Lime Academy Ravensbourne Curriculum
At Lime Academy Ravensbourne we recognise that children and young people with learning difficulties have unique abilities and ways of learning. We provide stimulating and safe learning environments that nurture and maximise the potential of every individual and that celebrate their achievements. We recognise the need for firm foundations and for a challenging and personalised curriculum, that is designed to allow learners to develop the skills required to prepare them for the next stage in their life.
We aim to make our pupils’ experience in school interesting, exciting and challenging. The curriculum at Lime Academy Ravensbourne is designed to meet the individual needs of our learners. We set aspirational goals for our learners to achieve personally tailored outcomes. Our curriculum is fully accessible to in compliance with the Equality Act 2010 and the Special Educational Needs and Disability Regulations 2014.
At Lime Academy Ravensbourne we strive to enable all of our learners to leave school as young adults who are as independent as possible. We recognise that, irrespective of the pupil's level of ability, the provision available throughout the school needs to reflect and respect their chronological age. This is achieved by ensuring that the work provided is developmentally appropriate in terms of both the learning contexts and the resources used and that teaching and social areas are designed to reflect changing interests and social dynamics.
Our curriculum aims to:
- To maximise potential for learning
- To develop flexible teaching that is led by each learner
- To support learners to increase control and influence over their own lives
- To ensure every learner enjoys learning in the school environment and beyond
- To assure that learners feel supported by all partners in making the transition to the next stage of their lives
All Learners should leave school:
- With functional skills and independent thinking and learning skills
- With an effective way to communicate in different contexts
- Confident and self-assured
- Able to manage change
- Able to forge positive relationships with others
- Respecting other cultures, religions and genders
- With greater independence
We promote multi-disciplinary working, and all professional input is embedded into learners’ daily activities. We focus on personal, social, emotional, physical and communication development at all times throughout the school day.
You can find out more about the curriculum at: Lime Academy Ravensbourne Curriculum Document
Our Approach to the Teaching of Phonics and Reading
At Lime Academy Ravensbourne we interpret reading in the broadest context as involving deriving meaning from the environment. This includes using objects of reference, sensory cues including sounds and smells, pictures, photographs, signs, symbols and written words to support teaching and learning in reading.
Reading is a fundamental life skill. We want our learners to progress with their reading skills, to read for meaning and to develop a love a reading. We will encourage them to read for enjoyment as well as for functional life reasons.
Learners will have access to a range of fiction and non-fiction texts, stories and poems. Learners will experience a range of different books including tactile, auditory and sensory stories. These may link to the topic or to learner’s specific interests. We want our learners to enjoy reading, to listen to and interact with stories and have opportunities to retell stories in a range of ways including role play or with puppet and to answer who, what, why and where questions. We will provide our learners with a range of opportunities to develop, practice and overlearn their reading skills.
We use the Little Wandle Scheme for those ready to learn synthetic phonics. We have chosen this as it is multi-sensory and explores phonics at the very early stages, and so meets the ends of our learners. For some learners a whole word approach is more appropriate and so each learner has the reading curriculum tailored to their own needs. As their skills develop, they will be encouraged to sound words out and to decode and blend words, as well as learning core vocabulary.
Examinations / Testing Arrangements & Pupil Progress
Parents/Carers are kept informed of their child’s progress through the Annual Review of their Education, Health and Care Plan. We record and celebrate the small steps made in progress on an individual basis. Every child is set personalised learning goals and their progress is monitored through observation, narrative and photographic assessment using Evidence for Learning (EfL). You can find out more about EfL at: Evidence for Learning
As all of our learners are functioning at levels significantly below that expected for their age they are disapplied from standardised tests.
Religious Education and SMSC
Learning about different religion and beliefs helps our learners develop an understanding of themselves and others.
At Lime Academy Ravensbourne we pride ourselves on appreciating the views of others and being part of a whole school community. We promote an atmosphere of tolerance, consideration and acceptance of all learners, staff and families regardless of their of their age, race, gender, sexual orientation, disability, or ethnic background.
Careers Information Advice and Guidance (CIAG)
Careers education at Lime Academy Ravensbourne is linked to Preparation for Adulthood (PfA) for our learners. This starts as soon as learners join the school and is embedded into both their individual Education Health Care Plan outcomes and their bespoke curriculum offer.
We want all our learners to be supported to develop the skills they need to make choices and have a voice which enables them to partake in meaningful daily activity and the wider world around and that prepares them for the next stage in their life.
The school’s careers programme embraces the eight Gatsby benchmarks of good Career Guidance:
- A stable career programme
- Learning form career and labour market information
- Addressing the needs of each pupil
- Linking curriculum to careers
- Encounters with employers and employees
- Experiences of workplaces
- Encounters with further and higher education
- Personal guidance
As with all areas of learning within the school these activities are presented to learners on an individual basis and in a timely fashion that takes account of their unique age, stage, interests and needs.
For more information please contact:
Careers Lead – Teneille Dardis (Deputy Headteacher) teneille.dardis@limetrust.org
Supported by- Carlette Londjoka (Family Support Worker) carlette.londjoka@limetrust.org
Preparation for Adulthood
At Lime Academy Ravensbourne we begin to prepare our pupils for adult life from the moment they enter school. We work hard to ensure that each pupil has appropriate, personalised Education Health Care Plan outcomes that are transferable to the real world.
We want to support all our pupils to gain skills that will support them in their future.
Preparation for Adulthood concentrates on the following key areas:
Employment
Independent Living
Community Inclusion
Health
At the end of their time in school with us our pupils progress to either higher education colleges or a social care provider. Our family support worker and SLT support young people and their families with their transition to other settings.
Relationship and Sex Education
Our Relationship and Sex Education Policy can be viewed on the Policies page of our website.
Through our ‘My Wellbeing’ strand of the curriculum, learners are supported to develop age and stage appropriate knowledge, understanding, attitudes and practical skills to live safe, healthy and productive lives. This strand includes Relationships and Sex Education (RSE).
We aim to provide a programme for our learners that is appropriate and matched to their physical and emotional maturity. We support learners to develop strategies to keep safe, display good social behaviour and show respect for the feelings of others.
This is no right to withdraw from Relationship Education at Primary level. Secondary learner requests to withdraw from Relationship Education should be made formally via email to the headteacher via the school office, attaching the form at the end of the RSE policy outlining the reason for withdrawal. As a learning community we are committed to working in partnership with families, if you have any questions or want more information to support your decision, please do not hesitate to contact us to discuss.
Global Awareness
In the climate of global awareness, where every citizen is affected by world events on a daily basis, international issues are an important part of all our lives. We strive to ensure that all learners are supported to develop an understanding of their national and international identity and of key global events that impact on their lives.
Swimming at Lime Academy Ravensbourne
At Lime Academy Ravensbourne we are fortunate to have a hydrotherapy pool on site. Sessions within the pool focus on learners physical, communication and social development, promote personal well-being and provide opportunities to promote independence both in the pool and when getting changed. As appropriate, learners will be taught how to swim and how to stay safe in and near water.
