"A Year 6 class became a Gamelan orchestra in the space of one lesson...
their teacher's love for her subject gave them a unique and enriching experience"
Ofsted Report
PHSE
Our PHSE lessons are tailored to the age and maturity of the children in each year group. We aim to give the knowledge, skills and understanding needed for the children to value and respect each other, and lead healthy and increasingly independent lives.
Moral values, emotional and physical development and relationships are considered in the safe context of 'circle time', in class discussions and activities across the curriculum.
Citizenship offers insight into the main political and social institutions and how these affect our lives, and explores the vital roles that individuals play in society: their rights, responsibilities and duties, as members of different groups and communities.
All children take part in a basic drugs education course. Puberty, Sex and Relationship Education is studied more fully in Year 6, with factual information and guidance. This helps and supports children in their final year and enables them to move with confidence from junior to secondary education.
Foundation studies
Music
All our children are encouraged to become enthusiastic music-makers whether by using their voice, or learning to play an instrument. Each child is taught to compose, perform, listen to, appraise and appreciate music.
Our new music room contains a wide range of pitched and unpitched percussion for class lessons from different cultures, as well as a huge range of orchestral instruments. We also have a keyboard laboratory and a set of steel pans.
LEADING ASPECT AWARD FOR MUSIC RECOGNIZES OUR OUTSTANDING PROVISION IN THIS AREA.
Physical Education
All pupils are now offered two hours of PE a week in line with government recommendations, experiencing a wide range of activities throughout each year. Over their four years at Dulwich Hamlet, children use games and gymnastic apparatus and learn a range of different dance styles. They are taught skills and techniques, which they then apply in all types of team and individual games.
ACTIVE MARK 2009 RECOGNIZES EXCEPTIONAL DELIVERY OF THE CURRICULUM
We regularly have qualified coaches who visit the school and lead lessons, as well as a specialist dance teacher. Years 4 and 5 have swimming lessons, and school clubs usually include cricket, athletics, gymnastics and football.
The school is represented in local athletic, swimming, gymnastic and cricket league games.
History
Children enjoy a different history based topic each year - from Ancient Greece to World War 2,- and are taught how to interpret historical evidence, often using reproduction and real artefacts. To reinforce their study, theatre groups and visitors bring the subject alive and children visit places of historical interest, including The Imperial War Museum, The British Museum, Hampton Court, Butser Ancient Village and The Horniman.
Geography
Children study physical geography as well as gaining an appreciation of the world's ethnic, cultural and economic diversity. By studying different locations, the children develop a sense of identity. This also helps them understand the interaction between people, places and environments and the processes affecting them. We place a lot of emphasis on first-hand practical experience of geography, fostering a sense of concern for the future of the earth and its peoples.
