Curriculum Intent
At The Long Eaton School we are unapologetic in our ambition to create learners that are confident, aspirational and empathetic; young people who are empowered to succeed in the world. We believe that, through an engaging, culturally-rich and academically challenging curriculum we can lower walls and open doors, enabling our students to be advocates and self-advocates.
Our curriculum is both a window and a mirror, which explores voices throughout history, enabling all students to find their own voices in an ever-changing society. Powerful knowledge is carefully sequenced to develop articulate and successful readers and writers. Through a culture of inclusivity, it both supports and challenges learners to achieve their full potential.
Our English curriculum has been designed to develop a love of English language and literature through a culturally rich, diverse and exciting curriculum. It is sequenced to build and refine students’ skills from Key Stage Two. Over time, students’ abilities to respond to texts analytically and independently will be developed with a focus on how the writer’s choice of methods create meaning, along with the significance of contextual influences as they move into Year 9 in preparation for their GCSEs. Additionally, our focus on writing will enable our students to become confident, articulate and engaged students who can present a range of views effectively.
Please click on the following link to see an overview of our knowledge curriculum for English Language and English Literature:
ALT English Curriculum Overview
Curriculum Impact
At The Long Eaton School, we identify Curriculum End Points for each year group, which is an outline of the key knowledge and skills that students will possess once our curriculum intent has been effectively implemented throughout that year. The documents below will highlight the Curriculum End Points for each year group in English:
English Curriculum End Points Year 7
English Curriculum End Points Year 8
English Curriculum End Points Year 9
English Curriculum End Points Year 10
English Curriculum End Points Year 11
Key Stage 3 Overview:
At Key Stage 3 one of our priorities is teaching students the skills and giving them the confidence they need to succeed at GCSE. Through building media elements into each of our units, we are enabling students to access material through a range of techniques and preparing those of them that will choose AQA GCSE Media as an option for their future studies.
We have structured our KS3 thematically to ensure that students are exposed to a wide range of literature and language at all points in their English learning journey. This means that we do not teach one skill or area in isolation but teach fiction, non-fiction, poetry, literature and media together within units which focus on a theme. In addition, our themes have been chosen to maximise their exposure to a plethora of material which will enable them to see the links between themes, writers and styles. This will foster confidence in the students who will be practising and honing their skills in all disciplines of English continually and allow them to see the links between language and literature.
Key Stage 4 Overview:
All Year 10 and 11 students study for AQA GCSE English Language and AQA GCSE English Literature, with examinations at the end of Year 11. Across Year 10, students are introduced to a broad range of skills, genres and question styles that they will need for their examinations at the end of Year 11 as well as the bulk of literary texts they will need to know. Beginning with the play An Inspector Calls and the classic novella A Christmas Carol, students will then study a range of non-fiction and fiction extracts to develop their skills of inference, analytical writing and original writing. They will also study a collection of poetry on the theme of Power and Conflict.
After studying the play Macbeth during the first term, Year 11 is focused on preparing students for their exams at the end of the year, teaching any poems not explored in Year 10 and returning to and revising all the core texts. The year will also be heavily focused on developing students’ creativity, idea development and responses to previously unseen texts. Assessment becomes a real focus as students take an increasing number of mock exams to prepare them for their final exams.
Potential careers:
Good English skills are essential for all careers, the ability to write well, communicate clearly and read and understand are the basics that employers will expect.
Some careers that English might be particularly helpful include:
Journalist, Writer, Lawyer, Editor, Civil Servant, Acting, Teaching, Human Resources.
Useful links or websites:
GCSE English Language AQA: https://www.aqa.org.uk/subjects/english/gcse/english-language-8700
GCSE English Literature AQA: https://www.aqa.org.uk/subjects/english/gcse/english-literature-8702
BBC Bitesize:
KS3: https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/levels/z4kw2hv
KS4: https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/levels/z98jmp3
Oak National Academy: https://www.thenational.academy/
Project Gutenberg: https://www.gutenberg.org/
