Curriculum Consultancy and Training

Taking place at your school or another setting of your choice, our experienced consultants can provide a bespoke professional development (CPD) day focused on the curriculum, Below, you will find a list of our most enquired about and booked CPD days based on the curriculum in primary schools. To view other areas our consultants have run CPD days on or to learn more about our general INSET/ consultancy options, please click here.

Creating a Bespoke Curriculum

The new framework from Ofsted expects that most schools will already have in place a bespoke curriculum that:

  • focuses on the National Curriculum
  • maximises opportunities to enhance pupils’ oracy and literacy skills
  • takes account of your school’s context and locality

Focus Education offers a consultancy that helps senior leaders to review their curriculum to ensure it is bespoke to their school and includes:

  • key substantive knowledge identified and progressively developed
  • disciplinary knowledge given priority and progressively developed
  • a focus on children knowing more and remembering more
  • high focus on subject-specific vocabulary
  • support of children’s oral presentation of their knowledge
  • attention to cultural, historical and geographical features

The day will begin by considering the positive features your children bring with them when they start school and particular barriers to their learning. These may include:

  • limited life experiences
  • limited speech and language development
  • poor social skills
  • a lack of readiness to learn

From here, we will consider, ‘So what needs to be done?’

The aim is to ensure that your curriculum is based on what you know your children need and then addresses the National Curriculum requirements.

Ensure your curriculum is fit for purpose

Our consultant can help you identify what a good curriculum looks like, including the use of adaptive teaching methods to meet the needs of vulnerable pupils, including those with SEND.

This training considers:

  • how to deliver greater challenge for pupils of all ages and all abilities through the broader curriculum
  • using literature as a central feature of your curriculum and ensuring greater coherence in cross-curricular learning
  • embedding continuity and progression through knowledge, understanding and skills
  • the assessment of non-core subjects
  • exemplars from a range of schools that have had success in delivering mastery and depth across the broader curriculum
  • planning on a mid- and short-term basis
  • practical examples of how to bring the curriculum to life
  • engagement of pupils in a curriculum that is meaningful, interesting and exciting

The consultancy supports anyone wanting to check that their school’s curriculum is still appropriate, broad and balanced. It will focus on curriculum cohesion with an emphasis on learning.

Ensuring Mastery and Depth Across the Whole Curriculum

This one-day consultancy is for senior and middle leaders of primary, infant and junior schools and academies.

The training will address:

  • how to deliver greater challenge for pupils of all ages and all abilities through the broader curriculum
  • using literature as a central feature of the curriculum and ensuring greater coherence in cross-curricular learning
  • embedding continuity and progression through knowledge, understanding and skills
  • exemplars from a range of schools that have had success in delivering mastery and depth across the whole curriculum
  • planning on a mid- and short-term basis
  • practical examples of how to bring the curriculum to life
  • engagement of pupils in a curriculum that is meaningful, interesting and exciting

 Embedding the Principles of Metacognition

The major theme running throughout this inset day is ‘making the theory work in practice'. We know the research undertaken by the EEF suggests that the most cost-effective way to raise standards is through implementing the principles of metacognition, but how to put this into practice is less well known than the theory. The day will attempt to link the theory and the practice and provide practical ideas to help support a school’s metacognition programme. It will look at the issues from early years to Year 6.

This training aims to delve deeply into the teaching and learning culture at the school and academy level. It will help you take a realistic look at what makes teaching and learning great. It will focus very much on excellence and how to achieve it.

A Different Way to Think About Your Curriculum...

We can work with you to construct a curriculum that is:

  • Exciting
  • Engaging
  • Relevant
  • Challenging
  • Fit for purpose

Our ‘Learning Challenge Curriculum’ is an approach to planning which puts children at the heart of learning. It is a way of working, underpinned by a clear pedagogy, which ties together a quality curriculum with quality learning, leading to strong outcomes.

 

How to book

Contact our Consultancy department by email or fill in the form here. If you would like more information, look at our consultancy page, which will explain what we can offer.