Whitley Abbey Community School is proudly leading the way in promoting an innovative curriculum delivery – Opening Minds. We are delivering a KS3 curriculum that prepares students for the 21st Century. This will meet all traditional subject requirements but challenge and extend all students through the development of transferable learning skills.

These skills are based on the RSA’s Opening Minds Curriculum. This is a complementary framework to the National Curriculum that expects students to develop skills required by employers in the modern world.

In the past two years we have led on the delivery of this competence driven approach to learning with our Key Stage 3 students. They have a single teacher for two thirds of their lessons and focus on developing leaning competences as well as separate subject knowledge and skills. This is our ‘Opening Minds’ programme.

All evidence points to it providing an easier transition from primary to secondary and a more coherent learning experience for students.

All students in Years 7 and 8 experience this innovative curriculum. Some students in year 9 also continue to experience 'Opening MInds'.

>> Learning Competences
>> A Typical Day
>> Year 7 Curriculum
>> Opening Minds