Our Curriculum
Ethos:
As a school we believe in offering a creative curriculum. We believe that all pupils must be motivated and engaged in order to learn. Each class follows a 'Topic Based'curriculum and we use key texts to engage them in their learning. We also believe that learning should be hands on and engaging [see our Teaching and Learning Policy]
SCHOOL TIMES
P1 - P2 9.00 - 2.00 pm
P3 9.00 - 3.00 pm*
P4 - P7 9.00 - 3.00 pm
*Except Friday (2.00pm)
Mid-morning break for all classes l0.30 - 10.45am.
A lunch break of 45 minutes is organised to suit class groups.
Curriculum
Our school population falls into 7 primaries, 2 speech and language classes and a full-time nursery unit.
The Northern Ireland curriculum aims to empower young people to develop their potential and to make informed and responsible choices and decisions throughout their lives.
The Curriculum comprises of:
The Foundation Stage: Years 1 and 2
Key Stage 1: Years 3 and 4
Key Stage 2: Years 5,6 and 7
The curriculum for the three stages is set out in six Areas of Learning:
- Language and Literacy (including Talking & Listening, Reading & Writing);
- Mathematics and Numeracy (focusing on the development of mathematical concepts and numeracy across the curriculum);
- The Arts (including Art & Design, Drama and Music);
- The World Around Us (focusing on the development of knowledge, skills and understanding in Geography, History, Science and Technology);
- Personal Development & Mutual Understanding (focusing on emotional development, social skills, learning to learn, health, relationships and sexuality education and mutual understanding in the local and global community);
- Physical Education (focusing on the development of knowledge, skills and understanding through play and a range of physical activities);
- Religious Education provides young people with opportunities to learn about, discuss, evaluate and learn from religious beliefs, practices and values by supplying opportunities to engage with challenging questions not just about the meaning and purpose of life but about our place in society and the world around us.
- The cross curricular skills - Communication, Using Mathematics and Using ICT and Thinking Skills and Personal Capabilities are incorporated in the pupils learning.
Through our Extended Schools Programme we provide Spanish Tuition for P1-P7 classes.
Our positive discipline policy is fundamental in ensuring our ethos is not just words but part of the school's practice and permeates all aspects of school life.
Parents will receive a copy of the school's homework policy and details of homework requirements at the beginning of each school year.
The children's progress is carefully reviewed and monitored and a Pupil Profile is completed annually and passed to the succeeding teacher each year.
Parents are kept informed through parent/teacher meetings, parent evenings, weekly notes, monthly newsletters (Nursery) and a termly magazine.
We strive to ensure that every pupil will achieve the best they can and offer additional individual help and booster groups to support, challenge and extend the children's learning as appropriate.
Core Book Approach
At Ballykelly PS pupils are exposed to a wide variety of high quality texts. This begins in the Nursery and develops throughout their time in school building up to novels.
Delivery: What it looks like in practice
Children are introduced to a new book. They are read the story during three carpet sessions across the week and an interactive display of the story is set up in the classrooms. The displays often contain props and resources supporting the retelling of the story with key vocabulary and a series of questions to promote higher order thinking. These sessions are sometimes whole class, sometimes in small key groups. Each class has a different core book –core books available every day which complement the book corners which are well stocked with a range of quality children’s fiction and non-fiction.
During week two, the core book is repeatedly read to children with more depth and questioning where appropriate. Children are now familiar with the book and can repeat parts and may be beginning to know parts by heart and make correct assumptions about what may happen next. These more dialogic style reading sessions happen in the second week when the children are ready to investigate a story in more depth. In addition to carpet sessions opportunities for practical activities such as role play and written/oral retelling of the story as well as sequencing activities will be available in a carousel approach in the second week.
With our core book approach, we know we are increasing the vocabulary of all of our children especially those with speech and language needs. We are creating a love for books and a curiosity for print and meaning and the continued development of imagination, communication and language.
