Our Curriculum:
The heart of our learning system
Our starting point was to think - if we could build the best school curriculum for the modern world, in the world, what would it look like?
We asked ourselves, what do we want our children to achieve? We want them to academically excel, to be leaders, to innovate and create new knowledge, to debate and challenge, to be socially skilled and to be socially responsible members of society. We don't want rows of automatons sitting silently at their desks copying from the board - we want more for our young people. We talk about wanting to instil a sense 'sensible rebellion' in our pupils - we want them to be continually thinking of new and better ways of studying and living their lives.
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We found that traditional subject boundaries blur when we think in that way, that there needs to be more time on building in the social, interactive skills that students need to prosper as well as actually a return to the basics of reading, grammar and numeracy.
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We identified five key areas that underpin our offering:
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Core Skills: The fundamental, traditional areas that all pupils need of reading, grammar, numeracy and fitness as well as important interactive skills of social etiquette, collaborative working and positive/open mindset approaches.
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Logic and Reasoning: The core activities that enable an individual to follow a logical, reasoned process in their understanding of the world – including: verbal debate, non-verbal reasoning, written, numerical and statistical, algebraic, spatial and geometric, philosophical and economic logic and reasoning.
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Scientific Enquiry: Covering the core sciences of biology, chemistry, physics and geology as well as computer science, engineering and business/management science.
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World Environment: The context in which we exist and need to understand to function, operate enquiry, logic and reasoning. History – covering time periods, social history, art history, music history and literature as well as political developments and religious studies. This area frames our understanding of the world.
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Communication: Translating in all forms our internal thoughts and ideas into outward expression – both verbally, in written form, musically, artistically, dramatically by computer and in foreign languages.
You’ll see there is no subject there called ‘English’ or ‘Mathematics’. We have broken down English into distinct areas of study – reading, grammar, written communication (creative writing), written logic and reasoning (comprehension/understanding) and literature. We’ve also split maths into the core mathematical elements to focus separately on building up expertise in these areas as logic operations rather than simply mathematical practice or rote learning. Our pupils actually spend significantly more time each week on maths and English than in other schools – what we have done is look at the distinct, different elements of these areas to build up expertise in them specifically each day.
There is a significant focus in our curriculum on communication skills – developing oral communication has never been more important for pupils to succeed in team based working environments and at a time of great global debates. We focus on oracy both as presentational/public speaking skill to build confident presenters and as well as a debating skill – being able to argue in an informed and convincing manner.
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We start science, computing and engineering as early as possible to engage pupils in exploring the world around them and building the technical skills they need to invent and innovate. We aren't just interested in STEM, we've put together a comprehensive system of art, music and dramatic arts focused on developing personal expression as well as understanding the key movements over time that have shaped the creative world.
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Our curriculum underpins all our teaching from reception to A-level, although some subjects start in junior or secondary phase rather than in infants. In the primary stage, all pupils are working toward significantly exceeding National Curriculum Key Stage 2 learning outcomes while in the secondary stage, all our students are working toward AQA GCSE and A-level qualifications.
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Our place in Wales
Based in the capital city, we are proud to be part of the Welsh family. A core focus in our curriculum is on understanding the world in which we live. In our history classes we look at Welsh and Cardiff history, from the Romans through to the industrial powerhouse of South Wales in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries to the post-industrial service economy of modern Wales. In geography we undertake local walks to embed pupils in their local communities, looking at how the local area has developed over time and grown into a diverse modern hub for cultures from around the world. All pupils also have the opportunity to take part in Welsh language instruction, conversation and practice in our ‘Welsh Club’ that runs weekly as part of our extra-curricular activities programme.
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Extra-Curricular Activities
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In addition to our in-school curriculum, we offer a range of after-school activities for pupils covering everything from sports to academic past-times. The range of clubs on offer varies each year depending on demand but an indicative schedule is shown below.
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To find out more, join us at an open evening!