Central to the Under School’s culture of teaching and learning is our commitment to supporting pupils to become life‑long, inquisitive learners. While pupils consistently achieve outstanding results, we are not in any way a hothouse – far from it. We aim to harness the sense of wonder and curiosity that children at a young age naturally possess, and help our pupils to develop an ability to question and to think for themselves.
Whilst our curriculum is based broadly on the National Curriculum, and in Reception, the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) Framework, we also move beyond it. Pupils are appropriately challenged and stimulated, as they prepare for the next stage in their academic lives.
In the Lower School (Reception to Year 4), English, Maths, Science, History, and Geography are all taught by the pupil’s form teacher, enabling them to familiarise themselves with their classroom setting, and facilitating cross-curricular links. Subjects such as Art (from year 3), Drama, Music, French, Computing, Theology, Philosophy, and Religion (TPR), and Sport are taught by subject specialists. As pupils progress through to the Upper School (Years 5 to 8), the vast range of subjects are taught by subject specialists, including Latin and Greek.
In addition to the high quality of our academic programme, teaching staff maintain an interest in current educational research to ensure that learning is relevant and suitably adapted to the needs of our pupils. All classrooms are equipped with interactive smartboards and visualisers, and Year 6 to Year 8 pupils have access to 1:1 iPads – such tools are used by classes only where teachers feel that they are adding value to pupils’ learning. We are also fortunate to have a well-stocked and much-loved School Library. Heads of Department work alongside the Librarian to ensure that such resourcing is kept up-to-date and relevant to their respective subject areas for our pupils to access.
