Bumblebee Class

Intent:

In Bumblebee Class, our curriculum is designed to give students access to a wide range of National Curriculum subjects in ways that are engaging, purposeful, and tailored to their needs. We focus on developing our students’ ability to engage with learning by building their attention, focus, and participation skills across different learning contexts.

Promoting independence is at the heart of what we do. Alongside academic subjects, we place strong emphasis on teaching life and communication skills, helping each student to grow in confidence and develop the tools they need to become more independent both in school and in their everyday lives.

Implementation:

The Bumblebee Curriculum is delivered through the use of specialist autism strategies, including TEACCH workstations, Attention Autism, and Intensive Interaction. These approaches create a structured and supportive learning environment tailored to our students’ individual needs.

Each day follows a consistent carousel of activities. Mornings are centred around a core subject, providing focused academic input, while afternoons begin with a whole-class session linked to the current topic. This is followed by continuous provision activities designed to help students make meaningful progress towards their EHCP targets.

To ensure targeted support, key workers carry out fortnightly observations for each EHCP target, monitoring progress across all areas of need. In addition, students engage in 1:1 learning sessions with the class teacher each afternoon, offering personalised learning opportunities that reinforce both academic and developmental goals.

Impact:

The impact of the Bumblebee Curriculum is evident in the meaningful progress our students make across all areas of learning and development. Through the consistent use of autism-specific strategies and personalised teaching, students demonstrate improved engagement, focus, and independence in a variety of settings.

Progress is monitored using both formative and summative strategies, which are regularly reviewed by the class teacher to ensure each child is supported appropriately. On a weekly basis, student achievements are captured through key worker observations, concrete work stored in their individual learning folders, and Tapestry records that highlight key learning moments—accessible to families to strengthen home-school links.

Summative assessments are carried out on a termly basis. Students are assessed against adapted Pre-Key Stage Standards in Maths, Communication, Writing, and Reading. This data helps inform planning and is shared with parents in a detailed end-of-year record of achievement.

As a result of this well-rounded approach, students not only make academic progress but also develop essential life skills and communication abilities, preparing them for their next steps in education and fostering greater confidence, independence, and a love of learning.

Our school SENDCo is Iwona Rubak and she can be contacted through the school office.

Read more about SEND at Lavender.