Relationships and Sex Education at Prince Rock
Relationships and Sex Education
At Prince Rock, we use the Jigsaw programme to structure our RSE (Relationships and Sex Education) learning. Lessons within Jigsaw are delivered as a block (within the ‘Changing Me’ unit). This mindful approach to PSHE covers all statutory aspects of Relationship and Sex Education (RSE) along with Health education. These lessons are tailored and personalised to address specific needs within classes and supplement whole school events and themes. Curriculum content regarding human reproduction and puberty are covered as part of the Science curriculum and also during our Jigsaw lessons. Whilst our spiralling curriculum identifies a broad range of important issues that pupils should learn about, we feel it is essential that our children’s experience of RSE within PSHE education is not simply a series of ‘one-off’, disconnected sessions each on a different topic and focusing only on factual content. The curriculum will provide a relevant context for pupils to both broaden and deepen their understanding of the key concepts and to develop competence in the essential skills. We therefore aim to provide a cohesive, progressive PSHE curriculum which will prepare our children to become happy, well-rounded and successful citizen in today’s society.
In September 2020, the Department for Education made the teaching of Relationships and Sex Education a compulsory part of the National Curriculum in schools. (Relationships Education, Relationships and Sex Education and Health Education Guidance. DfE)
What does this mean?
This guidance focuses upon promoting healthy relationships and keeping children safe in our modern, fast-changing world. It encapsulates physical, mental and social changes that occur as the child grows and develops and gives children the skills to form safe and positive relationships. It encourages children to take responsibility for their own physical and emotional wellbeing and also points them to sources of support if they need help or reassurance.
How is Relationships and Sex Education delivered at Prince Rock?
RSE lessons are taught in the classroom by each class’s teachers and teaching assistants. The lessons take place every week and are an important and celebrated part of the weekly timetable. These lessons are tailored and personalised to address specific needs within classes and supplement whole school events such as Friendship Week, E-Safety Day, R.E Day, Parliament Week, Maths Day and Healthy Eating Week. The concepts of each term are introduced to the whole school through an assembly, further promoting the importance of Jigsaw PSHE lessons to the whole school community. The scheme encapsulates Modern British Values education and spirals, building progressively to prepare our children to be resilient in our ever-changing world. Speakers and organisations are invited in frequently to supplement the children’s experiences e.g. religious speakers, road safety awareness charities, animal education workers and local police officers to name but a few. At the forefront of our school development team is the School Council. Elected democratically by their peers, they meet regularly as part of school and sometimes across the LAT to debate current issues and make differences and improvements to their school experience. We also have a Prince Rock Parliament where children put themselves forward for appointment by SLT members to the Parliament and, if selected, represent different areas of the curriculum. For example, we will have Ministers in the following positions: Maths, Reading, Wellbeing and Relationships, Science and the Environment, Computing etc. These Ministers meet with subject leading members of staff to share ideas, develop their own learning journeys and celebrate the significance of Pupil Voice at Prince Rock.
What RSE is taught in Jigsaw lessons and when?
Year Group | Jigsaw Piece (lesson)number | Learning Intention |
Reception | 3 – Growing Up | Seek out others to share experiences. Show affection and concern for people who are special to them. Explain own knowledge and understanding, and ask appropriate questions of others. ELG – Show sensitivity to their own and to others’ needs’ |
Year One | 4 – Boys and Girls bodies | Identify the parts of the body that make boys different to girls and use the correct names for these: penis, vagina. Respect my body and understand which parts are private |
Year Two | 4 – Boys and Girls bodies | Recognise the physical differences between boys and girls, use the correct names for parts of the body (penis, testicles, vagina) and appreciate that some parts of my body are private. Tell you what I like/don’t like about being a boy/girl. |
Year Three | 1 – How babies grow
2 – Babies
3 – Outside body changes
4 – Inside body changes | Understand that in animals and humans lots of changes happen between conception and growing up, and that usually it is the female who has the baby. Express how I feel when I see babies or baby animals Understand how babies grow and develop in the mother’s uterus and understand what a baby needs to live and grow express how I might feel if I had a new baby in my family.
Understand that boys’ and girls’ bodies need to change so that when they grow up their bodies can make babies. Identify how boys’ and girls’ bodies change on the outside during this growing up process. Recognise how I feel about these changes happening to me and know how to cope with those feelings.
Identify how boys’ and girls’ bodies change on the inside during the growing up process and why these changes are necessary so that their bodies can make babies when they grow up recognise how I feel about these changes happening to me and how to cope with these feelings. |
Year Four | 2 – Having a baby
3 – girls and puberty | Correctly label the internal and external parts of male and female bodies that are necessary for making a baby. Understand that having a baby is a personal choice and express how I currently feel about having children when I am an adult.
Describe how a girl’s body changes in order for her to be able to have babies when she is an adult, and that menstruation (having periods) is a natural part of this. Know that I have strategies to help me cope with the physical and emotional changes I will experience during puberty. |
Year Five | 2 – Puberty for girls
3 – Puberty for boys and girls
4 - Conception | Explain how a girl’s body changes during puberty and understand the importance of looking after myself physically and emotionally. Understand that puberty is a natural process that happens to everybody and that it will be OK for me.
Describe how boys’ and girls’ bodies change during puberty. Express how I feel about the changes that will happen to me during puberty Understand that sexual intercourse can lead to conception and that is how babies are usually made. Understand that sometimes people need IVF to help them have a baby. Appreciate how amazing it is that human bodies can reproduce in these ways. |
Year Six | 2 – Puberty
3 – Girls talk and boy talk
4 – Babies- conception to birth
5 – attraction | Explain how bodies change during puberty and understand the importance of looking after myself physically and emotionally. Express how I feel about the changes
Ask the questions I need answered about changes during puberty. Reflect on how I feel about and about the answers I receive.
Describe how a baby develops from conception through the nine months of pregnancy, and how it is born. Recognise how I feel about development / birth.
Understand how being physically attracted to someone changes the nature of the relationship. The growing independence of becoming a teenager and am confident that I can cope with this
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Right to Withdraw
Parents/carers do not have the right to withdraw their children from relationships education
Parents/carers have the right to withdraw their children from those aspects of sex and relationship education, not included in the National Curriculum Science curriculum. A letter will be sent to parents and carers explaining that they can exercise their right to withdraw their child from the non-statutory elements of sex education. Parents and carers do not have to give reasons for the withdrawal, but we respectfully invite them to do so – sometimes, we can then resolve concerns.
Requests for withdrawal should be put in writing and addressed to the headteacher.
Alternative work will be given to pupils who are withdrawn from sex education. However, this rarely happens. By working in partnership with parents they recognise the importance of this aspect of their child’s education. If, as a parent/carer, you feel it necessary to withdraw your child please arrange to come to school and discuss your concerns with the Head teacher. In the event of a child being withdrawn from a lesson, that child must stay in school and will be assigned to another class until the sex education lesson is over.
What the school will do following a request for withdrawal from a parent/carer
• We will discuss the nature of the concerns with the child’s parent or carer and if appropriate, reassure them.
• We consider whether the programme can be amended or improved in any way to reassure the parent. NB care will be taken to make sure that the integrity of the Relationships and Sex Education Programme is not undermined, and the entitlement of other pupils is upheld e.g. certain sessions may take place in single sex classes.
• We attempt to ensure that where a pupil is withdrawn that there is no disruption to other parts of their education.
• We point out that pupils may receive inaccurate information from their peers.
• We offer parents access to appropriate information and resources to facilitate effective home discussions around sex education.