How Tapestry’s online learning journal supports Arundel C of E Primary School children (EYFS through Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2)
by Jules on November 16
Arundel CofE Primary School has 206 children aged 4 – 11, and has been using Tapestry’s online learning journal in EYFS since 2016. In 2020, the school extended its use of the learning journal to include Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2, and it is now successfully used across all year groups.
“We feel that Tapestry has the potential to provide a continuous assessment programme throughout primary school, which informs teaching and allows teachers to plan, based on where children are on their individual learning journeys.
Additionally, we have found that Tapestry’s Child Login enables children to have an excellent understanding of their attainment and progress. We have been using Child Login for the past two years in KS2, giving children ownership over their observations and developing self-assessment.”
Andrew Simpson, Headteacher
Teachers at Arundel use Tapestry’s online learning journal to inform their teaching and to give children an active and proactive role in the learning and assessment process, rather than this being “just something that is done to them” (Andrew Simpson, Headteacher). They build on the principles in the Early Years classroom, where the use of Tapestry is established and where teaching and learning can be at its most powerful in terms of impact and intervention, through first-hand experience.
When extending usage to Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2, the school was keen to utilise Tapestry’s Child Login feature, which is an integral part of the platform, available to all account holders.
Child Login allows staff to set up their Tapestry account so children can log in from specific devices in school or at home. At Arundel, children add their own content to their online learning journals. The headteacher explains that this supports them in understanding what the purpose of the learning session is, and helps to fulfil the ethos of ‘Know More, Remember More and Do More’. Arundel has also found the use of Child Login engages children more, excites them and makes a positive contribution to their self-esteem.
“You can’t beat a programme which makes children excited about their learning”
Andrew Simpson, Headteacher, Arundel C of E Primary School
Assessing, planning and progress monitoring with Tapestry’s Online Learning Journal
Tapestry is the tool that provides the link between the cycle of planning, teaching and assessment.
Andrew Simpson, Headteacher
As well as the benefits of children adding and reviewing their own work through Child Login, the school also makes use of Bespoke Frameworks. This feature gives schools the flexibility to create and upload their own curriculum, assessment framework or milestones, directly onto their Tapestry account. Arundel sees it as the ability to ‘transform an assessment system tailored to the needs of the school’.
The headteacher explains that the online learning journal gives senior leaders the opportunity to dig deep into children’s understanding. It allows SLT and teaching teams an in-depth view of individual pupils, whilst identifying common patterns and the impact of teaching in terms of pupils knowing more and remembering more. He says that the ability to add a bespoke assessment framework for the unique nature of their school context means that their assessment is both fit for purpose and takes into consideration the national requirements from the DfE.
Arundel CofE Primary School’s three key thoughts on Tapestry’s Learning Journal
- Their assessment process has changed as a result of using Tapestry, including how it can enhance oral feedback, through discussions and conferences with the children, after they have added their own content.
- Tapestry is a unique product which puts individual schools back in the driving seat when it comes to formative assessment, giving them the ability to transform an assessment system to the needs of the school and, most importantly, the needs of the pupil.
- Tapestry’s excellent customer support is what makes the company and system stand out from other organisations.
About Arundel CofE School
Arundel CofE Primary School was first established in its current location in 1975 after previously being located in the town. It is a Voluntary Aided Church of England primary school with pupils from Arundel, Littlehampton and the neighbouring area (West Sussex).
Arundel CofE school’s values centre on Faith, Hope and Love. The school translates these into the fabric of their learning by imagining a wheel: the centre is the hub of the wheel, and the core values of the school – Faith, Hope and Love; the spokes radiate outwards from the hub, symbolising how the values can be interpreted in the daily context of classroom and community; and the rim represents the practical policies and systems that facilitate teaching and learning.
The school has opportunities for learning inside and out, including an area dedicated to forest school.
But a school is just a building. At the heart of Arundel C of E are the people who learn here – adults and children interacting to create an environment where everyone can aim high to reach their full potential. We strive to get the best out of everyone, every day.