Curriculum Overview

Merstham Primary School Curriculum Overview

At Merstham Primary School, our curriculum is thoughtfully designed to embody our vision of “a community growing, learning and achieving together.” It aims to inspire all pupils to develop high aspirations, resilience, and a lifelong love of learning, equipping them to thrive academically, socially, and personally in an ever-evolving world.

Our curriculum integrates the National Curriculum within a broader coherent framework that reflects our core values of Community & Inclusion, Aiming High & Academic Excellence, Learning to Learn, and Wellbeing & Personal Development. We prioritise mastery of foundational knowledge and skills, ensuring pupils build confidence and competence before progressing to more complex concepts. This approach is underpinned by research-informed strategies such as Rosenshine’s principles and Sweller's Cognitive Load Theory.

We are committed to developing pupils’ expertise across all subjects by carefully sequencing learning to build increasingly complex mental models. This includes explicit teaching of subject-specific knowledge and skills, anticipating common misconceptions, and providing opportunities for retrieval and spaced practice to embed learning securely. Our curriculum fosters critical thinking by ensuring pupils have a strong grasp of the core knowledge needed to engage deeply with subject content.

Communication and literacy are central to our curriculum. We employ systematic synthetic phonics to support early reading and decoding skills, alongside rich oral language development and vocabulary teaching. Writing is developed through modelling, practice, and feedback, enabling pupils to express ideas clearly and confidently across genres and purposes.

Our curriculum also champions cultural capital through enrichment opportunities, including workshops, visits, and community engagement, helping pupils become well-rounded citizens. We actively involve our staff in curriculum development through open dialogue and continuous professional learning, ensuring our curriculum remains a living document that evolves to meet the needs of our diverse pupil body.

Through this coherent, inclusive, and ambitious curriculum, Merstham Primary School prepares pupils not only to succeed academically but also to contribute positively to their community and beyond.

Below is a table detailing resources used to deliver our curriculum subjects:

Maths	Years 1 - 6 - GLF Maths Curriculum NCETM small spines
English - Writing	CUSP Writing
English - Reading	CUSP Guided Reading
English - Phonics	Read Write Inc
English- Handwriting	Pre-cursive & cursive handwriting resources
Science	GLF Curriculum
Spanish	Bespoke French Curriculum - Early Start French
PSHE	Jigsaw
R.E	SACRE Syllabus
Computing	Teach Computing
Music	Charanga
Design and Technology	GLF Curriculum
Art and Design	GLF Curriculum
History	GLF Curriculum
Geography	GLF Curriculum
P.E - dance, gymnastics & games	Real PE