Implementation
We follow the Jigsaw scheme of work for PSHE, which has an integrated whole-school approach. Each year, children’s learning is organised into six main units: Being Me in My World, Celebrating Differences, Dreams and Goals, Healthy Me, Relationships and Changing Me. Within these units, links are made to British Values and The UNCRC articles on The Rights of a Child.
The PSHE lessons are planned by the PSHE subject lead, in order to ensure knowledge is progressive across year groups and to support class teachers to deliver comprehensive and high-quality lessons.
PSHE lessons are taught mainly with various hands on activities, discussions, debates and circle time. At St John & St James, we aim to provide experiences that will have maximum impact on learning through developing confidence, encouraging an active role and developing good, respectful relationships. Teaching methods are designed to encourage sharing ideas as part of a group, listening and respecting the views of others.
Each lesson includes a weekly dilemma, which provides children the opportunity to engage in discussions about various, relatable scenarios that require them to use their communication skills to solve and build empathy and understanding towards others. Dilemmas focus on matters concerning potential playground issues, bullying, online safety, wellbeing and relationships.
Impact
The impact of our PSHE curriculum is evident in the confidence our children demonstrate when expressing their feelings and managing their friendships. Children at St John and St James learn to use their voice to express their emotions and to use words to solve problems. We also see the impact of this learning in our children’s engagement with their community and their care for others through various charity work and communal events hosted at the school. The choices our children make to keep themselves safe and healthy also reflect the impact of our PSHE curriculum.