Curriculum Drivers
COMMUNITY
We are UNIQUE
It is so important to know and feel that we are all part of a local, national and international community. We will teach and learn about ourselves and our place in the world around us, through the world around us.
RELATIONSHIPS
We are POSITIVE
We aim to develop a sense of pride in ourselves and respect for others, showing a highly developed emotional literacy and the ability to demonstrate excellent behaviour, in order to create positive relationships and experiences.
ASPIRATIONS
We are ENABLING
No one can aspire to things they have never encountered. We will work to broaden our horizons, expanding our knowledge of the world of work by nurturing our interests, as well as encouraging fearlessness of what is new or unknown.
GROWTH
We LEARN and DEVELOP
We believe we all need to know about and understand the world around us. We need opportunities to experience the richness of its diversity and show we care about its management and sustainability, both locally and further afield.
SUCCESS
We ACHIEVE
We want everyone to be ready for their next stage. We will make progress and achieve to be the best we can be. Success will be celebrated and measured in a variety of ways, not just on academic outcomes.
Research
Just as there are adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) that play a role in the future success of children, there are also 7 positive childhood experiences (PCEs) that can offset their damage. There are seven experiences included in the positive childhood experience (PCE) psychometric analysis performed by 'JAMA Pediatrics'. They state that parents and caregivers can control most of the PCEs, which are shown to improve resiliency and reduce the likelihood of developing mental health issues in adulthood.
The seven positive childhood experiences are listed below:
- I am able to talk with my family about my feelings.
- I felt that my family stood by me during difficult times.
- I enjoyed participating in community traditions.
- I felt a sense of belonging in school.
- I felt supported by friends.
- I had at least two non-parent adults who took a genuine interest in me.
- I felt safe and protected by an adult in my home.
By intentionally introducing each PCE to children’s lives, we give them the necessary tools they will need for long-term success, happiness, and resilience and with this in mind we shape our curriculum drivers and provision ensuring that our children have exposure to these experiences wherever possible.
This recent discovery comes from a John Hopkin’s study published in 2019. Researchers were looking to determine if any “protective childhood experiences” could be linked with positive outcomes as adults—increasing resiliency and offsetting some of the trauma or damage caused by adverse childhood experiences such as abuse, a serious accident, witnessing something traumatic, bullying, neglect, dysfunction in the home, etc.
