English
Curriculum Intent
We study English to create, embed and develop a love of English Language and Literature through an appreciation of the importance of English in everyday life. We aim for students to understand the power of words, texts and spoken English in order to make sense of the world they live in. We use this to explore key identities of identity, eras and places. The key stage 3 journey is sequenced in such a way that these themes are explored systematically and logically. We simultaneously look to:
- deepen an experience of the greatest literary texts and the best that has been written, thought and said, so that students have rich cultural capital
- deepen what they know about these texts and about readerly, writerly and speaking / listening skills
- deepen what they can do (as speakers, listeners, readers and writers) as a result of this new and deeper knowledge
We embed a culture of interdependent and independent oracy to help learners to express themselves, communicate and articulate themselves formally and to create a culture that helps young people thrive and aspire beyond their school years, regardless of their route through life.
We explore a wide range of topics and events (in a holistic, sensitive way) from both past and present, to encourage learners to empathise with others and grow from the mistakes that have been made in the past. We appraise social class across a range of eras and their impacts; evaluate how societies have changed across time and discuss the way that literature has acted to ease troubles, both personally and on a greater scale. Through this, the Grace values are used to build learners who have a moral compass which cements the foundations to become a considerate citizen.
We scaffold and evolve skills each year so that every learner can build their skillset to be in a position to contribute to society and grow as a person. Knowledge is embedded to allow students to formulate their own ideas; mastery and retrieval are built into the curriculum to allow learners to apply their skills and foster a resilience that matures beyond adolescence.
We critically scrutinise some of the greatest literary minds (past and present) and their plays, stories, poems and novels to write about the impacts that literature has had on the world. This base is the soil from which learners build deep roots in English before flourishing and achieving their potential, both academically and as people in society.
Qualification information:
GCSE: https://www.aqa.org.uk/subjects/english
A Level: https://www.aqa.org.uk/subjects/english/as-and-a-level/english-literature-a-7711-7712
Curriculum content:
Attached are the curriculum maps which outline the sequence we use in order to structure our learning. If you would like to support your child's learning, we have attached links to Oak National Academy who provide lessons, activities and resources for commonly taught topics. Please use the curriculum map for this subject before visiting:
https://teachers.thenational.academy/subjects/english/key-stages/key-stage-3
https://teachers.thenational.academy/subjects/english/key-stages/key-stage-4