Personal Development

At Sunny Bank, our curriculum extends beyond the National Curriculum and provides a wide range of enriching experiences and opportunities both within and beyond the school day. When planning these opportunities, our focus is to raise aspirations, support personal and social development and help children develop a sense of pride in their achievements. We aim to ensure that all pupils are happy, challenged, successful and proud of their learning journey.

 

Alongside our broad and exciting curriculum offer, we provide additional opportunities to enrich learning and create memorable experiences for every child.

 

Cultural Capital

Every child and family who joins our setting will have their own knowledge and experiences that will link to their culture and wider family. This might include: languages; beliefs; traditions; cultural and family heritage; interests; travel and work.

Research shows that when children and families’ cultures are valued, both the child’s experience of learning and progress can benefit. (Husain et al, 2018, p.4 and Gazzard, E. 2018 in Chalmers, H. and Crisfield, E. 2019)

Cultural capital is the accumulation of knowledge, behaviours and skills that a child can draw upon and which demonstrates their cultural awareness, knowledge and competence; it is one of the key ingredients a pupil will draw upon to be successful in society, their career and the world of work.

Cultural capital gives power. It helps children achieve goals, become successful and rise up the social ladder without necessarily having wealth or financial capital. Cultural capital is having assets that give children the desire to aspire and achieve social mobility, whatever their starting point.

 

Sunny Bank Pupil Passport

Our Sunny Bank Passport has been carefully designed to provide pupils with a range of enriching experiences throughout each year group. These experiences help broaden children’s horizons and create meaningful opportunities beyond the classroom. For example, pupils in Reception visit a local post box to send a letter, while pupils in Year 6 have the opportunity to write, direct and edit their own play or short film.

 

Whole School Theme Days and Weeks

Throughout the year, themed days and weeks are embedded into the curriculum to further enrich learning and provide pupils with a broad range of experiences. These include Culture Week, Black History Month, Internet Safety Week and World Book Day. In addition to this, we plan and deliver an annual Careers Week for all pupils in school. Over the course of the week, pupils meet with a range of visitors who explain their careers in more detail. In previous years, we have received visits from a chef, a BBC news reporter, a doctor, a construction worker and an architect. Pupils begin thinking about their place in the wider world from a young age. 

 

Educational Visits and Residentials

Educational visits are an important part of the quality of education at Sunny Bank and are planned to enhance and deepen classroom learning through first-hand experiences. Opportunities may also include sporting events and performances with the school choir.

Children in Years 5 and 6 take part in an annual residential visit, offering exciting opportunities to develop independence, teamwork and confidence through experiences that may be new to many of our pupils.

 

Visitors into School

Visitors play an important role in enriching our broad and balanced curriculum. Pupils have opportunities to work with authors, performers and professionals who deliver talks, workshops and interactive learning experiences.

For example, Reception pupils meet police officers, doctors and other people who help us in our community, while Year 6 pupils benefit from visits and workshops delivered by Bury Youth Service.

 

After-School Clubs

We offer a wide range of extra-curricular opportunities through our after-school clubs programme. Activities vary throughout the year and are reviewed termly to provide pupils with a broad selection of experiences that reflect their interests and the changing seasons.