Why do we learn computer science?
Outcomes
Primary
Primary
Reception
Year 1
Year 2
Year 3
Year 4
Year 5
Year 6
Secondary
Year 7
Year 8
Year 9
Year 10
Year 11
Year 12
Year 13

Why do we learn computer science?

Our intent in teaching computer science is to equip students for a future where digital literacy is essential and where AI and machine learning are integral to everyday life. We aim to prepare students to succeed in a digital world by offering a curriculum that covers a wide range of topics, techniques, and processes in computer science. This curriculum is designed to make learning engaging and impactful, empowering students with practical skills and fostering a positive relationship with technology. By the end of each unit, students will not only acquire a new practical skill they can apply at home but will also gain confidence in independently using technology.

We believe in providing an inclusive and relevant curriculum that enhances students' digital experiences. Our computing curriculum is comprehensive, well-balanced across Key Stages, and tailored to meet the needs of all learners.

Our school maintains strong connections with industry experts to enrich the curriculum and offers numerous extra-curricular computing opportunities, such as STEM clubs and competitions. These experiences, along with workshops and events, provide students with hands-on practice and inspire interest in fields like science, cybersecurity, and data analysis. Through these activities, students develop skills they can carry into the future, gaining confidence to explore and solve tech-related challenges independently, even if they choose not to pursue computer science further.

Outcomes

By the end of the Key Stage 3 curriculum, students will have developed skills and knowledge in digital literacy, programming, and computing concepts, including:

1. Digital Literacy and Online Safety

  • Use Satchel One, Teams, and OneDrive for file management and collaboration.
  • Identify online threats (malware, phishing) and practice online safety.

2. Computer Hardware and Systems

  • Understand hardware concepts (CPU, RAM), binary conversions, and data compression.

3. Networks and the Internet

  • Explain network types and data transmission (protocols, packets, addressing).

4. Programming Fundamentals

  • Write basic Python programs using variables, data types, and control structures.
  • Solve problems with selection, iteration, and arrays.

5. Software Application and Productivity Tools

  • Use word processors, critique digital content, and address licensing issues.

6. Spreadsheet Skills and Data Analysis

  • Format spreadsheets, apply formulas (SUM, MAX), and analyse data with charts.

7. App and Web Development

  • Create a user-focused app and a basic website using HTML and CSS.

8. Graphics and Game Design

  • Create vector graphics, design game characters, and use logic gates in circuits.

9. Computational Thinking

  • Apply decomposition, abstraction, and programming constructs to solve problems.

10. Collaboration and Reflection

  • Work with peers, troubleshoot, and reflect on projects to plan future learning.

These outcomes prepare KS3 students with foundational skills in digital technology, computational thinking, and problem-solving for further study and real-world application.

Primary

At Ark Academy we believe that the knowledge of computing and the skills it provides are a fundamental part of the education for all pupils. Technology is transforming the lives of everyone. Through teaching computing, we equip pupils to participate in a rapidly moving world where work and leisure activities are increasingly changed by technology.  
The curriculum is designed to cover the three main strands of computing, which are: 

  • Computer Science 
  • Digital Literacy (which includes E-safety) 
  • Information Technology

Primary

Reception

Autumn 1 Autumn 2

E-safety

  • Asking a trusted adult for help when using the computer
  • Identifying the different parts of the computer

Algorithms and Programming

  • Understand algorithms
  • Use directional language to move a turtle.
Spring 1 Spring 2

Data and Information

  •  Creating simple pictograms and analysing results

Digital Media 

  • Use of technology to take photos.  
     Produce digital Art
Summer 1 Summer 2

Communication and Collaboration

  • Develop familiarity with a computer and keyboards. 
  • Continue to develop their skills in the touchpad to control a laptop.
  • Begin to start typing words and simple sentences.

Using the Internet

  • Explore different activities on webpages.
  • Develop confidence navigating a website

All Year 4 subjects Next Year 4 Subject - Modern Foreign Languages

Year 1

Autumn 1 Autumn 2

E-safety

  • What is personal data?
  • Not everyone is trustworthy
  • Word Processing
  • Typing skills
  • Using ‘Paint’ to create images

Algorithms and Programming (Espresso)

  • Understand what algorithms are
  • Write and test a simple program
Spring 1 Spring 2

Data and information

  • To use ICT to sort objects into groups according to a given criteria.
  • Begin to use technology to create graphs and pictograms.

Digital Art

• Use a computer to create different digital images.
Summer 1 Summer 2

Communication and Collaboration

  • Contribute ideas to a class email and together respond to messages- real life or ‘fictitious’ characters.

Using the Internet

  • Select appropriate buttons to navigate web sites or stored information.
  • Understand that computers use icons, menus, hyperlinks to provide information and instructions.

All Year 1 subjects Next Year 1 Subject - Modern Foreign Languages

Year 2

Autumn 1 Autumn 2

E-safety

  • SMART rules
  • Keeping personal data safe
  • Assessing trustworthiness
  • Being alert to unsafe situations

Word Processing

  • Touch typing practise
  • Capital letters / starting new lines / changing the colour of the text

Algorithms and Programming (Espresso)

  • Write and test a program
  • Use logical reasoning to predict behaviour of simple programs.
Spring 1 Spring 2

Data and Information

  • Use technology to create graphs and pictograms, adding labels
  • Create their own branching databases using ICT

Digital Media

  • Record a video for a range of purposes.
  • Use a computer to create basic images.
  • Independently record sounds using a range of different tools
  • Continue to take photographs for a range of different purposes, developing independence
Summer 1 Summer 2

Creating Media

  • Explore how music can make them think and feel.  
  • Create different rhythms and tunes, using movement of animals for inspiration.
  • Share their creations and compare creating music digitally and non-digitally.

Using the Internet

  • Use web based resources to find answers to questions
  • Develop questions about a specific topic and use information to answer those questions
  • Enter given text into a search engine to find specific given web sites

All Year 2 subjects Next Year 2 Subject - Modern Foreign Languages

Year 3

Autumn 1 Autumn 2

E-safety

  • SMART rules
  • Online dangers from websites / mobile phones

Word processing

  • Building on previous year - plus, inserting pictures, use of different alignment

Algorithms and Programming (Espresso and Scratch)

  • Design and write programs that accomplish specific goals
  • Solve problems by decomposing them into smaller parts
Spring 1 Spring 2

Data and Information

  • Branching databases
  • Understand the difference between questions and answers
  • Ask questions that comply with the rule - yes or no answers

Digital Art

  • Create their own digital paintings.
  • Recreate famous artist's techniques.
Summer 1 Summer 2

Communication and Collaboration

  • Messaging
  • Publishing

Using the Internet

  • Develop key questions to search for specific information with purpose to answer a problem
  • Understanding how a search engine works and begin to create and enter appropriate search strings
  • Save and retrieve accessed information – Favourites, History

All Year 3 subjects Next Year 3 Subject - Modern Foreign Languages

Year 4

Autumn 1 Autumn 2

E-safety

  • Cyberbullying
  • Knowing what to do in different E-safety scenarios

Word Processing

  • Typing skills
  • Agony Aunt-E- safety scenarios

Algorithms and Programming (Espresso and Scratch)

  • Use sequence, selection, and repetition in programs
Spring 1 Spring 2

Data and Information

  •  Create their own spreadsheets.
  • Use of spreadsheet to answer questions and create bar charts.

Digital Media 

  • Music and sound- use a range of devices to create extended pieces of music using a wide range of pre-recorded samples
Summer 1 Summer 2

Communication and Collaboration

  • Work as a small group/ class to create a website based on a topic, area of interest or event. Include hyperlinks, images and embedded media/documents.

How Computers Work / Using the Internet

  • Uniform Resource Locators (URLs)

All Year 4 subjects Next Year 4 Subject - Modern Foreign Languages

Year 5

Autumn 1 Autumn 2

E-safety

  • Being a good digital citizen
  • Dangers of downloads/ viruses. Email attachments

Word Processing

  • Using online sources to create digital documents

Algorithms and Programming (Python)

  • Work with variables and various forms of input and output
  • Generate appropriate inputs and predicted outputs to test programs
Spring 1 Spring 2

Data and Information

  • Creating Spreadsheets for a variety of scenarios
  • Use of formulae

Digital Media 

  • Create simple stop motion animations
  • Music and sound- use a range of devices to create extended pieces of music using a wide range of pre-recorded samples
  • Edit video using a range of basic video editing applications
Summer 1 Summer 2

Communication and Collaboration

  • Create their own basic websites
  • Use an alternative presentation tool Eg. Prezi to create a presentation linking into a topic, area of interest or event

How Computers Work

  • What is the World Wide Web (WWW)?
  • Networks
  • DT: ‘Design and create a toy’ unit, Espresso Coding

All Year 5 subjects Next Year 5 Subject - Modern Foreign Languages

Year 6

Autumn 1 Autumn 2

E-safety

  • Understand about their Digital foot print
  • Digital safety
  • Reliability of Online material

Word Processing

  • Creating documents, using online sources for information.
  • Using a range of word processing skills.

Algorithms and Programming (Python)

  • Use logical reasoning to explain how a simple algorithm works and to detect and correct errors in algorithms and programs
Spring 1 Spring 2

Data and Information

  • Creating Spreadsheets for a variety of scenarios
  • Use of formulae to perform basic calculations

Digital Media 

  • Digital imagery
  • Photo Editing using the different editing features.
Summer 1 Summer 2

Communication and Collaboration

  •  Create a web page based on their own interest

How Computers Work

  • Inputs/ outputs
  • Computer specifications
  • Computer networks
  • Operating systems
  • HTML

All Year 6 subjects Next Year 6 Subject - Modern Foreign Languages

Secondary

Outcomes (what pupils will be able to do) of the KS3 curriculum. By the end of the curriculum, pupils will be able to: 

  1. Safely engage with online content and understand when to use the most appropriate software
  2. Understand the use and proper application of a range of different software programs
  3. Use taught experience and reading to gain an understanding of subject specific vocabulary and use it in a manner that is accurate and relevant to its practical application
  4. Make links between the different units within Computer Science as well as any cross-curricular links

Year 7

Autumn 1Autumn 2
Digital Fluency and Computational ReadinessUsing Media and Digital Publishing
Spring 1Spring 2
Game Graphics and Block-Based ProgrammingGame Graphics and Block-Based Programming
Summer 1Summer 2
Modelling Data Using SpreadsheetsIntegrated Short Project and Year 8 Readiness

All Year 7 subjects Next Year 7 Subject - Modern Foreign Languages

Year 8

Autumn 1Autumn 2
Digital Fluency, Law and EthicsComputer Systems
Spring 1Spring 2
Algorithmic Thinking and Python FoundationsPython Programming Development
Summer 1Summer 2
Web DevelopmentProgramming and Web Development Challenge

All Year 8 subjects Next Year 8 Subject - Modern Foreign Languages

Year 9

Autumn 1Autumn 2
Computer Systems and Data RepresentationComputer Systems and Data Representation
Spring 1Spring 2
Cybersecurity and Algorithmic ThinkingAdvanced Python Programming
Summer 1Summer 2
Software Development Project and Artificial IntelligenceArtificial Intelligence and Emerging Technologies

All Year 9 subjects Next Year 9 Subject - Modern Foreign Languages

Year 10

Autumn 1Autumn 2

Data representation foundations

Computational thinking and programming foundations

Programming decisions and binary operations
Spring 1Spring 2
Iteration, data structures and imagesSound representation and applied programming
Summer 1Summer 2
Structured and robust programming; compression; searchingRLE, sorting and end-of-year consolidation

All Year 10 subjects Next Year 10 Subject - Modern Foreign Languages

Year 11

Autumn 1Autumn 2

Reteach structured programming and subroutines

Searching and sorting algorithms

Robust and secure programming

Network security and cyber security
Spring 1Spring 2
Relational databases, SQL and wider impactsExam Preparation
Summer 1Summer 2
Exam Preparation 

All Year 11 subjects Next Year 11 Subject - Modern Foreign Languages

Year 12

Autumn 1Autumn 2
Computer systems; software and translators; programming fundamentals; logic gates and Boolean algebra; internal hardware; introduction to data structures.Computer architecture; processor components; fetch-execute cycle; instruction sets and addressing; arrays and files; stacks, graphs and trees; devices and storage; number systems.
Spring 1Spring 2
Hash tables, dictionaries and vectors; units of information; binary arithmetic and floating point; graph and tree traversals; RPN; searching, sorting and Dijkstra; time complexity.Information coding; image, sound and compression; object-oriented programming; communication methods and networking foundations.
Summer 1Summer 2
Client-server and peer-to-peer networks; Internet structure, packets, routing, DNS and security; historical preliminary-material practice; integrated programming; cumulative consolidation; project feasibility.Conceptual data models and ER diagrams; relational databases; keys; normalisation; SQL; concurrent access; Python-database practice; NEA project selection and analysis.

All Year 12 subjects Next Year 12 Subject - Modern Foreign Languages

Year 13

Autumn 1Autumn 2
Baseline audit; abstraction and automation; FSMs; sets and regular expressions; regular languages; BNF; Big-O and complexity; tractability, computability, Halting problem and Turing machines; remaining TCP/IP protocols and IP services; client-server, REST, WebSockets, thin/thick clients; NEA design and implementation.Computer architecture; processor components; fetch-execute cycle; instruction sets and addressing; arrays and files; stacks, graphs and trees; devices and storage; number systems.
Spring 1Spring 2
Hash tables, dictionaries and vectors; units of information; binary arithmetic and floating point; graph and tree traversals; RPN; searching, sorting and Dijkstra; time complexity.Mock feedback; responsive Paper 1 and Paper 2 reteach; continued preliminary-material modifications; consequences extended responses; timed sections; final content review across all specification areas; synoptic planning and examination strategy.
Summer 1Summer 2
Preliminary-material walkthrough; timed modification sets; full Paper 1 and Paper 2 practice; targeted programming clinics; calculations, networks, databases, Big Data and consequences; individual gap closure and examination readiness.A-level examinations and course completion. No new taught curriculum.

All Year 13 subjects Next Year 13 Subject - Modern Foreign Languages