Curriculum Area and Curriculum Lead(s)

English Department

Mrs A Hughes (Head of English)

Curriculum Area vision and general information about the CA e.g. successes and strengths

Key Stage 3

Each academic year provides the opportunity for the study of both fiction and non-fiction units. Skills introduced at KS1 and KS2 are revisited and built upon in KS3, with a focus on retrieval and development due to the increase in challenge.

All students start the year with a novel: My Sister Lives on the Mantelpiece (Year 7); Of Mice and Men (Year 8); Noughts and Crosses (Year 9). The intention, having gifted each student with their own copy of the book, is to encourage a love of reading. The texts themselves have challenging and thought-provoking contents and themes.

In Year 7, units focus on the skills of identifying and interpreting explicit and implicit information, as well as analysing how writers use language to achieve effects. In addition to these assessed reading skills, students are expected to write with accuracy and for different audiences and purposes, adapting their language and structure to suit the task.

In Year 8, we continue to develop the Year 7 skills, challenging students to select and synthesise evidence from different texts. This then leads on to the practice of comparing writers’ ideas and perspectives (which is further developed at KS4 when students are required to compare how these ideas are presented in two texts).

In Year 9, we build on these skills (analysis and comparison being revisited) by introducing evaluation, a key skill for GCSE. Extended writing and the need to write with accuracy, coherence and impact is a requirement in Years 8 and 9 also.
 

Key Stage 4: GCSE

Students will work towards GCSEs in both Language and Literature. Although they focus primarily on Literature preparation in Year 10, the skills assessed for each subject are transferable.

Students will build upon the elements practised in Key Stage 3, firstly completing the study of the poetry anthology and combining this with the skills required to respond to unseen poetry. Year 10 will also read A Christmas Carol, Blood Brothers and Romeo and Juliet. The focus will be to read critically, interpret, analyse and – for the poetry – compare.

In Year 11, students combine preparation for their Language GCSE with revision for Literature. For Paper 1 (19th century fiction and imaginative writing) they will study and analyse selections from a range of prose fiction, as well as exploring and developing more creative writing. For Paper 2, the focus is on non-fiction texts and transactional writing.  Students will also be supported in the preparation for the spoken language element of the GCSE.

KS3 & KS4 provision summary e.g. topics covered, links to SOW/overviews and homework

See documents below

KS5 provision if relevant

Staff

Mrs A Hughes - Head of English: ACHughes@theherefordacademy.org.uk

Mrs D Prosser: DProsser@theherefordacademy.org.uk

Mr J Stacey:  JStacey@Theherefordacademy.org.uk

Mr A Davis: ADavis@Theherefordacademy.org.uk

Miss P Hicklin: PHicklin@theherefordacademy.org.uk

Miss K Chambers: KChambers@theherefordacademy.org.uk

Extra-curricular activities

Exam information and any revision support

English Language: Edexcel

English Literature: Edexcel