Cornerstones
At St. Margaret’s Infant School we use ‘Cornerstones’ as a vehicle to deliver the National Curriculum. Cornerstones is a nationally recognised approach for delivering outstanding learning opportunities for children.
What is the Cornerstones Curriculum?
The Cornerstones Curriculum is a creative and thematic approach to learning that is mapped to the 2014 Primary National Curriculum to ensure comprehensive coverage of national expectations. Our curriculum will be delivered through Imaginative Learning Projects (ILPs) which will provide a rich menu of exciting and motivating learning activities that make creative links between all aspects of our children’s learning.
We believe children learn better when they are encouraged to use their imagination and apply their learning to engaging contexts. Our new curriculum will provide lots of learning challenges throughout the academic year that will require children to solve problems, apply themselves creatively and express their knowledge and understanding effectively across the curriculum.
Cornerstones also provide a rigorous essential skills framework that outlines the end of year expectations in all subjects. These essential skills are tied to activities and are age related so that staff can track children’s progress and identify their individual learning needs.
How it Works?
Children will progress through four stages of learning in each ILP – Engage, Develop, Innovate and Express.
The fundamental aim of any curriculum is to help children learn. What sets the Cornerstones Curriculum apart is that it’s based on our four-stage philosophy: Engage, Develop, Innovate, Express.
We believe that successful curriculums are built on inspirational learning activities and high-quality teaching. It’s about creating a classroom environment that allows children to learn in a way that motivates and interest them.
As teachers ourselves, we know that can be easier said than done. It’s also why our curriculum is designed to give teachers the chance to plan and structure lessons around their children.
The Cornerstones Curriculum features many Imaginative Learning Projects for Year 1 and 2. Each project is split into sections, which see children progress through four stages of learning: Engage, Develop, Innovate, Express.
Engage
At the ‘Engage’ stage, children:
- gain memorable first-hand experiences, such as going on a visit or inviting a special visitor into school
- enjoy ‘WOW’ experiences
- get an exciting introduction to a topic or theme
- begin researching and setting enquiry questions
- get lots of opportunities to make observations
- develop spoken language skills
- take part in sensory activities
- have lots of fun to fully 'engage' with their new topic.
Develop
At the ‘Develop’ stage, children:
- improve their knowledge and understanding of the topic
- develop and practice their new skills
- compose, make, do, build, investigate, explore, write for different purposes and read across the curriculum
- research their own questions and those set by others
- follow new pathways of enquiry based on their interests
- complete homework activities that support their learning.
Innovate
At the ‘Innovate’ stage, children:
- apply skills, knowledge and understanding in real-life contexts
- solve real or imagined problems using everything they’ve learnt
- get inspired by imaginative and creative opportunities
- revisit anything not fully grasped at the ‘Develop’ stage.
Express
At the ‘Express’ stage, children:
- become the performers, experts and informers
- share their achievements with parents, classmates and the community
- evaluate finished products and processes
- link what they have learnt to where they started
- celebrate their achievements!