Curriculum
Unique • Confident • Valued
At White Cliffs Primary and Nursery School, the unique nature of each child is valued greatly and at the forefront of our mind. The diverse backgrounds and experiences from which our children originate are recognised and celebrated. Due to this, the learning journey that our children embark on is constantly adapted to meet their needs and interests. We provide an ambitious, broad and balanced curriculum which enables each child to reach their full potential through high-quality teaching. Our curriculum is driven by the need to prepare our children for lifelong learning, and we develop the essential knowledge, skills and understanding which are the building blocks for later life. We urge our children to celebrate the things that make them unique and grow in confidence throughout their time with us.
Our curriculum encompasses not only the formal requirements of the National Curriculum but goes beyond the experiences of the classroom to ensure that our children are exposed to the richest and most varied opportunities that we can provide. Our curriculum is enriched with trips and experiences that reflect the individual nature of our school and community, and which ensure more meaningful and purposeful learning experiences for our children. Examples of this include visits to Connaught Park, Dover Castle and Walmer Castle across Early Years and Key Stage 1 to develop their understanding of Scientific, Geographical and Historical concepts. In Key Stage 2, the children visit the River Dour, Dover Museum, Herstmonceux Science Observatory and Botany Bay to further develop their understanding of concepts within these subjects.
Cross-curricular links are made where the learning of both subjects is enhanced, and this leads to creative and exciting learning opportunities for our children. Skills and knowledge are taught discretely in subject areas, so the children gain a broad and in-depth understanding of each subject and are aware of which subject they are learning. Subject leaders have carefully chosen and sequenced our curriculum content in a meaningful way that enables children to make connections and progress across sequences of lessons, terms and years.
White Cliffs Primary and Nursery School is at the heart of our community and strong links with those within the community are valued greatly. For example, we have and continue to raise money for a local charity which provides opportunities for disadvantaged children and young carers to take part in a wide range of creative activities. In addition to this, our children benefit greatly from those within the community coming into our school, who support our children both academically and pastorally. As a result, children leave White Cliffs Primary and Nursery School with a sense of belonging to our community and have the skills and confidence to make decisions, self-evaluate and become lifelong learners.