Virtual Open Day

Hello and a warm welcome! I hope you enjoy looking around All Faiths Children’s Academy. We nurture children to become confident and can think and act independently.

We have a dedicated team committed to transforming life chances for all of our pupils and a specialist provision for hearing impaired and deaf children.

All of our pupils are included in all aspects of school life and our deaf pupils learn alongside their peers in our classrooms. All children learn British Sign Language as part of our curriculum.

We aim to provide a carefully planned day where there is a balance of learning and teaching, affection and structure within a home-like atmosphere.

I also encourage you to discover our Forest School. This is used all year round, encouraging children to wander through available space, climbing trees, building habitats, helping each other to learn and grow whilst being prepared for all weathers. I hope you enjoy exploring our school and discover how we’re making learning irresistible.

At All Faiths we aim to give pupils the tools to take control of their own learning. A major part of this is our focus on the development of thinking skills. We believe that cognitive education is vital for pupils to confidently solve problems and apply their learning across the curriculum and in the wider world.

Our belief is that we have a responsibility to make sure our pupils are fully able to make the most of their time at school and beyond. We do this by providing secure foundations and support systems on which pupils can structure their thinking in any given situation.  We hold De Bono Thinking School status and are accredited by Exeter University as a Thinking School in recognition of the teaching and learning techniques used from Nursery to Year 6.

Our school specialises in teaching deaf pupils using a Total Communication approach. Total Communication (TC) is an approach to Deaf education that aims to make use of a number of modes of communication such as signed (British Signed Language BSL and Signed Supported English SSE), oral, auditory, written and visual aids.

This means that we find the right combination of communication methods for the pupils. This approach helps to form connections, ensures successful interactions and supports information exchanges and conversations. A combination of which reinforce each other and strengthen meaning for the individual pupil.

In a rapidly changing world, we want to equip children with the skills to easily adapt to changing circumstances.

At All Faiths Children’s Academy, we aim to bring learning to life by providing high quality teaching and inspirational learning activities which link to all areas of the curriculum. ‘Cornerstones’ is the vehicle that supports this approach, which is used to develop links between all areas of the children’s learning. Using the Cornerstones half term projects we want children to engage, develop, innovate and express their ideas through a range of activities. We have planned these topics in line with our ‘Thinking and Learning’ curriculum described on the main curriculum page.

1. WHO THEY ARE: Affectionately nicknamed Our Trust, it’s effectively the family name for the 18 schools in Our Trust. The schools within Our Trust are situated across Medway, Deal, Hampshire and Plymouth.

2. WHY A THINKING SCHOOL IS THE ONE FOR YOUR CHILD: A Thinking School challenges students to think deeply about their thinking, to be their best self and to gain the knowledge, tools and skills to shape their success in a life beyond school.

The children and young people we're presently educating will retire around 2070. According to experts most of the jobs our children will have don't even exist yet, and this is why developing skills to think independently and become life-long learners is so important.

3. HOW A THINKING SCHOOL WORKS: Our cognitive approach to education defines us but does not create a 'one size fits all'. Each and every member of the TSAT family is equally as important and shares a direction and ethos; put simply, we believe that we are stronger together.

Our schools work with each student so they are aspirational and ready to move forward and understand their role within their local community and beyond. The Thinking School approach to education is unique and we believe that it genuinely transforms the life chances of our children, teaching them the critical thinking skills they need to be resilient in life after school.