English

Our English curriculum is rigorous; it delivers a breadth and depth of skills and knowledge, crucial to students achieving well-rounded and sustainable success: culturally, socially and academically. 

In both keystages students acquire knowledge of literature and develop skills which prepares them for life after secondary education. The curriculum enables students to acquire the high standards of written and verbal communication that are crucial to allow success and open doors to the future. Opportunities for students to acquire, revisit and improve these key skills are woven throughout the curriculum.

Our curriculum is balanced; challenging students to evaluate critically, speak confidently, articulate thoughts and listen and communicate successfully, whilst nurturing and fostering students’ love of reading, ensuring they are confident and fluent readers. 

Our curriculum is coherent, the thread of developing reading, writing and communication skills is woven throughout the 5 year curriculum journey. The Language and Literature spheres of the curriculum complement and interweave with each other. Themes and skills are intertwined, ensuring integrated progression of skills and knowledge. For example, themes such as family, relationships and conflict are explored in year 7 in: A Midsummer Night’s Dream, and are revisited again in the modern text: Wild Boy, and then further revisited in key stage 4 through Romeo and Juliet. 

In our curriculum, Language is taught through Literature. Literature is placed at the heart of the curriculum and taught chronologically, allowing students to experience and be exposed to a range of genres, contexts and writers.  The design of the curriculum ensures that, after 5 years of study, students have acquired knowledge of a broad canon of Literature, whilst connecting and interleaving their knowledge from a range of subjects. 

The Literature sphere of the curriculum and the plentiful enrichment opportunities designed within, lifts students out of their daily experience, increases their cultural capital and raises awareness and curiosity of the human condition: from love and loyalty to rage and betrayal and more. These rich experiences may otherwise not be accessible to the near 50% of students who face challenges related to their disadvantaged background. 

Click HERE to find out more about our curriculum rationale.