During the Lower Prep years, we strive to instil in our pupils the foundations they need to build a life-long love of learning, to develop a natural curiosity for the world around them, and to encourage each of them to apply and stretch themselves on their own personal learning journey.
At the heart of our approach is academic ambition for every child. Our thematic curriculum is built around thought-provoking concepts and big thinking questions—questions that spark curiosity and help children to make links across different subjects. Lessons are designed to stretch and challenge pupils, but we also teach in an adaptive and responsive way, so that every child can succeed and make progress. We ensure that we model what good looks like for our children, and scaffold the steps needed to reach their potential. We never place a limit on what our children can achieve; we have high expectations and support them in every way we can.
Our timetable reflects our ambition. We follow the National Curriculum in the core subjects of English, Maths, Science, Humanities, Art and Design, RE, Music, Languages, PE, PSHE and Computing. From Year 3, our pupils enjoy two lessons of Global Studies each week, which includes learning a modern language (either French or Spanish). We also incorporate the WoLLoW curriculum (World of Languages, Languages of the World) which encourages pupils to explore the richness and diversity of language, its history, patterns and cultural links. It encourages pupils to appreciate the roots and evolution of words, celebrate heritage languages, and understand the links between languages.
We also provide variety in our lessons by embracing outside learning in our beautiful, leafy 23-acre grounds. We can take the classroom outside for Maths, Science, PE and more, and at break times the children can build dens, have fun on the low ropes course or enjoy the freedom to play in the meadow area on the cut trails. Our incredible grounds provide the backdrop to teach our pupils about sustainability and the environment from this very young age. From organised litter picks to growing their own vegetable patches, people start to appreciate and feel responsible for the natural world they live in.
We adopt a whole school approach to literacy, and all subjects will help pupils with the essential skills of reading and writing. We set aside a weekly English lesson to practise spelling and handwriting. Our approach to spelling is progressive and research informed. Our goal is for children to be capable and confident writers, and spelling forms an essential part of that. We also know that reading is the foundation of learning, so we make every effort to make reading exciting and purposeful, inspiring pupils to read for progress and pleasure.
