Teaching | November 27, 2024

Building the Future: STEM at Culloden

Learning about Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM), is key to preparing children for our rapidly evolving world. In the UK, the emphasis on STEM subjects in schools has grown significantly over the past decade, following the recognition that these disciplines are strong drivers for innovation and economic growth. 

How we teach STEM

We begin STEM education early, and teach our children in the EYFS by incorporating Computational Thinking concepts into lessons through pattern seeking, tinkering and creating. 

Coding education begins in Year 1 and we build upon it in every year following. Our pupils use code.org to learn about it, a system that’s used by over 80 million students around the world. Content and exercises are tailored for each year group, with the complexity of the work increasing as children get older.

Alongside coding, we also teach pupils how to type. Every computing lesson we have begins with practice – children in Key Stage 1 use a programme called Keyboard Climber, then graduate to Typing Club in Key Stage 2. 

We also teach children to use different digital tools, to create everything from ebooks to music. In Year 5 pupils will learn how to create their own websites, and make 3D models using TinkerCAD. When they reach Year 6, pupils use Google Sheets to create budgets for their own parties and Microsoft Publisher to produce their graduation books. 

Why STEM is important

According to a report by EngineeringUK, the STEM sector contributes significantly to the UK economy, with engineering alone accounting for 26% of the UK’s GDP. The UK, like many other nations, faces a skills gap in STEM industries, so by equipping pupils with strong STEM skills we put them in an advantageous position to secure important, well-paid careers when they enter the workforce. 

STEM careers are among the highest-paying and most in-demand jobs, with salaries 20% higher than other sectors. Promoting STEM education can enhance social mobility by providing students from diverse backgrounds with access to lucrative career paths. Encouraging more students to pursue STEM subjects, particularly those from underrepresented groups, can help bridge socio-economic gaps.

STEM subjects teach problem-solving and critical thinking skills. These disciplines encourage children to explore, experiment and find solutions to complex problems. These skills are essential for STEM careers but are also valuable in everyday life and across many other sectors.

Conclusion

STEM education is a powerful tool that equips pupils with the skills and knowledge needed to thrive in a rapidly changing world. Our comprehensive approach to STEM demonstrates the benefits of integrating these subjects into everyday learning, giving children the  technical expertise and a deeper understanding of the vital role STEM plays in the world.

General, School newsletters, Teaching | November 18, 2024

Online Homework

Teaching | May 16, 2024

The benefits of healthy eating

By helping pupils establish healthy eating habits during childhood, we’re able to give them a strong foundation for a lifetime of wellbeing.

We create an environment in our school that prioritises nutritious food choices, to give our pupils the ability and the confidence to make informed decisions about their diet and cultivate habits that support their physical and intellectual growth.

Healthy eating is not purely about physical health, it also improves cognitive function, academic performance and a person’s overall wellbeing. A study published in the Journal of School Health found students who consumed a higher quality diet, including more fruits, vegetables and whole grains, had better academic performance compared to those with poorer dietary habits. Research published in the British Journal of Nutrition indicates nutrients (such as omega-3 fatty acids) are essential for cognitive development in children, and an adequate intake of vitamins and minerals, such as iron and zinc, has been linked to improved cognitive function and attention span.

We teach pupils about nutrition as part of the Paradigm Trust curriculum. In lessons they learn about the importance of balanced diets, food groups, the importance of vitamins and minerals, and nutritional value. We also organise workshops and events to engage pupils and provide them with practical knowledge about healthy eating. Pupils go on farm trips so they can understand more about the provenance and seasonality of food, and we use resources including digital media and printed posters in school to reinforce key messages about nutrition and healthy food choices.

To encourage healthy eating habits, it’s important pupils always have access to nutritious food. Our school lunches are provided by Lunchtime Co., a caterer that prepares its menus carefully, following the School Food Standards Guidance in combination with the nutrition criteria of the Government Buying Standards for Food and Catering Services. Variety is a key consideration in what they create, so different fruits, vegetables, grains, pulses, meat and fish are incorporated across the week, to serve food that looks good and tastes good too.

Promoting healthy eating in our schools is a vital investment in the wellbeing and future of our children. By prioritising nutrition education, providing access to nutritious food, teaching culinary skills and creating supportive environments, we help give pupils the ability to make informed choices that support their physical, cognitive and emotional health.

Teaching | March 8, 2024

The value of extracurricular activities

Extracurricular activities can play an incredibly important role in a pupil’s educational journey. They give children the chance to explore beyond their classrooms, providing them with the opportunities to discover new interests and learn new skills. 

The benefits of extracurricular activities

A study published in the Economics of Education Review by Stephen Lipscombe found that when it came to extracurricular activities, athletic participation is associated with a 2 percent increase in maths and science test scores. Club participation is associated with a 1 percent increase in maths test scores, and involvement in either type of activity is associated with a five percent increase in Bachelor’s degree attainment expectations.    

It’s crucial however, to avoid thinking extracurricular activities are only good for supporting subjects on the mainstream curriculum. Each one has its own intrinsic value and can spark an interest or uncover a passion which pupils carry with them for years to come, either simply as a pastime, or something that influences their choice of a profession in later life. 

Paradigm’s core principle is that our curriculum prepares pupils to lead fulfilling lives and to play an active, positive and productive role in our democratic society. In essence, the value of extracurricular activities lies in the holistic development they offer, contributing to well-rounded individuals ready to face the challenges of the future.

Extracurricular activities often improve social skills and teamwork. Whether through sports teams, games clubs, music ensembles or other activities, pupils learn to collaborate, communicate effectively, and appreciate the importance of collective effort. These experiences can contribute to personal growth and prepare pupils for the collaborative nature of the world of work.

Taking part in extracurricular activities is also a positive way for children and young people to build cultural capital. Participation exposes pupils to a variety of new experiences and environments, and this exposure can help them develop a broader understanding of different cultures, perspectives and ways of life. Participating in arts, music, drama and other creative activities can allow pupils to express themselves and develop an appreciation for various forms of cultural expression. This exposure enhances their cultural capital by growing creativity and aesthetic awareness.

Finally, clubs can also encourage pupils’ attendance, as they provide something additional they may look forward to coming to at school. 

By having a wide range of extracurricular activities on offer, before and after school, and at lunchtimes, we can give children access to learning and experiences they may not receive otherwise, helping them become more rounded individuals for the future. 

Teaching | January 11, 2024

The benefits of regular attendance

Regular school attendance is a key focus at Culloden because of the many ways it benefits our pupils.

One of the advantages of regular school attendance is academic success. Studies show pupils who attend school consistently are more likely to stay on track with their studies, grasp key concepts, and excel in examinations. Consistent attendance allows continuity of learning which is vital for academic achievement.

In 2019, 84% of UK pupils in Key Stage 2 who had 100% attendance achieved the expected standard, while only 40% of pupils who were persistently absent managed to hit their target.

The pattern continues through school. Pupils who didn’t achieve a grade of 4 to 9 in GCSE maths and English on average had missed 10 more days over the key stage compared to students who achieved grade 9 to 5 in the subject. It’s estimated just 17 missed school days per year will result in a drop in GCSE grade.

School is also crucial for developing social and emotional skills. Regular attendance lets students form lasting friendships, engage in extracurricular activities, and develop essential interpersonal skills they’ll need in adult life. 

Attendance also instils discipline and a sense of responsibility in students, and employers often look for people with these traits who can demonstrate reliability and commitment.

To help children who struggle with attendance requires a comprehensive whole-school approach that addresses the root causes. However, there’s no one-size-fits-all solution – we treat each case individually. As a Trust, some of the strategies we use are:

Focusing on Success

If pupils find lessons unengaging and irrelevant, they’re less likely to attend school, so we teach in a way that results in children feeling they are doing something worthwhile, but also secure enough that they feel safe. This feeling of achievement then helps them become more engaged in lessons. We continually review what we do to find ways we can refine and improve, then share them across the Trust.

Parental Involvement

Parents have a crucial role in ensuring their children attend school regularly. We promote parental involvement through regular communication, parent-teacher meetings, and highlighting the importance of attendance for their child’s future.

Early Intervention and Support

Identifying attendance issues early on is essential. By establishing a supportive environment where pupils feel comfortable discussing their challenges, we can implement early interventions and prevent prolonged absences. 

We have Home School Support Workers, Attendance Teams and three Learning Mentors to support pupils and families. We also work with specialists Impact Ed. to try and address the core issues behind poor attendance.

Positive Reinforcement

Recognising and rewarding good attendance can motivate students to attend school regularly. We announce weekly attendance winners and hold half term parties for classes with the best attendance where they can come to school in non-uniform.

By focusing on attendance we can help more pupils spend more time at school, so they are better educated and better prepared to succeed in their adult lives.

Teaching | May 23, 2023

Teacher Training

So they’re able to give pupils the best education possible, we aim to give all our teachers the best training possible, whether they’re at the start of their career or established members of the leadership team

Why train to be a teacher with Paradigm?

Paradigm Trust has a significant track record of delivering high-quality initial teaching training (ITT). 

At Paradigm Trust, one of our mottos is “Teach the right things, efficiently.”

We know every minute we have with our learners is important so we never waste time. We take the essentials of every subject and make sure we teach them in the most effective way. We know what works in the classroom and we want to share that.

To deliver our high quality teacher training, we’ve built strong partnerships with several ITT providers. And as the national ITT framework aligns closely with the Paradigm framework, it allows trainees to fit in with our approach to education and have a good grasp of our pedagogy from the start.

The course combines personal learning sessions with vital time in the classroom, observing and working with established teachers to deliver a range of lessons to children. These practical sessions will account for around 80% of course time and give students the essential skills and experience they need to become a professional teacher.

Most of these practical sessions will be at Culloden, however we will make sure learners have time in at least one other primary school in the Trust to expand their range of experiences. 

Career Progression at Paradigm

After their first year, teachers can look to move into a subject lead position at Paradigm. This builds experience and confidence as a middle leader. They get the benefit of working with more experienced colleagues and as a team across the wider Trust. It improves their understanding of the curriculum, of how Paradigm works as an organisation and how to develop teacher resources, all with peer support from across the Trust.

As teachers progress further in their careers, they can take advantage of training opportunities funded and delivered by us for middle, senior and principal level training.

If you’re interested starting your teaching career at a Trust that has a strong emphasis on quality training and your career progression then contact Kevin Jones to find out more. We would be very pleased to meet with you at any of our schools.

Teaching | January 27, 2023

Maths Mastery Matters

When we teach maths we take what’s known as a mastery approach. This means pupils revisit the same core areas throughout their schooling, so they can achieve a level of knowledge which gives them greater capabilities in the subject.

It’s an approach which puts depth of knowledge ahead of breadth of knowledge. By teaching maths consistently, from EYFS through to KS4, as children move through the school they’re able to grasp the fundamentals and build on them, every time they revisit the topic. The way we teach is constantly tested, evaluated and modified to achieve the best results. This ensures our lessons are taught with evidence-based methods, and it also gives teachers the freedom to try new things.

Number cubes

At our school we have a ‘talk for learning’ ethos, which means we want a lot of conversation about maths in our lessons. A key technique we use to encourage this is the Agree, Build, Challenge (ABC) model. For ‘Agree’, we give students two answers and they have to say which they agree with, then explain their rationale to justify their answer. ‘Build’ requires the teacher to ask a student to build upon another student’s answer, elaborating or giving new information. ‘Challenge’ involves the teacher asking a student whether they would like to challenge each other’s answers and opinions in a positive and constructive way. This all leads to better discussion and thinking.

Having a strong foundation in maths gives a pupil a good advantage when they come to the more advanced topics at secondary school. From when they first join us, we build pupils’ mathematics vocabulary so they become confident in the use of maths terms such as coefficient, highest common factor and lowest common denominator. This helps pupils to have easier conversations around the subject and better success answering examination questions when they reach their GCSEs.

The most recent progress 8 score at Ipswich Academy, the Paradigm secondary school, was a strong +0.29 and Key Stage 3 attainment is above the national average. The number of students achieving between level 4 and level 9 at Key Stage 4 is also increasing. Across the five Paradigm Trust primaries, 71% of pupils are attaining level 4+ and 53.7% are working at 5+. These outcomes are solid proof that this approach is delivering great results for our pupils.  

Teaching | January 26, 2022

PE: Improving bodies and minds

It’s common knowledge physical exercise is vital for keeping our bodies in good shape but the benefits of Physical Education in school extend far beyond the sports field. 

In 2020, after the national lockdown, children’s charity Youth Sport Trust carried out a survey of 1,396 young people aged 6–15 to discover how they now felt about sport and exercise. Over a quarter said physical education, sport and exercise had made them feel better during that time. Additionally, 40% said not being able to play sport had made them feel worse. Clearly, sport and exercise has a positive impact on the mental health and wellbeing of children and young people.

At Culloden it’s easy to see the positive effects PE has on our pupils. In lessons following PE their attention is noticeably greater, their ability to focus is far better. And in the long-term PE builds self-confidence, reduces anxiety and improves self-esteem. It also helps children develop attributes which help them cope with difficulties and setbacks.

In PE lessons, taught by our two full-time specialist PE teachers, we take a skills-based approach. Rather than simply playing different sports and games, lessons are designed to improve the fundamental movement skills – running, jumping, hand-eye coordination, balance, agility, throwing and catching – especially in the younger year groups. This way pupils can develop these core abilities which are used in multiple sports and physical activities. Then when they come to play different sports, which are usually introduced around upper Key Stage Two, students will be competent in the necessary skills the sport requires, whether it’s throwing a ball in cricket, jumping in basketball or having the hand-eye coordination to play a racquet sport such as badminton.

When it comes to choosing between fitness and getting children healthy versus simply playing team games and having fun, we work on creating a good balance. For example, after lockdown children had lost much of the fitness they had previously developed so for an entire term the focus was working hard to get them back to the level of fitness where they were previously. After that we incorporated games too, to reintroduce the other aspect of PE.

To be able to track our pupil’s progress effectively, measurement is really important. We use five assessments each term to check how they’re improving in areas such as speed, fitness, coordination and strength. We then use that data to adjust our lessons accordingly, so the pupils continue to make progress, term after term.

At the core of sport is competition, which is important for helping pupils develop a winning mental attitude and equipping them to handle both success and failure. To do this we take part in (and often win!) inter-school competitions, both within and outside our Trust, including SEN-specific contests. As well as teaching pupils about sportsmanship and respect, it fosters a sense of friendly rivalry and school pride, and boosts morale and self-esteem.

PE is an essential part of our curriculum that builds strong character and develops qualities in pupils which are beneficial in all subjects, as well as their lives beyond school.

Teaching | December 15, 2021

Striking the right note – music at Culloden Primary

In our everyday lives we are surrounded by music. And as a subject, music helps pupils understand and appreciate it in some way, whether that’s by learning an instrument, connecting on an emotional level or even using it as a method of self-regulation. 

Music is also a subject which provides many benefits that reach far beyond learning an instrument or improving children’s musicality. Research has shown that listening to music can reduce anxiety and improve sleep quality, mood, mental alertness, and memory. Practising music boosts creativity, helps with language, increases spatial awareness and improves IQ – it’s a full brain workout!

To give our pupils the best music education, we have specialist teachers taking all our lessons. Children at Culloden all benefit from their expertise, and as the teachers have regular, consistent contact with the children they are able to tailor lessons more effectively to the needs of the students.

To give pupils enough time to properly appreciate music, everyone in our school has one music lesson a week of around forty minutes, every week of the year. We also have a bespoke music room which is equipped with all the resources pupils need to learn effectively.

In addition to regular music lessons in school time, we provide extra tuition for eight instruments, which is taught by specialist tutors and available to all pupils from Year 2 upwards. We also run musical after school activities through the year which include ukulele club, guitar club, choir and musical theatre.

As well as musicality, in every Music lesson children are building their interpersonal and intrapersonal skills. We always include a practical aspect in every lesson, usually group work and performance. These activities improve confidence and self-esteem, and help grow skills such as team-building and the ability to work with others. Learning to play a musical instrument also teaches resilience and patience – there’s no shortcut to being able to play well, just perseverance!

As well as learning about music theory, our pupils also learn about the cultural aspect of music and its history. As we learn about different genres of music, we also study the context and diversity of the genres; the place where it was born, the people who created it and the time period. For instance, when studying funk, soul and blues pupils also learn about slavery and segregation. In this way Music is a cross-curricular subject, linking pupils’ learning to many other areas on the timetable.

Teaching | October 16, 2021

Religious Education

With religion and beliefs becoming more visible in public life locally, nationally and internationally it’s important that children learn about them and understand them.

Studying these subjects also allows us as a school opportunities to promote an ethos of respect for others, challenge stereotypes and build an understanding of other cultures and beliefs. This in turn contributes to promoting a positive and inclusive ethos at Culloden that champions democratic values and human rights.

Religious Education actually has no statutory curriculum, so Paradigm Trust has formed our current curriculum by taking the best parts of the Tower Hamlets syllabus and the Suffolk syllabus (the two authorities which Paradigm schools fall under), combining them in a way which reflects our ethos and values.

We teach RE systematically, so children learn about each of the chosen religions – Christianity, Hinduism, Humanism, Islam, Judaism and Sikhism – twice in their primary career. The first time we establish their initial knowledge, then build on what they’ve learnt when we revisit it later.

To ensure the children make progress there is a different focus in each year. For example, Year 2 looks at how and why the religions celebrate festivals, and in Year 5 they will explore what it means to follow a certain religion in Britain today. This way there is no repetition when children revisit the religion and we can keep it fresh and interesting.

We take a ‘whole school’ approach to teaching religion, which means every year group studies the same religion at the same time. This evokes a great sense of community in the whole school; siblings from different year groups can discuss the same issues at home – albeit at different depths. When festivals come around the entire school can take part in the celebrations.

RE is a very artefact-rich subject so we make sure to use items from the religion, such as Bibles, kippahs and patkas, to enhance the children’s learning. We also arrange for external parties from different religions to come in and run workshops, so the children can enjoy a range of experiences as they learn.

We also go out and explore religion in our community by taking a visit to a different place of worship every year. This way they will have experienced a workshop on every religion, and visited every place of worship too by the end of Year 6.

RE provokes challenging questions, encouraging pupils to explore their own beliefs, enabling pupils to develop respect and understanding for others and prompting them to consider their rights and responsibilities to society, and helps them understand themselves.

Last updated October 18, 2021