Enrichment



















Enrichment


Enrichment helps provide children with a rounded, culturally rich education through activities that enhance their learning.


Education is more than just mastering the skills for formal exams - it’s also about activities that extend children’s learning through new experiences and opportunities. Activities such as after school clubs, trips, House days and our Friday afternoon extracurricular activities programme are known as enrichment, and are an important part of the education at Cobham Free School giving them new experiences, extending their learning, and making school life more fun. It makes a subject more meaningful and rewarding for the students.

More able pupils especially benefit from being able to look at subjects in more depth, giving them opportunities and space to explore and use their imagination.


Enrichment gives children opportunities to try new and varied activities that may not strictly fit into the curriculum, but that develop character, resilience and motivation, and encourage them to pursue wider goals.


It helps to teach life skills that benefit children beyond the classroom, and can develop an appreciation for cultural and community issues, teamwork and social responsibility.

Research by the Education Endowment Foundation has also found a link between enrichment and higher attainment.


It ensures that at Cobham Free School we are:

  • Help children develop their interests and talents

  • Enable children to develop their character, including resilience, confidence and independence

  • Teach children how to keep physically and mentally healthy

  • Prepare them for future success

  • Equip children to be responsible, respectful and active citizens


We are working on introducing the DfE’s Activity Passport: a list of suggested enrichment activities for pupils under 11 to take part in, such as going for a nature walk or visiting a local landmark, and expanding this to provide our very own CFS Activity Passport for the students time from age 4-18 at our school.


In the Senior department, our Friday afternoon enrichment programme is one of the most exciting features of our curriculum.Through the weekly sessions, each pupil has the opportunity to explore various types of subject enrichment freely, with no examination pressure at the end, all the while enjoying the process of learning and developing new skills. Each course reflects the personal interests and expertise of the teaching staff.


In Key Stage 3, our pupils rotate around a carousel of courses, designed to build teamwork, to provide academic stretch and challenge and an opportunity to collaborate with pupils in different year groups as these sessions are grouped in houses.


In Key Stage 4 and 5, each pupil participates in six different activities that they have selected, giving her the opportunity to be bold and try out a variety of new activities, collaborating with younger and older peers and teachers. The subjects on offer provide a wide spectrum of choice for each CFS pupil and cover an extremely broad range of activities.


Pupils in Key Stage 5 are also encouraged to run their own enrichment activities for peers and younger students to develop their leadership skills and use their own knowledge and expertise to share with others.

In 2021-22 activities running on a Friday include:

  • Academic -Debating

  • Academic- Amnesty, Debating and Politics

  • Service - First Aid

  • Creative - Cooking

  • Academic - Coding

  • Service - First Aid

  • Service - Environmental Awareness/Eco Club

  • Academic - Coding

  • Action - Netball

  • Service - Current Affairs

  • Action - Running

  • Action Sport - Table Tennis

  • Action - Lacrosse

  • Action Sport - Yoga

  • Academic - Science club

  • Action Sport - Football

  • Creative - Art club

  • Action Sport - Dodgeball

  • Creative - Music Tech

  • Creative - Art

  • Service - Gardening club

  • Creative - Beginners Ski Club (cost)

  • Academic - Library Club

  • Academic - Chess and Scrabble

  • Creative - Sewing Bee

  • Academic - interview skills, CV writing

  • Academic - Journalism

  • Academic - maths clinic

  • Creative - Upcycling

  • Action - Sport Boxing (offsite at boxing gym)

  • Creative - Knitting

  • Action - Skiing at local dry ski slope


After school activities are plentiful and free of charge to all pupils. Please see ‘extended day’ for a sample list of clubs.