Information and communications technologies are embedded in our society. Children are growing up at a time of rapid technological change and are adopting these technologies as a matter of course at school, at home and in their leisure time. They are adept users of many types of technology and at Barnabas Oley we seek to harness and use this enthusiasm in our pupils to invigorate and extend their learning.
Aims
Our aims in using Information Technology are that all pupils will enjoy using Computing, choose and use appropriate applications with confidence and a sense of achievement, develop practical skills in the use of Computing, be able to apply these skills to the solving of relevant and worthwhile problems, understand the capabilities and limitations of Computing and the implications and consequences of its use.
Targets for 2023/2024
- Ensure full coverage of computing curriculum taking place.
- Embed purple mash.
- Explore IT cross curricular use.
Teaching Methods
As the aims of Computing are to equip children with the skills necessary to use technology to become independent learners, the teaching style that we adopt is as active and practical as possible. Children experience Computing both through direct instruction on how to use hardware or software and individuals or groups of children to use computers to help them in whatever they are trying to study. So, for example, children might research a history topic by using a CD-ROM, E-Book, or they might investigate a particular issue on the Internet. Children who are learning science might use the computer to model a problem or to analyse data.
We encourage the children to explore ways in which the use of Computing can improve their results, for example, how a piece of writing can be edited or how the presentation of a piece of work can be improved by moving text about etc.
The school subscribes to Purple Mash which provides a comprehensive computing curriculum from reception to year 6. As part of their homework children are also encouraged to access Purple Mash at home to complement what they cover in school.
Curriculum
Computing at Barnabas Oley follows the new national curriculum and is integrated into other lessons and in discreet computing sessions, so that Computing becomes a natural tool for supporting children's learning as well as a programming tool. Some examples of the technology that we currently use include...
- Teaching children to programme using Scratch - we were doing this before the Government recommended the reintroduction of programming to schools. Link to SCRATCH programming software: http://scratch.mit.edu/
- Digital photography.
- 15 PCs in our Computing suite.
- 22 portable laptops.
- 32 iPads across the school for classroom use.
- Teaching safe web-site searching.
- Teaching safe social networking.
- State of the art interactive classroom screens in every classroom.
We believe that a creative Computing curriculum is one that is never taught without being linked to another aspect of our learning. By linking Computing with life, children are better able to see the real use of the taught skills and apply them effectively outside the classroom.
Click here to see the full capabilities document which shows progression from Reception to Upper Key Stage 2.
Curriculum statement for the teaching and learning of computing
E-Safety
When using online technologies, it is essential that children understand how to behave in a safe and responsible manner and also how to react when faced with inappropriate content or situations which make them feel uncomfortable. At Barnabas Oley C of E Primary School we believe that a comprehensive programme of e-safety education is vital for developing our pupils’ ability to use technologies safely. This is achieved using a combination of discrete and embedded activities drawn from a selection of appropriate materials.
For further information see our Staying Safe page.
Fun And Games
Don't forget to look at the activities in https://www.purplemash.com/ your child can engage with.
Games Programming
We have a lunchtime programming club for KS2, incorporating a range of programming tools including Scratch. Focused lessons on coding are also carried out starting with Cedar class in Autumn Term, Silver Birch in Spring Term and Willow class in Summer term.
"Scratch is a programming language that makes it easy to create your own interactive stories, animations, games, music, and art... As young people create and share Scratch projects, they learn important mathematical and computational ideas, while also learning to think creatively, reason systematically, and work collaboratively."
If you would like to have a go at using Scratch, you can download the software at home from here. You can then have a go at creating some programs from the information sheet (PDF) used by the pupils in Golden Time.
Back to Curriculum page
