At Highfield Littleport Academy we offer a specialised curriculum for students who require additional support with communication, coordination, self-help skills, and cognition. There is a strong emphasis on Preparing for Adulthood and promoting independence. We use our learning values as a driver for this. Students are encouraged to work independently and within a team as these skills as those which they need to apply when they leave Highfield and embark on adult life. Students learning on the Complex Green pathway curriculum require an enhanced level of support and there is a keen focus on engagement before progressing to more specific knowledge and skills.
Learners work within these areas according to their individual interests, needs and abilities. There are overarching topics and golden threads which help to contextualise learning with students interests incorporated into this so that there is a personalised curriculum offer facilitating challenge and development. A bespoke curriculum framework for each area helps teachers to identify students individual next steps in learning and measure progress. This is in collaboration with working towards students EHCP targets. Complex Green learners are assessed according to the Engagement Model in addition to this.
Green Pathway learners are able to access subject specific learning in core areas of the curriculum. They will need additional input in developing communication and independence skills. Students working within this Pathway commonly present with the following characteristics:
-
Some intentional communication of immediate needs
-
Developing attention skills
-
Some social skills, but significantly behind age related expectations
-
Emerging problem solving skills
-
May be able to access some subject specific teaching
The Pathway for each student is decided on an individual basis based on the best way to meet needs. The Pathway system is designed to be fluid, meaning that pupils are able to move between Pathways throughout their school career if appropriate for their needs.
Implementation
Our Green Pathway has the following areas of learning with specific subjects encompassed within:
My Body: PE, PSHE & RSE.
Students experience swimming, Rebound therapy (trampolining), sensory circuits, dance, physio programs, yoga, massage, athletics, gymnastics and team games within our My Body curriculum. Although due to their needs many of our students do not achieve the swimming standard at the end of year 6 we aim for this to be possible when they leave Highfield. Take a look at our PE & Sport page for more information.
My Thinking: IT & Computing Skills, Maths, Science & Problem Solving
Within this subject area we use approaches such as TEACCH (including letter and number recognition), sensory stories, messy play investigation, parachute games, making choices, attention building and problem solving. Work on attention and focus skills underpin this area. Students develop their resilience and thinking skills to help them prepare for real life situation in the community.
My Communication: Speaking,& Listening, Reading, & Writing (English)
Students are encouraged to use AAC to assist their communication, PECS, intensive interaction, making choices, use of visual communication methods including objects of reference and visual timetables are all applied. We use Read, Write Inc as our consistent phonics scheme. More information about this can be found by clicking this link. We aim for our students to be efficient communicators using whatever method is appropriate for them.
My Independence: Personal Care, Travelling Skills, Food Technology, PSHE & RSE
Within this area we encourage independence through cooking, life and living skills, touch and taste sessions, learning opportunities during personal care and dressing, lunchtimes. There is a strong focus on developing resilience and independence so that our learners are confident individuals.
My World: Geography, History, RE
Students experience lots of Parallel play, access to shops and cafe's, transition visits (post 16), assemblies, shared activities with other classes, lunch and break times and school trips.to help learn practically and develop social skills
My Play: Creativity (Art & Music), Play Skills and Cooperation
We develop students play and social skills, social skills through a variety of Art, Music, Dance, Drama activities. We encourage students to be creative and practice independent and cooperative play. We recognise that not all problems can be overcome simply and teaching a creative approach helps to overcome this!
Click on the subject names to see how teaching and learning is arranged within each subject and curriculum area. Green pathway learners with more complex needs have a higher level of adult support and there is also a focus on engagement as a pre-cursor to more structured learning.
Complex Green learners learn key skills and knowledge focused on golden threads in the curriculum according to their level of development. We identify 'Foundations for Learning' which are woven into our teaching and learning and include the things that we want our learners to know, experience and be able to do. The learning is sequenced into clear progress steps which are used to plan our provision, routines and teaching. Assessment then ties into the green pathway framework to further help identify students next steps.
Impact
-
for some learners, the Green Pathway will have allowed them to transition onto the Yellow Pathway
-
for other students remaining on the Green Pathway is more appropriate. They develop into confident young people, often having worked through anxieties around self-perceived failures in learning and communicating and gaining qualifications
-
they are more able to access the world around them with reduced support because they have developed the knowledge and skills to do so. This could be linked to performing self care, reading and writing, speaking and listening, improvements in their ability to self-regulate behaviour, being able to tell the time, travel confidently and much more
-
our young people are regular attenders - whether at an FE college, Social Enterprise or in a place of work
-
pupils are willing and more likely to try new experiences as they have had so many opportunities to do so during their time in school
Our classes have a high ratio of staff to pupils, enabling a personalised curriculum and assessment system based on the pupils’ EHCP outcomes and a bespoke curriculum framework to identify next steps in learning. This allows for pupils’ individual learning needs to be addressed in the most appropriate way, whilst providing a sense of belonging to a class group and creating a higher level of self esteem. Throughout our curriculum development we have worked with the students to build learning around their interests to ensure it is relevant to students needs and engage them appropriately.
This pathway uses our bespoke curriculum framework in collaboration with each pupils EHCP outcomes to create a meaningful learning scheme for each individual.
Take a look at the Green pathway curriculum guide here:
Take a look at the Complex Green pathway curriculum guide here:
Progression
Our Green Pathway curriculum has carefully sequenced skills maps and knowledge maps within long term plans. This enables a personalised curriculum and assessment system based on the pupils’ EHCP outcomes and a bespoke curriculum framework to identify next steps in learning. This allows for pupils’ individual learning needs to be addressed in the most appropriate way, whilst providing a sense of belonging to a class group and creating a higher level of self esteem. Throughout our curriculum development we have worked with the students to build learning around their interests to ensure it is relevant to students needs and engage them appropriately. Take a look at our long term curriculum overviews to see how knowledge develops and is reinforced over time:
Green Pathway Curriculum Overviews
Green Pathway Key Stage 4 Overviews
We have considered carefully the need for progression in skills and knowledge and this is illustrated within the long term curriculum planning and subject overviews. Click on each of the area of learning pictures below to view progression maps for each area of learning.
For complex green learners the progression may be on a much slower basis and there is a high focus on engagement prior to developing these skills. Learners focus on exploration, realisation, anticipation, persistence and initiation as a precursor to later learning.
We have also developed teaching progression frameworks for the core subjects in order to demonstrate how learning progresses over time. These guides are also a useful tool to parents and carers as they illustrate the methods we use at school within our teaching.
Ratio and Proportion Progression
Geometry and Measures Progression
Science Milestones Progression
Preparing for Adulthood & Transition
Preparing for Adulthood and developing key life skills are a key part of the curriculum for all Highfield pupils. These skills are embedded within each of our pathways and taught at the most appropriate level for the learner. This is the basis for our work related learning strategy and as our strap line states it prepares learners for the next step in education, life or work - whatever is appropriate for them.
Careful and highly individualised curriculum planning across the school is related to students EHCP Outcomes and a bespoke curriculum framework. Many of these objectives run throughout the Green pathway curriculum. It aims to give all pupils the opportunity to experience and learn to prepare for real life situations, such as shopping, crossing the road, meal planning, writing a letter and posting it, or even growing and eating their own food. Take a look at our strategy and how we incorporate this into our curriculum here.
Our yellow and the majority of our green pathway learners move on at age 16 to an appropriate additional needs college course. These courses are classed as full time courses but are spaced over 3 days per week. We do not currently have a 6th form provision at Highfield Littleport as we do not have large enough numbers to make a viable cohort. Only learners within our complex green and blue pathway's will be eligible to study at our sixth form provision.
Green Pathway End Points and Transition from Highfield
Outcomes for learners in the green pathway vary according to the individual progress they make in their time at Highfield through the curriculum frameworks and against their EHCP outcomes. However all students are entitled to leave with qualifications in at least Maths, English, communication and one other curriculum area. In the green pathway we use ASDAN as the qualifications base. Students also have recognition of achievements through the AQA Unit Award Scheme.
We aspire for learners in the green pathway will leave Key Stage 4 with a qualification in ASDAN Personal and Social Development (PSD) and at least 4 AQA Unit Award certificates in recognition of their learning. These AQA Unit Award certificates will be tailored to their needs and interests and focus on key skills in developing independence.
Learners in the green pathway are likely to stay on Highfield roll until the end of the year they are 19, unless there is an alternative placement that would suit the individual's needs better than continuation at Highfield. Accessing LINC 19-25 is an option that can be explored if the individuals needs could be best met there subject to Local Authority approval and application. Discussions on moving on begin at the same time as the learners in the yellow and blue pathways, from at least the year 9 annual review. Our Careers section within this link has more detail.
Learners will transition on to a variety of placements according to the progress they have made and what provision there is available to move on to. Destinations could be specialist college courses at their local college, accessing a social enterprise, or a combination of both. Learners may move on to social care funded placements, and their EHCP is ceased if that is appropriate for the individual.