Our curriculum
Our curriculum is built on the National Curriculum for England (Years 1 to 6) and the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) statutory framework (Reception). We have designed it so that knowledge and skills build carefully from one year to the next, and so that children remember what they have learned and can use it.
What we want for our children
- To read fluently and widely, and to love books.
- To write clearly and creatively for different audiences and purposes.
- To be confident, fluent mathematicians who can reason and solve problems.
- To be curious about the world, its people and its past, and to ask great questions.
- To express themselves through art, design, music, drama and sport.
- To understand how to stay safe, healthy and happy, and how to be a good friend and citizen.
How we teach
Lessons start by revisiting what children already know, then teach new content in small steps with plenty of practice. Teachers check understanding throughout the lesson and adapt their teaching so that every child, including children with SEND, can succeed. We enrich learning with visits, visitors, outdoor learning and themed weeks.
How we know it's working
Teachers check what children know and remember through questioning, low-stakes quizzes and children's work. Children also take part in the national assessments:
- Reception: the Reception baseline assessment (first six weeks) and the Early Years Foundation Stage Profile (end of year).
- Year 1: the phonics screening check (June). Children who do not meet the expected standard retake it in Year 2.
- Year 4: the multiplication tables check (June).
- Year 6: end of Key Stage 2 assessments in reading, maths, and grammar, punctuation and spelling (May), and teacher assessment of writing and science.
If you would like to know more about our curriculum, please speak to your child's class teacher or contact the school office.
Reading and phonics
Learning to read is the most important thing your child will do at primary school. We teach phonics every day from the start of Reception using our systematic synthetic phonics programme, so that children quickly learn to blend sounds to read words. Children take home reading books that are carefully matched to the sounds they know, so that they can read them with growing confidence.
Once children can decode, we focus on fluency, vocabulary and comprehension. Every class has a daily story time, and our library and class book corners are stocked with high-quality fiction, non-fiction and poetry, including books that reflect the diversity of our community and the wider world.
How you can help: read with your child for 10 minutes every day, talk about the pictures and the story, and let them see you enjoying reading too.
October 2026
Curriculum overview by year group
| Subject | Reception | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | Year 4 | Year 5 | Year 6 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| English | Phonics Phase 2 and stories for autumn | Traditional tales: The Little Red Hen | Coming to England by Floella Benjamin: recounts and diaries | Stone Age Boy and performance poetry | Escape from Pompeii: narrative and newspaper reports | Cloud Busting by Malorie Blackman: poetry and narrative | Letters from the Lighthouse by Emma Carroll: letters and narrative |
| Maths | Early mathematical experiences; numbers 1, 2 and 3 | Place value within 10; addition and subtraction within 10 | Place value within 100; addition and subtraction | Place value within 1,000; addition and subtraction | Place value to 10,000; addition and subtraction | Place value to 1,000,000; the four operations | Place value to 10,000,000; the four operations |
| Science | Autumn and harvest | Seasonal changes (autumn) and animals | Living things and their habitats | Animals including humans: nutrition, skeletons and muscles | States of matter | Earth and space | Light |
| History | All about me — then and now | Toys through time | Significant individuals: Mary Seacole and Florence Nightingale | Stone Age to Iron Age | The Roman Empire and its impact on Britain | The Kingdom of Benin (c. AD 900–1300) | Britain at war, 1939–1945 |
| Geography | Our school and community | Our school and local area | Our country and a contrasting place: Trinidad | The UK: counties, cities and land use | Rivers and the water cycle | Africa: Nigeria in focus | Biomes and climate zones |
| Art and design | Autumn colours | Andy Goldsworthy and land art | Pattern and printing inspired by kente cloth | Prehistoric art | Roman mosaics | Relief sculpture inspired by the Benin Bronzes | Tone and form: Henry Moore's shelter drawings |
| Design and technology | Handa's fruit kebabs and junk modelling | Moving pictures: sliders and levers | Cooking and nutrition: harvest bread | Structures: Stone Age shelters | Mechanical systems: Roman catapults | Cooking and nutrition: West African jollof rice | Cooking and nutrition: wartime rationing |
| Computing | Technology around us | Technology around us | Algorithms and programming | Sequencing in Scratch | Repetition in programs | Selection in programs | Networks and variables |
| PE | Fundamental movement | Fundamental movement and dance | Gymnastics; throwing and catching | Tag rugby and gymnastics | Tag rugby and dance | Basketball and gymnastics | Netball and dance |
| Music | Songs and rhymes for autumn | Pulse and rhythm | Pitch: high and low | Rhythm and ostinato | Reading notation on glockenspiels | West African drumming | Songs of the Second World War and swing |
| RE | Harvest: why do we say thank you? | Harvest and Sukkot: giving thanks | Creation and harvest: Christianity and Judaism | Hinduism: what do Hindus believe? | Sikhism: what is important to Sikhs? | Islam: why is the Qur'an important to Muslims? | Faith in action: what difference does belief make? |
| PSHE and RSHE | New beginnings | Being me in my world | Friendships and feelings | Being me in my world; celebrating difference | Being me in my world; mental health | Being me in my world; mental health | Being me in my world; moving on |
Subject by subject
Subjects at Bluebird
English
Daily phonics in Reception and Key Stage 1, followed by whole-class reading lessons in Key Stage 2. Writing units are built around high-quality texts, teaching grammar, spelling and handwriting in context. Children write for real audiences across the curriculum.
Maths
We teach for mastery: the whole class moves through the curriculum together, with concrete resources, pictures and abstract methods used side by side. Daily fluency practice builds rapid recall of number facts and times tables.
Science
Children work scientifically — asking questions, observing, testing, measuring and recording — while building secure knowledge of biology, chemistry and physics. We make the most of our grounds for outdoor investigations.
History and geography
History teaches children about Britain's past and the wider world, and how historians use evidence. Geography builds knowledge of places, maps and human and physical processes, with fieldwork in our local area every year.
Art and design, and design and technology
Children study great artists, designers and architects, develop their drawing, painting, printing and sculpture, and design, make and evaluate products — including cooking healthy, seasonal food.
Computing
Children learn how computers and networks work, how to write programs, and how to use technology safely, respectfully and responsibly.
PE
Two hours of high-quality PE each week, plus active playtimes and clubs. Children learn games, gymnastics, dance and athletics, and Key Stage 2 pupils have swimming lessons in Years 3 and 4 so that they can swim at least 25 metres by the end of Year 6.
Music
Weekly music lessons build singing, listening, playing, improvising and composing, following the Model Music Curriculum. Children also sing together in assemblies and perform in concerts.
Religious education (RE)
Our RE curriculum is based on a typical English locally agreed syllabus. Children learn about Christianity and the other principal religions and worldviews represented in Great Britain. Parents may withdraw their child from RE — please speak to the headteacher.
PSHE and relationships and health education (RSHE)
Children learn how to look after their physical and mental health, build positive relationships, stay safe (including online) and manage money. Relationships education and health education are statutory in primary schools; our RSHE policy explains what we teach and when.
Languages (Key Stage 2)
Children in Years 3 to 6 learn French, developing speaking, listening, reading and writing.