KS3 English

Year 7

“Exploration of Self”

Year 7 is all centred around ‘Exploration of Self’. We want Year 7 students to embrace their creativity and enhance their critical ability in our subject whilst building on their primary experience.

As students embark upon their secondary English Literature education, they are given the chance to experience challenging and thought-provoking texts from the literary canon.

Our carefully-constructed curriculum enables our students to build upon:

1. Speaking and listening skills. Children are encouraged to make plenty of contributions in lessons, to listen carefully to the ideas of others, and to critically reflect upon contributions.
2. Reading skills. Children are encouraged to read a range of challenging fiction and non-fiction in class, and supplement this with reading for pleasure at home.
3. Research skills. Children are taught to use the Independent Learning Centre, and to find fiction and non-fiction books of their choice.
4. Enquiry and inference skills.  Children develop their ability to locate, summarise and clarify information when reading. They are taught to self-regulate and monitor reading the way an expert reader would.
5. Writing skills. Children become competent in using language for deliberate effect to interest a reader. They learn to critically evaluate, proof-read, and redraft their work, using style models as inspiration.

Underpinning all learning is a supportive Literacy programme encompassing:

• • Guided Reading and Reciprocal Reading Techniques (in weekly reading lessons)
  • Technical and general academic vocabulary (in ambitious word lists attached to each unit of work)
  • Spelling, punctuation and grammar (embedded within our core units)

Term 1	Term 2	Term 3
Greek Myths & Legends Narrative writing inspired by Greek Myths. Students will learn about the oral tradition of storytelling, and will read challenging extracts as style models to support greater maturity and authenticity in writing.   ‘The House with the Chicken Legs’ A novel study. Young adult, modern prose inspired by Slavic folklore.	‘The House with the Chicken Legs’ A novel study. Young adult, modern prose inspired by Slavic folklore.   Female Pioneers Speech writing and powerful rhetoric, studied through diverse female voices.	Identity Poetry Understanding culture and identity. Students will become proficient in identifying and analysing poetic devices in verse.   Shakespeare’s Villains An extract-based insight into the many villains created by William Shakespeare and the typical archetypes of his writing.

Year 8

“The Human Condition”

In Year 8, ‘Exploration of Self’ progresses into ‘The Human Condition’ more explicitly. While some of this critical idea will have been thematically introduced via identity poetry, this powerful transition allows for students to develop and mature their views on what it means to be human through a range of contemporary and historical contexts.

Year 8 is an important year in pupils’ development as English students as they move away from Year 7 and towards KS4. In the Year 8 curriculum, we ask pupils:

• to think about what a writer is trying to suggest or create whenever they read a text, and to make thoughtful choices about how they can engage their reader whenever they write something;
• to have an eagerness to think for themselves and to ask interesting questions about the skills they learn and the texts they study;
• to think about the language they use and where it comes from and to appreciate all the different cultural influences around them;
• to take advantage of the literature that surrounds them and to read as widely as possible;
• to be more responsible for, and leading, their own learning than when they entered the school in Year 7;
• to involve themselves in lessons so that they have the best possible chance of enjoying and achieving in English.

Our units are designed to encourage pupils to consider a range of reading, writing, and speaking and listening strategies shaped to affect the reader in a variety of ways.  These are all skills that will be assessed at GCSE and so are vitally important at this early stage.

Once again, underpinning all learning is a supportive Literacy programme encompassing:

• Guided Reading and Reciprocal Reading Techniques (in weekly reading lessons)
• Technical and general academic vocabulary (in ambitious word lists attached to each unit of work)
• Spelling, punctuation and grammar (embedded within our core units)

Term 1	Term 2	Term 3
Dystopian Creative Writing Students will explore the Science Fiction Genre through looking at a range of dystopian worlds via challenging style models of great fiction. They will extend their awareness of text structure, building up a whole narrative in writing, encompassing exposition, rising action, climax and resolution.   ‘Romeo & Juliet’ by William Shakespeare Students will study the contemporary themes of one of Shakespeare’s best known plays including the complexities of gender and relationships.	Tainted Love Students will extend their knowledge of poetry into the theme of relationships and their complexity, relating knowledge of these critical concepts to analysis of poetic verse.   The 21st Century Teenager Students will extend their knowledge of rhetoric moving from speeches to other kinds of transactional writing. Inspired by the 21st Century issues affecting modern teenagers, they will explore and hone their own journalistic voice.	To Kill a Mockingbird Pupils will study extracts from To Kill a Mockingbird alongside social and historical context of the 1930s America. They will explore Lee’ language choices and how racism of the time impacted her writing.

Year 9

“The Devolution of Man”

As we progress into Year 9, students begin to explore the devolution of man as a thematic concept in literature and society, with clear links to their earlier study of conflict and the human condition. Students continue to deepen their understanding of literary traditions and genres.

This year sees the study of modern literature in the form of William Golding’s Lord of the Flies, which students will enjoy and explore through literary analysis. Students will also have the opportunity to engage in linguistic analysis and construction of appropriately challenging and mature non-fiction texts. They will continue to explore the construction of the monster throughout the literary timeline, and will use this thematic topic for further creative opportunities too before progressing into how Shakespeare uses this trope to construct the character of Caliban in the Tempest. Their KS3 journey will conclude with an analysis of modern day and historical conflicts, as presented via poetry comparison.

In the Year 9 curriculum, we ask pupils to:

• think about what a writer is trying to suggest or create whenever they read a text, and to make thoughtful choices about how they can engage their reader whenever they write something;
• have an eagerness to think for themselves and to ask interesting questions about the skills they learn and the texts they study;
• consider the language they use and where it comes from, and to appreciate all the different cultural influences around them;
• immerse themselves in the literature that surrounds them, and read as widely as possible;
• be more responsible for their own learning and create positive study habits for GCSE;
• involve themselves in lessons so that they have the best possible chance of enjoying and achieving in English.

Term 1	Term 2	Term 3
‘Lord of the Flies; by William Golding Students will examine the social and historical context surrounding Golding’s novel, and the writers’ choices as a result of these factors. Students will explore how Golding’s writing shows the flaws in the human condition.   True Crime Non-Fiction An extension of students’ reading and writing skills exploring the theme of modern and historical crime.	The Art of the Monster Students will explore via extracts of 19th, 20th & 21st Century literature how monsters are created and represented within narratives across the literary canon.   ‘The Tempest’ by William Shakespeare A further exploration of William Shakespeare’s verse will examine the historical context of the text and how the characters represent typical beliefs in the period.	‘The Tempest’ by William Shakespeare A further exploration of William Shakespeare’s verse will examine the historical context of the text and how the characters represent typical beliefs in the period.   Impact of Conflict Comparative poetry analysis based on an anthology of thematic poetry.

Homework

Home learning is set weekly for each year group. Typically, home learning will rely on students revising sections of their knowledge organiser/vocabulary list as directed by their teacher, which they will then be quizzed on during lessons.

This isn’t an exhaustive procedure, and teachers will supplement their classes independent learning with other appropriate tasks accordingly.

Assessment: Classroom assessments During Key Stage 3, students will sit regular, class-based ‘FAR’ (Feedback, Action, Response) assessments in English. These will assess a variety of skills including analysis of language and text structure, evaluative writing, identifying explicit information and creating a range of fiction and non-fiction texts. Reading assessments Examples of the types of reading questions students will answer are: How has the writer used setting to create mystery? How is the character of _________ presented in the extract? How does the writer present the theme of _________? Writing assessments Examples of the types of writing questions students will answer: Students will be given an image or brief as a prompt and asked to write a description or a narrative linked to the image. They may also be asked to write a modern recreation or subversion of something they have read in class. Students will be asked to write in a range of non-fiction genres such as a speech or an article based on stimulus Internal Examinations Internal examinations in English will be taken in the January and May of Year 7, 8 and 9. In the examinations, pupils will be tested on both reading and writing skills, and specific advice and guidance will be published in the lead up to exams in accordance with students’ lesson coverage. There are a number of excellent Key Stage 3 revision and workbooks available from all good retailers. The English Department recommends: CGP KS3 English Study Guide ISBN: 978 1 84762 257 0 Reading and Understanding at Key Stage 3 English: Levels 4-7 ISBN-13: 978-0993273506 CGP Key Stage 3 English the Workbook ISBN-13: 978-1847621542