PSHE
Our PSHE Curriculum gives children a range of opportunities for personal development and reflection through the use of Jigsaw PSHE and the topics covered in the IPC Health and Well-Being lessons.
Jigsaw PSHE take a mindful approach and develops fully-rounded children who are healthy, sociable and emotionally literate. It covers key concepts and skills to help fulfil our statutory responsibility to support pupils’ SMSC (moral, social and cultural) education, focusing on Health and Wellbeing, Relationships and Living in the Wider World. Jigsaw PSHE prepares children for life in modern Britain today. It also helps pupils develop and apply skills and attitudes to allow them to become full and active citizens in our wider global community.
The IPC Health and Well-Being topics allow the children to get a further and deeper insight into areas that link with the subjects that they are learning in IPC. It allows them to fully understand that PSHE is all around us.
Introduction
At Woodcote we want children to feel safe and secure to share their feelings and thoughts. Adults must be equipped to have the correct knowledge and language to respond and support children appropriately. PSHE will eventually become a part of our everyday life and children will be able to relate to the different topics taught and see them as a part of their everyday life and not just when explicit PSHE lessons are taught.
Aim
The aim for the PSHE curriculum is to ensure that children are offered learning opportunities and experiences which reflect pupil’s increasing independence and physical and social awareness as they progress through the primary phase. Children need to be provided with the skills and knowledge to be able to create effective relationships and manage personal safety. The curriculum supports children in managing physical and emotional changes amongst themselves and their body; introduces them to a wider world; and enables them to make active contributions within their communities. We demonstrate commitment to supporting all children to grow up healthy, happy and safe and to provide them with the knowledge they need to manage opportunities and challenges in modern Britain.
PSHE has a strong status within our school and children understand the value and importance of their mental and physical well-being.
At Woodcote we believe every child should be heard, listened to and respected. This means ensuring that explicit time and tailoring is given to each PSHE lesson that is delivered to ensure that children’s needs are met. There must be a mutual respect between children and adults when sharing information and each child should not be forced or probed to respond in situations such as circle time, if they do not feel comfortable to do so. Children should always be given time to reflect on what they have learnt or their existing knowledge on a topic and can choose how they wish to do this whether be using their reflection journal or sharing with peers.
Our vision is to have PSHE taught explicitly once a week to children following statutory guidance as well as confidently adapting lessons to children’s needs. Alongside this, teachers will also build on PSHE learning in other lessons taught and develop pupils understanding through the themes and topics that they teach across the core and wider curriculum. In addition to this, staff will draw on other opportunities to address aspects of the PSHE curriculum, for example, through circle time, assemblies.
Curriculum/Scheme of Work
We use the Jigsaw PSHE scheme which supports the planning of our discrete PSHE lessons which are delivered once a week. Jigsaw is designed as a whole school approach, with all year groups working on the same theme (Puzzle) at the same time. This enables each Puzzle to start with an introductory assembly, generating a whole school focus for adults and children alike. Specially composed original songs are introduced in the Jigsaw assemblies that launch each Puzzle and are also used within some of the Pieces (lessons) to reinforce the learning messages. Adults must ensure that careful consideration, thought and adaptions are given to each lesson prior to teaching it.
The Six Puzzles (Themes/Units of work)
There are six Puzzles in Jigsaw designed to progress in sequence from the beginning of each academic year:
Term 1: Being Me in My World
Term 2: Celebrating Difference (including anti-bullying)
Term 3: Dreams and Goals
Term 4: Healthy Me
Term 5: Relationships
Term 6: Changing Me (including Puberty and Human Reproduction Education)
In addition to this, we will also be covering the Health & Well-Being lessons covered in IPC topics.
Planning
Teachers plan as year groups working collaboratively to adapt plans to suit children’s needs. Lessons can be taken from the Jigsaw PSHE scheme and must then be looked at together to ensure they are suitable and resources can be planned ahead.
Teachers must tailor the lesson to their classes needs and identify if there are any subjects that may be a trigger for certain children and think of the possible ‘difficult’ questions that may be asked and would need a specific and appropriate response given. These lessons also need to be referred to across the curriculum in a range of subjects, where possible and relative. Staff also need to think of the affect that the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic may have had on children and how they may have each been affected as well as their mental health and well-being.
Every classroom will have a worry box and teachers should use the entries to guide them with planning.
Teaching
Children must be given opportunities to reflect on previous learning and the impact it may have had in their life e.g. if a lesson has previously mentioned the importance of friendships as an example then discuss with children how this may have impacted them since their last lesson, is there anything they would like to share?
Each Piece (lesson) has the following structure:
Connect Us - This is a game or activity designed to be fun and inclusive and to build and maximise social skills. ‘Connect us’ creates positive relationships and enhances collaborative learning. It sets the atmosphere at the beginning of each Jigsaw Piece and can be used again at the end should the teacher feel the atmosphere needs to be lifted after some deep work during the lesson.
Calm Me - This section of the Piece helps children gain awareness of the activity in their minds, relaxing them and quietening their thoughts and emotions to a place of optimum learning capacity. This will also engender a peaceful atmosphere within the classroom. It is an invaluable life skill which also enhances reflection and spiritual development.
Open my Mind - The Reticular Activating System of the brain filters the many stimuli entering the child’s mind at any given time. It is designed only to allow in that which is significant.
Tell Me or Show Me - This section of the Piece (lesson) is used to introduce new information, concepts and skills, using a range of teaching approaches and activities.
Let Me Learn - Following Piaget’s learning model, after receiving new information/concepts, children need to manipulate, use, and play with that new information in order for it to make sense to them and for them to ‘accommodate’ it into their existing learning.
Help Me Reflect -Throughout Jigsaw, children are encouraged to reflect on their learning experiences and their progress. By reflecting, children can process and evaluate what they have learnt, which enables them to consolidate and apply their learning. They are also asked to stop and become aware of their thoughts and feelings in any given moment in Pause Points thus developing their mindfulness.
Closure - Each Piece needs safe closure. This will always include the teacher praising the children for their effort, positive attitude and achievement, as well as giving one or two sentences to summarise the key learning points for the children.
Circle times must be used as a safe space for children to share however they must know that they can choose to vocally participate as much or as little as they do so wish and no child should feel probed to answer. Children should be given examples and opportunities to share their own experiences, when appropriate.
Discrete PSHE lessons will be delivered once a week minimum.
Always be mindful and make sure that children are aware that they can choose to share as much or as little as they wish. No child should feel pressured or forced to give their opinion or thoughts on a subject if they do not feel comfortable to do so. Never use tools such as lolly sticks or child selecter apps.
Differentiation
Pre-assessment will feed into this as teachers must analyse and gauge where each child is at in terms of their physical and mental well-being. This will then help staff to tailor the curriculum to the needs of their children and ensure that sensitive subjects and topics are handled with consideration, support and care. Our aim is to achieve inclusion for all children and ensure all children feel important, special and included.
Assessment
PSHE Journals will allow teachers to discover where children are at and how they are feeling. They must be used to inform future planning and understand what children are taking away from each topic taught. Circle times and discussions will also allow adults to understand how children are feeling and their level of understanding. Even if children are feeling uncomfortable and un-willing to share, this will also inform teachers of children emotional well-being.
The Help Me Reflect section also allows both the teacher and the child to assess the understanding of that lesson.
The Learning Environment
Establishing a safe, open and positive learning environment based on trusting relationships between all members of the class, adults and children alike, is vital.
To enable this, it is important that ‘ground rules’ are agreed and owned at the beginning of the year and are reinforced in every Piece - by using The Jigsaw Charter.
In KS1 and KS2 the use of the Jigsaw Friends (mascot) that children pass around the circle and they are told it is only their turn to speak, when they are holding the toy. It is also used as a distancing tool so that children can talk about potentially more sensitive issues without referring directly to themselves. The Jigsaw Friend can also be used in social stories based on situations that may relate to the children.
The Jigsaw Charter
- We take turns to speak
- We use kind and positive words
- We listen to each other
- We have the right to pass
- We only use names when giving compliments or when being positive
- We respect each other’s privacy (confidentiality)
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