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Curriculum to Inspire

Welcome to the Curriculum section of our website where you can find out about the provision and opportunities provided to pupils at Oliver Goldsmith Primary School throughout their time with us.

Mrs. Dean, Deputy Headteacher, leads on curriculum development at Oliver Goldsmith Primary School. If you have any questions or want to know more about our curriculum, please contact her through admin@olivergoldsmith.brent.sch.uk.

We want our pupils to look forward to coming to school and to be bursting to talk about their day when they get home. We want them to enjoy learning for a real purpose and to develop their confidence, self-esteem, independence and a genuine love of learning. We want them to go out of the classroom as much as possible; learning in the school grounds, in the local area and beyond. We want them to learn from a range of visiting adults and to know how to make guests feel comfortable and welcome. We want them to cook, to garden, to make things and to experiment. We want them to visit theatres, galleries, museums and libraries. We want our pupils to be global citizens, able to succeed and build a fulfilling life in a sustainable and increasingly international society. This is how we ensure we 'equip our pupils with the knowledge and cultural capital they need to succeed in life'.

We have designed a curriculum which is built upon our mission statement, to ‘inspire a love of learning’. Our curriculum considers the needs of a 21st Century child and is ambitious in providing our children with the knowledge, skills and learning behaviours required to become successful life-long learners.

What is Cultural Capital?

Cultural capital is the accumulation of knowledge, behaviours, and skills that a pupil can draw upon and which demonstrates their cultural awareness, knowledge and competence; it is one of the key ingredients a pupil will draw upon to be successful in society, their career and the world of work. Cultural capital promotes social mobility and success in our stratified society. Cultural capital gives a pupil power. It helps them achieve goals, become successful, and rise up the social ladder without necessarily having wealth or financial capital. Cultural capital is having assets that give pupils the desire to aspire and achieve social mobility whatever their starting point.

At OGPS, we recognise that for pupils to aspire and be successful academically and in the wider areas of their lives, they need to be given rich and sustained opportunities to develop their cultural capital. We recognise that there are six key areas of development that are interrelated and cumulatively contribute to the sum of a pupil’s cultural capital:

  1. Personal Development
  2. Social Development, including political and current affairs awareness
  3. Physical Development
  4. Spiritual Development
  5. Moral Development
  6. Cultural development

The National Curriculum is a set of subjects and standards used by primary schools so children learn the same things. It covers what subjects are taught and the standards children should reach in each subject. This is a statutory document that all schools must follow. Schools have the autonomy to decide on how this content is delivered and what approach we would take to ensure that our curriculum is bespoke to the needs of our children and community.

Intent

At the heart of our school are a set of core values; our curriculum is driven by the need to prepare our children for lifelong learning. These underpin our curriculum and the ethos of the school. At OGPS, we place great importance on a curriculum which develops the whole child. We offer a rich and vibrant curriculum which is ambitious for all learners. Through our curriculum, we develop the essential knowledge, skills and understanding which are the building blocks for later life. Our curriculum encompasses not only the formal requirements of the National Curriculum, but goes beyond the experiences of the classroom to ensure that our children are exposed to the richest and most varied opportunities that we can provide. Our aim is to enrich every child's school experience by creating an environment where they are encouraged to succeed and be the best they can be. The exploration of new skills and experiences help to nurture resilience, curiosity and creativity with the aim of inspiring a love of learning.

Implementation

Implementation describes the way in which we deliver our intent consistently each day. To do this we have carefully designed our curriculum information, curriculum journeys and subject progression. This is designed to enable learners to acquire relevant subject knowledge which underpins the application of skills. Skills are carefully and progressively mapped across each key stage and subject area.

Knowledge is consolidated and built upon to support retention and recall and is clearly outlined on teacher knowledge organisers. This ensures that by the time children leave our school they have learned, and are able to recall and apply the key information that we feel is important in order for them to be successful in the future.

Enquiry drivers in our curriculum

Knowledge is taught through an enquiry driver. This driver consists of a main question that the children are unable to answer at the beginning of a blocked unit. Teaching provides the children with the knowledge and skills to provide or demonstrate a response to this enquiry driver and we call this the final outcome. We ensure that our curriculum provides for deeper understanding and prepares our children for subject specific learning in secondary school.

Impact

Pupils leave OGPS with a secure understanding of the academic content; with the understanding of how to be socially, morally, spiritually and culturally responsible and aware; how to make positive contributions to the local community and how to endeavour to be the best that they can be. We strive to ensure that our children’s attainment in core and foundation subjects is in line with or exceeding age-related expectations. We intend that our children will be fully prepared for their next stage of education; ready to contribute positively to society as a whole.

You can find out more about each subject by visiting the subject pages:

Art and Design and Design and Technology

Computing

English and French

EYFS

History, Geography and RE

Maths

PE

PSHE and RHE

Science

You can find out more about our curriculum for each year group by visiting the Learning Journey pages and/or class pages.

Our curriculum areas are led by a member of our Leadership Team or Wider Leadership Team

  • Early Years Foundation Stage Curriculum led by Mrs Polewczyk
  • Languages (English & French) led by Mrs Dhall
  • Maths led by Mrs Dean
  • Humanities (History & Geography) led by Miss Brown
  • Science led by Mrs Ali
  • Computing led by Mrs Varsani
  • The Arts (Art & Design, DT & Music) led by Mrs Palinda
  • PE & Sports led by Mrs Schlichter
  • PSHE & Pupil Wellbeing led by Mrs McNeil

To read the DfE National Curriculum, click here.

If you would like a paper copy of any information found on the website, please contact the school office.