1. Expectations of the New National Curriculum in Primary Schools

2. Main changes: Higher expectations across all subjects. More children need to be “secure” in their learning - at ARE (Age related expectations) High achievers – if your child is achieving well, rather than moving on to the following year group’s work, they will learn more in-depth, applying their skills in a broad range of contexts, doing investigative work to allow a greater sense of mastery & understanding of concepts & ideas.

3. The ethos supporting the new curriculum is encapsulated in the scenario below:

4. The New National Curriculum… launched in Sept 2014 Children in Year 2/Year 6 in September 2014 will still be work on the old curriculum until Sept 2015. English, Maths & Science still remain core subjects – so take up a substantial part of your child’s working week Briefer details are given for the foundation subjects (Art, Computing, Design & Technology, Geography, History, Music & PE) Children still learn a foreign language from 7yrs+ as it’s now compulsory. At Capel, we teach Spanish. A great importance has been placed on RE, PSHE and the British values of ‘Tolerance’ and ‘Respect’.

5. The new NC tests for children in Years 2 & 6 will take place each summer from 2016. Children in other year groups may also take internal tests (chosen by the school) around the same time. Previously these tests were reported in levels (from 1- 6) but from summer 2016 they will be reported as a scaled score, with a score of 100 representing the expected level for each age group. Schools will decide how to measure progress in year groups across the school & provide you with information about how your child/children are progressing at parent’s evening/in end of year reports. We will be using the terms ‘Developing’, ‘Secure’ & ‘Extending’ instead of using levels. (Yrs 2 & 6 will still be using levels for this academic year.) If a child is secure at the end of Year 1 and secure at the end of Year 6, then they will have made good progress.

6. Some Headlines: The grammatical terminology used in schools has changed e.g. using the terms such as ‘fronted adverbials, inverted commas (instead of ‘speech marks’) Focus on Reading for Pleasure – our library! We also visit our local library regularly. A focus on poetry – learning & performing poems off by heart. Maths – by the end of Year 4 all children should know their multiplication facts up to 12x12, fractions coming down into Years 1 & 2, Roman numerals.

7. Science – the study of evolution Computing – coding & programming History – new units e.g. Stone Age, Shang Dynasty Design & Technology – healthy diet & preparing simple meals – we want to grow food on our allotments, cook healthy recipes in our Food Technology room.

8. As a result of the New Curriculum, we have chosen to follow the ‘Chris Quigley Essentials Curriculum’ which sets out essential coverage, learning objectives and standards which are required for all subjects. One of the primary reasons why we have chosen to adopt this curriculum is because it places emphasis on the importance of developing the depth of children’s learning. In essence, this means providing children with increased cognitive challenge, allowing them to apply the skills which they have learnt independently in a range of contexts rather than moving them onto the next skill needlessly when they have not truly mastered it.

9. ‘ There is no such thing as unsuitable weather – just unsuitable clothing!’ We want to make learning experiences as real as possible for our children. We will be looking at how to get our children outdoors as much as possible through trips to local places within Enfield, as well as beyond!

10. Some helpful guides: The new national curriculum in English Primary schools: A guide for parents (accessible on our school website) http://mathsathome.lgfl.org.uk/ The London Grid for Learning provides support video clips for parents in the different areas of Maths.