Personal DevelopmenT
We support children to acquire the knowledge, understanding and skills they need to manage their lives, now and in the future. As part of a whole-school approach, PD education develops the qualities and attributes children need to thrive as individuals, family members and members of society. The benefits to pupils of such an approach are numerous as PD prepares them to manage many of the most critical opportunities, challenges and responsibilities they will face growing up in such rapidly changing and challenging times. It also helps them to connect and apply the knowledge and understanding they learn in all subjects to practical, real-life situations while helping them to feel safe and secure enough to fulfill their academic potential.
Our whole school approach promotes effective relationships between all members of the school community. The promotion of pupils’ personal and social development underpins other learning. PD education contributes to assists children and young people to build their personal identities, confidence and self-esteem and understand what influences their decisions. Developing self-understanding, empathy and the ability to work with others helps our pupils to enjoy healthy and productive relationships in all aspects of their lives.
Skills Children Learn:
Always in an age appropriate way, we help the children manage their lives, now and in the future, and help them to learn everyday, essential, life skills, including:
• The Development of self-understanding, empathy and healthy, productive relationships
• Relationships Education
• Eating healthily
• Keeping safe on the road
• How to stay safe on the internet
• The promotion of good mental and physical health
In keeping with our School ethos, the children are encouraged, and frequently reminded, to speak to a trusted adult when they have any concerns or worries.
Visits
Throughout the year, we organise different visits off site to further enhance our PD curriculum.
- Harvest Festival visit to Church
- 4 Residential trip to Hudnell Park
- 6 Residential trip to PGL
- Choir singing to local residents at Christmas
- Puppet Theatre trip for children in Rec and KS1
- Year 3 Development afternoon at Wodson. The children took part in cross curricular orienteering, skipping challenge, Games skills and ABC (ability, balance and coordination)
- Year 6 Tag Rugby Festival
Visitors
Throughout the school year, we are fortunate to have various visitors to help bring our PD curriculum to life, including visits from:
- Saltmine theatre company (RE focus)
- Visits from Inspirational speakers
- The Fire Service
- Theatre company visits
- Visiting Farm .
- Assemblies led by local Church leaders
Anti- Bullying
Watton at Stone Primary School promotes an environment free from threat, harassment and any type of bullying behaviour.
Our aims include:
• Ensuring all members of the school community has an understanding of what constitutes bullying.
• Creating an atmosphere and environment where children, parents and staff feel able to tell the school about bullying if it arises and are confident it will be taken seriously and dealt with.
• To put in place clear procedures for dealing with incidents of bullying.
Mental Health
We promote a mentally healthy environment through:-
- Promoting our school learning behaviours and encouraging a sense of belonging
- Promoting pupil voice and opportunities to participate in decision-making
- Celebrating academic and non-academic achievements
- Providing opportunities to develop a sense of worth through taking responsibility for themselves and others
- Providing opportunities to reflect
- Access to appropriate support that meets their needs.
- Half termly Feel Good Friday's
- Focus days and weeks in the school year (Anti bullying and Feel Good week, Mental health week, Citizenship week)
- Half termly 'No Pens' Day'
Useful Links
Pastoral Support
At Watton at Stone Primary we want everyone involved with our school to feel well supported. We believe that good pastoral support focuses on nurturing the individual needs of each child. We aim to build trusting and empathic relationships with all our pupils and their families.
All our staff model to students how to look after themselves and others; encouraging them to seek help, support or advice whenever they need it.
Pastoral care underpins personal development and we know from experience that with outstanding pastoral care, children feel they belong and their self-esteem is able to flourish because they feel valued and cared for.
Supporting the pastoral needs of children sometimes involves working with external agencies. In these situations we ensure that a confidential, professional, non-judgemental and sensitive service is provided.
- Lunchtime Butterfly Club to support children who need some additional nurture time.
- We are a ‘talking school’; we encourage our children to share their concerns at all times
- ‘Worry boxes’ in every class throughout Key Stage 1 & 2. These are monitored by teachers and the teaching assistants,
- Play leaders are very visible in the playground at lunch breaks.
- Children who have been identified as vulnerable are supported by Mrs Bell (an experienced Nurture teaching assistant). This ensures that the social and emotional needs of vulnerable children are being addressed consistently.
- Range of academic interventions organised by the SENCO
- Play therapists
- Pets as Therapy ‘Read2Dogs’ programme
- All staff have received Level 1 Mental Health training.
Relationships and Sex Education (RSE)
RSE teaching at Watton at Stone teaches children to develop values, attitudes, personal and social skills, and increase their knowledge and understanding to make informed decisions and choices when they are adults. Each year group will be taught appropriate to their age and developmental stage.
Why do we teach Relationships and Sex Education (RSE)?
There are four main aims of teaching RSE:
• To empower children to be safe and safeguarded.
• To enable children to understand and respect their bodies
• To help children develop positive and healthy relationships appropriate to their age and development
• To support children to have positive self-esteem and body image
Watton at Stone Primary School chooses to teach Sex Education and Section 405 of the Education Act 1996 provides the right of parental withdrawal from the RSE provided at school except for those parts included in the National Curriculum. The Science curriculum in all maintained schools also includes content on human development, including reproduction, which there is no right to withdraw from.