CURRICULUM IMPLEMENTATION

We meet the requirements of the National Curriculum and use lessons designed by the ‘National Centre for Computing Education’ (NCCE)  as our teaching scheme. The lesson plans created by the NCCE have been chosen because they offer fun, creative and hands-on activities which challenge misconceptions and break the National Curriculum down into small steps. We find the NCCE scheme to be clear, systematic and easy to teach so it is ideal for all members of staff to follow. It has been designed for teachers from all backgrounds who want to improve their knowledge and teaching practice. The NCCE scheme has also been chosen because it has a clear structure, detailed planning and a well-thought-out journey through learning.

Onine Safety is extremely important and we teach the children the Online Safety rules at the beginning of every computing unit. We also take part in Safer Internet Day. In the EYFS the teachers use the Childnet.com ‘Smartie the Penguin’ discussion stories (alongside the NCCE scheme) as it is fun and engaging for our young children. The children really enjoy the easy-to-remember song and the interactive nature of the stories as they help Smartie to make the best decisions whilst on the Internet.

In Year 1 the teachers use the Childnet 'DigiDuck' stories. The children follow Digiduck and his pals in stories of friendship, responsibility and critical thinking online.

In Year 2 the children learn about online safety through the CEOP 'Jessie and Friends' animated series, which provides our older children with the knowledge, skills and confidence they need to help them stay safe from risks they may encounter online. 

Parents are kept up to date on online Safety at Ashcroft with regular advice and updates on our school Facebook page, Class Dojo learning platform and weekly newsletters.

Our curriculum fits the needs of our children and they all enjoy computing as we seek to use it more to deepen learning across the wider curriculum.