St Vincent's Catholic Primary School

“How good and pleasant it is when God’s people live together in unity!”
Psalm 133.1

UKS2 Half Term Update: Exploring, Learning, and Growing

Hello, parents, guardians, and friends of our Year 5 and Year 6 students! We’re excited to share what your children have been up to these past weeks. This term has been packed with exciting learning experiences, from delving into mathematics and project-based learning to celebrating Black History Month and discovering the wonders of science and religion.

Maths: Place Value, Addition, and Subtraction

Our Year 5 and Year 6 students have been diving deep into mathematics, focusing on place value, addition, and subtraction. They’ve been sharpening their mathematical skills, understanding the importance of numbers and how they interact. These topics form a solid foundation for more complex math concepts they will encounter in the future.

But the true highlight of this term’s mathematical journey has been the emphasis on embracing mistakes. We’ve instilled in our students the idea that making mistakes is a crucial part of learning. Through growth mindset activities, they’ve learned to approach challenges with resilience, knowing that every mistake is an opportunity for growth. This mindset is not just about math but can be applied to all aspects of life.

Project-Based Learning: Learning from Mistakes

Our project-based learning theme for this term is “In what practical ways can we learn from our mistakes?” This engaging project encourages students to explore the value of errors and how they can be stepping stones to success. They’ve been working on various hands-on activities, connecting their learning to real-life experiences.

Students are encouraged to take risks, try new things, and not be afraid of making mistakes. This approach fosters innovation and problem-solving skills while boosting their self-confidence. We believe that nurturing this attitude will serve them well in the future.

Black History Month: Hidden Figures and Space Exploration

As part of our commitment to celebrating diversity and raising awareness during Black History Month, our students had the opportunity to explore the film “Hidden Figures.” This film highlights the incredible contributions of key black women who played pivotal roles in the early days of space exploration. It’s a story of determination, intelligence, and perseverance, and it inspired our students to reach for the stars, both academically and personally.

This exploration has given our students a deeper understanding of the significance of Black History Month and the importance of acknowledging the achievements of individuals from all backgrounds.

Religious Education (RE): Sacraments and Miracles

In RE, our Year 5 and Year 6 students have been focusing on the Church, delving into the study of the different sacraments and the role they play in the lives of Christians. They’ve also been learning about the miracles that Jesus performed on Earth and how these miraculous events have shaped Christian beliefs and practices today. This has been a thought-provoking and enriching journey for our students, helping them to appreciate the religious diversity within our community.

Forest School: Teamwork and Communication

Finally, in Forest School, students have been honing their teamwork and communication skills. These skills are not only essential in the great outdoors but also in everyday life. By collaborating on various tasks and challenges, they’ve learned the importance of working together, listening to one another, and effectively communicating to achieve their goals.

As we wrap up this half term, we’re proud of the progress our Year 5 and Year 6 students have made. We look forward to even more exciting adventures and opportunities in the coming term. Thank you for your continued support in our mission to provide a well-rounded education that goes beyond textbooks and classrooms.

Kind regards,

UKS2

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Curriculum Intent

At St Vincent’s it is our INTENT is to enable ALL children to thrive through the opportunities we provide them with, in order to:

  • Live their lives by the Gospel and Vincentian values instilled in them at school.
  • Understand that everyone has the right and responsibility to live in our world constructively and ensure that we leave it in a better state than when we entered it by living and working through the principles of Catholic Social Teaching in line with the UNCRC (United Nations Conventions on the Rights of the Child)
  • Experience creativity across the curriculum through specialist art and dance lessons and opportunities to take part in art, music, dance and creative writing competitions.
  • Know the joy of outdoor learning, the rich biodiversity within our school grounds and locality and develop a responsibility for the environment we share as stewards.
  • Understand their place in the world, globally and locally, knowing the history of our school, Mill Hill and the Daughters of Charity and knowing where our diverse community members have their roots across the world.
  • Be ready and well-prepared for their next steps in life, having high aspirations for themselves and for others because they have experienced success and a belief in learning from mistakes.
  • Have a life-long curiosity, stimulated by the driving questions of Project Based Learning approach to the curriculum fostering inquiry and independent learning skills, which give confidence to ask big questions about the world.
  • Be literate and numerate having experienced a rich variety of texts to stimulate and excite the mind while developing skills in investigating and problem solving to enable them to excel in their future passions.
  • Be confident and happy young people that have a broad understanding and tolerance of the world and others around them with excellent communication skills honed by their experience of Restorative Justice and respect of the dignity and wishes of the individual.

Curriculum Context

St Vincent’s is a 1.5 form entry school with 285 children ranging from 4 -11. Children come predominantly from the parishes of Sacred Heart in Mill Hill and St Anthony’s in Edgware.

Children come from a diverse range of socio-economic backgrounds, speak 17 different languages and hail from 26 different ethnic groups. The curriculum we present, and promote, to the children is an endeavour to reflect these differences by providing opportunities to explore the different countries, languages and customs our children are part of through the projects they investigate. We have looked closely at the context of our school, the backgrounds of the children and how life is for a child growing up in North London today. We have used the underlying principles of our Catholic Faith and the example of our namesake St Vincent to create a set of values which lie at the heart of our curriculum.

We are aware of the changing nature of society and the pressures faced by young children as they enter the next stage of their education. The rise in Mental Health related issues has been widely documented across the media. Therefore, issues such as internet safety and the enormous impact across society of social media are at the forefront of our minds when planning our curriculum. With the current worldwide concerns relating to Covid 19, racial justice, equality and diversity, as well as gender and economic background, we feel it is our duty to prepare the children through a concerted focus on building independence, resilience and communication skills linked to our Vincentian Values.