At the heart of King’s is our ASPIRE code. We believe in encouraging our students to use a moral compass to guide themselves through life. It’s embedded in school life, even in the language we use.
Each learning cycle will focus on one value in-depth and students will take part in linked assemblies and Character lessons which include PSE, RSHE and Leadership. Additionally, each learning cycle has a bespoke Super Learning Afternoon for each year group that links to the ASPIRE focus. World of Work workshops take place each learning cycle, ensuring our students are equipped for tomorrow’s world and every 7 weeks our Parliament Ministry meetings take place. Every student attends a House Ministry session and so feel they have a voice at King’s.
We have also created a bespoke Character curriculum that allows students to understand PSE and RSHE topics and link them to our values. Here we can discuss a variety of important topics from British Values to Relationships and Sex Education. All of our Character lessons allow students to reflect on their overall well-being and place in the world. We also invite guest speakers and local charities to help deliver workshops to promote the importance of personal and economic well-being.
In the Foundation years, students have an hour a week to study Character topics and will link them to the targeted value. For example, when focusing on the ASPIRE value of respect, pupils will look at smoking and discuss how smoking shows a lack of respect for their physical well-being.
As students progress into their Senior years they will continue to discuss topics such as LGBTQ+ rights, careers and democracy in Britain. Relating these Character topics to our values encourages our students to grow into well-rounded young people, ready for living in the wider world.
Additional to this, our Year 7 and 8 students study Public Speaking, Philosophy, and Ethics (PPE). This curriculum is linked to the Character programme and our ASPIRE values. It promotes tolerance of different faiths and relates ethical topics to their world and their well-being. Through our focus on Public Speaking our students learn, debate and understand different religious and ethical values.
Our ASPIRE values permeate everyday life here at King’s and prepare our students to be resilient and respectful citizens.
As a fundamental aim of King’s, we place as much emphasis on both leadership and character development as we do on academic success. Good leaders are people who have a good vision of where they are going in life, are articulate in that they can communicate and align people with that vision and have the confidence to take people with them. They also display both integrity and humility. At the heart of the Academy therefore is the firm belief that we must aim to create moments when our students can see and believe in themselves as never before and to translate such moments into lessons for everyday life.
Leadership is delivered as part of all students’ core curriculum in two ways. Firstly, leadership theory is delivered by teachers through thought-provoking and exciting leadership lessons.
Secondly, the practical application of leadership is delivered through discovery and adventure within unfamiliar, outdoor-based environments provided through our Personal Development Team and other leading outdoor education providers including the Armed Forces. Students complete a leadership residential in years 7 & 8 and from year 9 all students begin their Duke of Edinburgh (DofE) Award with the view to complete Bronze in year 9 and Silver in year 10/11.
The residential programme uses the outdoors as a medium for learning, allowing students to:
Develop independence through self-confidence, self-direction and self-knowledge
Sharpen their reflective and critical-thinking skills
Enhance their appreciation of, and respect for, the natural environment
Discover personal strengths
Learn how to be effective leaders and cooperative team members
Through experiential learning of the outdoors, students hone their leadership and team-building skills while learning about themselves, others and the world around them. The leadership program is mandatory in Years 7 through 11 and becomes increasingly challenging as each year progresses.
Adventure and challenges are inextricably linked within King’s residential programme. We strive to develop the individual and the group through considered skill development with careful handling of emotional well-being. The expectation is that students will return having faced challenges, risks and adventure in the outdoors and be able to apply the learning to everyday life.
PPE: In weekly PPE lessons (Public speaking, Philosophy and Ethics), students develop both confidence and presentational skills in their weekly lessons. These lessons are very much discussion led with a focus on oracy and discussion. Students have a public speaking success criteria which they refer to throughout the lesson and use throughout wider school. Students discuss an array of topics, which centre around current events, R.E and public speaking skills. They are encouraged to share their opinions respectfully and empathically.