Our approach to learning
Good teacher to pupil ratios ensure that every child is treated as an individual, enabling all teaching staff to pinpoint the next steps in each child's individual learning journey. Overall, all of our Prep classes are taught by an experienced teacher, with some additional support from highly qualified EYFS practitioners or Teaching Assistants.
Pupils also benefit from specialist teaching which builds during their educational journey at Kingshott:
- Pupils in Reception to Year 2 have class teachers and benefit from subject specialists teaching their classes each week (French, Music, Drama, Sport).
- Year 3 pupils benefit from six different specialisms: Art, Design and Technology, Drama, Languages, Music and Sport.
- Year 4, further specialist teaching occurs for IT.
- Year 5 & 6 pupils benefit from eight different subject specialists as they begin to learn Food Technology.
(Going forward) Years 4 to 6 will enjoy a unique blend of classroom teaching and subject specialists - in both their classroom and in specialist subject areas. Pupils benefit from the educational continuity of a Form Teacher who knows them best, pastorally and academically, as well as being able to use subject specialist spaces (e.g. Music, Drama, Sport, DT/Food and Art).
All subjects are also supported and enriched by a full programme of class and year group trips, events and visits aimed at enriching the children’s education by bringing learning to life and providing enjoyable, stimulating experiences.
For more information about the different classes within our Prep School, please click on the sections below:
Reception
Reception children follow the Early Years Foundation Stage, which recognises that children develop and learn in different ways and at different rates.
The Reception classes follow a more formal timetable than Nursery but the emphasis is still on learning through play and practical activities. Mathematics, Literacy and Phonics are taught in the mornings with other curriculum areas in the afternoons. Reception follow the Little Wandle phonics programme and have a variety of reading schemes for the children to use.
Reception also have PE and music with specialist teachers, as well as a weekly swimming lesson with qualified swimming instructors.
Children enjoy French lessons with ‘Camembear’, a favourite French teddy!
Optional Reception ballet lessons are held one afternoon per week.
Years 1 & 2
Pupils in Years 1 and 2 use a topic-based curriculum to study English and Maths, together with art, science, history and geography. Specialist teachers continue to add their expertise to subject delivery in Years 1 and 2 and teach each class for music, PE, drama and French.
The children learn to use technology with confidence, using a range of hardware and software to achieve specific planned outcomes.
Children are able to learn the recorder from Year 2.
The curriculum is enhanced with trips and workshops linked to the topics being studied. As well as the annual Harvest, Nativity and school productions, parents are also invited to a class assembly each term. Parents are kept informed of their child’s progress through parent consultations and termly effort and attainment reports.
Years 3 & 4
In Years 3 and 4 our focus is on attaining the highest possible standards for all our children in the academic subjects, but we are also aware of the importance of ensuring that the wider curriculum is made available and accessible to all.
A strong emphasis is placed on pastoral care and education to create good citizens, not only of Kingshott, but also of the wider community. We focus on developing independence and resilience both within and outside the classroom, becoming active and curious learners who are ready for anything!
We aim to enhance and enliven the curriculum through the provision of value added activities. For example, we have themed days in school including the Ancient Greeks and an Indian cultural day. We organise trips to reinforce classroom learning in subjects such as History, Science, Geography, Art and Religious Studies. Recent trips have included Celtic Harmony, a Sikh Gurdwara, Bhaktivedanti Hindu Temple and the Natural History Museum. In Year Three all children spend a night away from home at an activity centre. Recently this has been to WildChild Activity Centre in Surrey. In Year Four the children go on a two-night trip to Grafham Water. Both of these trips are hugely popular and give the children the opportunity to challenge themselves physically and learn to live and get along with each other in very different circumstances and surroundings, as well as exposing them to a night or two away from home, often for the first time.
Year 5 & 6
Building on the solid foundation of earlier years, in Years 5 and 6 we seek to further develop the children’s thirst for learning and encourage a spirit of independence. Our aim is to prepare them for a seamless transition into Senior School, allowing them to achieve their potential in all areas of school life.
The children also benefit from residential trips at the end of the year. Year 5 spend three nights in the Peak District, and Year 6 enjoy a full week (four nights) away from home at an activity centre, in recent years this has been in Dorset.
