About the Hightown curriculum.
A great school.
At Hightown we work together as a school community with pride, respect, rigour and fairness. We celebrate effort, respond enthusiastically to challenges and create positive opportunities that enable everyone to achieve in every way.
At Hightown our curriculum intent begins by recognising that whilst the National Curriculum (2014) forms one part of our school’s curriculum it does not represent the totality of our curriculum.
It is our aim to provide our children with a curriculum that has ambition at its core. A curriculum that is both dynamic and responsive. A curriculum that has the flexibility to evolve over time.
The knowledge, skills and understanding that we intend our children to acquire will be transparent at all points in the curriculum – children will know what they are learning, why they are learning and how it fits into the ‘bigger picture’ of their learning journey. Learning will be delivered in a structured and coherent way to ensure that firm foundations are laid for subsequent learning.
Where appropriate we will adapt the curriculum to meet the needs of individual or groups or learners. That adaptation will not mean a lowering of expectations or a reduction in rigor.
All children will receive a broad and balanced curriculum in the truest sense of the meaning. We recognise that external pressures exist that can compromise this intent – however we will seek to minimise these in our school by ensuring a culture of ‘keep up not catch up’ so that children do not need to spend time ‘cramming’ for tests.
Ours will be a curriculum rich in experiential learning – a curriculum that motivates, inspires and enthuses children in equal measure. We will seek to develop the cultural capital of our children so that they can stand equal with their peers both now and in the future.
We will complement the National Curriculum (2014) by identifying specific drivers in our curriculum which relate to our children’s bespoke needs and context. We will ensure that by the time our children leave Hightown, at the end of year six, that they know and understand the history and geography of the area and world they live in, that they are able to make healthy informed choices about the future.
Ours is a curriculum that will ensure all our children are, ‘STRONG ENOUGH TO SHINE’, both now and in the future.