How we teach pshe

PSHE education at The Riverside Federation places the learner at the centre of planning, learning and assessment, taking into account local and universal needs, recognising, valuing and building on the diversity and richness of the existing knowledge and understanding, skills, values and experiences that they bring to their learning.

All children learn within a planned, flexible,differentiated, developmental, assessed PSHE education provision, enriched by and enriching the entire curriculum. PSHE education sets learning within ‘real life contexts’ that affect children, young people, their families and their teachers. Learning is set within a ‘healthy, ‘citizenship rich’ (1) extended, sustainable school’ modelling the behaviours and values that enrich and reinforce those taught through the programme.

PSHE education enables children to make and action-informed decisions and take opportunities that will help them live happy, healthy lives, now and in the future. It does this by providing compelling, active learning that is enabling young people to develop the concepts, knowledge and skills to be able to successfully manage themselves, their relationships, risk and the challenges and opportunities, predictable and unpredictable, known and unknown that they may encounter. Curriculum planning recognises all learning contexts provide opportunities to address an appropriate balance of both personal wellbeing and economic wellbeing and financial capability.

PSHE education has a strong ‘emotional dimension’ recognising that many life choices are based as much on ‘what we feel’ as ‘what we know’. Provision is enabling young people to explore, compare and clarify their values, and have them challenged. Life choices and decision-making are essentially made on the basis of sound knowledge and access to accurate, relevant and unbiased information that learners make sense of with the support of their school, their parents and their community.

Through a broad range of learning approaches including enquiry-based learning, PSHE education contributes to the classroom and the school as ‘learning communities’ and supports teachers operating as ‘reflective practitioners’. The dialogue within PSHE education lessons enables student voice to inform the planning of relevant, inclusive learning, appropriate pedagogy and ongoing evaluation of PSHE education through a partnership between learners and teachers. This dialogue informs curriculum development, school improvement and contributes to community cohesion.

Through rigorous assessment for learning, and reflective practice, learners and their parents know the progress they are making and the entire school community understands, recognises and values the central and unique contribution PSHE education makes to realising Every Child Matters, to the

‘three outcomes of education: successful learners, confident individuals and responsible citizens; to informing the ‘three big questions’: What are we trying to achieve? How do we organise learning? How well are we doing? as well as enabling the school to meet its own unique aims and mission.

Teaching in PSHE education is being informed by current research into how children learn, mental health and wellbeing and learning theory ensuring classroom practice reflects researched ‘best practice’ and our most up to date understanding of children and young people’s development. A comprehensive framework of policies that have been produced and understood by the whole school community supports PSHE education.

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