The Big Picture
The overall outcome which we will aim to achieve over the next 4 meetings :
- Understand what is supposed to happen each year (bearing in mind that we will need coverage, but we have mixed-year classes etc.). This is where Matrices. will come in handy.
- Identify what's the same, what's different.
- Interrogate what's different: a certain amount of this is about what and when (we already teach these things, but need to be explicit about what we're covering and when, according to the new curriculum sequence). A few things are brand new and will link to specific PLD.
- Collaborative problem solving of how as a whole team, resulting in being able to design a scope and sequence for Term 1.
- With these new/similar progressions : what are we expecting? What does this mean in terms of transition?
Session 1
Having taken some time to read and explore the new English and Maths curriculum documents, we came ready to begin our collective sense-making and planning.
Here's the plan for today:
First Impressions of new curricula
We are noticing:
- More detail, less guesswork
- Emphasis on the science of learning
- Exciting - but ambitious!
- 'I can use this to assess more accurately'
- Will help us to prioritise what we do, how we spend time
- Flexible, creative, critical thinking: definitely in English; also in Maths?
- Breaks content right down
- Still allows for 'the art' of teaching
- Parents will appreciate the clarity - new reporting?
- The word 'mastery' comes up a a lot
- Spiral - returning to previous learning to secure it
- Planning year by year is a minimum requirement (rather that working within)
- Maths vocabulary knowledge
- Word problems - what is this asking you to do? Which strategy will you choose?
Differences/Similarities
First thoughts about the 'how'
The aim here was to open up up the conversation about how we might implement the curricula and what we may need to consider.
These are first thoughts, which we will build on in subsequent sessions.
- What does action for learners requiring addition support look like in this context?
- Certain parts of the curriculum will need to be timetabled daily (e.g. core skills, PHoM). Might collaboration across spaces help (as will BSLA)?
- Hour a day literacy/maths - how?
- Differentiation for several year groups in one classroom (when new curricula very much based on year by year progression)
- What does an integrated curriculum look like? E.g. if we are using Pos Ed or P4C as a context for Literacy learning, how do we apply the Literacy curriculum, differentiate appropriately for different learners etc.
- Assessment - formative, summative. What and when?
- How can we use each other as resources: problem solving, skills building?
Finally, projecting forward to this time next year:
Next Steps
We agreed that, in our next session, it would be useful to begin to get into the specifics of how what our timetables might look like and how we will plan and implement these curricula next year. We can use our first thoughts as a starting point.
