South Wonston Primary School

Our approach to Teaching and Learning in KS1 and KS2

Our Aim:

To provide a safe and friendly school community where our children are encouraged to become curious, courageous and resilient learners

Together we nurture, inspire, challenge and achieve

We have designed our curriculum to encourage independence and resilience by promoting the following:

                  making decisions                  problems solving                               perseverance     

                  team work                             building on knowledge and skills       making connections

                  self – motivation                    communication                                 articulating thinking

                       learning from mistakes          evaluation                                         reflection

Key elements and principles of teaching and learning across our school – a practical guide.

All lessons across our school should include the following key elements to ensure high quality teaching and learning. We expect every teacher to be a good teacher.

Teachers new to our school will receive training to ensure they fully understand these elements and to enable them to embed them in their everyday practice.

All teachers….. promote a Growth Mindset by

· portraying skills as acquirable

· valuing passion, effort and improvement over natural talent

All teachers ….. use ‘Growth Mindset’ language to

· talk about being a good learner rather than being clever

· talk about learning not working.

· talk about the benefits of persevering when things are hard, not giving up and learning from their mistakes.

All teachers ….. use praise to

· value and reinforce the benefits of effort, struggle and persistence despite setbacks.

All lessons have…..clear learning intentions which

• are shared orally at the appropriate time, this may not be the beginning of the lesson.
• are displayed in child friendly language.
• focus on the skills the children are learning rather than the task and are therefore transferable to other contexts.
• are written or stuck into children’s books.
• are referred to regularly during the lesson and during the plenary.

All lessons have….. well planned success criteria (when appropriate to the lesson)

• so that all pupils are clear about how they will achieve the learning intention.
• are displayed for the children to follow during the lesson or drawn up with the children, e.g. Steps to success.
• allows the children to self-assess their own or other children’s work.
• children’s work is used by the teacher to illustrate the success criteria in action

All pupils are….. actively engaged in learning and work cooperatively by

• teachers taking into account children’s concentration span (age +1) and ensuring pupils are not sitting passively for long periods.
• providing opportunities to Think/Pair/Share and discussions with a Talk Partner are regular features in all lessons. Pupils are trained to use appropriate body language when engaged in discussion with a partner.
• using mini whiteboards to develop understanding and to ensure children are active and engaged during the lesson.
• using visuals, artefacts, auditory input creatively as a way to enhance learning.
• children helping and encouraging each other.
• everyone participating.
• explain their ideas clearly and in full sentences.

All pupils receive regular and clear …..feedback which enhances learning

• as assessment for learning is embedded in everyday practice and is used to inform teaching and learning.
• so pupils are clear about how they need to improve through verbal and written feedback.
• providing feedback on children’s work, the focus is on meeting the learning intention or success criteria.
• By providing pupils with regular time to address misconceptions and improve their work.

All lessons are ….. differentiated to enable all pupils to

• be challenged appropriately.
• access a range resources and learning aids
• access learning through a VAK approach (Visual, Audio, Kinaesthetic) where appropriate

Learning is enhanced through….. effective use of questioning

It is adults who help pupils make sense of information. The frequency and nature of interactions between teacher and pupils is highly significant.

We develop understanding by

• using open ended questions.
• providing wait time- (3-5 seconds) as pupils need time to think through their answers before replying.
• providing thinking time by giving an advance warning, such as ‘In two minutes I am going to ask you…. ‘
• allowing pupils to explore and articulate their thinking by giving them time to discuss their responses in pairs or groups. Pupils then respond with ‘We think that…’.
• ensuring pupils fully understand the question.
• identifying misconception and addressing them ‘in the moment’.

Learning is enhanced through the use of….. effective behaviour management

Effective, positive behaviour management is used to promote a positive learning environment in the classroom and around the school. For further details, please refer to our Behaviour Policy.

Learning is enhanced through the…..use of ICT.

ICT is used to enhance learning where ever possible. Although ICT is nearly always used by teachers at the start of lessons to engage children and in the plenary to consolidate learning, it is also used during the lesson as an aid to learning.

Learning is enhanced through the …..effective use of additional adults who

• are clearly directed to support learning in the classroom.
• are fully engaged with pupils on the carpet and tables during lesson times.
• are clear about who they are supporting and why.
• have planning in advance. Where possible, effective questioning is included.
• sit next to the pupil/pupils they are working with, quietly engaging the pupils, explaining the task or using other resources, e.g. number line to facilitate learning.
• are involved in assessing pupil’s understanding and feeding back to the teacher.
• provide verbal and written feedback to the pupil.

Learning is enhanced through the..…effective use of a plenary and mini plenaries

Reviewing learning is a key to memory and not confined to the end of the lesson. Teachers review throughout the entire lesson and constantly refer pupils back to the success criteria of the lesson, reinforcing prior learning.

Pupils are encouraged to reflect on what they have learned and what has helped them to learn.

We believe it is important for pupils to talk during lessons

When we talk we do more than articulate our current level of understanding. The very act of talking forces us to organise our thoughts and so deepens understanding.

We believe that Talking is central to learning. All lessons include planned and unplanned opportunities to discuss questions and extend thinking Think/Pair/Share and Talk to your partner are regular features in all lessons. Pupils are trained to use appropriate body language when talking to a partner and pupils understand that their TALK is valued as much as their written work.

Overview of marking at South Wonston Primary School

Across our school, we think of marking in terms of feedback about a child’s work. This feedback may take several forms – oral, written, formal and informal- and may be given on a group basis as well as an individual one. 

Learning is enhanced through…a great classroom environment

Across our school we aim to ensure that all classrooms, group learning areas and whole school areas are spaces that everyone can use to learn and be proud of. All classes across the school have:

Working walls

Every class has a working wall for English, Maths and Science. This should reflect the work currently being studied in each of the subjects. It should include:

• Visuals and artefacts to stimulate thinking
• Children’s questions.
• Key vocabulary.

Well labelled and neatly organised resources

Classroom resources should be well organised and clearly labelled. Children should know where to find the resources they need for an activity. This will help to promote independent learning skills.

Displays of children’s work

Children’s work is displayed in classrooms and around the school to celebrate their achievements and reflect the diverse nature of our wider curriculum

Work on display may show the learning journey of a unit of work, the final outcome or be a combination of both.

Each half termly there will be a topic display that should be up before the first lesson of the topic. The key topic question is the title and all other lesson key questions are displayed. They are used as part of the ‘knowledge harvest’ at the start of a topic and will then be enhanced with children’s work as the topic progresses.