Parent’s Guide to the National Curriculum in the Primary School.

At I.C.S. your child will study a wide range of subjects during their time at primary school. As a British school, we teach the U.K. National Curriculum. Knowing about the National Curriculum at Key Stages 1 and 2, and the subjects that are taught, can help you to support your child's learning. At I.C.S we aim to make the curriculum as interesting and meaningful for your child as possible.

The National Curriculum key stages.
The National Curriculum is organised into blocks of years called 'key stages'. The ‘Foundation Stage’ covers education for children before they reach the age of five.

Here at I.C.S. your children learn the following subjects in Key Stage 1 and 2:

• English, Maths, Science, Information and Communication Technology (ICT)
• Design and Technology, History, Geography, Art and Design
• Music, Physical Education, French (in Key Stage 2)

Your child’s class may cover these subjects under different names, and may teach more than one subject together under the same name. This is left to individual teachers. At I.C.S. we offer a broad, balanced and well rounded curriculum.

How well is your child doing?
Children develop at different rates, but National Curriculum levels can give you an idea of how your child’s progress compared to what is typical for their age.
At Key Stages 1 & 2, the National Curriculum is accompanied by a series of five levels. These are used to measure your child's progress compared to pupils of the same age in other British curriculum schools. For example, by the end of Key Stage 1, most children will have reached level 2, and by the end of Key Stage 2, most will be at level 4.At the end of Key Stage 1 the teacher’s assessment of your child’s progress will take account of their performance in several tasks and tests in English and maths.

At the end of Key Stages 2 your child will take national tests in English, maths and science. These tests won’t give you a complete picture of how your child is doing at school – they provide a “snapshot”, showing how they performed in selected parts of a subject on a particular day.

Your child’s teacher will carry out regular checks on their progress in each subject as a normal part of their teaching. At the end of each term they will carry out a formal “teacher assessment”, indicating which National Curriculum level best describes your child’s performance in each area of learning. This helps the teacher plan for the next year. At the end of the summer term your child will receive a report telling you what levels your child has reached in any formal assessments.

If you have any questions or queries about the curriculum or your child’s progress please don’t hesitate to make an appointment with your child’s class teacher.