English

In year 7 pupils are introduced to the fundamental skills required for success in English: reading, writing and oracy. These topics form the foundations on which the next 5 years of English at Grace Academy are built. As a department, we believe that literacy plays a key role in the transition from primary to secondary school and there will be inductions into the library to initiate the culture of ‘reading for pleasure’ that is paramount to the success of students’ success.

Topics covered: Spies (investigative inference unit), Boy in the Striped Pyjamas (modern fiction), Introduction to Shakespeare (The Tempest as a sample text), Magic and mystery (fiction reading and writing), Human Rights poetry, Our Day Out (modern play)

In year 8, students develop the skills that they have acquired in year 7. The complexity of the texts that they read are more challenging which gives students aspirational, but feasible curriculum opportunities to develop thinking skills and literacy skills.

Topics covered: Dystopic fiction (inference and analysis), Macbeth, Childhoods past and present (19^th century fiction), Lord of the Flies (modern text), Holidays (non-fiction reading and writing), Of Mice and Men (modern novel).

In year 9, students begin to study texts endorsed by the GCSE specification: how they cope with these texts give an indication as to the intervention that can be put in place to support the transition to KS4. Students end the year by studying 5 of the poems from the power and conflict anthology for their GCSEs: this helps to prepare students for content retention.

Topics covered: A Christmas Carol (19^th century novel), The world we live in (non fiction extracts), Politics (language paper 2 skills). Blood Brothers (modern play), Animal Farm (language and literature) Power and Conflict poetry (cluster 1 of the anthology).

Year 10 is where students begin to align the skills that they have acquired with content that will be assessed at GCSE level. During this year, students delve deeply into a range of texts that challenge student perceptions and encourage a more critical method of thinking. Throughout the year,  the majority of the content of GCSE Literature is covered, boosted by Language skills and the Speaking and Listening endorsement (where students will be graded as either pass, merit or distinction based on the quality of their oracy and presentation skills).

Topics covered: Jekyll and Hyde (19^th century text) Crime (language paper 2 skills), Romeo and Juliet (Shakespeare play) An Inspector Calls (modern play), Power and Conflict poetry (cluster 2 of the anthology), Speaking and Listening endorsement (language paper 1 skills and language paper 2 writing skills).

By year 11 pupils will have already learnt much of what they will need to know and understand for their GCSE examinations in the summer term. They complete bespoke revision style units whereby misunderstandings and gaps in knowledge can be filled, whilst students are challenged with more advanced critical theories. They will spend time consolidating their learning and further develop their understanding of how to respond to GCSE assessment questions.

Topics covered: Poetry revision, Language Paper 1 & 2 revision and skills, Jekyll and Hyde/ Romeo and Juliet Revision, Bespoke revision.

“A reader lives a thousand lives before he dies . . . The man who never reads lives only one.” – George R.R. Martin

In Year 12 students begin their Historicist approach to Literature, looking at a range of texts that span many important periods in Literary History. We then study a play by Shakespeare and an Anthology of poetry that focuses on either Pre 19^th or Post 19^th Century poetry. Additionally there is the study of a prose text from either the pre 19^th Century text list, or post 19^th Century; recent texts include Atonement by Ian McEwan, and The Great Gatsby by F Scott Fitzgerald.

In Year 13 students study a ‘Texts in Context’ unit. We choose from either: ‘WW1 and its aftermath’ or ‘Literature from 1945 to the present day’, and within this we will study a play, a collection of poetry, and a novel. Recent texts studied include: The Handmaid’s Tale, and A Streetcar Named Desire. For the Coursework component of the A2 Course, students get to choose two texts that they really engage with and enjoy, and will create an academic essay linking a key theme or idea that resonates in both texts.