English (Literature and Language)

What our students think about English

Intent

Reflecting the Meridian ethos and values, our intent is to equip our students to challenge their thinking through diverse mediums that enable all learners to become resilient, respectful and ambitious young citizens. Our broad and balanced curriculum has been sequenced to ensure skills and knowledge are continually improving and enhancing through a spiral approach. By building on prior knowledge at KS2, students will develop their understanding and the fundamental skills of English Literature and Language as they continue through KS3. Our pupils will, therefore, feel prepared and confident to take on KS4, be exposed to a varied and rich array of texts and cultivate their cultural capital. 

VIDEO: Learn more about English at MHS

Stories are the fabric of life and literature is the human attempt to understand the world around us. The study of literature explores the depths of human emotions. It has the power to open our minds beyond our own circumstances towards our diverse world, its people, and experiences. The study of literature can educate us of ancient societies, open our imagination to fantastical lands, communicate to us profound emotions, and ultimately teach us the pillars of empathy. 

Through the centuries, literature has been a symbol of freedom. Knowledge liberates us and therefore the ability to read literature from different time periods and places educates us about our own rights and opinions. The knowledge we can find in books is liberating. In a world of misinformation and rapidly evolving political propaganda, literature affords us the opportunity to develop critical reading skills and healthy scepticism through study of narrative voice, characterisation, language, writer’s purpose and the audience’s reception.The study of literature is also a matter of social inclusion. The ability to communicate our truth, respect different viewpoints and appreciate the many different experiences of life are key to a world where people are free, happy and safe; the sole aim of any education system.

Language is a powerful tool in communication, developing vocabulary and rhetoric equips young people in expressing themselves. Without it, the essence of what we want to say is restricted or even silenced entirely. In the study of literature young people are given a critical voice and are encouraged to in turn develop their own creativity in developing their own ideas.

Reading is not just a skill to be acquired for the workplace, it should  gives everyone the dignity to understand and engage in culture.

Learning hours

Knowledge, understanding and skills

Our KS3 English curriculum aims to equip students with the fundamental spiralled skills and knowledge of English Literature and Language from Year 7 through to KS4 and beyond. Our broad and balanced curriculum that fosters resilience, critical thinking and appreciation for diversity and inclusion, aims to develop students’ independence, confidence and cultural capital whilst promoting a love of reading, writing and spoken word.

Studying English Language and Literature explicitly from their induction in Year 7, will ensure students gain a profound understanding and appreciation of both subject's unique features, matters, and skills. As two distinct yet interrelated subjects, students are able to engage with each subject on a deeper level and gain a well-rounded, closely intertwined set of skills and knowledge.

KS3 English is inclusive, accessible and relevant to the lives of all students, with a focus on building their confidence, resilience and self-esteem. It should promote equality, diversity and inclusion as fundamental values, and help students to develop their skills, awareness, and understanding they need to live and work in a diverse world. 

Our creative and ambitious KS3 Curriculum will:

• Develop students' reading skills through a range of texts including fiction, non-fiction, poetry, and drama.

• Foster students' writing skills through a variety of writing forms, such as descriptive, persuasive, transactional and imaginative writing.

• Build students' spoken language skills through class discussions, presentations, and debates.

• Purposely build students' vocabulary and grammar knowledge, allowing them to use and decode language accurately and effectively.

• Challenge students to think critically about language and its use, and to understand its impact on society.

• Advocate an appreciation for Literature by developing students' understanding of the cultural, historical and social context of the texts they study.

• Promote and celebrate different perspectives and cultures, both within the UK and globally, to develop an appreciation for diversity and inclusion. 

• Inspire a love of reading and writing, and set students up for lifelong learning.

• Encourage independence by building upon and strengthening the fundamental spiralled skills, allowing students to revisit and refine their knowledge. 

Year 7

In Year 7, students will commence their studies with a transition unit by building on their prior knowledge from KS2. Their Autumn unit will focus on reinforcing essential reading skills such as extracting meaning, comprehending, and making inferences through shared analysis of a fictional text (A Monster Calls). 

Throughout the year, they will be exposed to a variety of non-fiction and fiction prose, poems, and dramas. As a result of their exploration of these texts, students will build new skills such as analysis (AO2), and comparison (Lang AO3) whilst developing their inference skills (AO1).  Students will apply their knowledge in their own creative or transactional writing within their language lessons to communicate (Lang AO5) their ideas effectively. They will concentrate on constructing writing for specific purposes, expanding vocabulary and sentence structure (AO6), and providing explicit training in SPaG.

By the end of Year 7, students will have built a clear understanding of foundational English knowledge and skills. Additionally, students will be encouraged to engage in independent reading for enjoyment, with dedicated time (D.E.A.R) set aside for this activity at the beginning of each lesson.

Year 8

In Year 8, students will further develop the foundations built in Year 7, continuing to engage with fiction and non-fiction prose, poetry and dramas. Students will aim to explore themes, ideas, language and structure in greater depth, progressing with how to identify (AO1) and analyse literary techniques (AO2), compare writer’s ideas (Lang AO3) whilst beginning to explore writer’s intention and contextual links (Lit AO3) and evaluating texts (Lang AO4).

Students will apply their knowledge in their own creative or transactional writing within their language lessons to communicate (AO5) their ideas effectively. They will concentrate on constructing writing for specific purposes, expanding vocabulary and sentence structure (AO6), and providing explicit training in SPaG.

By the end of Year 8, students will have built a solid understanding of the foundational English knowledge and skills. Additionally, students will continue to engage in independent reading for enjoyment, with dedicated time (D.E.A.R) set aside for this activity at the beginning of each lesson.

Year 9

In Year 9, we want to ensure students are feeling prepared and confident going into KS4. Therefore, students will solidify their understanding of the foundations built in Year 7 and 8, continuing to engage with fiction and non-fiction prose, poetry and dramas. Students will continue to explore themes, ideas, language and structure in great depth, progressing identifying (AO1) and deep analysis of literary techniques (AO2), comparing writer’s ideas (Lang AO3), exploring writer’s intention and contextual links (Lit AO3) and evaluating texts (Lang AO4).

Students will apply their knowledge in their own creative or transactional writing within their language lessons to communicate their ideas effectively (AO5). They will concentrate on constructing writing for specific purposes, expanding vocabulary and sentence structure (AO6), and providing explicit training in SPaG.

By the end of Year 9, students will have a clear, solid understanding of the foundational English knowledge and skills, ready to take on KS4 and their GCSEs. Students will also participate in a practice Speaking and Listening assessment (AO7) to prepare them for Year 10. Additionally, students will continue to engage in independent reading for enjoyment, with dedicated time (D.E.A.R) set aside for this activity at the beginning of each lesson.

At Key Stage 4

At GCSE, the AQA course encourages students to ‘read fluently and write effectively’ and ‘develop knowledge and skills in reading, writing and critical thinking’; Therefore our KS3 curriculum reflects these assessment objectives.

Research found in the Ofsted Research Review suggests that KS3 should offer a broad balanced curriculum, that exposes students to a wide range of high quality texts, which also allows students to carefully build and revisit individual skills, which are sequenced. Consequently, careful consideration has been taken to interleave and sequence the foundational skills and knowledge required for successful achievement.

By revisiting key skills throughout the course of KS3, students will build upon and develop a solid understanding of foundational English knowledge. This will ensure that by the end of Year 9, students are ready to approach and apply their knowledge and skills to GCSE texts/exams. 

5 year learning journey

5 year English Language river

5 year English Literature river

Specification

AQA English Language
 

AQA English Literature 

Careers

The skills you gain through studying English are marketable in most sectors. The major strength of studying English is the ability to communicate effectively, both orally and in writing. Some of the careers linked to the study of English are:

 

Assessment 

Each unit that students study is assessed through formative marking and feedback sheets. 

Students will sit a knowledge checkpoint quiz in Half Term 1, 3 and 5 and an EOT assessment in Half Term 2, 4 and 6. In Key Stage 4, English Language and Literature are taught as separate subjects and assessed using past exam papers in preparation for the GCSE at the end of Year 11.

 

Feedback

Marking sheets are used to check the presentation of the student's books as well as re-calling key vocabulary, that the students should use in a sentence, as well as containing a ‘do now’ task. These tasks are chosen based on the misconceptions found in 5 a day and application activities.

Teachers will give 1 piece of detailed feedback per half term. This should be on a piece of extended writing that is planned into the MTP’s. Students should be given a clear WWW and EBI in order to make improvements on their work. The English department use the feedback grids that are based off of the assessment criteria, teachers should mark as to where the students are within that criteria.

Learning beyond the classroom

Poetry live in London 

Globe Theatre Trips  

Witness for the prosecution theatre trip

Clubs:

Thursday Lunchtime Film Club with Miss McCluskey

Reading time: Every Break and Lunch in the Library

For supporting your creative writing:

The Thinking Shed - THE LITERACY SHED  A great website full of ideas to inspire your creative writing

For helping you to choose a good book:

School reading list - recommended books for children and teens. Reading is such an important part of English and at Meridian we encourage students to read independently and widely - this is a great site for ideas for year 7-11 students. So... Keep Reading!

For support with GCSE Language and Literature texts:

Home - BBC Bitesize

https://senecalearning.com  good revision site to help you learn faster and memorise better

Mr Bruff - YouTube  Really good lessons on all of the literature and language topics to watch and revise from

GCSE and A Level Revision | S-cool, the revision website 

http://www.englishbiz.co.uk/ English Language and Literature revision guides and practical strategies for writing and analysis.

Gojimo | the UK's most popular revision app popular revision app for English literature and language

SparkNotes: Today's Most Popular Study Guides  Sparknotes is a good resource for revision of the key Literature texts

GCSE English | CGP Books Physical revision guides to purchase for Language and Literature in KS3 and 4.