"Sprowston Community Academy is an inclusive learning environment where high expectations and positive relationships underpin a dual focus on academic progress and personal development"

Students in all key stages follow a curriculum which is broad, balanced and designed to meet their needs. There is a clear rationale that the curriculum should allow our students to develop the knowledge, understanding and cultural capital to make sense of the world they live in. We believe that knowledge sticks to knowledge and that exposure to carefully sequenced information and key concepts will allow students to develop into inquisitive and analytical thinkers who can apply key concepts across a variety of contexts. We believe that this process of discovery and building blocks of knowledge can promote the love of learning and sense of awe and wonder that will make students lifelong learners.

Whilst there is a clear focus on academic outcomes, there is a strong moral imperative that our curriculum must create strong, independent citizens who can ask important questions and critically assess the information they receive. In this context, skills such as literacy and numeracy, evaluation and communication skills, hold value alongside knowledge. Promoting the personal development of our students is a key driver of our curriculum design which maintains a significant focus on the explicit provision of PSHE, Religious Studies, SMSC and extensive extra-curricular opportunities. Through our curriculum, students develop the knowledge and understanding that allow them to keep themselves safe and demonstrate the values that will make them strong citizens.

It is our belief, that the curriculum should be as broad as possible for as long as possible. We value our students as individuals with different skills and talents. We want them to experience a full range of subjects so that they can make informed decisions about areas of specialism as they progress through the school. Equal weight is placed on practical, creative and vocational pathways because we recognise the place these skills have in the modern world and the part they can play in inspiring and motivating learners be the best version of themselves.

We believe that our curriculum must prepare our students for life in modern Britain. The labour market is competitive and dynamic and there is a clear need for our curriculum offer to prepare students for the opportunities and challenges this will bring. Again, the formal taught curriculum dovetails with extra-curricular opportunities to provide opportunities for our students to make themselves stand out. In this context, we are clear that our curriculum and its delivery must counterbalance some of the barriers created by social disadvantage and allow all students to thrive.

In summary. Our curriculum intent is to:

• Provide a broad and balanced curriculum that allows all students to achieve success and a develop a lifelong love of learning
• Provide opportunities for students to acquire and apply knowledge so that they can make sense of the world they live in 
• Provide opportunities for students to acquire and develop the knowledge, skills, qualities and values that will allow them to be kind and strong citizens who actively promote values such as tolerance, fairness, equality and inclusion
• Provide students with the knowledge, skills, qualities and experiences that allow them to fully access the world of work and enjoy enriching and satisfying lives as a result
  

We constantly provide enhancement opportunities to engage learning and believe that childhood should be a happy, investigative and enquiring time in our lives where there are no limits to curiosity and there is a thirst for new experiences and knowledge. 

We use ‘Learning Habits’ to promote positive attitudes to learning which reflect the values and skills needed to promote responsibility for learning and future success.