The Harmony School Curriculum Award
All the information you need to apply for accreditation
The Harmony School Accreditation Scheme celebrates the work that schools are doing to develop a Harmony approach to education in their settings.
Currently, schools are able to apply for the Harmony School Curriculum Award in recognition of their work developing a Harmony approach to the curriculum. We hope to extend the scheme to cover work developing a Harmony approach in other areas in the future, for example, in the community and on the school campus.
The scheme is offered entirely free of charge for schools applying for accreditation before the end of October 2023.
To achieve the Harmony School Curriculum Award, schools are invited to submit evidence of their work in three key areas:
2. Great Work celebrations
3. Reflections on enquiry questions and Nature’s principles of Harmony
You can download a guide to applying for the Harmony School Curriculum Award here.
1. Enquiries of learning
Following a Harmony approach to education, the learning each half term (or however you block your learning) is presented as a single, cohesive ‘enquiry of learning’ with an overarching enquiry question. Teaching and learning is planned in a way that, wherever possible, draws together subject skills and knowledge from across the curriculum. Pupils are encouraged to see how different areas of their learning support the wider enquiry.
We encourage schools to develop their enquiries of learning to include six key elements:
- a) An enquiry question which signposts the half term’s learning and acts as a stimulus for reflection at the end of the enquiry
- b) A linked principle of Harmony in Nature to guide and inform the enquiry
- c) A Great Work celebration of pupils’ learning, based on what has been planned
- d) Partners in learning who can enrich and enhance the learning process
- e) A sustainability action to give pupils agency in becoming leaders in sustainability. It should be informed by the project (enquiry) in relation to the principle (of Harmony in Nature) and then translated into some kind of sustainability practice
- f) Weekly outdoor learning opportunities to support pupils in connecting with Nature and applying learning to their own lives
What evidence will I need to provide?
We invite schools to submit evidence of their work in developing a Harmony approach to the curriculum in response to the questions:
What are the enquiries of learning you teach?
How are they planned out in line with Nature’s principles of Harmony to build a Harmony curriculum?
You will need to provide a planning overview for every enquiry of learning that has been taught in each year group or mixed age class. For each year group or class, at least two of these enquiries should have a clear Nature theme.
You can use The Harmony Project’s enquiry of learning planning overview template for a five-week, six-week or seven-week enquiry of learning, or you are welcome to submit your planning in a similar format.
Your planning should include elements a to f outlined above.
2. Great Work celebrations
Throughout each enquiry of learning, there should be a clear sense of journey, since a curriculum means ‘course’ or ‘journey’. This sense of journey is further developed as pupils work towards a Great Work, an event or outcome which celebrates and shares their learning and which takes place at, or towards, the end of each half term. This should not create extra work but should instead provide a meaningful goal to work towards.
What evidence will I need to provide?
For each of the enquiries submitted as evidence for the ‘Enquiries of learning’ section of the accreditation process, we invite schools to submit evidence of the Great Work that has taken place at the end of the half term.
The evidence submitted should provide a response to the question:
How has the pupils’ journey of learning been celebrated and how have they been involved in preparing this?
The evidence submitted for each Great Work could take the form of:
– photographs
– short audio recordings (for example, of a poetry recital or a song that pupils have composed and performed)
– comments from those with whom a Great Work has been shared (for example, children from another year group, parents, carers or grandparents).
3. Reflections on enquiry questions and Nature’s principles of Harmony
As each enquiry of learning draws to a close, pupils are invited to reflect on their learning journey and to provide a response to the enquiry question and linked principle of Harmony in Nature.
At this point, staff may also wish to evaluate the enquiry of learning as a whole in order to guide their thinking in developing the enquiry in the future.
What evidence will I need to provide?
The evidence submitted should respond to the question:
How have pupils responded to the enquiry question and what is their understanding of the linked principle of Harmony in Nature?
The evidence submitted to support this section of the application could include:
– Reflections from pupils (written or short audio clips) in response to the enquiry question. Older pupils could respond individually or in pairs, using a short questionnaire with prompts to help them. With younger pupils, an adult could transcribe or record parts of a class discussion or oral reflections from pupils.
– Use our printable forms to help make the process of gathering reflections from pupils more straightforward.
The application process
When to apply
Applications will be accepted at any time of year, providing there is clear and comprehensive evidence from each year group or mixed age class in your school to show a Harmony approach to learning.
To achieve full accreditation, you will need to be able to demonstrate a Harmony approach to learning over the academic year.
However, you can also submit evidence relating to one term to apply for ‘Becoming a Harmony School’ status with a view to applying for full accreditation at a later date.
‘Becoming a Harmony School’ status
If you wish, you can submit evidence relating to one term’s teaching and learning to apply for ‘Becoming a Harmony School’ status. As with applications for full accreditation, we will accept applications for ‘Becoming’ status at any time in the school year.
One of the benefits of this approach is that your Accreditation Assessor will provide you with feedback to inform your next steps. This may be particularly useful if your school is just starting out on its journey towards developing a Harmony approach to the curriculum.
If your application for ‘Becoming a Harmony School’ status is successful, you will be awarded a ‘Becoming a Harmony School’ certificate, which you will be able to display until your full application is successfully signed off and full accreditation status is awarded.
Feedback on your application
Whether you are applying for the full Harmony School Curriculum Award or for ‘Becoming a Harmony School’ status, the evidence you submit will be assessed by your Accreditation Assessor, who will write a short report on your application. This report will either confirm that accreditation status has been granted or suggest next steps to help you achieve the award at a later date.
Successful applicants will receive a certificate and digital logos, and will be celebrated on our website.
What to submit in your application
‘Becoming a Harmony School’ status
To apply for ‘Becoming a Harmony School’ status, you should submit evidence relating to a term’s teaching and learning in all year groups or mixed age classes.
Your application should include a completed ‘Summary of application’ form for each year group or mixed age class, and should include:
– Two complete planning overviews for enquiries of learning (one per half term)
– Evidence relating to two Great Works (one Great Work per enquiry of learning)
– Evidence of reflections on learning (for each enquiry of learning)
Harmony School Curriculum Award
To apply for the full Harmony School Curriculum Award, you should submit evidence relating to teaching and learning spanning an entire academic year across all year groups or mixed age classes.
Your application should include a completed ‘Summary of application’ form for each year group or mixed age class and should include:
– Six complete planning overviews for enquiries of learning with a related principle of Harmony referenced for each enquiry (one per half term)
– Evidence relating to six Great Works (one Great Work per enquiry of learning)
– Evidence of reflections on learning (for each enquiry of learning)
Downloadable materials to support your application
To download a five-week enquiry of learning planning overview template, click here.
To download a six-week enquiry of learning planning overview template, click here.
To download a seven-week enquiry of learning planning overview template, click here.
To download a student reflection form, click here.
To download a ‘Summary of application’ form, click here.
