Intent
At St John St James’ Primary School, we recognise the importance of Personal, Social and Health Education (PSHE) in supporting our children in their social and emotional development, as well as promoting their health and well-being. We believe that in order for our children to thrive, they need a secure understanding of how to manage their feelings and relationships and how to tackle many of the moral, social and cultural issues that are part of growing up.
Through our PSHE curriculum, our children build the knowledge and understanding that they need in order to play an active and healthy part in the life of our school, their community and the world. Our lessons give children an understanding of the rights and responsibilities that are fundamental to becoming informed, thoughtful and responsible individuals in secondary school and in their future lives.
Implementation
The Early Years
In The Early Years, PSHE is referred to as the Personal, Social and Emotional Development area of learning, however PSHE is also covered as part of: Communication and Language, Physical Development and Understanding The World.
As part of their PSHE learning in The Early Years, pupils learn to form positive relationships in a setting that supports mutual respect and understanding and that celebrates and acknowledges differences. The children in The Early Years gain a knowledge and understanding of their own culture and community, which helps them develop a sense of belonging and positive self-image. Structured play encourages children to build confidence in social situations; support in finding solutions to conflicts; follow rules and understand why they are important, as well as building constructive and respectful relationships. Mindfulness is also used each day as a tool to support in regulation of emotions and to ensure all children are calm and ready for learning. The pupils are taught to be increasingly independent and encouraged to build resilience through perseverance when faced with challenging situations.
Key Stage One and Key Stage Two
In Key Stage One and Two, we follow the Jigsaw scheme of work for PSHE, which has an integrated whole-school approach. Each year, children’s learning is organised into six main units: Being Me in My World, Celebrating Differences, Dreams and Goals, Healthy Me, Relationships and Changing Me. Within these units, links are made to British Values and The UNCRC articles on The Rights of a Child.
The PSHE lessons are planned by the PSHE subject lead, in order to ensure knowledge is progressive across year groups and to support class teachers to deliver comprehensive and high-quality lessons.
PSHE lessons are taught mainly with various hands on activities, discussions, debates and circle time. At St John & St James, we aim to provide experiences that will have maximum impact on learning through developing confidence, encouraging an active role and developing good, respectful relationships. Teaching methods are designed to encourage sharing ideas as part of a group, listening and respecting the views of others.
Each lesson includes a weekly dilemma, which provides children the opportunity to engage in discussions about various, relatable scenarios that require them to use their communication skills to solve and build empathy and understanding towards others. Dilemmas focus on matters concerning potential playground issues, bullying, online safety, wellbeing and relationships.
Impact
The impact of our PSHE curriculum is evident in the confidence our children demonstrate when expressing their feelings and managing their friendships. Children at St John and St James learn to use their voice to express their emotions and to use words to solve problems. We also see the impact of this learning in our children’s engagement with their community and their care for others through various charity work and communal events hosted at the school. The choices our children make to keep themselves safe and healthy also reflect the impact of our PSHE curriculum.
Curriculum Map
SJSJ follows the Jigsaw curriculum overview, with the exception of the ‘Celebrating Differences’ unit which we have adapted to be more reflective of our school community.
British Values
All staff at St John and St James strive to ensure that our pupils leave with the strongest foundation of values upon which to build a successful life and make a positive contribution to our society.
The fundamental British values are:
- Democracy
- Rule of law
- Individual liberty
- Mutual respect and tolerance for those with different faiths.
The DfE’s non-statutory guidance on promoting British values in schools outlines the understanding and knowledge expected of pupils as a result of schools meeting the requirement “to promote the fundamental British values of democracy, the rule of law, individual liberty and mutual respect and tolerance of those with different faiths and beliefs.”
To see how we promote British Values within our school community and curriculum, please see the links below:
Useful Links
- To find out more about the Jigsaw curriculum, visit their website.
- BBC Bitesize – PSHE & Citizenship – Key Stage 1
- The Goldie Hawn Foundation – Mind Up Programme for Families