The Nook

‘If a child can’t learn the way we teach, maybe we should teach the way they learn.’   Ignacio Estrada

 St. Paul’s strives to ensure all pupils receive a curriculum which is best suited to an individual's needs . In September 2021, we set up our own resourced provision, 'The Nook', to enable some of our pupils to access learning within a safe, happy and regulating learning environment. The learning which takes place within The Nook focuses on the academic, therapeutic and life skills curriculum. 

Environment

The children have access to a highly specialised learning environment specifically designed to meet the needs of students whose individual needs impact considerably on their communication and learning needs.

Curriculum

In the Nook, the children have a range of different needs and have unique ways of learning. Different learning needs require different teaching approaches, which often change over time. As a school, we actively research new methods and work alongside outside agencies to impact learning and progress for all our pupils, absorbing these into current practice to enhance provision. We use the Cherry Garden Branch Maps to provide a framework for evaluating the effectiveness of the curriculum.  

There is no one curriculum model which could possibly meet the needs of all our children in The Nook. Each pupil requires a unique curriculum offer and set of learning experiences. At St Paul’s we provide the children with a personalised curriculum places the learners’ needs and abilities at the heart of provision and planning. It is based on outcomes we want the children to achieve at each key stage of their learning journey. This approach ensures all children make the progress they deserve. For every child, regardless of age or ability, we seek to support them to become as independent as possible in all aspects of life and learning. We use the Early Years Foundation Stage Framework to inform and guide our delivery of the 6 areas of learning: Communication, Language and Literacy, Mathematical Development, Personal, Social and Emotional Development, Physical Development, Understanding of the World and Expressive Arts and Design.