St Margaret'sC of E Primary School

Curriculum  »  PSHE

"My mission in life is not merely to survive, but to thrive;and to do so with some passion, compassion, humour and style."
 Maya Angelou

PSHE Vision

At St Margaret’s we believe that PSHE equips children with skills and knowledge to keep themselves and others safe in an ever-changing world. Through our quality PSHE curriculum alongside wider curricular opportunities for personal development, pupils develop the knowledge, skills and attributes they need to live happy and healthy lives; now and in the future. PSHE prepares pupils for life and work in modern Britain and the wider world to make safe choices for themselves and others. Pupils who are confident, happy and healthy are more likely to achieve their academic potential and leave school ready to be respectful citizens as they grow into adolescence and adulthood.

 

At St Margaret’s C of E Primary School, PSHE is at the heart of school life and nurtures our children to grow into caring, responsible members of our our school and wider community as well as confident, independent and healthy individuals.
Through our whole school approach to PSHE, we believe that it is our emphasis on personal development which will enable our children to flourish and achieve excellence across all areas of the curriculum and in all aspects of their lives; developing intellectually, socially, spiritually and morally.
Lessons are delivered on a weekly basis following a spiral curriculum and progressive scheme of work; 'Kapow' which teaches age appropriate content with a strong emphasis on emotional literacy, building resilience and promoting positive mentally and physically healthy lifestyles. Protected characteristics are intergrated through the PSHE curriculum and taught in an age-appropriate way. Global awareness is taught through additional resources such as Newsround and Picture News which promote British Values and protected characteristics in meaningful contexts linked to current affairs in a child-friendly way. Strong cross-curricular links enable children to apply their learning widely at an age appropriate level. We celebrate diversity and broaden children's understanding of the world around them, equipping them with the knowledge, skills and understanding to make a positive contribution to society. Our PSHE lessons open doors to discussion and offer a safe space for children to talk and reflect with their peers. This is enhanced by our twelve core Christian values and weekly ethos statements which underpin our collective worship at St Margaret's. Our PROUD reward system recognises these values and our school rules;
Ready, respectful, safe in our daily practice. Our whole school approach to PSHE is a key driver in our school vision:
F flourish
A achieve
B believe
“Those who are wise will shine like the brightness of the heavens, and those who lead many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever.” Daniel 12:3

Whole School threads within PSHE:
  • My Healthy Self
  • Connecting with others
  • The Online World
  • Citizenship
  • Staying Safe
  • Growing up
  • Sex Education (Y6 Only)
  • Health Protection 
  • First aid

Key Knowledge from RSE and PSHE that children should leave St Margaret's school remembering:

 

Substantive Knowledge:

  • How families and friendships function and what respectful relationships entail.
  • The physical and emotional changes that occur during puberty.
  • Strategies for maintaining good mental and physical health, including sleep, diet, exercise and managing emotions.
  • Safety knowledge, including first aid, online safety and the risks associated with substances.
  • The rights of children and the responsibilities of citizens.

Personal Knowledge:

  • A growing awareness of themselves, their feelings, values and identities.
  • To recognise and name emotions, understand and respect personal boundaries and reflect on how experiences and relationships shape who they are.

 

Disciplinary Knowledge:

  • Understand where guidance about health, wellbeing, relationships and safety comes from and how to judge its reliability.
  •  To question information, recognise evidence-based advice and distinguish fact from opinion. This is developed primarily through the critical thinking strand, which supports pupils to make informed and responsible decisions.

 

 

Inclusion and diversity

Kapow Primary’s RSE & PSHE scheme has been designed to reflect the diversity of modern society, ensuring all pupils feel respected and represented. Lessons include scenarios featuring a wide range of characters and perspectives, allowing pupils to encounter different cultures, family structures, household situations, neurotypes and economic backgrounds.

This approach helps pupils recognise that everyone’s circumstances are different and encourages them to treat others with understanding and respect.

Across the scheme, care has been taken to avoid stereotypes and ensure that resources portray people and communities in a respectful and accurate manner. When distancing techniques are used, pupils follow a consistent set of diverse characters who grow older alongside them, helping pupils develop familiarity and empathy as they explore situations together.

 

Adaptive Teaching Strategies:

PSHE lessons include a wide range of teaching strategies to engage children in a variety ways. Activities allow children to access learning and contributes their thoughts and opinions regardless of abilities or educational needs. This may inlcude drama, art, group discussion or quizzes, stories, film clips or puppets. Teachers work with closely with parents when lesson topics may be sensitive to individual children are if children raise questions which cannot be answered in class by their teacher. Our Inclusion team may work with individuals or groups of children to deliver interventions on aspects of personal development outside of PSHE lessons, such as bereavement, anger management or anxiety. Where it is deemed appropriate, children may be taught outside of the classroom with additional support such as in our BASE provision in order to ensure learning is accessible and age appropriate.
Key learning in PSHE is also delivered through whole school assemblies and enhanced through school trips and visitors in order to revisit and make learning memorable.

 
Vocabulary Progression
PSHE Whole school overview
PSHE Around School

We have a whole school approach to embedding our Proud Values and FAB vision at St Margaret's. Every class has a learning line which is used in all lessons across the curriculum as well as to promote growth mindset and skills for personal development. Using emotional registers and 'Zones of Regulation', children are taught the language to be able to share their feelings and discuss ways to manage their emotions. Theme days are planned throughout the year to raise awareness of neurodiversity such as Autism, ADHD and Dyslexia awareness weeks. Black History month inspires work through texts from different cultures and we celebrate diversity in lots of ways throughout the year through focused work throughout school. We have a partnership with a school in Mattuga, Uganda and we look forward to ambassadors visiting to tell us about the progress being made from our sponsorship and to hear about the children's experiences at school compared to our own. Our strong Inclusion team offer additional nurture support for many of our children to ensure everyone in school succeeds and feels safe and valued. Teachers plan for outside agencies to visit school and teach us about safety such as the emergency services and Cycle training. School trips are a valuable part of our curriculum and enhance children's learning beyond the classroom. We have strong links with the church and our school is central within our community. Much of our work with local businesses, charities and other members of our Horsforth community promotes personal development to help children grow into responsible and caring citizens. Some examples of this is captured in these photos of our displays around school as well as in our class year group sections of this webpage.

PSHE Around School
Teaching SMSC, British Values, Personal development and Protected Characteristics through PSHE

Through our PSHE curriculum, children at St Margaret's will be encouraged to grow into respectful and resilient young people who are able to lead happy, successful lives.

Mindmate Whole School Curriculum

We teach Mindmate sessions alongside our Kapow scheme of work. Mindmate lessons are focused on mental health and wellbeing.

Key Documents

At the start of our PSHE lessons, we ensure that we take the time to create an environment of mutual respect. May of the topics we discuss may be sensitive issues for children in the class and we always ensure children understand individuals' have right to have their own opinions and beliefs which may differ to others.

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