Curriculum Intent

Our curriculum is designed to develop the three core school values of ERA:

Academic excellence for all [E]

Together, we strive for personal and academic excellence: King Ecgbert School wants the best outcomes for every member of our school community, whatever their background or role in our school.

• Our sequential curriculum is academically rigorous. It is built around the principles of knowledge retention and teachers work together to develop strategies to ensure that learning is embedded in the long term memory and cognitive overload is avoided.
• We teach the cultural capital and wider knowledge that will enable disadvantaged students to close gaps, achieve the best grades and succeed in life.
• We believe in choices. At KES the curriculum model is inclusive for all, ensuring every student enjoys and achieves equally. It develops academic, social and cultural capital and also meets the specific needs and aspirations of individuals.
• Students learn in a school environment that is exciting and inspiring, leading to opportunity, success, personal growth and further study.

Showing respect at all times [R]

Our inclusive and diverse school community is one in which: every individual is welcomed, understood and valued; we respect each other and embrace our diversity; we actively promote fairness and social justice; our staff and students care about their community and together we all care about the wider world and our place in it.

• We have high expectations of all our students and these are underpinned by our ‘Consistent Behaviour Model’.
• Our assembly programme, L@kes curriculum and post-16 tutorial programme provides all students with PSHCE education that will make them respectful students who support and value each other.
• Our pupil premium strategy seeks to close the gaps between disadvantaged and advantaged students in the school by providing funding and opportunity for those who need it most.
• Students are part of a school culture where pastoral care and well-being are central to everything, where maturity and commitment are expected from everyone and where making the right choices secures the very best outcomes.

Having high aspirations and personal goals that go beyond school [A]

Together, we are committed to educating, supporting and encouraging every individual to develop the skills and character that will help them become the best they can be and make a real difference in the world. We expect every member of our own school community to become active, successful members of the wider communities we are part of: Sheffield, the United Kingdom and the global community beyond.

• We want our students to develop a love of learning.
• We encourage as many of our students to stay on at KES in the sixth form and offer a full and varied A level and BTEC programme. We want to equip our students with the skills and knowledge for their next steps to higher education or employment.
• Our students are provided with a wide range of creative and stimulating learning activities both in and out of the classroom.
• We teach our students to develop the character and resilience to be able to succeed and become happy and healthy individuals.

We are committed to the following key areas:

STUDENT SUPPORT AND PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT

Pastoral care and wellbeing

Our expanded team of highly qualified year managers, pastoral managers, safeguarding leads and associated members of the pastoral team are the bedrock of support for all of our students. We have a strong and determined emphasis on good attendance which we regularly communicate through the pastoral team and our Edulink app. Our House system, school council / eco council provide opportunities to celebrate our school community, giving students a voice and promoting responsibility. Our staff and student wellbeing policy reflects our commitment to building good mental health and positive relationships for all.  Opportunities include art therapy, counselling sessions and support from external agencies such as the Community Youth Team and MAST.

Personal Development

The Personal Development of students at KES is led by the principles of the Mercia Learning Trust PD framework. Form time, L@kes, pastoral care, enrichment, student responsibilities and roles, charity events and other school community events are all part of our PD curriculum. We have a comprehensive face-to-face and virtual assembly programme which develops school values and areas of the personal development curriculum.

Enrichment

Our students are entitled to a wider Personal Development curriculum and our comprehensive offer includes a broad range of activities which we encourage all our students to participate in.  We are committed to removing any barriers to participation and will endeavour to support any students who wish to access and enjoy any of our activities on offer. We provide opportunities out of lesson time and also through a programme of trips and experiences co-ordinated through subjects and via our careers education programme. The House team organise activities throughout the year which provide opportunities for collaborative participation.

Inclusion & Accessibility

Our main focus is on quality-first teaching. We expect our teachers to use their skill and expertise to include all students, supporting them to make the best possible progress.

Our curriculum is regularly reviewed, planned and updated by subject experts and school leaders at all levels. Staff within school are committed to making adjustments to the curriculum for students who require an additional level of support. This may take various forms, for example:

• Additional group or individual interventions
• Support from an adult within the normal classroom
• Scaffolding, modelling or additional support materials (such as writing frames)
• Individual questions, tasks or teacher intervention
• Paired reading and other reading interventions
• Tutoring programmes
• Personalised verbal or written feedback

Reasonable adjustments are made to the physical spaces and routines within school so that students who have specific additional needs can access our curriculum.

At KES, we are privileged to have an Integrated Resource for autistic students which is staffed by specialist SEND staff and offers wider support to the school in order to promote respect and tolerance within our school community.  We provide support for all our SEND students through our Curriculum Intervention Assistants, Inclusion Support Workers and commitment to the best possible teaching in the classroom, regularly using CPD time to improve our practice.

Extra opportunities for SEND pupils include the FRIENDS programme, Lego therapy, additional literacy support and nurture groups.

Primary transition

Our strong links with feeder schools ensure a smooth transition for students moving up to secondary school. We work closely with the primary schools in our trust, focusing on subject expertise and preparation to be ‘secondary ready’. Students who require additional transition support are provided with additional induction experience such as school tours or extra transition days.

A CURRICULUM WITH HIGH EXPECTATIONS AND SUPPORTIVE STRATEGIES

Knowledge

Our curriculum is built around the principles of knowledge retention and teachers work together to develop strategies to ensure that learning is embedded in the long-term memory. All homework set is appropriate, develops learning or focusses on knowledge retrieval. Formative and summative assessments help inform future planning, with a combination of directed assessment periods (e.g. mock exams) and internal subject assessments (e.g. BTEC unit completion dates, end of topic tests), as well as AfL strategies such as questioning, modelling and instant feedback.

Reading

The school provides every student in Y7 and Y8 with weekly lessons in ‘Accelerated Reader’, where reading levels are used to guide students to books that will support the improvement of their reading skills and understanding. This programme encourages individual extended reading and requires students to show knowledge of what they have learned. Also, both years have Guided Reading lessons, which allow the teacher to model excellent reading and lead discussion to assist with understanding of words and meanings.

In lessons, teachers use the PRISE structures (predict, read, interrogate, summarise, enquire) to support students to read effectively.

In form time, DEAL (drop everything and listen) is used so students can listen to quality texts being read by an expert. Vocabulary teaching is embedded into lessons to enable students to access reading material.

Ebacc

All of our students have access to a full range of subjects including the Ebacc subjects. We encourage students to continue with their study of a Modern Foreign Language; the cognitive demands of which will benefit their overall literacy skills and provide opportunities for further study and employment in the future.

Citizenship

Our L@KES and tutorial curriculum for all students provides a forum for discussion and learning about topics that will enable our students to become well-rounded and informed individuals. Opportunities to explore diversity and to challenge stereotypes or inequalities are embedded into schemes of learning. The curriculum is regularly updated taking into account current affairs and other relevant issues that will support our students’ education. It also meets statutory requirements to provide knowledge about sex and relationships education, citizenship and careers. The curriculum is complimented by visiting speakers from external organisations like Amy Winehouse Foundation, LGBT groups, City of Sanctuary and other charity groups.