PSHE

Overview - The Jigsaw scheme and Just Finance Foundation

At St Mary Cray, we use the Jigsaw scheme to support the teaching of PSHE across our school starting in our early years through to Year 6. Jigsaw has a whole school approach to PSHE, bringing together all aspects of the curriculum, including emotional literacy and social skills, as well as spiritual development.

We feel that effective PSHE education should provide pupils with the following: 

• Accurate and relevant knowledge. 

• Opportunities to turn that knowledge into personal understanding. 

• Opportunities to explore, clarify and if necessary challenge, their own and others’ values, attitudes, beliefs, rights and responsibilities.

• The skills, language and strategies they need in order to live healthy, safe, fulfilling, responsible and balanced lives.

Jigsaw is divided into six different sequential and developmental puzzle pieces, which are split across the academic year. Each year group follows the same six jigsaw pieces, which explore age appropriate content. All puzzles give children the opportunity to think about empathy with others as well as thought to the individual, as well as the opportunity to ask questions about what they are learning. The Jigsaw scheme also includes Sex and Relationships content both for KS1 and KS2; in addition to this, we have introduced half termly NSPCC Talk Pants assemblies for all year groups to ensure that children understand that their bodies belong to them and how important consent is for any form of touching. All lessons are adapted by teachers to suit the needs of each class.

We study the following puzzles:                                        

• Autumn 1 - Being Me

• Autumn 2 - Celebrating Difference

• Spring 1 - Dreams and Goals

• Spring 2 - Healthy Me

• Summer 1 - Relationships

• Summer 2 - Changing Me

As of 2023, St Mary Cray is also working in conjunction with the Just Finance Foundation, a national charity aimed at providing children with a comprehensive education in finance. Each half term, EYFS and KS1 learn about finance and the values of wisdom, generosity, justice and thankfulness through a story titled Milo’s Money; children partake in circle time discussion, games and other activities to develop their understanding. KS2 consider the following 5 big questions relating to finance over the course of the academic year:

• Where does our money come from? 

• How does money make us feel? 

• What can we use our money for? 

• How does our money help other people? 

• How can we look after our money?