Construction of the Computing Curriculum
At Newby Primary School, we teach children to be tinkerers, creators, debuggers and collaborators, who persevere. These skills begin with computational thinking in EYFS and will be nurtured and developed all the way through to Year Six. Our curriculum follows the national curriculum and is progressive throughout the school so that each concept and skill can be built upon, one year after another. In each year group, there are a variety of skills to develop, with prior links, and projects to create which teach the children a range of computational thinking skills. We have constructed our curriculum, not only for the children to have a breadth of skills and knowledge, but to have the depth as well. The Computing curriculum can be embedded across the curriculum; however, the key skills and projects are implemented discretely.
Ambition of our Curriculum
The world of computing is a dynamic and rapidly growing area that is developing faster than ever before and has become an integral part of the world we live in today. At Newby, our ambition is to equip our children with the required knowledge, skills and understanding to become leaders in and of their future. For us, Computing is not just about knowing how to use the devices and systems that exist now but it is to prepare them for the future by developing their understanding of the capabilities of technology and how to be responsible with technology, while developing personal qualities to become computational thinkers. Through Computing, we aim to nurture our learners to become capable of handling the world of exponentially expanding technology so they may navigate the digital world with kindness and confidence to allow them to be successful. We are not only equipping them to learn now, we are preparing them for qualifications over the next decade and giving them the chances to be the best at careers, roles and lifestyles that don’t even exist yet. By creating computational thinkers, we are creating leaders that will innovate and participate in roles, lifestyles and technology that we cannot yet fathom. We want to give our children the opportunities to make discoveries, technologies and systems that make a difference to the world in positive ways.
Skills and Concepts
In Computing, the skills and knowledge are carefully planned and sequenced within and across year groups. Within a unit of work, learning follows a clear sequence to develop knowledge, skills and understanding. We begin with the end in mind as the children initially develop the progressive skills in each topic that will be required to create their final product, where relevant. Along the way, children are encouraged to think like professionals by collaborating and debugging processes. Once the children produce their final project, they are encouraged to evaluate it and consider different approaches. This structure grows in depth and detail as the children move up through school. They also gain more independence and freedom with the process of creating documents and programmes.
