Computing Curriculum at Mengham Junior School
At Mengham Junior School, we provide a broad and rich computing curriculum that allows our children to be successful learners in all aspects of computing (computer science, information technology and digital literacy) and to give all our children the opportunity to use technology creatively and equip them with the skill of computational thinking to problem solve in the wider world. We believe, that our curriculum provides collaborative learning opportunities, engagement in rich content and gives children the opportunity to develop conceptual understanding and navigate safely in a digital world. We aim to give our children the confidence to leave us with having used wide range of technology, software and applications that they can build on in the next stage of their journey.
Our computing curriculum, has been developed and adapted through resources from Mr P ICT, Hampshire planning and Project Evolve, to meet all aspects of the National Curriculum. As a school, we believe in delivering lessons, with relatable and purposeful outcomes, which allow all children to become successful learners. Computing is taught half-termly with a discrete lesson each week, using a variety of different hardware (laptops, iPads, VR headsets, Crumble, Micro: Bit). Each unit begins with an online safety topic from Project Evolve, to provide children with the fundamental knowledge of digital literacy to work safely online and be responsible members of the community. Children learn how to present a positive online image and reputation, what to look out for when evaluating online information, when to be concerned and who they can report concerns to as well as how to be respectful online. This is embedded further during Safer Internet Day. Mr P ICT units, follow the cycle of learning: designing, applying, refining, evaluating and sharing. The children are given the freedom to explore the software or application (e.g. Doink Greenscreen, Keynote, Scratch, iMovie) before applying their learning and understanding to produce a desired outcome. Throughout these units, children are provided with information technology opportunities through video creation, animation, data handling, AI and AR and VR. Their expertise in these are then used to enhance other curriculum subjects, in areas such as research, publishing and home learning. Throughout their key stage 2 journey, the children are provided with a breadth of computer science opportunities as well as developing computer network knowledge. The complexity of their programming increases throughout the years and includes cross-curricular projects with DT in years 3 and 5. A key part of our curriculum, is that children are encouraged to use their computational thinking when refining and evaluating their projects to solve problems effectively with or without a computer. We encourage learning to be shared on Google Classroom so they can access and see their progression across key stage 2.
Our children should leave us knowing that technology is everywhere and be able to identify, understand and use the technology they encounter and continue their learning using the skills and knowledge gained. They will have experienced a wide variety of opportunities and be prepared for future developments in computing. The computational thinking challenges presented to our children throughout their time at Mengham Junior School will develop their perseverance and ability to explore possible solutions. In our increasingly online community, our children’s understanding of how to safeguard their virtual wellbeing and respect others, is paramount to becoming responsible online citizens.
Curriculum Map Computing 2023-2024
Skills Progression in Computing