The Implementation- How we teach what we teach

Jigsaw, the mindful approach to PSHE, brings together Personal, Social, Health Education, emotional literacy, social skills and spiritual development in a comprehensive scheme of learning. At New Close the children take part in one Jigsaw lesson a week. Teachers focus on tailoring the lessons to their children’s needs and to enjoy building the relationship with their class, getting to know them better as unique human beings. Teaching strategies are varied and are mindful of preferred learning styles and the need for differentiation. Jigsaw is designed as a whole school approach, with all year groups working on the same theme (Puzzle) at the same time. This enables each Puzzle to start with an introductory assembly, generating a whole school focus for adults and children alike.
 
In Jigsaw, mindfulness is developed in 3 main ways:
a) through the ‘Calm Me’ time in each Piece (lesson). This consists of breathing techniques, awareness exercises and visualisations, enabling children not to empty their minds but to quiet them and become aware of the activity within them and manage it positively
b) through the taught curriculum. Lessons (Pieces) help children to explore their thoughts and feelings, to expand their emotional vocabulary, explore thoughts-feelings-consequence sequences, build their confidence and express themselves in a safe environment.
c) through the ‘Pause Points’ in lessons (Pieces) which ask children to ‘Stop and look inside’ to practise observing their thoughts and feelings relating to what they are learning about in that lesson. Jigsaw Jerrie Cat is introduced in the first Puzzle (Being Me in My World) through 2 whole-school assemblies and acts as the trigger for PAUSE
 
There are six Puzzles in Jigsaw that are designed to progress in sequence from the start of each academic year:
Term 1: Being Me in My World
Term 2: Celebrating Difference (including anti-bullying)
Term 3: Dreams and Goals
Term 4: Healthy Me
Term 5: Relationships
Term 6: Changing Me (including Sex Education)
 
Each Piece has two Learning Intentions: one is based on specific PSHE learning (purple) and one is based on emotional literacy and social skills development (green). The whole school works on the same Puzzle at the same time, meaning that each Puzzle can be launched with a whole-school assembly and learning can be celebrated by the whole school in a meaningful way.