Subject Vision

English is a core subject taught to all students from years 7-11. We also have an excellent take up of the subject at A level.

We teach all students, right across the year groups, in mixed ability groupings

Through our ambitious English curriculum, we strive to cultivate a comprehensive and dynamic learning environment that empowers students to become skilled and passionate communicators, critical thinkers, and lifelong learners. We aim to foster a love for language, literature, and literacy while equipping students with the necessary skills to succeed academically, professionally, and personally.

We strive to do this through:

• Excellence in Language and Literacy
• Cultivating Critical Thinking
• Promoting Cultural Understanding 
• Creating Lifelong Readers

 

What resources are available to support learning?

A variety of materials are available in lessons and online. Each student is given access to our carefully curated SharePoint area that is stocked with extra resources to support learning outside of the classroom. Homework is delivered via structured homework booklets  that support the retrieval of key knowledge and allow students to further their understanding of topics studied within the classroom.

 

Key Stage 3 Curriculum Overview

	Year 7	Year 8	Year 9
Aut.1	My Voice – Our World	Dystopian Fiction- The Hunger Games	The Modern Novel- Of Mice and Men
Aut.2	The origins of story telling- myths and legends.	Dystopian Fiction- The Hunger Games	The Modern Novel- Of Mice and Men
Spr.1	Modern Novel Study – The Bone Sparrow	The Tempest	Outsiders in the Gothic
Spr.2	Modern Novel Study – The Bone Sparrow	Norse Mythology	The power of language – Rhetoric
Sum.1	Narrative poetry	The Gothic	Conflict in ‘Romeo and Juliet’
Sum.2	Stories from the stage. Voices in Shakespeare.	Powerful Voices	Protest poetry

 

Where does this subject lead me?

KS4 English

The core knowledge gathered across KS3 study in English is fundamental preparation for the GCSE English Language and GCSE English Literature courses that students will go on to study in KS4. All students study both English Language and Literature at GCSE.  Students are taught in mixed ability groupings with plenty of opportunity for all students to have access to challenging and ambitious material.  For more information, please see our Key Stage 4 section below.

Sixth Forms, colleges and employers require either a grade 4 or 5 or above in English and we are tenacious in our commitment to help our students acquire the grades they need in English for the next steps in their future.

Having confident English knowledge and an ability to write in a range of contexts, is a fundamental skill for all subject areas.

 

Key Stage 4 Curriculum Overview

	Year 10	Year 11
Aut.1	Modern Play - An Inspector Calls	Language Paper 2 Literature- Poetry anthology – Power of Man cluster
Aut.2	19th Century novel - Jekyll and Hyde	Language: Paper 1 revision Literature: Poetry Anthology and Macbeth revision
Spr.1	Shakespeare play - Macbeth	Language: Paper 1 & 2 reading revision   Literature: Revision of ‘Jekyll and Hyde and ‘An Inspector Calls’
Spr.2	Shakespeare play - Macbeth	Language: Revision of writing for paper 1 and 2.   Literature: Revision of poetry and ‘Jekyll and Hyde’
Sum.1	Introduction to Language Paper 1 and Anthology Poetry	Revision
Sum.2	GCSE speaking and listening NEA	Language Paper 2 Literature- Poetry anthology – Power of Man cluster

 

How is it assessed?

All students will be entered for both GCSE English Literature and Language qualifications. Students will sit two papers for each English discipline and complete a speaking and listening non exam assessment as part of the GCSE English language course. The exam board we use for both GCSE English Language and English Literature is AQA.

There is no written coursework in English.

Where does this subject lead me?

Many students go on to study English Language and English Literature at A Level and beyond at university. English is a is a highly respected qualification that demonstrates the ability to think critically, be skilled communicators and explore the impact of history and culture on important works of Literature.

For more information on our A level English options, please see our Key Stage 5 section below, which contains information on:

• A level English Language
• A level English Literature

 

Key Stage 5 Curriculum Overview

English Language

	Year 12	Year 13
Aut.1	Language and Gender   Language and Accent/Dialect	Language Change   Language Acquisition
Aut.2	Meanings and Representations   Language and Occupation	Language Change and Technology   Language Acquisition and World Englishes
Spr.1	Meanings and Representations   Language and Occupation	Meanings and Representations   PPE Revision   Coursework
Spr.2	Coursework (Language in Action)	Revision of key texts; Completion of NEA
Sum.1	PPEs and Coursework (Language in Action)	Revision of key texts; Completion of NEA
Sum.2	Coursework (Investigation)

 

English Literature

	Year 12	Year 13
Aut.1	Love through the Ages   Othello and The Great Gatsby	Texts in shared contexts   A Streetcar named Desire   The Color Purple
Aut.2	Love through the Ages   Othello and The Great Gatsby	Texts in shared contexts   A Streetcar named Desire   The Color Purple
Spr.1	Unseen Poetry (Modernism and Post-modernism)   Pre-1900 Poetry Anthology	Texts in shared contexts   Feminine Gospels   Unseen Prose
Spr.2	Begin NEA core taught text Dracula	Texts in shared contexts   Feminine Gospels   Revision of Yr 12 texts
Sum.1	NEA taught text: Dracula	Revision
Sum.2	NEA independent guided research

 

Where does this subject lead me?

Studying English Language at A Level grants skills in analysing texts, data collection with analysis, and the ability to look at the cultural and historical impact on how language was formed. The course prepares you to engage with a variety of further education

English Language is 80% exam and 10% coursework.

English Literature 80% exam and 10% coursework.

Careers Information

English Language

Our students move into a range of professions such as: forensic linguistics, translation, law, STEM, journalism, linguistics, criminology, media, speech therapy, advertising and many more.

 

English Literature

Students often take their studies further, by studying Literature at University. Furthermore, they also take the next steps into: journalism, writing, history, publishing, education and many more.

Other Information

Students get access to online critical journals for both English Literature and English Language, as well as an invite to a Book Club that broadens their horizons of literary fiction.

Past trips in Literature have been to The Globe Theatre.