Our Vision for Computing Learning at Burlington

Our curriculum aims to prepare our learners for their future by giving them the opportunities to gain knowledge and develop skills that will equip them for an ever-changing digital world. We focus on a progression of skills in digital literacy, computer science, information technology and online safety, to ensure that children become competent in safely using, as well as understanding, technology. Creativity is encouraged through cross curricular learning to engage and inspire children and as a result efforts are valued, individuality is celebrated, confidence and resilience is developed  and all children flourish in computing.

Computing Curriculum Overview

With its links to Maths, Science and Design Technology, we ensure that Computing at Burlington helps our children to be digitally literate: to be comfortable with digital systems, to undersand basic programming and to be able to express themselves using electronic devices and computers.  Computing at Burlington therefore provides a wealth of learning opportunities and transferable skills explicitly within Computing lessons and helps children to understand how technology is used in the world around them. We place emphasis on developing children’s understanding of how to use computers safely and responsibly and ensure online safety is promoted regularly to children and families.

In Early Years (Nursery and Reception), we provide children with a range of materials and objects to play with and explore during the  continuous provision that work in different ways for different purposes; for example: cooking tools, torches, other household implements, construction kits, light boxes, cameras and tape recorders.  We also provide a range of programmable toys, such as Bee-Bots and Code-A-Pillars as well as equipment involving ICT, such as computers.  We encourage children to speculate on the reasons why things happen or how things work, support the children to coordinate actions to use technology, for example, inputting a set of instructions on a programmable toy and teach and encourage children to click on different icons to cause things to happen in a computer program.  Together with our enabling environments and positive relationships, we aim for children to leave Reception being able to recognise that a range of technology is used in places such as homes and schools and to be able to select and use technology for particular purposes.

We use the 'JiT' software on LGFL (London Grid for Learning) for a lot of our Computing at Burlington. This online infant toolkit allows the following features: word processing, animation, graph making (including pictograms), painting, turtle control and a mix of all these elements.  JiT allows children to make changes to their work and try things out without having a detrimental impact upon their final piece.  

In Key Stage 1 (Years 1 and 2), the children learn to understand what algorithms are; how they are implemented as programs on digital devices; and that programs execute by following precise and unambiguous instructions. They are taught to create and debug simple programs and use logical reasoning to predict the behaviour of simple programs. They will be shown how to use a range of technology purposefully to create, organise, store, manipulate and retrieve digital content. 

Computing lessons are cross curricular; for example, when learning about bears in Year 1, children type up bear facts, add images and make their work appealing for others to read.  In Year 2, when learning about the weather, children create a pictogram of the data collected in a Geography lesson about each child's favourite weather. Children learnt how to save their work and open it up as an image in a word processing program so they could add text underneath to explain their graph.  Bee-Bots, an award winning programmable floor robot which aim to improve skills in directional language and programming are used throughout KS1.  Children thoroughly enjoy using them, for example to select an instruction card and input the instructions to make the Bee-Bot move or watch carefully to figure out which shape the Bee-Bot was drawing! 

Children are also taught how to use technology safely and respectfully, keeping personal information private; identify where to go for help and support when they have concerns about content or contact on the internet or other online technologies.

The Computing curriculum at Burlington follows the National Curriculum.  You can find the appropriate extract of this National Curriculum for Computing here: 

National Curriculum in KS1 - Computing

Please note this extract covers KS1 (Years 1 and 2) and Key Stage 2 which is followed by the Junior School (Years 3 to 6).

The curriculum map below gives you a complete summary of the Computing skills, knowledge and key vocabulary that we teach our children, during each term as they progress from Nursery / Reception and through to Years 1 and 2.

Computing @ Burlington - Curriculum Map

Here is a summary of the key learning concepts taught from Reception to Year 2.

Computing @ Burlington - Road Map

Here are some photos of our teaching and learning for Computing across the school: 

News and Events

Safer Internet Day - February 2023

Tech Time Autumn 2022

The teachers are really enjoying teaching Computing at school and we know the children love taking part in Computing at home too!  Some classes have learnt about Paint and some classes have learnt about Presentations. If you are taking part in Computing at home, please submit an observation on Tapestry titled “Computing Home Learning”. This half term’s optional challenges are:

Nursery & Reception: Do any of your toys make a sound or move when you press a button?  Are any of them remote-controlled?  Your child could take a photo/video of their technological toy and explain or demonstrate how it works!

Nursery and Reception Tech Time Challenge

Year 1: Paint a picture of your favourite animal using different colours and brushes. You could use shape and fill and undo if you make a mistake.

Year 1 Tech Time Challenge

Year 2: Create a Presentation about Habitats or a topic of your own choice. Use images and text, which could be found online, and then present it.

Year 2 Tech Time Challenge

You will find further details on the images posted on our website and on the 'Computing Home Learning' Tapestry post dated 21.10.22​

Computer Science Education Week 2021

This week was Computer Science Education Week 2021! In light of this we have been taking part in the "Hour of Code". The Hour of Code started as a one-hour introduction to computer science, designed to demystify "code", to show that anybody can learn the basics, and to broaden participation in the field of computer science.  It's been a big success here at Burlington and you can read more below: 

Hour of Code 2021

Staying Safe Online - September 2020

Through our weekly PSHE and Computing lessons, we discuss with our children how the internet can be a really helpful tool for people all around the world but how sometimes things we see on the internet might not be true. So, because we can’t be sure that everything that we see on the internet is true, we have to be careful about what we look at and what we believe. When we use the internet safely, it can help us learn more and have fun. When the internet is not used safely, it can be a bit scary. Lots of things on the internet are meant for adults and are not meant for children to see or use, so it is important that children don’t look at them. As a school we have come up with and agreed on what to do and who to tell if they saw something online that upset them.

We have also received a Certificate of Committment from '360 Degree Safe' to to improve our current Online Safety provision.

Certificate of Committment from 360 Degree Safe

How to Help at Home

JiT and other Learning Resources are accessible from home via LGFL.  All children had their Usernames and Passwords sent home at the beginning of the academic year but please do see your class teacher if you have mislaid these.

Here is a helpful document on how to help your child independently access the learning resources they are familiar with at school via a computer / laptop / tablet at home.

Computing - How to Help at Home

LGFL Family Support information

Busy Things help sheet

Aside from LGFL learning resources, Hour of Code is a great resource: the website has a wide range of fun and educational computing games (based around understanding coding and programming), grouped by age relevance.

Hour of Code

For more information on how to keep your child safe online, please visit the 'Keeping your Child Safe' page on our website: 

Keeping Your Child Safe web page