Wisdom, Knowledge and Skills
“For the Lord gives wisdom; from his mouth come knowledge and understanding.”
Proverbs 2:6
At All Saints’, we understand that these three words have different meanings, but the Scriptures point out that they build on each other. It says understanding comes from learning God's Word. Knowledge comes from the experiences and skills God provides to us, and Wisdom comes from an accumulation of the understanding and knowledge we receive over time.
We believe that supporting children in their learning and spiritual development is incredibly important to help ‘Start children off the way they should go.’ (Proverbs 22:6), the curriculum offer serves this. We have a strong, bespoke curriculum, which is heavily shaped by our Christian Vision and informed by the local and global changes and context. The curriculum serves the vision, by ensuring that children are taught to be resilient and believe in their own strengths and abilities, emphasising our mission scripture 'For with God, nothing shall be impossible' (Luke 1:37).
Documents have been created for staff, with clear links to our Christian Values in all areas of the wider curriculum, not just Religious Education. These are linked closely to the Unicef’s Charter of Respecting children’s rights, which encourages the children to become reflective and empathetic learners. We strive for children to be ‘risk-takers’ whereby all children can benefit from having the liberty of exploring and thinking for themselves; knowing that they are empowered to be a force for change. The Local Authority regularly looks to us as leading the way in curriculum development, and we are always ‘ahead of the curve’ in implementing new, bold and fresh ideas, as well as ensuring coverage of recent developments.
Our equality, diversity and inclusion approach within the curriculum is relevant and transformational; it reflects our diversity of thought through cohesive thinking that is seen and inherently expected of the school community. Tolerance is key. The curriculum supports the school’s culture of all-encompassing acceptance; difference is celebrated. An SBDE advisor stated, ‘curriculum is a real strength of the school, something worked on continuously’. The impact of the curriculum is monitored by the Governors’ Curriculum Committee, who understand that we see all children through the eyes of God. This inspires us to ensure our innovative curriculum is tailored to meet the needs of all learners. We have an extensive pastoral offer, as it is our strong view that if children experience social and emotional barriers, they will not be able to learn and flourish, nor reach their potential. To counter this and to ensure the whole child is nourished, we have a Nurture, Behaviour MH Lead, and dedicated TA, who manage and lead interventions to develop their skills in these areas. This has been particularly important in light of the Covid-19 pandemic, whereby children have experienced additional loss and, in some cases, trauma. Our school’s Covid-19 Recovery Curriculum has been carefully planned, with creative staffing design, to maximise progress. Children are given additional opportunities to flourish through termly trips and visits, as well as extracurricular activities such as, Futsal, Ninja cooking clubs and Karate to name a few. Residential visits also happen, giving children the chance to develop their resilience and confidence further through accessing more challenging activities and by creating and cementing friendships.