Departments and Subjects

The Foundation Stage

The GEMS Wellington Academy - Silicon Oasis Early Years Foundation Stage consists of Foundation Stage One (FS 1) and Foundation Stage Two (FS 2). Dedicated Teachers and Teaching Assistants set the standards for learning, development and care of our children from a young age. Individual needs of children are addressed and closely monitored. Children are guided with care through their stages of development and the expectations of the six areas of learning:

• Personal, Social and Emotional Development
• Communication, Language and Literacy
• Physical Development
• Problem Solving, Reasoning and Development
• Knowledge and Understanding of the World
• Creative Development

Music and Physical Education further enhance the children’s curriculum experiences and Arabic and French are introduced.

Play is a key way in which our young children learn. At GEMS Wellington Academy - Silicon Oasis, play is well planned, both indoors and out and recognised as a key way in which young children learn with enjoyment and challenge.
School and parents work closely together to help our children become sociable, well behaved people. We firmly believe that children need to be happy if they are to learn.

Key Stage 1

The curriculum for Years One (Y1) and Two (Y2) is lively, engaging and designed to meet the needs of all our students. The programme corresponds very closely to Key Stage 1 of the National Curriculum for England and the key skills for the Excellent and Enjoyable Curriculum. We aim to develop creative, confident and inquisitive learners, who are ready to progress into Key Stage 2. Full time teaching assistants in Year 1 and 2 help to ensure all children have excellent opportunities to access each activity and achieve their full potential.

Subject specialists teach physical education, music and swimming in close collaboration with class teachers. Dedicated sessions in the Library and the use of ICT also enhances the curriculum delivery.

The children will visit many places of interest linked to the projects they are studying each term. Hands on, experiential learning will be a core component of the daily life for students in the Key Stage One department.

Subjects taught in Key Stage 1 and 2 include:

Core Subjects

• English 
• Mathematics
• Science

Foundation Subjects

• ICT
• History
• Geography
• French 
• Art
• Music
• Physical Education
• Personal, Social Education

Key Stage 2

Specialised teaching and the use of special resources increases as the children move through the Primary school. Children are still predominantly form based, but may also be organised according to the children’s abilities for some subjects, ensuring that individual needs are addressed.

The four year programme of study aims to produce confident and competent learners who are good communicators. At the same time, students are encouraged to develop a compassionate attitude to others, along with self-discipline and independence. Sports, music and performance endeavours also at a higher level and the success of these events are celebrated in the Academy.

ICT at GEMS Wellington Academy - Silicon Oasis will feature a wireless network, interactive whiteboards and multimedia projectors in every classroom as well as access to laptops which will be stored on mobile trolleys and some handheld technologies.

At GEMS Wellington Academy - Silicon Oasis all children will receive weekly Arabic and French lessons from FS 2. These are taught by specialist teachers and give children a valuable learning opportunity to develop their language skills.

Key Stage 3

All students follow a common curriculum that ensures continuity of study for students who may transfer to or from other English National Curriculum schools around the world. The subjects available at Key Stage 3 at GEMS Wellington Academy - Silicon Oasis are:

•  English
•  Mathematics
•  Science
•  French
•  Spanish
•  Arabic (for all) and Islamic Studies (Muslim students)
•  Information & Communications Technology (ICT)
•  Geography
•  History
•  Chemistry
•  Physics
•  Biology (Science is a combined subject up to Year 9)
•  Music
•  Art & Design
•  Physical Education
•  Personal,Social & Health Education

Key Stage 4 (Year 10 available from September 2012)

Students in Years 10 & 11 will study GCSE courses with the possibility of taking 9 examination subjects. The proposed curriculum subjects to be available are:

Compulsory Subjects (4): English Language, English Literature, Mathematics and Science (students choose 1 from the three areas)

Optional Subjects (5) from: Art & Design, Biology, Business Studies, Chemistry, Dance, Drama, Economics, French, Spanish, Geography, History, ICT, Media Studies, Music, Physical Education, Physics.