child to love reading – and to want to read for themselves. This is why we work hard to make sure children develop a love of books as well as simply learning to read.
We start by teaching phonics in Reception from their first day in school, using the highly successful ‘Read Write Inc’ phonics programme (RWI). Children learn how to ‘read’ the sounds in words and how those sounds can be written down. This is essential for reading, but it also helps children learn to spell well. The children also practise reading (and spelling) ‘tricky words’, such as ‘once,’ ‘have,’ ‘said’ and ‘where’. Once children can blend sounds together to read words, they practise reading books that match the phonics and the ‘tricky words’ they know. They start to believe they can read and this does wonders for their confidence.
Teachers regularly read to the children, too, so the children get to know and love all sorts of rhymes, stories, poetry and information books. This helps to extend children’s vocabulary and comprehension, as well as supporting their writing.
Up until the end of Year 2, your child will work with children who are at the same reading level in RWI groups. This is so that the teaching can be focussed on their needs. Some older children will continue to access RWI groups if they need further consolidation and development of reading skills. We check children’s reading skills regularly so we that we can ensure they are in the right group. Children will move to a different group if they are making faster progress or may have one-to-one support if we think they need some extra help. RWI takes place 3 days per week for 1 hour each day.
In Key Stage 2 the children undertake whole class reading sessions with the staff in their class. They have a wide selection of reading materials to choose from and projects linked to reading, with rewards systems for encouragement. We use the acronym DERIC (Decode, Explain, Retrieve, Interpret and Choice) within these lessons to explore all elements of the reading curriculum. At least once per week, children undertake a timed ‘RIC’ task where they have to answer retrieve, interpret and choice questions about a short text.
We believe that reading fluency holds the key to successful reading and the children are assessed each term on how many Words Per Minute (WPM) they can read. Children should be able to read approximately 90 WPM of an age appropriate text to be considered fluent readers.
At SPS we use our own Reading Spine to deliver a rich and varied reading curriculum. Each book on the Reading Spine has been carefully chosen to match the National Curriculum reading and writing requirements for each year group as well as linking in to our wider curriculum, with history, geography, science and social themes specifically covered. This structure provides the children with a deeper understanding of texts.
How long will it take to learn to read well?
Every child is different and children will learn to read at different speeds. By the end of Year 2, most children will be able to read aloud books that are at the right level for his or her age. In Year 3 and beyond, we concentrate more on helping children to understand what they are reading, although this work begins very early on.
In the summer term of Year 1, the government asks us to do a phonics check of all the children. We will let you know how your child has done. Children who do not pass the phonics check in Year 1 will receive additional support in Year 2 and will retake the assessment at the end of the year to ensure that they have made progress.
What does school offer to give my child reading incentives?
In school we have made a significant investment in a variety of reading material to encourage your child to access a range of texts suited to their own personal interests while also extending their reading ability and confidence.
Pupils also have access to a significant ‘library’ collection of books held within each classroom. Pupils in KS2 who are still on Reading Book Bands have access to a wide range of reading schemes including: Songbirds, Bloomsbury, Reading Champions and Tree Tops in their class Libraries. Children are encouraged to read three times weekly at home as part of their weekly homework. This is monitored by the class teacher and any children not reading at least three times weekly will be given some time to read to an adult in school. For every time a child reads at home, they receive a Star Point and a Reading Token to put into the Prize Box for a chance to win a brand new book in our Reading Assembly every week.
Each class has a Bedtime Book Bag containing several books that they can read at home for a week. The bags also include a teddy, a sachet of hot chocolate and biscuits as well as a notebook in which the children can record their thoughts and recommendations about the books in the bag.
We regularly hold Book Fairs and Book Swap Events as well as running Books at Bedtime for World Book Day. We have just started an annual ‘Sponsored Read’ through Usborne Books, which saw us raise in excess of £1500 to spend on new books in 2018-2019.
What can parents/carers do to help?
You can help your child to sound out the letters in words and then to ‘blend’ the sounds together to make a whole word. Try not to refer to the letters by their names. Help your child to focus on the sounds. You can hear how to say the sounds correctly by searching on YouTube for ‘Read Write Inc. Phonemes Pronunciation Guide’. These ‘speed sounds’ are used throughout school – even in upper Key Stage 2 – and also link into spelling work, a good understanding of these sounds really does make a difference!
Sometimes your child might bring home a book that they already know well. Please don’t say, ‘This is too easy,’ as they may have chosen that because they enjoy it! Instead, encourage your child to tell you the story out loud; ask them questions about things that happen or what they think about some of the characters in the story. The Read SKILLS Questioning in the Home School book shares lots of great ideas to make asking questions to deepen learning easier to manage at home.
Make reading fun! Remember to keep reading to your child. They will come across far more adventurous words than they will in their early reading books and you will be helping them to grow a vast vocabulary, develop an deeper understanding of different stories etc. It will also encourage them to love books and want to read more; if a child sees and hears an adult reading, they are inspired by them!
GEOGRAPHY
Our Geography curriculum is designed to develop children’s curiosity and fascination about the world and the people that will remain with them for the rest of their lives. Children investigate a range of places – both in Britain and abroad – to help develop their knowledge and understanding of the Earth’s physical and human processes. We are committed to providing children with opportunities to investigate and make enquiries about their local area of Somerford and Christchurch so that they can develop of real sense of who they are, their heritage and what makes our local area unique and special. We also develop the children’s ability to apply geographical skills to enable to confidently communicate their findings and geographical understanding to a range of audiences.
HISTORY
At Somerford Primary, we believe that high-quality history lessons inspire children to want to know more about the past and to think and act as historians. By linking learning to a range of topics, children have opportunities to investigate and interpret the past, understand chronology, build an overview of Britain’s past as well as that of the wider world, and to be able to communicate historically. At Somerford Primary the children will develop an excellent knowledge and understanding of people, events and contexts from a range of historical periods, including significant events. They will also develop sense of curiosity about the past and how and why people interpret the past in different ways.
MATHS
At Somerford Primary School we provide a rich, broad and exciting Mathematics curriculum. We aim to produce confident learners, who are able to see and make connections between the different areas of Mathematics. We want our children to be efficient problem solvers, as well as being able to reason mathematically and successfully carry out investigations.
We recognise the importance of building on basic skills as well as making the learning relevant to the children’s lives and importantly fun and engaging. Mathematical learning at Somerford will also allow children to deepen their understanding and master key concepts. At Somerford, we now subscribe to an online times tables webite. We encourage the children to use Times Tables Rockstars as often as they can to increase their fluency when recalling times tables facts In addition to developing their general mathematical knowledge, pupils are encouraged to develop their times tables knowledge by focusing on specific multiplication tables depending on their age group and ability. In school, the pupils complete a range of interactive games and tasks to improve their recall of facts; they are also encouraged to regularly practise their tables facts using their home/school planner and other online activities
We are following the White Rose Maths scheme produced through The National Centre for Excellence in the Teaching of Mathematics. A more detailed map of the curriculum areas covered for each year group can be seen in the document below.
MFL
At Somerford Primary, we believe that high-quality history lessons inspire children to want to know more about the past and to think and act as historians. By linking learning to a range of topics, children have opportunities to investigate and interpret the past, understand chronology, build an overview of Britain’s past as well as that of the wider world, and to be able to communicate historically. At Somerford Primary the children will develop an excellent knowledge and understanding of people, events and contexts from a range of historical periods, including significant events. They will also develop sense of curiosity about the past and how and why people interpret the past in different ways.
MUSIC
Throughout their time at Somerford Primary School, children are provided with a high-quality music education that engages and inspires pupils to develop a love of music and their talent as musicians. This will help to increase their self-confidence, creativity and sense of achievement. Music is a unique method of communicating that can inspire and motivate children. It allows for personal expression, and it can play an important part in the personal development of pupils.
Our Music curriculum, using the Charanga scheme, is designed to progressively develop children skills in the areas of musical appreciation (listening and discussing), performance on instruments and with voice, composition and recording and evaluating musical performances. We encourage children to focus on the work of great musicians for inspiration and exploration, and to build up a repertoire of techniques and approaches that they can apply in their own compositions.
The children will have the opportunity to listen to and evaluate critically, a wide-range of music, that encompasses the great composers from history, as well as the music from modern culture. We aim to broaden the children’s perceptions and open their minds to music of the local and wider world.
Children leave our school with the confidence to express their individual creativity through a variety of musical skills. Their awareness of musicians, instruments and composers will ensure that they are able to carefully evaluate their own music, and any music they encounter; skills that will stay with them for life.
Pupils in Early Years are given opportunities to be imaginative and investigate and experience things, and have a go. They are given the freedom to freely explore resources, sing songs, make music and dance and experiment with ways of changing them. There is an emphasis on independence and self-initiated learning.
In KS1 children are taught to use their voices expressively and creatively by singing songs and speaking chants and rhymes. They will play tuned and untuned instruments and listen with concentration and understanding to a range of high-quality live and recorded music. Children will experiment with, create, select and combine sounds using the inter-related dimensions of music.
In KS2 children are taught to play and perform in solo and ensemble contexts, using their voices and playing musical instruments with increasing accuracy, fluency, control and expression. They will improvise and compose music for a range of purposes using the inter-related dimensions of music and listen with attention to detail, recalling sounds with increased aural memory. Children will use and understand staff and other musical notations and appreciate and understand a wide range of high-quality live and recorded music drawn from different traditions and from great composers and musicians. Children will develop an understanding of the history of music.
All children will have the opportunity to learn and play a musical instrument during curriculum time.
Children in year 4/5 have a first access programme for 10 weeks delivered through Soundstorm where they learn rhythms as part of a samba band. This is a fantastic opportunity and the children thoroughly enjoy it.
To support our music teaching and to provide engaging opportunities for our pupils, we often invite guests into our school. Recently we have had visits from the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, a Rocksteady electronic band visit and an exciting STEM and music collaboration.
Throughout their time at Somerford, children are offered many occasions to perform. All children will have the opportunity to perform in a Priory Christmas concert, A Christmas Nativity, a samba concert and a singing concert with other schools from Christchurch at the Bournemouth Pavilion and The Regents Centre in Christchurch.
We aim for children to have had a varied and wide experience of music in their time at Somerford whilst instilling an enjoyment, appreciation and love for music. We hope to see you soon watching your child perform at one of our school or local community musical events.
PE
At Somerford Primary School we aim to provide excellence in Physical Education through promoting healthy, active lifestyles and engaging in a range of competitive, challenging and enjoyable activities. We provide at least two hours a week of high quality Physical Education lessons, which are active, develop the children’s skills and are above all fun. Our vision is promoted through the School Games values of determination, honesty, passion, respect, self-belief and teamwork.
Our curriculum covers all areas in PE including games, dance, gymnastics, athletics and swimming. As well as have access to an outstanding range of extra-curricular sport and physical activity opportunities.
PSHE
At Somerford Primary School we follow the County recommended “Jigsaw” programme for delivering PSHE (Personal, Social, Health Education).
The aim of this programme is to provide children with the knowledge, understanding, attitudes, values and skills that will enable them to lead fulfilling lives, reaching their potential and demonstrating respect forthose around them. Through a wide range of learning experiences and opportunities we want the children to recognise their own worth, work well with others and recognise the wider role they can play within and beyond the school community.
All children are supported to reflect on their experiences and develop their own maturity through our PSHE programme, but also through the strong links of our Spiritual, Moral, Social and Cultural curriculum (SMSC) that we provide to all age groups.
We want all the children at Somerford Primary School to understand and respect views that are similar and different to their own so that they can lead effective and fulfilling relationships that are essential to life as well as learning.
We want all the children from our school to play an active role in our diverse 21st Century society as considerate citizens who possess a developed sense of moral and social justice, which they demonstrate by fairness and consideration to those around them.
Underpinning our PSHE programme and affecting all aspects of school life, sit our core 7 British values.
The school values are:
For further information about our celebration of British Values, please see RE and British Values curriculum policies. (May 2015)
RE
We teach RE by exploring key ‘concepts.’ This means that we investigate different religious views through ‘Big Ideas’ such as Creation, Stewardship and the Environment. Children are taught to appreciate different viewpoints from different religions.
Our aim is to inform children about the beliefs, cultures and customs of others in order to develop children’s understanding of how belief systems affect people’s lives. This helps to develop the children’s own values and principles, and supports their spiritual, moral, social and cultural development.
We also wish to provide the children with the necessary understanding of different cultures that will enable them to conduct themselves with respect and tolerance within a multi-faith society.
The Infants (Reception, Year 1 and 2) study their concepts in a Christian or Jewish context. Juniors (Years 3, 4, 5 and 6) study their concepts through a range of world religions depending on which is most relevant to the key concept.
RE is not about telling children what to believe and it is not about judging a person’s faith or beliefs as right or wrong.
Assemblies are held daily for all year groups which are planned from key themes relevant to the children’s lives.
SCIENCE
At Somerford we get a real buzz for science as we do what real scientists do which is observing the world around us.
Scientists spend most of their time looking at the world, whether it’s outer space or microorganisms and then asking probing questions. These key skills are instilled in all the children from Reception to Year 6, and allow them the time to make real observations from the world around them.
Scientific language is used from the start and lots of discussions take place in thinking how to solve problems. The children decide how to tackle a variety of experiments guided by the teacher, which leads to them applying skills with increasing skill and complexity as they progress through the school.
Key skills include observing, using scientific language, measuring, recording and communicating findings.