Intent
Computing runs the world.
We can be certain that computing skills will be essential in the society of the future. However, we can also be certain that technology will not look the same. To ensure our students’ success, our curriculum therefore intends to emphasise the thought processes and application of skills inherent in computing that will enable them to thrive in this ever-changing world.
Children at RHS are already regular users of technology at home, both for educational and recreational purposes. Accordingly, our curriculum seeks to go beyond simple exposure to technology and promote ambitious, skill-focussed and relevant outcomes for pupils. To achieve this, the computer science aspect of the curriculum is emphasised within discrete computing sessions.
Throughout the RHS curriculum, technology plays a significant role – its purpose can be summarised in three key words:
Think. Create. Integrate.
- We seek to teach children how to think about problems in a computational manner because this is the skill that they will be able to apply to whatever computing looks like in the society of the future. We are a thinking school.
- We aim to provide opportunities for children to think creatively to solve problems in a variety of ways. Children have the opportunity to use technology as a creative outlet.
- Technology should be integrated within our learning and used cross-curricularly
Implementation
Computing at RHS is taught by class teachers in discrete computing lessons. Pupils are taught computer science and digital literacy in a manner which demonstrates clear progression between year-groups. Outcomes include constructing websites, coding video games, producing animations and creating virtual models suitable for 3D printing. Further computing skills are taught as part of cross-curricular outcomes each term. The school has recently adopted G-Suite for Education and will be using this platform as part of our pedagogical approach as well as a tool for pupils to create and share digital content. Our coding lessons use the Scratch block-coding platform developed by MIT which clearly promotes computational thinking and can be used as a scaffold for further coding languages. This is supplemented by an after-school coding club which engages with a variety of projects including the Raspberry Pi Mission Zero where pupils’ code is broadcast on the International Space Station. Teachers follow the Common Sense Education Digital Citizenship curriculum to provide pupils with a balanced and relevant approach to e-safety.
Impact
Pupils should leave Rutherford House with an understanding of the algorithmic thinking necessary for coding, the skills to creatively present their ideas on a number of data presentation platforms and as safe and responsible members of the digital community aware of their rights and responsibilities when using technology. Ultimately, by the end of Year 6 they should be confident using technology for a wide range of purposes, ready to engage with, and be successful in, secondary school learning.
E-Safety
To view a copy of our school E-safety policy, please look in the policy section of the website.
If you are worried about Online Safety or would just like to know more about how your child can use technology responsibly then have a look at these useful websites:
https://www.ceop.police.uk/safety-centre/
CEOP Safety Centre – internet safety – CEOP
http://www.yhgfl.net/eSafety/Parents
http://www.childnet-int.org/kia/parents/cd/
http://www.hectorsworld.com/island/index.html
Vodafone – digital parenting (highly recommend)
