The purpose of our curriculum is to enable every pupil to shine brightly; whatever a pupil’s ability, background, interests or aspirations, the Rushcliffe curriculum should allow them to develop the knowledge that enables them to be happy and successful at school and in their lives beyond.
The needs of the pupils are central to curriculum decisions and the curriculum at Rushcliffe will always be inclusive and have the development of the whole child at its heart.
We want to ensure that pupils develop as well-rounded, work-ready young people who are equipped with the knowledge, understanding and skills to be good citizens and make positive contributions to a diverse and ever-changing global community.
The curriculum at Rushcliffe aims to:
- help pupils develop, connect and remember a broad range of knowledge;
- develop a love of learning and stimulate intellectual curiosity in pupils such that it remains with them for the rest of their lives;
- enable pupils to be positive, happy, safe, resilient and challenged;
- ensure that pupils’ physical health, mental health and general wellbeing is promoted and remains good;
- help pupils develop key skills valuable in life and valued by employers such that they stand head and shoulders above others when applying for jobs, courses or apprenticeships;
- promote pupils’ awareness and understanding of global issues and the complexity of life in the 21st century;
- support pupils to achieve a set of qualifications at a standard that supports their next and future steps in education, employment or training;
- nurture existing talents and interests as well as supporting pupils to develop new ones;
- and promote and embed the core values and ethos of the school.
Subject Curricula
The content of each subject curriculum is based on a series of “big ideas” which are built on and developed year on year. Below, you can see an overview of how the “big ideas” for each subject develop and you can see a summary of what pupils will learn in each subject in each year group.
Key Stage 4 Option Choices
Pupils at Rushcliffe make their key stage 4 option choices during year 9, in readiness for the start of year 10. In addition to studying a core curriculum of mathematics, English (Language and Literature), science and non-examined physical education during years 10 and 11, pupils select 4 subjects. The new options booklet and all the accompanying resources for year 9 pupils who will start year 10 in September 2023 will be available soon. In the meantime, you can view last year’s Options Booklet here.
Post 16 Option Choices
In our Sixth Form, we offer a mixture of academic and vocational qualifications as well as a range of non-qualification courses and activities. You can find out more about the courses on offer in our Sixth Form and how to apply here.
Covid-19 Arrangements
In the event of a full school closure or the self-isolation of a year group, pupils will be able to access the full curriculum through a combination of live online lessons (via Microsoft Teams) and remote learning tasks (via Satchel One). You can read further information in our remote education policy.
We have also made a range of adaptations to the sequencing of our curriculum and introduced a range of intervention measures in the light of the lockdown period and other disruptions to pupils’ learning during the pandemic.