Primary School
Primary School
Primary School
Our Primary School curriculum is organised according to the two Key Stages of the
National Curriculum of England, Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2.
KEY STAGE 1
This Key Stage covers classes in Years 1 and 2, children between 5 and 7 years old.
KEY STAGE 2
This Key Stage covers classes in Years 3, 4, 5 and 6, children between 8 and 11 years
old.
Within the Primary section of the school we follow the Cambridge International Primary
Curriculum for the following subjects:
There are no Cambridge Primary Progression Tests or Checkpoint for this subject.
The emphasis of this course is for teachers to give pupils formative feedback on the
skills they want them to develop. This can be through discussion, observation and
lesson outputs where teachers discuss with pupils ‘what went well’ and how they can
improve further, so that pupils can reflect on and improve their performance.
Digital literacy is an essential skill for learners of all ages, including the youngest
primary pupils. The digital world allows us to connect, collaborate, innovate and
discover new information on an ever-broadening scale, and pupils must be able to
effectively use technology from the very beginning of their educational journey.
Pupils develop the digital skills that will help with many aspects of their future learning
and development. They will:
• Understand their place, and the place of others, in an interconnected world and
make educated decisions about the information that they encounter online.
• Develop knowledge and understanding that will allow them to respond to, and
evaluate technology of the future.
• Develop skills to create increasingly sophisticated documents and
presentations.
• Learn how to become positive contributors to the digital world.
• Use digital technology safely and protect their own physical and emotional
wellbeing.
We teach Digital Literacy as a separate subject with a specialist teacher and ensure
that our course supports progression to Cambridge Lower Secondary Digital Literacy.
PRIMARY ENGLISH
Pupils develop English skills they can apply for a range of different purposes and
audiences in everyday situations and in study. They learn to communicate confidently
and effectively and develop the critical skills to respond to a range of information,
media and texts with understanding and enjoyment. They develop a first language
competency in English.
The curriculum framework covers knowledge, skills and understanding in the three
strands:
• Reading.
• Writing.
• Speaking and listening.
Cambridge Primary English is taught using a broad range of activities that promote
experience, reflection and improvement. Recommended fiction genres, poetry,
playscripts and non-fiction text types provide authentic contexts for skills development.
The learning objectives in the three strands of the curriculum framework support an
integrated approach to teaching and learning reading, writing, and speaking and
listening skills. Grammar is embedded within the reading and writing strands to
promote a meaningful learning experience where pupils both explore grammatical
concepts through reading and apply them in their own writing.
This subject is designed for pupils who have English as a second language.
Developed in conjunction with Cambridge Assessment English, it is based on the
Council of Europe’s Common European Framework of Reference for Languages
(CEFR), used across the world to map learners’ progress in English.
Pupils will learn to communicate confidently and effectively and develop the critical
skills to respond to a range of information, media and texts. Cambridge Primary
English as a Second Language develops a solid foundation for the further study of
English as a second language, and for study through the medium of English.
Divided into six stages, the Curriculum Framework covers knowledge, skills and
understanding in five strands:
• Reading.
• Writing.
• Use of English.
• Listening.
• Speaking.
The Use of English strand provides pupils with the linguistic features they need to be
able to understand and use when engaging with the language receptively (Reading
and Listening) and productively (Writing and Speaking). Pupils will revisit and engage
with language at deeper levels and in different contexts.
We will use guidelines on Geography and History from the National Curriculum of
England, tailored to fit our unique location on Koh Samui.
We teach both geography and history, with the aim that a high-quality geography
education will inspire in pupils a curiosity and fascination about the world and its people
that will remain with them for the rest of their lives. The teaching aims to equip pupils
with knowledge about diverse places, people, resources and natural and human
environments, together with a deep understanding of the Earth’s key physical and
human processes.
As pupils progress, their growing knowledge about the world should help them to
deepen their understanding of the interaction between physical and human processes
and of the formation and use of landscapes and environments. Geographical
knowledge, understanding and skills provide the frameworks and approaches that
explain how the Earth’s features at different scales are shaped, interconnected and
change over time.
Pupils will develop knowledge about the world, the United Kingdom and their locality,
Koh Samui and Thailand. They will learn to understand basic subject-specific
vocabulary relating to human and physical geography and begin to use geographical
skills, including first-hand observation, to enhance their locational awareness.
Pupils should be taught to:
(Locational knowledge)
• Name and locate the world’s seven continents and five oceans
• Name, locate and identify characteristics of the four countries and capital cities
of the United Kingdom and its surrounding seas
(Place knowledge)
• Understand geographical similarities and differences through studying the
human and physical geography of a small area of the United Kingdom, and of
a small area in a contrasting country - Thailand
(Human and physical geography)
• Identify seasonal and daily weather patterns in Thailand and the location of hot
and cold areas of the world in relation to the Equator and the North and South
Poles
Use basic geographical vocabulary to refer to:
• Key physical features, including: beach, cliff, coast, forest, hill, mountain, sea,
ocean, river, soil, valley, vegetation, season and weather
• Key human features, including: city, town, village, factory, farm, house, office,
port, harbour and shop
(Geographical skills and fieldwork)
• Use world maps, atlases and globes to identify the United Kingdom and its
countries, as well as the countries, continents and oceans studied at this key
stage
• Use simple compass directions (North, South, East and West) and locational
and directional language [for example, near and far; left and right], to describe
the location of features and routes on a map
• Use aerial photographs and plan perspectives to recognise landmarks and
basic human and physical features; devise a simple map; and use and
construct basic symbols in a key
• Use simple fieldwork and observational skills to study the geography of their
school and its grounds and the key human and physical features of its
surrounding environment.
In Key Stage 2 (Years 3,4,5 and 6), pupils extend their knowledge and understanding
beyond the local area to include Thailand, Europe, North and South America. This will
include the location and characteristics of a range of the world’s most significant
human and physical features. They should develop their use of geographical
knowledge, understanding and skills to enhance their locational and place knowledge.
(Locational knowledge)
• Locate the world’s countries, using maps to focus on ASEAN, Europe (including
the location of Russia) and North and South America, concentrating on their
environmental regions, key physical and human characteristics, countries, and
major cities
• Name and locate counties and cities of Thailand, geographical regions and their
identifying human and physical characteristics, key topographical features
(including hills, mountains, coasts and rivers), and land-use patterns; and
understand how some of these aspects have changed over time
• Identify the position and significance of latitude, longitude, Equator, Northern
Hemisphere, Southern Hemisphere, the Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn,
Arctic and Antarctic Circle, the Prime/Greenwich Meridian and time zones
(including day and night)
(Place knowledge)
• Understand geographical similarities and differences through the study of
human and physical geography of a region of the United Kingdom, Thailand,
and a region within North or South America
(Human and physical geography)
Describe and understand key aspects of:
• Physical geography, including: climate zones, biomes and vegetation belts,
rivers, mountains, volcanoes and earthquakes, and the water cycle
• Human geography, including: types of settlement and land use, economic
activity including trade links, and the distribution of natural resources including
energy, food, minerals and water
(Geographical skills and fieldwork)
• Use maps, atlases, globes and digital/computer mapping to locate countries
and describe features studied
• Use the eight points of a compass, four and six-figure grid references, symbols
and key (including the use of Ordnance Survey maps) to build their knowledge
of the United Kingdom and the wider world
• Use fieldwork to observe, measure, record and present the human and physical
features in the local area using a range of methods, including sketch maps,
plans and graphs, and digital technologies
A high-quality history education will help pupils gain a coherent knowledge and
understanding of Britain’s past and that of the wider world, linked to similar events in
Thailand. It should inspire pupils’ curiosity to know more about the past. Teaching
equips pupils to ask perceptive questions, think critically, weigh evidence, sift
arguments, and develop perspective and judgement. History helps pupils to
understand the complexity of people’s lives, the process of change, the diversity of
societies and relationships between different groups, as well as their own identity and
the challenges of their time.
Aims (History)
KEY STAGE 1
Pupils will develop an awareness of the past, using common words and phrases
relating to the passing of time. They should know where the people and events they
study fit within a chronological framework and identify similarities and differences
between ways of life in different periods. They will learn to use a wide vocabulary of
everyday historical terms. They should ask and answer questions, choosing and using
parts of stories and other sources to show that they know and understand key features
of events. They will learn to understand some of the ways in which we find out about
the past and identify different ways in which it is represented.
In planning to ensure the progression described above through teaching about the
people, events and changes outlined below, teachers will introduce pupils to historical
periods that they will study more fully at key stages 2 and 3.
KEY STAGE 2
In planning to ensure the progression described above through teaching the British,
local and world history outlined below, teachers should combine overview and depth
studies to help pupils understand both the long arc of development and the complexity
of specific aspects of the content.
1. Number
2. Geometry
3. Measure
4. Handling data
5. Problem solving
Music fosters creativity and builds confidence. It helps pupils to express themselves
and shows them the importance of communication as they learn to connect with other
musicians and with audiences.
Pupils explore music as performers, composers and informed listeners. They make,
understand and appreciate music from different cultures, times and places, helping
them to develop leadership and collaboration skills as well as self-confidence.
Pupils who follow the Cambridge Primary Music course
Pupils develop creative skills that will help with many aspects of their future learning
and development. The course supports progression to Cambridge Lower Secondary
Music
Cambridge Primary Music is flexible so pupils can perform through singing and playing
musical instruments of any kind (as well as sound objects and music technology).
Pupils will experience music from their own culture as well as exploring music from
other times and places. The programme complements rather than replaces
instrumental or singing lessons.
The emphasis of this course is for teachers to give pupils formative feedback on the
skills they want them to develop. This can be through discussion, observation and
lesson outputs where teachers discuss with students ‘what went well’ and how they
can improve further, so that pupils can reflect on, and improve, their performance.
Pupils develop creative skills that will help with many aspects of their future learning
and development. The course supports progression to the Cambridge Lower
Secondary Physical Education.
We teach the subject through a broad range of tasks, challenges and physical
activities. It includes cooperative, competitive, athletic, adventurous and health-based
contexts that are appropriate for each learning stage.
Pupils will move for as much of each lesson as possible, with activities designed
promote pupils’ confidence, self-esteem, cognitive abilities and social skills.
There are no Cambridge Primary Progression Tests or Checkpoint for this subject.
The emphasis of this course is for teachers to give learners formative feedback on the
skills they want students to develop. This can be through discussion, observation and
lesson outputs where teachers discuss with pupils ‘what went well’ and how they can
improve further, so that pupils can reflect on, and improve, their performance.
PRIMARY SCIENCE
Children are naturally curious, and science supports the development of a child’s
curiosity, helping them to investigate problems, learn more about the world around
them and understand and use scientific explanations for a wide range of phenomena.
1. Scientific enquiry
2. Biology.
3. Chemistry.
4. Physics.
Scientific enquiry is about considering ideas, evaluating evidence, planning
investigative work and recording and analysing data. The Scientific enquiry objectives
underpin Biology, Chemistry and Physics, which are focused on developing
confidence and interest in scientific knowledge, including environmental awareness
and history of science.
Pupils develop research, collaboration and creative skills that will help with many
aspects of their future learning and development.