Beacon Hill Curriculum
At Beacon Hill we offer our pupils a bespoke curriculum tailored to meet the individual needs of our children and young people. We have high aspirations and want to improve outcomes for our pupils. Importantly, we respect that all children develop and learn in different ways and we must teach our pupils by ensuring appropriate and challenging opportunities are available across the curriculum. For some pupils this is a process based curriculum and for others, a skills based curriculum. We aim to provide our pupils with the fundamental skills needed to succeed in life and how to overcome barriers to succeed, based on their individual needs for lifelong learning.
A curriculum is the basis for any school to provide a meaningful and effective education to the pupils who attend. At Beacon Hill we believe this should be a broad and balanced approach which identifies and meets the needs of our pupils. The curriculum, alongside specialist teaching approaches, provides consistency throughout the school, whilst recognising developmental and age related aspects to learning.
EYFS Informal Curriculum Pathway
The educational programmes that shape the activities and experiences are reflected in the EYFS curriculum and a progressive curriculum is planned across the school, ensuring a solid foundation from EYFS through to PFA. The EYFS curriculum focuses on developing early language and extending vocabulary, with communication and language underpinning all the areas of learning. In EYFS there is an emphasis on the prime areas of the curriculum. They underpin all that we do and are threaded throughout the daily events and sessions. The curriculum in EYFS provides a theme through which the developmental curriculum is taught to ensure the students receive a breadth of experience and age appropriate content to enable them to progress to their next step across the school, experiencing aspects of the specific areas through a developmentally appropriate broad and balanced curriculum encompassing elements of Literacy, Mathematics, Expressive Art and Design and Understanding the World. We value all areas of learning and development equally and understand that they are inter-connected. A range of teaching and learning styles are incorporated across the day to meet the different needs of each child, which fully foster the Characteristics of Effective Teaching and Learning: Play and Exploration, Active Learning and Creating and Thinking critically.Key Stage One Semi-Formal Curriculum Pathway
When pupils leave the Early Years Foundation Stage they will either follow the informal or semi-formal curriculum pathway for key stage one. Those pupils who follow the informal pathway will continue to strengthen the prime areas of learning to ensure a strong foundation for children’s development. The key stage one curriculum ensures a strong foundation for children’s development continues in the three prime areas as pupils move from EYFS. The specific areas of learning are introduced at key stage one for those pupils who are ready to access the semi-formal curriculum, providing children with a broad curriculum and opportunities to strengthen and apply the prime areas of learning through a topic based approach. Focus is still given to the characteristics of effective teaching and learning in key stage one. These characteristics of effective learning feed into the Skills Builder Universal Framework, building on the essential skills from the Early Years Foundation Stage throughout school into every stage of life and are introduced as pupils move into key stage two.Informal Curriculum Pathway
Pupils who follow the informal curriculum pathway, who are not yet engaged in subject specific learning, access a multi-sensory, process based curriculum in four areas of learning. A care curriculum also runs alongside the informal curriculum, ensuring positioning for learning, postural management and personal care needs are incorporated into all aspects of the curriculum. This curriculum runs from key stage two to 6th Form. All pupils on the informal curriculum pathway have an engagement profile and will follow the engagement model.Key Stage Two and Three Semi-Formal Curriculum Pathway
Pupils who follow the key stage two and three semi-formal curriculum pathway will access more subject specific learning in which pupils are supported to become active, engaged and prepare for their adult lives. The curriculum will be delivered in a more subject specific fashion than in key stage one, with lesson content developing specific individual goals and targets. Units of learning provide a depth to the broad and balanced curriculum. Focus is given to the Skills Builder Universal Framework, building on the essential skills from the Early Years Foundation Stage throughout school into every stage of life: Listening, Speaking, Problem Solving, Creativity, Aiming high, Leadership,Teamwork. There will also be a focus on careers and Preparation for Adulthood as pupils prepare for their transition at Year 9.Four and Five Curriculum Pathway
The term “Preparing for Adulthood” is used to describe the process of moving from childhood into adulthood. Young people with Special Education Needs and Disabilities (SEND) should have equal life chances as they move into adulthood.The Preparation for Adulthood curriculum provides pupils with the opportunity to further develop the knowledge and skills that they will need to be successful in their adult lives. The curriculum is carefully planned to ensure that meaningful activities build upon prior knowledge and skills. Learners are taught how to apply knowledge and skills with greater fluency and independence; thus equipping them with the toolkit to succeed with.
| Areas of Learning | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Independent Living | Employment | Good Health | Friends, Relationships and Community. | Literacy Key Skills | Maths Key Skills |
