PSHE & RSE
PSHE & RSE in our Curriculum
Our vision
At St Agnes’, we recognise that personal, social, health and economic (PSHE) education is a vital and necessary part of the curriculum. It provides children with the foundations for success in life-long learning. We are committed to equipping pupils with skills and knowledge but also learning behaviours and personal attributes. Our pupils are able to confidently articulate how to keep safe, healthy and how to be a good citizen.
Mental health and wellbeing are key elements of our curriculum and of everyday school life. Our pupils can identify, express and regulate their emotions. They have the tools to support themselves with emotional regulation and they know what to do if they are upset or feel unsafe. They can recognise key adults in and outside of school who can support them. LORIC behaviours are promoted within school to develop each child’s growth mind-set as they grapple with learning.
Our children know the role they play in society and within school. They are supported to become well rounded, good citizens who care about the world and people in it. They voice their opinions and are confident to ask questions about society. We aim to teach children the skills to understand, respect and show compassion for the diverse beliefs and values within our communities.
At St Agnes’, we have tailored Life to the Full as our PSHE and RSE (Relationships and Sex Education) curriculum to meet the needs of our pupils. RSE is taught at age appropriate levels within each year group. Our pupils are taught the fundamental building blocks and characteristics of positive relationships, with particular reference to friendships, family relationships, and relationships with other children and with adults. The three core themes are: Created and Loved by God; Created to Love Others; Created to Live in a Community.
Our curriculum fulfils the statutory obligation to teach the Protected Characteristics to all pupils while maintaining the belief that the dignity of the human person is central to the life and the teaching of the Catholic Church.
Characteristics of a good citizen
At St Agnes’ Catholic Primary school, we are Good Citizens. We are able to…
- Apply our skills and attributes to help navigate ourselves through modern life
- Understand how to be healthy, open minded, respectful, socially and morally responsible members of society
- Understand that we are all created by God to be different and that these differences should be celebrated
- Recognise and apply the British Values of Democracy, Tolerance, Mutual respect, Rule of law and Liberty
- Understand and manage our emotions
- Know the importance of looking after our mental health and know when to seek help and where to go for help
- Develop positive, healthy relationship with our peers both now and in the future
- Understand the physical aspects involved in RSE at an age-appropriate level
- Have respect for ourselves and others
- Have positive self esteem
- Understand how to keep ourselves and others safe, including online
- Live a healthy lifestyle, achieved by eating sensibly, avoiding smoking, drugs and alcohol and exercising regularly.
What this looks like at St Agnes
EYFS
Pupils in EYFS develop their Personal, Social and Emotional skills throughout the year through circle times, weekly RSE sessions and clear teacher modelling throughout the school day. Children are encouraged to build positive relationships with peers and adults, be confident to try new activities and show independence, resilience and perseverance when faced with a challenge. Children begin to show an understanding of their own feelings and those of others, and begin to regulate their behaviour accordingly.Â
KS1
In KS1, pupils will cover topics including Health and Wellbeing, Relationships and Living in the Wider World along with RSE sessions from Life to the Full. Each year group will cover content related to each theme every year. We make links to previous learning and experiences and build upon these. We aim to deliver our PSHE/RSE curriculum in a creative way through role-play, music, singing, discussion, debate, games, etc. These strategies enable pupils to build upon our LORIC behaviours.
KS2
In KS2, pupils will develop a greater depth in the three core themes whilst building on existing knowledge and covering more age-appropriate topics throughout their PSHE and RSE lessons. The curriculum for KS2 is also delivered in a creative way to enable the pupils to become fully immersed in their learning.
Across all phases, children’s learning and development is supplemented by external visitors and workshops, such as Fire Safety workshops and Kooth assemblies.
RSE
As a Catholic school, our mission is to support the spiritual, moral, social and cultural development of all of our pupils, rooted in the wisdom and teaching of the Church. The education of children in human sexuality is an important, precious and privileged responsibility. The Church teaches us that this is very much a partnership with parents, in which parents are the ‘first educators’ of their children on these matters; ultimately, you confer on us the right to co-educate your children with you.
Life to the Full
We have decided to adopt Life to the Full- Ten:Ten Resources. Ten:Ten is an award-winning Catholic educational organisation that is well-respected and very experienced in this field of work. Life to the Full has been approved by our Diocese. Furthermore, Ten:Ten have entered into a partnership with the Catholic Education Service (CES) and the Department for Education to provide training for teachers in Catholic schools on the subject of the statutory curriculum which our staff have already completed. Life to the Full is based on the CES Model primary curriculum therefore, we are confident that this programme is a very good fit for our school. By using this programme, we will deliver a fully-integrated and holistic programme that truly enables children to ‘live ife to the full’ (John 10:10)
Through their programme, Ten:Ten understand the foundational role that parents have in educating and nurturing their children on these matters. Within the programme, they have built in resources which will not only keep you informed about what is being taught in school, but will also give you the opportunity to engage your children in discussion, activity and prayer.
As parents and carers, you have access to Ten:Ten’s Online Portal https://www.tentenresources.co.uk/parent-portal/life-to-the-full-plus/ which is a useful tool to keep you informed on what your child will be learning in their PSHE and RSE lessons. The portal contains:
- An overview of the Life to the Full programme
- Guidance for parents on the content of lessons
- Activities that can be undertaken at home to support the delivery of the programme
You will need the following login credentials for our school:
Username: st-agnes-nw2
Password: lambs-212
Enhancements
Whole school events, such as Anti-Bullying Week and Children’s Mental Health Awareness Week give the opportunity for pupils to feel a sense of unity in the school. Children across the school have opportunities to develop their PSHE/RSE learning through memorable experiences such as a yoga retreats, visits from emergency services and road safety workshops. Pupils have the opportunity to join our School Council, become a Play Leader, Social Action Leader, Explorers Ambassador or a House Captain throughout their time at St Agnes’.
Adaptations
The Ten:Ten is a spiral curriculum that builds upon knowledge with creative sessions and story built into the teaching approach. Each session plan for KS1, LKS2 and UKS2 includes a section called Age and Stage Differentiation. This offers specific suggestions of how to level up or level down the content according to the needs of your pupils, as well as various extension options. Along with teacher judgement, this is used to scaffold and challenge pupils as appropriate.