Subjects

English

At Kendall, our English curriculum aims to provide children with the substantive and disciplinary knowledge and understanding they need to be confident readers, writers, and speakers. English at Kendall is taught across the full breadth of the curriculum, with our skilled teachers embedding the skills of reading, writing, and speaking and listening in carefully planned, purposeful sessions. Teachers use a range of strategies, including the use of LOTC, our fantastic woodlands and local area, to enhance and give context to learning.  Children’s imaginations and creativity are nurtured as they become able to express themselves through reading, writing, and performing a range of genres. Teachers ensure that children are appropriately supported and challenged throughout their English learning journey. A love of reading and writing is fostered and supported through our fantastic school library, class libraries, Writer of the Week award, monthly Wow Wicked Writing, Reading Week, taking part in events such as ‘500 words’, and public speaking.

Maths

At Kendall we see maths as a creative, enjoyable, and fulfilling subject and in which everyone can experience success. We aim to give all learners the ability to become fluent in the fundamentals of mathematics, providing a rich and diverse curriculum which enables pupils to develop their reasoning and apply their understanding of mathematics to solve problems. We endeavour to ensure that children develop an enthusiastic attitude towards mathematics that will stay with them throughout their lives. Our teachers ensure that children are provided with the necessary support and challenge to enable all learners to succeed. All classes engage in a range of creative pedagogies, such as LOtC and Kagan Co-operative Learning Structures, which research shows support engagement, collaboration and cognition.  We also use a range of strategies to promote a love of maths beyond lessons, such as Fortnightly Maths Challenges, Maths Weeks, Mental Maths Awards, and Maths Celebration Assemblies.  

Science

At Kendall we provide our students with a stimulating and practical journey of discovery enriched by the natural environment that we have on our doorstep. This lends itself to working scientifically and learning about the biology, chemistry and physics programmes of study we teach. Through investigations and experiments the children learn about the importance of science and the impact it has on their understanding and knowledge of our world. We are proud that Kendall recently achieved the Primary Science Quality Mark.

History

At Kendall, our children receive a high-quality History education, which inspires wonder and curiosity about the past. Learning Outside the Classroom is widely utilised for teaching and learning within History; our incredible woodland provides the perfect environment for many authentic experiences. History at Kendall is taught in blocks of time, which means the children spend a few weeks on a certain episode of History. This allows the children to develop a very full and detailed knowledge of the topic and to practise the disciplinary knowledge needed to become a historian. As children progress through the years at Kendall, their growing knowledge about the past will help them to deepen their understanding of social change. This will then enable them to recognise and respect the diversity of our societies, both locally and across the world. 

Geography

Our students are introduced to a wide range of geographical topics which stimulate their imagination and give each child a better understanding of important geographical facts as well as using disciplinary knowledge, such as map reading and understanding compass directions. Various trips are arranged, including visits throughout our locality which give the children a sense of place, as well as using our historical town to look at maps both past and present to learn how land use has changed over time. Global geography allows children to compare and contrast our local geography with other places around the world, from the Arctic to Amazon! During relevant topics we look at some important global environmental issues including deforestation and ocean plastics.

Religious Education

At Kendall our pupils receive a high-quality religious education which seeks to encourage the search for meaning in the experiences of life. RE inspires pupils’ curiosity and develops understanding, reasoning and feeling, and tries to create an open mind, sensitive to the feelings of others. Teaching equips pupils with knowledge about the peoples of the world, their religions and the way in which this effects theirs and others lives. It is challenging, accurate and diverse. The basis of RE is enquiry; looking at religions and world views through theology, philosophy, and the human and social sciences. As pupils at Kendall progress, their growing knowledge of Christianity and other world religions will allow them to respect and understand the importance of living in a world where people are different and have different beliefs and opinions. Religious knowledge and understanding provide the frameworks and approaches that allow learning about and from religion.

Art and Craft

Our wonderful woodland and the outdoor environment gives the children a sense of awe and wonder with what is living and growing around them. This inspires their creativity and ignites their imaginations and art and craft activities are a regular part of our Forest School sessions. Using both first and second hand sources and drawing on techniques and inspiration from other artists and craftspeople, children use a range of media and materials to develop their artistic ability, making and creating images and artwork to help them make sense of our broader curriculum and the world around them.  

Design Technology

Following a design brief, the children research, design, create and finish a product, then put it to the test for evaluation. After improvements and refinement, some projects lead to careful costings and a marketing strategy for their product design.  Children use a range of materials techniques and skills, which are developed over their time at Kendall, including developing their use and understanding of computer aided control.  STEM learning experiences are built into the curriculum to enrich and provide real-life contexts for design and technology, supporting children to envision how these skills are relevant to the wider world around them.

Computing

At Kendall our pupils receive a high-quality computing education to equip pupils to use computational thinking and creativity to understand and change the world. Our computing lessons have deep links with mathematics, science, and design and technology, and provides insights into both natural and artificial systems. The core of computing is computer science, in which our pupils are taught the principles of information and computation, how digital systems work, and how to put this knowledge to use through programming. Building on this knowledge and understanding, pupils at Kendall are equipped to use information technology to create programs, systems and a range of content. Computing also ensures that pupils at Kendall become digitally literate – able to use, and express themselves and develop their ideas through, information and communication technology – at a level suitable for the future workplace and as active participants in a digital world.

Modern Foreign Languages (French)

Children learn French with our specialist languages teacher, Mrs Crick, in Years 3 to 6. They have plentiful opportunities to practise the spoken language and develop their writing to accompany their learning in this subject. We aim for children to leave our school confident and competent in the use of this key language. Mrs Crick also holds an after school club for Key Stage 2 children wanting to learn Spanish and they link up with our partner school in Chile as well as writing to our friend Joel from Ecuador, who we sponsor though Compassion UK.

Music

Music is a universal language that embodies one of the highest forms of creativity. At Kendall, our pupils receive a high quality music education that engages and inspires pupils to develop a love of music and their talent as musicians, and so increases their self-confidence, creativity and sense of achievement. Pupils engage in a variety of music making experiences, which may also incorporate cross-curricular themes linked to other topics and opportunities for ‘Learning Outside the Classroom’. Specialist music teaching at Key Stage 2 enables pupils at Kendall to progress so they develop a critical engagement with music, allowing them to improvise, compose, and to listen with discrimination to music from different cultures from around the world and from different times in history.

Physical Education

Physical education has a prominent position in the life of the school through lessons taught by class teachers, extra-curricular activities and our wonderful Forest School, allowing children to develop competence to excel in a broad range of physical activities. Our curriculum enables children to experience physical activities more than the recommended guidance, not only in dedicated PE lessons but also through the abundance of LOTC opportunities which is a vital part of our school, all of which incorporate activities that build character and help to embed values such as fairness and respect. Teachers adapt and follow a scheme of work which offers children opportunities to learn a variety of skills that allow them to engage in competitive sports and activities that lead healthy, active lives. 

Performing Arts

Throughout their time at Kendall, children get the opportunity to develop skills within the performing arts in PE lessons, extra-curricular activities and different performance opportunities throughout the year. In Key Stage 1 children get the opportunity to participate in the Nativity play, combining all three skills of dance, drama and singing to tell the story of the birth of Jesus. In Key Stage 2, children produce a fabulous musical theatre production. In past years, we have performed ‘Mary Poppins’, ‘The Lion King’, ‘Oliver! and ‘Seussical the Musical’. Drama, dance and singing is threaded through our curriculum at Kendall in order to inspire, engage and develop a love of learning in all these areas. 

Personal Development

Personal Development (PD) at Kendall encompasses all areas designed to promote children’s personal, social and health development. Our PD curriculum supports the holistic development of a child, enabling them to grow emotionally, morally and spiritually. We aim to give children the knowledge, skills and understanding that they need to stay healthy and safe, develop positive worthwhile relationships, respect and celebrate differences, develop independence and responsibility and make the most of their own abilities and those of others. Through our PD provision we celebrate British Values and strive to prepare children for their future adult life in society.