Otley and Witnesham Partnership

Curriculum Intent

At Otley and Witnesham Primary Schools, we strive to deliver a high quality, broad and balanced curriculum that meets the needs of all our children and takes into consideration their starting points. We are committed to providing the best learning opportunities for all children so that they are fully equipped for their next stage of education and have developed a lifelong love of learning. We deliver a dynamic curriculum that is meaningful and engaging, designed to provide each of our children with the opportunity to experience a diverse range of rich experiences and enable them to explore new skills, gain new knowledge, try new things and find their passions. At Otley and Witnesham Primary Schools, all pupils are supported to access demanding work, through appropriate scaffolding and support. Each subject is brought to life through exciting, authentic and enriching experiences rich in cultural capital. We strive to teach beyond the National Curriculum, developing the children as individuals and as such place huge importance on personal development. We believe that teaching and developing the children’s creativity in a safe environment is integral to their development. Through this we want the children to be the best versions of themselves and to move forward as independent, confident and active citizens. We have designed our curriculum to support and encourage all our learners to be aware of their community within a local, national and international context and passionate about making a positive difference to the world around them. During their time with us our children will experience many exciting and unique learning opportunities from visits and visitors and themed events. The school’s strong commitment to celebrating diversity and meaningful teaching can be seen in all areas of school life. The school ensures that the curriculum is focused and visitors to the school reflect diverse backgrounds. Our curriculum is specifically designed to build knowledge and skills over time that will stay in the hearts and minds of our children forever. The curriculum is planned and sequenced so that new knowledge and skills build on what has been taught before and towards its clearly defined end points. As a team, we have explored the importance of sequencing and spaced repetition in order to help pupils retain learning in the long term memory.

General principles

Our curriculum will give children the opportunity to:

• develop a rich and deep subject knowledge

• learn within a coherent and progressive framework

• experience the challenge and enjoyment of learning

• develop new skills through a variety of interesting contexts

• see clear links between different aspects of their learning Purpose