Curriculum Charter- Hiba Academy Shanghai

Curriculum Charter

Curriculum

Homepage Curriculum Curriculum Charter

Hiba Academy Shanghai is home to learners aged 2 through 6 and comprises four year groups: Early year 1-4. The Hiba Nursery curriculum combines the English Early Years Foundation Stage and the Chinese Curriculum (from three to six years) guidelines. We are committed to having high aspirations for each child; building a learning environment rooted in secure, reciprocal and positive relationships; creating a culture of ongoing learning and reflective practice; and maintaining a collaborating and respectful partnership with our parents.

All this is guided by our Early Years Curriculum Charter that aligns our intent, implementation as well as impact outlined in the following three key questions.

Why do we teach what we teach?

To prime our pupils for future success in school and beyond

We begin with the principle that each child is unique, and we respond to their individual needs and interests. By cultivating curiosity, creativity, critical thinking, confidence and resilience we make our children lifelong learners.We, therefore, encourage them to investigate and experience new things, face new challenges, explore their own ideas, make new connections and celebrate their achievements along the way. So, when they graduate from Hiba Nursery, they are equipped with the cultural capital they need to succeed in their Primary, Secondary School, at university and beyond.

How do we teach what we teach?

Independent exploration, play-based learning

With our inquiry and play-based approaches to learning, pupils engage in self-initiated exploration alongside more structured sessions in core subjects like English, maths and science.

Additionally, our teachers carefully plan indoor and outdoor learning experiences tied to topics of interest. A balanced day provides time for focused skills and conceptual development, but we also allow a wide berth for our children to follow what sparks their curiosity. Moreover, a strong Bilingualism and Bi-cultural learning and arts programmes further support our pupils’ holistic development. In addition to academic content, our curriculum emphasises characteristics of effective learning, such as perseverance, creativity and critical thinking. Moreover, we integrate the five Hiba Values of kindness, responsibility, respect, courage and integrity into our daily routines and conversations.

How do we know our pupils are
effective learners?

Ambitious targets for personalised learning

We chart each child’s progress with the Leuven Scale, an observational assessment tool that measures wellbeing and involvement. Their achievements are chronicled in a ‘learning journal’ that comprises work samples, photographs, parent contributions and more. These help us to set ambitious and individualised targets for each pupil. As a result, they start Primary learning with a total mastery of our early learning goals.