Cavendish Primary School Teaching and Learning Policy Cavendish Primary School Teaching and Learning Policy

Agreed by Governing Body – (10.11.11). To be reviewed (Autumn Term 2013).

This teaching and learning policy has been approved by the staff and Governors of Cavendish Primary School and will be reviewed every two years. It aims to ensure that the children at our school are provided with high quality learning experiences that lead to a consistently high level of pupil progress and achievement.

Our Teaching and Learning Policy has our Whole School Vision at its heart:-

At Cavendish Primary School, we are working to achieve the highest possible standards of progress, achievement and attainment, both academically and personally for our pupils. We aim to be an outstanding school, recognised by all stakeholders for the high quality of our values, provision and achievements. We value a strong culture of mutual respect, where community and good citizenship are emphasised and diversity is understood and celebrated. We aim for our pupils to develop a lifelong love of learning underpinned by the skills required to learn independently, initiating and leading their own projects. We are determined to provide a high quality, calm learning environment, both indoor and outdoor, in which all members of our school take pride and are inspired by. Everyone who spends time in our school will feel safe, happy and secure This is to be enhanced by the provision of an exciting, relevant and personalised curriculum which motivates and engages, allowing all pupils to achieve or exceed expectations. High quality resources, including ICT resources are to be used as tools to support learning across the curriculum. Pupils are to have a significant, highly valued voice in determining the development of our school and its provision. Our staff should be highly motivated, well trained and committed to working as a strong team with a shared focus in order to achieve shared goals. Their experience and professional skill are to be valued and they will be fully involved in all aspects of school development and school life, enjoying their work and feeling proud to be a part of Cavendish Primary School. We aim to ensure that parents feel welcome and involved in our school and know that their children’s well-being and education are in good hands. We want them to know that their opinions are listened to and that they have a voice in school development. We aim to ensure that parents understand the work that we do and feel confident in supporting their children’s learning beyond the school day.

Quite simply, we aim for Cavendish Primary School to be a centre of excellence of which all stakeholders can be proud.

The Learning Environment

We believe that children learn best when they:

 are happy;  are interested and motivated;  are challenged and stimulated;  achieve success and gain approval;  clearly understand the task;  are confident, feel secure and are aware of rules and boundaries.

Thus the learning environment should be organised to ensure that children have the opportunity to:

 develop independent learning skills:  work individually, in groups and as a class;  make decisions;  work co-operatively;  develop social skills;  solve problems;  be creative;  discuss their ideas;  use initiative.

CLASSROOM MANAGEMENT

Routines and Rules Routines and rules in the classroom contribute to a safe and healthy learning environment. To be effective they should be:

 agreed by the children and clearly understood;  consistent with the behaviour policy and school ethos & values;  fair and consistent;  realistic and positive;  kept to a minimum but enforced rigorously.

At all times, the whole school behaviour policy should be followed carefully and rewards / sanctions given fairly and consistently. Paperwork should be completed and given to the Headteacher where appropriate.1

CURRICULUM DELIVERY2

Approaches to Teaching

It is important to ensure that a range of pedagogies and organisational strategies are used in lessons during the course of a day or a week. The three part lesson (Teacher input, Activity, plenary) does have a place, but should not be used at the expense of other lesson formats.

1 See Behaviour Policy 2 See also Curriculum Policy There should be a good balance between:  whole class teaching and learning  independent work  paired work;  group work;  individual or group investigations;  group teaching and learning;  guided group work.

There will be many times during the course of a week where the teacher is working with a group of children whilst the rest of the class are engaged in other work. In order for this to be successful, the children must be taught coping strategies and how to apply these when they are challenged by their work (e.g. supporting each other, support of other staff / volunteers, accessing appropriate classroom resources, adapting their approach to the work etc.) However, the teacher must never be ‘unavailable’ to children so that they are left to struggle and fail.

It is never acceptable to lower the challenge of the work given to pupils or to offer them ‘holding activities’ when they are not working with their teacher. Children should have the opportunity to move forward in their learning in every lesson.

In order to improve learning and maintain interest for the children a wide range of pedagogical approaches should be used in the classroom.

Personalised Learning Planned lessons should take account of the previous learning of individuals or groups of children and include an appropriate degree of challenge to move children’s learning forward at an appropriate rate. Previous assessment records must inform planning, including the use of APP for Literacy, Numeracy and Science. Expectations should always be high and realistic. Children should be given opportunities to learn within their preferred learning style, as well as being encouraged to develop their skill in using alternative methods. Learning objectives and success criteria for each lesson must be clearly displayed. Do not restrict groups to specific success criteria, ensure that they have opportunities to exceed expectations by allowing them opportunities to meet one or more success criteria of higher attaining groups. Ensure that the success criteria for the more able pupils include at least one with an aspirational level of challenge.

Time Management It is important that activities are well planned so that each child is working at their correct level, that they begin promptly and that the initial pace is maintained. All children should know what to do as soon as they enter the classroom and after they have completed an activity. A reminder list of tasks for individuals who have completed work ahead of the group is often helpful. Efficient planning and classroom organisation will significantly reduce time-wasting activities. Supply Teachers To ensure continuity, teachers should leave lesson plans and other written guidance for all planned absences from the classroom. In event of an unplanned absence, where it is possible to do so, a telephone call should be made to guide the phase leader to Medium Term Planning, which should be kept up to date to indicate the current point of children’s learning. Curriculum documents and past lesson planning will always be available and easily located in the classroom.

School Policies School policies are set out in the school policy file on IT’S Learning. It is the duty of each teacher to be familiar with school policies and to apply them.

Voluntary Helpers Voluntary helpers are a valuable resource and we should welcome their involvement in the classroom. They can help in many ways across the whole curriculum. Help can be on a regular basis or for a specific event. In all cases it is very important that the teacher should take the time to ensure that the volunteer fully understands and is well prepared for the activity in which he or she is involved. Volunteers should be made to feel welcome in the school and should be offered refreshment from the staff room at break times. All regular volunteer helpers must be CRB checked and given a full induction3. It is the responsibility of the class teacher to check with the Deputy Headteacher that these are in place before the volunteer works with children.

Inclusion All children have the right to equal opportunities. Teachers’ expectations of behaviour and performance by all children should be the same. All groups and activities should be mixed where possible. Particular care should be taken in the areas of Science, Mathematics, Technology and Physical activities. Teachers must ensure that the same children do not dominate in group work, especially when using the computer. All activities, including extra curricular activities at Cavendish Primary School are open to all children within the specified age group, numbers permitting. All classroom activities must conform to the requirements of our Inclusion, Disability Equality, Gender Equality and Racial Equality Policies.

Record Keeping All teachers should keep detailed records of their work with the class and of individual children’s activities and progress. The school has a policy for planning, assessment, recording and reporting of National Curriculum subjects that must be adhered to. Other records are left to the teacher’s professional discretion.

Health and Safety All staff are responsible and accountable for ensuring the health and safety of the children in their care, for volunteers in the classroom and for their own safety. The Health and Safety Policy along with a range of generic risk assessments for school based activities are available to access via IT’S Learning. All teachers are required to familiarise themselves with and implement the directions within the policy and risk assessments. Where there may be additional risks in a

3 See Induction Policy lesson (during a practical science activity for example) additional notes must be made on the generic risk assessment and a copy kept with the lesson plan. This is the responsibility of the class teacher. For out of school activities, teachers must undertake their own risk assessments in accordance with the educational visits policy (LA) and school guidelines. Both documents are available on IT’S Learning.