Teaching & Learning: Our Pedagogical Framework

At Djanogly Sherwood Academy, we are an ambitious school that creates world-changers. Rooted in our core vision- Where everyone belongs, Ambitious for every child - our approach to teaching and learning is designed to cultivate a lifelong love of learning, help children discover their unique voices, and empower them with the confidence to dream big.

Informed by research from the Education Endowment Foundation (EEF) and cognitive scientists like Barak Rosenshine, Daniel Willingham, and Michael Young, we believe that exceptional teaching is the most powerful tool to improve outcomes for all children, particularly the most disadvantaged. Learning is not simply about exposure to content - it is about what children remember, connect, and apply.

 

Our 5 Stages of Teaching & Learning

To ensure learning moves from initial exposure to long-term memory retention and creative application, our wider curriculum follows a structured five-stage learning cycle:

• Prepare: Before any academic learning can begin, a child must feel safe, valued, and connected. The Prepare stage encompasses everything that creates the conditions for successful learning

• Learn: Teachers explicitly present new substantive knowledge, disciplinary knowledge, and Tier 3 academic vocabulary in clear, manageable steps.

• Reinforce: Core knowledge is made "stickier" using hinterland knowledge - rich background contexts such as storytelling, roleplay, ClassVR, Lyfta storyworlds, artwork, and educational visits that make concepts memorable.

• Retrieve: Regular retrieval practice – including morning retrieval sessions, bi-weekly quizzes, and spaced review – transfers knowledge into long-term memory.

• Create: Children apply their retained core knowledge to solve real-world problems and demonstrate mastery through double-page spreads, art projects, presentations, and creative synthesis.

Evidence-Based Instruction: "My Turn, Our Turn, Your Turn"

Our daily classroom delivery follows Rosenshine’s Principles of Instruction, systematically guiding children from dependence to independent fluency:

• My Turn (Direct Instruction & Modeling): Teachers present new learning in small chunks, modelling thought processes explicitly, showing worked examples, and pre-teaching core domain vocabulary.

• Our Turn (Guided Practice & Scaffolding): Teachers lead guided practice, asking frequent high-quality questions and checking understanding across the room. Misconceptions are caught and corrected early through live, in-person feedback.

• Your Turn (Independent Practice & Mastery): Once understanding is secure, children engage in extensive, successful independent practice to achieve automaticity, fluency, and deeper critical thinking.

Balancing Mode A and Mode B Instruction

We balance whole-class direct instruction (Mode A) with student-centered facilitation (Mode B). During Mode B, teachers step back into a facilitator role while children work independently or collaboratively, promoting autonomy, problem-solving, and peer negotiation.

Oracy & Language: The Bridge to Fluency

We explicitly embed the Voice 21 Oracy Framework across all subjects, treating spoken language as the bridge between teacher explanation and independent fluency:

• Physical Strand: Teaching posture, eye contact, and active listening routines to signal focus during the Prepare stage.

• Linguistic Strand: Explicitly teaching Tier 3 subject vocabulary and stem sentences so children can speak and write like scientists, historians, and mathematicians.

• Cognitive Strand: Structuring academic talk partners so children can clarify thinking, challenge ideas, and construct robust mental schemas.

• Social & Emotional Strand: Fostering respectful dialogue, active listening, and turn-taking, ensuring every child’s voice is heard and valued.

Retrieval Practice & Knowledge Retention

To ensure children know more, remember more, and do more, retrieval is systematically embedded into our school day:

• Morning Retrieval: Children start every day answering Curriculum Assessment questions from non-driver subjects to maintain recall of less frequent topics.

• Retrieval Stickers: Every lesson begins with spaced retrieval tasks covering both short-term and long-term memory concepts.

• Bi-Weekly Quizzes: Low-stakes assessments evaluate retention over time, generating instant feedback to inform adaptive planning and targeted intervention.

• Knowledge Organisers: Clear, visual reference tools containing core diagrams and vocabulary definitions that pupils complete and evaluate over time.

Our 5 Values & Classroom Culture

Behaviour and learning are inseparable. We develop children who make positive behaviour choices because they understand it is the right thing to do. Our learning culture is underpinned by high expectations, positive relationships, and our 5 Values: 

• Respect
• Reflection
• Resourcefulness
• Resilience
• Relationships 

Inclusion: High Expectations for Every Child

At Djanogly Sherwood Academy, inclusion means ensuring every child experiences success without lowering academic ambition.

• Adaptive Teaching, Not Reduced Content: All pupils, including those with SEND and disadvantaged learners, access the same ambitious core curriculum.

• Scaffolding for Access: Lessons use visual anchors, stem sentences, dual-coded vocabulary, and small-step practice to ensure every pupil succeeds.

• Representation & Belonging: Our curriculum materials and stories reflect the diverse backgrounds of our pupils, ensuring every child sees themselves represented in their learning.