Intent:

In line with the 2014 National Curriculum for computing, our aim is to provide a high-quality computing education which equips children to use computational thinking and creativity to understand and change the world. The curriculum will teach children key knowledge about how computers and computer systems work, and how they are designed and programmed. Children will have the opportunity to gain an understanding of computational systems of all kinds. Our computing curriculum will develop additional skills such as thinking and communication skills and how to identify potential dangers and keep safe. Online safety has a high priority across the school.

Implementation:

We use Purple Mash as the starting point to implement our curriculum. Teachers use the lesson plans to teach units of work. Where appropriate additional resources are accessed such as “Hour of Code” or “Scratch”. Teachers will also provide children with opportunities to apply skills in other curriculum areas for example creating a fact file using Microsoft Word. The curriculum is supplemented by themed online safety sessions run by the NSPCC and “2John’s”. We are a National Online Safety accredited school and use this to train staff, governors, parents and children. Where appropriate, we will use computing across other subjects to allow children to apply the skills they have learnt.

Impact:

The impact of our curriculum can be seen by our centralised computing display which shows a range of work from different year groups. Progression can be seen through the work children produce and save onto Purple Mash. Pupils enjoy computing and are enthused by the knowledge and skills they gain. They often choose to create extra work at home using Purple Mash or creating presentations on topics such as “Plastic Pollution”. Pupils are able to transfer skills learnt such as problem solving into other subjects. All our children, including disadvantaged and SEND children, are able to access the computing curriculum through differentiation and support where appropriate. All of our parents surveyed agreed that their child felt safe at school (77 responses October 2019) and our online safety works means children articulate well how they keep safe online.