Our Primary Offer
Key Stages 1 and 2: Lower School
We provide a supportive base to cover the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS), Key Stage 1 and 2 National Curriculum and deliver the education for pupils from 5 years old until they are ready for our Middle School. Lower School operates as a hybrid, adult-led and play-based cross-curricular environment where the children naturally cover a multitude of subjects based on EYFS and National Curriculum principles. We have created an environment in which children feel safe to explore, experiment, extend and evaluate their learning. This creates a personal and academic learning cycle that is both respectful and challenging for the child as a learner, and where individual needs are met. The impact on our children is clear, accelerated progress, sustained learning, and transferrable skills. This ensures every single pupil has access to an ambitious curriculum and a positive school experience.
Here are the key features of our setting:
- - We have five classes with no more than six pupils in each class.
- - Each class has its own building and facilities which includes a classroom, ‘messy’ room, playrooms, a kitchen and a significant outdoor play area-ideal for movement breaks.
- - Each pupil has a highly individualised timetable with opportunities for lessons, therapy, reading, swimming, offsite visits and specialist subjects such as food technology and art.
- - We provide opportunities to follow pupils’ interests through play, acceptance, curiosity and empathy.
- - We have implemented thematic mapping where each half term we map out the sequence of teaching and learning based on a particular theme. This then follows a multi-year spiral, so that each year builds and overlaps to build upon learning from one year to the next.
- - In our planning and assessment process, we use Progression Steps- an online programme of outcomes for pupils with SEND following the principles of the National Curriculum.
- - Everything we do in Lower School is underpinned by our ACE ethos.