Here at Ben Jonson Primary School, we believe that education has the power to transform lives and that all children deserve the chance to fulfil their potential. We aim to provide opportunities for children to develop as independent, motivated and confident lifelong learners with high aspirations. We have designed our rich and balanced curriculum with this aim in mind, around what we call the ‘Ben Jonson Way’ - cultivating children who are brave, kind and curious. The curriculum is driven by these values. We provide a safe and stimulating environment which enables every child to achieve their best through varied learning experiences. This is our school’s vision and we believe that positive partnerships among children, staff, parents and carers will help us to achieve educational excellence.
Brave ~ To develop courageous and critical thinkers with a life-long love of learning
We teach our children to be:
- Resilient and able to persevere with something that challenges them
- Determined to be successful and excited to try something new
- Confident to have their own opinions, thinking deeply and learning to question
- Articulate when expressing their views, able to stand up for what they believe in and what they know to be right
- Confident learners that see the benefits of taking risks and learning from mistakes.
Kind ~ to develop considerate children with a relational approach to interacting with others that embodies respect, inclusivity, honesty, compassion and cooperation.
We teach our children to be:
- Respectful of each other and the adults they work with because relationships matter
- Understanding of those that may be different to them
- Positive about learning and socialising together, sharing ideas and encouraging each other to succeed
- Considerate, thinking about the needs of others
- Truthful and valuing integrity.
Curious ~ to develop inquisitive and confident children keen to participate in the world around them
We teach our children to be:
- Active learners, eager and interested in the world around them
- Keen to learn and understand how things (and people) work
- Engage positively with experiences including what our curriculum has to offer, after-school clubs, special events, educational visits and residential trips
- Able to ask thoughtful questions to find out more or clarify when they are unsure.
Ben Jonson Primary School is a proudly inclusive school serving a diverse community in the centre of London. Whilst our curriculum firmly follows the National Curriculum, it extends far beyond this to include aspects of learning that reflects the makeup of our school. Our curriculum helps children prepare for secondary school and later life through developing the key skills, knowledge and understanding they will need to succeed. This not only includes a very strong emphasis on reading, writing and developing our children’s mathematical knowledge, but science, humanities, the arts and physical and mental wellbeing are also valued and prioritised in the overall curriculum design. This integrated and thematic approach is strengthened by the expertise and guidance of our specialist teachers in music, art, DT, dance and computing, incorporating inspiring learning experiences.
Therefore, the overall intent of the curriculum is to provide a rich cultural understanding of the world we live in; support learners in better inferring meaning from their learning; widen their vocabulary to help them express themselves in a sophisticated and mature manner and make links between concepts learnt and establishing schemas in order to learn more, remember more, know more.
Our curriculum allows children to build on their learning, progressively acquiring the knowledge and skills needed for the next stage in their education whether it be the next key stage or next year group.
We believe that real learning happens when it is committed to long term memory. To enable this, we have developed our curriculum such that it provides a balance between semantic learning where children are encouraged to make links and understand concepts, as well as procedural practice where skills taught are rehearsed and embedded over the course of time ensuring that children are secure in their learning. We also value exciting educational visits and experiences as we feel this not only supports memory by enlivening the learning but can also provide the background knowledge and experiences of the world that our children need to succeed. Our children are challenged not only to develop their understanding but to master and articulate it in different ways and using different media forms.
If you have any curriculum related queries please email admin@benjonson.towerhamlets.sch.uk or contact the school and ask to speak to the curriculum lead
