The school follows the National Curriculum which was introduced in September 2014. Children are taught the three core subjects of English, Mathematics and Science. Curriculum The school follows the National Curriculum which was introduced in September 2014. Children are taught the three core subjects of English, Mathematics and Science. They are also taught the foundation subjects: History, Geography, Design and Technology (D & T), Physical Education, Computing, French, Art and Design and Music. Religious Education is also taught through the locally agreed syllabus. These subjects are often approached through topic-based, cross curricular learning which encompasses National Curriculum core and foundation subjects in a relevant and meaningful way. Teaching will involve a variety of styles with great emphasis being placed on the high quality of children’s work. If you have any further questions about the curriculum please feel free to contact the school office and somebody will be more than happy to help. Click on the buttons below to access the curriculum for each year group Subjects Art & Design Computing D & T English French Geography History Maths Music PE PSHE RE Science The National Curriculum Click here to read more about the national curriculum on www.gov.uk If you have any further questions about the curriculum please feel free to contact the school office and somebody will be more than happy to help. 1/1

The school follows the National Curriculum which was introduced in September 2014. Children are taught the three core subjects of English, Mathematics and Science. Spellings Cartas para casa Jantar Cardápio Jantar Cardápio Jantar Cardápio 1/1

Teaching Careers Looking for a c are er in teac hing? Are you an ECT looking for a school that will offer you the very best start to your teaching career? Or are you an experienced teacher looking for a move to a school which will support you in the next stage of your career? We are always on the look out for talented individuals to join our friendly and collegiate team. As one of the largest schools in Southend we offer fantastic CPD as well as great potential for career progression. We ask that anyone interested in a career at Hamstel Junior School takes the opportunity to visit the school. We’d love to have the opportunity to talk to you about what Hamstel Junior School has to offer and hear about how you could become part of the school’s vision for the future. Please take a look at the Vacancies area of the Portico website to find out whether there are any vacancies currently available at the school.

Each year children in each class vote for one of their peers to represent them on our school council. Congratulations to the elected children for 2022-2023 School Council Each year children in each class vote for one of their peers to represent them on our school council. Harvest Festival 2026 Thank you to everyone who donated to the Southend Food Bank. Our school council did a great job of displaying the food that has been so generously donated for our special harvest assembly where both lower and upper school performed a harvest song. Children In Need 2026 Watch this space for updates on how we will support Children In Need this year!

We know that children do best at school when they are supported at home. In order to have the greatest impact on their learning in school we ask that you focus on supporting your child to acquire the key skills for reading, writing and maths. Homework We know that children do best at school when they are supported at home. In order to have the greatest impact on their learning in school we ask that you focus on supporting your child to acquire the key skills for reading, writing and maths. Your child should read every night as we know that reading is the single most important skill for academic success. Children should also focus on learning the spelling patterns which are recorded each week in their home school diary and practising the ‘words we need to know’ for their year group. To support their maths, children should learn the KIRFs (Key Instant Recall Facts) for that half term. These are sent home each half term and are also outlined in the children’s home school diaries. They can also be found in the maths area on the website. All children should have a log in for TT Rockstars; daily practice of their times tables will help secure their knowledge and speed. Children are expected to know all their times tables, up to 12 x 12, by the end of year 4. In June, year 4 children, along with other year 4 children across the country, are required to complete a multiplication tables test which tests the children’s ability to recall random times tables questions within a set time limit (6 seconds per question). Reading should be recorded each night in children’s home school diary; the diary can also be used to send brief messages to your child’s class teacher – children should let their teacher know if there is a message in their diary. Our year 6 children have more formal homework in the spring and summer terms in preparation for their SATs and the transition to secondary school. The expectations for each year group are outlined below and can also be found in your child’s home school diary. 1/2 Expectations for each week Year 3 Reading - daily reading for approx. 15 minutes Spelling - weekly spelling task - searching the books read at home for words matching the weekly pelling pattern/ learning the list of 'Words We Need to Know' Maths - daily practice of the key skills (KIRFs) as outlined for each half term. Year 4 Reading - daily reading for approx. 15 minutes Spelling - weekly spelling task - searching the books read at home for words matching the weekly spelling pattern/ learning the list of 'Words We Need to Know' Maths - daily practice of the key skills (KIRFs) as outlined for each half term. Year 5 Reading - daily reading for approx. 15 minutes Spelling - weekly spelling task - searching the books read at home for words matching the weekly spelling pattern/ learning the list of 'Words We Need to Know' Maths - daily practice of the key skills (KIRFs) as outlined for each half term. Additional homework will also be set for those children attending 11+ clubs or receiving additional support Year 6 Reading - daily reading for approx. 15 minutes Spelling - weekly spelling task - searching the books read at home for words matching the weekly spelling pattern/ learning the list of 'Words We Need to Know' Maths - daily practice of the key skills (KIRFs) as outlined for each half term. Year 6 pupils will be given additional more formal homework in preparation for the SATs and transition to secondary school.

Reading at Hamstel Our aim is for every child to leave Hamstel Junior School able to read fluently and with confidence. We want every child to develop a love of reading in order that they continue to read widely in secondary school and beyond. School Library We are proud of our fantastically stocked school library. Children can choose two books, one of which is a ‘free choice’. Classes visit the library each week and children may also visit at lunchtime to change their books. Individual Reading Books and Reading Colours Children in the infant school follow the Read, Write, Inc scheme to develop their understanding of synthetic phonics. Book colours in the infant school correspond with the children’s phonics knowledge as they reinforce the sounds that the children have learnt. Reading books in the Junior School are colour coded according to the children’s reading age. Each colour contains a broad range of books in order to stimulate interest without overly restricting choice. Children chose a book from their coloured band which they read both at home and at school. They can also choose a fiction or non-fiction book to read with an adult or on their own from any of the books in the library. Please click the links below for the suggested reading lists for each year group: 10 Boo ks to Re ad in Year 3 10 Books to Read in Year 4 10 Boo ks to Read in Year 5 10 Boo ks to Read in Year 6 Reading Lessons Children are taught whole class reading lessons as part of English. To support both our reading and writing lessons, a different core text is shared with the children each term – see below. Our reading lessons focus on helping children develop their reading skills so that they become fluent and confident readers. Story Time Our teachers read regularly to their class to encourage a passion for reading. Our children really enjoy being read to by an adult. Class and School Library Time To help the children select great books, classes spend time each week discussing the books that they have read and making recommendations to others. We also have a termly book review competition where children have the chance to win a book voucher. We have 10 recommended reading books for each year group which are chosen each year by our teachers to challenge, encourage and inspire our children. Reading Champions Our Reading Champions are chosen from year 5 and 6 to support a love of reading across the school. The Champions support other children at lunchtime by helping them choose a great book from our outdoor library. Not sure what to encourage your child to read? We have a suggested reading list for each year group which covers a range of genres to inspire every child to develop a love of reading. Star Author Days At Hamstel we welcome children’s authors (our Star Authors) to the school to speak to the children about what inspires them and how they became a writer. Children have the opportunity to enter a special competition as part of the star author day and join our author for a special lunch. Children can also buy copies of their books and have them signed by the star author! World Book Day We celebrate World Book Day each year by dressing as our favourite book character and completing some great literary inspired activities.

RE (Religious Education) At Hamstel Junior School, the teaching of RE encourages our children to ask big questions about the world around them and their place in it. We aim to prepare our children to be part of a diverse community and behave with respect and understanding. RE plays an important role in the spiritual, moral, and cultural development of our children. While tolerance and respect for others are at the heart of our RE curriculum, we also want our children to develop their own identity and sense of belonging through the beliefs they hold. With our enquiry-based approach, children are taught how to question and form their own beliefs. Through exploring a broad curriculum that acknowledges a range of religious and non-religious world views, children will develop the skills necessary to articulate their beliefs and values and understand why these are important in their own and other people’s lives. Year 3 In Year 3 children will learn: to develop religious and moral vocabulary to describe key features to know the function of aspects within religious practices to begin to identify impact of religious teachings to recognise influences religion has on lives to identify ultimate unanswerable questions and behaviour to recognise and ask questions about religious and moral values Year 4 In Year 4 children will learn: to develop religious and moral vocabulary to describe key features about the function of aspects within religious practises within and between religions to begin to identify impact of religious teaching including interpretation to recognise influences religion has on lives, cultures and communities to identify ultimate unanswerable questions and behaviour and start to develop own answers to recognise and ask questions about religious and moral values and how they can influence behaviour Year 5 In Year 5 children will learn: to identify and develop key features of religions using appropriate vocabulary to identifty and describe similarities and differences between religions to describe meaning of symbols and actions and show that these may be interpreted in different ways to ask questions of identity and belonging, suggest own answers to raise questions and suggest answers to ultimate questions to ask questions about right and wrong suggesting moral and religious teaching Year 6 In Year 6 children will learn: to develop vocabulary to explore and suggest reasons for similarities and differences in between different religions to explain and explore how beliefs and ideas lead to diverse practise in between religions to explain reasons for diverse forms of expression to explore and suggest reasons for own and other's views including ideas about human identity and experience to explain own philosophical, moral and religious responses to question and explore views of others to explain with reasons views about moral and ethical issues and explain their own views and those of others 1/1

Art & Design “All children are artists. The problem is how to remain an artist once you grow up.” Pablo Picasso We consider art to be an incredibly important and influential part of a child’s learning experience. We see art as a vital part the curriculum as it allows children of all ages and abilities to communicate and experiment in a creative and varied manner. Art can also help children to make connections with others both in school and the wider community. We use art to celebrate other cultures and to help our children to learn about a range of perspectives. We learn about the work of a number of artists and show case our artistic skills in other areas of the curriculum. We take pride in our art work with many pieces displayed in classrooms and corridors. “A true artist is not one who is inspired, but one who inspires others.” Salvador Dali At Hamstel Junior School children are artists who: are curious about the world around them. experience art through touch, sight, sound and feel. use their art experiences to explore ideas and raise different kinds of questions. develop imagination, creativity and natural curiosity using a wide range of stimuli, materials and processes to develop the ability to communicate and express creative ideas and reflect on their own work. use appropriate artistic vocabulary to communicate ideas. use creativity and imagination to make informed judgements and practical decisions. explore and appreciate art and design. can critically reflect, enjoy, persevere, co-operate, take turns, and be creative, inventive, and open minded. can apply key skills to enhance their understanding of art and artistic concepts. have opportunities to have a meaningful understanding of their immediate environment, culture, and language. explore and express their ideas and feelings concerning personal, social, environmental, moral and spiritual issues through creative activities. develop an awareness of art through the understanding of methods used by practising artists. Year 3 In Year 3 children will learn: to use a sketchbook for experimenting and planning and use these skills and effects in a final piece of work to explore complementary colours, colour as tone, warm and cold colours to create work in response to natural and manmade objects to plan a sculpture to explain what he/ she likes and dislikes about their work about artists in history Year 4 In Year 4 children will learn: to use a sketchbook for collecting ideas and developing work to draw objects with correct proportions to create different effects by using tools and techniques to experiment with creating mood, feeling, movement and areas of interest to print on fabric to adapt and improve work using skills taught to use technical terms to articulate how to make improvements to work to describe some of the key ideas, techniques and working practices of artists, architects and designers Year 5 In Year 5 children will learn: to develop ideas and explain choices for the materials and techniques used to investigate and use unfamiliar materials and techniques to represent things seen, remembered or imagined in three dimensions using lines, tone and shading to mix colours to express mood, divide foreground from background or demonstrate tones to develop skills in using clay to add a range of collage materials to a background to return to work and use a wide range of materials to research various artists, architects and designers and discuss their processes and explain how these were used in the finished product to evaluate work Year 6 In Year 6 children will learn: to select ideas and develop these through research to refine learnt techniques to adapt final work following feedback to begin to develop an awareness of composition, scale and proportion to use simple perspective in their work using a single focal point and horizon to use techniques, colours, tones and effects in an appropriate way to represent things seen to produce intricate patterns and textures in a malleable media to use and explain choices for different techniques, colours and textures in sculptures/ textiles to create intricate printing patterns by simplifying and modifying sketchbook designs to follow a design brief to describe the work and ideas of various artists, architects and designers, using appropriate vocabulary and referring to historical and cultural contexts to justify preferences towards different styles and artists 1/1

The Pupil Premium is grant funding and is in addition to the School’s Delegated Budget. It was established by the government to address the inequalities between pupils. Pupil Premium The Pupil Premium is grant funding and is in addition to the School’s Delegated Budget. It was established by the government to address the inequalities between pupils. It is allocated according to the number of children on roll who are eligible for free school meals at any time in the last six years, who have been Looked After for more than six months, who are adopted or who have a parent in one of the armed forces. It is up to the school to decide how the Pupil Premium is spent. Pupil Premium funding is used to raise attainment as well as promoting social skills, independent learning and positive behaviour. Pupil Premium Strategy Report 2025-2026 1/1

Computing Computing at Hamstel Junior School: It is our intention to provide the children of Hamstel Junior School with a computing curriculum which starts them on the road to being a lifelong user of technology. We want to equip pupils to use computational thinking and creativity that will enable them to become active participants in the digital world. It is important to us that the children understand how to use ever-changing technology to express themselves, as tools for learning and as a means to drive their generation forward into the future. The vision is that our children will become autonomous, independent users of computing technologies, gaining confidence and enjoyment from their activities. Not only do we want them to be digitally literate and competent end-users of technology, but we want them to develop creativity, resilience, problem-solving and critical thinking skills which will allow them to excel in the 21st century workplace. By strengthening the children’s ability to think logically and problem solve, we better equip them to deal with the requirements across the whole curriculum both at primary school and beyond. Year 3 In Year 3 children will learn: to design, write and debug programs to use logical reasoning to explain how simple algorithms work to recognise, explain and use familiar forms of input and output devices to use technology safety and respectfully to use simple search technologies and recognise that some sources are more reliable than others to understand that computer networks and the internet enable to the sharing of data and information to select and use a variety of software to accomplish goals with support Year 4 In Year 4 children will learn: to decompose programs into smaller parts using logical reasoning to detect and correct errors to select use and combine a variety of software, systems and content that accomplish given goals to use other input devices to use technology responsibly, understanding that communication online may be seen by others and know where to go for help and support with concerns about internet content or contact to understand how results are selected and ranked by search engines to understand what servers are how they provide services to a network to select, use and combine a variety of software on a range of digital devices to accomplish given goals, with support Year 5 In Year 5 children will learn: to design, input, test and write simple programs using increasingly complex instructions and that allow these to be repeated to design, write and debug programs that accomplish specific goals that control or simulate physical systems to deign, write and test simple programs where the user selections of action or situations affect the results to use logical reasoning to explain how increasingly complex algorithms work efficiently to understand the need to only select age appropriate content to use filters in search technologies effectively appreciating how results are selected and ranked to begin to use internet services to share and transfer data to independently select and use appropriate software for a task Year 6 In Year 6 children will learn: to use sequences, selection and repetition of hardware to explore real wold systems to solve problems by decomposing them into smaller parts to create programs using variables to use variables, sequence, selection and repetition in programs to use logical reasoning to explain how increasingly complex algorithms work, detecting and correcting errors efficiently to use technology respectfully and responsibly identifying a range of ways to report concerns about content and contract in and out of school to use filters in search technologies effectively and is discerning when evaluating digital content to understand how computer networks enable computers to communicate and collaborate to begin to use internet services within creations to share and transfer data to a third party to independently select, use and combine a variety of software to design and create content for a given audience, including collecting, analysing, evaluating and presenting data and information 1/2

The school follows the National Curriculum which was introduced in September 2014. Children are taught the three core subjects of English, Mathematics and Science. Year 4 Spellings Summer 2 Spelling Patterns and WWNTK Summer 1 Spelling Patterns and WWNTK Spring 2 Spelling Patterns and WWNTK Spring 1 Spelling Patterns and WWNTK Autumn 2 Spelling Patterns and WWNTK Autumn 1 Spelling Patterns and WWNTK 1/1

Our website may contain links to external websites that are not provided or maintained or in any way affiliated with Hamstel Junior School. Please note that we do not guarantee the accuracy, relevance, timeliness, or completeness of any information on these external websites. Activities for Children Our website may contain links to external websites that are not provided or maintained or in any way affiliated with Hamstel Junior School. Please note that we do not guarantee the accuracy, relevance, timeliness, or completeness of any information on these external websites. Art Group at the Hub in Cluny Square