English

'English is both creative and practical. It will enrich your life through your choice of career and in your private life. A good grasp of English language will put you ahead of the rest in your job interviews and applications for university. It will open up doors that enable you to follow your dreams. It will help you to appreciate the world around you, interpret the media, enjoy films, books, comedy references, and to engage in articulate conversation with your peers, enabling you to take advantage of what the world has to offer.'

^{Mrs. S. Holliday, Head of English}

‘English has a pre-eminent place in education and in society. A high-quality education in English will teach pupils to speak and write fluently so that they can communicate their ideas and emotions to others and through their reading and listening, others can communicate with them. Through reading in particular, pupils have a chance to develop culturally, emotionally, intellectually, socially and spiritually. Literature, especially, plays a key role in such development. Reading also enables pupils both to acquire knowledge and to build on what they already know.’ Adapted from National Curriculum, DFE, 2013

At Howden School, in English, we want our students to be curious, empathetic, analytical and opinionated. Our curriculum is designed to be engaging, enriching and empowering and aims to:  

• Equip our students with the reading and writing skills that they need for life
• Develop the habit of reading widely and often, for both pleasure and information
• Develop confidence in oracy by delivering formal presentations and participating in debates and group work
• Develop secure knowledge and understanding of how language works
• Develop transferable skills such as analytical thinking, comparison, inference and constructing an argument
• Inspire students to develop a love and enjoyment of English that motivates them to study it further and to go onto use it in their future career

Key Stage 3 Curriculum

Key Stage 4 Curriculum

(AQA GCSE English Language Literature)

(Vocational Certificate - NCFE)