Our Approach to Learning

At Wolvercote our curriculum is designed to create a love of learning, ensure opportunities to explore a passion for creating and develop a culture of caring. 

The years from childhood into adolescence are a time of huge change for children's brains. Children go from learning about the world through their senses to starting to understand more difficult ideas. At the same time, they begin to see their place in the world, not just their own needs. They learn social skills and how to judge risks.

Giving children the right conditions to grow is really important. Especially today, when children spend less time playing on their own or being creative outside of school. At Wolvercote, we believe primary school children need a balanced way of learning. This means we combine direct teaching with chances for them to learn, explore ideas and play on their own. We want children to build a lot of knowledge and a wide range of skills. We also want them to develop their social skills and skills as independent learners.

Our Approach

Direct Instruction is a core part of how we teach. We use proven methods based on Rosenshine's Principles of Instruction. We help students succeed by showing them examples and gradually giving them more responsibility for their own learning (I Do, We Do, You Do.) This helps every student learn new information and skills. The bedrock of our teaching is our Core Principles. These ensure that all children receive consistent provision whilst allowing teachers to be flexible and adapt to the changing needs of the children in their classes. The core principles are outlined in our Teaching and Learning Policy.

We also make sure to offer chances for students to be independent. This helps them with critical thinking, social skills, and problem-solving. We do this by giving them time to show what they've learned in their own unique way. This allows students to explore subjects they find exciting, develop their talents, and learn to share with others.

How This Looks in School

Our approach changes as children get older:

• In Early Years, children spend most of their time learning through play in "Discovery Time." We add to this with small group sessions, one-on-one time, and short whole-class lessons.

• In Key Stage 1, we teach subjects like maths, reading, writing, and phonics to the whole class, and then work with smaller groups for extra support or targeting groups of learners. Children also have time for "Learning Around the Room." During this time, they use the classroom to show what they have learned in different subjects that week.

In Key Stage 2, we follow specific programs for maths, writing, reading, and science. Other subjects are taught in short "Acquiring New Knowledge and Skills Sessions" (ANKS) using direct teaching. On top of this, children get at least 2 hours of "Flexible Learning" each week. This gives them time to work with the knowledge they've gained during their lessons.

Mixed Year Groups

We are lucky enough to be able to sustain three mixed year group classes in each phase from Year 1 onwards. This approach provides lots of advantages to our children:

•  Children only move classrooms and teachers every two years, providing them with security and consistency. 

• We regularly remix combinations of children so by the end of their journey in the school the children have had the opportunity to befriend and work with many of the other children. 

• Older year groups in a phase are encouraged to take a mentoring, supportive role for incoming pupils and the younger children in a year group have access to peers who can help them navigate a new year group.

Our curriculum is planned on a two year cycle so that all children access all the knowledge and skills they need before moving onto a new phase. Although this may happen in a different order for different children we ensure through careful planning and adaptive teaching that children meet knowledge at an appropriate time and in a progressive manner.

Please find links below to our At a Glance documents which outline how we apply the core principles in individual subjects.

For more details or to learn how we support every child’s journey, please contact Mrs. Hayes, our Curriculum Lead, via the school office at office@wolvercoteprimary.org.