At The Bridge, all learners have the right to access a curriculum that is challenging, enthralling, appropriate, and meaningful to their individual needs, without compromising their entitlement. As a turnaround provision, we provide temporary respite for children who have faced struggles and challenges within their mainstream environment due to their behavioural or learning needs. Lessons at The Bridge aim to motivate, engage and capture the interest of our learners to prepare them for the next stage of their educational journey, whether that be returning to their home school or moving on to a new setting.
With the complex learning and behavioural needs of our learners, we acknowledge that the needs of each individual are central. The provision offered is sufficiently flexible to enable learners to be placed at an appropriately challenging point on the continuum at any point during their time with us. We also recognise that these needs may change, sometimes frequently and at short notice, therefore our curriculum also offers the flexibility to meet those changing needs.
We recognise that many of our learners have previously become disengaged from learning and struggle to see the value of education, resulting in gaps in their knowledge. This disruption to their learning means they likely exhibit a wide range of both emotional and educational needs, which can additionally impinge negatively upon progress. The clear routes of progression and development within the curriculum planning allows for continuity and coherence across stages. Targets are set for academic and individual needs, and end-points are clear. This ensures that learners have the knowledge and skills they need to reach these points and succeed beyond.
The curriculum development, in conjunction with the needs of the individual, strives to ensure maximum progress for all learners so that they may:
learners join The Bridge with their own individual learning needs, and our curriculum implementation ensures that each learner is able to access a curriculum pathway that enables them to make the very best progress that they can. The emphasis is always to provide an accessible curriculum that enables learners of all ages to develop behaviours for learning and the skills for independence that can be taken beyond their time with us. Our provision works in partnership with parents, carers, homeschools and local authorities and all views, including that of the learner, is taken into account in achieving the appropriate balance between the learners’ right to curriculum access and the need for some learners to access other experiences. These may include adjusted transition timetables, targeted interventions or further adapted curriculum. We recognise that all learners are unique - they have individual triggers and coping strategies. A PACE approach is used to aid dysregulated or escalating learners and adaptive strategies are implemented throughout their journey with us, to allow them to maximise access to learning.
Learning outcomes and success criteria are headed in books for every individual subject. This is assessed at the end of every lesson and completed by the Teacher or Teaching Assistants with feedback written and given to the learner. Should a learner struggle with an outcome, engage with the lesson or be absent, this will be documented and the learning outcomes will be revisited during morning activities, although sometimes with a different delivery or activity. This recovery allows learners the opportunity to continue to fill those gaps without taking away and falling behind in current learning.
Subject led learning at The Bridge focuses on the National Curriculum programmes of study with overarching termly themes. Each term and where possible, lessons are intertwined with the overarching theme. For example, The Great Fire of London as an overarching theme will be studied across different subjects: History (past and present), Geography (exploring London), Art (moving pictures of The Great Fire) and English (descriptive language of possible feelings during the Fire). This cross curricular approach enhances critical thinking, generates a deeper level of understanding and promotes reflection across the board. Consequently, it is essential that the overarching themes are well planned and taking into account the individual community at The Bridge. All lessons are taught with a whole class discussion and activity, before adapted teaching strategies are implemented to allow for children to work independently but within their own academic ability. This allows new learning to commence, gaps to be filled and common misconceptions quickly addressed to ensure they are not at a disadvantage compared to their mainstream peers. We have a generous ratio of Teaching Assistants to learners (1:1 or 1:2), allowing high levels of support for every child. These high ratios also mean that if a learner requires a movement break or support with an intervention, this can be completed successfully and where necessary, outside of the main classroom, without disrupting other learners' learning or taking away their support. Our curriculum is underpinned by the academic skills focus. However, the golden thread throughout all learning focuses on teaching children how to learn and developing life skills; the ability to ask questions, to engage in meaningful conversations or to form healthy relationships. We believe that children must learn how to learn, before they can do so. Understanding how to learn is a life skill that is useful beyond education and will assist in allowing all individuals a successful future.
At the Bridge, we look to promote a deep rooted enthusiasm and passion for reading. learners are assigned a reading book based on baseline phonics and reading assessment. Children read daily with the Teacher or a Teaching Assistant, with each book being covered three times; the first read focuses on decoding, the second read for fluency, and the final read of their book focuses on comprehension. In addition to their guided reading, a short story is read to the class as a transition back into learning from breaktime, chosen daily by a different learner, and the day is finished with a continuing chapter book story over the week/term. All staff at The Bridge have been trained to deliver Twinkl Phonics interventions. An initial phonics assessment is completed during the first week. This allows for the disclosure of any gaps in phonics knowledge and for individual plans to be devised. While a class phonics lesson takes part daily, for those that require additional support or revisiting, 1:1 Phonics interventions are also put into place during daily guided reading sessions. Phonics assessments are reviewed and tracked termly. Baseline assessments are also completed within a learners initial week using the Cambridge Diagnostic and Assessment Tool. This allows us to identify and diagnose learning needs while measuring and benchmarking learning potential. The diagnostic allows for adapted teaching strategies to be implemented where necessary throughout the curriculum. Data from this assessment is recorded and tracked when targets are achieved, using the BSquared progress platform.
At the Bridge, we promote learning in many ways. While many lessons are interactive, we also timetable play based learning each week. Mathematics can be taught and learned through playing shops, healthy relationships through playing and dressing up themselves or action figures. Team building and trust can be encouraged and taught through sports, fine motor skills through arts, crafts and creating. As well as letter formations and handwriting through interactive whiteboards, playdough or sand. Play based learning allows children to communicate ideas and to understand others through social interaction, paving the way to build deeper understanding and more powerful relationships.
Enrichment opportunities help learners develop skills, strengths and understanding beyond what is learnt in the classroom. We strive to ensure there are opportunities for our learners to delve into enrichment activities within the community throughout each term. In addition to external trips, we encourage the inclusion of the community within our provision by inviting local organisations to engage with the learners. Previously, we have brought in the local police and fire brigade. We have also had local beekeepers and animal keepers visit for interactive workshops.
As many of our learners have come from settings where managing behaviour has been a barrier for them, clear behaviour management strategies are vital. learners are informed during their initial session of the provision's expectations and introduced to our behaviour ladder. Every adult has flashcards on their lanyard that can be shown to learners at any time and provide a visual reminder of their behaviour choices. There is also a visual representation of the behaviour stages on a large board in the main classroom and smaller behaviour ladders in the sensory room and breakout rooms that can provide reminders while out of the main classroom. All children start their session on green and may move through to yellow, orange and then red by making negative or unsafe choices. Learners may require a fidget toy at their desk, a movement break, change of face or reflection time away from the main classroom, to aid in de-escalation and regulating. Our high staff ratios allow for this, without disrupting other learner's learning. Learners are reminded throughout that even reaching red, they can work their way back to green by making correct and safe choices.
Every learner has a reward jar. These 'buttons' are awarded to learners based on academic efforts and awarded daily with the possibility of gaining a full jar by the end of each week. Even if a child is struggling with engagement, if the Teacher, Teaching assistant or learner feels the effort they are capable of has been out during that lesson, a 'button' can be coloured on the jar. During unstructured, play based learning at the end of the week, learners can choose a treat; this could be a food treat like a cupcake, or an activity of their choosing. In addition to awarding efforts, we also reward learners that further exemplify our provision's visions and values with an instant reward and a certificate. Parents and carers are updated daily with achievements and any difficulties they may have faced throughout their day. Home schools and local authorities are updated weekly unless circumstances require it to be sooner.
To ensure our curriculum remains highly effective and fit for purpose, we continually pay attention to the
learners' outcomes. To do this effectively, we monitor, review and complete formal assessments, learner voice,
work scrutiny and climate walks. Leaders review learners’ outcomes, data and teaching to judge the standards of
teaching and outcomes for learners in all subjects across the curriculum. Ways which these are measured are: