Computing

Computing at Willowpark sits at the heart of our curriculum offer. It is used to promote creativity and allows our pupils exciting opportunities to showcase their learning, both in a digital context and throughout the wider curriculum. Our knowledge rich curriculum is underpinned with opportunities for pupils to apply the knowledge they have acquired, helping to shape our students into skilled computer scientists. We aim to ensure our students are effective users of technology who can:

Understand and apply the essential principles and concepts of computer science, including logic, algorithms and data representation;
Analyse problems in computational term, and have repeated practical experience of writing code to solve problems;
Evaluate and apply information technology analytically to solve problems and enhance outcomes;
Communicate ideas well by utilising devices throughout all areas of the curriculum.

This is achieved through a range of ways involving Purple Mash Computing, Creative Computing units for Mr.P ICT, a wide range of APPs are used, and the use of Project Evolve for teaching Digital Literacy and online safety.

Seesaw is our chosen workflow system and is used extensively within the Academy to support learning across the curriculum, including within Computing.

We work hard to ensure that Computing is embedded into the wide to create rich learning experiences for our students. We hope that by Year 6, our students are confident and have the independence to choose the best tools to complete learning challenges set by their class teachers.

Computing

Online Safety

In our increasingly digitalised world, it has never been more important to keep our children safe online. At Willowpark, we do this in a range of ways. Children are taught, through our computing curriculum, how to keep themselves safe online from the time they start our school (in an age appropriate manner). We use whole school focus and events such as themed days, such as Safer Internet day, and assemblies to reinforce this learning and message. This is major part of the work we do within our safeguarding curriculum offer at Willowpark.

For staff, Governors and parents, we subscribe to and use National Online Safety, which has lots of tools for continuing professional development such as webinars, to keep up to date with latest research, information and legislation linked to online safety for our young people. Informative posters and 'how to guides' are routinely provided for parents alongside parental support video's to enable them to protect their children at home when using the Internet.