Computing Intent
At Cold Harbour School we aim for all children to access the computing curriculum through growing, learning and achieving together. They are expected to know how to respect each other online and to have trust in one another. Their learning environment should contribute to the development of these skills and they should have access to suitable, up to date equipment and emerging technologies. As computing is an increasing part of life today, it is essential that all pupils gain the confidence and ability that they need in this subject, to prepare them for the challenge of a rapidly developing and changing technological world.

At Cold Harbour School we follow the National Curriculum for Computing and adhere to their aims: can understand and apply the fundamental principles and concepts of computer science, including abstraction, logic, algorithms and data representation, can analyse problems in computational terms, and have repeated practical experience of writing computer programs in order to solve such problems, can evaluate and apply information technology, including new or unfamiliar technologies, analytically to solve problems, are responsible, competent, confident and creative users of information and communication technology.

Our aim is to enable all our pupils and staff to be confident, competent, and independent users of ICT. We aim to use computing where appropriate to motivate and inspire pupils and raise standards across the curriculum. We will ensure teachers have the necessary training to deliver an up to date curriculum. We also aim to develop pupils’ computing skills, knowledge, understanding and capability through taught computing lessons and to provide opportunities for pupils to apply and consolidate their capability across all curriculum contexts. We will ensure that children are aware of the possible risks when using the internet through E- Safety lessons each half term as well as linked assemblies. Through this the children are expected to respect each other online as they do in school. Parents and children will be given any information necessary to keep them safe online both inside and outside of school. We aim for all children to be successful and safe when being taught computing at Cold Harbour School.

Design and Technology

We have chosen to follow the scheme of work provided by Kapow Primary for our DT lessons.  Knowledge and skills are developed in the following areas as across both KS1 and 2:

• Cooking and nutrition
• Mechanical systems
• Textiles
• Electrical systems
• Structures
• Digital world

Each half term, classes take on a new design project which will enable them to develop technical knowledge alongside the skills of  designing, making and evaluating. 

Modern Foreign Language

At Cold Harbour, foreign language learning is a valued part of our curriculum.  It not only helps children embrace language acquisition in another language but does so in a fun way that ignites their curiosity to find out more.   As a school, we use  ‘Language Angels‘  to provide structured lessons in French across KS2.   The curriculum focuses on acquiring knowledge as well as developing linguistic skills. 

The teaching of Modern Foreign Languages follows the National Curriculum – taught discretely as part of a broad and balanced curriculum. Emphasis is placed on acquiring vocabulary and language structure to ensure pupils can express themselves in the target language e.g.  make links across the curriculum so that our children are able to make connections with countries studied in Geography and History. Alongside linguistic knowledge, we teach children about larger global concepts of language learning such as religion, tradition, culture, community and linguistic nuance.

Developing a Love of Music at Cold Harbour

At Cold Harbour we believe that music holds a unique and powerful form of communication that has the ability to reach out to anyone. It allows us to make strong links with our local and wider community. 

We pride ourselves on our singing strategy where children are encouraged to develop their singing either through a weekly dedicated singing lesson, special collective worship, year group performances, or day to day on the playground or during choir.  Our school choirs perform regularly at school and community events. Most recently, at UEFA Women’sEURO 2022 cultural programme with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and Music for Youth Festival 2023.

Our music curriculum aims to give children the opportunity to listen to, and appraise a range of music from different genres, styles and historical periods. Children explore a range of musical elements including pitch, tempo, form, using their voices and playing musical instruments. Our chosen scheme is ‘Charanga’ and this gives children the opportunity to explore composition as well as music notation.

Where appropriate, musical links enrich and complement our wider curriculum. For example, when Year 6 studied Africa as part of the PKC, they learnt about African rhythms and traditional songs. When Year 1 studied My Local Area, they linked music to the sounds they could hear around them in the locality.

Children in Year 4 receive whole class instrumental sessions where they learn a dedicated instrument for a whole term by MK Music Hub (2023/24 Y4 violin.) Many of our children continue learning a musical instrument within our school.  Violin, flute, clarinet and guitar lessons are provided by MK Music Co-operative and there is an opportunity to enjoy music and support positive mental health through our dedicated ‘nurture class’ teacher Mikako.

 Children who play musical instruments have their achievements celebrated at school through celebration assemblies and a Summer Concert each year. 

On Monday we were fortunate to welcome in the dancers and choreographers from Kapow dance circus who performed a special dance entitled ‘Grow’ which depicted the importance of letting nature flourish.  The children were mesmerized by the skills and agility of the dancers.  Later, a lucky group of Y6  had the opportunity to take part in their own dance workshop and show off their own creative talents.

On Saturday 16th October, members of Y4-6 took part in the MK Cross Country Competition at the MK Bowl. We were really lucky with the weather and our athletes dug in deep to climb the steep hill at the bowl and complete the circuit. A huge well done to everyone who took part.

On Thursday 7th October, the Y6 netball team enjoyed a couple of friendly matches against Rickley Park. It was brilliant to see their determination to master the skills and defend so well against the competition. Rickley complemented us on our sportsmanship and invited us back for a match next half term! Big thank you to all the parents and staff who came along to cheer us on.

PSHE Intent
At Cold Harbour Primary School, personal, social and health education (PSHE) enables our children to become healthy, independent and responsible members of society. It aims to help them understand how they are developing personally and socially, and tackles many of the moral, social and cultural issues that are part of growing up. We provide our children with opportunities for them to learn about rights and responsibilities and appreciate what it means to be a member of a diverse society. Our children are encouraged to develop their sense of self-worth by playing a positive role in contributing to school life and the wider community.

The intent of our PSHE curriculum is to deliver a curriculum which is accessible to all and to maximise the outcomes for every child. As a result of this our children will grow in confidence, faith, personal awareness, ability and respect the differences between people. We deliver the PSHE curriculum by utilising first-hand experiences and sharing good practice, it is every staff member’s responsibility to do this by being a role model and having high expectations of Cold Harbour pupils. We are aware that the delivered curriculum must reflect the needs of our pupils for them to become well rounded, competent learners and citizens. We expect teachers to use our PSHE curriculum to equip pupils with a sound understanding of risk and with the knowledge and skills necessary to make safe and informed decisions.

We believe that PSHE plays a vital part of primary education and needs to be taught at least weekly. This enables staff to ensure full coverage of PSHE, RSE and SEAL (Social and Emotional Aspects of Learning) is taught in their year group. There are always occasions where teachers may feel it necessary to teach PSHE as a result of an issue that has arisen in their own class. PSHE is integral to the development of children’s values in order for them to become a positive citizen in a forever changing community. PSHE is an important part of school collective worships where children’s spiritual, moral, social and cultural curiosity is stimulated, challenged and nurtured.