Our "Understanding the World" curriculum includes learning about the following curriculum areas: science, technology, computing, history, geography, religious education and foreign languages. Many of these subjects overlap and enable us to make cross-curricular links as part of broad topics.

Past and Present:

Children at the expected level of development will:

• Talk about the lives of the people around them and their roles in society;
• Know some similarities and differences between things in the past and now, drawing on their experiences and what has been read in class;
• Understand the past through settings, characters and events encountered in books read in class and storytelling.

People, Culture and Communities:

Children at the expected level of development will:

• Describe their immediate environment using knowledge from observation, discussion, stories, non-fiction texts and maps;
• Know some similarities and differences between different religious and cultural communities in this country, drawing on their experiences and what has been read in class;
• Explain some similarities and differences between life in this country and life in other countries, drawing on knowledge from stories, non-fiction texts and – when appropriate – maps.

The Natural World:

Children at the expected level of development will:

• Explore the natural world around them, making observations and drawing pictures of animals and plants;
• Know some similarities and differences between the natural world around them and contrasting environments, drawing on their experiences and what has been read in class;
• Understand some important processes and changes in the natural world around them, including the seasons and changing states of matter.