skip to main content
NEW! Tongue Fu Talking - A fully-resourced Oracy Framework

The Essentials Curriculum

This short course is for schools who use, or are considering using, our Essentials Curriculum and need a refresher on its key principles.

chris_cutout
Created and Led by
Chris Quigley
Duration
Typical study time 2 - 4 hours
Target Audience
Head Teachers, Teachers, Senior Leaders, Curriculum Leaders, Subject Leaders, Senior & Middle Leaders

Overview:

Designed for schools who use, or are considering using, our Essentials Curriculum and need a refresher on its key principles.

Many schools had input when they first embarked on the Essentials journey.  Since then staff changes and, of course, new requirements from Ofsted mean that a refresher would be valuable CPD.

  • Introduction or refresher into The Essentials Curriculum
  • Plan for End Points
  • Suggestions on how to use Essentials to plan your school curriculum

Learn about:

  • The key principles that are the foundations of  The Essentials Curriculum
  • The curriculum’s structure, including progression through the Milestones
  • How The Essentials Curriculum may be used to establish breadth, depth and retention of learning
  • New materials we have produced to support you in reaching the goals within The Essentials Curriculum.

Why this course is relevant or important:

  • It is vital that schools know how to plan end-points in their curriculum
  • It is also vital that schools differentiate between end-points and the specific knowledge needed to reach them.

Take away:

  • A clear understanding of the principles of The Essentials Curriculum
  • Practical ways to use it to develop your school curriculum.

Booking Options

1-5 users
£150
6-20 users
£300
21-50 users
£450
51-100 users
£600
100+ users
Enquire

The prices above are the total amount you will pay for your group plus VAT.

Just select Pay by Invoice and enter the required information.

You have 30 days to pay your invoice.

If your selected date to access the course is prior to 30 days we will still grant you access to the course and your invoice is payable in line with our Terms and Conditions.

If you have selected 1-5 delegates, for example, but you only enter the details of 2 of the delegates now, you will have the option to add additional delegates via your CQE account up until 48 hours prior to your requested course start date.

Pay by Invoice
Evidence Informed
Evidence Informed
All our courses are based on peer-reviewed research.
Practical and inspiring
Practical and inspiring
We bridge the gap between evidence and practice.
Versatile environments
Versatile environments
We offer a choice between on-demand and live courses.

Great feedback from Ofsted for one of the schools we work with. The school also uses our Essentials Curriculum:

The school has established a well-designed, broad and ambitious curriculum. It
clearly sets out and sequences the important information that pupils need to know
in all subjects from the early years to Year 6. This helps pupils to build on what they
already know. Ofsted School Report November 2023

Thank you for all your support in helping me get our curriculum off the ground.  Couldn't have done it without Chris Quigley Associates. The curriculum comments are about the Essentials Curriculum. 

 

Ellie Rowe, Headteacher
The Grove Primary School, Cambridge
View all Testimonials
Related Courses
You might also be interested in...
Dual Coding in the Primary Classroom
In this session, Chris will explore Paivio’s Dual Coding Theory and how it can be used to make learning stick.
Course details
Judging the Quality of Education Through Lesson Observations
A video course exploring 12 principles of effective teaching and 30 areas of focus to choose from for lesson observations.
Course details
Greater Depth in Science
This course will help science leaders to review the intent and implementation of their science curriculum.
Course details

Latest from the Blog

All Articles
Top 10 Classroom Talk Strategies to Develop Oracy Skills with Tongue Fu Talking®
Top 10 Classroom Talk Strategies to Develop Oracy Skills with Tongue Fu Talking®
30th Jul 2025
This article explores 10 classroom talk strategies from Tongue Fu Talking® that build oracy through structured, purposeful dialogue. It explains how approaches like Because, So, But, Connect-It, and Curriculum-Based Debates help students develop reasoning, metacognition, and confident expression, moving beyond superficial talk to meaningful learning across the curriculum.
Curriculum Based Debates: A powerful Classroom Talk Strategy
Curriculum Based Debates: A powerful Classroom Talk Strategy
28th Jul 2025
Curriculum-based debates are a powerful classroom talk strategy, as they require both deep thinking and articulate expression. Within Tongue Fu Talking™, Chris Quigley's Oracy Framework, debates are built around two modes of talk: Explorer Mode–Talk for reasoning, discovery, and collaborative thinking, and Presenter Mode–Talk for structured, confident communication with an audience. These modes ensure that debates are not about winning arguments but about learning through talk, linking oracy directly to disciplinary knowledge and metacognitive strategies. Here, we show how our 480 curriculum-based debates across our four belt levels build both oracy and subject understanding.
Oracy Is Not a Subject, but Every Subject Requires It
Oracy Is Not a Subject, but Every Subject Requires It
21st Jul 2025
This blog explores why a clear oracy framework is essential for learning across all subjects. It explains how classroom talk strategies, such as Because, But, So and Seeking Clues, build both communication skills and disciplinary knowledge in science, geography, and history. The article introduces Tongue Fu Talking™, a structured approach with two strands—Explorer Mode for reasoning and Presenter Mode for confident communication—designed to embed purposeful talk from EYFS to KS3.
Tongue Fu Brand Mark