In the Foundation Stage, we follow the EYFS curriculum, encouraging the children to be active learners. The children are encouraged through play and exploration to develop the skills that form a strong foundation for their future learning. This is supported with the provision of a range of real life experiences through educational visits and visitors in school, Focused activities, along with carefully planned and resourced continuous provision, provide our youngest children with a range of experiences which prepare them for learning in Year 1 and beyond.

We teach synthetic phonics from Nursery onwards, using the Little Wandle programme. This approach continues until children’s phonics skills are secure and children demonstrate real fluency in reading.

More information about our phonics programme can be found by clicking here.

The teaching of reading is supported by a bespoke reading scheme fully aligned – initially – to Little Wandle. Once children demonstrate secure fluency and comprehension, they progress to Accelerated Reader which, along with our well stocked library and classroom reading areas, provides a huge range of reading materials for our children to experience. Reading is taught throughout school as a discrete subject as well as being an integral part of English and Holybrook Curriculum lessons. Children are encouraged to read a range of challenging texts and develop a love of reading. These texts make links to learning in other areas of the curriculum. This is supported by adult-led small group, differentiated guided reading sessions. These sessions provide the opportunity for the class teacher to further develop children’s independent reading skills. Children are also identified for individual support and intervention, such as daily 1 to 1 reading.

More information about Reading can be found by clicking here.

English and Maths are taught both as discrete subjects daily and as an integral part of our Holybrook Curriculum.

The teaching of writing skills is explicit within English lessons and is supported by ‘Power of Reading’ strategies as well as the formal teaching of grammar punctuation and spelling.. These skills are further embedded across the curriculum through rich opportunities for their application in a range of contexts.

English and Maths are taught both as discrete subjects daily and as an integral part of our Holybrook Curriculum.

The teaching of Maths is based on the White Rose Maths Hub’s Mastery approach and is supported by our teaching of mental maths skills and our calculation policy. We aim to provide children with the ability to reason in a logical way and to apply mathematics through problem solving in real life contexts. We want to help children to see the links between maths and other subjects and deepen their understanding through investigations and application of maths across the curriculum.

English and Maths are taught both as discrete subjects daily and as an integral part of our Holybrook Curriculum.

In the Holybrook Curriculum, a number of subjects (History, Geography, Art, , Design Technology, Drama) are taught in an integrated way.  By using the natural links between subjects and ideas, the learning becomes real and meaningful to our children.  We do not believe in contriving links but in making the most of these where they naturally exist. However, within the delivery of these ‘themes’ we make regular reference to the distinct subjects being taught.

Science, PE, PSHCE and Music are taught as stand-alone subjects. More information about PSHE can be found by clicking here.

In RE the children learn about 6 major religions: Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, Judaism and Sikhism, following the agreed Bradford syllabus. This gives the children a moral understanding and knowledge of religious beliefs and practices to help them become tolerant, caring members of society.

Statement Regarding the Right to Withdraw from Religious Education (RE)

At Holybrook Primary School, we are committed to providing a broad and balanced curriculum, which includes Religious Education (RE) as a key component. RE offers pupils the opportunity to explore a range of beliefs, religions, and world views, encouraging respect, understanding, and tolerance for different perspectives.

We recognise that parents and carers have the legal right to withdraw their child from all or part of Religious Education, in accordance with the Education Act 1996 and the School Standards and Framework Act 1998. This right allows parents to opt out if they feel that the content covered does not align with their personal beliefs or wishes for their child’s education.

If you wish to withdraw your child from all or part of RE, we kindly request that you inform the school in writing. We will then arrange a discussion to understand your concerns and explore potential alternative arrangements for your child during RE lessons.

While we respect every family's beliefs and decisions, we encourage parents and carers to consider the value of RE in promoting inclusivity, tolerance, and cultural awareness.

For further information or to discuss the process, please contact the school office.

A high-quality music education should allow pupils to experience a wide range of musical styles both when listening and performing music. It allows children to consider how music influences our emotions and can be used in storytelling and in films/TV shows to create atmosphere. Children gain an understanding of how music has influenced people throughout history and is used in different cultures. Teaching should equip pupils with knowledge about different kinds of instruments and how sounds can be changed considering pitch, volume, tempo and specific rhythm patterns. As pupils progress, their growing knowledge about the different musical styles and instruments will allow them to create and compose music of their own using more complex features.

Click here to view the Music Development plan summary for Holybrook Primary School.