Relationship and Sex Education

In line with government guidance, our Personal, Social, Health and Citizenship Education curriculum has been updated.

The majority of our teaching will focus on the building of positive, safe relationships and will reinforce life skills in order to support this.  We will also cover the science topic of life cycles in KS2 and changes during puberty in upper KS2.  All classes will have some teaching around personal hygiene.

Our aim is for the children to learn about the importance of hygiene, recognise the main external parts of the human body and recognise the physical differences between males and females.  These units of work will provide a secure foundation for their education in this area when the children reach Y5 and Y6.

Below is a list of lesson aims and objectives that the year groups will be covering from Reception to Y6. 

Reception

  • Responsibility – To understand what personal responsibility is

  • Growing Up – Physical achievements and capabilities

  • People Who Help Us – To know the adults who are responsible for looking after them and to recognise personal needs

  • Keeping Ourselves Clean – To understand basic hygiene routines

Y1

  • Life Cycles – To understand the life cycles of animals and humans eg frogs, butterflies and how we grow from babies to adults

  • Being Unique – To recognise that people are similar in some ways and different in others and value their own body’s capabilities and uniqueness.

  • Personal Hygiene – To know how to keep themselves clean

Y2

  • Similarities and differences – To recognise and name the external parts of the body

  • Where do Babies Come From? – To understand that all living things originate from other living things.  The focus at this stage is that children recognise growth; they are not taught how reproduction occurs

  • Changes - Physical– To consider ways in which they have changed since they were born

  • Changes – Becoming Independent – To consider their responsibilities now and compare them to when they were younger and how they can make healthy choices

Y3

  • Similarities and Differences – Reproductive Organs – To recognise the main organs of the body including scientific names for reproductive organs

  • Types of Love – What different types of love are there?  Caring for other people, families and showing respect

  • Personal Hygiene – Hand Washing – To understand how infection can spread and how to prevent this

  • Personal Hygiene – Infection – To understand that sometimes the body needs help to fight infection

Y4

  • Changes – Life Cycle – To understand some of the physical changes that will happen as humans get older

  • Changes – Responsibilities – To consider their responsibilities and levels of independence as they grow and how they will change in the future

  • Personal Hygiene – Antibiotics – To understand that antibiotics should be taken only as prescribed and that most common infections get better through time, bed rest intake of fluids and healthy living

  • Challenging Stereotypes – To challenge gender based stereotypes

Y5

  • Changes – Physical – To know and understand the physical changes that take place during puberty and why

  • Changes – Emotional – To understand that emotional changes happen at different rates for different people

  • Personal Hygiene – Keeping Clean – To consider new aspects of personal hygiene relevant to puberty

  • Genetic Inheritance – To understand genetic inheritance

Y6

  • Changes- Physical – To understand the function of male and female reproductive organs and the changes that happen during puberty

  • Changes – Emotional – To be able to express their own changing emotions and express their concerns positively

  • Life Cycle – Sexual Intercourse – To know about the facts of the human life cycle, including sexual intercourse

  • Relationships – To consider the need for trust and love in marriage and established relationships and to consider different types of love

  • Birth and a New Baby – To understand how babies are born and to explore the impact a new baby has on a family

Alongside RSE, our new curriculum will include a programme for primary aged children developed by professionals, which promotes a greater understanding of mental health, including stigma, prejudice and discrimination. It includes

  • What can go wrong when people become mentally unwell

  • What helps and what does not

  • Risk and resilience factors affecting mental health

  • How to promote positive mental health and why it is important