Intent

We study English in order to create empathetic, thoughtful and eloquent people. Through language, students examine the spoken and written word and develop their own communication, using language in all its forms. Elements of language help students recognise the subtleties, explicit and implicit meanings, and power of words. Students can be creative in English: imagining worlds far from their own and emulating the language used by great public speakers, journalists, and authors from across time. Through literature, students immerse themselves in the lives of others, learning what it is to be human and view the world from different perspectives, enhancing their own experiences and empathising with those far removed or close by.​

To fully embed these principles, our curriculum journey focuses on:

• Providing an abundant experience of learning, through studying a range of text forms from different periods in time.
• Building in diversity and experiences from different cultures.
• Deep learning of core skills over the course of whole terms.
• Creating a learning journey that is logical, metacognitive and where core skills are periodically reviewed.
• Using assessment milestones to keep students on track and to monitor continued progress.
• Laying the foundations of literacy and grammar.
• Empowering students to study and write independently through homework tasks that are linked to their work in the classroom.
• Ensuring tasks and assessments are consistently ambitious and challenging, whilst supporting and routinely consolidating key skills.
• Allowing students to enjoy their learning, experience success and gain fulfillment through closely monitored progress.

Ethos

We recognise the importance of English: students can often be deceived to think that English is a standalone entity, but we know that through English, we empower them to use their language across the curriculum and their lives. Students learn actively in English, enhancing themselves as spoken communicators, masters of the written word, aspiring towards passionate and wide readers. Students are able to see what other writers, speakers and performers have done, and then respond critically and imaginatively. Poetry lies at the heart of our curriculum, each poem enriching students to gain insight into the worlds of those different to themselves, both traditional and modern – exploring poetry leads students to think critically about language and meaning. Through exploration of fiction and non-fiction in its many forms, students become adept at noticing subtle changes of tone and meaning, as well as tying texts together with thematic analysis. Students will grow to appreciate the written and spoken word, experiencing texts that often present opportunities to enrich them: socially, morally, spiritually and across a range of cultures.