THE CURRICULUM STAGES

Our Foundation Phase follows the British National Curriculum and the Primary School to High School follows the Cambridge Curriculum as we are a registered Cambridge Centre.

AGE REQUIREMENTS FOR ADMISSION TO BLOUBERG INTERNATIONAL

The admission age policy compels students entering the equivalent of Grade 1 to turn 7 during the same year of attending Grade 1. Therefore, at Blouberg International, in in accordance with South African Legislation:

Students entering Reception Year and higher will be required to supply their recent school report and will be invited to complete an Academic Entry Assessment.

THE EARLY YEARS

The Early Years is the first stage of the English National Curriculum that focuses on the distinct needs of students aged 3 until the end of the Reception Year at the age of 6. It is a broad, balanced and purposeful curriculum, delivered through planned play activities to help ensure all students have the opportunity to reach their full potential, experience the best possible start to their education and builds on their individual needs and interests. The Foundation Stage Profile is used to assess students in the final year of the Early Years. Each student will have a Year 1 entry assessment towards the end of their Reception Year. The learning areas your child will be assessed in are:

Each learning area as Early Learning Goals. These set out the skills, understanding, knowledge and attitudes we encourage students to reach or exceed by the end of the Early Years. The goals also aim to make learning a fun and challenging experience, and specifically recognise the value of play. Students will be at different stages of progress towards these goals depending on their age and stage of development. Staff understand this and take it into account when planning activities and will create differentiated and individual learning programmes where necessary. All Reception students will get a report based on the Foundation Stage profile. This will you a clear indication of where your child is and what he/she still have to achieve. Verbal reports are given in March and September and formal written reports in June and December.

KEY STAGE 1

Primary school is where the foundations built in the Early Years Education (Foundation Stage) are extended and enforced. Key Stage 1 comprises of Years 1 and 2. SATS (Standardised Assessment Tests) are written at the end of Year 2. Schools are required to provide a broad balanced curriculum and to teach the programmes of study in each national curriculum subject. English and Mathematics are a priority at Key Stages 1 and 2, as students need to become secure and confident in these subjects if they are to make good progress in their education. At the same time, rich and varied activities and experiences in the rest of the curriculum are also crucial to students’ motivation and progress. We go beyond the statutory requirements and add to the curriculum in order to ensure compliance to the South African curriculum. We provide:

KEY STAGE 2

In Key Stage 2, your child will be entering a world of interesting challenges, excitement and discovery. Key Stage 2 covers the English National Curriculum from Years 3 to 6. The foundation subjects for this stage are the same as those for the Primary Curriculum from Years 1 to 2, with the addition of conversational German and Spanish. At the end of Key Stage 2, each national curriculum subject has a target – your child should have reached the skills, knowledge and understanding at a particular level. Optional tests are written towards the end of the year in Years 3 to 5. SATS are once again written at the end of Year 6.

KEY STAGE 3

In Key Stage 3, your child will be entering the Secondary Curriculum. Key Stage 3 covers the English National Curriculum from Years 7 & 8. A very important aim of the Secondary Curriculum is to create more successful students who:

KEY STAGE 4

All students in this Key Stage must follow a programme of education in the following areas:

In addition, there is a statutory duty on schools to provide an optional programme of education for students in this Key Stage in each of the following areas:

At the end of this stage, students in Year 10 (usually ages 16) are normally entered for a range of external examinations. These are IGCSE (International General Certificate of Secondary Education) exams.