Primary and Middle School Programme at Buddhi

Buddhi follows an open plan classroom, and mixed age class is an important aspect of our programme. Children of different ages learning in a common classroom environment helps balance the social, emotional, and intellectual needs of the children. It also helps younger children learn about friendship and other skills by imitating the older ones. A quiet six year old may prefer the company of a younger child, yet be ready to read independently. An observant five year old may be inspired to learn numbers by watching an older child. ·        To ensure that needs of all the children are met with, and also to help them develop socially they will be placed into class groups as for example, o       Junior Primary Classes – Kindergarten and Grade 1 and 2 o   Senior Primary Class – Grades 3 - 5 o   Middle School – Grades 6-8 ·        Each of these groups will be looked after by a classroom teacher, but will be working in the same environment.  ·         Children with special needs will be placed under the care of a special needs support teacher who will provide the necessary support to help manage their learning in the mainstream classroom. In addition they will be taken through a specialized curriculum to address their special needs.  ·         We follow a flexible learning environment where each child works at their own level and pace with ample scope for remedial help and extension activities where necessary. We encourage students to approach learning through research and enquiry. ·         Our Primary curriculum is based on the CIE primary program (www.cie.org.uk). As the focus of our programme is to develop children into independent learners, they will have no problem coping with any other primary programme. At Middle School we will also introduce the ICSE curriculum as another option. The NIOS programme will be offered to the students in the Special Needs Programme when they start middle school. This will be subject to their ability to cope with the curriculum needs the middle & high school grades.   ·         The Core subjects of our programme are Language, Mathematics, Science, Social Studies, Art & Music and Physical Education. ICT is integrated through out the programme.  ·         Education is about giving people the opportunity to develop their potential, their personality and their strengths. This does not merely mean learning new knowledge, but also developing abilities to make the most of life. These are called life skills – including the inner capacities and the practical skills we need.      Many of the inner capacities – often known as psycho-social skills – cannot be taught as subjects. They are not the same as academic or technical learning. They must rather be modeled and promoted as part of learning, and in particular by teachers. These skills have to do with the way we behave – towards other people, towards ourselves, towards the challenges and problems of life. They include skills in communicating, in making decisions and solving problems, in negotiating and asserting ourselves, in thinking critically and understanding our feelings.  This important aspect of learning is addressed in our programme through Curriculum Integration, which is generally theme based. With this we are able to take the students to levels beyond the scope of the standard curriculum. ·         In our Language Programme, where English is the first language, we focus on o        Usage  – (i) Phonics, spelling and vocabulary  (ii) Grammar and punctuation o        Reading o        Writing o        Speaking and Listening  ·         Our students also learn Hindi as a second Language from Grade 1. At Middle school we also plan to offer a foreign language such as German or French as options for second language.  ·         Our Maths curriculum focuses on Number, its operations, Problem Solving, Organising and Using Data and other aspects of mathematic like algebra and geometry, measurements, etc.  ·         Science and Social studies are topic or theme based subjects often integrated with Maths and English.  ·         Art and Physical education are an important part of our curriculum and we have a special afternoon programme called Triveni which focuses on these curriculum areas and includes learning in fine arts & craft, performing arts (theatre, dance, music) and sport.  ·         Field trips play an important part in our curriculum, as they allow children to experience the world first-hand.  These trips are directly related to what they have been learning at school.   ·         Topical content and other resources for lessons and activities are again based on CIE resources and the latest sources from internet and books. We do not follow a single textbook series for lessons. The school prepares the necessary student work packs based on relevant lesson plans and the above sources of information.  ·         Throughout the year our teachers assess student progress and attainment in all curricular areas. Assessment is planned for, based on learning outcomes, and recorded. Results are used to inform planning for the next block of work. Assessment strategies include teacher observation, discussion with students, class work, practical and written class tests.