The Academic Curriculum

Children are taught English Language & Literature, Maths, Science, French, Spanish (Year 6), Geography, History, Religious Studies, Music, Drama, Art, Sport and Computing, Design & Technology, as well as British Sign Language and Forest School (Lower Prep). At St Pius X, the core skills of language and literacy, creative thinking and mathematical and scientific understanding are the fundamentals of each child’s learning journey.

At St Pius X Catholic Preparatory School, we lay strong foundations in numeracy, problem solving, handwriting, spelling, grammar, communication, poetry and creative writing. In Year 3 and above, the curriculum is taught by our subject specialists in order to provide greater educational depth for each of our pupils. Formal learning is supported with project work, field trips and varying events throughout the school term.

At St Pius X Catholic Preparatory School, Literacy aims to instil all our children with a love of reading and writing. We encourage our pupils to develop curious and enquiring minds through a broad, creative and wide-ranging curriculum and to absorb a rich variety of language, expressing themselves creatively and imaginatively through all media, stories, poetry, drama and non-fiction.

The subject is taught with a strong focus on phonic knowledge and comprehension. We use a range of reading schemes in our Reception classes, ensuring the reading books are closely matched to the phonics skills we are teaching. 

Annual events like World Book Day, combined with termly drama and reading workshops, and author talks, support the curriculum and make learning even more interactive.

Walk into an English lesson at St Pius X and you never know what you could encounter, from a court room debate to writing news articles.

Studying English develops our pupils’ abilities to listen, speak, read and write for a wide range of purposes, using language to learn and communicate ideas, views and feelings. 

Our pupils develop communicative currency as we encourage each child to talk with confidence and clarity, and we teach them how to listen and respond to others with courtesy. The children are encouraged each day to be confident speakers and communicators.

As a preparatory school, giving our pupils an insight into where their hard work will take them is important. 

Lessons in English and Math and tests in those skills tend to dominate the curriculum in many schools. Whilst these subjects are fundamental, learning involves far more than merely acquiring inert knowledge. Such a narrow focus can give short shrift to the way that children need to grow and learn in their relationships, identity, emotional understanding, and overall well-being. Children are multi-dimensional ‘whole’ beings whose development is complex and rich.

At St Pius X, we identify key areas of school success that allow us to care for and nurture the potential in our children. Through a positive school climate, productive strategies, social-emotional development, and individualised support, we help each child develop individually to their full potential.

Our Prep-School curriculum is designed with support and nurture in mind. Early intervention and theraputic provision is paired with cross-curricular exploratory learning and a strong extra-curricular offering. Our pupils are encouraged to build confidence in themselves and independence in their learning.