ORCHARD LEA
JUNIOR SCHOOL
PSHE
PSHE at Orchard Lea Junior School
At Orchard Lea Junior School, we believe that teaching of Relationships and Sex Education (RSE) and Health Education plays a fundamental role in providing pupils with the skills and understanding to form strong, positive and safe relationships, including those online, and be able to embrace a happy and successful adult life.
We develop children’s understanding of a healthy, safe and balanced lifestyle and their understanding of how they will grow and develop into young adults. The school’s aim is that pupils are able to make educated decisions about their health, well-being and relationships and can make informed decisions when facing risks and challenges. It is important that our children know when and where to access help and support and are able to use the internet and social media safely.
We help children establish a strong and respectful awareness of similarities and difference between themselves and others and understand the importance of equality. They are encouraged to value the emotions, beliefs and perspectives of others.
Discussions around key moral and global issues help children to develop a sense of justice. Children are encouraged to reflect on their choices and responsibilities in school and in the wider world and to consider how they affect the lives of others. We instil the importance of trust and honesty and we promote the importance of treating others with kindness and respect in every part of school life.
Children are taught skills of self-regulation to help them to manage the demands of challenging situations they may face. Children are also made aware of the importance of self-care, both physical and mental, particularly if they find themselves in stressful circumstances.
We recognise the value of our community in developing the children’s knowledge, skills and understanding of keeping themselves and others safe and their options for jobs in the future. We encourage children to take an active role in our school community to support their understanding of their roles and responsibilities in the wider world and develop their financial awareness.
Our aim is that all of our children have a strong sense of self- respect and self-worth and have high aspirations for their future. Children leave Orchard Lea Junior School with the knowledge, skills and attributes they need to make the most of their lives, now and in the future and be able to thrive as confident, responsible and increasingly independent citizens of the ever-changing world in which they live.
At Orchard Lea, we teach the statutory requirements for KS2 Relationships and Sex Education (RSE) and Health education as laid out in the National Curriculum. We use a thematic approach to the PSHE curriculum which is divided into 3 key areas: Relationships, Health and well-being and Living in the wider world. The three areas are revisited each year. Our curriculum overview is based on documentation from the PSHE association and we use their recommended resources to support teaching and learning.
Many aspects of RSE and Health education are regularly reinforced through day-to-day opportunities in school including assemblies, P4C enquiries, collaborative group work, mindfulness techniques and well being check-ins and through individual and in depth whole class discussions.
Our curriculum is designed to provide pupils with opportunities to discuss high quality texts, videos, images and concept cartoons, to explore key social and moral concepts and to deepen their understanding of the world they live in through a range of scenarios and role play activities.
Some aspects of the RSE and Health Education curriculum can be taught as part of the wider curriculum. Particular cross-curricular links can be made in the following subjects:
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Science (Changing adolescent body; health and prevention; healthy eating, protecting the environment)
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Computing (internet safety and harms; online relationships)
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PE (physical health and fitness)
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Design Technology (healthy eating).
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Geography and our school grounds (protecting the environment)
We plan opportunities for children to meet with and question members of our community work, including the fire service, residents at the local care home, local business people and keyworkers. Careers weeks, charity events, enterprise projects and school council meetings also play a key part in enriching our curriculum.
The majority of RSE and Health education sessions will be taught to mixed gender groups. In Year 5, the children will have their puberty sessions in single-gender groups and in Year 6, the pupils may be given the opportunity for a question and answer session within a single-gender group after the main sex education session.
We understand that each child has different experiences and different support networks in life. We adapt our curriculum to reflect the needs and experiences of our children and ensure that learning is meaningful and purposeful to them. Learning will also be drawn upon from recent local and global events.
We are aware that some children have difficulty expressing and managing their feelings. We are committed to expanding children’s emotional vocabulary and supporting them in becoming articulate and resilient individuals. We know that issues may develop in children’s personal lives or in their communities which need addressing in a sensitive and age appropriate way. Individuals and small groups may be offered additional support with regard to their personal and social development to ensure that all our pupils develop and thrive.
The school’s commitment to promote pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development and British Values is threaded throughout the PSHE curriculum.