Intent
At Greasley Beauvale Primary School, the Computing subject is planned and taught to help our children become active learners, develop secure understanding of basic skills and to become logical and creative thinkers. Our Computing curriculum offer uses Purple Mash to provide the framework and resources in line with the National Curriculum. It provides the bridge between our school values and the National Curriculum. Our aim is to provide progressive learning that builds year on year, in line with our ‘Thinking School’ tools and strategies, to meet the needs of all our children. We aim to equip our pupils with knowledge and understanding to become digitally literate which will help them become active participants, who can keep themselves and others safe, in an increasingly digital world. Computing is taught as a standalone subject although we try to make links to our other curriculum areas and may provide additional computing opportunities beyond the normal lesson at times throughout the year.
We aim to provide our pupils with a broad curriculum, enriched with opportunities to use computational thinking and creativity to create programs, systems and a range of content. Furthermore, we aim to provide children with opportunities to store, analyse, manipulate and retrieve data on a range of devices. Staff are equipped with the Computing resources they need to deliver a broad and balanced curriculum.
| Equip | Embed - Pedagogy | Enrich - Possibilities |
|---|---|---|
| Through well-planned teaching, up-to-date technology and valuable learning experiences, children will become confident with computing. | Through regular computing lessons and cross-curricular activities, we will enthuse the children by highlighting success and exemplifying the possibilities beyond the subject. | Celebrate success and provide opportunities to highlight talent at Greasley Beauvale. |
Implement
At Greasley Beauvale Primary School, key skills and knowledge are taught and revisited within each year and across year groups. Skills and knowledge curriculum mapping for each year group is pre-planned. Progression is mapped out across year groups from year 1 through to year 6. Knowledge and skills progression for each year group can be found on our website. We use and adapt the Purple Mash schemes of work to best cater for our children. Sequences of lessons are planned to ensure progression within and across year groups. Teachers also plan to apply computing skills and embed knowledge across other areas of the curriculum.
Typically, children at Greasley Beauvale Primary School are taught through weekly computing lessons. This allows time for the incremental acquisition of skills and knowledge. In some instances, the teacher acts as a facilitator. There is usually more than one way to solve a computing problem and children are encouraged to find ways that work for them.
Achievement in computing learning, in line with the school’s Rainbow Values, is celebrated virtually using the ‘display boards’ visible to all our children. These show work produced away from school that our children are proud of as well as outstanding pieces of work from the classroom.
Impact
The impact of our computing offer will be measured through our monitoring cycle. This will include learning walks, staff and pupil voice, planning scrutiny, assessment overviews via Purple Mash and assessment documents adapted from our ‘Thinking School’ strategies and curriculum intent reviews. Once reviewed the subject leader will formulate an action plan for improvement which teachers from each phase then take back to their teams for action. We will assess and track Computing against curriculum statements for each phase. In assessing, we are looking for sustained mastery, inspired learners and children who are fulfilling their potential.
Below is an outline of the impact we are looking for in our pupils in the curriculum area of Computing: • Children can articulate and explain what computing is.
• Children are equipped with skills and computing knowledge to use and access digital devices safely and responsibly.
• Children have a passion and enjoyment for computing.
• Children are confident and are able to use technology safely.
• Children are equipped with extensive computing knowledge and vocabulary, which is embedded.
• Children use their imagination and creativity to create their own pieces of work.
• Children use computing in a variety of ways to express their individuality.
• Children can enjoy and appreciate a variety of technology.
Online Safety plays a huge significance for children growing up in the modern world. In school, we talk to children regularly about how to use the internet safely. Whilst children's access to the internet is closely monitored and controlled in school, in their everyday lives it is not as easy to monitor exactly what children are doing online. This is why it is so important to educate children about the fantastic opportunities the internet offers as well as the dangers and risks they may become exposed to.