English Subject Intent:

Our intent is comprised of the following 3 sections:

1. Our vision for the subject/faculty and the purpose it serves for our pupils
2. Defining what the key concepts and core domains of knowledge are, that pupils will learn about
3. The end points our curriculum is working towards

            Our vision

   Aspiration – to help students to understand the vital importance of English communication in all its forms and its role in enabling them to pursue their dreams in a huge variety of careers. To offer a range of aspirations linked to the literature and language of the UK and the world.

   Core knowledge – This is the ‘What?’ of the English classroom. All students are taught a knowledge-rich English curriculum, adhering to the National Curriculum, which examines fiction and non-fiction over time, examining how story-telling has developed from the earliest myths and the ideas, concepts and stories that have shaped the world. We aim to introduce our students to texts which offer windows and sliding doors into other worlds and times as well as mirrors that have something to tell them about their own lives today.  Alongside these high-quality texts we also explicitly teach grammar, vocabulary, spoken language and expressive and persuasive writing.

   Procedural/Powerful knowledge – The ‘How?’  and the ‘Why?’ of the English classroom allows students to apply their knowledge of the following to developing their own interpretations of texts as well as creating their own texts: form, structure, genre, context, the writer’s craft, critical interpretations, spelling, vocabulary, syntax and grammar. At the heart of this is developing students’ own critical responses to everything they encounter and the ability to justify and support these responses with evidence, as well as being able to confidently express these ideas orally or in writing.

   Developing cultural capital – by offering high quality texts we look to provide students with experiences beyond the everyday. We study ancient mythology, Shakespeare, the Romantics, 19th Century literature and modern and contemporary writers and ensure the link to social justice is clear and defined for each unit. We offer opportunities to experience the theatre across all Key Stages and look to offer as many positive experiences of reading, writing and speaking as we can.

   Developing character – enabling our students to RISE. In particular, developing our Core Values of: Respect – texts studied show the different ways respect can be earned or denied to groups or individuals; both fiction and non-fiction texts examine prejudice and bias and ways that these can be resolved. Independence – this is encouraged in all aspects of the English curriculum, incorporating taking responsibility for your own learning as well as independence of thought and action. Service – KS4 and 5 students are encouraged to assist in reading programmes with the younger students and to serve Kingwood and the wider community. Empathy – central to the study of English is the development of empathy for the characters we read or write about. To have empathy is to begin to understand others’ lives.

   Identifying and addressing context specific need – our pupils are unique and valued members of our community. As such they come with specific contextual needs which our curriculum addresses through support for individuals and key groups, whether in the classroom, before and after school classes or with the materials required to be successful.  Literacy is a key focus from Year 7 and catch up is facilitated by specialised teaching and the deployment of HLLMs as well as specific Library lessons for Years 7 and 8. .

   Learning is sequential – learning is carefully planned and sequenced to incrementally build long-term knowledge through spaced recall retrieval activities, developing cross-curricula schema, and preventing cognitive overload. Links are made between what is learned in each year and students can see how intertextuality is a major concept within English and that being able to transfer knowledge from one text to another, then to your own writing is empowering.

   Our key concepts and core domains of knowledge

   At Key Stage 3, learners will experience a broad and rich curriculum comprising:

   Year 7: Mythology; Identity; Shakespeare ‘The Tempest’; Pre-1900 Poetry; Dickens ‘Oliver Twist’; Genre study – detective fiction; creative and viewpoint writing; grammar and syntax; vocabulary and spelling.

   Year 8: Genre Study - Dystopian worlds; Orwell ‘Animal Farm’; Shakespeare ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’; Romantic Poetry; Stoker ‘Dracula’; Wells ‘The Time Machine’; rhetoric; creative and viewpoint writing; grammar and syntax; vocabulary and spelling.

   Year 9: A transition year for GCSE, widening and deepening their understanding of English: Genre study – the Gothic; Shelley ‘Frankenstein’; Shakespeare ‘Romeo and Juliet’; Contemporary Poetry; ‘Of Mice and Men’; ‘Ghost Boys’ by Parker Rhodes; creative and viewpoint writing; grammar and syntax; vocabulary and spelling.

   At Key Stage 4, learners will study GCSEs in English Language and English Literature. Over the life of the course, learners will study:

   • 19^th Century Novel
   • Shakespeare play
   • Modern text
   • Poetry Anthology – Power and Conflict
   • Unseen Poetry
   • Creative and Narrative Writing
   • Viewpoints and Perspectives

   At Key Stage 5, learners will study A Level English Literature or A Level English Language and Literature. Over the life of the course, learners will study:

   English Literature:

   • Shakespeare
   • Pe-1900 Poetry
   • Post 1900 Prose
   • Post 1945 Play
   • Post 2005 Poetry/Prose
   • Unseen Poetry
   • Unseen Prose
   • Non Examined Assessment

   English Language and Literature:

   Paris Anthology

   • Dystopian Novel
   • Poetry study
   • Dramatic Conflict
   • Creative Writing
   • Non Examined Assessment

   The end points of our curriculum

   Our learners will be taught to:

   • Read a wide range of fiction and non-fiction, in particular whole books, short stories, poems and plays with a wide coverage of genres, historical periods, forms and authors, including high quality works from English literature, both pre-1914 and contemporary, as well as seminal world literature and literary non-fiction such as essays, reviews and journalism
   • Read critically, identifying and interpreting themes, ideas and information in a range of literature and other high-quality writing
   • Reflect critically and evaluatively on texts, using the context of the text and drawing on knowledge and skills gained from wider reading
   • Make inferences and refer to the evidence in a text to support interpretations
   • Explain how vocabulary and grammar contribute to the effectiveness and impact of a writer’s choices
   • Explicitly learn new vocabulary
   • Use linguistic and literary terminology accurately and confidently in their own work and in discussing reading, writing and spoken language
   • Analyse and evaluate how form and structure contribute to the effectiveness of a text.
   • Compare two or more texts critically
   • Write for different purposes and audiences and in different forms through effectively adapting style, tone and register appropriately, using knowledge gained from reading extensively
   • Write descriptively and imaginatively through sustained crafting to create fictional writing in different genres
   • Write accurately and purposefully in an academic register, using a full range of sentence forms, punctuation and structural and grammatical features, for effect.
   • Understand the power of written and spoken language, to inspire and manipulate, by reflecting critically and evaluatively on a writer’s intentions, identifying purpose and bias.
   • Reflect upon, revise, edit and proof-read their work to improve coherence, consistency, clarity and overall effectiveness.
   • Adapt their writing for a wide range of purposes and audiences: to describe, narrate, explain, instruct, persuade and argue
   • Be confident speakers, able to communicate effectively for a specific purpose using vocabulary, structure and rhetoric to engage their audience
   • Listen to and build on the contributions of others, asking questions to clarify and inform