How We Plan Our Curriculum

How we plan our Curriculum 
Having selected our subjects and topics, our teaching staff organise the required knowledge into thoughtfully sequenced journeys of learning. Teachers and curriculum leaders ensure that knowledge builds over time, with meaningful links between topics, so that learning is connected rather than fragmented. 
 
We plan the delivery of the curriculum through structuring knowledge as Essential – Core – Ambitious, starting with essential knowledge and skills. This model supports purposeful planning, allowing us to establish firm foundations, deepen understanding, and stretch every learner towards meaningful challenge. Students are supported to master the essential and core knowledge of each subject, ensuring they are ready to engage with more complex ideas as they progress. 
 
Through this approach, we plan for desirable difficulty and threshold moments — points in the curriculum where students are encouraged to think more deeply and move beyond surface-level understanding. These carefully designed moments help learning become more secure, more connected, and ultimately more meaningful. 
 
What is Essential? 
Essential knowledge refers to the foundational facts, concepts, methods and subject-specific vocabulary that students need in order to access each subject with confidence. It is the knowledge we identify as most important for long-term understanding and future learning. 
This content is carefully selected to be clear, purposeful and manageable — focused on what matters most. We allow time for students to revisit and practise this knowledge so it becomes increasingly secure and usable across a range of contexts. 
Essential knowledge refers to the foundational facts, concepts, methods, and subject-specific vocabulary that students need to access each subject with confidence. It is the carefully selected knowledge we believe is most important for long-term understanding and future learning. 
This content is clear, purposeful, and manageable — focused on what matters most. We dedicate time for students to revisit and practise it so it becomes increasingly secure and transferable across contexts. Embedding this knowledge early and effectively provides all students with the tools to progress through the curriculum. It supports a shared understanding of what success looks like and lays the groundwork for deeper thinking. 
As David Didau describes, essential knowledge is the “residue” of learning — what stays with pupils in the long term. It enables them to make sense of new information by connecting it to what they already know. Tom Sherrington and Alex Quigley emphasise the importance of sequencing this knowledge clearly so pupils can build strong mental models and deepen understanding over time. 
We aim to ensure that every student builds a strong foundation of knowledge and feels ready to take the next step in their learning journey with confidence and purpose. 
 
What is Core? 
Core knowledge represents the main body of subject content that students are expected to learn over time. It builds on essential knowledge and helps learners develop deeper understanding, fluency, and confidence in each subject. 
At this stage, students explore key ideas, themes, and processes — applying what they know, making connections, and practising important skills in varied and meaningful contexts. This knowledge is taught through carefully sequenced lessons, supported by high-quality modelling, questioning, and feedback. 
Our curriculum design—led by subject experts and shaped by classroom experience—ensures that learning is ambitious, inclusive, and well-structured. We balance support with challenge, drawing on research from Robert and Elizabeth Bjork, who emphasise the value of “desirable difficulties” in helping students retain knowledge and think more deeply. Learners are encouraged to think hard, retrieve prior learning, and engage in purposeful practice. 
This is where students move from foundational understanding toward greater depth, flexibility, and independence. They are supported to communicate precisely, explore complex ideas with confidence, and grow as curious, capable learners ready for the next step in their journey. 
 
What is Ambitious? 
Ambitious knowledge represents the most intellectually enriching aspects of our curriculum. It gives all students the opportunity to deepen their thinking, apply their learning in new ways, and take pride in work that reflects their best effort. 
Ambition is not about pace or volume — it’s about depth and the confidence to tackle more complex ideas. What is ambitious will look different for different learners, but every student is entitled to experience challenge that is meaningful, accessible and worth striving for. 
Our curriculum leaders and teachers plan for ambition by building strong foundations first, then creating well-supported opportunities for students to think harder, explore more widely, and express themselves with increasing independence. This might involve making thoughtful connections, engaging in extended reasoning, or producing creative and personal responses. 
We are influenced by the work of Alex Quigley, who reminds us that ambitious learning happens when support and challenge go hand in hand — enabling all learners to thrive when the right conditions are in place. Ambitious learning is not an add-on; it is embedded in every subject, designed to stretch and support all students. With the right scaffolds and expectations, every learner can experience success through challenge and leave knowing they have gone further than they thought they could.