Curriculum Overview

Our aim at Castle Academy is to provide a curriculum which:

At Castle Academy every child has the best possible start to their learning journey; this is reflected in our curriculum which has clear progression from EYFS to Year 6 and is personalised to all learners. We offer a broad and balanced curriculum which aims to promote collaborative, resilient, resourceful and reflective learners.

Castle Academy personalises the curriculum by making it accessible to all: our curriculum is inclusive. It encompasses the needs of all learners and is delivered by passionate and supportive staff who strive for quality and consistency. The impact of our tailored curriculum enables children to think more deeply, be positive role models and face ongoing challenges confidently whilst remaining engaged in lifelong learning. Our children are prepared for a successful future which will lead to happy and fulfilled adult lives, developed through our school values of hope, trust, pride and respect.

Our school is situated in a culturally rich and diverse community, and we take every opportunity to celebrate our commonalities and differences by teaching children to work respectively and cooperatively. We develop our pupils’ sense of community both in and out of school, so they can leave school with the habits and attitudes which will serve them throughout their lives. This gives our pupils the confidence to thrive in the modern world.

At Castle Academy we believe that we, alongside everyone within our community, are on a continuous learning journey, working together to improve and grow. To fulfil this belief, we underpin our curriculum with positive learning experiences to motivate and inspire our pupils and promote positive wellbeing.

Castle Academy Never Stops Learning

Curriculum overview, English overview and outcomes and Maths overview and outcomes can be found in the downloads and links below.

Read, Write Inc

At Castle Academy we follow Read Write Inc but have adapted it to suit the needs of our pupils. Children in Nursery start with learning how to hear and say phonemes in words. They then progress onto recognising phonemes and corresponding graphemes.

In Reception and Key Stage 1 & 2 pupils follow Read Write Inc programme for phonological awareness, learning to blend and segment words, phoneme/grapheme correspondence, reading and comprehension. this takes place daily for 30 minutes in ability groups and pupils are continually assessed and move accordingly.

Once pupils are off the programme, they move onto spelling and comprehension.

Relationship and Sex Education

At Castle Academy, we follow the Jigsaw curriculum for Relationship and Sex Education (RSE). 

RSHE - A Guide for Parents and Carers leaflet

Jigsaw - Information Leaflet for Parents and Carers

Religious Education

The RE curriculum is determined by the local Standing Advisory Council on Religious Education (SACRE), which is responsible for producing the locally agreed syllabus for RE. Agreed Syllabuses used in schools (maintained or academy), which are not designated with a religious character must ‘reflect the fact that the religious traditions in Great Britain are in the main Christian, while taking account of the teaching and practices of the other principal religions represented in Great Britain’. Schools with a religious designation may prioritise one religion in their RE curriculum, but all schools must recognise diverse religions and systems of belief in the UK both locally and nationally.

EMAT’s Teaching and Learning Framework

The curriculum is the totality of our pupils’ experiences of education. Our curriculum is broad, balanced, rich and varied. We provide pupils with high-quality education and experiences so that they are ready for each next stage in their education and are prepared for their lives in modern Britain.

This framework sets out the key principles and theoretical perspectives that inform our curricular thinking across all our schools. It sets out what we believe are important features of the most effective teaching, learning and assessment practices, informed by reliable research. It gives us a ‘shared language’ with which we review, refine and improve our pupils’ educational experiences.

The principles contained within it are not a ‘checklist’, but a conceptual framework that underpins our work to ensure our pupils’ successful learning.