Overview

The Primary Years Programme (PYP) is a transdisciplinary curriculum framework that offers authentic learning experiences.

The PYP encourages students to learn to appreciate knowledge, conceptual understandings, skills and personal attributes as a connected whole.

OUR PROGRAMMES OF INQUIRY CORE TEXT OVERVIEW

IB World School…

Our curriculum covers all the requirements of the National Curriculum but is arranged around inquiries into six different Transdisciplinary Themes.

International Baccalaureate World School logo

Horsmonden Primary Academy is an IB World School, authorised to deliver the International Baccalaureate (IB) Primary Years Programme.The  International Baccalaureate® aims to develop inquiring, knowledgeable and caring young people who help to create a better and more peaceful world through intercultural understanding and respect

To this end the organisation works with schools, governments and international organisations to develop challenging programmes of international education and rigorous assessment.

These programmes encourage students across the world to become active, compassionate and lifelong learners who understand that other people, with their differences, can also be right.’

Overview of the pyp framework

The core purpose and intent of the curriculum within Horsmonden Primary Academy is to equip pupils with the necessary skills, knowledge and attributes to be lifelong learners and conscientious global citizens that contribute positively to their community and modern day society. Pupils attending our academy will also learn about themselves as individuals and others around them. We believe this enables pupils to have high aspirations, knowing how to contribute positively both locally and globally, regardless of any disability or special educational need.

As leaders and teachers we deliver an ambitious curriculum that has been carefully designed to enable the depth and breadth of the national curriculum. The National Curriculum is the vital foundation and all new knowledge and skills pupils need to gain are taught and have been broken down into precise steps at each stage, beginning in the early years. This is applied through the transdisciplinary themes of the IB PYP curriculum framework enabling pupils to make authentic and solid connections between previous, current and future learning and as a result of this, learning “sticks”. 

The broad, balanced and ambitious nature of the Academy’s curriculum is continuously enhanced and developed to meet the needs of pupils at Horsmonden. Staff have high expectations of all pupils and  our curriculum is fully inclusive ensuring pupils who have SEN and/or are Disadvantaged are well catered for and have access to the same high-quality curriculum. 

At the heart of our curriculum are the Learner Profile Attributes that support the development of pupils’ character. It enables our pupils opportunities to develop as inquirers, thinkers, communicators, risk-takers, and to be knowledgeable, principled, caring, open-minded, balanced and reflective all of which aligns to the IB philosophy. 

A key focus through our curriculum intent is to enrich all pupils’ learning with co-curricular opportunities to enhance their cultural capital and life experiences. This includes both off and on-site experiences with organised trips, visitors and a range of extra-curricular activities. 

Integral to our curriculum is our focus on pupils’ wellbeing, mental health and inclusivity and as a result, pupils feel safe, cared for, respected and listened to.  Throughout our curriculum there is a strong focus on pupil’s personal development, nurturing specific talents and cultural capital that will ensure a successful transition from phase to phase including as well as to secondary education.

Our curriculum intent is implemented to meet the requirements of the National Curriculum to ensure that all pupils receive the full entitlement. As such:

  • The academy’s curriculum is coherently mapped horizontally and vertically. It is progressively building knowledge year on year.
  • Teachers plan high quality sequences of learning which support pupils to be appropriately challenged and enables them to think, articulate, write and problem solve fluently. 
  • Teachers create regular opportunities for pupils to engage with retrieval tasks and use high quality questioning which deepens understanding and enables ‘knowledge to stick’. Additionally, questioning develops pupils as inquirers who take ownership of their learning through their active and collaborative engagement. It is through this process that we are developing thinking and curious learners. 
  • Extended writing opportunities and deliberate practice are planned for within lessons making sure that pupils are able to independently problem solve, apply their knowledge fluently and master approaches to learning
  • Teachers employ Conferencing effectively to provide regular feedback which supports pupils in addressing misconceptions, enabling them to develop age commensurate conceptual understanding and apply this in different contexts. Again, this is progressively built on from year to year.
  • Teachers are particularly focused on developing pupils’ reading skills. They develop fluency, enjoyment of reading and confidence.
  • Teachers have strong subject knowledge which continues to be developed through regular training opportunities. They present subject matter clearly, evidenced in the breadth and depth of the curriculum which is regularly reinforced during high-quality professional development offered locally and more widely through the Trust.
  • Subject Leadership professional development is a priority to ensure that leaders at all levels continue to drive progression across the broad range of subjects. 
  • Teachers check pupils’ understanding systematically, identify misconceptions accurately and provide clear, direct feedback. They respond and adapt their teaching as necessary to meet the individual needs of pupils. A range of assessment strategies are in place.
  • When new teachers and staff members join the academy they benefit from bespoke induction programmes, designed to ensure that they rapidly gain the skills and knowledge needed to be highly successful. 
  • Through the graduated approach, we ensure that the curriculum is ambitious and designed to give pupils, particularly disadvantaged pupils and pupils with SEND, the knowledge they need to take advantage of opportunities, responsibilities and experiences in later life.

At Horsmonden our curriculum will promote achievement, confidence and a commitment to learning for all.  We will ensure that external visits and visitors enhance the curriculum and that whenever possible our pupils will share this new learning with a wide audience in a variety of ways.

As a result of our carefully planned and sequenced curriculum, our pupils  will have confidence and knowledge to shape informed opinions about subjects, current affairs and the world around them. They will be able to make links across the curriculum as well as their lines of inquiry. Through their understanding of each National Curriculum subject, they will be able to identify and apply skills learned across a range of contexts. 

The culmination of learning allows children to present the ten key learner attributes and strive to be the best versions of themselves. Achievements will be celebrated and high expectations set to ensure all children reach their full potential and they are ready to transition to the next phase of their education.

Our curriculum empowers all children, who can, to meet the expectations of the national curriculum and encourages them to hone and refine their ability to inquire, think and care with a knowledgeable open mind whilst having the confidence to take risks and communicate their thoughts but be principled in their approach and be reflective upon their actions.

Please view our dedicated Curriculum Map website for more information on the Horsmonden Primary Academy Curriculum and its various components.

Curriculum Map Website

International Mindedness

International-mindedness is central to the IB mission and is a foundational principle to its educational philosophy; it is at the heart of the continuum of international education.

International-mindedness is a view of the world in which people see themselves connected to the global community and assume a sense of responsibility towards its members. It is an awareness of the interrelatedness of all nations and peoples, and is a recognition of the complexity of these. Internationally minded people appreciate and value the diversity of peoples, cultures and societies in the world. They make efforts to learn more about others and to develop empathy and solidarity towards them to achieve mutual understanding and respect (Oxfam 2105; UNESCO 2015).

International Mindedness - Global Engagement, Intercultural Understanding, Multilingualism

Primary Years Programme (PYP) learners and their learning communities have a range of perspectives, values and traditions. The concept of international-mindedness builds on these diverse perspectives to generate a sense of common humanity and shared guardianship of the planet.

International Mindedness at Horsmonden Primary Academy is a concept underpinned by a set of skills, behaviours and values which enable us to embrace diverse opinions and cultures, care about local and global communities and the environment, and take action to make positive changes in the world we share.

Here at Horsmonden Primary Academy we try to have a deep understanding of the world around us as well as our local communities. We celebrate the different cultures and backgrounds of the children/families within our school community and encourage them to share these across the Leigh Academies Trust.

Throughout the year we participate and learn about different festivals and celebrations from a range of different countries to help our children immerse themselves within other cultures. As our inquiries are child led this allows pupil agency, which often intertwines with current events, personal holidays and/or family heritage, within the global community.

To further support the children’s understanding we include key events from different cultures into our weekly assemblies. In KS2, children also have the opportunity to look at updates in the news and discuss them as a class using programmes such as Newsround to support. 

We celebrate our Mother Tongue language through the ‘Language of the Month’ celebration in the class. We would welcome any pictures of different countries that people within our community have visited to display so as to help the children visualise what these locations are like. 
 
We currently learn French as our modern language subject. We have made a connection with our sister primary school called Chapita Primary School in Malawi. This amazing opportunity will allow our children an in-depth knowledge of how a primary school and their lifestyle in different countries are similar but also different to ours.
Chapita School profile

Co-curricular Horsmonden Primary Academy

The enriching co-curricular programme at Horsmonden Primary Academy complements learning in the academic curriculum to provide children with a skillset that will support them in their future.

A combination of academic and co-curricular learning increases the willingness to take risks, develops social interaction, boosts confidence and enhances the development of leadership skills. Providing these opportunities enables the students to face new challenges in an environment where risk-taking is encouraged and supported. It will prepare them for their futures. Children can learn to work in teams and take initiative. This will help to produce well-rounded individuals who believe in themselves, take responsibility for their actions and are resilient in their pursuit of challenge. 

Examples of our co-curricular learning opportunities are: