English

Word Reading 

In Year 1 pupils continue to learn phonics using a synthetic, systematic programme - ‘Letters and Sounds.’ The pupils are taught to apply their phonic knowledge and skills as the route to decode words, so that they can accurately segment and blend unfamiliar language when reading. By the end of Y1, children are expected to recognise and read a prescribed set of common exception words as well as read words that contain a range of suffixes, including –s, –es, –ing, –ed, –er and –est. Pupils rehearse these skills, using fully decodable texts that match our phonics programme and each child’s phonic ability. When reading aloud, children are expected to read words containing more than one syllable and decode words with contractions, whilst recognising that the apostrophe omits letters. All these skills are practised within prosody sessions, where the children spend time reading and re-reading texts to develop their fluency and expression.

Reading Comprehension 

At Mayfield we promote a love and passion for reading by listening to, discussing and sharing a wide range of literature, including poems, stories and non-fiction. The texts studied and shared with the pupils are carefully handpicked to ensure they are age appropriate, language rich and at a level beyond that at which they can read independently. 

At Mayfield, pupils are exposed to a myriad of opportunities to read and share books throughout the school day. In all book-related sessions, pupils are encouraged to link what they read or hear read to their own experiences. They become familiar with key stories, fairy stories and traditional tales, as well as learning to appreciate rhymes and poems.  

Key skills mastered in Y1 comprehension lessons at Mayfield include – retelling familiar stories, recognising predictable phrases, making inferences, discussing the meaning of new vocabulary and making inferences based on what they read.

Spelling  

In Year 1, the pupils are encouraged to apply their phonics skills when writing and spelling words. They are expected to draw upon phonemes taught and use word mats to help them make the correct phoneme/grapheme correspondence choices. 

In addition to phonic application in spelling, pupils are expected to spell a set of Y1 common exception words. Rehearsing the days of the week, along with the letters of the alphabet, is a crucial element of Y1 writing foundations. 

In the Spring term, pupils learn phase 5 of the ‘Letters and Sounds’ phonics programme, which promotes the written application of words and drawing upon phoneme/grapheme correspondences. 

In Year 1, pupils are exposed to the terms prefix and suffix. They learn these within spelling and grammar lessons and apply taught rules, when using them in their own writing. As well as suffixes, the pupils are taught plural spelling rules and the third person singular marker for verbs. These skills are often applied within dictated sentences, enabling teaching staff to observe whether taught spelling and grammar rules are embedded.

Handwriting 

Developing core muscle strength and mastering pre-writing skills, such as shape formation is fundamental before being taught to sit correctly at a table to hold a pencil comfortably and correctly. Once children have secured these skills, they can begin to form lower-case letters in the correct direction, starting and finishing in the right place, form capital letters and form digits 0-9 correctly.

Writing Composition 

At Mayfield, pupils in Y1 are actively encouraged to orally rehearse their ideas by saying out loud what they are going to write about. Oracy aids pupils in sequencing sentences, so that they can form coherent written sentences. Being reflective is one of our 6 R’s - we train our pupils to become independent and reflective learners, making sure they re-read what they have written to check it is clear and makes sense. Planned opportunities for our pupils to discuss and share their writing with the teacher and their peers is something that happens in every classroom across the school daily.

Writing – Vocabulary, Punctuation and Grammar 

Pupils in Y1 are expected to leave space between words as well as join words and using the coordinating conjunction and. In addition to this, pupils focus on using capital letters correctly. They learn how capital letters start sentences, are used for names of people, places, the days of the week, and the personal pronoun ‘I.’ End stops, including full-stops, question marks and exclamation marks are also taught in Y1, so that pupils can accurately punctuate sentences. 

Word Reading 

Year 2 pupils are expected to continue applying their phonic knowledge and skills as the route to decode words until automatic decoding has become embedded and reading is fluent. Y2 mirror Y1 with their expectation that accurate reading is achieved by blending the sounds in words that contain the graphemes taught so far, especially recognising alternative sounds for graphemes. 

Year 2 pupils are also expected to read words of two or more syllables and read words containing common suffixes. Pupils at the end of KS1 are given further common exception words to recognise and read, noting unusual correspondences between spelling and sound and where these occur in the word. 

In prosody and whole class reading sessions, pupils are taught and encouraged to read most words quickly and accurately, without overt sounding and blending, when they have been frequently encountered. 

Year 2 pupils are too given fully decodable reading books that are closely matched to their improving phonic knowledge, so that they can sound out unfamiliar words accurately, automatically and without undue hesitation.

Reading Comprehension 

Book talk in Y2 consists of listening to, discussing and expressing views about a wide range of contemporary and classic poetry, stories and non-fiction at a level beyond that at which they can read independently. Naturally, when reading and talking about books, pupils discuss the sequence of events and how items of information are related. At Mayfield, pupils in Y2 study non-fiction books, developing an understanding of structure and non-fiction features. 

As well as recognising simple recurring literary language in stories/poetry and discussing the meanings of words, pupils share their favourite words and phrases encountered in the literature they read. 

Within poetry units in English, pupils in Y2 are provided with opportunities to build up a repertoire of poems that they learn by heart. Poetry planning incorporates the recital of poems with a focus on appropriate intonation to make the meaning clear. 

Pupils at Mayfield are encouraged to link what they read to other literature they have experienced. Drawing on what they already know or on background information and vocabulary provided by the teacher is imperative in building a comprehensive knowledge of different literature. In addition to this, pupils learn to develop their knowledge of inferences based on what is being said and done and are taught to ask and answer questions, using the VIPERS skills (Vocabulary, Inference, Prediction, Explanation, Retrieval and Summarise).

Spelling

At Mayfield, pupils are taught to segment words into phonemes and represent these using correct graphemes. Phase 5 of our phonics programme focuses on different ways of spelling different sounds. Each classroom contains sound mats and grapheme grids that pupils are encouraged to use when spelling unfamiliar words. The pupils are taught to locate the sound and then look for the correct grapheme. Methods such as writing the word with each grapheme are highly encouraged, as it allows pupils to sightsee if it is correct or not. 

Each year group has an individual set of common exception words that they are expected to learn and spell. Multi-sensory approaches are used at Mayfield to help the children learn these.

In addition to common exception words, Y2 pupils are taught how to spell contracted words along with words containing a range of suffixes (-ment, -ness, -full, -less, -ly). These are taught in context to the main English text, which allows pupils to practise, apply and retain key spelling rules.

Handwriting 

Pupils in Y2 are taught to form lower-case letters of the correct size relative to one another and write capital letters and digits of the correct size in relation to lower-case letters. Cursive handwriting (using diagonal and horizontal strokes needed to join letters) is reinforced in Year 2 after following a comprehensive handwriting programme in Year 1.

Writing Composition 

At Mayfield composition skills are taught through topic based, age-appropriate texts. Pupils write for a range of purposes, including narratives about personal experiences, real events and poetry. They are taught how to plan and map out their ideas, before embarking on their writing journey. Evaluating and improving writing is an important skill that is taught in Y2. Pupils are expected to be reflective learners by making sure they re-read their work to check spelling and grammatical accuracy.

Writing – Vocabulary, Grammar and Punctuation 

In Year 2, pupils begin to develop their understanding of punctuation by learning how to use commas and apostrophes in addition to capital letters and full stops. Opportunities to apply these skills are carefully planned into English units throughout the academic year. Pupils are taught about different sentences using different forms: statement, question, exclamation, command – these are applied to a range of writing genres, including instructional writing, non-chronological reports and narratives. Other grammar skills taught in Y2 include expanded noun phrases, past/present tense and coordinating/subordinating conjunctions. Again, these are taught in context and applied to a range of different writing genres. 

Word Reading

Pupils begin to explore the origin of words through etymology and morphology. They investigate root words and develop their understanding of different prefixes/suffixes, while identifying how they change the meaning of words.

Reading Comprehension 

Pupils in lower KS2 continue to listen to and discuss a wide range of literature, including different forms of poetry, so that they expand and broaden their knowledge of different literary genres. In Years 3 & 4, pupils deepen their understanding of books and how they are structured. They are taught to read for a range of purposes, so that they can draw upon this within their own writing. At Mayfield, the curriculum is planned, so that the reading feeds directly into the pupils’ writing. 

Pupils are taught to become reflective learners at Mayfield with encouragement to explain what they have read and demonstrate their understanding by retelling and identifying main ideas through detailed summaries. The six elements of reading which include vocabulary, inference, prediction, explanation, retrieval and summary are taught explicitly in KS2, making sure they build upon prior learning obtained from KS1. The skills taught in KS1 are built upon in lower KS2 by exploring how language, structure and presentation contribute to meaning. Pupils are also expected to identify different themes and conventions in a wide range of books.

Spelling  

Pupils in lower KS2 begin to explore further prefixes/suffixes and are taught how to add them in context to the main English text. Pupils are also exposed to further homophones, which build on the foundations set at the end of KS1. Having learnt how to use a possessive apostrophe for singular nouns in KS1, pupils in lower KS2 begin to place the possessive apostrophe accurately in words with regular plurals and in words with irregular plurals. In Years 3 & 4, pupils are taught how to use the first two or three letters of a word to check its spelling in a dictionary, which allows our pupils to be reflective and independent learners.

Handwriting 

Pupils continue to join letters cursively when they enter KS2 with a focus on increasing the legibility, consistency and quality of their handwriting.

Writing Composition

At Mayfield, discussing writing similar to that which they are planning to write in order to understand and learn from its structure, vocabulary and grammar is a vital ingredient to achieve a successful writing outcome. Pupils are encouraged to orally rehearse and discuss ideas before recording them. Developing and expanding vocabulary is a key focus in lower KS2, along with understanding how to use an increasing range of sentence structures effectively. 

Through topic-based texts, pupils are taught how to create settings, characters and plot as well as use simple organisational devices in non-fiction-based writing. While writing narratives and non-fiction outcomes, pupils are shown how to organise their ideas into paragraphs, so that their sentences link around a theme. 

Pupils in lower KS2 continue to be reflective learners by assessing the effectiveness of their own and others’ writing. Proofreading, editing and proposing changes are skills that are embedded in the writing process here at Mayfield. This also applies to oracy – pupils are given a myriad of opportunities to read their work aloud, so that they can develop their reading with intonation skills.

Writing – Vocabulary, Grammar and Punctuation 

Pupils in lower KS2 further develop their understanding of subordination by learning to extend a range of sentences with more than one clause, using a wider range of conjunctions than previously taught at the end of KS1. Pupils also continue to focus on writing coherent pieces of work, by ensuring they choose nouns or pronouns appropriately. Other grammar skills taught in Years 3 &4 include adverbs and prepositions to express time and cause, along with punctuating direct speech and using fronted adverbials to vary sentence starters. All these skills are explicitly taught in context through topic-based, age-appropriate texts.

Word Reading 

Pupils in upper KS2 continue to explore the origin of words through etymology and morphology, both to read aloud and to understand the meaning of new words that they meet.

Word Comprehension

At Mayfield, it is imperative that pupils continue to build up a repertoire of an increasingly wide range of fiction, poetry, plays, non-fiction and reference books or textbooks year on year, so that they can draw upon these experiences to strengthen their understanding of the world and their own writing. Pupils in Years 5 & 6 are expected to continue reading books that are structured in different ways and for a range of purposes. This allows our pupils to become confident with the skills needed to write for different audiences and purposes. 

In upper KS2, pupils are encouraged to increase their familiarity with a wide range of books, including myths, legends, traditional stories, modern fiction, fiction from our literary heritage, and books from other cultures and traditions. While providing opportunities to read for pleasure is very important, it is also imperative that pupils are given time to recommend books that they have read to their peers, giving reasons for their choices. 

The progression of skills from lower KS2 to upper KS2 comes with the ability to make comparisons within and across books that they have read, which is why developing a bank of literature and knowledge of different text genres is important at this stage of our pupils’ education. 

In Years 5 & 6 pupils learn a wider range of poetry by heart and spend time preparing poems and plays to read aloud, showing understanding through intonation, tone and volume so that the meaning is clear. 

Our pupils remain resilient when checking books make sense to them by discussing their understanding and exploring the meaning of words in context. They also further develop the six key VIPERS skills by drawing inferences such as inferring characters’ feelings, thoughts and motives from their actions, and justifying inferences with evidence. Progression in prediction skills is evidenced in upper KS2 by pupils making predictions from details stated and implied. This also applies to summarising whereby pupils are expected to identify key details that support the main ideas. 

Pupils in Years 5 & 6 are too expected to identify how language, structure and presentation contribute to meaning and in addition to this, they are shown how to discuss and evaluate how authors use language, including figurative language, considering the impact on the reader. Obtaining a sound understanding of why and how language is used and manipulated in different texts allows pupils to mirror this in their own work. Another skill taught in upper KS2 is distinguishing between statements of fact and opinion, along with retrieving, recording and presenting information from non-fiction. 

Pupils in Years 5 & 6 are encouraged to participate in discussions about what they have read, building on their own and others’ ideas and challenging views. At Mayfield, pupils are given opportunities to debate and provide reasoned justifications for their views.

Spelling

Pupils are encouraged to use their understanding of morphology and etymology to help them learn how to spell unfamiliar words, understanding that some words need to be learnt specifically. In upper KS2, pupils continue to develop their knowledge and understanding of further prefixes, suffixes and homophones. They are taught to spell words with silent letters in context to carefully chosen topic-based texts along with securing an understanding of how to use dictionaries and thesauruses effectively.

Handwriting and presentation

Pupils are expected to apply previously taught skills so that they can write legibly, fluently and at increasing speed. By the end of KS2, pupils are encouraged to independently choose which shape of a letter to use when given choices and to decide whether to join specific letters.

Writing Composition 

In Years 5 & 6, pupils identify the audience and purpose of writing, which allows them to recognise the features required for their own writing. Pupils are encouraged to draw upon reading and research, so that they can expand and develop initial ideas. They do this by considering how authors have developed characters, settings and plots in literature they have previously read, listened to or seen performed. This also applies when creating atmosphere and integrating dialogue to convey character and advance action. At Mayfield, we pride ourselves on allowing our pupils the time needed to read and research how existing authors apply these skills, so that they can master this effectively in their own outcomes. 

When writing their own outcomes, pupils in upper KS2 are expected to select appropriate grammar and vocabulary to demonstrate how these choices can change and enhance meaning. Pupils in upper KS2 also develop their use of devices to build cohesion within and across paragraphs they write as well as using further organisational and presentational devices to structure text. 

Pupils continue to assess the effectiveness of their own and others’ writing in upper KS2, by proposing changes to vocabulary, grammar and punctuation to enhance effects and clarify meaning. Proof-reading toolkits include checking consistent use of tense and ensuring correct subject and verb agreement when using singular and plural, distinguishing between the language of speech and writing and choosing the appropriate register.

Word – Vocabulary, Punctuation and Grammar 

Pupils in upper KS2 are taught to recognise vocabulary and structures that are appropriate for formal speech and writing, including subjunctive forms. They use passive verbs to affect the presentation of information in a sentence and use the perfect form of verbs to mark relationships of time and cause. All these grammar skills are taught in context through topic-based, age-appropriate texts.  

Pupils are taught a range of advanced punctuation at the end of KS2, which includes commas to clarify meaning, hyphens, brackets, dashes, semi-colons, colons, and commas to indicate parenthesis. In addition to this, pupils are expected to use modal verbs and adverbs as well as relative clauses, showcasing acquired skills acquired to use a wide range of sentence structures within their writing. 

In the English department at Mayfield, the three core key skill areas of Reading, Writing and Speaking and Listening are delivered through six units that pupils engage with each year from 7-9.  Each of these units uses a variety of increasingly complex and difficult texts and resourcing to build and spiral key skills from the start of KS3 until the end and prepare pupils for the rigours of GCSE in KS4.

Monsters and Men

Starting in Year 7, pupils engage with extracts from Bram Stoker’s Dracula and employ the initial skills of analysis of implicit and explicit understanding and synthesising of information from a text to form a response.  Gothic fiction is used as a stimulus to engage pupils to write and experiment with different forms and conventions of persuasive writing such as newspapers, which are key to the GCSE.   

Moving into Year 8, pupils are given a wider variety of canonical/ historical texts to engage with from the choice of: Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Caroll, Jekyll and Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson, War of the Worlds by HG Wells, and Animal Farm by George Orwell. This will enable them to further their experiences of challenging pre-1914 texts and extend/ expand their vocabulary base through revisiting structural and authorial intentions and building on the work done in year 7 by extending the knowledge and use of Subject Specific terminology to infer and interpret implicit and explicit information and analyse structural form and characterisation through authorial choices.  Fiction extracts and examples are used as stimulus to encourage pupils to write creatively in and expand vocabulary and structural choices, as well as authorial intent and exposition through their creative choices. 

In Year 9, pupils continue their journey through the darker side of literary fiction by studying (in full) novels from a choice of: Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, Lord of the Flies by William Golding, 1984 by George Orwell; building on the work from previous years and introducing the appreciation and inclusion of historical and contextual understanding of the texts studied into pupil’s analytical writing.  Texts are used to build on creative concepts such as characterisation and structural conventions through the use of vocabulary and linguistic device choices.

Heroes and Villains

In Year 7, pupils use a variety of extracts from classical and historical Hero texts such as Beowulf, Hercules, Homer’s Odyssey, in order to introduce and build the skills of comparison of textual/ authorial viewpoints and vocabulary/ linguistic device choice, and the representation of character.  Pupils use this understanding and knowledge in their creative writing to craft and represent their own heroic creations as defined by their own authorial choices and employ their understanding of structuring and building a text throughout various phases to create a reliable and realistic/ believable narrative for the reader. 

Moving into Year 8, pupils look at a choice of texts from Holes by Louis Sachar, and The Hound of the Baskervilles by Arthur Conan Doyle, and build on their understanding of characterisation and structural choices/ authorial intent through choices in vocabulary and linguistic device, whilst returning to and building on their understanding of Subject Specific Terminology and the effect it has on the reader.  In terms of assessment, pupils begin to look at exam board style phrasing in this unit as an introduction to the length, content and quantity of writing response required at GCSE.  Using the writing style of the chosen texts, pupils continue to develop their own narrative style and experiment with epistolary forms, more complex punctuation and personal tone in genres such as diary, letter etc, both of which are GSCE related persuasive styles.   

In Year 9, pupils experience Dystopian Fiction forms through The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins and building on/ across from the study of 1984 by George Orwell or new texts such as Brave New World by Aldous Huxley.  Pupils build and compliment their understanding of the skills of analysis of implicit/ explicit detail and analysis of the narrative voice, as well as comparative elements across texts.  In their creative writing, pupils experience the GCSE style approach of writing for a specific frame of reference through the short story task: “The Assassin” which uses the previous learning of Dystopian Fiction and imagery as a stimulus to recreate a GCSE Language Paper 1 Question 5 style assessment where pupils can practice exam style timing and preparation.

Power and Conflict

Pupils begin this unit in year 7 by looking at prominent and historically significant speeches such as MLK’s I have a Dream and JFK’s Inaugural address, looking at persuasive style and forms of address, using Subject Specific terminology for persuasive writing, as well as how time, place and context can affect content.  Pupils use their understanding of persuasive techniques to create their own persuasive writing, ensuring that they employ their understanding of how to structure an argument using appropriate paragraphs and discourse markers, in line with GCSE Language Paper 2 Question 5. 

Pupils then move on to the study of playscripts, looking at the theatrical version of War Horse and WW1 poetry as an early introduction to Literature Paper 2.  Pupils understand and analyse the writer’s craft, language, structure and staging of the play with appropriate Subject Specific Terminology and incorporating skills of analysis of implicit and explicit meaning with some comparison through poetry-based work.  Textual stimulus materials are used to create a piece of persuasive writing in letter format, in line with GCSE Literature Paper 2 Question 5 style and using authentic narrative voice and perspective. 

Moving into Year 9, pupils continue playscript study with Blood Brothers by Willy Russell, studying the whole text and building upon the skills from previous years but layering on GCSE style approaches to Lit Paper 2 assessment in their extended analytical writing task.  Pupils explore genre further and incorporate cultural and historical/ contextual understanding into their writing, and further extend their understanding of Subject Specific Terminology to further analyse and explain.  Pupils then engage in GCSE Language Paper 2 style persuasive writing in an article style and in response to a critical statement as stimulus, using their understanding of authorial perspective, audience, structure and vocabulary/ linguistic choices they have built up to this point.

Love Shakespeare 

Pupils begin this unit in Year 7 by learning more about the historical and cultural significance of the life and times of Shakespeare, as this is often one of the more difficult aspects of it to grasp initially.  Pupils work with a variety of examples from well-known Shakespearean texts so pupils can learn and appreciate the variety and complexity, but accessibility of the language, as this is also one of the most difficult aspects of studying it.  Pupils learn and employ Subject Specific Terminology specific to playscripts previously learned in the study of War Horse, as well as additional understanding of more complex terms specific to Shakespeare in order to analyse and interpret meaning and intent.  Textual examples and experiences are used to stimulate a piece of narrative perspective creative writing focussing on the use of senses and specific planning to incorporate emotive and powerful vocabulary on a specific scene. 

Pupils then move on to studying more focussed and specific Shakespearean textual extracts from a choice of The Merchant of Venice, Richard III, The Tempest, MSND, The Tempest and The Merchant of Venice in more of their entirety. This helps them to build on the previous learning of Shakespeare/ playscripts and to further develop their understanding of writer’s perspective and choices on the audience, language and device choices, and structural choices in the texts, combined with a greater appreciation of context and leading to a more focussed assessment in a GCSE Literature Paper 1 style. Finally, pupils engage in creative writing in monologue/ soliloquy, to further enhance pupil understanding of how Shakespeare creates characters and uses language to influence and affect the audience. 

In Year 9 Pupils engage with Macbeth and bring all their skills previously learned to analyse and understand implicitly and explicitly at extract and structural level.  Pupils build on previous units in year 9 by extending their understanding of essay writing skills in terms of length and specific content, formal approaches and tone in line with GCSE Literature Paper 1 expectations, culminating in a GCSE style assessment and further work on producing Shakespearean monologue/ soliloquy to extend understanding of GCSE Paper 1 style perspective creative writing and focussing on a specific viewpoint.

Time Travellers and the origins of language

Pupils begin this unit looking at historical and contemporary Ballads and extending their understanding of the ways historical and contextual factors can influence literature, whilst extending their skills of analysis and inference of implicit and explicit meaning, and their appreciation of structure and form, plus the associated conventions and Subject Specific Terminology.  This is used as a stimulus for further creative writing and collaborative group work with performance of pupil’s own Ballads and poetry, in order to further appreciate the stylistic conventions and historical significance of the form. 

In Year 8, pupils are exposed to a range of Science fiction and non-fiction and non-fiction articles and extracts, in order to further their understanding of GCSE Language Paper 2 analysis and comprehension skills, as well as the skill of comparison using linguistic and structural authorial choices and decisions. This links closely to STEM and offers effective cross-curricular links for pupils to engage with.  Following this, pupils build on their own understanding of structural organisation and non-fiction language choices and conventions to produce their own piece of persuasive/ informative text on a Science-based topic of their choice 

Moving into Year 9, pupils continue the Science/ Dystopian Fiction/ themed approach and are exposed to more complex texts and extracts from classic historical and contemporary works such as The Time Machine by HG Wells, Gulliver’s Travels by Robert Louis Stevenson, The Day of the Triffids by John Wyndham, The Handmaids Tale by Margaret Atwood, and The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams.  Using the GCSE Literature Paper 1 as a basis, pupils build on their existing knowledge of extended writing/ tone/ formality and structured approaches to tackling more complex texts, combining this with the work already done on language analysis and contextual referencing.  This leads to GCSE Paper 1 Question 5 style creative writing, where pupils – again – combine their experiences of planning, drafting and structured approaches to writing, to produce their own descriptive pieces of writing, using a stimulus image/ statement.

Our World 

Pupils begin this unit in year 7 by looking at Poetry from different cultures and using their skills of analysis and comparison to look at the differing ways writers use theme/ word/ imagery/ structure to convey their message and influence the reader, including the differing Subject Specific Terminology associated with the poetry genre.  Rather than have this lead to writing their own poetry, pupils learn to effectively and efficiently annotate and make notes on and around poems, in line with GCSE expectations in preparation for Literature Paper 2.

In Year 8, pupils continue the skills of comparison by working with short stories from British and other cultures in much the same way that they are expected to for GCSE Language Paper 1.  This includes analysing language and the management and use of micro-quotations within structured paragraphs, and building on terminology already introduced in previous units, and leading to creative writing from a solo narrative perspective to replicate the stylistic conventions of the extracts/ stories they have been studying. 

In Year 9, we continue along this theme, looking again at British/ other culture, short stories, focussing on how contextual factors influence our own writing and how we can inform and influence the reader of this in our own structural, linguistic and grammatical choices, with a focus on comparing these aspects in our analysis.  This leads to a piece of written work on an area of British culture in a creative/ non-fiction style, at the choice of the pupils, and building on all previous work in this area and relating to GCSE Language Paper 1 and 2/ Questions 5. 

At the end of Year 9, pupils have their first introduction to the English Literature GCSE course when they begin their study of An Inspector Calls by JB Priestley for Paper 2. 

KS4 builds on the acquired knowledge and understanding acquired from KS3. It layers on the Subject Specific content for the GCSE Literature course and builds further on the introduction of specific question related skills taught in years 7-9, preparing pupils for the rigours of the Language exam in terms of Reading/ Writing requirements and time conditions. 

The aim of Year 10 is to equip pupils with the bulk of learning needed for their English Literature GCSE, but also interleave the skills required for the English Language GCSE and the variety of questions they will need to understand and get to grips with there.  GCSE Literature is a content based subject where pupils need to read and understand A Shakespeare Play, a 19th Century novel, a modern text, an anthology of 15 poems, and unseen poetry, so we aim to cover this in year 10 so pupils have the maximum amount of time to revise and retrieve throughout year 11 and onto the GCSE exams.

An Inspector Calls by JB Priestley 

We begin Year 10 by studying the Modern texts aspect of the Literature GCSE where pupils draw together all the previous skills taught through KS3 in relation to knowledge of the narrative, themes, characters and ideas supported with well-chosen quotations; analysis of the writer’s methods (language and structure) to create meaning and effect using subject terminology (AO2), and showing understanding of the relationships between texts and their contexts in which they are written.  This text is chosen first as it offers the most simple introduction into the GCSE Literature course texts and the expectations in terms of exam content.  It is the most recent text we study and therefore ‘closest’ to the pupil’s experiences as it draws on more recent historical contextual understanding such as WW1 and 2, and the post war Socialist movement in British Politics.

AQA Power and Conflict poetry anthology by various 

The Anthology of poetry for the Literature GCSE is studied in sections throughout the year, following major text study and in homework packs over holiday periods. Pupils culminate the poetic study they have engaged with throughout KS3 and employ the same skills as used previously with An Inspector Calls but transpose them onto the shorter form writing of poetry, as well as continuing the use of the more distinct Subject Specific Terminology associated with poetic form. 

A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens 

Pupils continue Year 10 by engaging in the study of A Christmas Carol, sustaining the use of the skills from the previous two units, and building on the pupil’s understanding of writing in exam style and length, whilst including the relevant and specific details and content necessary for success.  The text moves the pupils back historically and contextually, but still allows them to retain some sense of ‘contact’ with the novel due to its links to Portsmouth and the local area, thus allowing them some sense of relationship with the story. 

Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare 

Pupils conclude the GCSE Literature texts by using the skills honed through the previous two units to study Romeo and Juliet following the Christmas break.  As the hardest and most difficult to understand text, we save this until later in the year, to allow pupils the time to adapt and become better acquainted with the level of content and expectation in relation to the GCSE.  As the chronologically furthest text and with the most unusual and difficult language, pupils need the time to prepare for this, and the difficulties understanding the more complex and unfamiliar historical context associated with it.  

Unseen Poetry 

Following the textual study, pupils return to poetry and work on the Unseen poetry element of the English Literature GCSE.  We save this unit until later in year 10 as it calls on the previous skills pupils have used in the preceding units but also allows them to begin to use the skill of comparison and working with an unknown and unfamiliar text, which is key to the work they will continue to undertake on the GCSE Language course content.   In this unit we draw from the wide range of the Literary canon and more obscure examples to expose the pupils to previously unseen and unheard texts from both historical and contemporary sources so they are prepared for the unpredictability of the exam rigour on this question.

GCSE English Language Paper 1 

At the end of year 10 pupils begin their English Language GCSE teaching in earnest.  They will already have experienced the skills and content through interleaved elements within the Literature teaching but here they have the opportunity to focus solely on the exam structure of the GCSE as well as the often subtle differences between the Reading questions on the exams and the two heavily weighted writing sections which make up half the whole GCSE mark in two questions.  They will need to draw together all their experiences in KS3 and the work they have done so far within Literature to ensure that they are fully aware of the expectations that will be placed upon them in order to perform well in the exam.   

The skills of: identifying and interpreting explicit and implicit information and ideas; explaining, commenting on and analysing how writers use language and structure to achieve effects and influence readers, and using relevant subject terminology to support their views; evaluating texts critically and support this with appropriate textual references, will all be tested, and pupils need to know where and how these relate to the different Reading questions they will face.   

Equally, the writing section of the exam requires pupils to be fully aware of the expectations and time-limitations placed upon them in the exam.  They need to be adaptable and keenly focussed in readiness for them exam and the mode of assessment that requires them to work quickly and promptly, but precisely and in detail where required.  The skills of: communicating clearly, effectively and imaginatively, selecting and adapting tone, style and register for different forms, purposes and audiences;  organising information and ideas;  using structural and grammatical features to support coherence and cohesion of texts; using a range of vocabulary and sentence structures for clarity, purpose and effect, with accurate spelling and punctuation, are all key elements to success here and pupils must build on the skills of creative writing that they have been engaging in for many years throughout school but adapt their understanding and output accordingly, and in line with exam expectations. 

By working explicitly on the questions and allowing pupils to have the time to learn the different approaches and skills the exam board is looking for, they are able to build up their understanding of the exam piece by piece as they move through the teaching. 

GCSE English Language Paper 2 

Moving into year 11, pupils complete their understanding and teaching of the English Language GCSE by looking at the second exam paper for that GCSE.  As the harder paper, due to the need for pupils to read, and draw from two sources (as opposed to one for Paper 1), as well as write in a persuasive style, the time limitations and difficulty of the exam are exacerbated and pupil’s understanding of the key skills required to succeed are even more critical here, which is why we place it later in KS4 and at the start of year 11. 

Pupils are expected to utilise the same skills as paper 1 in terms of reading, but with the addition of:  comparing writers’ ideas and perspectives, as well as how these are conveyed, across two or more texts, as this is crucial in two questions in the exam.  Equally, the writing section relies on the same skills as the previous exam but requires them to write in a persuasive context, which is more technically explicit than writing due to the pupils needing to show understanding of the different modes and formats of persuasive writing in which they may be asked to write.  There is also the need for pupils to appreciate and target, the audience to which their writing is aimed.   

As with Paper 1, we work through the questions and ensure that pupils know specifically the expectations and finite details for each question so they are aware of the different approaches needed for success.    

English Language Speaking and Listening  

This short unit works as a complement to English Language GCSE teaching and allows pupils the opportunity to move away from the written component of the exam for a short while.  As an unweighted but specified element of the GCSE that is registered on exam papers, it is important that we allow time for pupils to fully engage with the expectations and produce a quality piece of work that reflects their efforts and their appreciation of the skills of: Demonstrating presentation skills in a formal setting; listening and responding appropriately to spoken language, including to questions and feedback on presentations; using spoken Standard English effectively in speeches and presentations. This acts as good continuation of the teaching for GSCE Language, and the expectations of formality/ Standard English/ grammar/ vocabulary, that are all allocated more weight in the mark scheme for those exams.

Revisiting English Literature and English Language 

For the remainder of the year, until the final GCSE exams, the pupils and their teachers work together to ensure that the content of both GSCEs is revised in an effective and explicit manner dependant on the needs of the classes and individual pupils in order to review and revisit the content that is most needed in order to prepare effectively. 

The expectation is that teachers will draw up their own individual ‘road map’ of study, using mock exam data, in-class assessment and professional judgement, as well as regular in-class work to adapt, review and plan ahead to ensure that pupils are engaged in, and working on, the right texts/ questions and focusses for them in order to maximise success in their exams