Curriculum

Think. Know. Explain. Do.

Our thinking skills curriculum has been embedded at Somers Park for over twenty years, with a focus on developing articulate, critical thinkers who love learning and know how to do it! The Think. Know. Explain. Do. curriculum model puts our well embedded curriculum within a structure to support its implementation and further development.

Think.

Teaching our children how to be critical thinkers, to challenge, generate ideas, organise, evaluate and wonder is an important part of developing independence, resilience and creativity for them as learners.

How do we achieve this?

Highly skilled and knowledgeable teachers plan inspirational lessons and use carefully thought out and differentiated questioning to promote thinking. A considered lesson structure promotes high quality structured discussion and debate through the emphasis put on oracy throughout the curriculum. As children progress through the school, they are increasingly encouraged to consider how to investigate new areas of learning to promote independence and critical thinking.

Know.

The foundations of a child’s education and personal development come through providing them with a broad and balanced knowledge base upon which to build further understanding, form opinions and gain a thirst for future learning.

How do we achieve this?

Our learners engage in a broad, progressive and sequential curriculum, planned to ensure that children learn and most importantly, remember what they are taught. Teachers plan for experiences which engage and empower the children, maintain very high expectations and ensure that reading is at the heart of the learning process. Both subtly and explicitly, links are made between subjects across the curriculum to embed skills and understanding.

Explain.

The ability of a young person to communicate their thinking, ideas and knowledge opens the doors to learning and also provides a tool for them to demonstrate what they think, have learnt or understood. The process of learning can be significantly enhanced through hearing what others have to say, before synthesizing into one’s own understanding. Giving children the tools to explain is a fundamental part of our curriculum.

How do we achieve this?

Learning how to write, present, discuss and debate are carefully built into learning sequences. From Early Years, our children are encouraged to enjoy communicating in writing. Moving through the school, high expectations of the content and presentation of work are maintained and opportunities for writing for a variety of purposes, in a variety of subjects are built into the curriculum.

Prioritising teaching children the skills of oracy by providing very regular and structured opportunities, children develop the physical, linguistic, cognitive and social and emotional skills necessary to communicate verbally in a range of situations.

Do.

Practical activities put learning into context, enabling children to weave together their experiences to improve their understanding and to help them remember. As well as being an important part of our academic curriculum, ‘doing’ also plays a significant role in promoting the personal development of our pupils.

How do we achieve this?

Through enrichment and a practical approach to learning, the curriculum of our school engages the pupils. This may be through research and investigation in topic or science work; learning through practical or independent activities, such as re-enactment of a Celtic battle, or leadership of an enterprise project; or partaking in competitive situations through sports or debating for example. To complement this our carefully considered educational visit programme, supports the curriculum, develops aspiration and provides enjoyment for our learners.

Curriculum Information

The curriculum at Somers Park Primary School is designed to prepare children to be successful and positive citizens as they move onto the next phase of their education and beyond.

We have wrapped our curriculum up in a simple structure- the Think. Know. Explain. Do. model which summarises the priorities of our curriculum, enabling the children to talk about their learning with confidence.

In our Early Years classes, we follow the Statutory Framework for the Early Years (DFE) and use the supporting materials from Development Matters in the EYFS (Early Education). Pupils learning in EYFS prepares them for future learning at our school.

We prioritise early reading as we know how fundamental this is to all other other learning. We use the Read Write Inc. approach to Systematic Synthetic Phonics.

In Key Stages 1 and 2, our curriculum aligns with the National Curriculum to ensure that our children have the knowledge and skills they require to move onto the next stage in their education, enriched by the Somers Park Think. Know. Explain. Do. curriculum. For a more detailed breakdown of our coverage across the school, our curriculum summary documents for each year group are available as attachments to this page.

At Somers Park Primary School all class teachers are responsible for providing a curriculum that is suitable for all pupils in the class, including those with Special Educational Needs or Disabilities (SEND) with support from the SENCo. We have high expectations for all pupils and are committed to ensuring our curriculum complies with the Equality Act 2010 and the Special Educational Needs and Disability Regulations 2014. Our SEN statement emphasises the importance of providing an inclusive learning environment for all pupils including those with SEND. Additional information on this can be found here.

Equalities Policy

If you require more information about your child's learning, please contact your child's class teacher, or for general enquiries about our curriculum arrange an appointment with our Assistant Head (Teaching and Learning), Mrs M. Everett, through the school office.

Curriculum Summary Documents - process of updating by end of Oct 2025

Further Information

Phonics and Early Reading

Relationships Education