English

Aim

Encourage a passion for reading and writing creatively
Introduce and develop key skills
Prepare students for GCSE style exams
Introduce students to a variety of texts
Develop students’ understanding of the authors’ methods

Topics covered

In each year, students will:

Study a modern text
Study a Shakespeare play
Examine 19th Century fiction and non-fiction
Study poetry
Develop their writing skills
Examine unseen texts
Write and deliver presentations to the class (spoken language)

Here is a list of some of the texts that we study each year. Texts are selected by the class teacher:

Groosham Grange Anthony Horowitz
Cirque du Freak Darren Shan
Clockwork Philip Pullman
A Midsummer Night’s Dream William Shakespeare
Brother in the Land Robert Swindells

Teaching groups

Students are taught in their form groups. If necessary, the students are then placed into mixed ability groups, with a smaller group being created for those who need extra support.

Assessment

All students are given an initial test when they begin Year 7. We use these tests to identify any gaps in their knowledge. It also allows us to see whether or not a student needs extra support. Students complete assessments at the end of each half-term. These are based on the new GCSE exams. All students are given a Paper 1 style exam at the end of the year. This is based on the GCSE paper in which they read a piece of unseen fiction. They then have four reading questions, followed by a writing task.