All children in England work within the National Curriculum which was introduce in September 2014. This is divided into key stages. At Lymington Junior, the children work within Key Stage 2 (KS2) which covers the school Years 3 to 6 – for children aged 7 to 11 years old.

At the start of September following your child’s 7^th birthday, he/she will move into Year 3 and qualifies for entry into our school. Each September, children progress into the next year group, until they leave us to embark upon their Secondary School careers at the end of Year 6.

National Curriculum Subjects

At Lymington Junior we present the statutory requirements of the National Curriculum for England and Wales (additional information available via this link) – or the Locally Agreed Syllabus (Living Difference IV) in the case of Religious Education (known at LJS as 'Beliefs and Traditions') – within the school’s own broad and balanced approach.

We also teach a robust curriculum for all aspects of Health and Relationship Education, informed by the Jigsaw scheme of work (more information about this can be found here).

The subjects within the National Curriculum are:

• English
• Mathematics
• Science
• Computing
• Design and technology (DT)
• Geography
• History
• Art and design
• Music
• Physical Education (PE)
• Foreign Languages 
• Health and Relationship Education

Living Difference IV covers:

• Religious Education (Beliefs and Traditions)

Each term the individual year groups publish and share their Curriculum Newsletter. These tell you exactly what your child will be learning that term. In addition, termly curriculum meetings are hosted in school to help you to understand what is being taught and how you can help support this at home.

We also publish the curriculum overviews below to keep you informed as to what your child will be learning in their year group.

For more information about the intent, implementation and/or impact of ‘Curriculum LJS’, please read our Curriculum Policy and/or the relevant Year Group's Long Term Overview (below) or don't hesitate to speak to a member of the team.

Maths at LJS

To support long term progression in Mathematics we have worked closely with Lymington CE Infant School to develop an over arching policy for progression in calculation across our two schools.

The resulting documents (below) have been specifically designed to include explanations and diagrams to help you to support your child’s learning at home.

Times Tables at LJS

We have also worked hard as a school to develop and embed a coherent approach to the teaching; learning and assessment of times tables at LJS. The policy below outlines what we expect to be achieved in this area within each year group.

English at LJS

Writing

At Lymington Junior School we foster a love of writing by selecting captivating text drivers to lead our units. 

Throughout our writing we: celebrate successes; ensure a purpose is given for writing; match engaging text types to interests and enable the children to experience a wide range of genres.

Writing skills are developed through exposure to rich texts and our reading and writing intertwine to enable the very best progress to take place.

We ensure that written work in all subjects is valued, providing challenge where appropriate to extend our learners.

How do we teach children to write?

Our approach to writing recognises that there are 4 main elements to effective writing.

The process involves a concrete understanding of:

• What to write (ideas for content)
• Purpose and audience (style)
• Purpose and form (genre)
• Characteristics of effective writing (word; sentence and structure)

At LJS we develop these through:

• Inspiration
• Planning
• Drafting (practice)
• Revising (editing and evaluating)

In order to address these areas, we use the following techniques:

Reading

At Lymington Junior School we strive to foster a love of reading and we support our readers to make the very best progress in reading by providing engaging and exciting books to choose from. Our children are heard read frequently in school and they progress through our own ‘LJS reading ‘scheme’ before becoming 'free readers' and are allowed to choose their own books to read from our very well stocked school library.

In lower school (Years 3 and 4) we have selected the Big Cat Collins Reading Scheme to supplement and enhance our reading provision; providing a pathway of progression in reading which meets the needs of individual pupils as well as bringing variety and breadth to our children’s reading diets.  This scheme provides the opportunity to use a mix of reading scheme and ‘real’ books from a range of publishers whilst maintaining a consistent and appropriate challenge for pupils. Using banded 'real' books, children are able to choose books freely from within a structured range of books, making reading more independent and enjoyable.

In upper school (Years 5 and 6) our reading scheme links closely to our catch-up phonic programme; Read, Write Inc. Fresh Start. The Project X Origins (Oxford University Press) reading resources are motivating and engaging; designed to encourage and inspire all children.

At each stage in their reading journey with us, children have a sense of freely choosing ‘real’ books that appeal to their developing reading tastes whilst learning how to pick books that importantly match their ability and that they can therefore get the most enjoyment from.

Alongside our chosen reading schemes, we have a plentiful and well-designed library at Lymington Junior School; children enjoy selecting reading books which inspire and excite and we are proud of the rich stimuli are library offers.

Phonics

At Lymington Junior School we have selected phonics programmes which will support our learners in making the very best progress in phonics.  We understand the importance of a firm grounding in phonics; to ensure learning stays in children’s long-term memory and to enable children to apply their learning to become highly competent readers.

Phonics in the Lower School (Years 3 and 4) at Lymington Junior School

In lower school we have selected the Little Wandle Letters and Sounds systematic synthetic phonics programme (SSP). Little Wandle Letters and Sounds draws upon the latest research into how children learn best and builds upon our children's prior experience with the same programme at Lymington Infant School. 

Learners in year 3, who have been identified as requiring further support with phonics, follow the Little Wandle Letters and Sounds Scheme, using the Year One lesson materials and resource packs (Phase 3-5).

In year 4 phonic provision, through Little Wandle Letter and Sounds Scheme, continues for those children screened and assessed as requiring support, following the Year One Individual and Group Keep up Package (Phase 3-5).

Phonetically matched reading books for each pupil following the Little Wandle Letters and Sounds Scheme support, embed and reinforce our phonic provision.

Phonics in the Upper School (Years 5 and 6) at Lymington Junior School

In Upper School we have selected the Read, Write Inc. Fresh Start programme. Fresh Start teaches older children who are still experiencing challenges with reading to read accurately and fluently with good comprehension. It is rooted in phonics and uses age-appropriate decodable texts.  The children following this programme experience success from the very beginning. Lively stories and non-fiction texts are both age appropriate and closely matched to their increasing knowledge of phonics and ‘tricky’ words and as they re-read the texts, their fluency increases.  Phonics screening informs the phonic provision required in year 5 and 6 and children following this phonic scheme read phonetically matched texts which again reinforce and embed the phonic coverage.

Spelling

At Lymington Junior School we recognise the importance of being able to spell accurately, in order to write confidently and creatively.  We teach spellings though a wide range of strategies to enable children to enjoy exploring and investigating spelling patterns. 

Spelling lessons are taught daily and our teaching of spelling reflects the 2014 National curriculum requirements, focusing on the teaching of the Statutory Word lists, spelling rules and spelling conventions. The Twinkl spelling scheme forms the basis for our progression in teaching spelling, aligned to specific National Curriculum expectations and guidelines.

During our spelling sessions we use strategies such as:

• Focusing on the sounds that appear in words, rather than the individual letters. For example, the letters 'au' makes the sound 'aw' when presented together.
• Grouping words that follow similar spelling patterns together rather than grouping words by topic.
• Writing words in vertical lists will help a child to use their visual memory more effectively.
• Using colour to highlight common spelling patterns or phonics used in a series of words. For example: flight, light, tight, might.
• Encouraging children to use the words in a sentence once they have memorised the spelling.
• Making spelling tests a regular part of our lessons.  Learning to spell through spelling tests helps children to develop a connection between letters and their sounds.

The following documents outline what we focus on in English at LJS and may help you to support your child's learning at home.