Brightwell cum Sotwell CofE Primary School

Curriculum Statement

The word ‘curriculum’ is derived from the Latin word ‘currere’ which means ‘to run’ and has links to the idea of completing a course in order to reach a certain goal or destination. Our curriculum is therefore the carefully planned out course or path we want all of our children to take on their journey towards achieving their goals with us here at Brightwell.

Curriculum Intent

Our ambitious curriculum has been designed to take account of the legal requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage Curriculum and the Primary National Curriculum and exposes our children to enriching experiences, immersing them in progressive knowledge and skills. It is broad and balanced and driven by a deep commitment to stimulate children’s natural curiosity and encourage each and every child in our care to develop a passion and a lifelong love for learning. We want our children to not only be inspired by what they are taught, but also to be able to inspire others with what they can do.

How our curriculum is implemented

We have a topic-based curriculum, with each class studying six topics a year. You can see our whole school topic map here. These topics are carefully planned so that the journey a pupil follows throughout their time at Brightwell School is well-considered, balanced and coherent. For further information about each subject, please see the subject-specific pages. 

A few of our favourite enrichment activities have been:

• BMX bike experience
• Cookery workshop
• Team GB paralympic athlete visit
• Visits to Sotwell Hill House residential care home
• Author visits to school and writing workshops
• Healthy Body, Healthy Mind Week
• Visit to Wallingford Museum and Castle
• Residential
• Bushcraft day
• Planetarium
• STEM Week