Ofsted state and this is confirmed by research – “Learning is defined as an alteration in long-term memory. If nothing has altered in long-term memory nothing has been learned.”
Research tells us that we need to regularly revisit learning to embed it into our long term memory. This is one of our guiding principles and therefore informs much of our teaching and learning practice.
Throughout every area of our curriculum, we aim to consolidate and embed learning at every possible opportunity. We do this through a number of systems and procedures as outlined below.
- Homework – part of the weekly English and Maths homework will be based on learning from the previous week.
- At the start of a new unit of work children complete ‘mind maps’ where they have the opportunity to recall previous learning and current knowledge.
- Daily basic skills lessons are used to consolidate prior learning.
- Working walls are created around key skills in writing and maths and displayed for children to refer to. These stay on the wall for as long as children may need.
- Historical timelines are stuck into history books for children to refer to throughout the year.
- Learn it Link it sheets are stuck into subject specific books at the start of each new unit of work, these enable children to revisit learning throughout a unit of work.
- Reading / Retrieval and recall (whole class reading) tasks allow the children to revisit reading domains.
- Follow up tasks are completed to address misconceptions.
- Application writing helps children to embed previously taught objectives.
- Vocabulary lists are provided and referred to throughout the units of work.