Junior Department
At Longridge we aim to help our younger pupils develop their individual talents and interests from an early age in a friendly, safe and stimulating environment, developing those skills which will stand them in good stead for future learning.
The Junior Department is semi-autonomous within the school, and it has its own Head. The Department holds its own assemblies, has a separate lunch hour from the Senior School and, of course, 'juniors' enjoy a variety of exciting extra-curricular activities and visits to enhance their learning.
We place particular emphasis on reading, writing and mathematics. The curriculum is based on the National Curriculum which is considerably enhanced according to the needs of our pupils. All pupils learn French from Reception onwards. SATS are taken at the end of Key Stage 1 ( 7 years ) and the end of Key Stage 2 ( 10 years ).
Younger pupils are taught in the Jerningham building while the older ‘juniors' are taught in the Stobo building which, in addition to other classrooms, has its own science laboratory, library and sports changing rooms. The library contains a reading area for the younger Jerningham pupils with a selection of appropriate books chosen especially for their needs. Each class in the Junior Department has its own class teacher. From Reception to J3 (4-7 years) the class teacher does most of the teaching while from J4 to J6 (8-10 years), there is increasing specialisation.
Regular contact between parents and teachers is actively encouraged to ensure that each individual child benefits fully from his or her time in the Junior Department.