Curriculum Rationale

Childwall Sports and Science Academy are committed to our Trust vision to ENGAGE, ENABLE and EMPOWER our students by providing high quality educational opportunities for our learning community. The schools within Lydiate Learning Trust believe that all our students have the right to a fully inclusive and diverse curriculum. A curriculum that is knowledge-based and which will equip our students with key skills for every stage in their educational lives and beyond. At Childwall we believe in our moto of ‘Learning Without Limits’. We aim to provide a broad curriculum which is rich with knowledge, ambitious and inspiring. Our well designed and inclusive curriculum drives academic success whilst fostering the development of student’s character, personal development and health and wellbeing.

Click here for our Curriculum Policy

The curriculum is delivered in a way that:

• Meet the needs of all students so that they can realise their potential.
• Harnesses ambition, perseverance, and creativity in our students.
• Develops students’ educational knowledge, their character, and their language proficiency as they move through different stages of life and learning.
• Provides opportunity to enrich and broaden the cultural experiences available to all students.

Curriculum Principles:

Our curriculum is planned and organised on the following foundation principles:

• All students have an entitlement to the whole curriculum provision – irrespective of their ability, gender, ethnicity, culture or social or economic factors.
• The curriculum provides clear pathways setting out the aims of our programmes of study from year 7 to year 13.
• The curriculum provides a broad and balanced range of subjects and courses that are available for all students to study.
• The curriculum is ambitious, inclusive, and diverse.
• The curriculum is well sequenced so that new knowledge builds upon old, and students become increasingly fluent over time.
• The curriculum provides challenging progression through the key stages.
• The curriculum promotes learning as an adaptation in long-term memory.
• The curriculum actively promotes the fundamental values of British citizenship; democracy, the rule of law, individual liberty and mutual respect and acceptance for those with different faiths and beliefs.

Key Stage 2 to Key Stage 3 Transition

Childwall Sports and Science Academy works with our primary partners and specialist educational hubs to explore learning at key stage 2 and inform our year 7 curriculum. The learning from primary school is built upon and not repeated, and knowledge and skills are developed to prepare students for the next stage of their education.

Leaders ensure that Childwall staff have opportunity to deliver learning opportunities in feeder primary schools, where we might be best placed to support with specialist knowledge. Our annual summer school is utilised to support new year 7 students in bridging the gap between the primary and secondary phases of learning. English, Maths and Science, and many other subjects are taught within a carefully constructed timetable that enables students to continue learning whilst building confidence and positive relationships.

Key Stage 3 and Key Stage 4 Curriculum

The curriculum is planned as a seven-year journey. Students spend 3 years studying a broad range of subjects at Key Stage 3 before being guided in their choices to specialise at key stage 4. Students then spend 2 years studying a range of GCSE courses in more depth. The school functions around a two-week timetable. Careers Information and Guidance is integral to our curriculum across all year groups, to ensure students’ make the best choices and progress to their own, appropriate destination.

Each subject has a clear learning journey and schemes for learning which provide foundations for deep knowledge and considered learning opportunities for all. The curriculum is guided by the national curriculum and puts ambition, enjoyment, and breadth of experience at the heart of learning. Professional development also encourages collaboration across subjects to embed key intentions, vocabulary, and literacy skills. Our principles for teaching support student’s metacognition and ensure key knowledge is securely stored in the long-term memory.

All students in years 7-9 study a broad range of non-core subjects such as Art, Design & Technology, Music, Drama and Computing, to expose students to creative, technical, and vocational aspects of learning. We ensure that there is sufficient curriculum time given to History, Geography and Spanish to allow students a strong foundation to pursue the English Baccalaureate at KS4, alongside Maths, English, Science, Physical Education and Personal Development.

Reading:

Reading is at the heart of the curriculum offer at Childwall Sport and Science Academy. As part of our Trust reading initiative, Project L reading is embedded within the curriculum for all subjects and staff ensure that the reading of disciplinary texts feature largely within our subject specific learning.

In addition to this, we have an allocated reading time of 30 minutes each day for year 7 to year 11. Each year group follows a literary canon that supports reading for pleasure, continued academic progression, creativity, and positive wellbeing. There is a selection of cultural and British, fiction, and nonfiction texts across our annual reading programme.

Key Stage 4 – Years 10 & 11

We provide a more bespoke curriculum for our students in Year 10 and Year 11. We believe this gives our students as much choice and flexibility as possible, whilst ensuring they follow examination courses that lead to high currency outcomes and allows them greater opportunities Post-16.

Students study up to three subjects in addition to English Language and Literature, Mathematics, Science, History and/or Geography. Students are encouraged, to continue their studies in Spanish with a view to achieve the English Baccalaureate and vocational qualifications are available to study at KS4 and KS5 to bridge the gap into future study or employment post Childwall Sport and Science Academy.

In addition to their assessed curriculum students physical, personal, and social education continues in PSHE and core PE lessons. In year 11, students can also benefit from the addition of an intervention session after lunch where additional support is required.

Subjects’ studies and time allocation in KS4:

School functions around a two-week timetable to allow access to learning in a wide range of subjects for all students. The subjects shown below are covered over 2 weeks.

The full list of subjects offered at KS4 can be found below:

Key Stage 5 – Years 12 & 13

At key stage five we have researched and developed a curriculum relevant to locale, appropriate to student need and aspirational for our learners. We recognise that selecting the right course to study is essential. Therefore, we have designed our curriculum through several ‘Pathways to Success’ that include A Level and vocational Level 3 qualifications and link individual need to prospective career choices.

Pathways include:

Art and Design, Sport, Health and Social, Business and ICT, Open Level 3 pathway and L2.
The key stage 5 curriculum is reviewed annually.

The full list of subjects offered at KS5 can be found below: