"There is always one moment in childhood when the door opens and lets the future in."

Graham Greene

Open Futures is one of our key drivers and is a whole school curriculum initiative.  It helps children discover and develop practical skills, personal interests and values which will contribute to their education and enhance their adult relationships and working lives.

It provides hands-on learning which:

• Awakens interests
• Stimulates curiosity
• Discovers the future
• Provides children with the skills and the confidence they need for the 21st century.

There are four strands to Open Futures which children will participate in:

Grow It

Children learn a range of practical skills in our school garden – sowing, thinning, transplanting, nurturing and harvesting.  This is linked with maths (measuring, mapping, weighing), literacy (journals), art, history/culture and science.

Cook It

Children are trained in how to prepare and cook different food in our Cooking Kitchen.  It links with healthy eating and pupil well-being, numerical skills (weighing, ratios), literacy (instructions), science (reversible & irreversible changes) and humanities (climate, soils, food from other countries).

Film It

Children will be taught the skill of using new technologies (microphones, I Pads, computers) to create, edit and present animations, films, documentaries, Power Points and pod casts.  This work will be shared across the school community and other Open Futures schools.

Ask It

Children’s thinking skills and communal dialogue will be developed through philosophy for children where children will negotiate, debate, discuss and work collaboratively to make decisions and see things from another perspective.