Darley Dale Primary School

Computing Curriculum Statement

Developing computing and technology skills, which enable pupils to become active participants in a digital world.

At Darley Dale Primary School, we acknowledge that technology plays a pivotal role in shaping our everyday lives. Equipping children with the transferable skills to use computational thinking and creativity throughout their learning enables them to build a successful path into their future. We actively encourage all staff to discover new ways to use technology to enhance our curriculum. We seek to ensure all children have the key knowledge and skills in the computing disciplines to become digitally literate at an age appropriate level, and in line with the National Curriculum. At Darley Dale Primary School, we strive to deliver a computing curriculum where children can explore the digital world safely, and are able to express themselves and their learning in creative ways. Our computing curriculum is structured using Purple Mash into four main strands: Computer Science, Information Technology, Digital Literacy and Online Safety. Computing at Darley Dale has deep links with mathematics, science, and design and technology, and provides insights into both natural and artificial systems. Our knowledge rich curriculum balanced with the opportunity for pupils to apply their knowledge creatively assists our pupils become skillful computer scientists.

Implementation

Our computing curriculum follows the National Curriculum Computing Programme of study for Key Stage 1 and 2. To ensure there is clear evidence of progression of skills, we have adopted Purple Mash to guide and structure our Computing Curriculum. Our progressive curriculum is divided into four strands: Computer Science, Information Technology, Digital Literacy and Online Safety. As staying safe in the online world is of key importance to our school, the Online Safety strand is interwoven into other strands of the computing curriculum and any other areas of the curriculum where technology is used. Supporting our Online Safety stand is the Google scheme of work, ‘Be Internet Legends’.

At Darley Dale Primary school, our computing curriculum aims to enable children to confidently:

· Understand and apply the fundamental principles and concepts of computer science, including abstraction, logic, algorithms and data representation.

· Analyse problems in computational terms, and have repeated practical experience of writing computer programs in order to solve such problems.

· Evaluate and apply information technology, including new or unfamiliar technologies, analytically to solve problems.

· Responsible, competent, confident and creative users of information and communication technology.

Computer Science:

This strand develops children’s understanding of what algorithms are and how they are implemented as programmes on digital devices. Provides the children opportunities to write and debug programmes that accomplish specific goals, for example controlling or simulating physical systems. Children develop the ability to use logical reasoning to predict the behaviour of simple programmes. Encouraging the children to solve problems by decomposing them into smaller parts. Within this strand children progress onto understanding computer networks including the internet.

Information Technology:

This strand enables children to learn how to use technology purposefully to create, organise, store, manipulate and retrieve digital content. Children continue to deepen their understanding in this area through learning how to use search technologies effectively and safely. Children develop the ability to select and rank search results and be discerning in evaluating digital content. In Key Stage 2, children progress to develop the skills to be able to select, use and combine a variety of software on a range of devices to design and create a range of programs, systems and content that accomplish given goals. This may include collecting, analysing, evaluating and presenting data.

Digital Literacy:

This strand recognises the common uses of technology that stretch beyond school. Children focus on the importance of using technology safely and respectfully. In Key Stage 2, our children are able to learn what acceptable and unacceptable behaviour is, and how to report a concern.

Online Safety:

At Darley Dale Primary School, we view online safety to be part of our whole school curriculum. We encourage our staff to embed online safety into any aspects of learning where technology is used. We consider the 4Cs outlined in KCSiE (September 2022) and how these can be woven into the approach to online safety across different subjects, as well as taught explicitly. The 4Cs are:

• Content: Being exposed to harmful content online
• Contact: Harmful interaction online.
• Conduct: Personal online conduct that causes or increases the likelihood of harm.
• Commerce: Risks such as gambling, phishing, or scams.

These headings essentially help us to categorise risk into main areas to be addressed.

At Darley Dale Primary School, we view online safety to be part of our whole school curriculum. We encourage our staff to embed online safety into any aspects of learning where technology is used. We use Purple Mash and Google ‘Be Internet Legends’ scheme of work to develop children’s awareness of staying safe online.

‘Be Internet Legends’:

Within this scheme, the children are encouraged to be Sharp, Alert, Secure, Kind and Brave. Once a year, our children take part in a virtual assembly delivered by Google.

The structure of the scheme is built around five strands:

1. Think Before You Share (Be Internet Sharp)

2. Check it’s For Real (Be Internet Alert)

3. Protect Your Stuff (Be Internet Secure)

4. Respect Each Other (Be Internet Kind)

5. When in Doubt, Discuss (Be Internet Brave)

Purple Mash:

Online safety work is not only taught discretely through computing but additionally during PSHE lessons and whole school sessions and as part of other subjects where pupils might use technology, such as for email, blogging and online research. Working in line with Education for a Connected World we aim to broaden and enrich the online safety knowledge and experiences that pupils encounter. We follow the Purple Mash Progression of Skills learning objectives relating to online safety linked to a computing scheme of work.

If you would like to learn more about Online Safety then click on this link: 

Internet Matters

Impact

Technology and computing undoubtedly shapes our everyday lives. By providing our children with skills of reading, writing and analysing code,

knowledge of a range of software and technology, knowledge of computation systems and logical thinking, we are preparing them for future employment and life as a whole. The subject has a huge academic value in developing pupil’s knowledge of the world around them, especially when linked to different areas of the curriculum successfully. Children are able to creatively, and confidently, demonstrate their knowledge and understanding using technology.

Through the four stands of our computing curriculum, we aim to build pupils’ awareness to the risks, which they may be exposed, so that they have the confidence and understanding to seek advice and to deal with any risks in an appropriate manner and can enjoy the benefits that technology can provide us with safely, successfully and skilfully.

Rhalina Kershaw - Computing Lead

Characteristics of a 'Techie'

• Competence in coding for a variety of practical and inventive purposes, including the application of ideas within other subjects.
• The ability to connect with others safely and respectfully, understanding the need to act within the law and with moral and ethical integrity.
• An understanding of the connected nature of devices.
• The ability to communicate ideas well by using applications and devices throughout the curriculum.
• The ability to collect, organise and manipulate data effectively.