English
In English, students in both key stages are provided with stimulating and challenging lessons that are designed to enhance and develop their reading, writing and speaking and listening abilities. They are offered opportunities to work both independently and within group situations.
We aim to enable students to improve their ability to analyse, discuss and explore a variety of texts, whilst also helping them to develop lifelong skills which will allow them to communicate and interact with the world around them.
'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
Key Stage 3
Year 7
Students study:
- An introduction to Shakespeare
- A play version of Dickens’s ‘A Christmas Carol’
- Science Fiction and Non-fiction texts
- Travel Writing
- Poetry based around the theme of growing up
- A novel based around the theme of growing up
- Adapting writing to suit a range of audiences, purposes, and genres
Students will focus on exploring the writer’s craft whilst also developing their own creative and discursive writing.
Year 8
Students study:
- Shakespeare’s ‘Romeo and Juliet’
- A range of poetry based around the theme of conflict
- ‘The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas’ by John Boyne
- Science Fiction and Non-fiction texts
- A range of non-fiction texts exploring the influence of young people on the world
- Adapting writing to suit a range of audiences, purposes, and genres
Students will build upon the skills they developed in Year 7, enhancing their understanding of literary techniques and expanding their range of writing styles.
Year 9
Students study:
- Shakespeare’s ‘The Tempest’
- Introduction to Gothic Literature
- Science Fiction and Non-fiction texts
- Poetry based on the theme of culture and identity
- A novel based on the theme of coming of age
- A range of non-fiction texts based around the theme of positive protest
- Adapting writing to suit a range of audiences, purposes, and genres
- Spoken Language Study
Students will again build upon the analytical and writing skills they developed in previous years whilst also being introduced to some of the themes, texts and writing styles that they will be studying at GCSE.
Key Stage 4
Years 10 & 11
Students follow the AQA syllabus for GCSE English Language and GCSE English Literature. The Literature course involves the study of a Shakespeare play, a 19th Century novel, a modern text and a collection of poetry. In English Language, students explore a range of fiction and non-fiction texts as well as developing their own capacity to write for a variety of different purposes and audiences.
Over the two years, students study:
- Shakespeare’s ‘Macbeth’
- ‘Jekyll and Hyde’ by R L Stevenson
- ‘An Inspector Calls’ by J B Priestley
- Poetry cluster based on the theme of ‘Love and Relationships’
- Unseen poetry
- Writers’ techniques in both fiction and non-fiction
- A range of writing styles to suit form, audience and purpose.
A good example of English work has been added to the download section below:
