Character Education at Gorsemoor

Character is ‘doing the right thing even when no one is watching’.

Here at Gorsemoor Primary School we are proud to be undertaking our character education journey. Character education gives children the tools they need in order to make sound decisions in life. Teaching children the language of character is vitally important for them to be connected in a modern world and flourish in the future. At Gorsemoor, our aim is to embed excellence in every child through our holistic education programme, that is underpinned by our 6 character virtues.

Through consultation with parents and staff over the last few years, we have created a list of virtues that we explicitly teach and promote throughout the year.

These virtues are taught explicitly through character days at the start of each half term, through classroom teaching in every subject, weekly headteacher assemblies and teacher-led assemblies. Our character virtues are modelled by all staff and are used when speaking with the children on a daily basis.  Equally, our character virtues are naturally woven into our school values and the Fundamental British Values, and are taught not as a separate subject, but as an intrinsic part of school life.

Take a look at some examples of how character has been taught this year.

Reception learnt all about what it means to be independent. Their task was to bring in a special toy from home and see if they could take care of it for a whole week! We were proud to say that all toys made it home safely. Well done Reception!

Year 2 learnt about the virtue of independence and how famous historical figures showed courage and resilience in times of hardship. Our pupils then went on to write their own inspirational messages.

Year 6 children learnt what it means to have integrity and focused on being their authentic selves. They discovered that in order to have integrity, it means acting with courage and bravery in times of adversity.

Extra-curricular Opportunities

Each year we conduct a pupil voice survey to ascertain which extra-curricular clubs our pupils would like to see at Gorsemoor. We are thrilled to offer our pupils the opportunity to learn new skills, undertake fresh challenges and make new memories through our after-school club provision. Following the results from our pupil voice, staff in school have gone above and beyond to offer our students a wide range of clubs such as baking, multi-sports, basketball, netball, art, bedtime stories, tag rugby, running, construction, LEGO, cycling and many more! 
 

Enrichment

At Gorsemoor we are extremely proud of our progressive curriculum and the enrichment opportunities we can offer our pupils. We extend opportunities for collaboration and competition (not just within sports) in order to support the development of our students’ confidence & resilience. We endeavor to continue to build strong links within our community and we are incredibly proud of how well our pupils strive to make a difference.

Award in Pupil Personal Development

This year we are delighted to be undertaking an award in pupil personal development. This award offers a structured framework to evaluate and enrich our pastoral curriculum here at Gorsemoor. It supports us in in developing pupil’s personal attributes and attitudes, such as self-confidence, resilience and self-discipline. With a focus on involving local and national organisations, it helps us to prepare our pupils at Gorsemoor for life in modern Britain.