Rationale

Vision

At Locking we believe that computing is a vital part of the curriculum. The curriculum allows opportunities for pupils to build their knowledge and skills sequentially to empower them to think critically. Computing is an important part of many pupils’ everyday lives. They need the skills, knowledge and confidence to safely succeed in a continuously growing connected world.

The computing curriculum at Locking will:

• be based around the national requirements and provide a sequential structure. Topics will be carefully planned, with skills being built on unit after unit and year after year
• impart knowledge and to teach disciplines with long-term value, rather than solely skills with short-term usefulness
• allow children to learn about information and communication technology as well as computer science
• teach computer science as a STEM discipline, making links with engineering, mathematics, science, and technology inspire children so that they aspire to further their knowledge and have high expectations of themselves so that they can become creators of technology as well as efficient users.

Computing teaching at Locking will:

• Be taught as 6 units per year spread over 6 terms.
• Be taught sequentially to build in prior knowledge and skills..
• Ensure pupils will get opportunities to use technology in a variety of ways and for a variety of purposes.
• ensure children understand the language used when talking about computer science so that they can access subject specific learning and engage in conversations.
• Provide opportunities for practical and creative learning.

Assessment of computing at Locking will:

• be formative, informing planning and how to best deliver further teaching
• focus on ensuring the learning of the National Curriculum statements through children’s responses to retrieval tasks and in books
• draw on planning and knowledge organisers to understand the progress that has been made by children
• provide quality responses (verbally and written, if required) to children, ensuring all knowledge is firmly embedded
• identify children who require additional support and those who excel in the knowledge, skills and understanding required of an expert (through identifying these children it is assumed that all others – the vast majority – have achieved the objectives at the level expected of their year group)

Curriculum Rationale: Computing

The choices we have made within our computing curriculum will allow children to gain the knowledge and skills to become confident and computer literate pupils both at Locking School, at home and in their life beyond Locking.

The sequencing of the curriculum has been specifically designed to build upon previous knowledge. Links between subjects and across year groups have been made explicit and will be referred to with the children.

Programme

We follow the National Curriculum and have adopted the Teach Computing Scheme of Learning as it is planned by computing experts using the latest pedagogical research to inform their planning and lesson structure.

Children in KS1 & KS2 encounter 5 subjects areas each year:

• computer networks and systems to help children to understand the principles underlying how data is transported on the Internet.
• creating media to enable children to become creators of technology rather than solely efficient users and appreciate this as a career. They will experience a range of software including audio and visual.
• data and information so that children begin to understand how computers represent data and how this is used around them
• programming so that children understand that computational thinking and algorithms are built  behind an interface and so children can develop their own logical computational thinking skills. 

Timetabling: each unit lasts 6 weeks at the most (regardless of the length of the term); Lessons may be blocked with one longer session in a week or with several shorter sessions across a week, as needed.

Online Safety

Keeping our pupils safe online is at the forefront of our minds at Locking Primary School.  Therefore, we use the SWGFL ProjectEvolve to guide us in our teaching of this vital subjects. We ensure we teach the Education for a Connected World framework both via discrete lessons and during computing and PSHE lessons. Teachers may also use other resources to guide them such as Jigsaw and UK Safer internet centre.  All staff have a responsibility to create an environment where pupils are given the opportunity, and feel safe, to communicate issues they may have when using online tools.