Curriculum
At the Castle School we pride ourselves on having a creative and innovative curriculum, which empowers all children to make progress in their learning. The curriculum is adapted for each individual to meet their needs and we focus very much on personalised learning.
Pupils have a wide variety of provision that helps to ensure that they have a rich and varied learing experience at The Castle School. The Provision Circles below show much of what is available to enhance their learning and development:
All our pupils have access to a broad and balanced curriculum which enables them to develop skills and knowledge in all areas.
The Curriculum Diet for pupils at The Castle School
It is of paramount importance that all pupils receive an education that is broad and balanced. As such, we have set out the expectations for what each child should expect. There is understandably flexibility within this framework and it should be seen as a guide towards expectation. Below shows the structure of our curriculum delivery by Key Stage.
Daily Hours in School
|
Times |
Learning Hours |
|---|---|
|
8.50 – 9.00 Registration |
|
|
9.00 – 10.40 Session 1 |
1 hour and 40 minutes |
|
10.40 – 11.00 Morning Break (not included in total timings) |
|
|
11.00 – 12.00 Session 2 |
1 hour |
|
12.00 – 12.30 Lunch |
|
|
12.30 – 1.15 Break |
|
|
1.15 – 3.00 Session 3 |
1 hour and 45 minutes |
|
3.00 – 3.05 Preparation for Taxi Time |
|
|
Total time a day |
4 hours and 25 minutes |
|
Total learning time per week |
22 hours and 5 minutes |
Time Allocation for Subjects in Foundation and KS1
|
Subject |
Hours per week |
|---|---|
|
Literacy |
5 |
|
Maths |
5 |
|
PSHE/Life Lessons |
5 |
|
Physical Development |
5 |
|
Art and Design |
1 |
|
Understanding the World |
1 |
|
Total time |
22 hours |
Time Allocation for Subjects for KS2 and KS3
|
Subject |
Hours per week |
|---|---|
|
English |
5 |
|
Maths |
5 |
|
Science |
1 |
|
RE |
0.5 |
|
PE |
2 |
|
PSHE/Life Lessons |
2 |
|
Music |
1 |
|
History |
0.5 |
|
Geography |
0.5 |
|
Art |
0.5 |
|
DT |
0.5 |
|
Citizenship |
0.5 |
|
Key Skills |
2 |
|
Assembly |
0.5 |
Time Allocation for Subjects for KS4
|
Subject |
Hours per week |
|---|---|
|
English |
5+ |
|
Maths |
5 |
|
Science |
1 |
|
PSHE/Life Lessons |
2 |
|
Careers / Enterprise / Work Experience / World of Work |
2+ |
|
PE |
1 |
|
Assembly |
0.5 |
|
Options:
|
This will vary depending on what options the pupil is taking |
Time Allocation for Subjects for KS5
|
Subject |
Hours per week |
|---|---|
|
English |
4 |
|
Maths |
4 |
|
PSHE/Life Lessons |
2 |
|
Careers / Enterprise / Work Experience / World of Work |
4 |
|
PE |
1 |
|
Assembly |
0.5 |
|
Options:
|
This will vary depending on what options the pupil is taking |
Key Areas
English will include:
- 20 minutes daily focussed time on reading skill and comprehension
- In-class Individual, small group and guided reading
- Story or reading to the class time
- Call and response
- Phonics
- Writing
- Termly curriculum topic
- Class teaching of new skills
- Functional skills for life
- Speaking and Listening
- Drama
- LAMDA
- Examination related learning
Maths will include:
- Use of Numicon
- Doodle Maths
- Counting
- Number
- Using and Applying
- Functional Skills
- Money
- Shape
- Data to be cross curricular
- Examination related learning
PSHE will include:
- Termly curriculum topic
- Sex and Relationships Education (SRE)
- Small Steps to Independence
- Examination related learning
- Social and eating skills
Work boxes (where appropriate)
- Work boxes are used to practice skills taught within lesson times.
- The class should note the date the new work went into the work box to help monitor progress.
- They will be updated regularly as the pupil progresses and learns the new skills.
- The new skills will be added into planning for continual practice.
- Skills need to be generalised into classroom practice
Termly Topics
To enable our pupils to better understand what they are learning we have developed topic themes that run through each term. This allows us to develop learning with meaning and context which better enables our young learners to develop understanding.
The themes are delivered on a 4 yearly cycle and are as follows:
| Year | Term 1 | Term 2 | Term 3 |
| 2019/20 | Colours | My Wonderful Self | The Olympics and Paralympics |
| 2020/21 |
India |
Volcanoes, Earthquakes and Dinosaurs | Inventions |
| 2021/22 | Mini Beasts and Mighty Beasts | My Island Home, By The Sea | To Infinity and Beyond |
|
2022/23 |
What's On You Plate? | On The Move | The Rainforest and Ecosystems |
Curriculum for Pupils with Complex Needs
For our children who have the most complex needs we have devised a specific curriculum to enable them to make the most progress in learning and skills. Please click the links below to see the specifics for this curriculum:
Overview of the Pre-formal Curriculum
Cognition
Communication
Key Stage 4 and 5 Qualifications
We have a wide range of qualifications available at The Castle School to meet the needs of all pupils.
|
Board |
Subject |
Level |
|---|---|---|
|
AQA |
English |
Entry Level |
|
AQA |
Maths |
Entry Level |
|
AQA |
English Functional Skills |
Entry Level |
|
AQA |
Maths Functional Skills |
Entry Level |
|
AQA |
Art and Design |
Entry Level |
|
OCR |
Science |
Entry Level |
|
Edexel |
Maths |
GCSE |
|
ASDAN |
Transition Challenge |
Pre-Entry and Entry Level |
|
ASDAN |
Towards Independence |
Pre-Entry and Entry Level |
|
ASDAN |
Personal Progress |
Entry Level |
|
ASDAN |
PSD |
Entry Level |
|
ASDAN |
Employability |
Entry Level |
|
LAMDA |
Drama |
Entry Level |
|
Sports Leadership UK |
Sports Leaders Award |
Level 1 |
|
BTEC |
Travelling Training |
Entry Level |
|
Trinity College London |
Arts Award |
Discover/Entry Level/Level 1/Level 2 |