Our Christian Vision
St. Luke’s CE Primary school provides a journey to discover ‘life in all its fullness’. John 10:10. Where children flourish, are happy and succeed. Our distinct Christian values: friendship, love, trust, patience, forgiveness and respect are woven throughout the day, the learning, the gathering, the school.
Our theologically rooted Christian vision meets the specific needs of our school community we aim to remove barriers so that everyone can flourish and live life in its fullest. By the time our pupils leave Year 6 we hope to have removed barriers and enabled our them to grow in faith and recognise the wider world as they continue their journey
At St. Luke’s the children are at the heart of every decision we make to ensure that they are happy, confident and that the opportunities that are provided for them are relevant to their needs both now and in the future. We achieve this by providing an inspirational and creative curriculum, rich in opportunity and full of challenge.
Rationale
At St Luke’s we are Technicians! We believe that Computing is a fundamental part of the curriculum to equip students with essential digital skills, fostering problem-solving abilities, and preparing them for a technology-driven future. As technology becomes integral to daily life, early exposure to computing helps children develop digital literacy, which is foundational for academic success and future careers. Basic computing skills, such as using devices, understanding software, and navigating online resources, empower students to engage confidently with technology.
Computing also encourages logical thinking and creativity. Through coding, children learn to break down complex problems, enhancing their analytical and critical thinking abilities. Additionally, digital projects enable creative expression, such as designing games or digital art, fostering innovation.
Furthermore, introducing computing in primary school supports cross-curricular learning, with technology being used to enrich subjects like English, Maths, Music, and art. It offers interactive learning experiences tailored to diverse learning styles, increasing engagement and retention.
Intent
The Computing Curriculum at St. Luke’s is created to provide all students, including disadvantaged children and children with SEND, the knowledge and skills they need to succeed in a technologically advanced and ever-changing world. This is why it is crucial to start teaching computer skills at an early age. In EYFS basic Computing skills are taught and children are made aware of the technology around us and how to stay safe when using technology.
By using Purple Mash and following the National Curriculum we teach the core areas: Computing Science, Information technology, Digital literacy, and Online safety. Throughout a child’s education at St Luke’s, these strands are frequently covered through a variety of themes to make sure that the learning is retained and that the skills are properly developed.
Our goal is for Computing to promote children’s creativity and cross-curricular learning to engage children and enhance their educational experiences. It is important to lay a strong foundation for students’ digital literacy, preparing them for a technology-driven future. The primary goal is to equip children with essential skills in using computers, software, and online resources, ensuring they can engage confidently with technology.
Computing also aims to develop students’ problem-solving and critical thinking abilities. Through activities like coding and computational thinking, students learn how to break down problems into manageable tasks, fostering logical reasoning and creativity. These skills are transferable, helping students excel in other subjects and life situations.
Furthermore, computing promotes creativity by encouraging students to create their own digital projects, such as games, animations, or digital art. This not only nurtures innovation but also allows children to express themselves in new, interactive ways.
In addition, computing supports cross-curricular learning, enhancing subjects like math, science, and art through interactive tools, simulations, and resources. This integration makes learning more engaging and helps deepen students’ understanding of various concepts.
Another key intent is preparing students for the future workforce, where digital skills are indispensable. By exposing students to computing early, we are helping them develop the foundational knowledge required for future careers, particularly in STEM fields.
Lastly, computing educates students about digital responsibility, teaching them about online safety, ethical behaviour, and respectful use of technology, ensuring they are responsible digital citizens.
Implement
Purple Mash (and Mini Mash for EYFS), an award-winning cross-curricular website for primary school students, is used to provide our Computing Curriculum and allows students to explore and advance their knowledge in a creative and imaginative manner. Teachers assign children a “to do” each week that relate to the unit taught each half term. This enables children to progress and build on from their prior experiences, using their knowledge, vocabulary, and abilities to become responsible, active users of the internet. This ensures that skills and information are built upon and sequenced correctly year after year to optimise learning for all students. E-safety lessons are completed every half-term and build on existing knowledge while also covering any current topics that may be significant. Children participate in the annual “Internet safety day” as well.
Skills for Computing in the Early Years are mainly taught through the following areas of learning:
- Personal, Social and Emotional Development – rules, resilience, health and wellbeing (screen time)
- Understanding the World – how things work, keyboards in role play areas, cameras, iPad work, bee-bots.
- Expressive Arts and Design – to draw/paint a picture using a painting program.
Key Stage 1 and 2 – Within digital literacy, children gain practical skills in the safe use of ICT as well as an ability to use these skills in addition to addressing relevant, worthwhile issues, such as recognising the safe use of the internet, networks, and email. We teach children the essential ideas and concepts of Computer Science, such as logic, algorithms, and data representation. We also teach a progression of Computing vocabulary to support children in their understanding. We provide pupils with access to a wide range of high-quality resources and cross-curricular opportunities to apply their Computing knowledge and abilities.
Children are taught how systems work, the principles of programming, exploring and writing algorithms. They are taught to use analytical and problem-solving skills to create and debug programmes.
We teach the National Curriculum, supported by clear skills and knowledge progression, using Purple Mash to support this. This ensures that skills and knowledge are built on year by year and are sequenced appropriately to maximise learning for all children.
Impact
We encourage students to think about, discuss, and appreciate how computers affect their lives, learning, growth, well-being, and future prospects. In computing, we look for evidence of the pupils’ knowledge by evaluating their work and digital skills, through Purple Mash, observing the learning and teaching and through pupil voice.
The pupils are evaluated to see if they are below, expecting, or exceeding the objectives set after each unit. Children’s work is saved on Purple Mash and may be forwarded to their class teacher or posted on the school display board. The subject leader or class teacher can then evaluate the students’ work from this location.
For Computing at St Luke’s, we use Purple Mash/Mini Mash to deliver our Computing Curriculum.
Click the link below to view our Computing school blog page to see some examples of how our pupils flourish in Computing at St. Luke’s:
https://stlukesceprimary.blog-pages.co.uk/subject/computing/