Please contact the school office for further curriculum information.

Intent:

• We are committed to promoting positivity, resilience, well-being and self-esteem.
• We are committed to meeting the needs of every child across the whole curriculum.
• We are committed to focusing on the development of language and communication in every aspect of school life.
• We are committed to providing children with the knowledge and cultural capital they need to succeed.
• We are committed to providing a broad, ambitious, engaging and relevant curriculum.
• Rooted in Gospel values develop global citizens of the future

At the Annunciation Catholic Infant School, we strongly believe that education is the key to social mobility; providing limitless opportunities for our pupils to shape their futures. In formulating our curriculum together, we consider the needs of all of our learners, please refer to our SEND and Equality policies. We aim to develop the whole child - academically, artistically, physically, spiritually, morally, socially and culturally. We believe that the acquisition of knowledge and skill are of equal importance, and therefore have developed a curriculum using a cumulative and spiral approach. Subjects are taught discreetly, as individual subjects, but we do make cross curricular links that enable children to apply knowledge and skills in other areas.

During their time with us we aim to equip pupils with the knowledge and cultural capital they need to succeed in life. To achieve this, we recognise the importance of key academic, personal and vocational skills, which prepare them for their next stage in life. Alongside investing in pupils’ cultural capital, our Catholic values play a huge role in preparing them to be educated citizens, ready to make their own impact on the world. During their time with us we aim to ensure that your children live their lives through Gospel values. Our school Mission Statement is ‘As we learn and grow together let all our actions speak of God’s loving care’ and we try to live this out in all that we do. Our school values, which are derived from our Dominican roots, support this mission in guiding our thinking and our behaviour.

Our intention is to aim for pupils to discover a love for learning, and develop a resilience that allows them to recognise their learning strengths or areas that require further development and then to understand the steps needed to improve.  Our rich curriculum, coupled with focused individual teacher feedback, aims to provide our pupils with support and strategies to take the next steps on both their personal and learning journeys.

At our school there is a focus on the importance of reading and writing, so that children become fluent communicators with a skillset that allows them to access all other subjects. We prioritise early reading, and are committed to developing a love of reading for all children. The teaching of reading and pupils’ acquisition of reading skills is central to our curriculum. Becoming an effective and proficient reader is the gateway to learning for our pupils, and success in most other subjects is dependent upon learning to read well. Our well-planned maths and science curriculum aims to increase pupils’ capacity to hypothesise, investigate, evaluate, and deepen prior knowledge.

We are committed to enabling our pupils to have high expectations of themselves in terms of their learning and behaviour. They will be encouraged to be independent learners who can also work well in collaboration with others. They will develop supportive and nurturing skills towards their peers, as well as organisational skills to support their learning. These behaviours and expectations support personal development and resilience, and help prepare our pupils to take the next steps in their education - eventually becoming well educated, responsible global citizens.

Our curriculum is taught by teachers with high expectations, who plan and deliver a curriculum that is interesting, and that extends children’s understanding of different subjects, taking into account the local context of our diverse community.  We are committed to providing a curriculum that is flexible, ambitious, challenging, and caters to the needs of all learners.

At The Annunciation Catholic Infant School, no restrictions are placed on what our pupils can achieve, and it is an expectation that staff, pupils and parents recognise that their potential impact on the world is limitless.  We are proud that our school is a safe, nurturing place, where each child is valued and their intellectual, moral and spiritual skills are developed.  We see our role as providing an environment where our pupils experience fun and engaging learning opportunities every day.

Please contact the school office if you require any further information regarding our curriculum.

Implementation

At The Annunciation Catholic Infant School, we have used the National Curriculum alongside specific year group topics. We have mapped out a cumulative curriculum for non-core subjects, where skills are taught progressively across EYFS and Key stage 1 – committed to knowledge building over time. This curriculum map also highlights the progression of the knowledge and vocabulary that is developed upon each year. A spiral curriculum is used in core subjects, where teachers revisit previous learning and add new knowledge. For example, narrative writing is taught in across year 1 and year 2 with increased range, complexity and originality. Clear opportunities for speaking and listening are planned for across the curriculum.

Key skills are revisited throughout curriculum areas with an aim that children know more, can do more, and ultimately remember more. Reflecting on the needs of our pupils, it is a non-negotiable that all subjects develop vocabulary, speech, and language skills. Subject leaders have mapped out the knowledge and skills coverage intended for each of their subject areas, ensuring that there is a clear progression as children move from one year to the next. It is also implemented so that teachers have a clear understanding of why they are teaching a concept, what came before, and what comes next. We have enacted a school wide curriculum that prioritises striving for excellence, and have done so through our progression of skills documents as well as weekly and longer term plans

We are committed to ensuring that learning is purposeful, exciting and topic based, with every lesson beginning with a learning question. Steps to success are shared with the children so that they become in control of their own learning, and know what they must work on to learn a specific concept. We recognise the needs of our local community and ensure that the learning opportunities we provide at The Annunciation Catholic Infant School are rich, varied and cater for the needs of our children. These include: specialist music provision, recorder club, specialist PE provision, class trips, involvement in Barnet music and dance festivals, and whole school events involving parents.

We have a focus on providing children with the knowledge and cultural capital they need to succeed in life. It is for this reason that we place such an importance on the arts, and value after school clubs, school trips and inter-generational activities such as ‘Grand Parents’ day.

Impact

The impact of the school’s curriculum can be seen through conversations with pupils about the knowledge they have of different topics, either that they are studying or have studied. It can also be seen in the work they produce and the outcomes for all groups of pupils within the school.  Our greatest impact can be seen when meeting our children, who present as confident, knowledgeable, articulate, caring, and happy unique individuals.

Everything we do is with the children as the primary focus, and strong relationships are built between pupils, staff and parents, which creates an atmosphere for learning which is conducive to success.

Pupils’ progress is measured through ongoing assessment, and through three key assessment points during the year. Progression of skills documents are updated to address gaps in learning that have been identified, to ensure that the curriculum effectively meets the needs of all pupils.

By the time your children leave us they will have experienced or had opportunity to experience the following:

• Be involved in daily acts of worship
• Experience and lead liturgy
• Attend school mass
• Contribute towards their learning and be involved in decision-making that effects the whole school
• Be taught music lessons by a specialist teacher
• Perform in local musical events and in well-known concert halls
• Participate in memorable real-life experiences
• Actively engage in learning outside the classroom
• Go to a museum or place of interest outside of London
• Have a speaking part in a play or assembly
• Participate in weekly PE lessons taught by professional sports coaches
• Represent our school in a Sports Event
• Have their opinions listened to and valued
• Celebrate their culture and family traditions with others
• Take part in a celebration for another faith or culture different from their own
• Participate in cooking lessons
• Enter a school-based competition
• Have a piece of artwork displayed for all to see
• Join a range of clubs and extra-curricular activities
• Work alongside a professional story teller once a year
• Work with artists in residence
• Learn how to stay safe in a range of different situations
• Develop their wellbeing through lessons and mindfulness clubs
• Actively engage in helping those in need