One of our school development priorities this year is to review our curriculum offer and identify ways in which we can refresh it and continue to offer our pupils a high-quality primary school experience.
We have spent time as a staff discussing this and identifying aspects we believe to be important. We would also now like your thoughts, ideas and views on the shape and content of the school curriculum at Tranmere in order to help us to do this.
The curriculum offer can be divided into two aspects. The National Curriculum (the DFE document which sets out subject specific content that all schools must cover) will continue to be a key component, but our school curriculum is much broader than this. At Tranmere Park we believe that every moment of our day (inside and outside of the classroom) is an opportunity for learning, and an experience to draw from. The school curriculum sets out the aspects of our provision that are much more personal and bespoke for our pupils, families and the local community.
For example, as a school we believe that our pupils benefit a great deal from a carefully structured programme of residential trip experiences across KS2. This isn’t something that is required of schools nationally, but it is something that we believe offers our pupils at Tranmere important and beneficial opportunities to develop independence, resilience, collaborative working, self-confidence etc.
Similarly, we have identified ways in which we can incorporate outdoor learning throughout our curriculum. We believe this to be important to encourage engagement in learning for all pupils, and also to promote positive mental health through stepping outside of the classroom where possible and demonstrating to our pupils how beneficial the outdoors can be in helping to self-regulate during times of difficulty (stress, upset, anxiety etc).
So, during parent consultation evenings next week we will be seeking your views! We would like to know what it is you think our children specifically currently benefit from or what they could additionally benefit from going forward. What experiences/personal attributes would we want to promote in our children before they leave us at the end of year six? How can we respond to the needs/characteristics of the local community? How can we prepare our children for life in modern Britain and a wider world? We very much look forward to hearing what you think!