Our Curriculum

Ein Cwricwlwm

Learning is the key purpose of our school. Lifelong Learning enables children to aspire, achieve their dreams and contribute much in their futures to our world.

As required by Welsh Government the Governing Body has adopted the curriculum designed for the school’s pupils. A summary of the adopted curriculum and assessment arrangements have been published below.

An effective curriculum today is one which provides the most engaging, authentic learning opportunities which are not only meaningfully linked but support discovery, enthusiasm, excitement to enable all to learn together with learning barriers removed. In addition, it is a curriculum that provides support for teachers and others to develop children’s learning with reflection and a range of assessment and evaluative opportunities.

At Usk CiW Primary School, our REAL curriculum is designed to foster a love of learning that will last a lifetime.  We work hard to make sure that our children are exposed to a rich, creative, balanced curriculum and learning which is meaningfully linked so that all children are engaged and make progress. In support of our overall vision and mission, our REAL curriculum has four main purposes that are aligned to the Curriculum for Wales 2022, i.e. for our learners to be:

• ambitious, capable learners, ready to learn throughout their lives
• enterprising, creative contributors, ready to play a full part in life and work
• ethical, informed citizens of Wales and the world
• healthy, confident individuals, ready to lead fulfilling lives as valued members of society.

In this way, we make sure that our children are equipped for the next stage of their lives academically, socially and emotionally.

Belief in all of our children succeeding is the driving force behind our curriculum.  We are a proudly inclusive primary school. The unique history and heritage of the area and its people matter to us. We couple this with a distinct church school ethos and belief in Christian values, Human Rights and a strong global outlook. Our curriculum is designed to meet the needs of all children in the school and draws on learner voice, valuing their input.

Our aim is to challenge and engage all children, regardless of gender, religion, ability, ethnicity or family circumstances, and to provide experiences that increase opportunities for everyone including those from vulnerable groups, including the Most Able and Talented and learners from disadvantaged backgrounds.

We have a relentless conviction that every child will achieve their potential and that we will help remove any barriers that stand in their way. Furthermore, all of our children succeed through our promotion of relationships and high levels of wellbeing.

By using a “Growth Mindset” Approach across the curriculum, we help our children to develop a range of learning dispositions that help them to be successful in all areas of life.  Designing learning opportunities which develop collaboration, resilience, reflectiveness, effort, achievement and motivation (CREAM), is a central theme running through our curriculum. 

We make sure that our curriculum is REAL – Rigorous, Engaging, Authentic Learning, planned to develop breadth and depth in the cross-curricular skills of literacy, numeracy and digital competence and progression in six Areas of Learning & Experience (AoLE) –

• Expressive Arts.
• Health and Well-being.
• Humanities.
• Languages, Literacy and Communication.
• Mathematics and Numeracy.
• Science and Technology.

We use the Framework within Curriculum for Wales as a basis for our curriculum and tailor the design to the children’s needs and passions.  We use a thematic approach which utilises our thorough knowledge of the children, and teachers’ own love of learning, to create fun, engaging and meaningful learning opportunities.