Our students will experience a highly personalised, modern curriculum, rich in variety and diversity, yet underpinned by traditional values and core competencies. The structure of our curriculum design is presented within two different documents. Firstly, our curriculum map, which outlines subjects studied at Key Stage 3 and Key Stage 4. Secondly, our five-year curriculum overview which specify the intent, implementation and impact of each individual year group and KS4 module.
Our curriculum is challenging and designed to help to equip our students with the essential core knowledge and skills that are commonly possessed by successful citizens which will enable them to work safely, hygienically and confidently with a range of commodities. No child will be disadvantaged by our curriculum. At both KS3 and KS4 our curriculum is underpinned by our whole school values:
– ‘Learning the best that has been thought & said and to know they are loved by God’.
We believe in our students and through our challenging yet broad curriculum we will engender self-belief in our students. Through inspirational and innovative teaching of our curriculum, we will instil a drive in them to achieve and become the very best that they can be, preparing them for success in life.
Our curriculum aims to develop the whole person and the talents of the individual and to allow all students to become confident and have a core set of practical skills, which will stand them in good stead for life.
The key priorities within our challenging and broad curriculum are:
- To provide an ambitious curriculum for all students which contains the necessary range of knowledge, skills and experience those prospective employers demand from their candidates.
- To create an inclusive environment based on the core principles of equality and respect.
- To explore a range of current issues in food, to build awareness.
- To ensure that our curriculum develops skills for learning, life and work by making learning relevant and helping students apply lessons to their life beyond the classroom.
- To ensure that our curriculum incorporates regular retrieval practice to strengthen memory and maximise cognitive development.
- To inspire our students to succeed through the challenge and enjoyment of learning and to respect themselves, their community and the environment in which they are an integral part.
Our intention for our curriculum is:
“Cooking with kids is not just about ingredients, recipes, and cooking. It’s about harnessing imagination, empowerment, and creativity.” Guy Fieri.
The Food Studies curriculum at Saint Martin’s Catholic Academy is designed to instil the principles of nutrition, healthy eating and being safe and hygienic while providing multiple practical learning opportunities for all of our students. As well as ensuring our students develop a range of practical skills, we allow them to become confident, healthy and independent with a love of cooking and the know how to do this safely and competently.
Learning to cook a range of basic, predominantly savoury; dishes is a crucial life skill that helps ensure students are prepared for the world outside and helps them to promote independence as well as a promoting a healthy lifestyle.
The curriculum is designed to ensure all the students have a good understanding of the environmental impact our food choices have and recognise ways to ensure we can help to reduce carbon emissions and wastage. By buying locally sourced seasonal foods, reducing the amount of food waste and recognising the choices of food packaging used, our students are aware of how they can make a significant difference in society. Students study a range of different ‘themes’ including multicultural foods and dietary requirements and lifestyles. Through research work, taste testing and practical realisations students are taught how to become confident and competent in a wide range of cooking processes such as selecting and preparing ingredients, using a range of different equipment and utensils, adaptation of recipes, costing and nutritional analysis.
During KS4 the students are working on the GCSE AQA Food Preparation and Nutrition course, which focuses on preparation skills and is divided into five core topics, food, nutrition and health, food science, food safety, food provenance and food choices which leads to a final GCSE qualification. Students will choose their own recipes which will fit the design briefs they have been set and then decide on the best equipment and utensils to use to ensure a quality dish. The dishes will be costed and have the nutritional data analysed to ensure they are suitable and to adapt and develop as necessary to make them healthier or cheaper.
- Weekly Afterschool Intervention – Help & Support – GCSE
- Baking Club – KS3
- Occasional Food Workshops – all years
- Film Club
