Table of Contents
Curriculum Overview
At the Wroxham School, we are committed to providing a curriculum which is broad and balanced and provides our pupils with opportunities to gain essential knowledge, skills and understanding which will enable them to flourish and reach their full potential academically, physically and artistically. Whilst our curriculum encompasses the formal requirements of the National Curriculum, our vision is to provide our pupils with a range of learning experiences beyond the classroom which inspire our pupils and helps shape their futures, ensuring that they are responsible citizens of the future. Our curriculum also promotes inclusion and diversity.
We are committed to “valuing diversity, tackling discrimination, promoting equity and fostering good relationships between people, we want our pupils to inspired by the contributions and accomplishments made by others and to have a sense of belonging within the school and the wider community. Whilst reading is strong, we are keen to foster vocabulary development as we believe that vocabulary is fundamental to our children succeeding; enabling them to access the next stage of the education and beyond. Our values are rooted in all that we do, and a Growth Mindset is entrenched within our curriculum. We believe that with a broad and engaging curriculum our pupils can achieve anything, developing them not just as learners but as young people destined to contribute to a global society. Our curriculum prepares our pupils to take their place in society as responsible citizens.
Our curriculum has been designed to support pupils to build their knowledge and to apply that knowledge as skills. Using the National Curriculum as the baseline for our curriculum, subjects are planned and sequenced so that new knowledge and skills build on what has been taught before and work towards clearly defined end points.
For most subjects, we have adopted, and then adapted, external schemes of work to ensure that the curriculum reflects our school’s local context. Further information about the primary curriculum can be found here.
Curriculum Drivers
We believe everyone can excel through pride and ambition. Our curriculum has been designed to ensure that all of our pupils are given the opportunities to excel regardless of their starting points or background.
Our curriculum drivers have been chosen with the context of the school in mind. They are: civic responsibility, equity, vocabulary growth mindset.
Civic responsibility
The active participation in the public life of a community in an informed, committed, and constructive manner, with a focus on the common good.
Equity
Equity recognises that everyone has different circumstances and allocates the exact resources and opportunities needed to reach an equal outcome.
Vocabulary
Having a broad vocabulary aids both understanding of language and self-expression. Our curriculum is language-rich, involves the use of high quality texts and provides opportunities to practise new vocabulary. We recognise the importance of being able to express emotions verbally. We want our pupils to have the skills necessary to have a voice.
Growth Mindset
Through research, we know that pupils who have a positive attitude towards their learning will make good progress and be successful. Consequently, instilling all our pupils with a growth mindset approach has become a part of the personal development priority of the The Wroxham. We have introduced the theories of Dr Carol Dweck to staff, parents and pupils and to enable this, we have introduced the Growth Mindset Secret Agents.
Our mission is for all our pupils to relish challenges, embrace their mistakes as part of the learning process, value the importance of effort, respond carefully to feedback and take inspiration from others. This will help them to achieve, not only in school, but also in their future lives as adults.
Curriculum Maps
Our Curriculum Maps provide a comprehensive framework for delivering a well-rounded education, guiding teachers in planning and implementing the curriculum. They outline key themes, topics, and learning objectives, ensuring balanced coverage and allowing students to build upon their learning.
English - Reading
The Wroxham School’s Reading Curriculum offers a variety of literary forms and activities to develop students’ reading skills and enjoyment. Students engage with fiction, non-fiction, poetry, and other media, focusing on comprehension, vocabulary, and critical thinking. They listen, discuss, predict, ask questions, make inferences, and participate in meaningful discussions. They learn to understand text structures, retell stories, and appreciate poetry. The curriculum encourages exploration and analysis of texts, fostering a love for reading. Our older children use Destination Reader to support and develop their reading skills. Accelerated Reader is used to identify the correct reading levels.
Maths
We follow the White Rose Maths National Curriculum Progression from Years 1 to 6. This comprehensive approach ensures systematic and progressive development of mathematical skills and knowledge. Our curriculum covers a wide range of concepts, including number sense, calculations, measurement, geometry, statistics, and algebra. By using this framework, we provide students with a structured and coherent mathematical education aligned with national standards. Our aim is to build a strong foundation in mathematics, enhance problem-solving abilities, critical thinking, and mathematical fluency.
Science
The Wroxham School’s Science Curriculum follows the Kapow Science Long-Term Planning and Coverage for KS1 and KS2. It covers a range of topics including “Habitats,” “Forces,” “Materials,” “Gardening,” “Reproduction,” and more. The curriculum aims to develop scientific inquiry, knowledge, and understanding in students across different grade levels.
History
The Wroxham School’s History Curriculum covers a variety of historical topics across different grade levels using Kapow History planning. Students explore concepts such as past and present, transportation, the Great Fire of London, the Roman Empire, Vikings, World War II, Tudor England, Mayan civilizations, explorers, ancient Egypt, and ancient Greece. The curriculum aims to develop students’ understanding of historical events, chronological awareness, and their impact on societies.
Geography
The Geography Curriculum at The Wroxham School covers various topics from the Kapow Curriculum. Students explore countries, map skills, the UK, rainforests, Vikings, population change, weather, underwater worlds, World War II, extreme weather, energy sources, China, coastal living, volcanoes, rivers, oceans, and fieldwork investigations. The curriculum aims to develop students’ geographical knowledge, map reading skills, understanding of different environments, and awareness of global issues.
Personal, Social, Health and Economic (PSHE)
The Wroxham School’s PSHE Curriculum promotes holistic well-being through topics like families, relationships, health, safety, citizenship, and transition. Enrichment activities and events enhance learning, covering areas such as fire safety, healthy eating, and mental health. Students explore diverse family structures, positive friendships, emotional intelligence, hygiene, online safety, and money management. The Kapow based curriculum encourages active participation and fosters personal growth.
Religious Education (RE)
The The RE Curriculum at Wroxham School covers a range of themes and religions. Students explore concepts like creation, incarnation, salvation, and moral values through Christianity, Judaism, Hinduism, Buddhism, Sikhism, Islam, and Humanism. Key questions prompt critical thinking about the significance of Christmas, Easter, prayer, worship, beliefs, and commitment to God. The curriculum encourages understanding of different faiths, their practices, and the relevance of religious teachings in today’s world.
Parents and carers have the right to withdraw their children from any or all RE lessons. This should be discussed with the class teacher and/or Head of School in the first instance.
Languages - Italian
The Italian curriculum at Wroxham School covers various topics and language skills across Key Stage 2. Students learn greetings, colours, numbers, days of the week, and basic vocabulary related to animals, body parts, food, and clothing. They engage in storytelling, songs, and cultural activities that explore Italian traditions such as La Befana and Carnevale. The curriculum also includes grammar concepts like noun-adjective agreement and introduces elements of Italian culture and geography. Our curiculum is planned using Language Angels resources.
Physical Education (PE)
The PE curriculum at Wroxham School covers a range of activities and skills including locomotion, ball skills, gymnastics, dance, and various sports such as netball, football, handball, basketball, tag rugby, hockey, striking and fielding, net/wall tennis, cricket, and athletics. The Complete PE curriculum focuses on developing physical abilities, promoting health and wellbeing, teamwork, communication, problem-solving, and coordination.
Computing
The Wroxham School Computing Curriculum focuses on multimedia text and images, sound and motion, coding and programming, handling data, technology in our lives, and online safety. Topics are taken from the Rising Stars curriculum and includes learning about controlling robots, creating artwork, and basic coding and exploring games testing, online research, data collection, and safe internet use. The curriculum promotes the use of software like Scratch and Google apps, and students develop skills in using devices such as iPads and laptops. Cross-curricular connections are made with subjects like English, math, science, and geography. Online safety is emphasised throughout the curriculum.
Music
The Music Curriculum Map covers a diverse range of musical genres and activities, fostering a comprehensive approach to music education. Students explore various styles of music from the Kapow curriculum, through singing, performing, composing, and listening. They also learn to play instruments like the glockenspiel. The curriculum emphasises revisiting and consolidating learning, developing skills in dynamics, harmony, melody, rhythm, improvisation, and composition. Students engage in collaborative music-making, listening, appraising, and sharing performances.
Art and Design
The Art Curriculum follows the Kapow Art and Design Scheme of Work. Each year group teaches a minimum of 3 art units and 2 Design & Technology (D&T) units. The curriculum incorporates cross-curricular links with subjects like Computing, D&T, and music. The units cover topics such as formal elements of art, art and design skills, human forms, sculpture and mixed media. Students explore various techniques and materials, study the works of artists, develop their drawing and painting skills, and create original artwork. The curriculum also emphasises the use of sketchbooks for recording ideas and experimentation. Vocabulary related to art and specific artists is introduced and used throughout the curriculum.
Design and Technology
The Design and Technology Curriculum follows the Kapow Scheme of Work. Each year group teaches a minimum of two Design & Technology (D&T) units. The curriculum incorporates cross-curricular links with subjects like Computing, D&T, and music. Students explore various techniques and materials, study the work of famous designers, develop their design skills, and create original work. Vocabulary related to design is introduced and used throughout the curriculum.
Early Years
Our Early Years curriculum endeavours to provide the best start for our youngest children. The curriculum has been planned to meet the needs of our cohorts and follows the Statutory Framework and the New Development Matters.
Success for all Phonics – Fisher Family Trust (FFT) is our validated phonics scheme. White Rose supported by Master the Curriculum are used as a basis for maths planning and activities, as well as, Number Sense which is used to develop fluency skills. All areas of the curriculum are planned to progress into the National Curriculum.
The Early Years Foundation Stage strives to ensure that the children become confident, independent and resilient learners, thus enabling them to build on these skills throughout their education at Wroxham.
Oracy
The Wroxham School is an advocate for oracy.
At The Wroxham School, we believe that teaching and learning can be transformed through talk. Oracy is the ability to articulate ideas, develop understanding and engage with others through spoken language. Our pupils learn the oracy skills they need to succeed in school and in life. We believe passionately in providing children with opportunities to develop their oracy skills.
We want our children to have a voice, to be able to express themselves, to be confident to articulate their ideas, to be able to listen to others, disagree with others and come to agreements. We want our children to be empowered to use their voice to make a difference and to be a changemaker in our world.
We use Voice21’s Oracy Framework to teach oracy skills across the curriculum:
High Expectations for Oracy
Pupils at The Wroxham School discuss and share our expectations for talk, whether this be ‘talk partners’, trios or a whole class debate. This could include making eye contact, sitting still whilst listening and turn taking protocols. We expect children to listen carefully to each other and talk using full sentences and a clear voice. The children use ‘thumbs in’ to indicate when they have a contribution to make.
Structures that Support Oracy
At The Wroxham, the teachers think carefully about what structure is most appropriate for the learning task. This is not necessarily always talk partners – trios, quads, a whole class discussion are other structures which are used. It could be an open discussion, or the use of specific roles e.g. a summariser or a challenger.
When using talk partners, partner A and partner B could be used to give equity of pupil voice and giving pupils the opportunity to build on their partner’s ideas.
Scaffolds that Support Oracy
Just as we scaffold children’s learning across the curriculum subjects, scaffolding pupils’ oracy learning could be through providing key vocabulary, sentence stems or actions to support their discussion.
Tools for Discussion in Oracy
It is essential to give children feedback and specific praise with reference to the oracy skills above, for example ‘I like how ___ was nodding to agree with ____ and show they were listening’.
Discussion guidelines are easy to establish and can transform the quality of classroom talk and group work. A set of discussion guidelines have been established across the school and displayed so that they can be read and referred to from any seat in the classroom.
Teachers use Listening Ladders, which are based on the Oracy Skills Framework to support children’s development of listening skills. These skills are progressive within and between year groups. The ladders are also used as an assessment tool so that teachers can prioritise the skills that require further development.
Oracy Curriculum Progression
The Oracy Curriculum at The Wroxham School is guided by Voice21’s Progression Maps.
Whole School Opportunities for Oracy
Poetry Slams at The Wroxham
At The Wroxham, Poetry Slams serve as a powerful tool to enhance pupils’ confidence, public speaking skills, and creative expression. Through engaging in Poetry Slam practice, students develop their ability to communicate effectively and articulate complex emotions with clarity.
Beyond building essential communication skills, Poetry Slams also introduce pupils to a diverse range of poetry they might not otherwise encounter, helping them explore and interpret deeper meanings within the text. This dynamic approach transforms poetry into a lively, interactive experience, fostering both personal growth and a deeper appreciation for literature.
Assemblies
At The Wroxham School we use assemblies as a vehicle to drive the deep thought and discussion about contentious and global topics. We use the our oracy skills in conjunction with the UN Global Goals to focus our debates and discussion.
Structure of an Oracy Assembly
- Relatable talking point to enter the assembly and discuss.
- Establish behaviour rules, expectations, protocols and recap guidelines.
- Introduce subject matter.
- Build upon subject matter.
- Give further detail/context/opinions.
- Contentious talking point.
- End with either values, global goals, rights of the child or relevant school curriculum area.
- Oracy detective praise.
- CLOSE- Expectations, structure!
Building Blocks of an Oracy Assembly
- Rules for talk – especially effective listening.
- Sentence stems.
- Pupils exposed to varied groupings.
- Oracy detectives.
