Cultural Awareness and Development

Cultural development at Parklands is about children understanding and appreciating their own culture and other cultures in their community, Britain and throughout the world. It is an exploration of how we are the same and how we are different; how we came to be the way we are and how we are changing. Cultural development at our school is key to developing community cohesion and pride as well as curiosity and wonder at the world. Promoting pupils’ cultural development is intimately linked with our schools’ attempts to value cultural diversity and prevent racism. We encourage children’s cultural development by:

• helping children to understand and feel comfortable in a variety of cultures and be able to operate in the emerging world culture of shared experiences provided by television, travel and the Internet;

• helping children to understand that cultures are always evolving and coping with change;

• providing pupils with the knowledge of and appreciation of the key features of their own cultural traditions and practices and of other major cultural groups within their own community and the wider world;

• developing an understanding of, as well as celebrating and embracing, the diversity of cultural, spiritual, social and moral traditions and practices within their community and the wider world;

• developing the knowledge, skills, understanding, qualities and attitudes they need to understand, appreciate and contribute to culture in the form of music, art, drama, literature and faith;

• providing opportunities to nurture the cultural development of our children in all creative areas across the curriculum;

• encouraging a personal response to a range of cultural activities;

• exposing children to a wealth of stimuli from their own culture and those of others, taught through the whole curriculum with visits and visitors to support this teaching;

• encouraging participation in and appreciation of the wealth of cultural traditions and the beliefs associated with different communities.

Here are some of the ways we help to develop their Moral values: