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Curriculum

Intent Statement

Lady Byron’s Curriculum is engaging, exciting and relevant to the children at our school. It is driven by a desire for our children to rebuild and engage with learning, so they are well prepared for their next steps in Education and for their preparation towards adulthood.

The intention for our curriculum design is based on the understanding of the differences linked to their Autism, not only in their academic learning but also in their knowledge and understanding of how they think differently and what this means for them.

As a result, the Lady Byron School offers a more flexible Educational Provision for autistic young people who will benefit from a specialist provision that works together with local mainstream schools. The school teaches a curriculum that supports key content from the National Curriculum, with a bespoke program (LBS Curriculum) to address individual needs.

The aim of our provision is that all young people feel included and accepted in order to achieve their full potential. We want our young people to be confident, happy, self-aware and independent learners. Our curriculum has been designed specifically to support this aim.

Why do we do what we do?

We’ve ensured that our curriculum is underpinned by our ethos. We believe it is important that the curriculum both explicitly and implicitly develops our intention to rebuild and re-engage a love in learning. Our curriculum is underpinned by the interests and abilities of our children. The primary reason for doing it this way is because our pupils are complex individuals, with varying experiences of school life, we therefore strive to choose opportunities to re-inspire, re-engage and re-enthuse the children with their learning.

Alongside the core Academic Curriculum, we provide an interwoven SMSC and a Personal development Curriculum, prioritising the Pupil’s individual needs. This is a personalised response to individuals or class groups and is implemented through a choice of creative opportunities provided to express learning. This learning is celebrated through a learning journal and first-hand experiences that represents their understanding, different learning styles and most importantly, incorporates pupil voice.

Our aim is to have a Curriculum that is ambitious for our pupils, for it to be broad and balanced as well as being inclusive and appropriate for all abilities. Our curriculum continually evolves – being adapted to reach those children who can be seen as ‘hardest to reach’, having already perhaps been excluded from mainstream provision or have been unable to access a mainstream provision with specialised support in place.

During our curricular review we began by considering the curriculum we want and what we know our children need. We have placed great emphasis on diversity and celebrating difference. Planning in this way ensures all our pupils have access to a full curriculum which progresses in skills and knowledge during their time with us.

All of our pupils’ join at varying points of an Academic Year however, we can provide learning that is progressive and sequential from their individual starting points. We feel it is also so important to inspire the children with additional life experiences and opportunities. The children need to have the chance to experience new things, to try things presented to them in a different way, to develop their life skills.

At Lady Byron, we work hard to create meaningful, community links for our young people. We are proud to be part of the community of Fleckney, creating memories and encouraging further development of our Spiritual, moral, social and cultural development (SMSC)

Monitoring and Review

The Curriculum will be monitored and reviewed by the Deputy Headteacher and will report back to the Headteacher and Proprietor on a regular basis.

Implementation

Reconnect – a relational approach in providing a safe learning environment
Achieve – a joy of learning
Unlock – the best possible outcomes, diverse and memorable

Features of the Key Stage 3 Curriculum (Years 7-9)

All students follow a programme of personal, social, health citizenship and enterprise education (PSHCE) that includes elements of British values, sex and relationships, drugs, political, careers and personal finance education. This is taught by the student’s tutor, with specialist inputs where appropriate.

All students follow the statutory programmes of religious and physical education.

In addition to a core of mathematics, science and English, all students follow courses within the Enriched Curriculum in art, design & technology, the performing arts, computing and humanities.

All students who need additional support in their numeracy and literacy skills to close the gap with their peers receive up to two additional periods per fortnight in additional English and/or maths in addition to their standard English and Maths Curriculum.

Features of the Key Stage 4 Curriculum (Years 10-11)

All students follow a programme of personal, social, health citizenship and enterprise education (PSHCE) under the umbrella of ‘Life Skills’. This includes elements of British values, sex and relationships, drugs, political, religious, careers and personal finance education. This is taught by the student’s tutor, with specialist inputs where appropriate.
In Years 10 and 11 all students follow a core curriculum for all which includes; English language, English literature, combined science, mathematics, physical education, PSHCE and religious education
Students have the opportunity to opt for courses in art, business, computing, design & technology, humanities, media, modern languages and performing arts.

In Key Stage 4 students can opt to study science as separate disciplines.

The taught curriculum in all years is enhanced by a full extra-curricular programme and enrichment activities
Students who have not achieved a grade 4 or better in GCSE in English or maths are offered to continue to study these subjects (GCSE/Functional Skills)
All students are offered a bespoke careers pathway from KS3-4

Curriculum Design – Lady Byron School KS2

		Autumn 1	Autumn 2	Spring 1	Spring 2	Summer 1	Summer 2
Y6	Main Project	Me, Myself and I	Indiana Jones Adventures	Harry Potter Scientists	Mythical Madness	Chocolate!	Brilliant Britain
Y6	English Maths Science	Oak Academy WRM Habitats Living things Recognise some common animals and show preferences. Recognise that things can be grouped in a variety of ways. Pupils will explore the functions of different parts of a plant.	Oak Academy WRM Habitats Explore common habitats within the local environment Explore animals from the local environment in their natural habitats (eg pond dipping, looking under logs.) Name common animals and assign them to their correct habitat, commenting on reasons why they live there. Classify animals by their habitat and discuss why they might choose to live there. Recognise that environments can change, and this can sometimes pose a danger to living things.	Oak Academy WRM States of Matter Explore materials in different states, eg water and chocolate. Explore materials that are both hot and cold and notice differences. Compare and group materials together according to whether they are solids, liquids or gases. Identify the part played by evaporation and condensation in the water cycle.	Oak Academy WRM Electricity Explore a variety of electrical toys and appliances. Experience activating switches to ‘turn on’ a variety of toys/ appliances. Construct a simple electrical circuit, naming its basic parts. Compare and give reasons for variations in how components function, including the brightness of bulbs and on/off switches.	Oak Academy WRM States of matter Observe that some materials change state when they are heated or cooled, and measure or research the temperature at which this happens in degrees. Habitats Explore and use classification keys to help group, identify and name a variety of living things in their local and wider environment. Electricity Identify common appliances that run on electricity Sort appliances that run on mains and batteries.	Oak Academy WRM Living things Explore the life cycle of some plants. Notice similarities and differences in plants and animals including vertebrates and invertebrates. Habitats Identify how animals are adapted to suit their environment in different way.
	History		Indiana’s time travels Explore the legacy of Greek or Roman culture (art, architecture or literature)		Ancient Greek Mythology Discover Daedalus and Icarus, Medusa	History of the cocoa bean Ancient Peru – a study of Persian life and achievements and their influence on the western world	Seaside Holidays in the Past Children will investigate what they like about seaside holidays today before taking a look back to Victorian seaside holidays, as explore why they became popular and how they have changed since. Children will learn about similarities and differences related to clothing e.g. The Victorian people were very modest and were fully clothed at all times. As well as comparing bathing machines to beach huts and how children played.
	Geography	Name and locate counties and cities of the United Kingdom geographical regions and their identifying human and physical characteristics, key topographical features (including hills, mountains, coasts and rivers), and land-use patterns; and understand how some of these aspects have changed over time.	Where in the world? Identify the position and significance of latitude, longitude, Equator, Northern Hemisphere, Southern Hemisphere, the Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn, Arctic and Antarctic Circle, the Prime/Greenwich Meridian and time zones (including day and night)	Harry’s travels! use the eight points of a compass, four and six-figure grid references, symbols and key (including the use of Ordnance Survey maps) to build their knowledge of the United Kingdom and the wider world	Greek Facts Identify where Greece is on the map. Create a persuasive fact sheet about Greece inc climate and tourism facts.	Where does chocolate originate from? Pupils will investigate the history behind the coco bean and how it developed into the chocolate we know today.	Animals around the world Children will compare the wildlife of different animals from around the world to the animals that we can observe and see in and around our school. With a local history of coal mining and heavy industry, the landscape is now that of rolling farmland, ancient forests and new planted woodlands.
	Art & Design Technology	Cooking at home prepare and cook a variety of predominantly savoury dishes using a range of cooking techniques	Healthy Jones! understand and apply the principles of a healthy and varied diet	Harry potter world understand and use mechanical systems in their products [for example, gears, pulleys, cams, levers and linkages] understand and use electrical systems in their products [for example, series circuits incorporating switches, bulbs, buzzers and motors.	Design make and evaluate wings for Icarus	Design your own sustainable wrapping. Apply their understanding of how to strengthen, stiffen and reinforce more complex structures .	Local produce understand seasonality, and know where and how a variety of ingredients are grown, reared, caught and processed.