INTENT

At the Convent of Jesus and Mary Catholic Infant School & Nursery we offer a structured sequence of lessons, helping teachers to ensure that they have covered the skills required to meet the aims of the national curriculum. The content allows for a broad, deep understanding of computing and how it links to pupil's lives as well as other areas of the curriculum such as problem solving in Mathematics, Science, and Design Technology. Computing is a broad discipline, and computing teachers require a range of strategies to deliver effective lessons to their pupils. We use The National Centre for Computing Education’s pedagogical approach which is underpinned by research contributing to effective teaching and learning in computing. At the core of our ‘Teach Computing’ programme of study for computing is Computer Science in which pupils are taught the principles of information and computation, how digital systems work and how to put this knowledge to use through programming. Pupils are taught how to create simple programs and a range of content to express their understanding and to enhance the learning of others. They become digitally literate; learn to communicate and collaborate effectively using web tools and to search and interrogate information.

Our curriculum offers a range of opportunities for consolidation, challenge and variety. This allows pupils to apply the fundamental principles and concepts of computer science. They develop analytical problem-solving skills and learn to evaluate and apply information technology. It also enables our pupils to become responsible, competent, confident and creative users of information technology.

IMPLEMENTATION

The Teach Computing Curriculum is structured in units. Concepts and skills rely on prior learning and experiences. We follow the National Curriculum programme of study which covers all three areas of Computing: Computer Science, Information Technology and Digital Literacy. We have carefully selected a scheme of work that we feel more than adequately cover the National Curriculum statements for KS1. Computing is planned, taught and assessed using the online scheme of work, resources and assessment tool from Teach Computing. Teach Computing provides an innovative progression framework where computing content (concepts, knowledge, skills, and objectives) are organised into interconnected networks called learning graphs. Teachers use these learning graphs to directly inform lesson planning and to identify opportunities to assess pupil understanding at key points in a lesson or unit. These creative and exciting lessons are carefully timetabled so that each class has access to at least an hour a week of discreet Computing time as well as additional implementation of computer skills across the curriculum. Whilst we use the units provided in this scheme of work, teachers have changed their medium term plan so that strong curriculum links can be made with subjects such as Mathematics, English, Art and Science. Our pupils begin their journey with technology in Early Years, with access to iPads and BeeBots. Teachers facilitate pupils’ curiosity with challenge and modelling how to use the equipment carefully and safely. In KS1 pupils continue their journey with the BeeBots, using them more precisely. They learn how to programme a BeeBot to reach a destination and begin to be able to debug when something doesn’t work out the way they imagined. They use Laptops to improve their mouse control and learn how to log on and off a computer using their own username and password. They learn about online safety and what to do if they encounter something which makes them feel uncomfortable as well as what personal information is and why it is important we don’t share it with someone on the internet. Coding then progresses from BeeBots onto a computer based programme where pupils learn how to programme a variety of sprites.

The units for KS1 are based on a spiral curriculum and will continue to be revisited as the pupils move to KS2. This means that each of the themes is revisited regularly (at least once in each year group), and pupils revisit each theme through a new unit that consolidates and builds on prior learning within that theme. This style of curriculum design reduces the amount of knowledge lost through forgetting, as topics are revisited yearly. It also ensures that connections are made within a theme in consecutive years. Through the sequence of lessons, we intend to inspire pupils to develop a love of the digital world, see its place in their future and give teachers’ confidence. Our lesson plans and resources help pupils to build on prior knowledge at the same time as introducing new skills and challenges.

The Teach Computing Curriculum has been written to support all pupils. We intend to inspire pupils to develop a love of the digital world, see its place in their future and give teachers’ confidence each lesson is sequenced so that it builds on the learning from the previous lesson, and where appropriate, activities are adapted so that all pupils can succeed and thrive. Adapted activities provide pupils with extra resources, such as visual prompts, to reach the same learning goals as the rest of the class. Exploratory tasks foster a deeper understanding of a concept, encouraging pupils to apply their learning in different contexts and make connections with other learning experiences. As well as scaffolded activities, embedded within the lessons are a range of pedagogical strategies, which support making computing topics more accessible.

Skills learnt through KS1 are used to support data presentation. By following our programme of study teachers feel confident in the progression of skills and knowledge and that outcomes have been met. Key vocabulary is also an important part of our offer showing the progression of specific language involved in pupil’s learning so that teachers can also access understanding and progress through vocabulary. At the heart of our computing curriculum is also online safety. At our school, we deliver a rigorous online safety programme from Nursery to Year 2.

IMPACT

We encourage our pupils to enjoy and value the curriculum we deliver. We will constantly ask the why behind their learning and not just the how. We want learners to discuss, reflect and appreciate the impact computing has on their learning, development and well-being. Finding the right balance with technology is key to an effective education and a healthy lifestyle. We feel the way we implement computing helps pupils realise the need for the right balance and one they can continue to build on in their next stage of education and beyond. Pupils will see the digital world as part of their world, extending beyond school, and understand that they have choices to make. They will be confident and respectful digital citizens going on to lead happy and healthy digital lives. We encourage regular discussions between staff and pupils to best embed and understand this. The way pupils showcase, share, celebrate and publish their work will show the impact of our curriculum. We also look for evidence through reviewing pupil’s knowledge and skills digitally through monitoring. Progress of our computing curriculum is demonstrated through outcomes and the record of coverage in the process of achieving these outcomes.

   Learning to be safe when using technology          

Learning to use technology: how to log in  

Using laptops to research and retrieve information

Learning to use our Smart Board  

Programming our Pro-Bots