Curriculum Information 

In our schools, we follow the statutory National Curriculum, but have designed our own curriculum to go beyond national expectations and meet the specific needs of our children and the wider community. We understand that children and families at Newington Green and Rotherfield share many similarities, but that each of our schools has a unique identity and some school specific pupil needs. Therefore, both schools share the same curriculum, but may take different pedagogical approaches, depending on pupil needs (for further details, please see Section 3 of our Curriculum Policy). 

To help support and enhance our teaching of phonics in school, Newington Green has signed up to a new systematic, synthetic phonics (SSP) programme. From spring 2022, we will be following the DfE validated Essential Letters and Sounds (ELS) scheme, which was developed by the Knowledge Schools Trust and is based on our previous phonics scheme: Letters and Sounds. The programme is designed to ensure that all children learn to read well and make speedy progress. It provides a simple routine and consistent approach to phonics teaching, which helps to reduce pupils' cognitive load and maximise their chances of success. We have made this decision based on extensive research and careful consideration of the needs of all our readers. Training for parents and further information will be available in the spring term, together with our action plan for the rollout, which will be published here.  

If parents wish to know more about the curriculum, they should contact Mairead, the Head of School.

Our Partnership Aims

We believe by working together we can achieve more than working as stand-alone schools. These are our core aims of both schools: 

1. A rich and well-balanced curriculum offer, with enriching experiences
2. High outcomes for all pupils
3. Ensuring that all children, regardless of circumstance, achieve well
4. Meeting children’s individual needs through a nurturing ethos

Our Curriculum Aims

• To promote the highest level of achievement for all pupils, across all subjects, through strong pathways for progression in knowledge and skills as pupils journey through the school.  
• To provide systematic exposure to and immersion in high quality literature, both from classic and modern authors, with the aim of pupils demonstrating key skills in debate, critical thinking, articulating a clear point of view and being able to effectively negotiate and converse.  
• To provide opportunities for vocabulary development across the curriculum, enabling pupils to access learning opportunities in the world around them through word rich learning environments and explicit vocabulary teaching.  
• To promote meaningful learning experiences, which will be fun and memorable, based on knowledge and skills needed to be successful in the wider world.   
• To provide a broad and balanced curriculum which gives pupils social and cultural agency, so that they are advantaged in the wider world.  
• To celebrate the diversity of our community, and the communities within the UK and encourage the building of community and social capital. This will include an understanding of issues relating to a range of underrepresented and protected groups (gender, sexual orientation, religion/belief, disability, age, race).  
• To promote mannerly and appropriate social conduct, so that pupils are advantaged in the wider world.  
• To provide a range of out of classroom experiences for pupils which build their cultural capital and understanding of the rich artistic, cultural, spiritual and social heritage of the UK, and its various communities.   
• To empower pupils by providing the opportunities and skills to make positive life choices, through the development of personal character, emotional and social resilience, confidence and a growth mindset. 
• To provide a context for living as active citizens, learning and working within a global city, with access to the many cultural institutions and opportunities on our doorstep. This will include balancing life in a heavily built-up borough with regular opportunities for outdoor learning. 
• To regularly review our curriculum provision, in order to ensure that the curriculum, alongside current educational research, promotes excellence in the practice of teaching (pedagogy).