English Key Stage 3

KS3 students (year 7, 8 and 9) follow schemes of learning based around the English National Curriculum framework and the requirements of GCSE study in Years 10 and 11. Activities that promote key literacy skills have been built into the schemes and our students study increasingly demanding texts including GCSE level texts from Year 8 onwards, although these texts are taught at an appropriate level to suit students’ ability.

Reading, writing, speaking and listening are covered each term. Students are taught in sets and the level of work covered will depend on prior attainment.

Year 7 Curriculum Overview	Topic	Content and skills
HT1	‘Here’s what I think’	Students will be able to explore the theme of school using a variety of resources that are current in order to build a strong opinion towards it. They will be able to use their argumentative skills to write transactional pieces as well as debate on a chosen topic. The skill of inference will be a heavy focus in this topic in order to build a concrete foundation towards language analysis.
HT2	The Taming of the Shrew	Students will explore the social and historical context of this Shakespeare play and analyse how Shakespeare presents key themes and characters and uses language to impact his audience.
HT3	Holidays	Students will explore a variety of travel writing excerpts, analysing how writers use language, structure and form to put across their ideas, before they create their own piece of travel writing.
HT4	Newspapers	Students will explore a variety of newspaper writing excerpts, analysing how writers use language, structure and form to put across their ideas, before they create their own piece of newspaper writing.
HT5	Non-fiction	Students will explore a variety of articles based on different topics. They will identify and analyse the language and structural choices writers make to craft a newspaper article to prepare them for writing their own article. They will practice and consolidate a range of writing skills including varying sentence structures, using a variety of punctuation and using a range of language and structural devices to position the reader in their own writing.
HT6	Dickens	Students will explore the social and historical context of the Victorian period, they will meet some of Dickens’ best love characters and analyse how the famous author used language to appeal to Victorian readers.

Year 8 Curriculum Overview	Topic	Content and skills
HT1	Strange and Unusual	Students will explore a range of fiction and non-fiction texts on the intriguing theme of the ‘Strange and Unusual’ to equip them with the reading skills needed for GCSE English Language before completing their own piece of creative writing on the unusual creations of their imaginations.
HT2	Blood Brothers	Students will explore the social and historical context of this play and analyse how Willy Russell presents key themes and characters and uses language to impact his audience. Students will also get the opportunity to use drama and role play to portray characters and think about their deeper responses.
HT3	War Poetry	Students will explore the social and historical context of WW1 and how poetry was used to influence people at the time, from Propaganda to the works of Owen and Sassoon students will analyse a variety of poetic structures and forms and analyse how war poetry helped to change people’s minds about the great war. Students will also complete a Poetry Performance, memorising a short poem and performing it to the class using drama and role play.
HT4	Crime Writing	Students will explore a variety of writing styles based on the theme of crime, analysing how writers use language, structure and form to put across their ideas, before they create their own piece of writing around this theme.
HT5	Macbeth	Students will explore the social and historical context of this Shakespeare play and analyse how Shakespeare presents key themes and characters and uses language to impact his audience.
HT6	London	Using our beloved capital city, London, students will use this springboard to enhance their reading and writing skills through comparing texts on events from past to present that have taken place in London to writing to argue on a controversial topic.

Year 9 Curriculum Overview	Themes	Unit content
HT1	GCSE English Language Paper 1 Section A- reading and analysing fiction texts	Students will analyse 20th century fiction texts developing understanding of how language and structure are used for impact and evaluating the how successful writers are in communicating their ideas. Students will be focusing on the theme of adventure and will be exposed to thoughtful and creative texts like Robinson Crusoe to Treasure Island.
HT2	Romeo and Juliet	Students will explore the social and historical context of this Shakespeare play and analyse how Shakespeare presents key themes and characters and uses language to impact his audience. Students will be exposed to this Literature text to ensure they are well prepared and confident with the play for their GCSE Literature exam in year 11.
HT3	GCSE English Language Paper 2 Section A – reading and analysing non-fiction texts	Students will explore a variety of writing styles of non-fiction writers from the 19th, 20th and 21st centuries, analysing how writers use language, structure and form to put across their ideas and comparing and synthesising the texts to equip them with the skills needed for their GCSE exams.
HT4	Poetry Disturbed Voices Students will explore a variety of poetic structures and forms and learn how to approach analysis of poetry from our anthology of ‘disturbed voices’ including work from Carol Ann Duffy, Simon Armitage and Robert Browning.	Students will explore a variety of poetic structures and forms and learn how to approach analysis of poetry from our anthology of ‘disturbed voices’ including work from Carol Ann Duffy, Simon Armitage and Robert Browning.
HT5	GCSE English Language Paper 1 Section B – Writing imaginatively	Students will focus on honing their writer’s voice and their writing craft in a series of lessons that develops students to think like a writer and write like one! Students will be exposed to a variety of different genres to develop their creative writing skills.
HT6	GCSE Spoken Language	Students will explore great speeches of past and present, craft their own speech and perform it to the class as part of the Spoken Language component of GCSE English Language. Pupils will also be focusing on important social and relevant issues in order to form a viewpoint and opinion to help encourage their writer’s tone and voice.