Issuu

PRIMARY

FOCUS

Yearly magazine 2021 Issue

What does a good

COMPUTING

curriculum

look like?

RSHE Primary Curriculum Elizabeth Stafford on the

Model Music

Curriculum

Top tips for online safety in schools

How to assess and collect evidence?

Mixed-aged classes and D&T How to support the more and less able

French deep dive question examples

How to use sketchbooks in primary Art and design?

TABLE OF

CONTENTS How sketchbooks can inspire your Art and design lessons

Kapow Primary in action

How you can assess and collect evidence for the RSHE Primary Curriculum

So what exactly is the Model Music Curriculum?

A practical guide to Ofsted and cultural capital for primary schools

How to teach Design and technology to mixed-aged classes

How to teach online safety in primary schools

Specialists in focus

What does a good Computing curriculum look like?

What is the difference between RSE and PSHE?

French deep dive question examples

Case study: why Severn Bridges MAT signed their schools up to Kapow Primary

Useful links

Schemes of work in focus

RSE & PSHE

Languages (French)

Art and design

Design and technololgy

Music

Wellbeing

Editor’s Welcome The past 18 months have been a serious challenge. You’ve had to navigate an ever-changing landscape within school, quickly get to grips with new methods of teaching, master technology systems virtually overnight, deal with unsettled children (and parents), all while juggling the challenges that the pandemic brought to you personally. In our eyes, teachers were already superheroes, but this really did test your skills to the max! In our first-ever Primary Focus, we bring you some of our most popular blogs, updates and teaching tips from the year across our six foundation subject schemes of work and lesson plans. From how to deliver digital safety across the school, to surviving a deep-dive from Ofsted in French and getting your head around the recently launched Model Music Curriculum, we hope you find something which will either make your life easier or give you some inspiration for a classroom activity. We hope that September has been good to you and that the rest of this year will be slightly less eventful.

- Vicky Head of Content

How sketchbooks can inspire your Art and design lessons

the national curriculum (England), sketchbooks are only mentioned in Key Stage 2. The guidance states that children should ‘create sketchbooks to record their observations and use them to review and revisit ideas.’ This doesn’t mean they are exclusive to Key Stage 2 and many schools use them in all key stages.

Ofsted inspectors are likely to be interested in progression of skills when it comes to art, and sketchbooks are a useful way of demonstrating progression of art skills in all forms from Reception to Year 6 in an easy-to-capture way, as well as clearly highlighting the long term plan you are following as a school.

What is a sketchbook? Although sketchbooks record the thinking process which often leads to art outcomes, the sketchbook itself becomes an art form. Sketchbooks can be used for many other things aside from sketching, including: ● drawings or notes. ● etchings. ● keywords. ● pieces of fabric or material. ● found objects. ● colours.

● photos. ● texts. ● rubbings. ● annotations. ● ephemera and other visual references.

Some schools call them ‘visual diaries’ or ‘ideas books’. Drawing is usually the main content of these books and has purpose if used for perception, for invention, for communication and for action. The sketchbook is very important for this and it is also a place where children can record their ideas, their thinking, their evaluations, their experimentation, as well as their individuality. Don’t treat the sketchbook in the same way that you treat an exercise book. Marking and feedback should be in response to the creative activities of drawing, putting down ideas and carrying out design work rather than writing. Sketchbooks should be exciting to look at, touch and feel, and are central to good practice. As the work is predominantly visual, there are no right or wrong answers. In this subject, children do learn from mistakes and those should be valued as part of the working process. Don’t be tempted to mark in red or green pen, the sketchbooks should be respected as a child’s personal thinking space, although they should be encouraged to share their ideas and work with other children if they feel comfortable doing so.

How can sketchbooks be used with the Kapow Primary Art and design scheme of work? In the Kapow Primary Art and design scheme of work, the upper Key Stage 2 lesson ‘Introduction to sketchbooks’ shows how a sketchbook is a must for all artists to record their ideas, inspiration and a place to practise and refine their skills. In all the other lessons, designing and sketching can all be recorded via the book, as seen in all Key Stage 1 lessons on the formal elements and the lesson on drawing: experimenting with

media. In Key Stage 2, using the sketchbook would support lessons like drawing: still life as pupils could explore the shapes of objects and compositions and techniques in their books before starting a final outcome. Brief notes and annotations support these experiments and also prepare young people for the transition to secondary school where the use of sketchbooks is a key part of the curriculum.

Where can I get sketchbook inspiration? In the world of art, craft and design, drawings are a starting point for making. Look at the sketches of Henry Moore (sculptor), Frank Gehry (architect), Zandra Rhodes (textiles/fashion), and Frida Kahlo’s (painter) diaries for inspiration. Sketchbooks develop critical thinking skills and are very important in tracking progress and the development of both thinking and ideas, and the mastery of techniques. We can often learn much more about a child’s progress in art through looking at their pages than we can with an isolated final outcome. Teachers could also keep sketchbooks, alongside their pupils’, perhaps where they store their examples or where they have modelled techniques. Children love to see their teacher using a book in the same way that they do, but don’t get the red pen out and if you want to leave comments: do it with a post-it note and not by invading their space with your writing.

Written by

Sue Coles

KAPOW PRIMARY IN ACTION

Stobhillgate Primary 6

Tidbury Green School 7

How you can assess and collect evidence for the RSHE Primary Curriculum

he statutory guidance produced by the Department for Education is clear that the focus for assessment in Relationships Sex and Health Education (RSHE) should be in supporting children’s learning and making sure their needs are met. There are no plans for formal testing. However, teachers still need to assess pupil progress, so what approaches can you use to assess your pupils in RSHE in an effective and non-time-consuming way? There are three key questions to consider: ● How will assessment and evidence collection support children’s learning? ● How will assessment and evidence collection support planning and teaching? ● How will assessment and evidence collection demonstrate impact for internal review e.g. governors and external review e.g. Ofsted?

A starting point for RSE assessment A good starting point is to consider how you assess and collect evidence in other foundation subjects as these procedures can be adapted for RSHE. However, remember that good RSHE should include a range of opportunities for children to discuss their ideas and therefore there may not be as much written evidence as there might be for other subjects. This does not mean there will be no written work, and using a published scheme, such as the Kapow Primary RSE and PSHE scheme of work, can really help as it includes a range of activities in its lesson plans. Many of these can be used as evidence, such as top tips lists, quizzes and scenario responses.

How do you support planning, teaching and learning in RSE? To support planning, teaching and learning, it is good practice to carry out a baseline assessment at the beginning of each topic. There are many ways to do this but one of the most straightforward is a mind mapping activity. For example, you can use the areas covered in the unit, such as stereotyping and friendship, and ask the children to record anything they already know about these. They could complete this individually, in pairs or groups. You can then see what they know, any misconceptions they may have and any gaps in their understanding. The other big advantage of this is that the mind map can be revisited at the end of the unit and additional information added, perhaps using a different colour, providing useful evidence of progress. Kapow Primary’s scheme includes this approach, as well as an assessment quiz.

Another established tool for baseline assessment in RSHE (and PSHE education) is ‘Draw and Write’. This was originally designed by Noreen Wetton as part of drug education but has been developed and can be used for a number of topics. The basic principle involves outlining a scenario to the children and them responding with their ideas in pictures and words. Again, this allows you to see what they already know and any misconceptions. Like the mind map, this can be revisited at the end of a unit to see progress. To support planning, it is important to assess in each lesson and in particular to identify any children who really have not understood the content. In each Kapow Primary RSE and PSHE lesson, guidance is given on what you can expect for children with secure understanding and those working at greater depth. Your lesson plan can be used to note children who do not have secure understanding as well as any who have exceeded expectations. Working this way will enable you to adjust the planning for the next lesson to support those children who need some extra input, and those who need extending further.

How to use self and peer assessment in RSE Self and peer assessment are also useful tools in RSHE and activities to support this are included within the Kapow Primary RSE and PSHE scheme. When undertaking this type of activity, it is important to be clear on what is being assessed, particularly when using peer assessment. Children also need clear guidance on what they are looking at. For example, when peer assessing a leaflet produced by another child, they could consider how clearly information is shared or the number of key facts included. Paper-based activities are included in Kapow Primary’s units of lessons, which can be used as evidence of children’s learning. These can be collated in a range of ways — you might have a class folder or big book where key pieces are stored. This approach offers the opportunity to add photos and a brief record of discussions as well. Alternatively, you may wish children to have an individual folder or book. They might use this throughout the school or a key stage, which allows you and them to review their progress over time. You may wish to have a different system for different age groups, so a class approach might be used in Key Stage 1 and individual books in Key Stage 2. You might also like to consider these ideas used by schools to evidence learning in RSHE: ● Hold a half-termly whole school assembly where children share what they have learnt. This works particularly well if everyone has been following the same broad theme. ● Share pieces of work, particularly leaflets and videos on the school website. ● Children could write top tips on a topic for the school newsletter. ● Have a RSHE display in every classroom. ● Have RSHE as the theme for corridor or hall displays so the whole school can see what others have been learning. ● These approaches provide the opportunity for children to share learning with each other and can be used to share key messages with parents and carers. This can be a useful way to help them to support their children in healthier and safer behaviours.

What are Ofsted looking for when it comes to RSE? Many schools will be considering what Ofsted might be looking for when inspections begin again. RSHE will mainly be considered as part of the Personal Development judgement. It does, however, play a part in all the inspection themes. It could also be used as a focus for a deep dive. As a subject leader, it is important that you have a clear understanding of your school’s approach and how you meet the needs of your community. Your long term planning should show a logical progression in learning (you can use Kapow Primary’s RSE progression of skills document to help you). Your assessment procedures should demonstrate how you support children and move them on to the next step. If these are clearly set out, then children should be able to speak to inspectors with confidence about their learning.

RSE, RSHE and PSHE terminology guide The Relationships Education, RSE, and Health Education (England) Regulations 2019 have made Relationships and Health Education compulsory in all primary schools. Sex education is not compulsory in primary schools. Changes in the human body, including puberty are part of the national curriculum for science as is reproduction in plants and some animals. Many primary schools, however, decide to teach human sex education and reproduction to meet the needs of their children. All primary school children must learn about relationships and health which comprises two distinct areas: ● Relationships ● Physical health and mental wellbeing PSHE, defined by the DfE as “Personal, social, health and economic (PSHE) education, is an important and necessary part of all pupils’ education. All schools should teach PSHE, drawing on good practice, and this expectation is outlined in the introduction to the proposed new national curriculum. PSHE is a non-statutory subject. To allow teachers the flexibility to deliver high-quality PSHE we consider it unnecessary to provide new standardised frameworks or programmes of study. PSHE can encompass many areas of study. Teachers are best placed to understand the needs of their pupils and do not need additional central prescription.”

So what exactly is the Model Music Curriculum?

he Model Music Curriculum is a non-statutory guidance document published by the DfE on Friday 26th March, after two years of development by the Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music (ABRSM) and a panel of advisors. It does not replace the current national curriculum and there is no requirement for schools to adopt it. Instead, it demonstrates one possible approach to the current national curriculum for Music, giving details of what could be taught in each year group in order to progress logically towards the end of Key Stage expectations.

The most significant aspect of this document is that it sets out minimum teaching time requirements for music. Although, like the rest of the document, these are non-statutory, schools may find these hard to ignore, particularly in the light of Ofsted’s focus on ‘broad and balanced’ curriculum. The suggested allocation for KS1 and KS2 is an hour a week, which can be broken down into smaller units of time if necessary.

The Model Music Curriculum also unites the national campaigns to decolonise the curriculum. However, it is curriculum and the National Plan for Music Education for the encouraging to see some female composers on the repertoire first time, in its suggestion that children in Year 3 or 4 should list, alongside composers and musicians of colour – even be offered whole-class instrumental teaching programmes as within the traditionally white male preserve of classical music. part of a school’s overall approach to the Music curriculum. The guidance suggests that these should take place in The Model Music Curriculum also contains lists of suggested addition to the curriculum Music lesson, which does reflect vocabulary, and musical signs and symbols from staff the original intent of these programmes when they launched notation for each year group to learn. For schools adopting as Wider Opportunities in 2007. a knowledge-rich approach, these could However, experience since 2007 has be of value in the creation of knowledge ‘Perhaps the main thing to shown that very few schools have ever organisers and other curriculum been able to dedicate two lessons a progression documents, but again note about the Model Music week to Music, so the reiteration of these are not compulsory to adopt. It is Curriculum is that it is not a this expectation in the Model Music worth noting that for the Model Music teaching resource.’ Curriculum is unlikely to change things Curriculum, notation work starts in significantly in this regard. KS1, rather than in KS2. The guidance contains suggestions for pieces to listen to from classical to popular and ‘world’ music traditions, and for repertoire to sing and play. These repertoire and listening lists represent a starting point for schools, but are intended to be supplemented with teachers’ own repertoire choices. There have already been concerns raised around the colonial nature of some of the musical choices, and of how musical cultures, countries, and continents are mislabelled within the document, which is unfortunate given recent high-profile

Perhaps the main thing to note about the Model Music Curriculum is that it is not a teaching resource. It will still require teachers to create or source their own lesson plans and teaching materials. For this reason, Kapow Primary has reviewed its scheme of work and has mapped all its resources to the Model Music Curriculum. This way, you can relax knowing Kapow Primary is doing the planning for you and meets the new guidelines.

Written by

Elizabeth Stafford

A practical guide to Ofsted and cultural capital for primary schools

he original phrase ‘cultural capital’ came from the French sociologist Pierre Bourdieu in the 1970s, believing the more ‘capital’ you had, the more powerful your position was within society. This closely linked with Karl Marx’s theory on fiscal capital (and capitalism) — the more capital you had, the better off you were.

E. D. Hirsch Jr., Chairman of the Core Knowledge Foundation, took this to another level by developing the idea of ‘cultural literacy’, the idea that “reading comprehension requires not just formal decoding skills but also wide-ranging background knowledge.” In 1986, he published ‘Cultural Literacy: What Every American Needs to Know’, which outlines all ‘core topics’ he believed American children needed to know to prepare them to be a successful adult.

This phrase hit the headlines again in 2013 when Michael Gove, then Secretary of State for Education, gave a speech where he promised the curriculum would ensure pupils had a ‘stock of knowledge’. Taking inspiration from E. D. Hirsch Jr., he argued ‘cultural capital’ would impact children from low-income backgrounds the most as “the accumulation of cultural capital — the acquisition of knowledge — is the key to social mobility.” This belief that cultural capital is ‘knowledge’ has been controversial amongst the teaching profession.

Ofsted’s definition of cultural capital, as found in their school inspection handbook, is: “As part of making the judgement about the quality of education, inspectors will consider the extent to which schools are equipping pupils with the knowledge and cultural capital they need to succeed in life. Our understanding of ‘knowledge and cultural capital’ is derived from the following wording in the national curriculum: ‘It is the essential knowledge that pupils need to be educated citizens, introducing them to the best that has been thought and said and helping to engender an appreciation of human creativity and achievement.”

And there have been mixed views on Ofsted’s mandatory introduction of it into the curriculum. The thought behind its introduction is to expose disadvantaged children to cultural experiences and background knowledge that will equip them with cultural knowledge to propel them further in their education, careers and social development. Some teachers at schools in more deprived areas believe this could have a positive impact on their pupils. Developing cultural capital within a school setting can give exposure to children to experiences that they may otherwise not have had. Alan Boyd, a teacher, says that he feels he is “providing opportunities and experiences that our parents can’t pass on to their children. Even simple things like going to a beach or farm that many children take for granted. Our school is in a deprived area so not many of the parents own cars. This stops them from having day trips and travelling away from their immediate area.”

Is Ofsted’s definition too vague? The Cultural Learning Alliance has openly stated that the loose definition of ‘cultural capital’ by Ofsted allows schools to develop their own interpretation of what the phrase means in a way that is best for their school and pupils. They believe schools should define ‘cultural capital’ in a way to “celebrate and embrace the different backgrounds, heritage, language and traditions of all the children living in this country.”

Contributing to The Guardian newspaper, Professor Diane Reay emphasises this new requirement doesn’t just confuse what ‘culture’ to develop but also the issue of class: “key elements of cultural capital are entwined with privileged lifestyles rather than qualities you can separate off and then teach the poor and working classes.” For art specialist Susan Coles, cultural capital is a lot more fluid than it might seem. To her, “it is something that should be applied to all curriculum subject areas and not particularly to the Arts. Although, the autonomy of the art curriculum allows teachers much more freedom to lead on this. There is a lot of work that has been done previously in schools, under other government and Ofsted initiatives such as SMSC and Citizenship that has actually explored this. Schools do not necessarily have to ‘reinvent the wheel’. Something that I believe is key to cultural capital is curiosity, which is, of course, a component also of creativity. The urge, impulse, desire to find out more. Finding out more about ‘myself’, where I come from, where I belong, where I feel safe and confident and strong, how I manage my own well being and also ensure that I grow as a person. Cultural capital is absolutely everywhere in our world, in our own house, our street, our town/ city, across the nation, across the globe. Learning through art to be viewed as a productive practice of meaning-making within the lifeworlds of pupils. Avoid tagging on cultures which have little or no relevance to the students in your schools. Embrace the different cultures within schools, in the surrounding communities.

Similarly, teacher blogger Mrs Beaton argues, “Let’s shift our thinking from cultural transactions to cultural openness and acceptance. That my heritage might be different to yours but neither are ‘less than’ when the comparative financial cost is totted up and someone hands the school the receipt.”

A school is not going to develop cultural capital through the Arts purely by, for example, taking people to an art show or to the theatre. It is the active participation in the arts that develops cultural capital. Through all the things that children love to do, we must ensure that young people don’t just experience the arts and culture but that they actively take part and create their own as participants. Children are unique human beings — they are not a piece of data — they should sing, they should dance, they should twist, they should turn, they should rock and roll, they should imagine, and then script their stories and act them out, they should use their hands to twist, to bend, to shape, to mould, to feel, to cut, to tear, to form, to join, to draw, to paint, to make, and they should explore and experience all those wonderful haptic moments which are essential to developing as a human being. Their confidence in doing this is part of their cultural capital.”

How to teach Design and technology to mixed-aged classes

any schools are now teaching in mixed-age classes as pupil numbers dwindle in village schools and schools in higher birth rate areas merge or expand their numbers to 2 ½ form entry. This provides a unique challenge to teachers who are trying to cover the National Curriculum for both age groups in a one year period.

The Design and Technology curriculum homes in on the four main aspects of the design process, as well as a focus on cooking and nutrition: Design – generating, developing, modelling and communicating design ideas, using traditional and digital techniques. Make – selecting and using a range of materials, ingredients and equipment to perform practical tasks. Evaluate – exploring, investigating and analysing products, as well as a wider-world appreciation for key events and individuals in the field. Technical knowledge – essential understanding of systems such as electrical and mechanical. Cooking and nutrition – key principles in food such as healthy, balanced diets and seasonality.

Design and technology projects are methodical The majority of Kapow Primary;s Design and technology units are methodical and follow a step-by-step approach, which usually begins with research, idea generation and modelling, then moving onto the creation of a prototype and/or completed product and finally testing and evaluating the outcome. It is, however, important to recognise that all aspects of the process are equally important to the children’s development and know-how. The finished product is not the primary goal. Instead, it is the result of a learning journey that encompasses a variety of skills, technical knowledge and applied learning. Our approach enables you to manage each part of the process, one stage at a time, when delivering to a broader range of ages and abilities. It can also be helpful to introduce a classroom rota by table or group which addresses each stage at a differentiated level so children can work at a pace appropriate to their needs.

If teaching a mixed-key stage class or group, the curriculum objectives from KS1 are built upon in KS2. For example: KS1: Design Design purposeful, functional, appealing products for themselves and other users based on design criteria.

KS2: Design Use research and develop design criteria to inform the design of innovative, functional, appealing products that are fit for purpose, aimed at particular individuals or groups.

The KS1 objective builds on the child’s ability to use and apply a list of design criteria prescribed to them → to learn how to write a list of their own in KS2. When approaching a KS1 unit with design criteria, you could differentiate this activity to include a KS2 task to extend the existing design criteria by 1-2 points to tailor the product more to the client/user needs such as aesthetics (the way the product looks and how it is decorated).

What can we do to help support and extend learning in these circumstances? Whenever you teach Design and technology, some distinctive areas of ability will usually emerge. There will be three main areas of attainment in your outcome: high, middle and low ability.

Occasionally,

some pupils will demonstrate ability way higher than that of their peers, while others will struggle to produce a product with much accuracy or quality and find it very difficult to access your lessons. Some SEND pupils, particularly those with autism, may struggle with sensory aspects such as dealing with wet substances e.g. glue and paint.

Consider: ● What have I got to extend and enrich this project for the more able? ● How am I going to support the less able? ● How will I support my SEND pupils?

Every unit of work you plan should cater for these areas of attainment. When planning a project you should always prepare for this.

You cannot assume that there will be differentiation by outcome because this will not provide a suitable platform for everyone to achieve. If your task is suitably open-ended to enable the children to work at their own level of ability then you may not need to think much about extension work, but you will always need to think of support for students who are struggling to access your lesson. Typically, high-ability pupils will already be able to generate and draw ideas and measure and use basic craft equipment skilfully and accurately. High-ability thinkers will likely produce more unusual and creative responses to a design brief and have a more polished feel to their final products. It will be easier for them to see beyond the finished article and explain ways in which they may amend or improve their products.

Next steps for more able pupils in Design and technology Consider challenging your more able pupils from the get-go. The more complex (but achievable) the design idea phase of the process, the longer but more complex the final outcome ought to be. Often ideas can appear simple on the page, but once a pupil begins to take into account the materials, equipment and methods of assembly, it can reveal which ideas are more realistic and suitable to the brief. Consider higher-order thinking questions throughout the full process such as: ● How do these ideas relate to the client/brief? ● Can you label, segment, identify or list the parts of this idea? ● What materials could the parts or product be made of? Why? ● How does this product function/work?

● What could you change to improve this idea/model/ product? ● How could you test this idea/model/product? ● Can you predict what might happen if we change this ‘x’ element?

Often pupils can fixate on their first idea. Challenge them further by asking them to explain why the ideas succeeding their first do not fit the brief. Can they improve on the first one? Why not?

How to ensure curriculum coverage? If children complete an activity too quickly and to an acceptable level, try providing them with: ● An on-the-spot design challenge, such as “draw one or more ideas for a new electronic dog toy and specify what you expect (labels, materials, who the target audience will be)”. You could use the ‘Generic Kapow Primary - Design challenge sheet’ for this. To manage time or increase the difficulty for this extension activity, you could include a timed aspect to the drawing: longer needs more detail, colours and labels, and shorter is great for sketching practice. ● Open-ended questions and ask the children to record their answers. ● A creation station: include basic building materials, such as bricks or a crafts box with lolly-pop sticks, masking tape and other materials to experiment with. This can really help to develop their imagination but also their ability to problem-solve. You could include safe, recycled materials such as cereal boxes. ● A responsibility: they can help to support peers with gathering materials or discussing ideas, at various points in the process. ● An evaluation to complete during or at the end of their project. It will help children to see what needs to happen next, or how they might improve what they have already done. For this, check out Kapow Primary’s ‘Evaluation sheets’.

How to support the less able? Design and technology includes a lot of techniques and skills, some of which require a degree of accuracy to complete. For less able pupils, consider: ● Modelling or demonstrating the process both to the class and then at a small group/ individual level so they can ask any questions and see much more clearly. ● Providing some pre-made parts to the project and focus on assembly skills, or vice versa, support with assembly. ● Limiting the number of ideas/models you wish the child to generate to provide more time. ● Limiting the number of criteria you wish the child to write to improve focus. ● Breaking the task up into smaller chunks. ● Providing the children with a physical model for them to look at and take apart. ● Providing examples or part-complete sentences for written and drawn elements. ● Grouping and pairing with a mixture of abilities, especially as part of team/paired activities.

Written by

Rebecca Walsh

How to teach online safety in primary schools

-safety, internet safety, online safety, digital safety are all terms used to describe keeping pupils safe online. There is no one term that fits all, and you will find different terminology used in different schemes and publications. Generally, the term e-safety has been replaced with online safety. Like the DfE, Kapow Primary uses the term ‘online safety’ in their Computing scheme of work. The RSE and Health Education framework refers to ‘online safety’ elements.

The requirements for online safety within the National curriculum for computing are to: KS1: Use technology safely and respectfully, keeping personal information private; identify where to go for help and support when they have concerns about content or contact on the internet or other online technologies.

KS2: Use technology safely, respectfully and responsibly; recognise acceptable/unacceptable behaviour; identify a range of ways to report concerns about content and contact.

However, online safety should form part of a whole-school approach and should not be solely the responsibility of the Computing lead or for it to be taught discreetly within Computing lessons. Online safety should be taught throughout the year and not just in a single half term, or on Safer Internet Day.

What does the RSE and Health Education framework say about online safety? The RSE and Health Education document breaks down the key objectives the children should know by the end of primary school. These objectives can be found in Relationships Education (pg 19-22) and Physical Health and Mental Wellbeing (pg 32-35). “In this guidance where topics occur equally on and offline they are accommodated in the core content under the most applicable theme with the assumption that teachers will deliver them in a way that reflects that pupils will be negotiating issues and opportunities in these areas in all contexts, including online. Where there are topics with exclusively online content or implications this is drawn out explicitly.”

The DfE’s ‘Teaching Online Safety in Schools’ guidance document is also worth a read as Ofsted’s questions have been based around this document. Some key considerations include: ● ● ● ●

Do you teach your pupils how to navigate the online world safely regardless of the device, platform or app? Are you aware of the risks that your children have? Are you putting appropriate provisions in place for this? Does your coverage consider how to support vulnerable pupils? Is all the above embedded into a whole school approach?

How can we teach online safety progressively? This guidance document also discusses the use of Education for a Connected World to aid embedding a whole-school approach and ensuring the coverage of the new RSE requirements.

The Education for a Connected World framework provides guidance for teaching children to live knowledgeably, responsibly and safely in a digital world. It is split into eight categories: ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ●

Self-image and identity. Online relationships. Online reputation. Online bullying. Managing online information. Health, well-being and lifestyle. Privacy and security. Copyright and ownership.

Each of these categories is then broken down further from EYFS–KS5. As a primary teacher, the first two pages from each strand are relevant to you. You can see how Kapow Primary’s Computing and RSE & PSHE schemes address the Education for a Connected World framework here. It is important to know where, as professionals, you can go for support. Kapow Primary’s Online Safety Toolkit further supports schools with their online safety provision, and includes a range of resources, including posters, an online safety checklist that pupils can share with their parents or caregivers and a set of online safety questions to aid discussion in the classroom. UK Safer Internet has a dedicated helpline that offers free and independent advice for online safety issues. Top tips for online safety in schools: ● Practise safe browsing in front of your pupils. ● Regularly share the importance of online safety with parents through your blogs, newsletters and website. ● Discuss the importance of a strong password and how to generate them. ● Discuss age restrictions with your pupils and the reasons behind these. ● Ensure pupils know where they can go for help both online and offline. ● Support parents with understanding setting restrictions for their children’s devices. ● Emphasise the importance of thinking before you post online. ● Remind children that anything you post online is permanent. ● Create an Acceptable Use Policy (AUP) for all pupils to sign annually. ● Ensure you have an effective reporting system for online safety issues including cyberbullying.

Written by

Sarah Vaughan

Specialists in focus

Meet some of Kapow Primary’s specialists! Kapow Primary work with a small number of selected subject specialists for each of their six foundation subjects, each with significant experience in their subjects as well as a passion to inspire others to love their field of expertise as much as they do!

Susan is an educator, artist and an active advocate and well-known champion of art craft and design education. Her roles include: Secretary to the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Art, Craft, Design Education, Past President, and now Honorary Fellow of the National Society for Education in Art & Design (NSEAD), World Councillor (representing Europe) for the International Society of Education through Art (InSEA), and an Associate of the Big Draw. When Susan isn’t sharing her passion for the arts, she loves photography, making her own art, absorbing culture and travel.

Sue Coles

Art and design

After a brief spell as an opera singer, Liz embarked on a 20-year career in music education, teaching at early years, primary and secondary. After Liz had her daughter, she started her own business Music Education Solutions® Limited, helping teachers across the UK deliver music with confidence. Liz teaches Foundation Stage and KS1 music in a primary school, and is also Programme Leader for the largest Level 4 Certificate for Music Educators centre in the world! She is Editor of Primary Music Magazine, a writer for Music Teacher Magazine, and a reviewer for the British Journal of Music Education.

Elizabeth Stafford Music

Rebecca is one of our fabulous team of Content creators at Kapow Primary. She is incredibly passionate about education, particularly in the area of Design and technology, as she has seven years of experience delivering and leading the subject. Rebecca has previously taught STEM clubs and extracurricular activities such as RAF Project X, to Keystages 1-4 and SEND classes. Rebecca believes in providing children with real-world scenarios and knowledge to inspire and instil an appreciation and love for product design. Alongside her pedagogical background, Rebecca also holds a professional degree in Graphic design, with particular interests in illustration and communication.

Rebecca Walsh

In-house content creator

Sarah has 13 years of experience teaching in a primary school and leading computing. She now works as a Subject Matter Expert for the NCCE across the East Midlands. In this role, she supports primary schools with bespoke training to develop and implement their computing curriculum. Sarah facilitates computing courses for STEM and runs a series of local network meetings for computing leads.

Sarah Vaughan Computing

Sarah has over 20 years’ experience in education. Starting as a Primary teacher, Sarah then moved into an advisory role that covered both PSHE education and Citizenship. She delivers courses for teachers, as well as sessions for children and young people and creates educational materials. Sarah runs her own independent education consultancy company Personal Development Matters, which supports schools to deliver high quality PSHE education as well as other areas of personal development.

Sarah Huggins RSE & PSHE

What does a good Computing curriculum look like? “A high-quality computing education equips pupils to use computational thinking and creativity to understand and change the world... Computing also ensures that pupils become digitally literate — able to use, and express themselves and develop their ideas through information and communication technology — at a level suitable for the future workplace and as active participants in a digital world.” National Curriculum Purpose of Study

What should you teach in primary Computing? The national curriculum has six objectives for KS1 and seven objectives for KS2. Although not explicitly defined in the curriculum, these objectives can be split into three distinct strands; computer science, information technology and digital literacy: Computer Science (CS) is the ‘foundation’ of the subject (i.e. the underlying principles that make up the subject). Information Technology (IT) is how you “apply this knowledge” and understanding to purposefully create and make things. Digital Literacy (DL) is about considering the ‘implications’ of how you are going about doing this.

successful computing curriculum will ensure a broad and balanced coverage of all of the above strands. It is important that your staff have adequate subject knowledge in all three strands of the curriculum to be able to effectively deliver this to your pupils. Staff audits, in-house CPD and Kapow Primary’s in-built teacher CPD videos can all support this. You can also get help from Kapow Primary’s Computing subject leader toolkit.

Computer Science

Information Technology

Digital Literacy

Computer Science covers the ‘how’. How computers and computer systems work and how they are designed and programmed. Computer Science units cover programming units alongside units such as understanding how a school network and the internet works.

Information Technology is the application of Computing. Ensuring your pupils can use a wide range of products and software to enable them to plan, develop and create. These units should cover a variety of media such as video, audio, art, photography or music.

Digital Literacy is about the understanding and implications; why you are choosing to use something for a particular purpose. This strand also covers online safety, knowing how to use things safely, respectfully and responsibly.

How much curriculum time should be spent on Computing? In an ideal situation, you would have both discrete Computing lessons to teach the skills, and then cross-curricular opportunities to transfer these to enhance learning in other subject lessons. For example, after learning about Stop Motion Animation in Year 2 or Year 5 the pupils could use these skills to show the life cycle of an animal or explain how the digestive system works in science. However, it is not always possible to fit everything into your timetable, so some Computing units can easily be taught in a cross-curricular way. For example, Kapow Primary’s Year 4 ‘Investigating Weather’ unit may link nicely to your Geography unit or their Year 5 ‘Programming: Music’ unit could be used to support your music lessons for a half term.

It has to be noted that some parts of the curriculum do need to be explicitly taught in dedicated Computing lesson time such as understanding how the internet works or how to create selection. Consider key skills your pupils need in order to access the Computing curriculum such as knowing how to log in or type need to also be factored in. It is also important for teachers to understand that using a device in a lesson may not be teaching the Computing curriculum. Lessons such as using apps like TTRS or researching a chosen topic are not supporting the teaching and learning of Computing. Pupils need to plan, analyse, create and evaluate digital content. They should be the creators and not just the consumer.

Unplugged Computing lessons and activities Not all Computing lessons need to be completed using a digital device. Unplugged lessons are lessons that do not use any devices. Unplugged lessons can be used to support computational thinking and are also great for introducing new concepts to pupils such as understanding algorithms and the importance of sequence in Kapow Primary’s Year 1 ‘Algorithms unplugged’ unit or understanding how websites and packet of data or transferred in Kapow Primary’s Year 3 ‘Networks and the Internet’ unit.

Physical programming Physical programming is also a great way to engage and include all pupils. It provides a physical output for the code and can support pupils with their understanding. There are numerous physical programming devices out there to use. In KS1, Kapow Primary’s physical programming units use Beebots and in KS2, they use the Micro:bit. These units can still be accessed without the physical kits by using either the Beebot app, online Beebot or an unplugged ‘fakebot’ and the Micro:Bit emulator.

Computing subject leader tips: ● Know your curriculum, use the Computing Curriculum Overview to help you. ● Ensure sequence and progression are evident, use the Kapow Primary Computing Progression of Skills to help you. ● Ensure both yourself and your staff have the required CPD knowledge. Kapow Primary’s in-built CPD can help with this. you can use the in-built Computing CPD to help you. ● Use unplugged activities to introduce new activities. ● Look at opportunities to enrich your curriculum through clubs and competitions.

Written by

Sarah Vaughan

What is the difference between RSE and PSHE?

hilst PSHE is referenced in the national curriculum, there has never been any statutory guidance as to what pupils should be taught. The 2020 Relationships and Sex Education and Health Education curriculum has now provided that for the health and relationships aspects of PSHE. Sex education at primary schools, beyond what is covered in the Science curriculum, remains non-statutory. The guidance for RSE, however, does not cover everything needed for a well covered PSHE curriculum, so RSE has not replaced PSHE. Instead, RSE should be part of PSHE, not instead of. Of PSHE, the DfE says that “personal, social, health and economic (PSHE) education is an important and necessary part of all pupils’ education. All schools should teach

PSHE, drawing on good practice, and this expectation is outlined in the introduction to the proposed new national curriculum. PSHE is a non-statutory subject. To allow teachers the flexibility to deliver high-quality PSHE, we consider it unnecessary to provide new standardised frameworks or programmes of study. PSHE can encompass many areas of study. Teachers are best placed to understand the needs of their pupils and do not need additional central prescription. However, while we believe that it is for schools to tailor their local PSHE programme to reflect the needs of their pupils, we expect schools to use their PSHE education programme to equip pupils with a sound understanding of risk and with the knowledge and skills necessary to make safe and informed decisions.”

What is covered in RSE? RSE stands for ‘relationships and sex education’ and is part of Relationships and Health Education.

Is it now statutory for a school to have a specific RSE policy. According to the DfE RSE guidance, a school’s RSE policy should: ● ● ● ● ●

Define any sex education they choose to teach other than that covered in the science curriculum. Set out the subject content, how it is taught and who is responsible for teaching it. Describe how the subject is monitored and evaluated. Include information about a parent’s right to request that their child be excused. Confirm the date by which the policy will be reviewed.

It is also suggested that the following are covered: ● Details of content/scheme of work and when each topic is taught, taking account of the age of pupils. ● Who delivers the lessons. ● How the policy has been produced, and how it will be kept under review, in both cases working with parents. ● How delivery of the content will be made accessible to all pupils, including those with SEND. ● Explanation of the right to withdraw. ● Requirements on schools in law e.g. the Equality Act (please see The Equality Act 2010 and schools: Departmental advice). ● How often the policy is updated. ● Who approves the policy.

The policy should also reflect the views of teachers and pupils. Listening and responding to the views of young people will strengthen the policy, ensuring that it meets the needs of all pupils.

Written by

Sarah Huggins

French deep dive question examples

deep dive is an in-depth look by Ofsted inspectors at specific subjects in a school, based on the most recent Ofsted framework. It helps inspectors to get a feel for whether a broad and balanced curriculum is being offered, the quality of education the children are receiving, progression and sequencing, retention of prior learning, and whether the curriculum at the school is doing what is intended. Ofsted can choose any subject area for their “deep dive” during an inspection, including French. A deep dive means looking at: Curriculum Intent – what does the French curriculum intend to do? Implementation – how is the French curriculum implemented? Impact – what progress do children make in French?

What is the purpose of a deep dive in French? According to Ofsted, the purpose of a deep dive is, “to allow inspectors to gather the evidence necessary to form an accurate evaluation of how education flows from intention to implementation to impact within a school.” They will be looking at the flow of lessons and sequences of work to check whether progression of skills is taking place. There will be observed lessons as well as book scrutiny (in the case of French, work scrutiny if you don’t use books), and interviews with the French subject lead.

What is curriculum intent? Your school’s French curriculum intent should represent the ethos, vision and values of your school. It should list your school’s specific areas of development, as well as relevant national strategies and what you want your pupils to learn.

What is curriculum implementation? Curriculum implementation is how you put your plans into practice, how you ensure that your intent is being carried out. How likely is it that the teaching methods used will deliver the teacher’s objectives for French?

What is curriculum impact? Curriculum impact is whether the children have learnt what they are supposed to have learnt. Has the intent and implementation worked? What is the potential impact on the subject teaching on the pupils? Has the intent and implementation done what it is supposed to have done? Have the children gained the knowledge and skills that they need? Can you demonstrate clear progression?

What is expected of French subject leaders? French subject leaders should ● have a clear idea of their role and responsibility. ● have good subject knowledge.

● regularly review the efficacy of their subject across the school.

● research and provide CPD opportunities for other staff.

● ensure the Languages National Curriculum is being covered.

● have an understanding of the French resources available in school, and whether they are effectively utilised.

● be an advocate and champion of their subject.

● ensure the curriculum is delivered according to the curriculum intent.

Typical French Ofsted deep dive questions Of course, Ofsted will ask whatever questions they see fit, but here are some examples of previous Ofsted deep dive questions: ● How do you evidence progress in French? ● Who teaches French? ● How do you challenge your higher ability children? ● How can you assess and demonstrate progression across key stages? ● How is this monitored? ● How do you ensure the National Curriculum is being covered? ● What are children learning? ● Why do you teach what you do? ● How is the French curriculum you teach particularly relevant to your children?

● What is the progression of knowledge and skills like in French? ● How is this monitored? ● Show me an example of a skill children learn in French and how it progresses from EYFS to year 6. ● How do you ensure correct use of vocabulary, and progression of vocabulary across the age ranges? ● In what way does the learning environment support learning? ● How is your French curriculum tailored to the needs of the children in your school?

● How do you ensure there is a sequence of learning?

● How do you support children who need extra support with French, as well as the children who are exceeding age-related expectations?

● How do you assess children’s prior knowledge?

● Do your French lessons provide Cultural Capital?

● How do you ensure that staff have good French subject knowledge?

● What opportunities do children have to link their learning to other subjects?

● How do you support staff that need it?

● What is it like to be a pupil at this school?

●

● What barriers and challenges do you face at your school?

What provision is there for French across the curriculum?

● What scheme do you follow (if any) and why? ● What are the strengths and weaknesses in French? ● How is French taught? ●

Do you have enough time to deliver the French curriculum?

● What staff CPD do you have planned?

● How do pupils remember what you’ve taught them? ● What did you think of the observed lesson/s? ● What do you want children to be able to do with their French knowledge once they leave school?

● What is your long term vision for French in your school?

● Do you feel like French is one of your strongest subjects?

● What changes have been made to French since the last inspection?

● What is behaviour like in French lessons?

What is expected of French subject leaders? When observing French lessons, inspectors are looking for: ● French lessons with pace that build on prior learning and knowledge.

● Clear objectives using age-related French vocabulary. ● Peer learning and peer assessment of learning.

Case study: why Severn Bridges MAT signed their schools up to Kapow Primary

he 47 teaching staff at Severn Bridges MAT wanted lessons that inspire children in all their schools. But because of a lack of specialism, as well as a lack of information regarding skills and knowledge progression, the staff were struggling to ensure the units they were teaching were built in a way that was relevant for their pupils. With the help of Kapow Primary’s specialist-created schemes of work across the non-core subjects, they were able to develop the right sequencing of the curriculum for their pupils and feel like specialists themselves.

Additionally, the schools wanted exciting and engaging ideas to inspire children in their lessons. They were looking for lessons that were sequenced and built upon each other to ensure learning was embedded in the long-term memory, with assessment or proof of progress opportunities built into each lesson. The Severn Bridges’ teaching staff also wanted a cohesive package that was logically sequenced and ensured there weren’t significant gaps in coverage.

What problems were the teaching staff facing? With the schools’ need for schemes of work for the specialist subjects, as well as the staff’s varying degrees of knowledge, teaching staff were finding themselves spending a considerable amount of time researching and planning lessons. As Andrew Morris, CEO of Severn Bridges MAT, said, “where teachers are not specialists, it is difficult to plan the correct knowledge progression and skills opportunities into the curriculum or it requires a large amount of time to do this.” Their lack of knowledge often meant they weren’t feeling confident teaching those subjects. Therefore the schools needed a scheme of work that enabled them to build their subject knowledge and deliver lessons across the non-core subjects that covered the curriculum, but was also time-efficient.

‘They were looking for lessons that were sequenced and built upon each other to ensure learning was embedded in the long-term memory, with assessment or proof of progress opportunities built into each lesson.’ 28

How did Kapow Primary help them face those challenges? Kapow Primary was recommended to the trust by a Local Authority advisor as a “useful and supportive tool to planning and teaching the Curriculum in their specialist areas”. Kapow Primary was trialled internally and eventually each school subscribed to the Art and design and Computing schemes of work, benefitting from a special MAT pricing offer. “Our coordinators across the three schools meet as school Development Teams. They initially researched the Kapow Primary subject support, then encouraged other staff to try the resources. Staff liked them and decided to subscribe. From then, the MAT school Improvement Teams looked at the Kapow Primary resources themselves and decided this would work well across the MAT. Staff were supported during staff meetings in using the materials to plan lessons building from the planning and progression in the materials. The School Improvement Teams for each subject review and refine materials designed to support assessment opportunities and proof of progress tasks and opportunities or ensure children recall knowledge earned.” explains Andrew. Now, the teaching staff across all three schools coordinate their teaching plans. Year groups can easily end up teaching the same unit at the same time, though it’s up to each school to choose the theme they want to cover in those

lessons. The coordinators also meet regularly as a team from each school to share their curriculum and resources and ensure best practice is continually being upheld. Since subscribing to Kapow Primary, the three schools have found the resources to be extremely good value for money, offering clear planning as well as a fantastic range of additional resources with built-in CPD. The Art and Design and Computing schemes of work support all year groups, ensure progression of skills and cover the whole national curriculum. Using Kapow Primary for Computing has positively affected the teachers’ planning time and budgets. Instead of relying on several resource providers, they can now rely on Kapow Primary to fulfill all their teaching needs. Additionally, this allows for a clear sense of progression across each Key Stage and prevents the revisiting of work often at the same level in different Year Groups, which helps ensure each pupil acquires a range of vocabulary, knowledge and skills. The teaching staff there are particularly happy with the quality of the Teacher and Pupil Videos, which are an exciting addition to the lessons, and the age-appropriate nature of the units. But above all, they are finding the schemes of work easy to follow, which was essential to them as it reduces time wasted planning units of work and lessons. When it comes to the children themselves, Andrew says that they “have really enjoyed the videos and tutorials supplied. They feel they are learning more when questioned about their subject during coordinator reviews. They felt they had more knowledge or knew more facts when asked about what they had learned.”

And Kapow Primary also impacted the lives of the teachers. “The staff now feel like ‘specialists’ themselves,” Andrew says. “Co-ordinators feel supported to aid staff develop longand medium-term plans to support the creation of exciting lessons. The range of subjects is taught more consistently across the school now as some of the ‘fear’ factor in nonspecialist teaching has been removed. Staff understand the progression in units and can use lessons more effectively to judge pupils’ skills and knowledge in lessons and help them plan the next lesson more effectively.”

‘Since subscribing to Kapow Primary, the three schools have found the resources to be extremely good value for money, offering clear planning as well as a fantastic range of additional resources with built-in CPD.’

USEFUL LINKS DfE Model Music Curriculum March 2021

DfE Relationships Education, Relationships and Sex Education (RSE) and Health Education

DfE info on PSHE

DFE online safety

Ofsted cultural capital link

Ofsted online safety inspection guidance

Ofsted guidance on inspections for RSE

SCHEMES OF

WORK IN FOCUS

Find out what Teach Primary thinks of Kapow Primary’s Music, D&T, Art and design and RSE & PSHE schemes of work in these reviews:

Music

Art and design

“Authored by music specialists, Kapow Primary’s Music resources and supporting materials make teaching music straightforward, accessible and, dare I say it, fun – for specialists and non-specialists alike. The Kapow Primary team is composed of educational experts and former teachers and this clearly shows in the quality of the resources they create.”

“From the outset, the Art and design resources exude quality. The package is comprehensive, comprising lesson plans, resources and live modelling videos. You can pick up the resources and use them out of the box, whether you’re a subject specialist or not.” Read the full review here

Read the full review here

RSE & PSHE

Design and technology “D&T is a difficult area for some schools to effectively deliver, simply because of the practical elements involved in the subject. Kapow Primary’s scheme of work follows the tried-and-tested formula for success that has cemented its reputation for supporting teachers and helping them develop.” Read the full review here

“From a teacher perspective, this scheme of work has everything you need – simple but effective plans which document activities and discussion points; new learning broken into small steps; scaffolded worksheets and resources which are easy to download and print; insightful videos to add an extra level of support to the concepts being taught. The videos are really effective and play a big part in filling in the gaps that a lot of students have when it comes to RSE.” Read the full review here

TRY THE SCHEMES OF WORK FOR FREE Access over 800 lessons, videos and resources for Art and design, Computing, Design and technology, French, RSE & PSHE and Music with a free 7-day trial. SIGN UP TODAY and start developing your subject knowledge and confidence!

About Kapow Primary Kapow Primary helps schools and teachers deliver a broad and balanced curriculum and ensures progression of skills for their six foundation subjects. Membership of Kapow Primary helps schools and teachers deliver outstanding lessons for KS1 and KS2 in Art and design, Design and technology, Computing, French, Music, RSE & PSHE and Wellbeing, as well as EYFS for Music and Computing, through specialist-created units and bite-sized videos.

Find out more about Kapow Primary on www.kapowprimary.com. 31

Beyond the core curriculum

Primary Focus - 2021 Issue