Curriculum


The curriculum in the Upper School, while it shares many of the aims of the Pre-Prep, is designed to take into account the inevitable process of adjustment from predominately form based teaching in Year 3 and Year 4 to the independent learning required by our Year 6. In the Upper School your child will become familiar with our educational methods and accustom himself or herself to the ethos and the environment of the school. To succeed your son or daughter will have to demonstrate great self-reliance, autonomy and maturity.


Hallfield School offers a curriculum broadly based upon the National Curriculum while also giving children the opportunity to develop their aesthetic, physical and creative potential.


Curriculum Design


At Hallfield School, the Upper School curriculum provides a high quality academic education based on a broad, balanced and differentiated curriculum. This is delivered by dynamic and challenging teaching, which in turn encourages in pupils a sense of enquiry and a love of learning, enabling them to achieve their potential.


A differentiated curriculum recognises that each individual has unique educational needs and relative areas of strength and weakness. To ensure that your child is given the opportunity to succeed, the school utilises setting and streaming to provide all children with the best possible education. This approach is designed to promote natural ability, at the most appropriate pace, rather than achievement resulting from previous coaching.


Children are equally divided into three mixed ability forms in Year 3 and Year 4. Children are assessed in Mathematics, Spelling and Reading against nationalised base line tests in


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Year 3, Year 4, Year 5 and Year 6 have their Verbal and Non Verbal cognitive ability assessed in Year 3, Year 4 and Year 5 against national standards.


Subjects are mainly taught by subject specialists in their own department areas. In Year 3 and Year 4 the Form Teacher teaches English, History, RE, Geography and PSHE to their forms in the form rooms. Maths is taught in four teaching groups streamed into two bands according to ability. Specialist subjects like Design Technology, Science, Art, Music, ICT, French and Religious Education are taught by specialist teachers in their department areas.


In Year 5 and Year 6 all subjects are increasingly taught by specialist subject teachers in their department areas. English and Maths are taught in four teaching groups streamed into two bands according to ability. A taught course in Verbal and Non-Verbal reasoning – Study Skills – is added to the curriculum.


Music


No child could fail to find something to interest them in the music department!


Perhaps your daughter will play the trumpet in our concert band, or maybe your son will enjoy laying down tracks on our recording equipment. Might your child be interested in learning one of the 17 instruments that are currently taught to over 150 individuals at Hallfield? Curriculum music is taught weekly throughout the Upper School but if your child wants to perform, he or she might also like to join one, or more, of our various groups listed below; or just participate in the annual inter-house music competition.


• Concert Band • Orchestra • String Orchestra • Junior and Senior String Quartets • Guitar Ensemble


• Brass Ensemble • Flute Choir • Junior, Intermediate and Senior Recorder Ensembles • Junior and Senior Choir


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