School Aims And Objectives
Our aim is to create a happy, caring and co-operative school community, which celebrates learning in all of its forms. Staff, governors and parents will work together to develop capable, confident and tolerant members of society.
We have 5 guiding principles:
A Shared Ethos
We apply strong universal values to everything we do in school.
- Listening to pupils is the key to any good school
- Involving them in some decision-making will encourage their social development as future citizens
- We expect excellent behaviour from everyone in school, positive rewards and fairly applied sanctions are used to promote this.
- A caring attitude towards others leads to everyone’s feelings and beliefs being respected.
- Our daily act of collective worship helps our children to grow socially, morally, culturally and spiritually
- Regular praise and a feeling of security help to develop self-esteem and an open and questioning mind.
- Curiosity, perseverance and a prevailing “can do” attitude helps children to develop independence in their learning.
- Play is an important element of our curriculum which encourages deep learning & fosters greater enjoyment of school life for children and staff
- We aim to be a healthy school in our food and drink routines and the provision of regular physical activity
Teaching & Learning
Our core purpose is to provide high quality Teaching and Learning. Children learn in many different ways so we aim to teach using many different styles:
- We encourage children to have a growing awareness of their own learning through widespread use of the Building Learning Power framework and by applying the principles of Assessment for Learning within the classroom
- We use the Critical Skills Programme to develop a whole-class learning culture and use techniques within CSP to facilitate children’s learning
- Children learn individually, in pairs, in small groups or as a whole class
- We maximise direct first hand learning whenever possible including our regular WOW events
- The classroom is silent, quiet or sometimes very noisy!
- The teacher talks, demonstrates, listens, observes, guides, assesses and disciplines.
- We employ a carefully chosen range of teaching styles and classroom organisation depending on the learning objectives of the lesson.
- We acknowledge that pupils may have a preference for visual, auditory or kinaesthetic learning styles and plans to use all of these approaches
- The regular use of ICT enables our pupils to develop as life-long learners
- Dedicated staff are encouraged to constantly develop their teaching expertise and are empowered to take risks in the classroom to ensure the curriculum is exciting for children.
A Creative Curriculum Plan
We plan to make our curriculum relevant & irresistible to children.
- We deliver greater coherence for children by linking together some subjects in a series of termly topics.
- Working as a year group team, staff devise detailed plans, which ensure that all of the requirements of the Early Learning Goals and National Curriculum are met.
- Children’s prior learning is assessed & their learning interests captured. Staff plans are revised to meet these needs when necessary.
- The basic skills of reading, writing, numeracy and oral communication are emphasised, within the context of a wider and stimulating curriculum.
The Involvement of Parents as Co-educators
Parents are the natural educators of their children so we aim to work in partnership with them by:
- Effective communication between school and home. Regular newsletters by electronic and traditional methods keep parents informed of school events, and parents’ evenings are held every term. Our web-site is regularly updated with current issues & showcases recent learning by pupils.
- Celebrating children’s learning in the classroom by sharing the outcomes with parents throughout the year
- Encouraging parents to support school activities and so help their children value school life including attending more regularly and more punctually
- Asking parents to support their children’s learning at home by monitoring homework, learning maths facts and reading together on a regular basis.
- Welcoming parental help in the classroom and offering school-based training for them
- Offering parenting support to all families through nationally recognised programmes
- Offering targeted support by our learning mentors/pupil support advisers to some of our most vulnerable families & their children
A Fully Extended School Community
We aim to be a strong school community as well as being an integral part of our wider local community by:
- Operating high quality breakfast club and after-school child care every day
- Offering a wide range of affordable extra-curricular activities to all age groups outside of the statutory school day
- Promoting and supporting the events and fundraising organised by the Ashcombe Friends Association (AFA)
- We share our successes as widely as possible through a regularly updated school website and a high quality school magazine produced three times per year.
- We study and make regular visits to local churches, shops, parks, woods, …etc.
- Linking with the local business community & potential sponsors to provide valuable financial support for the school’s activities, including hiring out the school’s facilities for suitable use by others
A school site which is fit for its purpose:
- We aim to provide a safe and stimulating physical environment in which our pupils can learn.
- We will endeavour to follow all relevant health & safety legislation and operate within best practice guidelines.
- We will ensure that security is given a high priority
- We will seek to repair and maintain the external and internal fabric of the buildings to the best possible standard
- We will provide the highest quality of furniture and fittings that the budget will allow
- We will maintain the school grounds as a valuable educational resource & play area
- We will invest in future technologies to support our core aims of children’s learning