Curriculum

At Golden Valley we offer children a fun, exciting and enjoyable curriculum which instils a love of learning and develops life-long skills. We encourage children to be independent learners who have their own voice and who are well rounded and confident, both in school and in the wider community. We offer children the opportunity to learn through an integrated curriculum, in a variety of learning styles, learning from committed, diligent and enthusiastic staff as well as from each other.

Our thematic, creative curriculum encompasses the National Curriculum and its Programmes of Study. We also ensure that Values form part of every aspect of our learning, and we focus on one core value each term. Outlines of each year groups plan for their projects are below, and further information can be found on each Year Group page, or directly from the School. 

Phonics is taught to our EYFS and KS1 children through quality structured synthetics teaching, using the Letters and Sounds Programme. We regularly monitor the pupils' learning and ensure that support is provided to enable pupils to make rapid progress. Where appropriate, some pupils in KS2 receive additional support to apply their phonics skills alongside other teaching of reading and spelling. Our main reading schemes for our younger pupils are Collins Big Cat for Letters and Sounds, and Pearson Bug Club Phonics and we also use the online resource of Bug Club eBooks. We have a rich bank of other literature for children to read throughout the school and ensure that we are providing children with the skills and motivation to become readers for life. 

Our broad and balanced curriculum offers a variety of teaching and learning experiences, to enrich the education of every child. Where possible, we teach through real-life experiences and include trips, visitors to school and WOW activities.  

Statement of Curriculum Intent

Learning:

At Golden Valley, the curriculum is designed to:

• Foster independent learners who are resilient, open-minded, motivated, curious and thoughtful.
• Create confident, eloquent children who can move on to the next stage of learning and life with a tool-kit of skills and a growing bank of knowledge.
• Give children opportunities to learn through first-hand experiences, encouraging them to enquire, investigate and learn for themselves in a supportive environment.
• Protect and nurture the joy of learning, building upon prior knowledge and developing skills that can be applied to unfamiliar situations.

Values:

At Golden Valley, the curriculum is designed to:

• Encourage children to be polite and kind, with strong moral purpose, through the teaching of our School Values. 
• Provide opportunities to develop positive behaviour for learning through teaching the 8 ‘Secrets of Success’.
• Support children to be mindful of their well-being and that of others.
• Teach children to able to assess and take sensible risks and make responsible life choices.

Community:

At Golden Valley, the curriculum is designed to:

• Foster a sense of belonging through teaching children about their local area: its history and development, its present and its future.
• Encourage a sense of responsibility to the local community and wider world: caring for our environment and its people, respecting diversity and difference.