St Bonaventure's Catholic Primary School

SCHOOL

Dates of inspection: November 27 th – 30 th 2000

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SCHOOL

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.

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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. St Bonaventure’s Catholic Primary School - 3

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

School address: Egerton Road Bishopston Bristol

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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: Mrs Mary Gainard

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Date of previous inspection: March 1996 St Bonaventure’s Catholic Primary School - 4 INFORMATION ABOUT THE INSPECTION TEAM

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Team members Subject responsibilities Aspect responsibilities

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Mr D J Curtis [20893] Registered inspector Mathematics, Physical education. How high are standards? The school’s results and achievements. How well are pupils taught?

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Mrs H Barter [9052] Lay inspector How high are standards? Pupils’ attitudes, behaviour and personal development. How well does the school care for its pupils? How well does the school work in partnership with its parents? Mrs K Gilbert [20997] Team inspector Art and design, Design and technology, Music. Mr I Hancock [13307] Team inspector Science, Information and communication technology, Equal opportunities. How well is the school led and managed? Mrs J Newing [21992] Team inspector English. How good are curricular and other opportunities offered to pupils? Mrs C Richardson [22058] Team inspector Foundation Stage, Geography, History, Special educational needs.

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

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:

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

The Registrar Inspection Quality Division

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Alexandra House 33 Kingsway London WC2B 6SE St Bonaventure’s Catholic Primary School - 5

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PART A: SUMMARY OF THE REPORT 6

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

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HOW HIGH ARE STANDARDS? 10

The school’s results and achievements Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

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AREAS OF THE CURRICULUM, SUBJECTS AND COURSES 28

St Bonaventure’s Catholic Primary School - 6

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

St Bonaventure’s Catholic Primary School is situated in the area of Bishopston in Bristol and takes pupils from the ages of four to eleven. There are 320 pupils on roll in thirteen classes, with 160 boys and 160 girls. This is an above average sized primary school. The majority of the pupils are white, with 20 coming from minority ethnic groups. There are no pupils on roll who are in the first stages of learning English. There are 42 pupils on the school’s register of special educational needs. This is below the national average. There are three pupils with statements of special educational need under the terms of the DfEE Code of Practice 1 . Nine pupils are entitled to free school meals. This is well below the national average. Children enter reception with standards which are above average.

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

A representative of the diocesan council will inspect the school’s acts of collective worship and religious education under Section 23 of the Education Act. This report will appear under a separate cover.

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HOW GOOD THE SCHOOL IS

St Bonaventure’s is a good school. Standards at the end of Year 6 are very good and the school is sustaining these high standards. The attitudes and behaviour of pupils are good. Teaching is good and contributes significantly to the standards achieved. The school is effectively led by the acting headteacher who has the support and confidence of the staff and governors in moving the school forward during her year in post. The school provides good value for money.

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What the school does well

• By the end of Year 6 standards are very good in mathematics, and good in English and science. • Pupils’ attitudes to learning are very good and pupils’ behaviour is good. • The quality of teaching is good. • The provision for pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is good. • Parental support for the school is good. • The school cares well for its pupils.

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What could be improved

• Pupils’ punctuality and procedures for monitoring attendance. • The school’s library provision. • The number of learning support assistants. • Opportunities for co-ordinators to monitor teaching of their subjects. • Linking the school improvement plan more closely to financial planning. 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 school has made good progress since the last inspection in February 1996. Standards have improved and the quality of teaching, especially in Key Stage 1 2 has improved significantly. The senior management team now plays a much stronger role in the management of the school. Teachers’ planning matches the different learning needs of pupils

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HOW THE SCHOOL HAS IMPROVED SINCE ITS LAST INSPECTION

1 The DfEE Code of Practice gives practical advice to schools and local education authorities about their responsibilities to ensure that all pupils who have special educational needs receive the most appropriate help to further their learning and personal development. This is a statutory duty under the 1993 Education Act. 2 Key Stage 1 refers to pupils in Years 1 and 2 aged five to seven and Key Stage 2 to pupils in Years 3 to 6 aged seven to eleven. St Bonaventure’s Catholic Primary School - 7 within each class well, and the use of assessment now guides pupils’ future learning. Resources and co-ordination of design and technology have improved. However, pupils’ punctuality remains an area of significant weakness and the school has made insufficient progress in addressing this issue.

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STANDARDS

The table shows the standards achieved by 11 year olds based on average point scores 3 in National Curriculum tests.

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STANDARDS

Performance in: all schools similar schools Key

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STANDARDS

English B A A C well above average above average A B Mathematics A A A C average below average C D Science B A A B well below average E

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STANDARDS

Similar schools are those with up to and including eight cent of pupils entitled to free school meals.

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STANDARDS

Inspection findings are that for the current group of Year 6 pupils standards in mathematics are very good and well above the national average. In English and science, standards are good and above average. In literacy, pupils use and apply their skills in reading and writing successfully in other subjects. In numeracy, pupils’ mental arithmetic skills and knowledge and use of times tables are good.

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STANDARDS

The school is sustaining good and very good standards in Key Stage 2 as the result of effective teaching. It performed less well in comparison with similar schools because the number of pupils who achieved the higher Level 5 (Level 4 is the expected level at the end of Year 6) in 2000, was above average nationally, rather than well above average. Standards in information and communication technology (ICT) meet national expectations. In music, standards exceed expectations for pupils of this age. In art and design, design and technology, geography, history and physical education, standards meet expectations for pupils of this age.

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STANDARDS

By the end of Year 2, standards in reading and mathematics are well above average, with those in writing and science average. Standards in information and communication technology meet national expectations. In history and music standards exceed expectations for pupils of this age. In art and design, design and technology, geography and physical education, standards meet expectations for pupils of this age.

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STANDARDS

By the end of the Foundation Stage 4 , children exceed the expectations set out for them within the Early Learning Goals 5 in communication, language and literacy and mathematics. They meet expectations in personal and social development, knowledge and understanding of the world, creative development and physical development.

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STANDARDS

3 Average point scores refer to the average of pupils’ scores weighted by Ofsted for each level attained in each subject. 4 From September 2000, the term Foundation Stage refers to children’s education from the age of three until the end of the reception year. 5 QCA (Qualifications and Curriculum Authority) has produced a set of ‘Early Learning Goals’, comprised of skills, knowledge and understanding that children might be expected to achieve by the end of the reception year. There are six areas of learning: personal, social and emotional development; communication, language and literature; mathematical development; knowledge and understanding of the world; creative development; and physical development. St Bonaventure’s Catholic Primary School - 8 Pupils with special educational needs make good progress in their learning. They are supported effectively in literacy.

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Aspect Comment

Attitudes to the school Very good, pupils enjoy school and work hard and well in lessons. Pupils present their work to a good standard.

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Aspect Comment

Behaviour, in and out of classrooms Good, pupils behave well in lessons because they are motivated to learn, nothwithstanding a minority who could and sometimes do present problems. In the playground and around the school, behaviour is good.

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Aspect Comment

Personal development and relationships Very good, pupils are polite, friendly and very well mannered. They enjoy conversations with adults. Pupils relate well to each other and with all adults they meet.

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Aspect Comment

Attendance Satisfactory. However, pupils’ punctuality is unsatisfactory and disrupts prayers and the start of lessons.

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Teaching of pupils: aged up to 5 years aged 5-7 years aged 7-11 years

Lessons seen overall Good Good Good 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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Teaching of pupils: aged up to 5 years aged 5-7 years aged 7-11 years

The quality of teaching is good overall and contributes to the good progress pupils make in their learning, the standards achieved and to the very positive attitudes shown by pupils. During the inspection, the quality of teaching was excellent in two per cent of lessons, very good in 18 per cent, good in 51 per cent and satisfactory in 26 per cent. It was unsatisfactory in three per cent.

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Teaching of pupils: aged up to 5 years aged 5-7 years aged 7-11 years

Teachers set high expectations in lessons. The purpose of the lesson is made clear to pupils and very effective use is made of resources to support pupils’ learning. Teachers’ planning matches effectively the different learning needs of pupils. Teachers have good subject knowledge which they pass on to pupils with interest and enthusiasm.

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Teaching of pupils: aged up to 5 years aged 5-7 years aged 7-11 years

The teaching of literacy is good. Teachers give pupils every opportunity to use and apply key reading and writing skills in all subjects. Teaching of numeracy is good, with strengths in teaching pupils to use and apply their mathematical knowledge and understanding.

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Teaching of pupils: aged up to 5 years aged 5-7 years aged 7-11 years

Teachers make effective use of the ‘IT-Suite’ to support pupils’ learning. However, there is insufficient use of computers to support pupils’ numeracy work in class based lessons.

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Teaching of pupils: aged up to 5 years aged 5-7 years aged 7-11 years

The teaching of children in the Foundation Stage is satisfactory overall, although it varies from good to unsatisfactory. It makes a good contribution to the good progress children make in their learning, in communication, language and literacy, and mathematics. Children are made to feel happy, secure and confident members of the school.

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Teaching of pupils: aged up to 5 years aged 5-7 years aged 7-11 years

The teaching of pupils with special educational needs is effective and contributes to the good progress made by these pupils, especially in literacy. However, such pupils receive St Bonaventure’s Catholic Primary School - 9 insufficient support in numeracy lessons. Teachers make good use of learning support assistants, when available.

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Aspect Comment

The quality and range of the curriculum Satisfactory, the school provides pupils with their full entitlement to the National Curriculum.

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Aspect Comment

Provision for pupils with special educational needs Good, individual education plans set clear and realistic targets; the special educational needs co-ordinator, teachers and learning support assistants support pupils’ learning well, particularly in literacy.

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Aspect Comment

Provision for pupils’ personal, including spiritual, moral, social and cultural development Good, the strong Christian ethos of the school is very evident in contributing to pupils’ positive relationships, values, attitudes and behaviour.

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Aspect Comment

How well the school cares for its pupils A strength, the school knows its pupils well; provision for day-to- day welfare and pupils’ personal and academic development is good.

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Aspect Comment

Leadership and management by the headteacher and other key staff The acting headteacher is providing effective leadership during her year in post. She has the support of staff, governors and parents. The deputy headteacher and senior management team support her well.

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Aspect Comment

How well the governors fulfil their responsibilities The governing body fulfils all of its statutory responsibilities effectively. However, there is more to do to develop its contribution to the school improvement plan.

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Aspect Comment

The school’s evaluation of its performance With no permanent headteacher and a succession of acting headteachers, the school is not able to monitor its performance sufficiently well.

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Aspect Comment

The strategic use of resources Satisfactory uses of resources to support pupils’ learning. However, not all targets of the school improvement plan are effectively linked to financial planning.

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Aspect Comment

The school applies the principles of best value satisfactorily. However, there are insufficient support staff, particularly to assist teachers in the teaching of numeracy to pupils of below average ability.

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What pleases parents most What parents would like to see improved

• Their children make good progress. • They feel comfortable in approaching the • The appointment of a permanent headteacher. St Bonaventure’s Catholic Primary School - 10 school with a problem. • Children are expected to work hard at school. • The amount of homework. • Extracurricular activities. • Information on their children’s progress. Forty-five parents attended the meeting with the registered inspector before the inspection and 179 questionnaires were returned. Inspection findings support the positive views of parents. In relation to improvements, the governing body, as in many schools, is finding it difficult to recruit a headteacher and who is a practising Catholic. The provision for homework and extracurricular activities is judged to be satisfactory. In relation to information about progress, inspection evidence supports parental concerns that they do not necessarily meet the teacher on open evenings who teaches their child literacy or numeracy because of the

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The school’s results and achievements

1. Children are admitted in the September before their fifth birthday, most attending local playgroups or nurseries before coming to school. Standards of the majority of children on entry to the reception class are above the average. Children make satisfactory progress across the areas of learning recommended for young children. By the end of the Foundation Stage, the majority have achieved the expectations of the Early Learning Goals in all areas and are above the expected levels in communication, language and literacy and in mathematics.

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The school’s results and achievements

2. Results of the 2000 National Curriculum assessments for pupils in Year 2 in reading were well above the national average. In mathematics, results were above average, but those in writing were below. In comparison with similar schools 6 nationally, results were above average in reading, average in mathematics, but well below average in writing. In teacher assessments for science, results were average both nationally and in comparison with similar schools. In writing and mathematics, these results were not as high as in previous years. However inspection evidence, from looking at the work of that year group who are now in Year 3, supports the school’s view that the higher than usual number of pupils on the school’s register of special educational needs had a negative impact on standards overall. Inspection evidence confirms that this particular year group has a number of pupils with challenging behavioural problems.

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The school’s results and achievements

3. Inspection findings are that by the end of Year 2, standards in reading and mathematics are well above average. Standards in writing and science are average. Improvement in mathematics is the result of very good teaching, linked to the successful implementation of the National Numeracy Strategy. Standards in writing have improved as the result of the school making determined efforts to improve pupils’ writing skills.

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The school’s results and achievements

4. In literacy, pupils read fluently and with expression using successfully their knowledge of word building. They use punctuation well to alter the tone of their voices. Pupils write stories enthusiastically and use interesting vocabulary: for example ‘soggy, rotten apple; stinking, vile kitchen’. Pupils use words, phrases and spelling rules (which are attractively displayed) well. They use their wordbook and dictionaries to help them spell words correctly. In numeracy, mental arithmetic and knowledge and use of times tables, are good. Pupils read, write and order numbers to 100, with many confident to 1000. In science, pupils understand that some foods are more healthy than others and that regular exercise is necessary for a healthy life. Pupils are aware of the differences between living and non living things and learn about the life cycle of a butterfly.

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The school’s results and achievements

6 Schools with up to and including eight per cent of pupils entitled to free school meals. St Bonaventure’s Catholic Primary School - 11 5. Standards in information and communication technology meet national expectations. In history and music, standards exceed expectations for pupils of this age. Standards in art and design, design and technology, geography and physical education, meet expectations for pupils of this age.

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The school’s results and achievements

6. The results of the 2000 National Curriculum assessments for pupils in Year 6 were well above the national average in English, mathematics and science and confirm that the school is sustaining these good standards year on year. In comparison with similar schools nationally, results were above average in science and average in English and mathematics. The school is doing less well in comparison with similar schools. This is because the number of pupils who achieved the higher Level 5 was above the national average, but not well above.

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The school’s results and achievements

7. Inspection findings are that by the end of Year 6, standards are well above average in mathematics and above average in English and science. Standards are not quite as high in English and science because of the profile of this particular year group, which has a higher number of below average pupils than is usual in the school.

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The school’s results and achievements

8. In English, pupils show positive attitudes to reading. Most enjoy reading and are keen to discuss books they have read. The good standards they achieve in reading enable pupils to cope with challenging texts: for example when Year 6 pupils compared the impact of an extract from ‘Oliver Twist’ with the video of the story. Pupils use complex sentences, accurate punctuation and interesting vocabulary in their writing. In mathematics, pupils show a very good understanding of calculating using decimals and the relationship between decimals, fractions and percentages. Mental arithmetic skills are used well and knowledge and use of times tables in problem solving is a strong feature of pupils’ work. In science, pupils know the importance of a fair test and can draw conclusions from their experiments. They measure accurately the amounts of water used in an investigation to find out if different soils have the same amount of air and are able to record their findings.

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The school’s results and achievements

9. Standards in information and communication technology meet national expectations. In music, standards exceed expectations for pupils of this age. In art and design, design and technology, geography, history and physical education, standards meet expectations for pupils of this age.

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The school’s results and achievements

10. Across the school, the majority of pupils with special educational needs make good progress towards the targets on their individual education plans because of the suitability of the targets and the good teaching they receive. They make sound progress through the school and pupils grow in confidence and self esteem. The school makes good use of assessment data for target setting on individual education plans and for the formation of groups. A programme of monitoring, introduced this term, is effectively helping to identify those pupils who need additional support at an earlier stage.

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The school’s results and achievements

11. Through the period of instability in the leadership and management, the school has been successful in meeting its targets, largely as the result of sustained good quality teaching. Inspection evidence confirms that the school has the quality of teaching in place that will allow it to continue to meet its targets.

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The school’s results and achievements

12. Standards have improved since the last inspection, particularly in Key Stage 1 where there has been a significant improvement in the quality of teaching which has had a significant impact on the raising of standards. Standards in Key Stage 2 have improved further as the result of consistently good teaching.

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

13. Pupils have very good attitudes to school life and their work, and enjoy all of the activities provided for them. Most pupils behave well and have very good relationships with each other and with their teachers. Pupils continue to make very good progress in their St Bonaventure’s Catholic Primary School - 12 personal development. These positive attitudes and good standards of behaviour contribute well to the happy and orderly community which was described at the last inspection.

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

14. In the questionnaires and at the pre-inspection meeting, most parents said that behaviour in the school is good. Parents feel that the behaviour of older pupils in Key Stage 2 has improved, although there are still a few pupils whose behaviour is sometimes disruptive. Parents say that the school has a caring, special atmosphere, which helps their children to become mature and responsible. Nearly all parents say that their children like coming to school.

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

15. Pupils’ attendance at school is satisfactory. Since the last inspection, attendance levels have risen in line with the national trend and there is very little unauthorised absence. However, the school has been unsuccessful in addressing the key issue relating to pupils’ unpunctuality. At the last inspection, it was noted that pupils’ unsatisfactory punctuality was ‘ denying children full curriculum coverage and disturbing the flow of essentially well ordered classrooms.’ This continues to be the case. In nearly every class, there is a significant number of pupils who are regularly late for school. In one class, 11 out of 28 pupils were late on the first morning of the inspection. On another morning, eight pupils who arrived late walked through the adjoining classroom as the class were assembled for quiet prayer and reflection and disturbed the peaceful atmosphere created by the teacher. Although the school

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

frequently reminds parents about the importance of punctuality, this has had little effect and pupils’ late arrival is still disrupting the start of the school day.

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

16. Children in the Foundation Stage settle well into school routines and have good levels of confidence. They learn to get on with others, to work in groups and share resources and to keep on task when they are unsupervised, although a few have some difficulties with concentration. Children listen attentively and have easy relationships with each other and adults in the classroom. Overall, their behaviour is good, although sometimes children are noisy when working on unsupervised activities.

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

17. Pupils in both key stages have good enthusiasm for school life and they show very good interest and involvement in the activities provided for them. Their positive attitudes have a clearly beneficial impact on the progress that they make. Pupils concentrate hard on achieving the tasks that have been given to them. They respond well to challenging activities, which motivate them to learn and to improve their work. Pupils persevere well and usually present their work neatly. Older pupils in Key Stage 2 show great enthusiasm for mathematics and are confident about what they are doing: for example when they are estimating. Pupils in a Year 5 physical education lesson concentrated very hard on their dance to represent themes for Diwali and displayed exemplary attitudes and behaviour throughout. Pupils have good personal organisation and settle well to group and individual work. They are industrious and enjoy talking about their work to each other, and to adults in

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

the classroom. However, there are a few older pupils who are sometimes slow to settle to work. Their concentration waivers easily, they are noisy and they contribute little in some lessons. Some pupils in Year 6 have a negative attitude towards physical education lessons in dance and choose to sulk or to ‘opt out’ of the lesson by behaving unsatisfactorily so that they are asked to leave the hall. These examples of unsatisfactory attitudes and behaviour from a small group of pupils weaken the otherwise positive attitudes that pupils have to their learning.

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

18. Overall, pupils behave well throughout the school and there is little evidence of unkind behaviour towards others. However, there are a few individual pupils with significant behaviour problems who can sometimes be disruptive and hinder their and other pupils’ learning when they are not managed correctly. Most pupils know what is expected of them and clearly understand the difference between right and wrong. They are polite and friendly and make visitors to the school welcome by talking readily to them: for example three pupils in Year 4 confidently offered to show an inspector round the newly landscaped school garden and answered questions willingly about their part in its development. In lessons, pupils respond well to the high expectations for good behaviour although there are a few occasions St Bonaventure’s Catholic Primary School - 13 when pupils are restless and noisy because they are not managed well by the teacher. Pupils

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

take turns to listen quietly to others and to share equipment such as musical instruments carefully and sensibly. Most pupils are trustworthy and know that they are expected to get on and work quietly whether they are working in groups or independently. In the playground, most pupils get on well with each other. They play happily with the small equipment provided and line up quickly when they go back into school. There was no evidence of bullying during the inspection and there have been no exclusions in the past year. Pupils’ behaviour around the school is good. Although lunchtimes are busy and a little noisy, pupils sit properly at tables and are sociable with each other and with adults. Most pupils move sensibly around the school although some older pupils sometimes forget that they should not run down the relatively narrow staircase from the upper floor when going out to play.

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

19. Pupils make very good progress in their personal development. They respond well to the opportunities given to them to take responsibility around the school and in classrooms: for example as ‘special helpers’ or monitors. They are learning to show initiative, such as asking if they can collect stamps for a Blue Peter appeal. Pupils have very good relationships with each other and their teachers and show understanding of those who may have difficulties. They listen well to others’ points of view: for example when discussing issues in ‘Circle Time 7 ’. They learn to work collaboratively, such as when Year 2 pupils worked together to record key similarities and differences between a Victorian school and their own when watching a video. Through the systems for monitoring personal development and promoting positive attitudes, pupils learn to understand that they must co-operate in order to achieve class targets, such as always putting up their hand to ask a question. Pupils develop an

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

understanding of how much progress they make in lessons when they discuss how well they have achieved the lesson targets planned by the teacher. Pupils are very positive about school life. They say they enjoy school and the activities provided for them both in lessons and outside the classroom.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

20. The previous inspection report found a significant variation in the quality of teaching between the key stages. In Key Stage 1, 65 per cent of teaching was judged to be satisfactory or better. However, 32.5 per cent was unsatisfactory and 2.5 per cent was poor. In Key Stage 2, 93 per cent was ‘sound or above’, including 34 per cent that was good and 3.6 per cent that was very good. Although the report gave no details as to why teaching was unsatisfactory, it did raise a key issue to ‘review the quality of teaching and learning in Key Stage 1 in order to ensure that standards of attainment are commensurate with pupils’ ability’. Current inspection findings show that the quality of teaching in Key Stage 1 has improved significantly and that the key issue has been addressed successfully.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

21. The quality of teaching in the school is good, with no significant variation between the key stages. Good teaching has a significant impact on the good standards achieved and on pupils’ positive attitudes to learning and good behaviour. In addition, good teaching has contributed to the school improving, and sustaining that improvement during the period of instability in leadership and management. During the inspection the quality of teaching was good or better in 71 per cent of lessons, including 18 per cent which were very good and two per cent which were excellent. In the remaining lessons, 26 per cent were satisfactory, with three per cent unsatisfactory.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

22. Examples of excellent teaching were seen in dance in Year 5 and in numeracy in Year 6. Examples of very good teaching were seen in Key Stage 1 in numeracy, art and design, history, music and science and in Key Stage 2, in literacy, history, information and communication technology and science. Good teaching was observed in both key stages and in most subjects.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

7 In these lessons, pupils sit in a circle and through agreed rules, have the opportunity to speak and listen to each other talking about issues, which touch them all. St Bonaventure’s Catholic Primary School - 14 23. The quality of teaching in the Foundation Stage is satisfactory overall, although it varies from good to unsatisfactory. Teachers and learning support assistants make good use of praise and encouragement to make clear the reasons why a child has gained success. Day-to-day assessment, especially in communication, language and literacy and mathematics where teaching and learning are consistently good, effectively ensures that activities are carefully targeted to match children’s abilities.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

24. Teaching of pupils with special educational needs is satisfactory. Teachers and learning support staff take careful account of the targets for pupils with special educational needs in their planning. The targets in individual education plans are clear and achievable. This is a significant improvement since the previous inspection. Pupils are grouped according to their prior attainment and particular needs in numeracy and literacy in Key Stage 2. Where there is additional support for these groups, tasks are matched appropriately to pupils’ abilities and pupils have good support from experienced and committed teachers and learning support assistants. However, there are occasions when some groups with less able and more able pupils do not have additional support and a number of pupils do not have tasks of sufficient challenge to help them make further progress. Support given to pupils with specific special needs on an individual or small group withdrawal basis is of good quality and

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

is well planned. This is an improvement since the previous inspection. Careful records are maintained by support staff and there is good liaison between all support and teaching staff.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

25. The teaching of literacy is good. Teachers implement the National Literacy Strategy effectively to support pupils’ learning. Teachers across the school have a good understanding of how to teach basic literacy skills. They plan interesting lessons, which challenge the more able and support the less able. Where the best teaching occurs, relationships are very good, pupils are highly motivated, expectations are high and the pace is brisk. Pupils respond to this very good teaching by working with sustained concentration and producing their best work.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

26. Teaching of numeracy is good and teachers show a clear understanding in implementing the National Numeracy Strategy effectively to support pupils’ learning. Particularly good use is made of mental arithmetic sessions to challenge pupils’ thinking and understanding through the effective use of rapid, ‘quick-fire’ questioning, with a strong emphasis on pupils being expected to explain how they find the answer. As a result, of good teaching, pupils enjoy mathematics and make significant progress in their learning.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

27. In lesson introductions, teachers show good subject knowledge, which they pass on to pupils with enthusiasm. For example, in Year 5, the teacher’s own performance, as a means of demonstration, of a Diwali dance contributed to pupils performing their own dance to a very high standard. Lessons are planned well and take into account the different learning needs of pupils within the class. For example, in a Year 6 numeracy lesson, more able pupils were given the task of solving algebraic equations by finding the value of ‘x’. Pupils of average ability were solving simpler equations. Another group were given the task of throwing a die and solving problems. As a result of work that was carefully matched to ability, all pupils made significant progress in their learning during the lesson. The final, or plenary, session is used well to consolidate understanding: for example of times tables in Year 4, when pupils

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

were asked to find ‘x’ when ‘x times 7 = 70’.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

28. Teachers use learning support assistants effectively in those lessons when they are available to support pupils’ learning. For example in the Year 3 lower ‘set’ in literacy, the learning support assistant supported a small group very well in developing key reading skills. The assistant developed successfully pupils’ use of letter sounds and in choosing from a set of three words the appropriate word to complete correctly a short sentence. As a result, pupils gained in confidence and self-esteem and made good progress in reading. However, there are insufficient support staff to work with teachers during numeracy which restricts the learning opportunities of below average pupils in particular. St Bonaventure’s Catholic Primary School - 15 29. Teachers, in the main, manage pupils well and there are good relationships. Teachers set high expectations of behaviour. The target for each lesson is shared with pupils

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

and this contributes successfully to their awareness of their own learning. For example, in a Year 6 numeracy lesson the target was, ‘to use symbols and letters to represent the variables in algebraic functions’. The teacher ensured that all pupils understood the target. Teachers make good use of day-to-day assessment and, if necessary, will amend or adapt a target accordingly. For example, in Year 5, the teacher identified that the shapes given to pupils were too demanding in terms of their irregularity for pupils to calculate their areas. As a result, she recognised that more work was needed in calculating the area of squares and rectangles and amended the next lesson accordingly. Marking is mainly used well to guide pupils forward in their learning, although it does vary from helpful and constructive comments to a series of ticks. Homework is used effectively to support pupils’ learning.

p.15

PUPILS?

30. The curriculum is broad and satisfactorily balanced at both key stages. Times for subjects are allocated appropriately. All subjects of the National Curriculum are taught. The school has developed a basic curriculum plan indicating what is to be taught in each subject, each term, for each year group. Classes containing pupils from the same year groups plan together, but there are no detailed schemes of work to assist teachers in planning in their lessons. The few teaching assistants work effectively with teachers to support pupils’ learning.

p.15

PUPILS?

31. Provision for pupils with special educational needs is satisfactory. Teachers plan lessons carefully to meet the needs of all pupils, supporting the less able and challenging the more able. However, there are insufficient teaching assistants to support the needs of all pupils, particularly in numeracy.

p.15

PUPILS?

32. The curriculum for children in the Foundation Stage is planned effectively for literacy and numeracy, but there is a lack of challenge in some other areas of learning.

p.15

PUPILS?

33. Provision for literacy is satisfactory overall. The National Literacy Strategy has been implemented well at both key stages. The absence of a suitable library in a school where pupils are reading above the national average is a serious weakness in curriculum provision and needs to be tackled as a matter of urgency. The opportunities that the school creates for developing pupils’ writing skills are very good and ensure that pupils use their literacy skills across the curriculum.

p.15

PUPILS?

34. The National Numeracy Strategy has been effectively implemented. All classes have a daily mathematics lesson, which contains a good proportion of direct teaching and gives pupils opportunities to gain skills in mental calculation as well as covering the other key objectives of the strategy.

p.15

PUPILS?

35. There is a good range of extracurricular activities, which take place at lunchtime and after school. Visits and visitors enrich the curriculum: for example Years 3 and 4 went to see a Roman castle at Caerleon. A group of dancers visited the school and worked with Year 5 pupils on a diva dance for Diwali. An annual residential trip focusing on outdoor activities is offered to Year 6 pupils. 36. The school recognises the importance of personal, social and health education, but this is in an early stage of development. However, at present all pupils receive guidance in sex education, and drugs awareness, as part of the science curriculum.

p.15

PUPILS?

37. The school has forged effective links with pre-school providers. The majority of pupils transfer to St Bede's Secondary School. There is a well established programme of visits by teachers from St Bede's and an opportunity for pupils and parents to visit the secondary school. The special educational needs co-ordinators of both schools meet to ensure that the needs of pupils with special educational needs are appropriately met. St Bonaventure’s Catholic Primary School - 16 38. The school is proud of its links with the community. The ‘Garden Project’ is a good example of this – parents and local businesses have contributed financially. Other parents have given their time to prepare the garden. About 70 pupils are in the gardening club. Another parent, who is a mural artist, is to work with some pupils to create a mural on the theme of creation for the retaining wall. Pupils and parents took part in an activity during the

p.15

PUPILS?

‘G7 Summit’ to draw attention to debt relief. Some dressed up as ‘fat cats’ and pupils were chained to the wall.

p.16

PUPILS?

39. Provision for spiritual development is good. The strong Catholic ethos makes a significant contribution to this aspect of development. Each session starts and ends with prayer, assemblies make a positive impact. The attractive religious education displays, together with the focus areas, aid worship. The school celebrates Christian festivals, feast and saints days and takes opportunities to inform pupils about other religious festivals: for example Ramadan and Diwali. Harvest is seen as an opportunity to share with others and this year food parcels were sent to Romania.

p.16

PUPILS?

40. Provision for moral development is good. Each class has attractively displayed rules, which are negotiated between teacher and pupils. Classes have clear targets: for example, ‘sit silently during registration’, ‘leave assembly without talking’, ‘work really hard during lessons’, and ‘change sensibly for physical education’. If everyone conforms the class receives a target point. If the agreed number of target points is reached in the week the class has some ‘Golden Time’. Such strategies help pupils to realise that they all have a responsibility to create a good learning environment. Teachers, parents and governors wrote the school’s behaviour policy. It is consistently implemented throughout the school. Expectations are high and praise is used well to increase pupils’ self esteem.

p.16

PUPILS?

41. Provision for social development is good. Pupils are given opportunities to work independently: for example Year 6 pupils wrote in silence for half an hour writing persuasive text; Year 2 pupils worked well collaboratively investigating the changes in materials when they were heated. ‘Circle Time’ is used effectively to help pupils understand other people’s points of view and to be aware of how their actions affect other people. Pupils are given responsibilities throughout the school. These increase as pupils get older. Pupils have some opportunities to show initiative: for example some pupils suggested the school collect stamps in response to ‘The Blue Peter Appeal’. They wrote an article for the newsletter and organised the project.

p.16

PUPILS?

42. Provision for cultural development is satisfactory. Opportunities are taken to inform pupils about other faiths. Pupils listen to music from other countries and there are musical instruments from different cultures. Dance and drama groups have celebrated cultural diversity. The school has close cultural links with the church. Pupils have participated in the local folk festival.

p.16

PUPILS?

43. The school has maintained its provision for spiritual development as reported at the last inspection and improved provision in other areas. Cultural development is still the weakest area.

p.16

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

44. The school has maintained the good provision for the care and support of pupils reported at the last inspection. This has a positive impact on the quality of pupils’ lives at school. All staff in the school have very good relationships with pupils and care for their individual needs well. There are good systems in place for monitoring and promoting pupils’ behaviour and for dealing with any incidents of bullying. The quality of educational and personal support and guidance is good because teachers and staff know and care for pupils very well. However, the school’s procedures for monitoring and improving attendance are St Bonaventure’s Catholic Primary School - 17 unsatisfactory because the school has failed to address the previous key issue relating to the abnormally high numbers of pupils who are regularly late for school.

p.16

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

45. Parents say that the school is a caring place where their children are well supported and make progress. They feel that standards of behaviour have improved again as a result of a renewed focus on positive systems for behavioural management and an emphasis throughout the school of caring for others. However, a few parents feel that problems at lunchtime and some incidents of bullying are not dealt with effectively. Nearly all parents say that they can approach the school with any concerns or worries. Parents say that they receive many letters reminding them about the importance of punctuality.

p.17

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

46. The school meets the statutory requirements for providing a safe place for pupils and adults to work in. Since the last inspection, the school has reviewed the health and safety policy and has started a programme of regular site visits and inspections; a feature which was not present at the last inspection. The school has acted upon recommendations of the fire service and has improved its procedures for fire drills. Members of the governing body and staff who are responsible for health and safety have a good awareness of the potential hazards around the school: for example the uneven state of some of the pathways and play surfaces. The caretaker ensures that the site is kept clean and well maintained.

p.17

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

47. The procedures for dealing with pupils who are unwell or who hurt themselves are good. There is a good number of staff who are trained in first aid and others who are awaiting update training. Pupils are given caring and sympathetic treatment in the medical room. Midday supervisory staff care well for pupils at lunchtime and in the playground. Pupils enjoy the opportunity to play supervised football with the caretaker/midday supervisor on the lower playground. There are good procedures in place for dealing with any concerns relating to child protection and pupil welfare. The school has plans in place to review the child protection policy, to introduce a policy for the use of control and restraint and to examine the procedures for monitoring any pupils who are ‘looked after’.

p.17

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

48. The school has good procedures for the promotion and monitoring of pupils’ behaviour and for dealing with any incidences of unsatisfactory behaviour. All staff have clear expectations for pupils to behave well and are mostly consistent in their approach to any lapses. The school has recently reviewed its behaviour and bullying policies to renew the focus on emphasising positive behaviour through systems such as class target setting and golden rules. The use of red and yellow warning cards to alert pupils when their behaviour is unsatisfactory is effective because pupils clearly understand the consequences of their actions and are given a chance to improve. Teachers use whole school and class rules well when explaining to pupils why their behaviour is not satisfactory. Specific rules, such as those for ‘Circle Time’, are clear and are adhered to well. The consistency with which staff treat pupils has a positive impact on their behaviour.

p.17

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

49. A few incidences were observed during the inspection where teachers’ management of pupils’ behaviour was less successful. Some teachers do not have the strategies to cope with individual pupils who have challenging behaviour and allow such pupils to disrupt the classroom and stop others from working. Some Year 6 pupils use the teacher’s behaviour management strategy of excluding them from an activity when they misbehave, to their advantage: for example to ‘opt out’ of some physical education lessons. The school is beginning to make better use of outside agencies to support pupils who have behavioural problems and to involve parents in strategies for improvement.

p.17

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

50. The school’s procedures for monitoring and improving attendance are unsatisfactory. This is because the school has been unsuccessful in improving pupils’ punctuality since the last inspection. The school is very aware of its ongoing punctuality problem and the disruptive impact that this has on the start of the day. Since the start of the academic year, the acting headteacher has sent many letters to parents requesting that their children come to school on time for registration. The class registers are closed at the appropriate time and pupils are marked in late. Registers are completed correctly and are checked by the acting headteacher St Bonaventure’s Catholic Primary School - 18 regularly. This is an improvement since the last inspection. However, there is no centralised office system to relieve teachers of the administrative tasks associated with following up absences or for sending individual letters to parents about their child’s punctuality. Insufficient

p.17

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

use is made of the information available from the registers to set individual or class targets in order to address the continuing problem of pupil punctuality.

p.18

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

51. The school has good procedures for monitoring and supporting pupils’ personal development. Good use is made of reward systems to recognise pupils’ achievements and progress. Pupils value the award of ‘super stamps’, stickers and certificates for their attitudes to work and to each other and for making improvements in their work and behaviour. There is good promotion of pupils’ self-esteem by celebrating their achievements in ‘Golden Books’, on ‘Trees of Achievement’ and when pupils write comments publicly about the pupil chosen to be the ‘Special Person’. The class targets leading to ‘Golden Time’ help all pupils to learn to work together and improve their discipline so that all may benefit from a reward at the end of the week: for example extra time for play. ‘Circle Time’ is used well to promote positive attitudes and values and to help pupils understand the impact of their actions on others.

p.18

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

Pupils are beginning to evaluate their work against targets set for them in literacy and numeracy. However, there is no opportunity for pupils to comment on their achievements and to set targets for the future in their end of year reports.

p.18

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

52. The school has made good progress with the procedures for assessment since the last inspection. The school has a useful draft policy for assessment. Pupil attainment, as measured by the learning intentions of lessons, is recorded for all areas of the curriculum. These are a natural part of teaching and learning and are shared with pupils at the beginning of each lesson and are reviewed at the end of the lesson. Staff, in conjunction with pupils, set individual learning targets in English and mathematics, which are recorded. These are reviewed every three weeks. Each pupil in Key Stages 1 and 2 have progress books for English and mathematics which contain samples of work which have been set against specific assessment criteria. A progress book for science will become part of assessment at the beginning of 2001. The co-ordinator monitors pupil assessment three times a year. Lesson planning details opportunities for assessment in line with the learning outcomes of

p.18

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

lessons. Information from assessments is used effectively in planning for all pupils with special educational needs and for gifted and more able pupils. National Curriculum tests taken by pupils at the ages of seven and eleven have been analysed carefully to provide good information to assist staff in identifying specific areas for development in the curriculum. This information is supplemented well by information from the local education authority's assessment on entry to school.

p.18

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

53. The assessments made by staff are monitored three times a year to ensure that pupils are supported appropriately throughout their education. The role of key stage co- ordinators is not fully developed in gathering information about the attainment of pupils in all subjects. Some co-ordinators are involved with the analysis of assessments in their own subjects. The assessment co-ordinator has a clear record of progress and an action plan for future development. The school now has a more accurate picture of pupils' strengths and weaknesses and is able to support pupils' academic development and identify pupils who fail to make sufficient progress. Assessment information is used to inform the grouping of pupils by ability in Years 3, 4, 5 and 6 in English and mathematics.

p.18

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

54. Curriculum planning is clear and takes account of learning intentions and tasks and learning strategies for pupils with special educational needs. Progress books are annotated to ensure that the assessment is interpreted in the correct context. These will show pupil progression through the school. Material from these books will provide samples for subject portfolios. Teachers keep records on pupils' understanding of learning intentions in English, mathematics, science and information and communication technology. Assessments of other subjects are recorded on weekly planning sheets. Pupils who exceed or fall below expectation in English and mathematics are identified on the weekly planning sheet to assist future planning. Teachers record all assessments in folders, which accompany year groups as they move through the school. The school retains a portfolio of moderated work to ensure St Bonaventure’s Catholic Primary School - 19

p.18

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

consistency. The policy for marking work is currently being reviewed. Pupils' work is marked, but the existing policy is not always consistently applied and only gives specific guidance on English and mathematics. There is evidence of some satisfactory marking with helpful and positive comments.

p.19

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

55. The school provides an annual written report for parents. However, these reports do not contain sufficient information to tell parents clearly what pupils are doing and how well they are doing it. There is inconsistency between teachers in the inclusion of pupil targets to indicate where pupils need to improve.

p.19

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

56. The effectiveness of the school’s links with parents is good and results in parents having good regard for the school. Even though the school has gone through several staffing changes and a period of uncertainty in its leadership, parents continue to give very good support to school activities and to their children’s learning at home and at school. The school and parents work together and create a strong community atmosphere in which pupils feel secure and achieve well.

p.19

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

57. In the questionnaires and at the meeting before the inspection, most parents expressed good support for the school and its work. Nearly all say that their children like coming to school and are expected to work hard. Parents feel they can approach the school with any concerns. This contradicts a small number of parents who feel that the school does not work closely with them. A significant minority of parents criticised the school’s provision for extracurricular activities and homework provision, which they feel, is inconsistent. Parents are concerned about the lack of success in securing a permanent appointment for the post of headteacher. Some parents are critical of the information that they receive about their child’s progress. They are particularly concerned that they are not able to speak to the teachers of the numeracy and literacy sets in which their child is placed. Parents feel that, on the whole,

p.19

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

the quality of information has improved, although some feel that pupils’ end of year reports are descriptive rather than evaluative concerning progress and achievement.

p.19

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

58. Overall, parents receive good quality information. Regular newsletters keep parents well informed about events and activities taking place in school, as part of extracurricular activities and through the work of the PTFA (Parents, Teachers and Friends’ Association). The school is trying to address some parents’ concerns about the provision of homework by publishing homework guidelines for each year group so that parents know what their children will be expected to do. There is very good use of message books in the Foundation Stage and Key Stage 1 by both teachers and parents to communicate any concerns, to indicate where a child has been making progress at home or school and to relay any messages or ideas for additional support. In Key Stage 2, homework diaries are used well to help pupils organise themselves and for parents to see what their children have to do at home. The school is keen that parents contact them when they have any concerns about their child’s

p.19

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

progress and teachers are willing to speak to parents both informally at the beginning and end of the school day, as well as at formal consultation meetings.

p.19

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

59. The school has made arrangements for parents to speak to literacy and numeracy set teachers at the spring consultation meeting and, as a result of parents’ comments, is considering how to ensure that parents feel they have sufficient opportunity to speak to set teachers at other times of the year. At the last inspection, the quality of pupils’ end of year reports was described as ‘sound’. Since then, the format has remained unchanged and parents are now not receiving sufficient written information about pupils’ progress in all subjects of the curriculum. Although teachers know pupils very well and have good procedures for assessing their attainment, progress and personal development, this is not reflected well enough in reports. Some subjects such as design and technology and information and communication technology are still combined into one section and there is insufficient space on the single sheet for teachers to highlight adequately a pupil’s strengths

p.19

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

and weaknesses in each subject and to identify where they need to make improvements. St Bonaventure’s Catholic Primary School - 20 There is no space for pupils or parents to make comments on the reports. The school recognises that there now needs to be a review of the school’s reporting procedures to ensure that parents get better quality information about their children’s progress.

p.19

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

60. The school has addressed the previous inspection finding that the prospectus was incomplete and now provides all of the required elements. However, although it is attractively presented, the content is quite brief and does not give parents very detailed information about the curriculum and specific provision such as that for pupils with special educational needs. The governing body’s annual report to parents is comprehensive and fully involves parents in the work and progress of the school, although little comment has recently been made on progress since the last inspection. Parents value the role of the governing body and there is very good attendance at the annual meeting where parents are keen to discuss issues of concern: for example the impact of pupil numbers and arrangements for class groupings.

p.20

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

61. There is a good consideration of partnership in the school’s aims and in its home- school agreement. The school is keen to involve parents in its development and has recently sought their views on areas such as the new behaviour policy. Parents are confident about approaching the school and involving themselves in the classroom, helping with clubs and sharing their expertise. Parents are very supportive of the school’s work on behalf of their children. They support pupils’ homework, most hear their children read regularly and many send in resources to support learning in the classroom. There is very good attendance at parent-teacher consultation meetings, church services, concerts and sports matches.

p.20

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

62. The school has a very active ‘PTFA’ who raise significant sums of money for the school and who are currently funding a large scale garden development. This initiative has involved local businesses, colleges, many parents and pupils and has been very effective in strengthening the school’s sense of community as well as providing a very good teaching and learning resource for pupils. The ‘PTFA’ actively encourage new parents to become quickly part of the school community and regularly arranges events in which parents, pupils, parishioners and other local people can participate.

p.20

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

63. The acting headteacher is caring and is effectively supporting the school until a permanent headteacher can be appointed. She focuses on providing equal opportunities for all pupils to develop as individuals and continue to raise standards. She is well supported by the senior management team, who since the last inspection have clearly defined roles and strategies for managing change. Subject co-ordinators are involved with the whole staff in updating policies and schemes of work and have insight into teachers’ plans to monitor subject provision across the school. However, as outlined in the previous report, the co- ordinators’ roles are underdeveloped due to the lack of opportunity to monitor and evaluate pupils’ attainment and progress in learning. This limits their effectiveness in raising standards in teaching and learning across the school. The headteacher has updated all job descriptions, which contain sufficient detail of specific responsibilities, but co-ordinators are

p.20

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

not given sufficient opportunity to share their expertise with colleagues and develop their management skills.

p.20

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

64. The majority of the governors have been appointed since the last inspection and are very supportive of the school. The chair of governors visits the school regularly and has established good working relationships with the acting headteacher and staff. The governors have recently appointed a nominated governor for each curriculum area to become more acquainted with different aspects of the curriculum. They have established sub committees and are beginning to review their written terms of reference to help them discharge their duties more effectively. However, the governors’ role is currently underdeveloped where they have no effective systems in place to monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of their initiatives on the standards achieved, which was outlined as a weakness in the last report. The governors have little input in formulating the school development plan, which is not a St Bonaventure’s Catholic Primary School - 21

p.20

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

useful document for identifying school priorities. Too many initiatives are itemised and insufficient detail on costings and success criteria are identified to judge its effectiveness.

p.21

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

65. In the last report financial management was judged to be good. Since that time due to the many changes in senior staff and governors, standards of financial control have declined, which was indicated in the recent audit report by the local education authority. Several recommendations are urgently being addressed by the acting headteacher and new chair of finance to rectify this position, including reviewing systems to make them more efficient. The recently appointed administrative officer is beginning to use new technology effectively for financial control and school administrative work. Overall, all things considered, the school gives good value for money.

p.21

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

66. The ‘Parent Teacher and Friends Association’ works hard to support the school budget by providing numerous items of equipment to support pupils’ learning. Appropriate use is made of specific grants and additional funding provided for school improvement and special educational needs. All statutory requirements are fully met. The school is beginning to apply best value principles effectively. Test results are carefully analysed and teachers regularly monitor the standards achieved by pupils. Staff and parents give their time freely to enhance the National Curriculum by providing a wide range of extracurricular activities. Parents are consulted and their views valued by recent initiatives such as the behaviour policy and home-school agreement. The acting headteacher and governors are becoming more proactive in seeking best value on expenditure by taking appropriate advice regarding contractors and suppliers and gaining tenders on larger items of expenditure.

p.21

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

67. A sufficient number of teaching staff are employed at the school. Two newly qualified teachers complement other more experienced staff. The initial training of teachers does not always relate to current responsibilities in school, but this has not had a negative effect on the provision of a broad and balanced curriculum for pupils. The school has a co-ordinator for special educational needs who manages this provision well. Whilst teachers plan lessons with appropriate activities for pupils with special educational needs, some pupils fail to benefit from the intended learning outcomes due to the need for closer support. There are insufficient trained learning assistants to support pupils with special educational needs to provide full access to the whole curriculum.

p.21

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

68. There is an ongoing programme of staff development and training in many curriculum areas. Training in information and communication technology is a particular focus for the current academic year to enable staff to work effectively in the newly equipped ‘IT Suite’.

p.21

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

69. The school has maintained its programme of staff appraisal and has a draft policy for the introduction of performance management with a detailed timetable showing the planned progression of this initiative. The school has achieved ‘Investor in People’ status during the last year. There is a policy for the induction of new staff with a briefing statement for newly qualified teachers. A staff handbook further complements this. Induction procedures for newly qualified staff are in place, but they do not yet include an introduction to policies including health and safety, or child protection procedures.

p.21

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

70. The original open plan school of 1970 has been considerably altered over the years. Teaching areas have been subdivided to form classrooms, which interconnect. There are constant disruptions during the school day in some classrooms when pupils need access to move around the building. This does not have a positive effect on the learning and teaching in those areas. There are three temporary classrooms on the school site which are of good quality, unfortunately one of these classrooms lacks running water which creates particular difficulties in teaching art and some other areas of the curriculum in Key Stage 2. Some classrooms are limited in space. This causes difficulties in certain types of lessons when space is essential. Lessons in the multi-purpose school hall are subject to disruption from a constant flow of pupils and staff accessing different parts of the building. The space available for physical education and drama is inhibited by the flow of people. The building lacks a

p.21

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

St Bonaventure’s Catholic Primary School - 22 dedicated area for library and research facilities for pupils. There is no opportunity to promote personal study by pupils within the school.

p.22

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

71. The school is well cared for and the site is clean and tidy. The classrooms are bright, clean and welcoming in their appearance. Cheerful interactive wall displays contribute to the education of pupils.

p.22

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

72. Overall, the quality of the school's resources is less than satisfactory. There are insufficient books to develop pupils' research skills across the whole curriculum in Key Stages 1 and 2. A new ‘IT Suite’ has been installed in the library area but access for pupils has been impeded due to problems caused by software. There is insufficient large equipment to support the required play of Foundation Stage children.

p.22

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

73. The school is fortunate in having grassed areas as well as playground space. The school is currently developing a garden, with funding and voluntary help from the parents' association.

p.22

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

74. To further improve the quality of teaching and the standards achieved, the acting headteacher, staff and governors should:

p.22

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

§ Take immediate steps to improve pupils’ punctuality to ensure that lessons for all pupils start on time. (Paragraphs: 15, 40, 50)

p.22

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

§ Improve the provision of the school’s library as a learning resource for pupils. (Paragraphs: 33, 70, 89)

p.22

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

§ Increase the number of learning support assistants to support pupils’ learning in numeracy, particularly in lower sets and, initially, in Year 3. (Paragraphs: 24, 28, 31, 67, 98, 101, 111)

p.22

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

§ Develop more opportunities for subject co-ordinators to monitor teaching in their subjects. (Paragraphs: 63, 117, 142, 151)

p.22

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

§ Ensure that the school improvement plan has targets which are clearly linked to financial planning. St Bonaventure’s Catholic Primary School - 23 (Paragraph: 64)

p.22

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

In addition the governors should consider the following for possible inclusion in the action plan:

p.23

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

• Taking action to reduce the number of people who pass through the hall during physical education lessons. (Paragraphs: 70, 156) • Ensuring that no pupils exclude themselves from physical education lessons that they ‘choose’ not to take part in. (Paragraphs: 17, 19, 49, 70, 154, 156) • Improving the provision of outdoor play equipment for children in the Foundation Stage. (Paragraphs: 72, 82) • Upgrading the quality of the sound system in the hall in order to improve further the teaching of dance. (Paragraph: 158) St Bonaventure’s Catholic Primary School - 24

p.23

Summary of the sources of evidence for the inspection

Number of discussions with staff, governors, other adults and pupils 40

p.24

Summary of teaching observed during the inspection

Excellent Very good Good Satisfactory Unsatisfactory Poor Very Poor

p.24

Summary of teaching observed during the inspection

The table gives the percentage of teaching observed in each of the seven categories used to make judgements about lessons.

p.24

Information about the school’s pupils

Number of pupils on the school’s roll (FTE for part-time pupils) 320

p.24

Information about the school’s pupils

Number of full-time pupils eligible for free school meals 9

p.24

Information about the school’s pupils

Number of pupils with statements of special educational needs 3

p.24

Information about the school’s pupils

Number of pupils on the school’s special educational needs register 42

p.24

Information about the school’s pupils

English as an additional language No of pupils

p.24

Information about the school’s pupils

Number of pupils with English as an additional language 0

p.24

Information about the school’s pupils

Pupil mobility in the last school year No of pupils

p.24

Information about the school’s pupils

Pupils who joined the school other than at the usual time of first admission 3

p.24

Information about the school’s pupils

Pupils who left the school other than at the usual time of leaving 16

p.24

Attendance

National comparative data 5.2 National comparative data 0.5

p.24

Attendance

Both tables give the percentage of half days (sessions) missed through absence for the latest complete reporting year. St Bonaventure’s Catholic Primary School - 25

p.24

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1

Year Boys Girls Total Number of registered pupils in final year of Key Stage 1 for the latest reporting year 2000 25 24 49

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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1

National Curriculum Test/Task Results Reading Writing Mathematics

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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1

Boys 18 16 20 Numbers of pupils at NC level 2 and above Girls 24 24 24]

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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1

Percentage of pupils School 86 (89) 82 (85) 90 (95) at NC level 2 or above National 84 (82) 85 (83) 90 (87)

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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1

Teachers’ Assessments English Mathematics Science

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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1

Boys 18 20 22 Numbers of pupils at NC level 2 and above Girls 24 24 24

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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1

Percentage of pupils School 86 (86) 90 (98) 94 (98) at NC level 2 or above National 84 (82) 88 (86) 88 (87)

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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1

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 Boys Girls Total Number of registered pupils in final year of Key Stage 2 for the latest reporting year 2000 16 20 36

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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2

National Curriculum Test/Task Results English Mathematics Science

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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2

Boys 15 15 16 Numbers of pupils at NC level 4 and above Girls 18 16 19

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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2

Percentage of pupils School 92 (93) 86 (93) 97 (95) at NC level 4 or above National 75 (70) 72 (69) 85 (78)

p.25

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2

Teachers’ Assessments English Mathematics Science

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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2

Boys 13 15 16 Numbers of pupils at NC level 4 and above Girls 16 18 16

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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2

Percentage of pupils School 81 (93) 92 (95) 89 (98) at NC level 4 or above National 70 (68) 72 (69) 80 (75) St Bonaventure’s Catholic Primary School - 26

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Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

Black – Caribbean heritage Black – Caribbean heritage 0 0

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Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

Black – African heritage 3 Black – African heritage 0 0

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Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

Any other minority ethnic group Other minority ethnic groups 0 0

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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) 14 Financial year 99/00

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Education support staff: YR – Y6 Total expenditure 562,948

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Total number of education support staff 5 Expenditure per pupil 1,822

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Total aggregate hours worked per week Balance brought forward from previous year 13,743

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Balance carried forward to next year 3,459

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Teachers and classes Financial information

FTE means full-time equivalent. St Bonaventure’s Catholic Primary School - 27

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Results of the survey of parents and carers

Percentage of responses in each category

p.27

Results of the survey of parents and carers

Strongly agree Tend to agree Tend to disagree Strongly disagree Don’t know

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Results of the survey of parents and carers

My child is making good progress in school. 41 48 7 2 2

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Results of the survey of parents and carers

Behaviour in the school is good. 27 62 9 0 2

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Results of the survey of parents and carers

My child gets the right amount of work to do at home. 28 48 16 4 4

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Results of the survey of parents and carers

I am kept well informed about how my child is getting on. 31 48 19 1 1

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Results of the survey of parents and carers

I would feel comfortable about approaching the school with questions or a problem. 60 34 6 0 0

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Results of the survey of parents and carers

The school expects my child to work hard and achieve his or her best. 41 51 3 1 4

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Results of the survey of parents and carers

The school works closely with parents. 34 50 10 4 2

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Results of the survey of parents and carers

The school is well led and managed. 20 47 15 5 13

p.27

Results of the survey of parents and carers

The school is helping my child become mature and responsible. 33 54 7 2 4

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Results of the survey of parents and carers

The school provides an interesting range of activities outside lessons. 14 40 30 10 6

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Results of the survey of parents and carers

Due to rounding percentages do not total 100. St Bonaventure’s Catholic Primary School - 28

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AREAS OF LEARNING FOR CHILDREN IN THE FOUNDATION STAGE

75. There were 51 children in the reception group at the time of the inspection. Children are admitted in the September before their fifth birthday, most attending local playgroups or nurseries before coming to school. The school has effective links with most of the providers and children have a morning or afternoon in the school in the summer term. They attend part time for the first month. The arrangements have been improved since the previous inspection. Attainment of the majority of children on entry to the reception class is higher than is typical of this age. Children make satisfactory progress across the areas of learning recommended for young children. By the time they are five, the majority have achieved the expected levels in all areas and are above the expected levels of attainment in speaking and listening, reading, writing and numeracy.

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AREAS OF LEARNING FOR CHILDREN IN THE FOUNDATION STAGE

76. Teaching and learning for children under five, including those with special educational needs, is satisfactory overall. Adults make good use of praise and encouragement to make clear the reasons why a child has gained success. Day to day assessment, especially in literacy and numeracy where teaching and learning are consistently good, effectively ensures that activities are carefully targeted to match children’s abilities.

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Personal, social and emotional development

77. Children make good progress and show that they enjoy coming to school. Routines within the class are well established and children become used to sitting on the carpet ready for activities to begin. They know that the person holding the doll as it is passed around the circle is the only one to speak a name rhyme. Teaching of personal development is good and most children are growing in confidence, developing a sense of self worth and achievement. Specific activities to encourage children to look directly at their friends and call them by name help them to understand the importance of knowing each other’s names and sharing things. For example, in an outdoor physical education session, children say, “I am rolling the ball to ……,” and they check that everyone has had a turn at the end of the game. Children are interested in their work and teachers encourage them to make choices of activities during the

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Personal, social and emotional development

day, so that not all activities are directed. Children learn the importance of sharing and co- operation, the social rules of taking turns and listening to others. At first, some find this more difficult than others. Children become more independent in remembering routines, changing for physical education lessons and demonstrating suitable levels of initiative and responsibility in their use of equipment and materials. They move sensibly to get milk and fruit at break, one group at a time. Children’s concentration improves and they sit and participate in literacy and numeracy time, paying good attention throughout because of the teacher’s skilful presentation of the material.

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Communication, language and literacy

78. Children make good progress in speaking and listening, reading and writing during the time they spend in reception. They learn to find their own name from a group of names and adults draw attention to letters and sounds around them in displays. Some children like to write their own poems when they practise the letters taught after guided reading sessions. This helps to develop an interest in words and reading. Children enjoy early letter recognition activities and when the teacher asked, “Why do you think I have to keep getting more letters out?” one child proudly responded, “Because we’re getting gooder and gooder. We’re experts.” Staff build on children’s confidence well in these activities and use good questioning skills to increase children’s knowledge and vocabulary. They use imaginative strategies, which offer challenge, to stimulate and interest children. Children enjoy books and know how

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Communication, language and literacy

to get information from pictures and point to some individual words. Several children are St Bonaventure’s Catholic Primary School - 29 starting to read simple books and enjoy selecting books from the display to take home. The home-school diaries contain very useful dialogue between parents and teachers and show how well parents support their child’s reading.

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Mathematical development

79. Children make good progress in the development of numeracy skills because of the regular opportunities provided to consolidate their learning of the numbers one to ten, and understand the need to find ‘more than’ and ‘less than’. Teachers make good use of the numeracy strategy and children confidently, and, frequently correctly, predict the numbers emerging slowly from the pack in the teacher’s hand. Children organise the mixed up number lines well and many demonstrate that they are able to match and count securely to 20. Children match spots and numbers on dice when playing games and make short or long snakes with plasticine and a line of bricks as long as the table. They work out who has the longest or tallest construction and realise that, if the line has several bends in it, it needs measuring with a tape. Most children understand ‘full’ and ‘empty’. When asked if he could make his beaker ‘half full’ one boy persevered, pouring out and refilling the beaker several

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Mathematical development

times until he was able to show precisely a beaker half full of liquid. Songs and number rhymes are used effectively to reinforce learning.

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Knowledge and understanding of the world

80. Children make sound progress in the development of their knowledge and understanding of the world. They learn to explore and experiment in a variety of activities. Children are encouraged to be investigators and explorers, to use magnifying glasses and colour paddles to see how things change. They have fun when they look at their reflection in spoons, amazed that their faces are upside down and this is not changed according to the size of the spoon. When building with construction materials careful questioning helps children think about what they are making. There are opportunities for structured play and exploration and children enjoy these. When using the computer children show that they are able to use a mouse correctly and follow the instructions on the screen. Sessions with a student have been very valuable in providing additional opportunities to assess children’s computer skills and their progress has been carefully recorded.

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Creative development

81. Children make sound progress overall in creative development. There are regular planned opportunities for pupils to draw and paint. Children show good pencil control when they draw pictures of their own house for a class booklet and paint attractive self portraits to show who is in the class. Skilful questioning and prompting from adults enables children to think about their tasks and improve their concentration. When printing a pattern with a range of interesting items, such as sponges and cotton reels, the nursery nurse encourages children to understand symmetry in shape and patterns when they discuss what they see in a mirror. Children play in the home corner and office, enjoying the opportunity to participate in imaginative play. In dance, they are encouraged to listen for louder, softer, strong and light sounds. They enjoy making music and singing action songs.

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Physical development

82. Children make sound progress in physical development, learning new skills in lessons and developing awareness of others when using equipment. They are learning to use tools, materials and equipment with increasing dexterity and demonstrate a good level of co-ordination when emptying and filling containers. Children use a variety of construction materials to build and make objects, which develops their manipulative skills. In the hall and playground they are learning to use the space properly and to understand the instructions to ‘freeze’ and move. They make strong, heavy movements as they attempt to be ‘Father Bear’ and light, skippy movements to be ‘Baby Bear’. Children are enthusiastic and very interested in the effects of exercise on their bodies. “It warms up our muscles,” asserts one boy when St Bonaventure’s Catholic Primary School - 30 asked why they had a warm up first. Teachers sensibly ensure that children have regular

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Physical development

changes of position and time to stretch and move to other activities. This helps children to sustain their concentration more easily. Children have access to the adventure playground and two playgrounds outside, but opportunities for play with wheeled toys and vehicles are currently not available. However, the ‘PTFA’, who have already provided the new home corner in one class, are purchasing a range of outside toys and a shed for storage. This will provide more stimulating opportunities for physical, personal and social development, as well as imaginative play.

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Physical development

83. The provision for children in the Foundation Stage is satisfactory overall and the teachers have made a sound start to planning across the six areas of learning. Planning has improved since the previous inspection and teachers make good use of the planning for the National Literacy and Numeracy Strategies. The good teaching in these lessons enables children to make good gains in learning because the planning is thorough and takes good account of children’s needs, as well as identifying links with the National Curriculum. Teachers are aware of the need to develop their planning of the timetable further to provide interesting, stimulating and structured opportunities for learning in all the activities offered. Teachers are given valuable, good quality assistance by support staff and students. There are suitable arrangements for assessing children’s attainment on entry into the reception class and teachers keep useful records of academic and social achievements. Parents are

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Physical development

kept well informed through informal discussions and the home-school diary.

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ENGLISH

84. Results of year 2000 National Curriculum assessments for pupils in Year 2 in reading were well above the national average, but those in writing were below average. In comparison with similar schools nationally, results were above average in reading, but well below average in writing. In writing, results were not as high as previous years. However inspection evidence, from looking at the work of that year group who are now in Year 3, supports the school’s view that the higher than usual number of pupils on the school’s register of special educational needs had a negative impact on standards overall. Inspection evidence confirms that this particular year group has a number of pupils with challenging behavioural problems.

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ENGLISH

85. Inspection findings are that by the end of Year 2, standards in reading are well above average, with standards in writing average. Standards in writing have improved as the result of the school making determined efforts to improve pupils’ writing skills.

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ENGLISH

86. The results of year 2000 National Curriculum assessments for pupils in Year 6, were well above the national average in English and confirm that the school is sustaining these good standards year on year. In comparison with similar schools nationally, results were average in English. The school is doing less well in comparison with similar schools. This is because the number of pupils, who achieved the higher Level 5, was above the national average nationally rather than well above average.

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ENGLISH

87. Inspection findings are that by the end of Year 6, standards are above average in English. Standards are not quite as high as in past years because of the profile of this particular year group, which has a higher number of below average pupils than is usual in the school.

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ENGLISH

88. Pupils have good skills in speaking and listening throughout the school. There are regular, varied planned opportunities to develop these skills. In Year 2, pupils use scientific vocabulary when describing materials during a science investigation: for example predict, observe, and change. Year 3 pupils give a short talk about a hobby and other pupils pose questions; Year 4 pupils use choral speaking, music and dance to interpret a dragon poem; while Year 6 pupils are given opportunities to debate.

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ENGLISH

89. Pupils achieve higher than average standards in reading. Reading has a high profile in the school. Pupils are provided with a range of opportunities to read, individually to an adult, St Bonaventure’s Catholic Primary School - 31 shared, guided and silently, as well as frequent opportunities to share text in the literacy hour. Pupils are well supported at home with reading and there is good liaison through home- school reading diaries, which are conscientiously maintained by teachers and parents. These strategies, together with consistently good, and very good, teaching contribute significantly to the standards achieved. However, the absence of a suitable library denies pupils the opportunity to use their good reading skills effectively to carry out independent research. Pupils need access to a wide range of books in order to develop the higher reading skills of scanning and skimming. Pupils in Year 1 read the story of Jack and the Beanstalk fluently,

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ENGLISH

with expression using their knowledge of word building. During a guided reading session Year 2 pupils read ‘The Lost Key’ using punctuation well to alter the tone of their voices.

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ENGLISH

90. Reading is well managed in Key Stage 2. Pupils choose their own books, but they are encouraged to read a variety of genres. There is a reading period every day when most pupils read silently while one groups reads with the teacher (guided reading) and lower ability pupils read individually to an adult. By Year 6, pupils show positive attitudes to reading. Most pupils say that they enjoy reading and are keen to discuss books they have read. The good standards they achieve in reading enable pupils to cope with challenging texts: for example when Year 6 pupils compared the impact of an extract from Oliver Twist text with a video.

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ENGLISH

91. Writing is being promoted very strongly this term throughout the school in an attempt to raise the standards of writing to match those in reading. Standards in writing are good for most pupils, with more able pupils achieving a higher standard. Pupils of lower ability, and those with special educational needs, achieve satisfactory standards in relation to their prior learning. Pupils in Year 2 enthusiastically wrote a story about ‘The Day the wolf met the three bears’ using interesting vocabulary, ‘soggy, rotten apple; stinking, vile kitchen’. They are provided with good support from words, phrases and spelling rules attractively displayed. Pupils use their wordbooks and dictionaries to help them spell words correctly. They are frequently reminded to read their work through to check for spelling, punctuation and sense. By Year 6 pupils use complex sentences, accurate punctuation and interesting vocabulary in

p.31

ENGLISH

their writing. The opportunities the school creates for extended writing are very good and ensure that pupils use their literacy skills across the curriculum; Year 3 in history, Year 4 in religious education. This Year 6 extract of persuasive writing for geography is an illustration of literacy being used well. ‘I am an archaeologist and I am against a sea wall being built. I find many rare fossils coming into view as the cliffs erode. People are curious about the past and fossils attract people to the museum where I work, providing a business boom for the tourist trade’.

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ENGLISH

92. Standards in handwriting are satisfactory by the time pupils leave the school. This is the weakest element of English. Pupils in Year 1 form their letters correctly and are beginning to learn to use a joined script. This is developed well in Year 2, but by Year 6 many pupils are not consistently writing in a legible joined script using a pen. This is because of a lack of consistency in the style of handwriting being taught. However, presentation is strength of the school. All teachers have high expectations, which are shared with pupils. For younger pupils expectations are displayed on the wall. For older pupils they are in the front of English exercise books. Teachers remind pupils of expectations and the results are consistently good throughout the school.

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ENGLISH

93. Spelling is good. Strategies for spellings are well taught: for example Year 2 rules for adding ‘ing’ and ‘ed’ to words, changing verbs from present to past tense, say, said, sleep, slept; Year 5 rules for making plurals. Pupils in each class are given spellings to learn for homework and these are tested and marked weekly.

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ENGLISH

94. Most teaching is good, or very good, throughout the school. There are examples of very good teaching with younger and older pupils, but teaching is consistently good, and very good, in Years 1, 5 and 6. Teachers across the school have a good understanding of how to teach basic literacy skills. They plan interesting lessons, which challenge the more able and support the less able. Individual education plans for pupils with special educational needs are used well in planning. Where the best teaching occurs, relationships are very good, pupils St Bonaventure’s Catholic Primary School - 32 are highly motivated, expectations are high and the pace is brisk. Pupils respond to this very good teaching by working with sustained concentration and producing their best work.

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ENGLISH

95. Teachers positively promote pupils’ interest in vocabulary, and attractive displays in classrooms make a significant contribution: for example Year 1 rhyming words; Year 2 question words; Year 3 alternatives for said; and Year 4 more interesting verbs for went, saw and came. By Year 6, pupils choose words carefully using effective connectives and powerful language in persuasive writing. There is a wide spread of ability in each class and older pupils are taught in sets. This helps teachers to meet the learning needs of all pupils.

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ENGLISH

96. Teachers make it clear to pupils at the beginning of each lesson what it is they are expected to learn. At the end of the lesson, teachers use good questioning techniques to assess what has been achieved. Then teachers and pupils together evaluate the learning and review whether intentions have been achieved. Marking is consistent throughout the school and closely linked to learning intentions. Pupils are clear about the symbols used for marking. Marking is good and frequently tells pupils what has been done well and what needs to be done to improve. Target setting is effectively used. Pupils are aware of their targets and try to achieve them.

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ENGLISH

97. Because lessons are stimulating and tasks set are interesting and challenging, pupils enjoy literacy. They listen attentively when the teacher is explaining text or demonstrating, and work independently and with sustained concentration to achieve their best work.

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ENGLISH

98. The lack of a teaching assistant in many literacy lessons reduces the learning opportunities, especially for those pupils with special educational needs. An example of this was seen in Year 2 - if a teaching assistant had been present, help could have been given to the lower ability group and they would have been able to participate fully in the writing activity.

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ENGLISH

99. Management of English is good. The literacy co-ordinator has only been in post since September but already she has conducted a full audit, written an action plan and analysed the National Curriculum test papers. She is clear about the strengths and weaknesses in the subject. She has monitored planning this term and intends to sample pupils’ work and monitor teaching and learning next term. The school has invested a good deal of money in literacy resources, but there is a shortage of non fiction books.

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MATHEMATICS

100. Results of year 2000 National Curriculum assessments for pupils in Year 2 were above the national average and average in comparison with similar schools. These results were similar to those achieved in 1999 and confirm the trend that the school is achieving above average standards in mathematics. Inspection findings are that by the end of Year 2, standards are well above average. The improvement is the result of effective teaching linked to the successful implementation of the National Numeracy Strategy.

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MATHEMATICS

101. Results of year 2000 National Curriculum assessments for pupils in Year 6 were well above the national average and sustained the trend set by the school over the previous four years. In 2000, in comparison with similar schools, results were average. Inspection findings are that by the end of Year 6, standards are well above the national average. Very good teaching has a significant impact on the standards achieved. Teachers use the National Numeracy Strategy effectively to support pupils’ learning. The decision to ‘set’ pupils by ability in Years 3, 4 and 6 is having a positive impact on the learning of average, above average and more able pupils. Pupils of below average ability and those with special educational needs are taught well and make satisfactory progress. However, they receive insufficient support in lessons, as there are no learning support assistants available to work with teachers.

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MATHEMATICS

102. At the time of the previous inspection, standards were judged as ‘mostly sound and sometimes good’. Inspection evidence indicates that standards have improved significantly St Bonaventure’s Catholic Primary School - 33 as the result of good teaching and the successful implementation of the National Numeracy Strategy.

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MATHEMATICS

103. Pupils have good opportunities to use their literacy skills in their work. They are encouraged and expected to read problems on good quality worksheets prepared by teachers. Pupils enjoy writing their own problems and are confident in producing written work on how they solve problems. Speaking and listening skills are developed well, particularly through the strong emphasis on pupils being expected to explain how they found an answer.

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MATHEMATICS

104. Progress in the use and application of mathematics to problem solving and investigations is good. There is a very strong importance placed on pupils being able to explain how they solved a problem as the result of effective questions, such as, “How did you work that out? What strategies did you use?” By Year 2, pupils are very quick in answering and explaining how they solve, ‘How much will 5 pencils cost at 10p each?’ By Year 4, pupils recognise and explain how number patterns grow: for example ’89, 93, 97, 101, _, _, _’. By Year 6, pupils have improved these skills well and are confident in completing the pattern, ’15, _, 15.25, _, 15.5’. They apply their understanding of decimals well in solving the problems such as ‘0.25 x 70’.

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MATHEMATICS

105. In number work, progress is very good. Skills in mental arithmetic and in the knowledge and use of times tables are very good across the school as a result of pacy and challenging mental arithmetic sessions at the start of the numeracy hour. By Year 2, pupils are confident and quick in using the 2, 5 and 10 times tables. They respond well to high expectations, “You all know these answers, I know you do!” Pupils are accurate in reading, writing and ordering numbers to 100, with many using numbers confidently to 1000 and beyond. By Year 4, pupils are accurate in rounding off numbers to the nearest thousand and understand place value to thousands, hundreds, tens and units. They multiply and divide by 10 quickly and accurately. By Year 6, pupils read, write and order decimals to hundredths and thousandths. They multiply and divide accurately by 0.1 and 0.01. Pupils have a good understanding of the relationship between fractions, decimals and percentages.

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MATHEMATICS

106. Progress in the understanding of shape, space and measures is good. By Year 2, pupils tell the time accurately to the hour, half-hour and quarter, past and to. They measure to the nearest centimetre and name and label correctly common two-dimensional and three- dimensional shapes. By Year 4, pupils read scales accurately and they understand how to find the area and perimeter of shapes. They recognise and name correctly different types of triangles, including ‘equilateral’ and ‘isosceles’. By Year 6, pupils are confident in calculating the areas of triangles using formulae.

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MATHEMATICS

107. Progress in work on handling data is good. By Year 6, pupils produce accurate graphs which are correctly titled and with correct scales on each axis. They understand how to use frequency graphs and construct accurate pie charts, including calculating the correct angle for each segment.

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MATHEMATICS

108. Information and communication technology is not used effectively to support pupils’ learning in numeracy. In the numeracy hour, there is too little use of computers to support pupils’ learning, although there is a lack of quality software available in the school. On occasions, the ‘IT-Suite’ is used effectively: for example in Year 6 where pupils used successfully a spreadsheet to help them discover the algebraic formula to find the number of matchsticks needed to make 100 ‘matchstick squares’.

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MATHEMATICS

109. Teaching is good; during the inspection the quality of teaching was good in 82 per cent of lessons observed, with six per cent excellent, six per cent very good and six per cent satisfactory. The high quality of teaching has a significant impact on the standards achieved and to pupils’ very positive attitudes to learning. Pupils enjoy lessons as the result of teachers’ enthusiasm and confidence in teaching the subject. Strengths of teaching start with the very effective, challenging and demanding mental arithmetic sessions. In the excellent lesson in Year 6, pupils hardly had time to breathe in the ‘Follow My Leader’ time challenge. St Bonaventure’s Catholic Primary School - 34 Here, each pupil had a card with an answer and a question; the pupil who started read his/her question then the pupil with the answer called this out and read the next question and so on. In the lesson, there was great delight as the class beat the previous day’s time by one

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MATHEMATICS

second. There is a strong expectation that pupils should see patterns and find rules.

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MATHEMATICS

110. In the group work phase of the lesson, work is matched well to pupils’ different learning needs. For example in Year 2, more able pupils were exploring numbers which are multiplied or divided by 10, average ability pupils were finding multiplication and division factors using 12, 6, 3 and 2, whilst below average pupils were reinforcing their counting in 2s and 10s by using small cubes. Plenary or final sessions are used effectively to reinforce key teaching points: for example in Year 2 where work on the 10 times table was applied to quick fire questions from the teacher, such as, “If one minibus holds 10 children, how many minibuses for 60 children?” Praise is used effectively and this boosts pupils’ self esteem and confidence in their learning.

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MATHEMATICS

111. The management of the subject is good. The co-ordinator monitors planning and has carried out some observations on the quality of teaching of his colleagues. The subject has a detailed action plan which links well into the school improvement plan. Good use is made of the analysis of the results of the National Curriculum assessments to identify gaps in pupils’ learning. However, there are insufficient support staff to meet the learning needs of pupils within the lower sets in Key Stage 2, especially in Year 3 where there is a high proportion of pupils with special educational needs, and challenging behaviour. Resources are adequate, with the exception of software to support the numeracy hour.

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SCIENCE

112. In the 2000 national tests for pupils aged 11, the school’s standards were well above the national average and above the average when compared with similar schools. During the last four years, there has been a significant improvement in test results in science. This is largely due to particularly good teaching at the upper end of the school. Experimental and investigative science is now well developed in Key Stage 2, which has a positive impact on standards. The inspection findings are that the attainment in the current Year 6 is above average. The 2000 teacher assessments for pupils aged seven indicate that the proportion of pupils achieving the expected level was close to the national average but below the average for similar schools. Pupils’ performance in physical processes was well below the national average, indicating that not all areas of science were adequately covered last year. The

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SCIENCE

inspection findings indicate that the attainment of pupils currently in Year 2 is average. 113. By the end of Key Stage 1, pupils understand that some foods are more healthy than others and that regular exercise is necessary for a healthy life. They are aware of the differences between living and non living things and learn about the life cycle of a butterfly. They investigate successfully the properties of materials and carry out simple investigations on the way temperature affects some materials.

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SCIENCE

114. In Key Stage 2, younger pupils realise the importance of being consistent when planning their own experiments on the absorbency of different types of paper. By the end of Key Stage 2, pupils know the importance of a fair test and draw conclusions from their experiments. They measure accurately the amounts of water used in an investigation to find out if different soils have the same amount of air and are able to record their findings. Higher attaining pupils justify their predictions and make valid suggestions for methods to measure and compare the volume of water that sinks into the soil. As part of an investigation on the human body, pupils recognise the dangers of tobacco on major organs and participate in lively discussions using good scientific vocabulary and mature ideas.

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SCIENCE

115. Pupils have good attitudes to their learning, including those with special educational needs. They treat equipment and apparatus with respect. They show enthusiasm when designing experiments, clearly enjoy practical work and delight in their discoveries. Most pupils behave sensibly and co-operate well in groups, which helps to promote social St Bonaventure’s Catholic Primary School - 35 development. They sustain concentration, share resources and take pride in the presentation of their work.

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SCIENCE

116. The quality of teaching is good overall at both key stages and has improved since the last inspection. The quality of teaching during this inspection varied from very good to unsatisfactory lessons. Learning is most successful in lessons where planning is clear, tasks are purposeful for all abilities and the pace of lessons is brisk. Where this is linked to confident class management, high expectations and good subject knowledge, learning is at its best. Successful teaching is characterised by good relationships with pupils who are encouraged to evaluate their findings and extend their studies with homework. Where teaching and learning is unsatisfactory teachers lack confidence, expectations are too low, time is not used effectively, the pace of lessons is too slow and there is an overdependence on using work sheets. Volunteer parents provide valuable help to support pupils’ learning during experimental and investigative science due to the small number of learning support

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SCIENCE

117. The new science co-ordinator is effectively working with staff to revise the scheme of work to ensure a greater consistency in the school’s approach to the teaching of science. She has identified the need to update the policy, develop the use of assessment and provide more resources including good quality books to support pupils’ learning. The co-ordinator has no opportunity to monitor teaching and learning of pupils in lessons which limits her effectiveness in raising standards in teaching and learning across the school. There are useful cross-curricular links with literacy and numeracy, but insufficient use is currently made of information and communication technology to support pupils’ learning. The new, ambitious garden project undertaken by the ‘PTFA’ and the weekly garden club, open to all ages, offer good opportunities to extend pupils’ learning in science.

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ART AND DESIGN

118. Observation of a limited number of art lessons, in both key stages, during the inspection, and through a scrutiny of displays and pupils’ work, and discussion with pupils indicate that standards in the subject are as expected for the various age groups.

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ART AND DESIGN

119. At Key Stage 1, pupils attain standards in art that are in line with their ages. This is the same judgement as that made at the time of the school's last inspection. Pupils make satisfactory progress as they move through the key stage. Opportunities for making thick paint mixtures with flour to paint designs on pieces of fabric cut into the shape of shirts and other items of clothing produced a vibrant washing line display of clothes in Year 1. Other pupils in this year group dyed fabric and were able to talk about tone in relation to this task which produced a selection of more muted samples. Year 1 pupils make good progress with weaving in paper and in fabric. Pupils focused well on the manipulative challenge of this task and were keen to achieve well. They discussed the types of pattern they wished to create on their looms and tried to challenge themselves to produce a pattern of complexity. Teachers

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ART AND DESIGN

encouraged pupils who had difficulty in recognising a pattern or who lacked sufficient manual dexterity to complete the tasks with ease. The efforts of all pupils were valued and praise was used positively to encourage all pupils to give of their best. Pupils compared weaving in fabric with paper and were able to explain their preferences. A Year 1 pupil summarised the weaving process in writing, “First I went over under. Second I went under over.” There were examples of observational drawings, collage work, leaf prints and rubbings in a comparison of textures by Year 2 pupils.

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ART AND DESIGN

120. Pupils in Key Stage 2 make satisfactory progress. The displays around the school show a range of skills from painting to cut out silhouettes in a Year 6 display in the hall. Year 4 pupils had produced clay jewellery to complement their work in history on the lives of the Celts at the time of the Roman invasion of Britain. This work was well observed and decorated in the style of the period. Another group of Year 4 pupils had produced observational drawings of animal skeletons using pastels. St Bonaventure’s Catholic Primary School - 36 121. The quality of teaching is satisfactory in both key stages. Teachers have a secure knowledge of the subject and plan work carefully to provide sufficient challenge for pupils with a range of abilities. The use of sketchbooks is not well developed except in Year 2 where pupils record observational drawings and sketches as a basis for future larger scale work.

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ART AND DESIGN

122. The scope and quality of the range of art resources is satisfactory. A whole school system for the assessment of pupils' art work is in place and is well used to support future planning in the subject. Pupils are encouraged to evaluate their own work and that of others. The school's policy for art is a little dated and does not make clear the good practice which has developed in planning and assessment. Although some classroom accommodation lacks a water supply, this has not inhibited pupils' access to the curriculum.

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DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

123. Standards in design and technology have improved since the last inspection. A scrutiny of displays, pupils' work, planning, records of assessment and discussions with pupils and members of staff indicate that standards are as expected by the age of seven and eleven.

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DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

124. Older pupils in Key Stage 2 use design and technology skills productively. Year 5 pupils have designed and made models with a cam to create movement in other components. In this task, pupils designed, measured and selected appropriate materials from wood and a variety of paper based products to produce a variety of individual working models, including a teapot with a lid which could be lifted by a mechanism. The pupils evaluated their designs and assessed whether they had fulfilled the original design criteria using the appropriate vocabulary concerned with design and technology. Pupils show a satisfactory ability to gather information to generate their own ideas.

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DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

125. Pupils in Year 3 designed and tested 'new' sandwich fillings. They evaluated these according to appearance, structure, cost and appropriateness for a healthy life style. They attempted to resolve their likes and dislikes through group evaluation and further adjustments. Evaluation of products was an area of work undertaken by Year 4 when they looked at a large selection of money holders and assessed the usefulness of the various design features, size, security, colour and fabric. Pupils created the 'does it fit in the pocket test' as an aid to the process. 126. Pupils of all ages make satisfactory progress including pupils with special educational needs. Year 2 pupils were designing and making Jacob's coat of many colours. After the initial design and consideration of pattern, the pupils investigated the best way of joining fabric including staples, split pins and glue. They discovered that sewing provided the most efficient

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DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

127. Pupils described their work in design and technology with pride and enjoyment and were confident in their explanation of processes.

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DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

128. A useful range of tools and resources are available and are appropriately stored. A detailed scheme of work has been prepared based on the new Qualifications and Curriculum Authority recommendations. The curriculum overview ensures that there is progression and development in the subject material used by each year group. Assessment is linked to planning so that teachers are able to assess pupils’ attainment and skill level with some rigour. Portfolios containing pupils' design work and final evaluations help in the moderation and assessment process. Bright and attractive displays develop pupils' interest in the subject. However, the monitoring of teaching and learning in design and technology is not yet developed within the school. Information and communication technology does not have a role in the support of design and technology. St Bonaventure’s Catholic Primary School - 37

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GEOGRAPHY

129. Due to arrangements for teaching the subject in half term topics, it was not possible to see any geography lessons in Key Stage 1. However, evidence gained from a study of pupils’ work, discussions with teachers and the co-ordinator, indicate that standards achieved by pupils in geography are satisfactory and are typical of pupils aged seven and eleven. Standards have been maintained since the last inspection.

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GEOGRAPHY

130. Year 2 pupils draw clear maps of the Isle of Struay, which are labelled well. When asked to improve their maps, pupils add further details. For example, one added a pier, “So that boats can get to the island,” and another an aeroplane landing strip, “For carrying shopping from the mainland.” Pupils make relevant lists of the differences between the island and the mainland. Year 1 pupils produce very good maps of their route to school, making pertinent observations about the traffic and pollution in a nearby main road. Their observational drawings and writing about favourite areas of the school reveal an appreciation of grounds where a squirrel runs across the bank, and the quiet areas outside where pupils may sit. Pupils in Key Stage 1 are clearly developing an awareness of the good and bad features of the environment.

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GEOGRAPHY

131. Year 6 pupils define terms such as ‘coastline’, ‘erosion’ and ‘headland’ in an articulate manner, volunteering ideas because they are encouraged to answer and praised for their responses by the teacher. This makes pupils feel valued and helps them to work well together in groups. Those who know the area discussed in the lesson, grow in confidence because they become aware that they have a valuable contribution to make. Pupils make perceptive observations about the aerial photographs and consider arguments for and against ways of dealing with erosion along a particular coastline. They are very concerned that as much as possible should be conserved.

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GEOGRAPHY

132. The youngest pupils in Key Stage 2 learn how to organise data, produced from a questionnaire about parents’ occupations and how they travel to their work, in a systematic manner. They compare the types of jobs people are likely to have in a town or village settlement and make reasoned suggestions about their work and journeys. Environmental issues such as traffic and pollution, feature strongly in discussions. Year 4 pupils feel important when they are told they are to be ‘town planners’. Teachers set a time limit for groups to finish planning their settlement, a new town with 800 houses and usual services. They challenge pupils to add other features, whilst remaining aware of the existing areas where there is a bird sanctuary, woodland and a marsh. Groups produce individual plans in the time available and learn from the whole class discussion that in exercises like this, there is no one solution. This is led well by the teachers’ questioning.

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GEOGRAPHY

133. Teaching is good overall and teachers’ planning indicates that good use is made of visits and homework. Good links with numeracy appear in many topics, including the use of four figure co-ordinates in map work, and literacy for the presentation of ideas in discussion and in well presented written work. There is a clear emphasis on the teaching of geographical skills and providing pupils with opportunities to build on previous learning. This is an improvement since the previous inspection. Pupils enjoy their geography lessons and work well together. The subject makes a good contribution to pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development by extending their knowledge of the world and its peoples. The subject is led well by a keen and enthusiastic co-ordinator who has clear plans to improve the quality and quantity of resources, which are not sufficient for the topics now being taught.

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HISTORY

134. It was only possible to see one history lesson in Key Stage 2 because of the arrangements for the teaching of history, but examination of pupils’ work, displays, teachers’ planning and discussions with teachers and the co-ordinator, indicate that standards at the age of eleven are typical of those nationally. Pupils’ skills, knowledge and understanding are St Bonaventure’s Catholic Primary School - 38 above those typical of pupils at the end of Key Stage 1. Boys and girls, including those with special educational needs, achieve well in lessons. Standards have been maintained since the previous inspection.

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HISTORY

135. Pupils successfully develop the use of a variety of evidence to find out about the past as they carry out research. When asked what history is Year 2 pupils explained, “The present is now, and history is about what is gone. This morning is history.” Pupils sat in pairs, one with pencil and clipboard, the other as an observer, both poised to record similarities and differences between school 100 years ago and now. They concentrated very well, writing quickly as they watched the video. There was absolute horror on their faces when the teacher struck a boy on the hand with a cane. “That horrible teacher!” they exclaimed. “That’s a difference!” Encouraged by the teacher’s open ended questions pupils show good observational skills when they look for further details on photographs and drawings. Pupils used the information gained well to prepare questions for the visit of an ex-headteacher of the school in December. They felt they had a lot to ask him. Year 1 pupils are acquiring a good

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HISTORY

understanding of how things change over time. The teacher’s expressive reading of a book specifically selected to show change over time and the generations in a family, and her own careful explanation of her immediate ‘family tree’, provide many opportunities to reinforce pupils’ understanding of family trees. Pupils demonstrated this well when completing their own diagrams very thoughtfully. Most spelt brother’s and sister’s names correctly.

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HISTORY

136. Pupils in Year 3 and 4 enhanced their learning about the Romans well when they visited the Caerleon Museum. They wrote at length about the visit and enjoyed their time as history detectives. “We went to the museum,” wrote one pupil, “It was amazing!” Pupils tried on uniform and this helped them in their writing about the expectations, and hardships, of a legionary’s life. As part of their project on Ancient Greece, Year 5 pupils carry out research to compare the ancient and modern Olympic Games. The teacher has high expectations of what pupils will achieve in the lessons and pupils demonstrate in their notes, and in discussion, they have learned much more about what has changed and what remains the same at the Games.

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HISTORY

137. Teaching is good and frequently very good. The very best lessons were characterised by a very good understanding of how skills of historical understanding are taught. Teachers’ enthusiasm for history is conveyed to pupils so that they enjoy the subject and are keen to learn. They work hard and concentrate well on the interesting activities provided. The enthusiastic co-ordinator has worked hard to ensure that there are now opportunities for pupils to build on their skills, knowledge and understanding as they move through the school. Literacy and numeracy are incorporated well and the very attractive display of pupils’ work on each topic shows that there are well established links between history and art. These enhance the quality of learning for pupils. Visits and visitors provide valuable opportunities to enrich learning further.

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

138. Standards of attainment in information and communication technology meet national expectations by the ages of seven and eleven. Standards have improved significantly since the last inspection where they were reported to be unsatisfactory. High priority and commitment has been given to raising standards. A new impressive information and communication technology suite (IT Suite) has recently been installed to give good opportunities for pupils to use computers and develop their skills. However, during the inspection the suite was timetabled for less than half of the curriculum time. This is an inefficient use of a valuable commodity and limits pupils’ opportunities to use and extend their skills in other curriculum subjects such as literacy, numeracy and science. Teachers’ subject knowledge has significantly improved through in-service training. Many teachers are now more confident to provide pupils with a wide range of experiences, making good use of the

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

improved resources. St Bonaventure’s Catholic Primary School - 39 139. Pupils are introduced to computers at an early age and are encouraged to explore information and communication technology through both structured and free activities. They learn to use the keyboard and mouse confidently to develop word processing skills. By the age of seven, many pupils have developed their word processing skills to produce their own advent intentions using correct punctuation and spelling. More able pupils are beginning to develop more advanced word processing skills and editing techniques. By the age of eleven, most pupils change print size, font and colour independently. They import successfully pictures and text from an encyclopaedic program, using copy and paste techniques as part of their geography research. Pupils confidently search a database and use information to answer questions about themselves, where higher attainers can select the most appropriate

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

graph to present their results. Pupils are confident to receive e-mails, respond to the messages and send replies.

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

140. Most pupils have good attitudes to learning in information and communication technology. They clearly enjoy opportunities to use the new computer suite. Most pupils listen attentively and respond well to teachers’ instructions. A number of pupils have computers at home and share information with their classmates. Pupils work well together when sharing machines and most can be trusted to behave sensibly when working in pairs. However, some pupils’ lose concentration when waiting their turn, especially when asked to work in groups of three. They become frustrated when machines break down which has a negative impact on their learning.

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

141. The quality of teaching is satisfactory overall and occasionally good. The quality of teaching has improved significantly since the last inspection. This has a positive impact on pupils’ learning including those with special educational needs. The good teaching is characterised by good subject knowledge, well planned and challenging activities where pupils make good progress in their learning. However, many lessons have insufficient tasks to challenge all pupils, which has a negative impact, especially on the learning of higher attainers. Many classroom computers, printers and software in the ‘IT Suite’ are unreliable, which restricts pupils’ learning.

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

142. The new co-ordinator offers good support to staff in repairing hardware and offering advice. However, she has no opportunity to monitor teaching and learning of pupils in lessons which limits her effectiveness in raising standards in teaching and learning throughout the school. She has appropriately identified the need to update the policy and develop the new scheme of work to help teachers plan more effectively and receive more training to develop their skills and confidence. Assessment procedures are in place, but this information is not used effectively to inform future planning.

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MUSIC

143. Standards in music are good in both key stages. Pupils attain well for their age. They sing songs well, some in two or three parts with a good sense of pitch, rhythm and melody. They play tuned and untuned instruments successfully to make a drone or ostinato to accompany compositions, songs or taped music. Pupils perform short pieces of music with up to five different parts with confidence. The use of graphic notation was seen in both key stages in displays and as a result of tasks completed during lessons. Pupils enjoy listening to music. Year 6 pupils appraise musical elements in Handel's Music for the Royal Fireworks and identify accurately the woodwind, brass, string and percussion instruments played in a short extract. They comment accurately on the dynamics of the piece.

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MUSIC

144. Key Stage 1 pupils make good progress in understanding pitch. Year 2 pupils compose, sing and notate their own tunes working in pairs. They sing their compositions to the class and perform the same tune on the xylophone. There is good progress in Key Stage 2 classes where all pupils showed a good understanding of musical terms such as ostinato or drone, and were able to demonstrate confidently to the class. A Year 6 pupil was able to name a Caribbean song learnt earlier in the year, which contained an example of a drone. Pupils in this year were able to create percussion parts using the pentatonic scale to provide St Bonaventure’s Catholic Primary School - 40 a sound picture to illustrate a poem. Instrument names are well known by most pupils. Pupils with special educational needs make good progress in music.

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MUSIC

145. Pupils of all ages enjoy music making and singing and express confidently their preferences for different types of music. Attitudes to work are good and pupils engage in their lessons with enthusiasm.

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MUSIC

146. The quality of teaching and learning is good overall. During the inspection, it was never less than satisfactory and in the majority of lessons seen it was good. Music is taught by all members of staff who have appropriate subject knowledge, skills and an infectious enthusiasm for music making. Clear, detailed and thorough planning takes account of the National Curriculum requirements for performing, appraising and composing. Assessment is well structured and relates to the learning objectives of lessons. Staff record pupils’ achievements accurately in relation to specific areas: for example Year 1 pupils have been assessed on their ability to identify a sustained sound.

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MUSIC

147. Subject documentation is concise but has not been updated to reflect the scheme of work, which is new to the school. The curriculum overview ensures progression between year groups.

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MUSIC

148. A good range of extracurricular music activities are offered to Key Stage 2 pupils. Choir, recorder groups and a folk group meet weekly. A group of new recorder players played accurately, but poor posture resulted from the fact that pupils placed music on desks and did not make use of music stands.

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MUSIC

149. Resources for the subject are adequate, although some instruments are in a poor condition and will need replacing. Instruments from traditions other than that of Western classical music were used in lessons. There are some tapes and compact discs to provide samples of classical and modern music as well as music from other times and places.

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MUSIC

150. Peripatetic teachers for violin and accordion visit the school to give music lessons. Pupils have good opportunities to perform as choir or instrumentalists in assemblies, plays, carol concerts and masses. 151. The monitoring of teaching, planning, and assessment in music has not yet taken place. Information and communication technology resources for music have been acquired recently.

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

152. By the end of Year 2 and Year 6, standards meet national expectations for pupils of this age. Pupils, including those with special educational needs, make satisfactory progress in their learning. During the inspection, lessons were observed in gymnastics and dance. Over the school year, pupils are taught a full curriculum, including games, athletics, swimming and outdoor pursuits. By the end of Year 6, the majority of pupils meet the national expectation of swimming 25 metres unaided.

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

153. By the end of Year 2, pupils know the importance of a warm-up and cool-down at the start and end of lessons. They understand the importance of regular exercise in staying fit and healthy. In gymnastics, pupils use space well when moving around the hall. Pupils perform good sequences in which they hold a balance for the count of five. They transfer their floor sequences well to apparatus work. On the apparatus, pupils plan, perform and refine successfully sequences involving ‘travel’, ‘jump’, ‘balance’ and ‘stillness’. They are confident in working at different levels, including high off the ground when pupils climb the ropes. Pupils are confident in evaluating the performance of others: for example in one lesson a pupil commented, “ …… improved because she stretched her legs”.

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

154. In gymnastics, by the end of Year 4, pupils show satisfactory skills when working in pairs to plan and perform symmetrical balances. They are confident in jumping off apparatus St Bonaventure’s Catholic Primary School - 41 and, on landing, creating a shape which their partner ‘mirrors’. Pupils work well in pairs and show good co-operative skills, including discussions, to plan their sequences. Year 5 pupils perform particularly well in dance. They quickly learn the individual footwork and handwork gestures for a Diwali dance and combine these successfully to perform the complete dance. Pupils perform well to music using repeating patterns of movement in the processional walk. Pupils are particularly successful in creating a ‘figure of eight’ when ‘holding’ the Diva lamp. In Year 6, pupils perform satisfactory dance work in which they perform the story of ‘A Christmas Carol’ by Dickens. However, pupils are not as effective as they might be in their

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

performance because of the reluctance of a small minority to take a full part in the lesson.

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

155. Teaching is good in Key Stage 1 and satisfactory in Key Stage 2. Teaching of dance in Year 5 is excellent. Where teaching is excellent, the teacher shows very good subject knowledge, which is passed on to pupils through very effective demonstration. Through being absorbed and enthralled at the teacher’s performance, pupils are motivated to perform well. Praise is used effectively which encourages pupils to improve their own performance. The teacher used assessment well to identify, for example, “You are not all starting on your right foot”. This was pointed out to the class, with the result that the quality of their performance was improved. In good lessons, there is a vigorous warm up and a strong emphasis on activity. Teachers move around the hall well encouraging and improving the skills and techniques of pupils.

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

156. In Year 6, there is evidence that pupils remove themselves from dance lessons through misbehaving, as they know this will exclude them from the lesson. The school must address this issue and not allow pupils to determine which lessons they will, or will not, attend. In addition, the policy as to what pupils should do when they cannot take part in a lesson for genuine reasons needs to be clearer. The school needs to minimise the disruption to lessons caused by the incessant movement of people through the hall.

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

157. Pupils enjoy and benefit from a good range of extracurricular activities, including football, netball, volleyball and the swimming team. The school takes part in netball and football competitions. Pupils benefit from useful coaching from Bristol Rovers Football Club and Gloucestershire Cricket Club. There is an annual sports day, which is enjoyed by parents and pupils.

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

158. Resources are satisfactory, although some of the gymnastics equipment is in need of replacement. The hall does not have a particularly effective sound system and this reduces the impact of the use of music in supporting the teaching of dance. Physical education is managed effectively. Standards have been maintained since the previous inspection.

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