top of page
Senior Students

Curriculum

Curriculum Vision - "Aspire and Achieve"

​

We are ambitious for all of our students in all aspects of their learning, encouraging them to fulfil the Academy motto of 'Aspire and Achieve'. We provide all our students with the knowledge, skills and enriching experiences that enable them to thrive and succeed in our local and global communities.​

 

The aims of our curriculum are to:​

  1. Provide a knowledge-rich curriculum that is cohesive, cumulative and highly sequenced ​

  2. Maximise students’ ability to think creatively and act independently​

  3. Offer experiences that develop students’ character and respect for the world they live in​

  4. Build resilience and strengthen self-esteem​

  5. Improve life chances and opportunities​

  6. Foster a love of lifelong learning

​

‘Educating the mind without educating the heart is no education at all’ (Aristotle)

​

Curriculum Delivery - "21st Century Trivium"

Our formal curriculum is delivered using the three elements of the 21st Century Trivium model.  We place great emphasis on developing students' long-term memory, understanding that knowledge builds on knowledge.  Lessons will focus on the delivery of the subject grammar, by the teacher; the exploration of the new learning by the students supported by the teacher in the dialectic phase of the learning and then the independent, rhetoric, phase in which students demonstrate their knowledge, skills and understanding.  This equips our students with the ability to think about and apply their learning in a range of new and challenging contexts. 

 

We operate a mastery curriculum model at KS3 with key concepts and knowledge in each subject having been identified and carefully sequenced to ensure that mastery can be achieved in each subject.  Progress towards the mastery of these concepts is tracked through both formative and summative assessments.  The key knowledge and concepts are those that are integral to success in each subject at GCSE and beyond.  In this sense our curriculum is a five-year model with students building and refining their grasp of the key concepts year on year.

 

We encourage our students to actively be aware of the significance of developing a range of personal, learning and thinking skills.  We explicitly teach students how to reflect, set learning goals and consolidate their learning.  They are encouraged to become good team-workers, active participators, creative thinkers, self-managers, reflective learners and independent enquirers.  This curriculum initiative promotes the following outcomes:-

 

  • Opportunities for cognitive and meta-cognitive thinking.

  • Opportunities for students to plan and manage their own learning and to complete work independently.  

  • Time for reflection on the lessons of the day to identify strengths and weaknesses.

  • Development of a regular reading habit, through our 'Deep Learning' sessions.

  • Valuable revision and learning time.

  • A time for quietness to promote well-being.

  • Developing 'Character' through our Personal Development curriculum (PSHE and Citizenship).

  • Opportunities for bespoke interventions to take place in the school day.  

 

Curriculum Impact

 

To ensure that all students achieve mastery in the specified knowledge and concepts outlined in our curriculum, regular formative assessment guides responsive teaching.  Summative assessment allows gaps to be closed through timely re-teaching of specific knowledge.  Our assessment data is used to evaluate the strength of the curriculum as students progress towards mastery, and allows for opportunities to enable students to catch-up through targeted interventions.  ​

​

Subjects taught at Key Stage 3 (Years 7 - 9)

 

  • English

  • Maths

  • Science

  • Languages (French or Spanish)

  • Art

  • Music

  • Drama

  • Geography

  • History

  • Beliefs and Values

  • Technology (Textiles, Food, Design)

  • Computing

  • Physical Education

  • Personal Development

 

Compulsory Subjects taught at Key Stage 4 (Years 10 - 11)

 

  • English GCSE (Literature and Language)

  • Maths GCSE 

  • Science GCSE (Combined Trilogy)

  • Core Physical Education 

  • Personal Development

  • Computing - students are given opportunities to study aspects of information technology and computing through the delivered curriculum, including problem solving, design and computational thinking. Through our Personal Development programme, they learn how changes in technology affect their safety including new ways to protect their online privacy and identity, and how to report a range of concerns.

 

Options Subjects taught at Key Stage 4 (Years 10 - 11)

 

  • French GCSE 

  • Fine Art GCSE 

  • Music GCSE 

  • Drama GCSE 

  • Triple Science GCSE  (Separate Biology, Physics and Chemistry)

  • Geography GCSE 

  • History GCSE 

  • Philosophy and Ethics GCSE  (Religious Education)

  • Food Preparation and Nutrition GCSE 

  • Product Design GCSE

  • Computing GCSE 

  • Physical Education GCSE 

  • Business - Enterprise and Marketing (Vocational)

  • Health and Social Care (Vocational)

  • Engineering (Vocational)

  • Creative iMedia (Vocational)

 

To find out more information about our curriculum, please contact gtwohig@braunton.academy - Vice Principal for Curriculum.  
 

bottom of page