Computing
Intent
At Southwark Park Primary School, we recognise how important a well-rounded Computing education is to the lives of our children. We expect our children to be able to access ever-changing technology efficiently, safely, responsibly and respectfully. Teaching children to engage in the digital world whilst knowing how to keep themselves safe is the number one priority in our Computing teaching. To ensure our Computing curriculum is broad, exciting and relevant to the modern world, we have identified the strong links computing has to mathematics, science, design technology, art and other areas of learning. We encourage the use of technology throughout the curriculum to create independent digitally literate learners who are able to solve problems, develop their ideas, and express themselves in a variety of ways.
Implementation
Each class at Southwark Park Primary School is taught a combination of discrete computing lessons and computing skills integrated within other subjects. We combine units from Rising Stars’ ‘Switched On Computing’ with a bespoke, self-designed program of study, which was created in collaboration with an external consultant and tailors the national curriculum to the needs of our children.
Online safety forms a large part of our computing curriculum, and features in our lessons whenever it is relevant. Children learn the impact of their own actions on and offline, as well as how to keep themselves protected from the actions of others. There is a strong focus on developing awareness and responsibility in our learners, and these themes are prevalent through the three strands of the computing curriculum: Computer Science, Information Technology and Digital Literacy.
Impact
Pupils start learning about computing in Nursery, and continuously build on their skills up to Year 6. They leave Southwark Park School computer literate and confident, able to use a range of technology innovatively and responsibly. They are prepared to apply their learned skills - such as presenting their work from across the whole curriculum in a variety of ways and applying their coding skills to create and debug a range of increasingly complex programs – to their Secondary School education. Throughout the school, children are aware that they have to take responsibility for themselves online as well as offline, and know how to behave responsibly and respectfully in the digital world as well as the real world. This provides them with the skills they need to keep themselves safe when using technology and to help them feel secure and adventurous about their new learning.
