Our highly qualified, specialist staff teach an extensive and exciting curriculum at St Peter’s 8-13, which encourages pupils to be curious, creative and original.
Growth Mindset
A growth mindset is fundamental to our approach to learning, encouraging children to try new things, support each other and learn from their mistakes. Our eight habits of learning help our pupils develop a growth mindset.
Specialist Teaching
One of the differences between St Peter's and other schools in York is that our children have access to specialist teachers at a much younger age, and in a broader range of subjects.
In Year 4, pupils will spend around 70% of their time with one of the Year 4 teachers, but the rest of the time they will be taught by specialist teachers. By Year 6, the top year in primary school, the children still have a main form teacher who teaches them for English and some of the humanities subjects, but they will move from teacher to teacher just like they would at a secondary school.
We feel it is important that we give our pupils more freedom and responsibility than is found in other schools, because they rise to the challenge. They need to be pushed, stimulated and stretched.
The curriculum expands and develops throughout the five St Peter's 8-13 years with subjects being added and new methods introduced, thus preparing pupils for the more formalised study routines of the Senior School.
Subjects by Year Group
Year groups at St Peter's 8-13 are referred to as J1 to J5. Please see below a list of subjects covered by year and detailed information about key areas of the curriculum, including Modern Foreign Languages, Sport, Music and PSHEE.
- J1 - Year 4
English, Maths, Science, History, Geography, Religious Studies, IT, Language Awareness, Drama, Art, Design & Technology, Music, PE, Sport, Philosophy - J2 - Year 5
English, Maths, Science, History, Geography, Religious Studies, IT, Language Awareness, Drama, Art, Design & Technology, Music, PE, Sport, Philosophy - J3 - Year 6
English, Maths, Science, History, Geography, Religious Studies, IT, French, German, Spanish, Classics, Drama, Art, Design & Technology, Music, PE, Sport - J4 - Year 7
English, Maths, Chemistry, Physics, Biology, History, Geography, Religious Studies, IT, French, German, Spanish, Latin, Drama, Art, Design & Technology, Music, PE, Sport, Philosophy - J5 - Year 8
English, Maths, Chemistry, Physics, Biology, History, Geography, Religious Studies, IT, French, German, Spanish, Latin, Drama, Art, Design & Technology, Music, PE, Sport
8-13 Curriculum
For a detailed overview of the 8-13 curriculum, please see here.
Modern Foreign Languages
An introduction to Modern Foreign Languages through a language awareness programme (Spanish, German and French) is taught in the first two years (Years 4 and 5). This enables cultural as well as linguistic exploration. More formal teaching is introduced in the third year (Year 6), at the end of which pupils will choose two languages to continue in the fourth and fifth years (Year 7 and 8).
Sport
Sport is an important dimension to life at St Peter's, with all pupils receiving at least four and a half hours of PE or sport a week. We aim to cater for all standards and ability levels, and participation is valued above all else.
Team sports are important, as pupils learn valuable lessons about teamwork, winning and losing with dignity, determination and hard work. Our major team sports are rugby, hockey and cricket for the boys, and hockey, netball and rounders for the girls.
Sport is also a popular co-curricular activity, and we aim to ensure that every child has the opportunity to represent the school each term at an appropriate level.
Music
Music is a very important part of life at St Peter's 8-13. With curriculum music in the timetable for every year group, children approach the subject with creativity, following a tailor made curriculum that develops listening, composing and performing skills in a number of different ways. In Year 4 all pupils have three class lessons of music per week, learning to play a variety of string, brass and woodwind instruments.
Over two-thirds of the pupils receive tuition on individual instruments in our large music school. Instrument teaching is delivered by specialist teachers - many of whom are also professional musicians.
Music is also a thriving co-curricular activity at St Peter’s 8-13 and we are proud to be the Choir School for York Minster, responsible for educating York Minster’s girl and boy choristers.
PSHEE
Personal, Social, Health & Economic Education (PSHEE) is an important subject taught weekly at all ages. We have developed our own PSHEE syllabus focused on three core themes: Health and Wellbeing, Relationships and Living in the Wider World. The syllabus promotes the fundamental British values of democracy, the rule of law, individual liberty, and mutual respect and tolerance of those with different faiths and beliefs.
Through the syllabus, we seek to develop key skills including self-management, interpersonal skills and skills of enquiry. Our PSHEE programme is delivered through a weekly 40 minute timetabled lesson taught by the class Form Teacher in J1-3 and by more specialist teachers in J4/5.
Life Skills and Wellbeing
We have also developed a Life Skills and Wellbeing programme to prepare our pupils for life beyond school. This involves a range of activities for each year group, with a different activity each half term throughout the year. The activities are designed to promote collaboration, physical and mental wellbeing, resilience and other important life skills. Activities include cooking, first aid and mindfulness.
Library
Each class also has a weekly lesson in our very well-stocked library, run by a full time, qualified librarian. The Library supports the whole of St Peter's 8-13, providing an impressive stock of resources housed in a comfortable and welcoming environment. Centrally-located, the Library is spacious, well lit, and conducive to quiet reading and study.
All pupils receive an induction session at the beginning of the year, and pupils in J3–J5 are trained in how to issue and return books, and how to search the computerised library catalogue.
The library is managed by our full-time Librarian and always opens during school hours.
An introduction to Modern Foreign Languages through a language awareness programme (Spanish, German and French) is taught in the first two years (Years 4 and 5). This enables cultural as well as linguistic exploration. More formal teaching is introduced in the third year (Year 6), at the end of which pupils will choose two languages to continue in the fourth and fifth years (Year 7 and 8).
Sport is an important dimension to life at St Peter's, with all pupils receiving at least four and a half hours of PE or sport a week. We aim to cater for all standards and ability levels, and participation is valued above all else.
Team sports are important, as pupils learn valuable lessons about teamwork, winning and losing with dignity, determination and hard work. Our major team sports are rugby, hockey and cricket for the boys, and hockey, netball and rounders for the girls.
Sport is also a popular co-curricular activity, and we aim to ensure that every child has the opportunity to represent the school each term at an appropriate level.
Music is a very important part of life at St Peter's 8-13. With curriculum music in the timetable for every year group, children approach the subject with creativity, following a tailor made curriculum that develops listening, composing and performing skills in a number of different ways. In Year 4 all pupils have three class lessons of music per week, learning to play a variety of string, brass and woodwind instruments.
Over two-thirds of the pupils receive tuition on individual instruments in our large music school. Instrument teaching is delivered by specialist teachers - many of whom are also professional musicians.
Music is also a thriving co-curricular activity at St Peter’s 8-13 and we are proud to be the Choir School for York Minster, responsible for educating York Minster’s girl and boy choristers.
Personal, Social, Health & Economic Education (PSHEE) is an important subject taught weekly at all ages. We have developed our own PSHEE syllabus focused on three core themes: Health and Wellbeing, Relationships and Living in the Wider World. The syllabus promotes the fundamental British values of democracy, the rule of law, individual liberty, and mutual respect and tolerance of those with different faiths and beliefs.
Through the syllabus, we seek to develop key skills including self-management, interpersonal skills and skills of enquiry. Our PSHEE programme is delivered through a weekly 40 minute timetabled lesson taught by the class Form Teacher in J1-3 and by more specialist teachers in J4/5.
We have also developed a Life Skills and Wellbeing programme to prepare our pupils for life beyond school. This involves a range of activities for each year group, with a different activity each half term throughout the year. The activities are designed to promote collaboration, physical and mental wellbeing, resilience and other important life skills. Activities include cooking, first aid and mindfulness.
Each class also has a weekly lesson in our very well-stocked library, run by a full time, qualified librarian. The Library supports the whole of St Peter's 8-13, providing an impressive stock of resources housed in a comfortable and welcoming environment. Centrally-located, the Library is spacious, well lit, and conducive to quiet reading and study.
All pupils receive an induction session at the beginning of the year, and pupils in J3–J5 are trained in how to issue and return books, and how to search the computerised library catalogue.
The library is managed by our full-time Librarian and always opens during school hours.