Cornerstones Curriculum
Topic 1
History - Dynamic Dynasties
This project teaches children about the history of ancient China, focusing primarily on the Shang Dynasty, and explores the lasting legacy of the first five Chinese dynasties, some of which can still be seen in the world today.
Science
Forces and Mechanisms
This project teaches children about the forces of gravity, air resistance, water resistance and friction, with children exploring their effects. They learn about mechanisms, their uses and how they allow a smaller effort to have a greater effect.
Earth and Space
This project teaches children about our Solar System and its spherical celestial bodies. They describe the movements of the Earth and the other planets relative to the Sun, the Moon relative to Earth, and the Earth's rotation to explain day and night.
Art
Tints, Tones and Shades
This project teaches children about colour theory by studying the colour wheel and exploring mixing tints, shades and tones. They learn about significant landscape artworks and features of landscapes before using this knowledge to create landscape paintings.
Taoties
This project teaches children about the significance and art of the taotie motif, including ancient and contemporary casting methods.
Geography
Investigating our World
This essential skills and knowledge project teaches children about locating map features using a range of methods. They learn about the Prime Meridian, Greenwich Mean Time (GMT), and worldwide time zones and study interconnected climate zones, vegetation belts and biomes. Children learn about human geography and capital cities worldwide before looking at the UK motorway network and settlements. They carry out an enquiry to identify local settlement types.
DT
Moving Mechanisms
This project teaches children about pneumatic systems. They experiment with pneumatics before designing, making and evaluating a pneumatic machine that performs a useful function.
Topic 2
History - Groundbreaking Greeks
This project teaches children about developments and changes over six periods of ancient Greek history, focusing on the city state of Athens in the Classical age, and exploring the lasting legacy of ancient Greece.
Science
Properties and Changes of Materials
This project teaches children about the wider properties of materials and their uses. They learn about mixtures and how they can be separated using sieving, filtration and evaporation. They study reversible and irreversible changes, and use common indicators to identify irreversible changes.
DT
Architecture
This project teaches children about how architectural style and technology has developed over time and then use this knowledge to design a building with specific features.
Art
Mixed Media
This project teaches children about paper crafts, papermaking and collage techniques, including paper, fabric, mixed media and photo collage. They use their learning to create a final piece of small-scale, mixed media collage.
Expression
This project teaches children about the Expressionist art movement and the 'Father of Expressionism', Edvard Munch. They explore different ways to portray feelings and emotions in art to create an imaginative self-portrait.
Topic 3
Geography - Sow, Grow and Farm
This project teaches children about the features and characteristics of land use in agricultural regions across the world, including a detailed exploration of significant environmental areas.
Science
Human Reproduction and ageing
This project teaches children about animal life cycles, including the human life cycle. They explore human growth and development to old age, including the changes experienced during puberty and human reproduction.
DT
Eat the Seasons
This project teaches children about the meaning and benefits of seasonal eating, including food preparation and cooking techniques.
Art
Line, Light and Shadows
This project teaches children about the visual qualities of line, light and shadow. They explore the work of Pablo Picasso and Rembrandt and are introduced to a range of shading techniques. They take black and white photographs and use pencil, pen and ink wash to reimagine their photographs in a shaded drawing.
Nature's Art
This project teaches children about the genre of land art. They work outdoors to sketch natural forms and explore the sculptural potential of natural materials before working collaboratively to create land art installations.