COMPUTING
COMPUTING AT MAYFIELD
Our Curriculum Intent
At Mayfield CE Primary School, we aim to prepare our learners for their future by giving them the opportunities to gain knowledge and develop skills that will equip them for an ever changing digital world. Knowledge and understanding of ICT is of increasing importance for our children’s future both at home and for employment. In line with our Christian values, we teach our children to use technology in a responsible and respectful manner and to persevere with skills that they may find challenging. Our Computing curriculum focuses on a progression of skills in digital literacy, computer science, information technology and online safety to ensure that children become competent in safely using, as well as understanding, technology. These strands are revisited repeatedly through a range of themes during children’s time in school to ensure the learning is embedded and skills are successfully developed. Our intention is that Computing also supports children’s creativity and cross curricular learning to engage children and enrich their experiences in school.
Our Curriculum Implementation
The starting point for all of our teaching at Mayfield CE Primary is the National Curriculum. Its aims are to ensure that all pupils:
- can understand and apply the fundamental principles and concepts of computer science, including abstraction, logic, algorithms and data representation
- can analyse problems in computational terms, and have repeated practical experience of writing computer programs in order to solve such problems
- can evaluate and apply information technology, including new or unfamiliar technologies, analytically to solve problems
- are responsible, competent, confident and creative users of information and communication technology.
We currently base our teaching on the Teach Computing scheme of work. Units are taught using a spiral curriculum with each of the main themes revisited regularly enabling pupils to connect, consolidate and build upon prior learning. In line with the National Curriculum, approximately half of children’s lessons focus on programming and coding. E-safety is explicitly taught throughout the year, making with links to the RSHE curriculum to ensure pupils learn about the importance of staying safe online.
The curriculum is designed to cover the three main strands of computing, which are:
- COMPUTER SCIENCE: programming + data and information
- INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY: computer systems and networks + creating media
- DIGITAL LITERACY: using technology safely and responsibly
Pupils at our school primarily use touchscreen laptops, but do have access to other devices and a variety of software packages. We believe it is important for pupils to learn how to transfer skills; discussing similarities and differences whilst providing opportunities to apply what they already know to new scenarios and situations. Children will have the opportunity to use a range of hardware including laptops, tablets, cameras, microphones and computer controlled electronics. Where possible, computing is linked to other areas of the curriculum and real life situations and scenarios, helping pupils to embed and understand with their learning.
Assessment is continuous to monitor progress and identify any support (or increased challenge) that might be required. We have high ambitions for every pupil, particularly SEND, disadvantaged and vulnerable pupils. Where needed, lessons are adapted to ensure that children who need further support have appropriate scaffolding, enabling them to successfully access the learning, whilst pupils who require further challenge will be stretched.
An overview of our computing curriculum for each year group can be found below:
Our Curriculum Impact
The implementation of this curriculum ensures that when children leave Mayfield C E Primary School, they are competent, respectful and responsible users of ICT with an understanding of how technology works. They will have developed skills to express themselves through digital media and are confident problem solvers, equipped with knowledge, strategies and perseverance that will enable them to tackle any challenges that they face and apply their skills in new situations.
We will regularly review, reflect and evaluate our computing curriculum to ensure that it meets the needs of all the children in our school.