Curriculum Subjects

We have a broad curriculum of subjects that we study in our school. View the information below for an in-depth look in to each of these areas.

Art

Art and design is taught as part of the IPC curriculum. Children are given lots of opportunities to take part in art and design during lessons and as part of extracurricular activities. They experiment with a range of techniques and materials which provide opportunities for children to develop their skills. As well as practical activities, children are also encouraged to discuss works of art in terms of what they like and dislike about a piece.

Art club runs every Wednesday night and it changes each half term alternating between key stage one and two. During art club, children are encouraged to express themselves through art. During the Spring term, children in Key Stage 2 made some fantastic paper Mache animals. We take part in local art competitions each year including Horden in bloom. Art is also offered as a privilege activity and is always a popular choice!

The new national curriculum for art and design aims to ensure that all pupils:

Produce creative work, exploring their ideas and recording their experiences
Become proficient in drawing, painting, sculpture and other art, craft and design techniques
Evaluate and analyse creative works using the language of art, craft and design
Know about great artists, craft makers and designers, and understand the historical and cultural development of their art forms

Computing

Computers are now part of everyday life. For most of us, technology is essential to our lives, at home and at work.

‘Computational Thinking’ is a skill children must be taught if they are to be ready for the workplace and able to participate effectively in this digital world. The new national curriculum for computing has been developed to equip young people in England with the foundational skills, knowledge and understanding of computing they will need for the rest of their lives. Through the new programme of study for computing, they will learn how computers and computer systems work; they will design and build programs, develop their ideas using technology and create a range of content.

The national curriculum for computing aims to ensure that all pupils:

Can understand and apply the fundamental principles and concepts of computer science, including abstraction, logic, algorithms and data representation
Can analyse problems in computational terms, and have repeated practical experience of writing computer programs in order to solve such problems
Can evaluate and apply information technology, including new or unfamiliar technologies, analytically to solve problems
Are responsible, competent, confident and creative users of information and communication technology

View our computing policy for further information:

ICT Policy

English

The study of English develops children’s ability to speak, listen, read and write for a wide range of purposes.

At Yohden Primary School children participate in a daily English lesson and staff ensure that they make as many cross curricular links as possible to the development of key English skills through the International Primary Curriculum and other subject areas.

During an English lesson children may encounter: whole class, guided group or independent reading or writing activities as well as regular reviewing of progress and learning. Other activities include: phonic and spelling work, drama and the study of grammar and punctuation. Children in EYFS and KS1 also participate in a daily discrete phonics session to develop their reading and spelling skills. Where needed, this phonic work is continued in Key Stage 2 to small groups or individual children. View our reading and phonics page for further information.

Our objectives in teaching English are:

To enable children to speak clearly and audibly, and to take account of their listeners;
To encourage children to listen with concentration, in order to identify the main points of what they have heard and respond appropriately;
To show children how to adapt their speech to a wide range of circumstances and demands
To teach children effective communication skills, both verbal and non-verbal, through a range of speaking and listening and drama activities
To develop children’s communication and co-operation skills so they are able to work effectively as members of a class, group or independently
To help children become confident, independent readers through an appropriate focus on word, sentence and text level knowledge
To foster a love of reading in order to develop enthusiastic and reflective readers, through contact with challenging and substantial texts
To foster the enjoyment of writing across the curriculum and a recognition of its value
To encourage accurate, meaningful and purposeful writing – both narrative or non-fiction
To improve the planning, drafting and editing of written work
To ensure children leave school with appropriate literacy skills to prepare them for the next stage of their education and later life

View the genres covered in English and guides for parents:

English Genres
English Policy
Grammar and Punctuation Policy

French

The children in Key Stage Two participate in weekly French lessons as part of their curriculum entitlement.

The rolling programme is now in its second year and the children are benefiting from consistent teaching across the key stage. Year Six children are working with staff from a local comprehensive school as part of transition exercises.

In Key Stage One children have had the opportunity to choose French in privilege time. The children have enjoyed learning basic greetings, body parts and about some of the differences between life in England and France. They think they would like to have a Wednesday off school to take part in sports like they do in France but didn’t want to have to go to school on a Saturday instead.

View our modern foreign languages policy for further information:

MFL Policy

Geography

Teaching Geography aims to equip pupils with knowledge about diverse places, people, resources and natural and human environments, together with a deep understanding of the Earth’s key physical and human processes.

At Yohden Primary School, Geography is taught using the units of study from the International Primary Curriculum. This allows our children the exciting opportunity of sharing their learning and their local studies with other children across the World.

Children are taught:

To develop knowledge of significant places
Understand the processes that give rise to key physical and human geographical features of the World
Collect, analyse and communicate with data
Interpret a range of sources of information
Communicate geographical information in a variety of ways

Children will be taught:

Locational knowledge
Place knowledge
Human and physical geography
Geographical skills and fieldwork

View our geography policy for further information:

Geography Policy

History

The History aspect of the National Curriculum is changing considerably from September 2014. The new National Curriculum means that children will be taught about periods of history, which had not previously been covered in Primary Schools. This is an exciting time for both Teaching Staff and Pupils. History lessons will include the Stone Age, Iron Age, Romans, Anglo-Saxons and Vikings.

The Teaching of History will also help the children to develop a sense of themselves as British Citizens and the role that Britain has played in Global History. Children will also study an aspect their own local history. This local study will be built upon, year-on-year, as the children progress through the School.

The aims of the new History Curriculum are:

To know and understand the history of the British Isles
To know and understand the significant aspects of the history of the wider world
To gain an understanding of terms such as empire, civilisation, parliament and peasantry
To understand historical concepts, draw conclusions and ask questions
To understand the methods of historical enquiry
To gain a historical perspective, by studying local, national and international aspects of history

Design and Technology

Design Technology is taught as part of the IPC curriculum. Children are encouraged to follow the full process of researching, planning and designing, making and evaluating a product in their technology lessons. They are provided with opportunities to practice different skills and use a range of tools when making a product.

Children in years 3, 4, 5 and 6 used their design technology skills to design and make a 3D model of St Mary’s Church to celebrate its 100 year anniversary. This was presented to Father Smith who was delighted with the result. The children worked collaboratively together and followed the full design process during a design technology club after school.

The national curriculum for design and technology aims to ensure that all pupils:

Develop the creative, technical and practical expertise needed to perform everyday tasks confidently and to participate successfully in an increasingly technological world
Build and apply a repertoire of knowledge, understanding and skills in order to design and make high-quality prototypes and products for a wide range of users
Critique, evaluate and test their ideas and products and the work of others
Understand and apply the principles of nutrition and learn how to cook

Maths

Considerable importance is attached to the children achieving and understanding mathematical processes, concepts and skills. Lessons are delivered in an interesting and enjoyable way, allowing the children to actively participate in the learning process and create a sense of achievement and confidence. Pupils are given opportunities to use and apply mathematics in real life situations and every day contexts.

Maths is taught through a daily Numeracy lesson which follows the principles of the Primary Numeracy Framework. In order to develop Mathematical skills, work is differentiated in all year groups to ensure all children achieve and fulfill their potential. Class teachers also plan for opportunities to develop and apply key mathematical skills in other subjects throughout the curriculum.

View our numeracy policy for further information:

Numeracy Policy

Music

Music is taught as part of the IPC curriculum. The children explore music from a range of cultures, communities, beliefs and time periods. They play untuned and tuned instruments, and also build their own instruments for making sound.

The children also learn how sound is made, how it travels, and how we hear the different sounds in the world around us. Each week, the school sing together as part of their Collective Worship, promoting positive community values and togetherness.

They children enjoy singing a range of hymns, traditional songs, and modern songs. In the Autumn, we celebrated the Harvest Festival by holding an assembly which we invited all of the parents to. Each class prepared and performed their own song, and showed work that they had done in class. At Christmas time, we love to sing our favourite Christmas Carols.

The children practiced and performed these traditional songs, and attended a Community Carol Service at the local church, St Mary’s. Key Stage 1 children also enjoyed performing their nativity for the local nurseries and their relatives. We are currently working in partnership with the Durham Music Service.

They spend an hour each week with children in Year 2 and have been working on playing the recorder. This will hopefully lead to more children wishing to take up musical instruments with the option of peripatetic lessons to follow.

View our music policy for further information:

Music Policy

Physical Education (PE)

View our physical education policy for further information:

PE Policy

Religious Education (RE)

Religious Education enables children to investigate and reflect on some of the most fundamental questions asked by people.

At Yohden Primary School we follow the Durham Agreed Syllabus (2012) for RE. We develop the children’s knowledge and understanding of the major world faiths as well as enabling children to develop a sound understanding of Christianity. Children reflect on what it means to have a faith and to develop their own spiritual knowledge and understanding. We help the children to learn from religions as well as about religions.

Our objectives in the teaching of RE are to:

Develop an awareness of spiritual, moral, social and cultural issues arising in their lives
Develop knowledge and understanding of Christianity and other major world religions or value systems commonly held in the UK
Develop an understanding of what it means to be committed to a religious tradition
Be capable of reflecting on their own experiences, and of developing a personal response to the fundamental questions of life
Develop an understanding of religious traditions, and an appreciation of cultural differences in the UK today
Develop their investigative and research skills, in order to hold reasoned opinions on religious issues
Have respect for other people’s views, and hence to celebrate diversity in society

Religious Education is a compulsory subject and is taught from Reception to Year 6 at Yohden Primary School. Parents and carers have a right to withdraw their child from Religious Education classes if they so wish, although only after they have given written notice to governors.

View our religious education long term plan and policy for further information:

Religious Education Long Term Planning
Religious Education Policy

Science

View our science policy for further information:

Science Policy

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