Developing a lifelong love of Language and Literature is at the core of what we are trying to achieve in the English Department at Bishop Perowne. Our curriculum is designed by practitioners with a passion for all aspects of English and reading in order to inspire a love of reading, evoke curiosity, and allow students ample opportunities to enhance their written and spoken communication.
Year 7
In year 7, students are introduced to a range of text types based around the theme of Relationships. Students begin to examine how texts are constructed and develop their own personal opinions about contemporary and traditional texts, plays and poems. We also ensure that students are given opportunities to emulate creative writing styles through our schemes of learning. Year 7 students are encourage to develop their reading through a mixture of whole class guided reading and independent reading, with an enrichment trip to the Hive library in the Autumn term.
Year 8
The year 8 curriculum encompasses the theme of Society and the World around us. Beginning with a dystopian novel, students build on the analytical knowledge they are introduced to in Year 7 and experiment with different writing styles. Pupils will go to Worcester Cathedral to take part in a creative writing project. As students progress through the year, more opportunities to develop their oracy skills are introduced to explore how the spoken word is a highly powerful tool for evoking change in society. Our reading programme continues with pupils exposed to a variety of challenging classic and modern classic novels.
Year 9
Year 9 students explore the theme of Conflict through a range of mediums, such as Wilfred Owen’s poetry, a selection of 19th- 21st century non-fiction texts and an introduction to Shakespeare’s Macbeth. Full texts and extracts are used to further boost students’ literacy, written skills, and analytical thought as well as providing opportunities for students to orally present their own viewpoints and creative writing, including through a poetry workshop with renowned poet, Spoz.
Year 10
The GCSE course begins at the start of year 10 and students begin to study the topics required for the AQA English Language and AQA English Literature GCSE courses, with a focus on GCSE level skills. At the beginning of the year, there is an emphasis on how writers use literature as a platform for change. Within this scheme of learning, we continue to revisit the foundations of English to ensure that literacy, written and oral communication remain a high priority. In the Summer term, the focus shifts to English Language Paper 1, where students can utilise these skills to examine a range of fictional texts and select a topic of choice for an individual presentation. Pupils will have an opportunity to see Macbeth performed live, in order to support their knowledge and understanding of the play as a construct.
Year 11
In year 11, students study the final aspects of their GCSE course: Language Paper 2 examines writers’ viewpoints and perspectives and Dickens’ A Christmas Carol is our chosen 19th century text. As both courses are 100% exam assessed, the remainder of the academic year allows staff to revisit units from Year 10 and develop students’ confidence under exam conditions.
At the end of Key Stage 4, all students at Bishop Perowne will sit both English Language and English Literature GCSEs. The AQA exam board is used for both qualifications.
English Language consists of two papers, each 1 hour and 45 minutes long. Each paper has a Section A (reading skills) and a Section B (writing skills). Paper 1 is focused on explorations in creative reading and writing and Section A is based on 1 fiction extract. Paper 2 is focused on writers’ viewpoints, and Section A is based on 2 non-fiction extracts.
English Literature consists of two exam papers. Paper 1 Section A (Shakespeare) and Section B (19th Century Novel) each consist of an extract from the text and pupils must answer an essay question that follows using the extract and their knowledge of the wider text. In Paper 2 Section A (modern prose) pupils are given a choice between 2 questions and must choose 1 to answer as an essay. In Section B (the poetry anthology) pupils are given a copy of 1 poem from the anthology and asked to write a comparative essay for that poem and 1 other from the anthology based on theme. In Section C (unseen poetry) pupils must answer 2 questions based on previously unseen poems: an analysis of the first poem, and a comparison between both poems.
Pupils in English are offered a wide range of enrichment and extra-curricular opportunities:
Year 8 pupils will take part in a workshop with renowned poet Esposito ‘Spoz’ Giovanni, where pupils will have the chance to create and perform their own poetry. As with year 7, pupils will write letters or postcards to real people in the hope of receiving a reply.
For pupils in year 9, we have invited a production company to school to perform one of their set texts, Macbeth, followed by a chance for a Q&A session. A partnership with New College Worcester allows us to run a unique braille workshop for a selection of year 9 pupils.
Year 10 students will also enjoy a theatre production of An Inspector Calls each year, as well as plentiful opportunities to particpate in creative writing competitions – some students have even had their work published!
Finally, Year 11 students enjoy a festive performance of one of their GCSE texts, A Christmas Carol.
Further extra-curricular opportunities in English can be enjoyed by all pupils, including our popular book club run by Mrs Long, ‘Starbooks’. All pupils are encouraged to participate in special World Book Day events and competitions each year, and our Reading Quad is open every break and lunch during dry weather.
| Description | Type |
|---|---|
| English Language: Exam Board (AQA) Resources | External Link |
| English Literature: Exam Board (AQA) Resources | External Link |
| English: School Revision Guide | School PDF Document |
