Our School Curriculum


Intent

At Olney Infant Academy we pride ourselves in providing an exciting and creative curriculum rooted in outstanding Early Years principles. We capture our children’s interests and talents to help them grow into independent, confident, and successful learners. Our dedicated staff work together to ignite an enthusiasm and lifelong passion for learning in every child.

We firmly believe that the key to promoting successful learning for every child lies in the strong partnership we form with parents and this is important to us.  We aspire to create independent, active learners, who are able to think critically and overcome barriers. Throughout their learning journey at Olney Infant Academy, we aim to grow and nurture thinkers who have a genuine love of learning and the confidence and courage to question to pursue their dreams with determination and pride, knowing that nothing will stand between them and their goals.

Our school is built on an ethos of open ended, challenging, and uncapped learning, and an environment that promotes and challenges children’s independence through curiosity, awe, and wonder. This enables our children to engage in a rich, bespoke curriculum that is innovative, creative, open ended and active and equips them with the essential knowledge and skills needed to succeed in life and be the best possible version of themselves.

Our curriculum is inclusive, celebrates diversity and guides our children to become responsible citizens of the future.

Our Curriculum Roots

At Olney Infant Academy, our curriculum is built from our values and ethos, our community sits at the heart of school life and this is reflected in our curriculum. Our stunning outdoor environment is a key part of our learning environment; we whole heartedly believe that ‘the best classroom and the richest cupboard is roofed only by the sky’ Margaret McMillan

CURIOUS
Courage UniqueRespectIndependent Open ended UnderstandingSupportive
At OIA we want our children to be strong and courageous in all that they do. We want our children to be confident in the choices they make and show strength, resilience and courage when things are challenging.At OIA we want our children to embrace who they are, be proud of their uniqueness, to be creative and to think ‘outside the box’. We encourage and support all our children to challenge their own and others thinking, to push the boundaries and try new experiences.At OIA we see ourselves as the ‘beating heart’ of our community. A place where children learn and understand the importance of how communities can bring people together. Through our community, we want to broaden the children’s horizons, so they learn how to be tolerant and respectful of others.At OIA we want our children to learn to be independent: independent in their learning, independent in their thinking, honest and with strong moral principles. From this, the children will learn to make the right decisions for both themselves and all those around them.At OIA the sky is not the limit, it is just the beginning. Nothing should get in the way of all our children achieving their best and our open ended, uncapped curriculum is underpinned by this. Regardless of their starting point, the journey is tailored for the child so they can be the best version of themselves.At OIA we expect everyone to show understanding, compassion and to be understanding of how others feel.
We expect our children to understand that sometimes things change, and that sometimes things don’t go to plan but that this is OK.
At OIA we teach our children how to be supportive, empathetic inclusive and accepting. We expect our children to show kindness and lend a hand. We expect our children to be there for their friends and peers and to care.

Here you will be able to find useful information on each subject of the curriculum. For more information about our curriculum please don't hesitate to contact the school either by email or in person.

Curriculum Overviews

Curriculum Topic Overview

EYFS Curriculum Delivery Plan

Our Curriculum Characters


We bring our curriculum and subjects alive with our learning characters and subject mantras. We also have two very important characters- NIK (Now I know) and FLO (Flashback Learning Opportunity) that help the children to review, reflect and revisit. This allows learning to stick and our children to thrive.

Introducing NIK and FLO