Character Curriculum

The Haberdashers' Advantage Character Curriculum  

Pupils at Haberdashers' Knights Primary will experience a Character Education curriculum from Early Years to Year 6 that will give them an advantage in life. The Haberdashers’ Advantage intentionally plans opportunities for character education to be taught, caught, and sought in our school. 

At Haberdashers’ Knights Primary, character education is integral to our work in ensuring pupils develop into well-educated and well-rounded citizens who can confidently take their place in the world.

What is character education?

Character Education refers to activities that help pupils develop positive personal traits called virtues or values.  These help pupils succeed in school and set them up for success in later life and employment. 

The four core dimensions of character are recognised as:

• Intellectual values - character traits necessary for discernment, right action and the pursuit of knowledge, truth and understanding 
• Moral values - character traits that enable us to act well in situations that require an ethical response 
• Civic values - character traits that are necessary for engaged responsible citizenship, contributing to the common good 
• Performance values - character traits that have a instrumental value in enabling the intellectual, moral and civic values 

How do we teach character education?

Character education at Knights Primary is planned through our taught curriculum and hidden curriculum.  That means through the lessons we teach across all subjects and in the wider opportunities offered beyond lessons and the classroom.  Character can be caught, taught and sought. 

Taught because pupils need to learn directly about character strengths and virtues and to be given opportunities to practise them.  Caught because pupils need to be exposed to the concepts and language of character throughout their school experience.  Sought by providing opportunities for pupils to seek out and pursue their own character development.

We passionately believe that education for character through the Haberdashers’ Advantage develops resilient, engaged and ambitious young people who have the skills to enable them to excel throughout their time at Haberdashers’ and beyond. Our pupils are proud of themselves and proud to be Haberdashers’.