Orchard Park Community Primary School

Our Curriculum at Orchard Park Community Primary School

Our Intent – What We Aim to Do

At Orchard Park, we believe that every child deserves the best possible education – one that helps them to grow academically, socially and emotionally.

We are proud to be part of a rich, diverse community, and we want all of our children to feel valued, represented and inspired by what they learn. Our curriculum helps children to build confidence, develop a love for learning, and aim high for their futures.

Our goals are for children to:

• Be curious and creative thinkers

• Build strong reading, writing and maths skills

• Explore their individual interests and talents

• Understand and respect themselves and others

• Feel prepared for the next stage of learning and life

We carefully design our curriculum to be broad, balanced and meaningful. We use high-quality children’s literature as a starting point for each topic. This helps bring learning to life and makes it easier for children to connect ideas across different subjects.

We also use real-life experiences, such as trips and visitors, to deepen understanding and build children’s cultural capital – helping them to learn more about the world beyond the classroom.

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How Our Curriculum Works (Curriculum in Context)

We follow clear long-term plans in each subject. These ensure that:

• Children build progressively on their knowledge and skills each year

• Each subject is taught in a logical and connected way

• Lessons are inclusive, engaging and accessible for all pupils

We are currently transitioning our Humanities programme of study to the Opening Worlds curriculum within KS2, a project to strengthen our current humanities curriculum using the theories from cognitive science to inform our pedagogy. We are creating a cohesive and exciting curriculum map, working with the Opening Worlds team to carefully consider our local context. Over the next 3 years, this programme roll out will to provide our children with a learning experience which takes all of them onto their future stages of education with excellent knowledge, skills and understanding.

In 2025/26 we will review our KS1 curriculum provision in light of the Opening Worlds programme to consider what adjustments we might make to the sequence of content that is helpfully antecedent to the KS2 programme.

The aspirational content and balanced range of approaches to learning are designed to help children learn the joy of pursuing interests which will shape their future. That, as children here grow in confidence and character, they discover the courage to take up challenges and the curiosity to explore.

Each half term, in KS1, we begin our new topic with a WOW Day – a fun, hands-on experience to spark curiosity and excitement for learning. This might include dressing up, exploring artefacts, taking part in drama or welcoming a visitor.

At the end of the half term, we hold an ‘Exciting End’ – a celebration where children reflect on their learning and often share it with classmates, other year groups, or parents.

Here’s an overview of the half-termly topics taught in each year group. The humanities curriculum content will evolve over the next 3 years:

Our Half-Termly Topics