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Strengths
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- The teaching of dance in Year 5 is excellent; the teacher’s high level of subject knowledge, very good planning and excellent choice of music (‘Beatles’, folk, modern jazz, etc.) meant that pupils achieved good standards. p.48
- In an excellent lesson in the computer suite with reception class children, the teacher’s very effective use of the projector in her introduction enabled her to p.15
- Features of excellent teaching, seen in Year 5 include very high expectation, brisk pace, quality questioning which p.38
- The very effective teaching in the nursery and reception classes enables children to make good progress. p.12
- There are examples of good teaching in all year groups with more consistently good, and sometimes very good or excellent teaching in the nursery and reception classes and in Years 3-6. p.15
Concerns
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- These were mainly in Years 1 and 2 and reflected the weak planning and organisation for the session and the poor match of work to the pupils’ abilities. p.15
- However, the school has rightly focused on dealing with the serious weaknesses identified in the last inspection. p.17
- 52 The school has made very good progress against the serious weaknesses identified in the last inspection in 2000 and these have been resolved. p.21
- Information on pupils’ attainment in science exists but it is not yet used accurately enough to identify and address specific strengths and weaknesses or track pupils’ progress as they move through the school. p.41
- They are not always well prepared for the new challenge since some topics may not have been covered in the other set. p.40
Next steps
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- Further improve standards in mathematics by ensuring that pupils have more opportunities to learn how to apply their learning to solving problems. p.8
- Standards in subjects such as design and technology and art and design by improving curriculum planning and development to give a greater priority to these subjects. p.8
- The management procedures in Years 1 and 2 (Key Stage 1) to ensure that the curriculum is carefully planned to meet the ages and abilities of all pupils and so promote more effective teaching and learning. p.8
- The areas for improvement will form the basis of the governors’ action plan. p.8
- The head teacher, senior staff and governors have responded very well to the previous inspection in 2000. p.8
- The school has made very good progress and has overcome the serious weaknesses identified in the last report. p.8
- Standards in mathematics and science are steadily improving and there has been substantial improvement in English. p.8
- Management has effectively monitored teaching and learning and the quality of teaching is much higher than it was. p.8
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- 49
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- 23,417
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- Hard
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Full report text
BELMONT PRIMARY SCHOOL
Dates of inspection: 28 th – 31 st January 2002
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BELMONT PRIMARY SCHOOL
Inspection number: 223352 Full inspection carried out under section 10 of the School Inspections Act 1996 This report may be reproduced in whole or in part for non-commercial educational purposes, provided that all extracts quoted are reproduced verbatim without adaptation and on condition that the source and date thereof are stated.
p.1
BELMONT PRIMARY SCHOOL
Further copies of this report are obtainable from the school. Under the School Inspections Act 1996, the school must provide a copy of this report and/or its summary free of charge to certain categories of people. A charge not exceeding the full cost of reproduction may be made for any other copies supplied. Belmont Primary School - 1
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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL
School address: Lauderdale Drive Guisborough Cleveland
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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL
Appropriate authority: The governing body
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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL
Name of chair of governors: Mr M Bloomfield
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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL
Date of previous inspection: March 2000 Belmont Primary School - 2
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responsibilities
2456 Mrs J Bell Registered inspector Information and communication technology What sort of school is it?
p.4
responsibilities
Physical education The school’s results and pupils’ achievements. The foundation stage How well are the pupils taught? English as an additional language How well is the school led and managed? What should the school do to improve further? 14083 Mr A Anderson Lay inspector Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development. How well does the school care for its pupils? How well does the school work in partnership with parents? 14991 Mr A Hardwicke Team inspector Geography Religious education Special educational needs Equal opportunities 15474 Mr J Fairclough Team inspector Mathematics History Music 23375 Mr J Hicks Team inspector Science How good are the curricular and other opportunities offered to pupils? Design and technology Belmont Primary School - 3 19120 Mr D Pattinson Team inspector English Art and design
p.4
responsibilities
Eclipse (Education) Limited 14 Enterprise House Kingsway Team Valley Gateshead NE11 0SR.
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responsibilities
Any concerns or complaints about the inspection or the report should be raised with the inspection contractor. Complaints that are not satisfactorily resolved by the contractor should be raised with OFSTED by writing to:
p.5
responsibilities
The Complaints Manager Inspection Quality Division
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responsibilities
Alexandra House 33 Kingsway London WC2B 6SE. Belmont Primary School - 4
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PART A: SUMMARY OF THE REPORT 5
Information about the school How good the school is What the school does well What could be improved How the school has improved since its last inspection Standards Pupils’ attitudes and values Teaching and learning Other aspects of the school How well the school is led and managed Parents’ and carers’ views of the school
p.6
HOW HIGH ARE STANDARDS? 10
The school’s results and pupils’ achievements Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development
p.6
INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL
Belmont is bigger than most primaries and admits pupils aged three to 11. It is situated close to the centre of the town of Guisborough and serves an area of mainly privately owned housing, plus some local authority and privately rented houses. The school admits almost half its pupils from beyond the immediate catchment area. There are 387 pupils on roll, 213 boys and 174 girls; this includes 70 children who attend the nursery part time. Children enter the nursery with a broad range of attainment but most have average language, literacy, social and mathematical skills for their age. There are 45 pupils on the school’s register of special educational needs; this is well below average. Of these many are at an early stage of need and only one has a statement of specific need, which is below average for a school of this size. Twenty-two pupils joined school other than at usual admission time and 14
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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL
left the school. This level of transience means that there is some disruption to the learning of these pupils. There are four children from other ethnic backgrounds, none of these children are at an early stage of learning English. Thirty pupils are eligible for free school meals, eight per cent of the school population. This is below the national average. The school was created from the amalgamation of a junior and infant school in 1992 and the split site causes some organisational problems.
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HOW GOOD THE SCHOOL IS
This is a good school. The pupils enjoy their work and are keen to learn. The high proportion of effective teaching and learning has improved pupils’ progress and enables pupils to achieve high standards in English and satisfactory standards in mathematics and science. The leadership and management of the school are good; the head teacher, staff and governors have a shared commitment to raise standards and this is proving successful. The school provides good value for money.
p.7
What the school does well
• The head teacher provides very effective leadership and is well supported by the deputy head teacher, staff and governors. Teamwork is good. • The provision for the foundation stage (nursery and reception classes) is very good and ensures that these children make a good start to their education. • Teaching is mainly good and sometimes very good or excellent in the foundation stage and junior classes. • Pupils’ personal development is very good; it is at the heart of the school’s aims and reflects the very good provision for pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. • All staff provide a high level of care for pupils; relationships are very good and so pupils develop very good attitudes to their work and behave well. • The school makes good provision for pupils with special educational needs and they make good progress. Belmont Primary School - 6
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What could be improved
• Further improve standards in mathematics by ensuring that pupils have more opportunities to learn how to apply their learning to solving problems. • Standards in subjects such as design and technology and art and design by improving curriculum planning and development to give a greater priority to these subjects. • The management procedures in Years 1 and 2 (Key Stage 1) to ensure that the curriculum is carefully planned to meet the ages and abilities of all pupils and so promote more effective teaching and learning. The areas for improvement will form the basis of the governors’ action plan.
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HOW THE SCHOOL HAS IMPROVED SINCE ITS LAST INSPECTION
The head teacher, senior staff and governors have responded very well to the previous inspection in 2000. The school has made very good progress and has overcome the serious weaknesses identified in the last report. Standards in mathematics and science are steadily improving and there has been substantial improvement in English. Management has effectively monitored teaching and learning and the quality of teaching is much higher than it was. The role of subject co-ordinators is more effective and they are giving a good lead in developing their subjects. The governors are well aware of what the school does well and where it could improve, and work with the staff to ensure that the targets in the school improvement plan are sufficiently challenging and matched to the needs of pupils. The teachers’ planning for the curriculum has improved and is now based on national guidance. Planning for the term now includes some opportunities to extend pupils’ learning to help them attain higher
p.8
HOW THE SCHOOL HAS IMPROVED SINCE ITS LAST INSPECTION
levels. Most staff use the information from their assessments of pupils’ progress in lessons to plan work that builds on what pupils already know. However, this is not yet sufficiently established in the Key Stage 1 classes and so the same work is sometimes presented to all pupils in Years 1 and 2 irrespective of age and ability. The school has made substantial improvement in its provision for information and communication technology (ICT). New computers and software in classrooms, the creation of a well-resourced computer suite and well-planned staff training have ensured that standards are rising and match those attained in most other schools. The school has a good partnership with parents and they support the school well. There is good commitment from staff and governors to continue to improve the school’s effectiveness.
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STANDARDS
The table shows the standards achieved by pupils at the end of Year 6 based on average point scores in National Curriculum tests.
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Key
English C C A A well above average above average A B mathematics D D B C Average below average C D science D B B C well below average E Belmont Primary School - 7 Over the past five years the school’s performance has improved at a similar rate to most other schools. In recent years the results for seven year olds in national tests in reading have improved and were above the average for their age in the 2001 national tests. Standards in writing and mathematics were broadly average. However, standards were below those attained in similar schools in reading and writing and well below the performance of these schools in mathematics. This is because fewer pupils reach the higher levels. More able pupils could do better in these subjects if work was sufficiently challenging. In the 2001 tests for 11 year olds, pupils’ results were well above the national average in English and were above average in mathematics and science. The school does well in
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Key
English when compared to schools with a similar number of free school meals but performance is similar to these schools in mathematics and science. The school has set suitably challenging targets for this year and is on track to meet them. On the basis of the current work, pupils’ standards by the age of 11 are above average in English and broadly average in mathematics and science. The improved provision and the good range of experiences provided throughout the school means that standards in ICT are improving rapidly and match, and sometimes exceed those expected by the age of 11. Standards in history are above average but those in art and design, and in design and technology are not high enough. This reflects the low priority given to curriculum development in these subjects. Pupils with special educational needs are supported well and so achieve well in relation to their ability. Pupils for whom English is an additional language do not require extra help and achieve well.
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Aspect Comment
Attitudes to the school Very good. Pupils take a keen interest in lessons and concentrate well.
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Aspect Comment
Behaviour, in and out of classrooms Good. Teachers manage pupils well and so behaviour is good in lessons and when they move about the school or go out to play.
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Aspect Comment
Personal development and relationships Very good. The very good relationships ensure a very positive ethos in which pupils show maturity and respect for each other. They get on well together.
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Aspect Comment
Attendance Very good. Pupils enjoy school and are punctual.
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Aspect Comment
Most pupils work well in groups and, when working independently, they take the initiative for their own learning. Older pupils, the ‘Belmont Buddies’, assist the midday supervisors and help to care well for younger children. Pupils are quick to offer help to others and those of all ages, abilities and backgrounds mix well together.
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Years 1 – 2 Years 3 – 6
Quality of teaching Good Satisfactory Good
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Years 1 – 2 Years 3 – 6
Inspectors make judgements about teaching in the range: excellent; very good; good; satisfactory; unsatisfactory; poor; very poor. ‘Satisfactory’ means that the teaching is adequate and strengths outweigh weaknesses.
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Years 1 – 2 Years 3 – 6
The teaching is good overall with some very good, and sometimes excellent teaching in the foundation stage and in Years 3-6. Only a few lessons were unsatisfactory, mainly in Years 1 and 2 and reflected the weak planning and organisation of lessons and the poor match of work to the pupils’ Belmont Primary School - 8 abilities. Teaching is more consistently good in the foundation stage and in the Years 3-6. Teachers in the foundation stage plan their lessons well with nursery nurses and classroom support assistants and so children achieve well and make good progress and are well prepared for work in Year 1. The teaching is mainly satisfactory and occasionally good in Years 1 and 2. However, pupils’ progress, although satisfactory, is not as good as it should be and staff do not build sufficiently on the good start pupils have in the foundation stage. Teaching is mainly good and sometimes very good in Years 3 to 6
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Years 1 – 2 Years 3 – 6
with some good teaching in all these year groups. Teachers’ expectations of pupils’ behaviour are high and they use effective strategies to manage their pupils. Many teachers provide interesting activities that encourage learning. The basic skills of literacy are taught at least satisfactorily and reinforced well in subjects such as history. The teaching of numeracy is sound but pupils need more opportunities to use their skills in tackling real life problems. The teaching of pupils with special needs is good. Activities are well matched to their age and ability and the targets identified in their individual learning plans are sufficiently clear to enable class teachers to plan suitable work. Pupils for whom English is an additional language do not require extra support and make mainly good gains in their learning.
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Aspect Comment
The quality and range of the curriculum Satisfactory. Staff enhance pupils’ learning through well-planned visits to support the curriculum. There is a good range of extra-curricular activities. Provision for the foundation stage is very good.
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Aspect Comment
Provision for pupils with special educational needs Good. These pupils are well supported both in class and when withdrawn to receive extra help, either individually or in small groups. ‘Booster’ classes work well to improve literacy skills.
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Aspect Comment
Provision for pupils with English as an additional language Satisfactory. The school has no pupils at an early stage of learning English. No pupils require extra support and so access the same curriculum as other pupils.
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Aspect Comment
Provision for pupils’ personal, including spiritual, moral, social and cultural development Very good. Pupils’ personal development is given high priority. The school supports pupils’ spiritual, social and moral development very effectively. Pupils’ awareness of their own and other cultures is developing well. These areas are central to the very effective ethos of the school.
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Aspect Comment
How well the school cares for its pupils Very good. The school provides a high level of care for its pupils. It has very good procedures for monitoring pupils’ attendance and personal development and good procedures to check on pupils’ academic progress and behaviour.
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Aspect Comment
The curriculum has successfully focused on improving standards in English, mathematics and science. This has meant that other subjects such as design and technology and art and design have not been a priority and have not been taught in sufficient depth, so standards have slipped. There are good procedures to track pupils’ progress over time but information from assessment is not used well in Years 1 and 2 where work is not as well matched to the pupils’ needs as it could be. The school’s partnership with parents is good and they provide effective support for their children’s learning. Belmont Primary School - 9
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Aspect Comment
Leadership and management by the head teacher and other key staff Good. Leadership, management and the day-to-day organisation are good. There is a shared and effective commitment to raising standards. The head teacher provides very good leadership and is well supported by the deputy head teacher, staff and governors.
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Aspect Comment
How well the governors fulfil their responsibilities Good. The link of individual governors to subjects is working well; they are gaining a good awareness of the strengths of the school and have the expertise to bring about any improvements.
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Aspect Comment
The school’s evaluation of its performance Good. The school analyses and uses a wide range of information to check how well it is doing. Staff review the success of initiatives and agree future needs.
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Aspect Comment
The strategic use of resources Good. All resources are used well to support identified priorities and specific grants are used effectively for the purpose intended. The governors apply the principles of best value to all spending decisions to ensure the best provision for the pupils.
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Aspect Comment
More needs to be done to ensure more effective management procedures in Key Stage 1 by further developing the role of the co-ordinator in order to speed up pupils’ rate of learning and improve standards. The accommodation is satisfactory and is well looked after by the caretaker and cleaning staff. Staffing is good and extra funding has been used well to provide extra support staff in classrooms. Resources for learning are satisfactory.
p.11
What pleases parents most What parents would like to see improved
• They feel comfortable in approaching the school. • The school expects their children to work hard and do their best. • Their children like school. • The school helps children to become mature and responsible. • Behaviour in the school is good. • The amount of homework. • The range of activities outside of the school day. • The way the school works with parents and keeps them informed about their children’s progress.
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What pleases parents most What parents would like to see improved
Inspectors agree with all the positive views of the parents. The inspectors do not agree with the areas parents would like to see improved. The school has a good partnership with parents and the quality of the information provided for parents is very good. The amount of homework is similar to that of most other primary schools. The school provides a good range of activities outside of the school day. Belmont Primary School - 10
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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements
1 Children enter the nursery with a broad range of attainment but most have average language, literacy, social and mathematical skills. The very effective teaching in the nursery and reception classes enables children to make good progress. The good range of activities presented to the children means that they achieve the standards expected for their age in all areas of learning. Many are on track to exceed the learning goals expected for their age, particularly in their language and literacy work, physical skills, and their knowledge and understanding of the world about them. Children are developing good information and communication technology skills. Staff in the foundation stage give a high priority to developing children’s personal and social development. Children are well settled into school routines and are confident in moving about their class bases. This area of learning is well above
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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements
expectations, even though some children are at an early stage of their school career.
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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements
2 Over the past five years, standards in English, mathematics and science have improved at a similar rate to most other schools. Standards in the Year 2001 national tests in English were well above the national average and were above average in mathematics and science. The school does well in English when compared to schools with a similar number of free school meals but performance is similar to these schools in mathematics and science. These standards have improved well since the last inspection. The school has set suitably challenging targets for this year and is on track to meet them. In the national tests in reading for pupils aged seven, standards have improved over recent years and in the 2001 tests, results were above the average for their age. Standards in writing and mathematics were broadly average. However, standards were below those attained in similar schools in reading and writing and well below the performance of these schools in mathematics. This is
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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements
because fewer pupils reach the higher levels. More able pupils could do better in these subjects if work provided sufficient challenge. Teachers’ assessments of pupils’ attainment in science were broadly average.
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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements
3 There are a number reasons why standards by the end of Year 2 do not match those attained in similar schools, even though inspection evidence indicates that there is some sound and occasionally good teaching across the age range. More able pupils are not always sufficiently challenged since there is too little use made of the day-to-day assessments of what pupils have learned to ensure work builds on previous learning. Staff often present the same work to pupils whatever their age and ability.
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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements
4 On the basis of the current work, pupils’ standards by the age of 11 are above average in English and broadly average in mathematics and science. There are few differences in the attainment of boys and girls. Inspection findings show that standards in speaking and listening are often good by the age of 11. Pupils make satisfactory gains in learning through Years 1 and 2, and good progress throughout Years 3-6. Pupils speak with increasing fluency, clarity and confidence as they move through the school. Drama is extensively used to help develop language skills, especially for younger pupils. By the end of Year 2 pupils usually listen carefully and make relevant responses to questions. However, by the end of Year 6, most pupils talk confidently and listen well to teachers and each other.
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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements
5 Pupils’ standards in reading are often above average by the end of Year 2 and Year 6. This is because teachers give a suitable emphasis to the teaching of reading through guided reading sessions and the regular teaching of letter sounds. Teachers show that they enjoy books and so promote a love of reading in their pupils. However, the choice of text is not always well matched to the reading Belmont Primary School - 11 abilities for pupils in Year 1 and this slows their progress. Year 2 pupils show a sound understanding of what they read but do not have sufficient understanding of using the contents and index pages of books to find information.
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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements
6 Many parents hear their children read regularly at home. This supports pupils’ progress well as they move through the school and by Year 6 pupils read confidently and competently from a wide variety of texts. Pupils’ ability to read for information is often promoted well through the teaching of research and study skills, which helps them to learn in other subjects such as history and religious education.
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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements
7 In writing, pupils’ attainment is above average by the end of Year 2, except in handwriting. Progress is good in the development of writing skills as pupils move from Year 3 to Year 6 and attainment is above average by the age of 11. However, not all teachers emphasise the importance of neatly presented work; some pupils in Year 2 begin joined writing before their letters show accurate form and consistent size. This results in standards of presentation, which sometimes deteriorate as pupils make the transition to joined writing. By the end of Year 6, pupils’ handwriting styles show great variation and work is not consistently well presented.
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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements
8 By the end of Year 2, most pupils spell simple common words correctly, can use full stops and capital letters accurately and develop ideas into a sequence of sentences to write stories and accounts. By the end of Year 6, most pupils write independently and use a good range of imaginative vocabulary. Teachers provide good opportunities for pupils to edit and re-draft their work and this is helping to improve the quality of their writing. They write for a variety of purposes and use dictionaries to check their spelling, although standards in spelling are variable with some pupils making careless errors.
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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements
9 The improvements in mathematics reflect the teachers’ sound implementation of the National Numeracy Strategy, improved teaching, planning and assessment. In particular, teachers in Years 3-6 have higher expectations of pupils since the last inspection and this is ensuring greater challenge in the work provided. Although standards in current work are broadly average, they could be higher. Pupils in Year 6 show good levels of attainment in number work; they know about fractions and negative numbers when used in temperature and they can name types of angles such as acute and obtuse as well as converting weights and other measures from grams to kilograms and centimetres to metres. However, the school does not yet develop pupils’ use of mathematics in real-life settings to teach clear methods of problem solving. Throughout the school, pupils’ knowledge of shape, space and measure is mainly factual and does not enable them to apply what they know when they are presented within
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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements
written problems. They are beginning to use their numeracy skills successfully in other subjects, such as science and geography as they present their findings in tables and graphs. They increasingly use their information and communication technology (ICT) skills for data handling.
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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements
10 Standards in science are steadily improving since the teachers’ planning is now based on national guidance that ensures that pupils have a sound range of activities and experiences that develop their skills, knowledge and understanding. By the end of Year 6, pupils’ attainment matches the standards expected nationally for their age. Although the attainment of pupils of higher ability has also improved, more could attain the higher levels if they were sufficiently challenged. Standards at the end of Year 2 could be higher if teachers in Years 1 and 2 used their knowledge of what the pupils know to modify the lesson framework provided by the science co-ordinator to match the age and ability of their pupils.
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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements
11 The improved provision and the good range of experiences provided throughout the school means that standards in ICT are improving rapidly and match, and sometimes exceed those expected Belmont Primary School - 12 by the age of 11. Pupils achieve well in their knowledge and understanding of religious education, and standards by the age of seven and 11 are at the levels identified in the syllabus taught in local schools. Teachers make good use of visits to places of worship representative of different faiths. This valuable first-hand experience helps pupils to build in a stimulating and interesting way on their previous knowledge from work done in lessons.
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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements
12 Pupils enjoy the good range of interesting activities in history and standards are often good by the age of seven and 11. There is some good work in dance and music in the top years of the school. Standards in art and design, and in design and technology are not high enough. This reflects the school’s understandable priority on raising standards in English, mathematics and science. This has resulted in a low priority placed on some other subjects.
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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements
13 Pupils with special educational needs are fully included in the life of the school and are given the same opportunities as other pupils. All activities are presented in ways that are appropriate for their levels of understanding. These pupils are supported well and so achievement is good in relation to their ability. Individual targets are well matched to their needs and their progress against them reviewed regularly to promote further learning. Pupils for whom English is an additional language do not require extra help and achieve well.
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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development
14 Pupils’ positive attitudes, their behaviour and the high levels of attendance are real strengths of the school and have a positive impact on the standards achieved. Their attitudes to the school are very good and have improved since the last inspection. They consistently demonstrate positive attitudes to their work. Pupils are confident, motivated, enthusiastic and eager to learn. They quickly settle down in registrations, assemblies and in class. Children are attentive to their teachers, willingly ask and answer questions, and freely offer their own ideas and opinions. Most pupils are capable of sustaining high levels of concentration, persevering with difficulties and staying on task. Most parents agree that their children like school.
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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development
15 Standards of behaviour are good and sometimes very good. This shows improvement since the last inspection. The teaching and non-teaching staff, parents and the pupils themselves have high expectations of the standards of behaviour that are acceptable in the school. Most pupils behave well and act in a mature and responsible manner at all times. Their behaviour in the classrooms, at breaks and at lunchtime is good, and they move around the school in a quiet and orderly manner. There were no signs of any bullying or isolation of individual pupils. However, there is a small, but significant, number of children who can on occasions present challenging behaviour, which if not checked can disrupt lessons. There have been no exclusions in recent years. Many parents agree that behaviour in the school is good.
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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development
16 The relationships in the school are very good. The pupils relate very well to their teachers, to other adults and also to one another. Pupils are polite, courteous and welcoming to visitors. Children of all ages work very well together in the classrooms. They collaborate well, share resources, take turns and listen to each other. For instance, when they share computers, play musical instruments together and collaboratively design dance movements. The vast majority of pupils consistently show respect for their teachers, each other and the environment. During assemblies, they are respectful of the occasion, willingly join in hymn singing and bow their heads reverently during prayers and periods of reflection.
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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development
17 The pupils’ personal development is very good. From their start in the nursery, children learn a very good range of social skills that is helping them to develop into well-rounded individuals. In the Belmont Primary School - 13 classrooms, most pupils willingly take responsibility for their own work, and in lessons they work independently and take the initiative in their own learning. The “Belmont Buddies” assist the midday supervisors and are helpful to younger children. A good range of extra-curricular activities enhances pupils’ personal and social development and reflects the hard work of the teaching staff and some parents. Clubs are run regularly for sporting activities such as netball and football as well as others with an arts bias such as music and art. There is a good emphasis on supporting pupils’ academic development. For example there is a book club and a homework club. Pupils take part in these clubs
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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development
and activities with evident enthusiasm and develop their intellectual and social skills further as a result. Pupils go out of school on a wide range of social and educational visits, including a residential experience for the older children. The school supports local and national charities and the pupils are learning to be aware of others less fortunate than themselves. Most parents agree that the school is helping their children to become mature and responsible.
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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development
18 Pupils with special educational needs are fully included in the life of the school and are given opportunities to develop the same attitudes and values as other pupils. All activities are presented in ways that are appropriate for their levels of understanding. The quality of relationships, which underlies all that the school does, is effectively communicated to all pupils through the example set by teachers, support assistants and other adults.
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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development
19 The attendance rate at the school is well above the national average. The rate of unauthorised absence is below the national average. The school has maintained the very good attendance identified in the last inspection.
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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?
20 The quality of teaching has improved substantially since the last inspection when it was described as unsatisfactory. The teaching is now good overall; the proportion of good and very good teaching has increased and there are few unsatisfactory lessons. There are examples of good teaching in all year groups with more consistently good, and sometimes very good or excellent teaching in the nursery and reception classes and in Years 3-6. Only a few lessons were unsatisfactory. These were mainly in Years 1 and 2 and reflected the weak planning and organisation for the session and the poor match of work to the pupils’ abilities.
p.15
HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?
21 The high proportion of good and very good teaching in the nursery and reception classes ensures that children have a very good start to their learning and make good progress. Teachers in these classes plan their lessons very well, with very clear aims and good links to longer-term plans. The nursery nurses and classroom assistants work well with teachers to support the children’s achievement across all the areas of learning. These support staff take a full role in teaching and work well with the children, particularly those who need extra help.
p.15
HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?
22 Although teaching is mainly satisfactory in the Year 1 and 2 classes teachers fail to build on the good work done in the foundation stage and so pupils’ progress slows. Although pupils’ learning is mainly satisfactory it could be better. The teachers in these classes rely too heavily on the framework for lessons passed to them by subject co-ordinators. They do not adapt this guidance sufficiently in all lessons to meet the age and abilities of their pupils. This means that pupils in Years 1 and 2 are presented with the same work. In these lessons too little account is taken of the assessments teachers have made of their pupils’ progress to plan work that builds on what they already know. This can slow the rate of pupils’ learning and impacts on their attainment by the end of Year 2.
p.15
HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?
23 In the many effective lessons, teachers use a good range of teaching methods. In these lessons, teachers are enthusiastic; they transmit this to pupils and so they are eager to respond. Many Belmont Primary School - 14 teachers provide good introductions to their lessons and stimulate pupils’ interest and so they listen well and are eager to take part. For example, at the beginning of a Year 5 mathematics lesson, the teacher’s well-organised and resourced oral session ensured a brisk pace as pupils accurately worked out doubles or trebles on a ‘dartboard’ shown on an overhead projector. She encouraged all pupils to take part and the good relationships in the class gave them the confidence to talk about the methods they had used to arrive at the answers. In an excellent lesson in the computer suite with reception class children, the teacher’s very effective use of the projector in her introduction enabled her to
p.15
HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?
provide a very clear demonstration to ensure they knew what to do. This enabled the children to use icons, select symbols and ‘drag’ pictures to create pictograms to show weather patterns.
p.16
HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?
24 Teachers develop very good relationships with pupils, which helps them to manage pupils’ behaviour very effectively. In most lessons the pace is good and so pupils concentrate well. This was evident in a very good gymnastics lesson where the good range and increasing challenge in the different balances kept pupils interested and eager to refine their movements and link them together to form a sequence. Teachers use encouragement and praise skilfully to build pupils’ self esteem and boost their confidence. This enables many pupils to achieve well, whatever their ability. This is particularly positive for pupils with special educational needs who often lack confidence.
p.16
HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?
25 Literacy skills are taught well in literacy lessons and teachers often provide opportunities for these skills to be used and reinforced in subjects such as history and religious education. In many lessons staff provide good opportunities for pupils to enhance their speaking and listening skills through lively and interesting discussions. Good reinforcement is given, though not consistently, to key vocabulary in some subjects. For example in a Year 6 geography lesson, pupils took part in a very good discussion on the possible impact of human activity on coastal erosion. The teacher reinforced well their comparison of the east and west coasts of the British Isles and pupils were able to understand and use correct geographical terms such as ‘erosion’, ‘undermine’, ‘fetch’ and ‘groynes’. Pupils’ written work is not always well presented; not all teachers have sufficiently high expectations for the quality of finished work. On the other hand, teachers provide fewer opportunities within
p.16
HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?
subjects other than mathematics to develop numeracy skills. However, pupils have opportunities to learn to use a time line in history and to present their findings in science and geography, where they record numerical data in both bar and line graph form. They use measuring skills in design and technology and use computers to construct spreadsheets.
p.16
HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?
26 At the time of the last inspection, the teachers lacked confidence in teaching ICT and there was little use of computers in lessons. All staff have taken part in well-planned training and have gained in confidence and expertise. The good leadership of the subject ensures there is sound planning for the use of information and communication technology to support pupils’ knowledge in other subjects. Teachers make good use of the computer suite to develop and reinforce pupils’ skills and understanding. This has resulted in a substantial improvement in standards and enabled pupils to attain the levels expected for their age and to thoroughly enjoy their learning. Teachers have sound and often good subject expertise in most areas of the curriculum. However, some lack confidence in managing investigations in science and, although pupils make sound progress in their learning, this could be good if all teachers had greater confidence in organising practical lessons where pupils could take
p.16
HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?
more responsibility for planning and conducting their own enquiries.
p.16
HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?
27 The few pupils with English as an additional language do not require extra help and are taught well in class and achieve well, whatever their ability. It is normal practice in the school for teachers to provide different activities for the different abilities of pupils in their class. The teaching of pupils with special educational needs is good and work is well matched to their different abilities. There is a good mix of in-class teaching, and individual support, both within the classroom, and, where appropriate, through separate activities. Activities are well matched to their age and ability and the Belmont Primary School - 15 targets identified in their individual learning plans are sufficiently clear and useful to enable class teachers to plan suitable work.
p.16
HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?
28 Individual education plans are regularly reviewed, with comments from pupils and parents. Teachers and support staff work very well together to ensure that the best approaches are used. Support staff are effective in their work, and make a valuable contribution to all aspects of learning and the personal development of these pupils. Although the overall percentage of pupils in the school with special educational needs is well below the national average, they are effectively taught and so make good progress at all stages in the school.
p.17
PUPILS?
29 The school provides a good range of learning experiences that meets the needs and interests of the pupils, including those with special educational needs and those for whom English is an additional language. All subjects are taught with due regard to the National Curriculum, religious education and the early learning goals for children in the foundation stage. However, the school has rightly focused on dealing with the serious weaknesses identified in the last inspection. This has meant that there has been a strong emphasis on English, mathematics and science in order to raise standards. This has been accomplished successfully but it has resulted in subjects such as design and technology and art and design receiving little attention in order to promote their development. The school has identified this problem and work has begun on reviewing the whole curriculum in order to identify where some
p.17
PUPILS?
skills are best taught and to ensure all subjects are taught in sufficient depth. Good emphasis is given to literacy and numeracy and the school has successfully adopted the national strategies to help raise standards since the last inspection. A good range of clubs and activities outside lessons are well supported by pupils and enhance the curriculum well. The provision for pupils with special educational needs is good and this is an improvement on the findings of the last inspection. There is a well-planned programme for pupils’ personal, social and health education and citizenship. Pupils receive sex education and are made aware of the dangers of substance abuse on a regular, planned basis.
p.17
PUPILS?
30 Equality of access and opportunity is built into the everyday life of the school. Much has been done, such as the construction of access ramps, to ensure that the building is fully accessible. Policies and other school documentation give acknowledgement to issues of equal opportunities, and teachers generally do all they can to ensure that pupils of all abilities are fully included in the work.
p.17
PUPILS?
31 Issues from the last inspection report have been addressed successfully. The school has developed a much more comprehensive and systematic approach to planning and teaching the curriculum. There is now a secure framework for the curriculum and all subjects are supported by nationally approved schemes of work. This has helped pupils to attain higher standards in literacy, numeracy and information and communication technology. There is an effective early years policy that takes full account of the early learning goals for the foundation stage.
p.17
PUPILS?
32 The provision for pupils with special educational needs is good and pupils make good progress in their learning across all subjects of the curriculum. This is mainly because they receive good support in lessons from teachers and support staff who are fully aware of their individual education plans. The work is well matched to their needs, and they are given full access to all parts of the curriculum. The school’s identification and referral procedures are well organised and comply fully with national requirements. The school is well prepared for the introduction of the new Code of Practice. Pupils’ individual education plans have clear targets, and are reviewed regularly, with parents fully involved. Pupils are aware of their targets and are given the opportunity to add their own comments as part of the review process. Belmont Primary School - 16 33 The school has developed good systems for long, medium and short-term planning. All
p.17
PUPILS?
subjects are supported by schemes of work based on national guidelines. Good use is made of literacy and numeracy skills in other subjects and the use of computers to support learning is developing steadily.
p.18
PUPILS?
34 In addition to the statutory curriculum the school provides a wide range of good quality activities for both boys and girls although these are mainly aimed at older junior pupils at the moment. Activities include sports such as netball, football and athletics as well as clubs for music and some with a focus on homework or books. All pupils, including those in the nursery, take part in a number of visits to places of interest such as Saltburn, The York Railway Museum and local religious buildings. Year 5 pupils benefit from an annual residential visit to the Kingswood Activity Centre that introduces them to a range of experiences. All of these activities have a positive impact on pupils’ learning and social development.
p.18
PUPILS?
35 The school provides very well for pupils’ personal development, including their spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. Provision for spiritual, moral and social development are all very good, while that for cultural development is good. School assemblies meet statutory requirements, and give pupils opportunities to reflect on life, relationships and beliefs. In a Key Stage 1 assembly, for instance, pupils were given time to reflect on helping others when they are upset. The theme of the assembly related well to pupils’ real lives and feelings. In a Year 6 religious education lesson, pupils learnt about the expression of religious faith through art. The vicar brought his vestments in and showed the children how they are worn and what they represented. They showed awe and wonder in looking at the richness of colour and decoration in the vestments. Other areas of the curriculum also
p.18
PUPILS?
give very good opportunities for spiritual development. In work such as dance lessons, and the sharing of poetry books, pupils are given frequent opportunities to consider the spiritual aspects of life.
p.18
PUPILS?
36 The school makes very good provision for pupils’ moral development. The very good relationships between adults and children, and amongst pupils, show that there is very good understanding of the importance of sharing, considering the feelings of others, and the importance of living and working together amicably. Assemblies frequently consider moral questions, such as homelessness, and how we can help when people are made homeless through natural disasters. All staff teach pupils the difference between right and wrong, and good achievements are rewarded by the presentation of certificates in the weekly whole-school assembly. This gives everyone in the school opportunities to celebrate success and praise achievement. Teachers generally reward success through a system of merits, and often praise their pupils for good work, both verbally and in their marking. The school’s ‘Golden Rules’ are displayed on classroom walls.
p.18
PUPILS?
37 Opportunities for promoting pupils’ social development are very well taken. Throughout the school day many opportunities are provided for pupils to work together, share and help others. When working in groups pupils are taught to allocate the work fairly, and to think about how they can co- operate best to get the job done. Pupils are generally very sensitive to the needs of others, including those with special educational needs and those with English as an additional language. Teachers are good at ensuring that everyone is fully included in all aspects of the day-to-day life of the class. There is a very good system of ‘Belmont Buddies’ under which older pupils are given responsibility for helping younger pupils at lunchtime. This is beneficial to all involved, and the older pupils take their responsibilities very seriously. Pupils in the reception class make books for the nursery children, and
p.18
PUPILS?
pupils from Key Stage 2 read stories to those in Key Stage 1. The school runs residential visits, which provide very good opportunities for pupils to experience life away from home, and to share experiences with their peers. All adults in the school set a good example to pupils in working together and caring for others. Belmont Primary School - 17 38 Provision for pupils’ cultural development is good. In religious education lessons pupils learn about different religions, and how the lives of people from different cultures have similarities and differences to their own. In a religious education lesson Year 4 pupils were learning about aspects of Judaism. They used the Internet very well to take a virtual tour of a synagogue, looking at the different parts of the building, and learning their names. Pupils in Key Stage 1 learned about the significance of different festivals in Judaism. There are good opportunities that also give pupils an
p.18
PUPILS?
appreciation of their own culture, such as through participation in the Tees Valley Music Concert, and local Primary Schools Christmas Concert.
p.19
HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?
39 The school makes very good provision for the health, safety and welfare of its pupils. The head teacher provides very good leadership in this aspect. Pupils’ personal and social needs are central to the positive ethos of the school. All members of staff place a very high priority on pastoral care, and are very approachable and totally supportive. The members of the non-teaching staff are caring, committed and give very good support for both teachers and pupils. All members of staff, both teaching and non-teaching, have a very good understanding of the school’s pastoral and welfare procedures, and implement them consistently and conscientiously. Child protection procedures are securely in place and there is a very good awareness of them throughout the school. The governors and the head teacher take their health and safety responsibilities seriously and all the required health and safety inspections, checks and risk assessments are systematically carried out and formally
p.19
HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?
recorded. Conscientious teachers and teaching assistants, who are alert and vigilant, supervise pupils very well at breaks. Lunchtime supervision is undertaken conscientiously, and the standard of care is high.
p.19
HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?
40 The school has effective procedures for promoting and monitoring discipline and good behaviour, based on a positive behaviour management policy. There is a clear policy on bullying. All members of staff have high expectations of what constitutes acceptable behaviour, and discipline is administered consistently and well. This has a positive effect on the high standards of behaviour that are maintained throughout the school. The school is very effective in discouraging bullying and consequently, pupils work and play in an environment free from oppression. Good attendance is actively encouraged and absence is conscientiously monitored and followed up rigorously.
p.19
HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?
41 The class teachers and teaching assistants know their pupils extremely well and have a very good understanding of their individual personal needs. Pupils’ personal development is planned for, very apparent in lessons, and carefully monitored. Procedures for monitoring pupils’ academic progress are good. This starts in the nursery and reception classes with baseline assessments. Teachers throughout the school maintain comprehensive assessment files that are well used. For example, termly focused marking informs target setting in literacy. Centralised records including comprehensive statistical analysis of pupils gaining or exceeding expected levels complement these. The use of assessment information to guide curriculum planning is satisfactory but can be variable between different teachers. Procedures for assessing pupils with special educational needs are very good and support is focused on the individual pupil’s specific needs. This has a positive effect on the
p.19
HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?
42 Pupils with special educational needs are well cared for by the school. A caring ethos is well promoted, and systems are in place, for example, where the older pupils look after the younger ones during lunchtime, which ensure that all pupils, including those with special educational needs, are well cared for. Belmont Primary School - 18 43 There has been very good improvement since the last inspection in procedures for assessing pupils’ attainment. Information from a wide range of tests identifies individuals and groups of pupils who could benefit from support in English and mathematics. Their progress through the school is tracked and expected attainment is recorded. These procedures are very good and analysis of pupils’ answers in tests provides valuable information about areas of learning that could be improved.
p.19
HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?
44 These procedures have not yet been extended to science and, with the exception of information and communication technology; other subject areas are still based on annual teacher assessments. Although this information is used well in the teaching of English the overall use of assessment information is satisfactory. Individual targets are set for pupils in English and marking focuses on specific features of pupils’ work. However, this is not yet the case in other subject areas. Groups are identified for support in mathematics but specific learning objectives are not identified and the curriculum has not been developed to meet areas of weakness in the curriculum. The information gained from the day-to-day assessment of pupils’ progress in lessons is used well in Years 3-6 to modify the planning of the next day’s work. The use of ongoing assessment is often unsatisfactory in Years 1 and 2 where, with the exception of literacy and some work in numeracy, work is often
p.20
HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?
presented to all pupils whatever their age or ability. This is particularly evident in a few lessons where pupils in both Years 1 and 2 were presented with identical work.
p.20
HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?
45 Good procedures for monitoring and supporting pupils’ academic progress support clear and informative reports to parents that give a good picture of each pupil and suggested areas for improvement. Particularly good collections of pupils’ work are kept for information and communication technology. They provide a clear record of progress and attainment in the subject.
p.20
HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?
46 Relationships between the school and parents have improved significantly since the last inspection and are now very good. The school enjoys the active support of most parents. There are a good number of committed parents who regularly help in the classrooms and accompany the children on school trips. Many parents help with the Better Reading Partnership and the ‘Acceleread/Accelewrite’ project. Most parents are fully involved in their children’s work in school and at home. They support homework and home reading. There is a very active Friends Association “The Friends of Belmont”, that organises social and fund raising events for the school. A considerable amount of money has been raised for the school, for example, the Friends Association recently paid for the excellent new computer suite. The school works closely with parents and makes parents very welcome. The head teacher and his staff make themselves available to parents and are very
p.20
HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?
47 Communication between the school and home is very good. The school sends out frequent newsletters and letters about specific events and activities. Starting in the nursery, teachers send out termly curriculum and topic information newsletters. The school publishes a comprehensive, informative prospectus. The governors hold an annual meeting with parents and publish a useful annual report. Between them, these two documents contain all the statutory required information. Parents are given an informative annual progress report and offered the opportunity to attend appropriate consultation meetings to view, and discuss their children’s work with their teachers. The reports clearly indicate what the pupils, including those who have English as an additional language, can do. The reports identify the progress they are making and record the targets set for improvement. Parents of children with special educational needs are kept well informed and fully involved in their
p.20
HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?
children’s education. Belmont Primary School - 19 48 Surprisingly, a minority of parents expressed some negative views on the pre-inspection questionnaire. For example, a small, but significant number of parents disagreed that their child got the right amount of work to do at home; disagreed that they were kept well informed about how their child is getting on; disagreed that the school works closely with parents and disagreed that the school is well led and managed. Inspection evidence, including the pre-inspection parents’ meeting and many discussions with parents around the school, did not support these views.
p.20
HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?
49 The school strives to involve parents in all decisions about the work and development of pupils with special educational needs. They are invited to attend review meetings, and other occasions when important decisions are made. The school aims to be open to parents as much as possible, so that problems can be discussed at any time. There are also termly parents’ evenings, as well as an annual written report.
p.21
HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?
50 The head teacher leads the school very well and the deputy head teacher provides valuable support in managing whole school and key stage development. More responsibility has been devolved to subject leaders, particularly of English and mathematics and they and others have a stronger, positive influence on teaching and learning. This is evident in the substantial improvement in standards since the last inspection. Teachers with responsibility for subjects other than English and mathematics have not yet had sufficient time away to visit other classes to monitor teaching, learning and development in their areas. This in part accounts for the fact that standards in subjects such as design and technology and art and design are not rising as fast.
p.21
HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?
51 The school has clear aims for pupils’ education and personal growth and has established a curriculum and set of values that enables it to move confidently towards them. Relationships are very good throughout the school and staff work hard to create a very positive ethos in which pupils are valued and supported very well. The teaching and support staff set a good example to pupils and teamwork is good. The school is committed to meeting the needs of all its pupils irrespective of background, temperament or ability; it ensures that they are supported well and encouraged to achieve the best they can.
p.21
HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?
52 The school has made very good progress against the serious weaknesses identified in the last inspection in 2000 and these have been resolved. Morale is now good and there is a growing confidence that comes through knowing that school-initiated developments are producing results. The school has the collective expertise and experience to continue to improve. Weaknesses relating to leadership and management, identified at the time of the last inspection, have been eradicated. Day- to-day management and administration are good and well supported by the school’s clerical staff.
p.21
HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?
53 There is a keen sense of momentum towards the targets the school has identified for improvement and all staff share a commitment to achieve them. Many of these targets have evolved from issues identified at the last inspection. Others have been set by the school in response to issues it has identified through its own evaluation process. This process is much improved since the last inspection and draws on a wide range of evidence. The observation of lessons by English and mathematics co-ordinators, and by the head teacher as part of the school’s performance management process, has identified strengths and areas for individual teachers to improve and those that are common to the school. The analysis of information from tests and teachers’ observations of how well pupils are doing also indicates strengths and weaknesses in teaching and learning and variations in standards. It is through this process that the school has recognised the need to improve standards in
p.21
HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?
mathematics and writing and these are targets in the school improvement plan. The school checks its Belmont Primary School - 20 progress towards the targets it has set and reports how well it is doing to the governing body. Joint decisions are then made about the way forward.
p.21
HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?
54 The head teacher has worked very well with staff and governors to improve successfully the weaknesses in standards, teaching and management identified in the last inspection. This has meant that other planned developments have not yet been resolved. While co-ordinator roles are developing well, the school is aware that the roles and responsibilities of the key stage co-ordinators have not been fully defined. The deputy head teacher has been recently appointed and also has a role as Key Stage 2 co-ordinator. She is currently working with other staff in Years 3-6 to identify what works well and where improvements are needed. The role of the co-ordinator for Key Stage 1 (Years 1 and 2) in monitoring and evaluating teaching, learning and development throughout these classes is not well established. Her role now needs to be strengthened to ensure that the work of this key stage is managed more effectively.
p.22
HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?
55 The governing body has strengthened its position since the last inspection and is now well placed to influence school development. It carries out its statutory duties well. Individual governors bring expertise to various committees and their collective knowledge of the school stands it in good stead when difficult decisions need to be made. The link of individual governors to subjects and areas such as special educational needs is a positive initiative. The good procedures for these governors to feed back to the governing body mean that all governors are gaining a good awareness of developments in the curriculum and important areas of the school’s work.
p.22
HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?
56 Governors contribute well to school development and budget planning and keep a close eye on spending. Led by the finance committee, they ensure that money is spent on areas identified as priorities and that special grants are spent as intended. Governors ensure that the school compares the standards it achieves with other similar schools and check the school’s expenditure patterns with other schools nationally. The governors seek to get the best value for pupils in the purchase of all goods and services.
p.22
HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?
57 The leadership and management of special educational needs are good. Although the established special needs co-ordinator recently left, the head teacher has effectively taken on the role until the arrival of the new co-ordinator after Easter. The current situation is therefore one of transition, but the head teacher’s previous experience of the role has ensured that the provision for pupils with special educational needs remains well-organised and effective. There are good systems for recording and analysing all aspects of pupils’ progress and the resulting information is efficiently used to promote their learning and they achieve well. This good management has also ensured that all involved are aware of their roles, so that class-teachers, support staff and representatives of outside agencies all work together for the benefit of the pupils.
p.22
HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?
58 The school uses performance management procedures well to identify teachers’ personal and professional development needs. This information is used together with the whole-school priorities identified in the school improvement plan to plan a comprehensive programme of in-service training. Staff have taken part in a great deal of valuable in-service training recently in subjects such as mathematics and ICT. This has prepared them well to improve standards further in those subjects. Extra funding has enabled the school to appoint an extra teacher to reduce the size of the Year 2 class. However, limited accommodation means that two teachers work with the Year 2 pupils, often within one classroom. This arrangement is challenging to the two teachers involved, one of whom is newly qualified. The current organisation in this class does not support her induction into teaching since the planning for lessons is not sufficiently well thought through or monitored sufficiently by the
p.22
HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?
key stage co-ordinator to take account of her strengths or provide good opportunities for her to develop Belmont Primary School - 21 her skills. This current situation means that teaching and learning in Year 2 are not as good as they could be and this slows pupils’ progress.
p.22
HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?
59 There are good levels of staffing and extra funding has recently been used well to provide additional, effective classroom support. Although this additional staffing may be short-term it is already enabling the school to give better support to pupils, especially those with special educational needs. This is having a positive impact on standards. Support staff are deployed effectively with a clear focus on improving attainment in the core subjects of English and mathematics. The school administrative and caretaking staff are seen as an integral part of the life of the school. This is exemplified by the way the caretaker joins in the annual bulb-planting event run by the school and a local charitable organisation. Parents and voluntary helpers add valuable support to pupils’ learning throughout the school. For example, they have been trained and give very good support to the ‘Acceleread’ and ‘Accelewrite’ projects that enhance pupils’ skills and knowledge in English.
p.23
HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?
60 The school comprises two sites situated in spacious, attractive grounds with four hard surface playgrounds and a large sports field. The pupils in the foundation stage and in Years 1 and 2 are housed in one building and those in Years 3-6 work in the other. There are some weaknesses in the accommodation. The creation of an extra Year 2 class has created a problem since the school has no surplus accommodation. The classrooms for the older children do not have carpets and can be cold. Some classrooms, and both halls, provide access to other teaching areas and so lessons can be interrupted. Good teaching and class management minimises disruption to learning. The school benefits from having a hall in each building, a very attractive library and an excellent new computer suite. The caretaker and cleaning staff keep the school spotlessly clean and well maintained.
p.23
HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?
61 The school’s resources for learning are satisfactory overall. Resources for music are very good; those for ICT, literacy and history are good. The resources are satisfactory for all other subjects except art and design where they are insufficient to support all areas of the curriculum, and are of unsatisfactory quality.
p.23
WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?
62 In order to further improve standards and the quality of education provided, the head teacher, staff and governors should: -
p.23
WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?
(1) Further improve standards in mathematics by ensuring that pupils have more opportunities to learn how to apply their learning to solving problems and: -
p.23
WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?
a) develop pupils’ learning by applying their work to real-life examples; b) enable pupils to use their factual knowledge of shape, space and measures to solve realistic problems. (Paragraphs 2, 9, 95, 96 and 98)
p.23
WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?
(2) Improve standards in design and technology, and art and design by improving curriculum planning and development to give a greater priority to these subjects. (Paragraphs 12, 29, 61, 108, 110, 112, 113, 115 and 116)
p.23
WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?
(3) Establish more rigorous management procedures in Key Stage 1 by: -
p.23
WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?
a) strengthening the role of the co-ordinator in monitoring teaching and learning and the work in this key stage; Belmont Primary School - 22 b) ensuring that the curriculum is carefully planned and written guidance adapted to match work more precisely to the ages and abilities of all pupils; c) ensuring that the current organisation and planning in Year 2 promotes more effective teaching and learning. (Paragraphs 3, 10, 20, 22, 44, 54, 58 and 103)
p.23
WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?
In addition to the issues above, the governing body should consider the following less important issue when drawing up its action plan:
p.24
WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?
1. Improve the presentation of pupils’ written work by ensuring that all teachers have sufficiently high expectations of the quality of finished work. (Paragraphs 7, 25, 90 and 91) Belmont Primary School - 23
p.24
Summary of the sources of evidence for the inspection
Number of discussions with staff, governors, other adults and pupils 29
p.25
Summary of teaching observed during the inspection
Excellent Very good Good Satisfactory Unsatisfactor y Poor Very Poor
p.25
Summary of teaching observed during the inspection
The table gives the number and percentage of lessons observed in each of the seven categories used to make judgements about teaching. Care should be taken when interpreting these percentages as each lesson represents more than one percentage point.
p.25
Information about the school’s pupils
Pupils on the school’s roll Nursery YR – Y6
p.25
Information about the school’s pupils
Number of pupils on the school’s roll (FTE for part-time pupils) 35 337
p.25
Information about the school’s pupils
Number of full-time pupils known to be eligible for free school meals 0 30
p.25
Information about the school’s pupils
Special educational needs Nursery YR – Y6
p.25
Information about the school’s pupils
Number of pupils with statements of special educational needs 0 45
p.25
Information about the school’s pupils
Number of pupils on the school’s special educational needs register 0 1
p.25
Information about the school’s pupils
English as an additional language No of pupils
p.25
Information about the school’s pupils
Number of pupils with English as an additional language 4
p.25
Information about the school’s pupils
Pupil mobility in the last school year No of pupils
p.25
Information about the school’s pupils
Pupils who joined the school other than at the usual time of first admission 22
p.25
Information about the school’s pupils
Pupils who left the school other than at the usual time of leaving 14
p.25
Attendance
School data 4.3 School data 0.1 Belmont Primary School - 24 National comparative data 5.6 National comparative data 0.5
p.25
Attendance
Both tables give the percentage of half days (sessions) missed through absence for the latest complete reporting year. Belmont Primary School - 25
p.26
Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1 (Year 2)
Number of registered pupils in final year of Key Stage 1 for the latest reporting year 2001 35 15 50
p.27
Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1 (Year 2)
National Curriculum Test/Task Results Reading Writing Mathematics
p.27
Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1 (Year 2)
Boys 32 33 33 Numbers of pupils at NC level 2 and above Girls 14 15 15
p.27
Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1 (Year 2)
Percentage of pupils School 92% (89%) 96% (100%) 96% (95%) at NC level 2 or above National 84% (83%) 86% (84%) 91% (90%)
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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1 (Year 2)
Teachers’ Assessments English Mathematics Science
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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1 (Year 2)
Boys 32 32 32 Numbers of pupils at NC level 2 and above Girls 15 15 14
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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1 (Year 2)
Percentage of pupils School 94% (89%) 94% (98%) 92% (100%) at NC level 2 or above National 85% (84%) 89% (88%) 89% (88%)
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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1 (Year 2)
Percentages in brackets refer to the year before the latest reporting year.
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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2 (Year 6)
Number of registered pupils in final year of Key Stage 2 for the latest reporting year 2001 34 32 66
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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2 (Year 6)
National Curriculum Test/Task Results English Mathematics Science
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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2 (Year 6)
Boys 28 26 34 Numbers of pupils at NC level 4 and above Girls 28 25 30
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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2 (Year 6)
Percentage of pupils School 85% (81%) 77% (68%) 97% (89%) at NC level 4 or above National 75% (75%) 71% (72%) 87% (85%)
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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2 (Year 6)
Teachers’ Assessments English Mathematics Science
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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2 (Year 6)
Boys 27 28 32 Numbers of pupils at NC level 4 and above Girls 29 28 29
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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2 (Year 6)
Percentage of pupils School 85% (81%) 85% (68%) 92% (81%) at NC level 4 or above National 72% (70%) 74% (72%) 82% (79%)
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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2 (Year 6)
Percentages in brackets refer to the year before the latest reporting year. Belmont Primary School - 26
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Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year
Black – Caribbean heritage 0 Black – Caribbean heritage 0 0
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Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year
Black – African heritage 0 Black – African heritage 0 0
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Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year
Any other minority ethnic group 3 Other minority ethnic groups
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Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year
This table refers to pupils of compulsory school age only. This table gives the number of exclusions of pupils of compulsory school age, which may be different from the number of pupils excluded.
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Teachers and classes Financial information
Total number of qualified teachers (FTE) 17 Financial year 2000-2001
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Teachers and classes Financial information
Number of pupils per qualified teacher 26:1
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Teachers and classes Financial information
Education support staff: YR – Y6 Total income 706,100
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Teachers and classes Financial information
Total number of education support staff 7 Total expenditure 707,713
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Teachers and classes Financial information
Total aggregate hours worked per week 69 Expenditure per pupil 1,801
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Teachers and classes Financial information
Qualified teachers and support staff: nursery Balance brought forward from previous year 17,907
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Teachers and classes Financial information
Total number of qualified teachers (FTE) 1 Balance carried forward to next year 16,294
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Teachers and classes Financial information
Number of pupils per qualified teacher 35:1
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Teachers and classes Financial information
Total number of education support staff 3
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Teachers and classes Financial information
Total aggregate hours worked per week 90
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Recruitment of teachers
Number of teachers who left the school during the last two years 2
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Recruitment of teachers
Number of teachers appointed to the school during the last two years 2
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Recruitment of teachers
Total number of vacant teaching posts (FTE) 2
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Recruitment of teachers
Number of vacancies filled by teachers on temporary contract of a term or more (FTE) 2 Belmont Primary School - 27 Number of unfilled vacancies or vacancies filled by teachers on temporary contract of less than one term (FTE) 0
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Recruitment of teachers
FTE means full-time equivalent. Belmont Primary School - 28
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Percentage of responses in each category
Strongly agree Tend to agree Tend to disagree Strongly disagree Don’t know
p.30
Percentage of responses in each category
My child is making good progress in school. 42 48 5 1 4
p.30
Percentage of responses in each category
Behaviour in the school is good. 36 57 5 1 2
p.30
Percentage of responses in each category
My child gets the right amount of work to do at home. 25 56 14 1 3
p.30
Percentage of responses in each category
I am kept well informed about how my child is getting on. 31 55 11 3 1
p.30
Percentage of responses in each category
I would feel comfortable about approaching the school with questions or a problem. 61 35 3 1 0
p.30
Percentage of responses in each category
The school expects my child to work hard and achieve his or her best. 51 43 4 1 1
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Percentage of responses in each category
The school works closely with parents. 31 53 13 3 1
p.30
Percentage of responses in each category
The school is well led and managed. 31 47 11 3 8
p.30
Percentage of responses in each category
The school is helping my child become mature and responsible. 45 47 7 1 0
p.30
Percentage of responses in each category
The school provides an interesting range of activities outside lessons. 17 41 24 4 15 Belmont Primary School - 29
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AREAS OF LEARNING FOR CHILDREN IN THE FOUNDATION STAGE
63 The school’s provision for children in the foundation stage is very good and has improved since the last inspection. The provision for these children is a strength of the school. The staff in the nursery and reception classes work closely together to provide a stimulating curriculum and wide range of activities that ensure that the children get a very good start to their education. There is a caring and supportive, yet challenging atmosphere that encourages the children’s learning and enables many of them to make good progress. By the end of the reception year the children are well prepared for transition into Year 1.
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AREAS OF LEARNING FOR CHILDREN IN THE FOUNDATION STAGE
64 Children enter school with a broad range of attainment and previous experience but most attain the standards expected for their age in language, literacy, number and social skills. The children spend at least a year in the nursery and there are two reception classes; one is created for the youngest children when they transfer from nursery at the start of the spring term. All staff have a good awareness of the learning needs of young children and plan work accordingly. This is a key factor in the very good provision throughout the foundation stage. The quality of teaching in the nursery and reception classes is good and often very good or excellent. This ensures that children of all abilities achieve very well in their skills and understanding across all the areas of learning. By the time they reach the end of the foundation stage and transfer to Year 1 many children attain above expectations for their age within all the areas of learning. Staff make careful assessments of the
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AREAS OF LEARNING FOR CHILDREN IN THE FOUNDATION STAGE
children’s progress and use this information effectively to ensure that activities build on what the children already know and to provide extra support or challenge for those who need it. Children with special educational needs are well supported in both their group and individual activities. They are encouraged to take a full part in all activities at a level where they are confident. Teachers, nursery nurses and classroom assistants support these children well and so they make substantial gains in their personal and social skills.
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AREAS OF LEARNING FOR CHILDREN IN THE FOUNDATION STAGE
65 All learning resources are deployed and managed well to provide opportunities for children to gain independence as they take responsibility for getting out and returning their own equipment. Staff often use resources very imaginatively to develop exciting role-play areas. For example, the current ‘Polar Ice Stations’ are exciting and show innovative use of different materials and equipment. The staff establish good links with parents and the induction of children into the nursery and reception classes works well and includes visits before they start nursery or move into the reception class. The useful written guidance helps parents to prepare their children for school. Many parents feel that their children are well prepared for starting school. The provision for children under five is managed well by the co-ordinator who works well with her colleagues and provides a clear direction for the
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AREAS OF LEARNING FOR CHILDREN IN THE FOUNDATION STAGE
organisation and development of the children’s learning.
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Personal, social and emotional development
66 These areas are taught very well and the personal and social development of the children is very good; from starting in the nursery they are encouraged to be independent. The children are secure, confident and well settled into school routines; they move confidently about their classrooms, between classrooms and the wider areas of the hall and playground. The staff promote the children’s personal development very well by providing good opportunities for the children to make choices from the range of activities on offer and to work together. The children get out and return equipment and show initiative. For example, the nursery children enjoy physical activities in the hall and at the end of Belmont Primary School - 30 the session they sensibly help to put away some of the more manageable apparatus. By the time they transfer to the reception classes the children are very responsible and competent learners.
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Personal, social and emotional development
67 The staff have very good relationships with the children and this promotes very good attitudes to learning. The children enjoy their activities, respond well to adults and are eager to learn. They gain in confidence within the supportive environment provided and many are keen to ask and answer questions. Many work well together in pairs and small groups and sustain their concentration well within activities. The staff manage the children well; their high expectations and the exciting programme of activities means that children are engrossed in their tasks and so behaviour is very good. The children’s spiritual and moral development is promoted through stories and is reinforced within the activities linked to the areas of learning. By the end of the their time in the foundation stage, the children understand the importance of co-operation, kindness and caring for others. Most are likely to
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Personal, social and emotional development
achieve the early learning goals identified for their age by the time they move into Year 1 and many will exceed them to become confident, considerate and reliable members of their classes.
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Communication, language and literacy
68 The teaching of early language skills is good, and sometimes very good throughout the foundation stage. This enables children in the nursery and reception classes to make a good start in language and literacy work. Nursery staff rightly set a high priority on the development of early speaking, listening, reading and writing skills. They plan well together to provide opportunities for children to practise these skills in all activities and in particular reinforce children’s speaking and listening skills. The children respond well to the careful and purposeful questioning and to the opportunities for discussion provided by the staff. They listen well to each other, learn to take turns when speaking, follow directions carefully and are developing a good vocabulary. The staff in the reception classes build effectively on these skills within all areas of learning and widen the children’s experiences to prepare them well for literacy work in the National Curriculum.
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Communication, language and literacy
69 In both the nursery and reception classes the children quickly gain confidence through well- planned opportunities to ask and answer questions when working with adults and when showing their work or sharing ideas with other children. Role-play is used well to promote the development of language and social skills and children respond imaginatively as they act out different situations. For example, nursery children made good progress as they worked in the ‘hide’ and made ‘notes’ of the birds they could see outside and talked about their colours and sizes. In the reception classes, children entered into role as ‘Polar explorers’ and, dressed in outdoor clothes and boots, ‘struggled’ across the ‘ice’. They entered imaginatively into their roles with comments such as ‘Don’t fall through that hole in the ice,’ or, ‘Look out, there’s a polar bear behind you’. They flatly refused to allow the inspector to
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Communication, language and literacy
venture into the area, ‘You’ve got no coat on so you’ll freeze’. Children listen carefully to stories and know many action songs and rhymes by heart. In the nursery they listened to the story ‘So Much’ and, because the teacher read the story expressively, they eagerly followed the story through looking at the pictures and quickly learned phrases that they could repeat confidently and were eager to share their ideas. The children have a good range of vocabulary and use it confidently in response to effective questioning from staff.
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Communication, language and literacy
70 Children share and enjoy a wide range of stories and rhymes with adults and visitors in the nursery. Most children take books home each week to share with their families. In the nursery, they know how to use books and are aware that pictures and print in books go from left to right. They know that print conveys meaning and that pictures give clues to what is written. In the nursery, children learn to discriminate between different letter sounds and are beginning to be aware of the initial letter sounds in given words and to recognise the letter that represents the sound. They enjoy action rhymes such as ‘Incy Wincy Spider’ and recognise the repetition of letters ‘w’ and ‘i’. Most Belmont Primary School - 31 children recognise their names from their name cards and can find these readily. Most children in the reception classes recognise a good number of commonly used words and can interpret labels and
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Communication, language and literacy
captions around the classrooms. They accurately retell stories in their own words and, when sharing a book with an adult, can describe the roles of the author and illustrator. The teacher read the story very effectively and children were engrossed. She used the theme of the story well to seek the children’s ideas about the reactions of the boy in the story as he sees his toy bear taken away in a refuse lorry.
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Communication, language and literacy
71 They showed that they had understood the story well and showed empathy with the characters and answered the question ‘What might he do?’ with a good range of sensible solutions. ‘He might tell his mummy and daddy and they might go to the dump’. One boy suggested he would say ‘Dig right to the bottom and get him out. He’s my best Teddy!’ Many children recognise familiar words and a few read simple sentences from their early reading books. The children know many letter sounds and some common blends and are beginning to use these to sound out and read words. They make good progress in the whole class sessions at the start of literacy lessons when they share a book with teachers. These sessions are used well to enable children to develop their knowledge and use of letter sound to help them read, write and spell. The children make substantial gains in early reading and many demonstrate skills above expectations for their age; they are well prepared for their
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Communication, language and literacy
72 Children in the nursery are beginning to act as ‘writers’ and make attempts at their own writing, ranging from ‘play’ writing to emergent writing where letter shapes are recognisable. They enjoy ‘writing’ about birds they have observed from their ‘hide’ and write invitations to friends. In the reception class, children initially write over or copy the teachers’ script to add captions to their pictures or tell stories. Most form recognisable letters and show good control of pens and pencils for their age. They are eager to write and many of the children attain well and make good progress in letter formation and early writing. Standards in writing are on course to be above expectations for their age for over half the children when they transfer to Year 1.
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Mathematical development
73 Teaching is good in both the nursery and reception classes and children make good progress over time. They are taught mathematical skills through opportunities to play well-chosen games that enable them to sort, count and create sets of objects by colour, shape and size. These are sometimes when children access lively programs on the computer and work well in pairs to match shapes or dress the ‘teddy’. In the nursery, the staff encourage children’s counting skills and reinforce their understanding of the match of numbers to objects in a wide range of activities. In a carefully planned activity, the oldest children in the nursery walked a number line counting each square and then threw a beanbag and counted accurately the number of squares covered. Children worked with the teacher to place plastic bears in a square and gained an understanding of the relationship between numbers and objects. Most were able to match objects to 10 although a few counted too rapidly and so did not
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Mathematical development
match the number of bears. Other adults are deployed well and work productively with different groups. For example, in a well taught session the children thoroughly enjoyed their activities and took turns very patiently as they advised each other on how to position a ‘crane’ to pick up different shapes. They counted the number of sides and correctly named squares, triangles and circles. The teacher effectively reinforced the names of the shapes and taught the children terms such as ‘above’, ‘below’, ‘forward’ and ‘back’ as they positioned the crane.
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Mathematical development
74 The reception class teachers build on the work done in the nursery and this enables the children to consolidate their counting, and to learn to write numbers and use them in simple calculations. In an effective oral session at the start of a lesson, the teacher led the class in number rhymes, games and activities and children counted enthusiastically to 20. The very good pace to the Belmont Primary School - 32 lesson and wide range of activities reinforced well the children’s counting and they learned how to order numbers accurately in a sequence 1 to 10. The very well taught lesson enabled children to work with three-dimensional shapes and they discussed and sorted cubes, cuboids and cylinders by colour, shape and size with growing awareness of their properties. The teacher used the session very well to develop the children’s mathematical language and introduced terms such as ‘face’, ‘circle’, ‘curved’,
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Mathematical development
75 Throughout the foundation stage, children are developing their understanding of volume through practical activities that enable them to use sand, water, beans, pulses and counters to fill different shapes and sizes of container and to compare how much each will hold. They are beginning to use vocabulary such as ‘full’ or ‘empty’ and understand the terms ‘more than’ and ‘less than’. In free choice activities, many children make patterns with beads, cubes and shapes and are beginning to repeat them. Many of the children recognise the colours red, blue, green and yellow. The older children in reception know a range of simple two and three-dimensional shapes and can name them. Children’s mathematical skills and understanding are developing well and they have a secure understanding of ordering numbers and how written numbers represent objects. Many children make good progress in their number skills in the nursery and reception classes and are on course to exceed
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Mathematical development
the learning goals expected for their age by the time they transfer to Year 1.
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Knowledge and understanding of the world
76 The nursery and reception staff plan well together to provide a good range of experiences that will enable the children to gain a greater knowledge and understanding of the world about them. The children learn quickly through the many first-hand experiences provided by staff. These activities provide a sound foundation for the children’s future learning in science, design and technology, history and geography. They practise skills using computers, listening centres and tape recorders to support their learning. In their current topic children learn about the weather in winter and they drew and copied pictures of themselves dressed in warm clothing. The children were clear about why we need different clothes in winter; ‘They keep our hands and bodies warm’. Most of these more able children were able to copy the teacher’s written labels using recognisable letters. All wrote their own name confidently. Other children completed a worksheet to match the winter clothing worn by a ‘teddy’.
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Knowledge and understanding of the world
Children learn to bake and worked with a parent helper to make pizza. They helped knead the dough, spread on the sauce, grate the cheese and add onion slices. The parent reinforced well the need for hygiene and ensured the children understood how she took great care when handling the hot dishes.
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Knowledge and understanding of the world
77 In the reception classes the children learn about cold climates and staff plan well to reinforce many areas of learning. In their ‘Polar ice station’ children act out real-life situations and use books and photographs to find out about what to wear to stay warm. They know about the animals that live in these harsh conditions and have painted pictures and made models. There are good links to early scientific concepts. For example, the youngest reception class worked with their teacher on an investigation into melting and freezing. They observed how the ice cubes became smaller as they melted and, when the teacher asked what would happen if a large block of ice was tipped into the water, they volunteered a range of sensible ideas. ‘I think it will sink because it’s heavy’ said one child. ‘It will melt in the water’ volunteered another. They watched carefully as the teacher placed a block of orange coloured ice in a tank of water and they carefully noted the changing water levels as
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Knowledge and understanding of the world
the ice melted. They were particularly eager to explain why the water turned orange. Other children discussed with a student the kind of homes animals need in winter and used materials such as straw, wool and wood to make imaginatively designed shelters.
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Knowledge and understanding of the world
78 Children have good opportunities to use computers and by the time they are in the reception classes, many show good control as they use the mouse to manipulate cursors and move pictures on Belmont Primary School - 33 the screen. Staff ensure that programs reinforce basic skills in literacy and numeracy. For instance, children match colours and shapes and count objects to match numbers. The reception children work well in the school’s computer suite. In an excellent lesson, the teacher used a computer linked to a projector to provide direct teaching of the use of icons to select symbols to make a pictogram. Using the ‘My World’ program the children built a pictogram to show weather patterns. The teacher’s very effective demonstration enabled children to identify the weather symbols they needed and to identify the numbers needed for the vertical axis of their graph. They quickly grasped how to place the
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Knowledge and understanding of the world
symbols for different kinds of weather into the correct columns. The children worked very well together and showed a very good recall of previous learning as they discarded unwanted symbols in the ‘waste bin’. The teacher’s excellent knowledge of the needs of this age group ensured that the tasks were well matched to their age and ability. Her very effective questioning enabled her to find out which children could understand and interpret the information on their pictogram. At the end of the session children knew how to print out their graphs and how to save work and ‘log off’. The youngest reception children were equally confident in using the computer suite and the teacher’s very well planned lesson enabled them to open the ‘Colour Magic’ program to draw and colour in a winter picture of a snowman. The teacher balanced well her direct teaching with good opportunities for the children to practise and develop their skills in using the keyboard and mouse. After eagerly exploring
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Knowledge and understanding of the world
what the program would do the children produced recognisable snowmen and added scarves, hats and other features. They eagerly talked about their pictures and one boy decided ‘Under my snow I have drawn animals that are hibernating.’ Everyone happily accepted that the animals were there but hidden by the snow! The children worked well in pairs and the very successful teaching resulted in a lot of effective learning in the session. The children are on course to attain above the early learning goals by the end of the reception year.
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Creative development
79 Standards of attainment in creative development are at least meeting the expectations for children of nursery and reception age and some achieve well. Staff ensure that creative activities are available on a daily basis and children have free access to paint, paper and collage materials at all times. They enjoy painting pictures, and use a range of colours and brush sizes. Children are enthusiastic and keen to take part in all activities. In art activities, they explore colour and texture using a range of materials to create pictures, collages, prints and patterns. For example, new entrants to the nursery worked well to paint pictures of robins. Reception children have worked well with ‘cold’ colours to paint pictures of polar landscapes, polar bears and seals. The staff carefully mount the children’s work and displays in the class bases are of good quality. They represent a wide range
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Creative development
of areas of learning and promote the children’s self-esteem.
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Creative development
80 Children have frequent opportunities to create three-dimensional models in clay and ‘junk’ modelling materials. They explore and use malleable materials such as play dough to experiment with texture. Many children competently use a variety of techniques such as cutting, folding and sticking paper, fabrics, foil and feathers. For example, they work imaginatively to create collages of winter scenes. Children regularly experience musical activities; they memorise counting and action songs and learn to sing in tune. The staff join in and demonstrate well the actions and movements and this encourages the children to take part. The children sing tunefully and quickly learn new words, actions and tunes. In the nursery, when making their choices for a session, the children will choose music making and have access to a range of percussion instruments, which they ‘play’ enthusiastically. Children have frequent opportunities for imaginative play in their role-play areas. These are linked
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Creative development
well to the topics for each term and are used well to support the children’s imaginative play and speaking skills. There is a good balance between the children working independently in these areas and opportunities for adults to be involved to initiate imaginative scenarios and reinforce vocabulary. Children also use small toys to create a range of environments such as roads, camps and houses. Belmont Primary School - 34
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Physical development
81 In the nursery, the children develop confidence and control of the way they move through outdoor play where they have opportunities to control and manoeuvre wheeled vehicles or play a variety of imaginative games. During their physical education lessons in the school hall, the staff effectively reinforce the children’s confidence in using space. In a well-taught lesson in the hall the teacher’s excellent knowledge of the learning needs of young children ensured that they understood the need to work safely and built successfully on skills learned in earlier lessons. The children were shown how to help set out apparatus. They found different ways to travel across the benches, boxes, hoops and mats and showed good co-ordination as they moved on backs and stomachs and wriggled through hoops. The teacher’s good awareness that some children lacked confidence meant that they participated in activities such as jumping from boxes when they felt ready to do so. Most children
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Physical development
showed good control as responded to the teacher’s well-timed challenge to move only on hands and feet.
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Physical development
82 Teachers in the reception classes build on these experiences and children show good co- ordination and persevere with difficult tasks. They joined in a ‘trek’ across the ice while on a ‘Polar expedition’, and showed a good understanding as they demonstrated how difficult it is to walk through snow and on slippery surfaces. The children are developing sound hand and eye co-ordination and learn to handle tools and equipment safely. For example, they use their manipulative skills in practical situations to help make their ‘base station’ and use construction kits to make models. Many children are well on course to exceed the early learning goals identified for their age by the time they transfer to Year 1.
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ENGLISH
83 Standards in English are close to national levels by the end of Year 2 and are above national levels by the end of Year 6. This is an improvement from the last school inspection.
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ENGLISH
84 Teaching is sound in Years 1 and 2 and so most pupils make satisfactory gains in learning across all aspects of the subject. However, teaching is good in Years 3 to 6 and pupils make good progress from entering Year 3 until they leave Year 6. This enables them to reach standards that are above national levels by the end of Year 6. This is a significant improvement from the findings of the last inspection. Learning opportunities are carefully structured to enable pupils of different abilities to build on their knowledge, skills and understanding, as they move through the school. Pupils are grouped by ability in Years 3 to 6, which helps teachers to match work more precisely to pupils’ needs. Regular focused marking helps teachers to set individual targets for pupils to help improve their writing and spelling.
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ENGLISH
85 Pupils with special educational needs make good gains in learning in all aspects of English as they move through the school. This is due to good teaching, which ensures that work is carefully matched to their specific needs, good quality support, which is provided by classroom assistants, and careful monitoring of their work and tracking of progress. Parent helpers involved in partnership initiatives, such as Better Reading and ‘Acceleread’ also make a positive contribution to the good progress made by pupils. Various initiatives, such as Booster groups, some effectively led by parents, target specific groups of pupils in different years to help raise attainment. Pupils who have English as an additional language are not at an early stage of learning English and require no extra help.
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ENGLISH
86 The subject is well represented in all years, and speaking and listening, reading and writing are each given good emphasis. In speaking and listening, most pupils make satisfactory gains in Belmont Primary School - 35 learning through Years 1 and 2, and good progress across Years 3-6. Pupils receive good support in developing an appropriate spoken language because teachers and classroom assistants use every opportunity to engage in conversation with them to help them learn. Carefully structured opportunities to develop speaking and listening skills, a planned emphasis on extending vocabulary, and an increase in the use and quality of skilful, probing questioning of pupils help ensure that most pupils make good gains in learning. Pupils speak with increasing fluency, clarity and confidence as they move through the school. Drama is extensively used to help develop language skills, especially for younger pupils.
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ENGLISH
By the end of Year 2 pupils usually listen carefully and make relevant responses to questions. They start to make predictions about what they think may happen next in a story, some pupils articulating their ideas clearly and confidently. Higher attaining pupils start to compare the Great Fire of London with the Great Plague, in a link with history. Most teachers try to involve as many pupils as possible in question and answer sessions, and they enable some pupils to communicate outcomes of their learning near the end of lessons. These sessions provide evidence that, while some pupils have a rich linguistic background, the vocabulary of others is not extensive. However, by the end of Key Stage 2, most pupils talk and listen confidently in a broadening range of contexts. For example, they discuss the planning of a public information leaflet, considering and evaluating the power of persuasive language.
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ENGLISH
87 Standards in reading are slightly above national standards in reading by the end of Year 2 and Year 6. This is because suitable emphasis is given to the teaching of reading through guided reading sessions and the regular teaching of phonics, and teachers do all they can to promote a love of reading in their pupils. However, the choice of text is not always appropriate for pupils in Year 1 to make the best possible progress. Year 2 pupils show satisfactory understanding of their books by talking about the characters and events. However, some are unsure about the purposes of the contents and index pages, do not regularly visit the library to see how non-fiction books are organised and cannot yet explain the difference between fiction and non-fiction.
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ENGLISH
88 Most pupils move through the school’s reading scheme at a good rate, and they are well supported by parents, many of whom hear their children read regularly at home. The variety of approaches used enables most pupils to read with confidence, fluency, accuracy and understanding from a range of texts by the time they leave the school. For example, Year 6 pupils read text from a range of genres. Most pupils have a favourite author and give reasons for their choice. They learn about a wide range of writing, such as, biographies, reports, narrative and ‘official language’ such as, used in forms. Higher attaining pupils have satisfactory skimming and scanning skills, retrieve information from texts appropriately, and read expressively. They begin to use inference and deduction when analysing text.
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ENGLISH
89 The development of literacy skills is given priority in other subjects; pupils’ ability to read for information is suitably emphasised through the teaching of research and study skills. For example, Year 3 pupils researched information to help them compile a guide about a synagogue. The development of library skills is given high profile in the school’s work, with recent improvements in non-fiction material providing evidence of this. In Years 3 to 6, pupils’ knowledge and understanding of the school’s library classification system, using colour codes to locate books, is good. However, their knowledge of the use of the Dewey (numbering) system, is limited, despite many pupils visiting Guisborough library to see how a public library works. Information and communication technology is insufficiently used to support the teaching of reading.
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ENGLISH
90 In writing, pupils’ attainment is in line with national levels by the end of Year 2 . By the end of Key Stage 2, attainment is above national standards, except in handwriting. Progress is good in the development of writing skills as pupils move from Year 3 to Year 6. Handwriting requires attention. While all teachers emphasise the importance of neatly presented work, some pupils begin joined writing before their letters show accurate form and consistent size. This results in standards of Belmont Primary School - 36 presentation, which sometimes deteriorate in Year 2 as pupils make the transition to joined writing. By the end of Year 6 pupils’ handwriting styles are varied and do not lead to consistently good presentation or ease of writing fluency.
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ENGLISH
91 By the end of Key Stage 1, pupils spell simple common words correctly, can use full stops and capital letters accurately, and develop ideas into a sequence of sentences, such as, when they write about ‘feeling scared’. They start to apply their knowledge of word families to help them with their spelling. They begin to learn about the structure of our language by changing present to past tense, finding out about compound words, and considering how nouns change from singular to plural. By the end of Key Stage 2 most pupils write independently, making good use of a developing imaginative vocabulary, and write increasingly complex sentences. Pupils regularly edit and draft their initial attempts at writing stories and poems in all years, which is helping to improve the quality of their writing. This is a significant improvement since the last inspection, when unsatisfactory writing skills restricted development. Many pupils write stories, which develop the characters and the plot
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ENGLISH
successfully. They write for a variety of purposes, including book reviews, descriptions, advertisements, poems, and play scripts and begin to write for different audiences. Many pupils use dictionaries to check their spelling, although standards in spelling are variable with some pupils making careless errors. Throughout both key stages, computers are not used sufficiently to present and enhance a range of work.
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ENGLISH
92 Pupils’ attitudes to English are consistently good, and this contributes to the quality of their learning. Almost all pupils behave well, listen attentively, and are eager to ask and answer questions. Pupils work together well when discussing texts and most persevere to try to complete tasks within the time allocated. Older pupils show initiative and the ability to work independently, as well as collaboratively, if required. For example, Year 4 pupils were observed working well when planning a story.
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ENGLISH
93 The quality of teaching is satisfactory at Key Stage 1, while at Key Stage 2 it is frequently good, with excellent teaching seen. The National Literacy Strategy is planned thoroughly and taught consistently, which is helping to raise standards in English. However, some teachers spend too long on the first part of the lesson, which restricts the time both for pupils to work independently and for the sharing of successes and problems near the end. This occasionally slows progress for some pupils. Most teachers have good knowledge and understanding of the subject and organise and implement lessons well to aid learning. Teachers’ use of assessment to build systematically onto pupils’ skills, knowledge and understanding is good, with teachers adapting future lessons to take account of problems encountered. The marking of work is mostly good, helping pupils to improve. Features of excellent teaching, seen in Year 5 include very high expectation, brisk pace, quality questioning which
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ENGLISH
moves pupils forward in their understanding, high levels of challenge for pupils and enthusiasm by the teacher. These very positive features keep pupils enthralled and involved and contribute to their very good learning.
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ENGLISH
94 The subject is well led, and there are plans for its continued development. The co-ordinator has carried out systematic monitoring of teaching and learning, to help identify and overcome weaknesses, which has benefited pupils. National test results are thoroughly analysed, and weaknesses, such as boys’ writing, identified and overcome through a carefully planned programme of developments.
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MATHEMATICS
95 Standards in mathematics have been rising steadily in recent years and were above national levels for pupils in Year 6 at the time of the national tests in 2001. This represents very good Belmont Primary School - 37 improvement in the subject since the last inspection, with particular improvements in teaching, planning and assessment. In particular, challenge and expectations are improved for pupils in Years 3 to 6 and pupils’ work now shows their pride and interest in the subject. However, standards remain in line with national averages for pupils in Year 2. Standards are not as high as they could be, especially when compared to similar schools because the school needs to develop the use of mathematics in realistic settings and to teach clear methods of problem solving. Pupils’ knowledge of shape, space and measure is mainly factual and does not extend to solving written problems within these areas of
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MATHEMATICS
96 Overall standards that are in line with expectations for pupils in Year 6. However, the skills of problem solving and the use of relationships in shape, space and measure are under developed. Pupils in Year 6 show good levels of attainment in number with lower attaining pupils able to complete calculations involving all four operations. They know about fractions and negative numbers when used in temperature and they can name types of angles such as acute and obtuse as well as converting weights and other measures from grams to kilograms and centimetres to metres. However, there was little evidence of pupils using ideas such as angle measurement to draw angles. Nor were areas and perimeters measured in ways that placed pupils in a situation of real measurement such as calculating the area of tables or the perimeter of the classroom. When solving problems many pupils lose sight of the question. They identify numbers and then attempt various calculations without an overview of the
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MATHEMATICS
real purpose of the calculation. For example, when calculating the cost of an item valued at £28 with a 25 per cent discount an answer of £7 is offered. A similar situation is found with pupils in Year 2. Standards are in line with expectations overall but shape properties; measurement and use of number facts in realistic settings are under developed. Pupils do not draw accurate shapes or draw lines to accurate measures.
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MATHEMATICS
97 Although teaching and learning is satisfactory overall there is some good teaching throughout the school with some that is very good in Years 3-6. There was no unsatisfactory teaching. The very good teaching uses lively question and answer sessions where everyone is involved as a result of questions that match the abilities of the pupils. Pupils like the challenge of the unexpected questions and take pride in their achievement with the answers. Clear explanation and use of assessment information from the previous day were seen in a lesson for lower attaining Year 3 pupils where all pupils were included in a lesson about adding two digit numbers by separating parts into tens and units. Six pupils were used well in a Year 6 lesson for higher attaining pupils when they were given labels to represent digits and the decimal point. As pupils were moved around to represent different numbers the whole class was very attentive and rounded the whole number to two decimal places. As a result,
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MATHEMATICS
pupils then worked quickly and accurately at rounding numbers such as 49.528 to 49.53 and 891.555 to 891.56.
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MATHEMATICS
98 Where teaching was less successful, calculation skills were taught well but pupils were then asked to use these skills in problems without instruction about the methods to be used. As a result, Year 6 pupils arrive at the correct answer, but are not aware of the relationships involved in a problem about using the proportions of pedestrians and horsemen in a large group to calculate exact numbers of each. Teaching of Year 2 pupils does not make the most of opportunities to involve all pupils in class discussion as a result of open questions and acceptance of offered answers rather than directing questions to individual pupils at an appropriate level. When using one pupil to demonstrate their thinking the teacher works mainly with that pupil and does not draw others into the activity with questions such as ‘Is he right?’ or ‘what do you think?’ When demonstrating the use of a balance for weighing parcels against various units of weight for Year 1 pupils the teacher focused mainly on
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MATHEMATICS
making sure that pupils knew what to do rather than why they were doing it. Pupils did not recognise the task of finding the weight of various parcels and as a result the activity did little to develop pupils’ awareness of weight. Belmont Primary School - 38 99 The leadership and management of mathematics are good. The governor responsible for numeracy takes an enthusiastic interest in the work of the school. The subject manager has a good overview of performance in the subject and monitors planning, teaching and pupils’ work. Training has been provided for eight teachers to undertake five-day courses in mathematics teaching and this has been a major factor in the very good improvement in the subject since the last inspection. Assessment procedures are good. Annual tests are used to evaluate pupils’ attainment and records are kept that show the progress of individual pupils through the school. Groups of pupils are identified for support
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MATHEMATICS
and predictions are made for future attainment. General targets are set for the school and for individual pupils and the use of assessment information is satisfactory. However, there is no process of setting short-term targets for pupils that would give encouragement and a sense of achievement in their completion. Furthermore, joint planning for different sets within year groups is medium term with the result that short-term plans differ. This creates difficulty for pupils who are moved from one set to another. They are not always well prepared for the new challenge since some topics may not have been covered in the other set.
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SCIENCE
100 Standards of attainment in science by the end of Year 2 and Year 6 have improved since the last inspection and are now broadly similar to standards expected nationally. There has been a steady improvement in standards in recent years and good improvement since the last inspection. Almost all pupils achieved the expected level by the end of Year 6 in the Year 2001 national tests. Although the attainment of pupils of higher ability has also improved there is still a need to provide them with greater challenge so that more attain the higher levels throughout the school and in the national tests. During the inspection standards showed variation between classes and year groups but were generally satisfactory.
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SCIENCE
101 At the end of Key Stage 1, pupils make predictions, employ first-hand experience of investigative skills and collect data to test whether their predictions are accurate. Year 2 pupils learn about different kinds of rocks, including man-made composites and test samples for hardness to see which one would be durable enough to make a fireplace surround. They organize their work sensibly and produce tables using correct technical vocabulary to make their results clearer and more useful. However, the acquisition of investigative skills at this age is sometimes hampered by poorly structured investigations and equipment, such as torches, that do not work and therefore cause inaccurate results. Pupils in Year 1 and Year 2 are aware of the need to make tests fair and the older pupils show understanding of these principles when they discuss their investigative procedures.
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SCIENCE
102 By the end of Key Stage 2, pupils carry out increasingly complex investigations but do not select the equipment or methods themselves. They learn about micro-organisms and conduct investigations using yeast and sugar to see what happens when they are mixed and warmed. As in Key Stage 1, investigative work in Key Stage 2 is sometimes hampered by a shortage of expensive equipment such as digital scales and a lack of rigour and accuracy. For example, pupils in Year 6 mixed flour, water and yeast into dough with the consistency of wallpaper paste because they did not add the liquid carefully. Pupils use their literacy skills accurately when setting out their results and make good links with mathematical learning when they produce tables and graphs that help them to interpret their findings and draw conclusions. By the end of Year 6 pupils have learned about living things and what they need to do to lead healthy lives. They develop an increasingly detailed
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SCIENCE
knowledge about materials and sort them by properties such as absorbency. They build simple circuits and apply this knowledge in design and technology when they make small, battery-driven vehicles. Belmont Primary School - 39 103 Teaching is mainly satisfactory, although it was unsatisfactory in one lesson in Key Stage 1 and occasionally good in Years 3-6. Teachers’ subject knowledge varies but supportive planning has greatly improved since the last inspection and is more closely linked to the requirements of the National Curriculum. Because of the detailed curriculum and planning documents, teachers now have a better overall knowledge of the whole science curriculum and of the parts they need to teach in each year group. However, they do not always use their own experience or their knowledge of the pupils’ progress to modify the plans they are given by the co-ordinator. This sometimes results in work that
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SCIENCE
does not match the age and ability of their pupils and so some lose interest and make less progress than they should. Information on pupils’ attainment in science exists but it is not yet used accurately enough to identify and address specific strengths and weaknesses or track pupils’ progress as they move through the school.
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SCIENCE
104 Pupils in parallel classes do not always have similar learning experiences. For example, in the Year 4 classes there is quite a significant difference both in terms of detail and focus. As a result, some pupils are better prepared than others when they sit the national tests at the end of each key stage. The school has adopted and modified materials from national guidance so that pupils’ learning is carefully structured and balanced as they move up the school. They are carefully taught all aspects of the science curriculum and develop their knowledge and skills on a broad front.
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SCIENCE
105 Teachers use good questioning techniques in most classes throughout the school to test pupils’ learning and to encourage them to develop and articulate their thoughts. There is good emphasis on learning by practical investigation but it is not always well taught. Teachers are not always confident in practical sessions and do not structure lessons to take account of such issues as restricted access to essential equipment or best use of time. Where unsatisfactory teaching occurs, as in a Year 1 class learning about ‘Light and Reflections’ pupils quickly become disruptive, do not perform their experiments as they have been told, and learn very little. However, pupils generally enjoy investigative activities and learn quickly when they are taught well as in a Year 3 class where pupils tested the absorbency of different types of paper. Teachers throughout the school are careful to involve pupils of all abilities in lessons although the planning and teaching of lessons does not
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SCIENCE
encourage the more able pupils to do better than the average.
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SCIENCE
106 Pupils have a satisfactory attitude to science lessons and this improves in the better lessons taught with confidence and suitable challenge for their age and ability. In these good lessons pupils listen well to their teachers’ explanations and to each other’s ideas and opinions. Teachers generally manage lessons well and ensure that all pupils, including those with special educational needs, are well supported in their learning. Pupils’ behaviour varies but most behave sensibly and enjoy good relationships with their teachers and classmates.
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SCIENCE
107 The leadership and management of the subject are good and this has had a positive effect on standards since the last inspection. The enthusiastic and hard-working subject co-ordinator, supported by external advisory staff, has introduced a number of important changes in the last two years so that improvement is comprehensive and on a number of fronts. There is now a stronger focus on science in Key Stage 1 and this is beginning to have a positive effect on standards.
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ART AND DESIGN
108 Standards in art and design are below national levels by the end of Year 2 and 6, and progress is mostly unsatisfactory. This is because the subject has not been a recent priority for development and so pupils do not engage in art activities sufficiently regularly, and there is insufficient emphasis on the teaching of important skills, to enable pupils to build carefully on their previous learning. The national guidelines on art and design, which the school uses, require adapting to ensure Belmont Primary School - 40 all components are given appropriate emphasis, and carefully structuring to ensure that pupils in different years do not complete identical work. Resources are insufficient to enable teachers to teach all the requirements of the curriculum. Pupils try out and use a too narrow range of tools, techniques and materials as they move through the school. Some teachers lack confidence and expertise in
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ART AND DESIGN
teaching art and design, which inhibits pupils’ progress. As a result, some aspects of the subject, such as, knowledge and understanding of the work of famous artists, and working with three-dimensional materials, such as clay, are under-represented.
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ART AND DESIGN
109 Despite these weaknesses, pupils are given opportunities to record from direct observation, experience and imagination and explore the possibilities of a variety of materials and processes. Art and design is sometimes used well to show work in other subjects. For example, in a link with history, Year 1 pupils use corrugated card and paper to represent Captain Cook’s ship “the Endeavour”. In a link with mathematics, they painted ‘one metre men’, which are exactly one metre tall. They explored the effects of folding, tearing, cutting, scrunching and colouring using a variety of papers, plastics and packaging to make monsters. By the end of Year 2, work is of a sound standard in limited areas. Pupils use viewfinders to draw pictures of knights and castles, and learn to weave correctly to produce flames for a colourful display.
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ART AND DESIGN
110 Throughout Years 3 to 6, artwork is evident, but under-represented, which limits progress for pupils. In work on illuminated manuscripts, Year 3 pupils study patterns and designs and learn that there is repetition of shape, colour, line or order. Year 4 pupils designed and drew the ideal teacher’s chair, complete with integral television, computer and mini bar! By the end of Year 6, pupils are beginning to acquire an understanding of perspective when painting rooftop views and drawing landscapes, and start to use hard and soft pencils to achieve effective light and dark shadow. They show the movement of figures in pencil sketches. They complete observational drawings of shoes, some of which show intricate detail, and are close to the standards expected nationally in this aspect of the subject. Despite good quality entries for inclusion in the recently held art competition at a local supermarket, some of which are displayed in school, the subject does not contribute sufficiently to the
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ART AND DESIGN
quality of displays around the school. By the end of Year 6, pupils rarely compare different methods, ideas and approaches, and have not acquired enough knowledge or developed a sufficiently wide range of skills for them to reach national standards.
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ART AND DESIGN
111 Teaching was satisfactory in lessons seen but is unsatisfactory overall because some lack confidence in teaching art and design and this limits pupils’ progress and so standards are not high enough. Where teachers have greater expertise in art and design they transmit their enthusiasm to pupils. They make good choices of materials and use them well, which contribute to pupils’ learning, and the constant use of praise to enhance self-esteem. However, some teachers do not place enough emphasis on the development of important skills, and provide a too narrow range of resources to ensure that pupils can produce a quality piece of work. As a result, some pupils lack confidence in their ability and soon lose interest in their work.
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ART AND DESIGN
112 The co-ordinator has plans for the subject’s needed development, but is not able to monitor teaching and learning to identify its strengths and weaknesses, and so has limited impact. A portfolio of pupils’ work is used for assessment purposes, but this work is not levelled to national standards to aid consistency of approach. Art and design is not as secure within the curriculum as at the time of the last inspection.
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DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY
113 The attainment of pupils in Years 2 and 6 is below that expected nationally for pupils of their age. This is similar to the last inspection when standards were also judged to be below expected Belmont Primary School - 41 levels. Overall, pupils, including those with special educational needs, make unsatisfactory progress. During the inspection only one lesson was timetabled and observed. However, a scrutiny of pupils’ work and teachers’ planning showed that pupils’ progress and learning are unsatisfactory. Some positive changes have been made and there is now a curriculum and planning system in place. This properly emphasises the development of essential features such as designing and evaluation that were criticised in the last inspection. Pupils’ skills, knowledge and understanding are developed more systematically but they are still not good enough for their age. In view of the changes to the planning
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DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY
and curriculum structure, improvement since the last inspection is satisfactory overall.
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DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY
114 By the end of the Key Stage 1 pupils use this knowledge of materials and their developing sewing and sticking skills to produce attractive collages of flowers and trees. Pupils make a good variety of vehicles using two types of axle. These models, completed with parental help are well finished and accurately made. Pupils use information and communication technology to create colourful pictures of their models and write poems or instructions such as, ‘My vehicle is a lorry and its sorry’ to describe their work. Design and evaluation of their work are still comparatively weak features but are developing due to the new guidelines.
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DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY
115 Teachers do not yet develop the skills and knowledge of pupils in Key Stage 2 satisfactorily. Pupils are taught design and technology in all classes but many projects are not completed satisfactorily due to lack of time. Pupils learn to take account of materials and preferences that users may have, and they recognise that their products need to meet a range of different needs. This is seen, for example, in packaging made in Year 3 and 4 that considers features such as protection, materials and decoration. Year 6 pupils design and make musical instruments but both the designing and evaluation of work are brief and show little depth of thought. Teachers encourage careful and accurate work that is also pleasing to the eye and functional. For example, pupils in Year 5 build a vehicle using balsa wood and card using their knowledge of axles, pulleys and structures. They include a small electric motor to drive the wheels although only one works efficiently.
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DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY
116 The subject is led satisfactorily in view of its low priority at this time. The new policy, based on national guidance, together with plans for every topic, provide a firm base for development. Staff confidence is low but improving and there is a need for in-service training to develop their teaching skills further, particularly in the areas of design and evaluation. Each project is evaluated fully when completed and modifications to the plans to improve teaching further are made. Little time is given to the subject and it is therefore essential that some important elements be well integrated with the teaching of the core subjects. This would help to ensure that skills such as making lists, writing instructions, evaluating work, measuring accurately and using ICT to plan and record are taught without using up the majority of time allowed for the subject.
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GEOGRAPHY
117 Standards at the end of Year 2 and Year 6 are in line with those expected, and pupils of all abilities make good progress through the school. The present arrangement of teaching geography in alternate blocked topics with history is well managed and ensures that pupils are given a broad and balanced curriculum over time. There has been satisfactory improvement since the last inspection.
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GEOGRAPHY
118 Teaching and learning are at least satisfactory at both key stages. Lessons are planned well to develop pupils’ understanding and use of geographical terms such as ‘erosion’, ‘strata’ and ‘deposition’. Topics are well chosen both to appeal to pupils of all abilities and to give a range of worthwhile geographical experiences. Teachers plan a good range of out of school visits that enhance pupils’ learning through first-hand experiences. Pupils develop their geography skills as well as increasing their knowledge of different environments. In a Year 6 lesson, for example, pupils were Belmont Primary School - 42 learning about coastal erosion. Many of them had visited different parts of the coast near home, and so had direct experience of the processes involved. Teachers are good at communicating their enthusiasm for the work, and pupils respond well, showing a keen interest and working well. Such
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GEOGRAPHY
work allows pupils to develop their understanding of how human activities can affect the environment, and how different localities have similarities and differences to their home area. Pupils enjoy their work and respond well. They work co-operatively and behaviour is good.
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GEOGRAPHY
119 The subject is effectively managed, although the co-ordinator has had little opportunity to monitor teaching and learning in Key Stage 1. Assessment is largely informal at present, but the blocked topic approach ensures that teachers keep track of the work that has been covered. Resources are satisfactory overall. New atlases have been provided, and the school makes good use of up-to-date world maps, so that pupils can see where news stories are taking place. This provides a good cross-curricular approach, and makes geographical knowledge relevant to pupils’ lives.
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HISTORY
120 Standards in history are above expected levels by the end of both key stages. Pupils show interest and enthusiasm in their work and displays and workbooks show good use of the skills of interpretation, explanation and investigation as well as comparison over time. Timelines are used regularly to locate significant events in sequence over a period. This is good improvement since the last inspection and is a result of the better teaching of the skills of historical research.
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HISTORY
121 Year 2 pupils represent their work in pictures but also in writing, and individual learning was seen as pupils explained the causes of the Great Fire of London or used the computer to write questions for Samuel Pepys. They also use maps of Captain Cook’s early life, write biographical detail and place events of his life in order. Notes were written about a video programme and cross- curricular skills are used well for literacy, mathematics, ICT, art and design and geography. Year 6 pupils use good factual knowledge in work that interprets events and incidents in history. There are biographical accounts of Queen Victoria, research about the life and work of Dr Barnardo and documentary accounts of working children in Victorian times. Timelines link Victorian times with the present through the use of birth dates for great grandparents. Numeracy and literacy are used well in this subject.
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HISTORY
122 Teaching and learning are good at both key stages with no unsatisfactory teaching. Lessons are planned well to develop pupils’ use of historical detection skills as well as increase factual knowledge of the periods studied. Teaching is enthusiastic and gives pupils an interest in the subject. This is seen in the presentation of pupils’ work. The tasks are meaningful to pupils, drawings and written work show pride and Year 6 pupils identify strongly with Dr Barnardo and the improvements in the conditions of working children as a result of the work of Lord Shaftesbury.
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HISTORY
123 During inspection Years 3 and 4 were studying the Anglo Saxons and good teaching was seen in both year groups. The good teaching was clearly seeking to improve investigative skills with questions such as ‘Do you think?’ and ‘How do you know?’ Learning was also good as pupils replied with ideas, opinions and possible explanations. They made many notes on their whiteboards and the teacher used these to provide many facts that the pupils then used to further develop understanding about the process of historical research. Where teaching was less successful weak behaviour management allowed poor behaviour to distract from the flow of the lesson for Year 1 pupils. As a result many inattentive pupils were unsure what was required. Time was lost in giving these pupils further guidance about cutting out sentences and placing them in order of events for the Great Fire of London. When using video evidence about the Anglo Saxons less successful teaching in Years 3 and
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HISTORY
Belmont Primary School - 43 4 focused mainly on the factual requirements of the lesson plan and did not improve the pupils’ skills of historical research effectively.
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HISTORY
124 The co-ordinator for this subject gives satisfactory leadership. She is developing resources and improving lesson planning with good links to other subject areas. However, the teaching of the same topic to classes in two consecutive year groups at the same time is not producing consistent teaching and learning at Key Stage 1. Although there are clear differences in the level of challenge in the lesson plans, they have been written by the teacher with subject responsibility. This means that these plans are sometimes followed too closely by teachers who have less confidence in the subject and are not closely matched to the needs of all ages and abilities. Where this happens, learning is less effective and, although standards are satisfactory they could be higher. Monitoring is limited to discussion about the success of topics and the responsible teacher has no other opportunity to evaluate
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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY
125 Standards are at the expected levels by the time pupils are seven and 11 years of age, with a few pupils who attain high standards by the end of Year 6. This shows a substantial improvement on those reported in the last inspection. Since then the school has made a great investment in establishing a well-resourced computer suite, buying new computers for each class and obtaining a wide range of software. This, together with well-planned teacher training has enabled the school to raise standards and to ensure that all strands of the ICT curriculum such as controlling devices and modelling are now taught in sufficient depth. All pupils have access to the computer suite and this regular development and practice of skills is used well to enable pupils to link their learning to other subjects. Teachers are increasingly identifying these links in their planning. For example, the school has identified a problem
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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY
with spelling and so are using the ‘Starspell’ program with whole classes to see if this makes an improvement. In a Year 4 class pupils used the program to practise spelling and the work was matched well to the different abilities in the class. All pupils logged on, accessed their own folders and found the files they needed. They enjoyed practising spellings using the computer and liked the instant feedback give by the program. The pupils appreciated this practical application of information and communication technology to their learning. ‘It’s a great way to learn spellings’, was the consensus.
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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY
126 No direct teaching was seen in Years 1 and 2, but teachers’ planning, records and the pupils’ independent use of computers in the classroom show that teaching is at least satisfactory and means that pupils are learning to work with new PC’s and software. Teachers use programs to reinforce literacy and numeracy skills such as spelling and simple number calculations. The pupils use a ‘Colour Magic’ program to explore shapes and colours in order to create patterns and pictures. Pupils sometimes need help to get started but quickly learn how to log on, select colours for drawings and background, save their work and log off. Work on display shows that pupils know how to word process their work and by Year 2 they know how to print their work. By the age of seven, pupils have sound basic keyboard skills and know the function of different keys, such as ‘shift’ and ‘spacebar’. They use these to good effect when writing sentences and short stories. Most pupils control the
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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY
‘mouse’ correctly and this enables them to ‘click and drag’ when using programs.
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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY
127 Pupils make good progress in Years 3 to 6. Older pupils had limited opportunities in previous years to acquire a wide range of skills to match the demands of the curriculum. The good teaching in these classes means that these gaps are being filled and standards are rising rapidly. The good balance between the direct teaching of skills and opportunities for pupils to practise enables them to make good gains in their learning. The teachers organise the lessons well and the pace of learning is good. Support assistants are deployed well and use their good expertise to support less confident pupils. Pupils are very eager to learn and some build well on skills developed at home and share these Belmont Primary School - 44 with those less confident. Pupils now have experience of modelling programs and in using external sensing equipment. They are now broadening their experience and their competence in using PC’s for
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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY
finding information. Pupils use the Internet and CD-ROM to support work across the curriculum. In a good lesson Year 6 pupils used the ‘Junior Control’ program to find ways to control the function of different sets of lights. For example they devised commands to control traffic lights. The teacher challenged pupils well and they investigated ways of getting individual lights to flash on and off in a planned sequence. The teacher made good use of the very good skills of some pupils who then helped others. The pupils were asked to apply their learning to make Disco lights. They found the work challenging and the teacher effectively intervened to show procedures using a large screen. This enabled pupils to practise ways of creating a sequence of flashing lights.
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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY
128 Teachers increasingly plan for pupils to broaden their experience and their competence in using PC’s for finding information is improving. Teachers use the Internet and CD-ROMs to support work across the curriculum, for example, in history, geography, religious education and science. For example, Year 5 pupils use ‘Espresso’ to conduct research into the Beamish Museum site. In a very well planned, well-organised and carefully structured lesson pupils worked on tasks well matched to their ability as they found information on clothing, education and transport in Victorian times. The teacher made good use of ‘Yellow Pages’ books as a familiar example to explain how the computer program functioned. The school has good procedures to safeguard pupils’ use of the Internet.
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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY
129 The effective training means that teachers now have greater confidence in promoting a wider range of learning opportunities. They are beginning to actively plan opportunities for using ICT across the curriculum and to identify a range of opportunities for all abilities. Good use is made of programs such as ‘Acceleread’ and ‘Accelewrite’ to support pupils with special educational needs.
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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY
130 The co-ordinator has good expertise and leads the subject well. She has great enthusiasm and has a very good grasp of priorities to further develop the subject. The school has achieved considerable improvements since the previous inspection and standards are rising. All pupils enjoy a wider range of experiences than four years ago and as a result they are making good progress.
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MUSIC
131 Standards for pupils at the end of Key Stage 2 are above expected levels. Pupils enjoy their music and respond well to the challenge of composition and performance with good evaluation of their own work and the work of others. For example during a lesson about combining melodic patterns to create a textured effect, Year 5 pupils worked well in groups to develop pieces of music that were based on a repetitive rhythm with contrasting melody. Chime bars were used to very good effect to create ascending ‘ripples’ of sound against an attractive repetition of three base notes. Singing in assembly is very good, a number of pupils play recorders with confidence and assurance and pupils enthusiastically support the school music club in large numbers.
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MUSIC
132 Standards by the end of Key Stage 1 are satisfactory. However, pupils’ could attain higher standards if the same lesson plan was not used for classes in two different year groups. In a lesson to develop understanding of how symbols can be used to represent sound, pupils did not identify with the purpose of the task. This slowed their learning and they did not develop any clear links between their symbols of length, speed or loudness and the sounds that they made with percussion instruments. Singing was good when pupils followed the lead given by the teacher in singing two songs as part of assembly.
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MUSIC
133 Teaching is good in Key Stage 2 and so pupils achieve well. Very good teaching and learning was seen during a lesson for Year 5 pupils but unsatisfactory teaching and learning was found Belmont Primary School - 45 in Years 1 and 2. The very good teaching used secure subject knowledge and clear objectives to explain the task clearly. The idea of melody against a ‘drone’ was demonstrated well so that pupils not only understood what was required of them but also appreciated the attractiveness of that musical form. As a result, pupils co-operated well in their groups as they experimented with instruments and discussed various combinations of sound. They recorded their composition in symbolic notation and each group was pleased to perform for the rest of the class. The teacher led evaluation of performances with questions such as ‘What do you think?’ and ‘How could you change this?’ Pupils made practical suggestions related to the complexity and the need for a ‘drone’ (simple) background to
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MUSIC
134 Teaching is satisfactory overall. However, there was unsatisfactory teaching and learning in a session where the teacher followed a lesson plan prepared by the co-ordinator without adapting it to the identifiable needs of the pupils. Year 1 pupils were asked to draw a symbol to show loud, soft, fast or slow sounds after demonstrating that they could successfully ‘sound out’ a sample of musical notation with ‘Ta, Ta, Ta –Ta, Ta’. Although percussion instruments were available the pupils did not use them to make any form of music.
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MUSIC
135 The school has made satisfactory improvement since the last inspection. There is good improvement in teaching for Years 3 to 6, very good improvement to resources, and considerably more enthusiasm from the pupils. However, there is little improvement in teachers’ confidence in this subject in Key Stage 1 and the co-ordinator has insufficient opportunities to influence these teachers. The co-ordinator prepares lesson plans but teachers in Years 1 and 2 do not adapt them. They use the same plan for consecutive year groups and so the work does not reflect the current learning needs of the pupils. However, the co-ordinator is providing satisfactory leadership and management overall and teaching and learning in Years 3 to 6 gain much from his enthusiasm. Resources throughout the school are attractive, imaginative and in good supply and this represents very effective expenditure of considerable additional funding for the subject in recent years.
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PHYSICAL EDUCATION
136 During the inspection it was only possible to observe dance, gymnastics and games skills. Discussions with the co-ordinator, other staff and pupils, plus the examination of documents and teachers’ records demonstrate that all strands of the physical education curriculum are taught according to the season. From this, and lessons seen it is evident that by the ages of seven and 11, pupils attain standards that match the levels expected for their age, with good standards in dance in the top years of the school. These show an improvement on the last inspection. The school provides extra-curricular football, netball, rugby, short tennis plus opportunities for football coaching from Middlesbrough F.C. and work with Marske Harriers. Pupils have opportunities to take part in an athletics event at the receiver secondary school. After school clubs are well attended and older pupils have the opportunity to take part in a residential visit where they enjoy outdoor activities such as
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PHYSICAL EDUCATION
orienteering. Pupils from Year 1 to 6 learn to swim and by the time they transfer to secondary school many pupils swim very well and well beyond the 25 metres required by the National Curriculum. They successfully compete in the local swimming gala.
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PHYSICAL EDUCATION
137 Teaching is at least satisfactory throughout the school with good and sometimes very good or excellent teaching in a few lessons. In a very well taught gymnastics lesson in Year 1, the teacher planned a vigorous warm up that ensured that the pupils joined in enthusiastically. Clear instructions ensured that pupils knew what was expected and the teacher intervened well to present greater challenges that gave the lessons a brisk pace. The pupils responded very well as they found imaginative ways to balance on different parts of the body. They showed good control for their age and the teacher’s excellent briefing reminded them of the movements they had practised and how Belmont Primary School - 46 these could be transferred to apparatus. Pupils held their balances well and demonstrated good body tension as they recreated these balances on boxes and benches. The good use of pupils’ demonstration enabled all pupils to improve their performance as they linked movements to form a
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PHYSICAL EDUCATION
simple sequence. The teaching of dance in Year 5 is excellent; the teacher’s high level of subject knowledge, very good planning and excellent choice of music (‘Beatles’, folk, modern jazz, etc.) meant that pupils achieved good standards. The teacher’s obvious love of the music motivated and inspired the pupils who responded very well as they imagined themselves as instruments and matched movements to the sounds they heard. The pupils worked well individually and in small groups to practise and refine their own dance sequences and three-part dance routines. They responded very well to the different rhythms and created imaginative movements to interpret what they heard. The teacher enabled pupils to perform for each other and to assess others’ work. This had a positive impact on the quality of the performance of all pupils. The teacher’s good links to pupils’ personal and social education enabled them to explore the feelings the music inspired and they interpreted these well
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PHYSICAL EDUCATION
138 Pupils’ games skills are built on throughout Years 3 to 6 and they attain satisfactory standards for their age. There are good opportunities for pupils to practise a wide range of ball skills and apply them to formal games of football and netball. Many of the pupils belong to sports clubs in the town and apply the expertise they have gained to improving their performance in games lessons.
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PHYSICAL EDUCATION
139 The teachers have sound subject expertise, and training through the ‘Top Sport’ initiative, which has also provided extra resources, has enhanced this for some staff. Lessons are planned carefully and take account of the national guidance and that produced by the co-ordinator. She has not yet had an opportunity to observe other teachers’ lessons but she gains a sound overview of developments through informal discussions, photographic evidence and shared planning. She has a good understanding of the subject and works with colleagues and outside agencies to develop the range of activities available.
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RELIGIOUS EDUCATION
140 Satisfactory standards are achieved at the ends of Years 2 and 6. All pupils, including those with special educational needs, are fully included, and make good progress at all stages. The school’s curriculum meets statutory requirements, and complies with the expectations of the syllabus taught in the local authority’s schools. There has been satisfactory improvement since the last inspection.
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RELIGIOUS EDUCATION
141 The quality of teaching and learning was good overall throughout both key stages. Year 6 pupils were learning about the expression of faith through the different forms of art. They showed good insight into complex issues and the teacher was careful to check their understanding at the end of the lesson. They had been looking at the vestments worn by the vicar of Guisborough, and exploring the significance of the colours and decoration. They asked thoughtful questions and were fascinated by the vicar’s explanations. This valuable first-hand experience helped pupils to build on their previous knowledge in a stimulating and interesting way.
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RELIGIOUS EDUCATION
142 In a Year 1 lesson pupils were continuing their work on Judaism. They were learning about the festival of Rosh Hashanah. The teacher helped pupils’ understanding of forgiveness through thinking about times when they had said ‘sorry’ to someone. She handled the discussion well, and then sent pupils to draw pictures and write about times when they had said ‘sorry’. The pupils responded well to this, and worked hard to complete their tasks. The work was well suited to the ages and abilities of the pupils, and all were fully included. Belmont Primary School - 47 143 Pupils enjoy their learning because of the interesting range of activities and experiences that support the curriculum. They listen well and talk confidently about their feelings and ideas. They work well together and behaviour is good and often very good. This reflects the good motivation in lessons.
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RELIGIOUS EDUCATION
144 The subject is effectively managed, although the co-ordinator is new to the school. The curriculum is based on national guidelines, as well as the Locally Agreed Syllabus. It is now in its second year of operation and is due to be reviewed next year. There is a system in place where teachers use ‘review sheets’ as a means of recommending possible changes. The co-ordinator has made a start to monitoring present work, but is aware of the need to develop links with other subjects further. Resources for the teaching of the subject are satisfactory overall, but the co-ordinator sees the need to continue to build resources to fit in with requirements as the subject develops.
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