English

Non-Fiction

Overview

Non-Fiction is a module using texts that are informative and factual, rather than fictional. We will study a variety of forms such as: reviews, newspaper articles, letters and travel writing, and practise our discursive and analytical writing skills.
Grammar focus: Sentence types – simple, compound, complex, listing, bracketing, commas.

Prior Knowledge and Skills

• Using same terminology as primary feeder schools.
• Engaging with the same forms of writing used in primary schools.
• Building on topics covered in primary school e.g. The Holocaust.

New Learning

• Introduction to the RASOR acronym.
• Sharper focus on methods used in non-fiction.
• Deeper consideration of authorial background and cultural influence.

Short Stories

Overview

Short Stories is a unit that teaches us how to analyse fictionalised narratives written by others. We will be using the WHAT, HOW, WHY structure to organise our analysis and explore how both language and structural devices work to construct meanings and impact. There will also be opportunities to imitate the craft of writers and produce our own short stories.
Grammar focus: Semi-colons, elements of a text (topic sentences, paragraphs, introductions and conclusions).

Prior Knowledge and Skills

• Exploration of why writers may make particular decisions.
• Revisiting grammar: sentence types.
• Return to punctuation – listing and commas in particular.

New Learning

• Tackle longer and more complex texts.
• Explore fiction from different periods.
• Exploration of more subtle language devices.
• Consideration of genre

Class Novel: My Sister Lives on the Mantelpiece

Overview

My Sister Lives on the Mantlepiece is a modern novel that tackles many topical issues such as racism, depression, bullying and divorce. We will analyse the novel with a sharp focus on characterisation and theme.
Grammar focus: Structure to create tension, syntax.

Prior Knowledge and Skills

• In Short Stories we analyse texts, usually over the course of one lesson, and we will be using the same analytical skills here but, by reading one text, we can focus on applying much more depth and detail.
• Study of language and structure.
• Revisiting grammar.

New Learning

• Focus on one novel, rather than a collection of shorter texts.
• Exploration of more mature themes.
• Close exploration of character/theme and how Pitcher develops this.

Creative Writing

Overview

Creative Writing is a module that explores techniques and strategies for powerful and engaging stories, descriptions and speeches. We will practise effective planning and learn to be more evaluative when redrafting work.
Grammar focus: Sentence agility –
Frontal adverbials, non-finite verb openings, prepositional openings.

Prior Knowledge and Skills

• During Short Stories we looked at how writers communicate clearly with effective use of language and structural techniques. This module builds on those skills and sees us apply them to creative writing ideas.
• Semi-colons
• Using fiction writers as models for writing

New Learning

• Opportunity to be creative whilst being able to implement the devices previously studied.
• Writing in different forms.
• Introduction to the TRICK acronym.

Poetry

Overview

Poetry is a module that teaches us not only how to analyse poetry in a way separate from novels and other texts, but also how to write poetry ourselves in a variety of forms.
Grammar focus : Syntax, rhyme, metre

Prior Knowledge and Skills

• The ability to creatively express ourselves is used in this module much like in Creative Writing, as is the study/use of language devices and effective vocabulary.
• Consideration of authorial choices
• Consideration of impact

New Learning

• Introduction to metre
• Exposure to different forms of poems e.g. sonnets, haikus etc.
• Opportunity to craft a poem, using other writers to help inform ideas.
• Learning the history of sonnets- from Petrarch to Shakespeare, to Clare to Armitage

Shakespeare play: Romeo and Juliet

Overview

In this module we analyse the play Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare. We study not only the characters and plot but also the context of Elizabethan England, issues around gender, religion and fate.
Grammar focus: Adverbs, comparative and superlative adjectives, nouns, plural nouns, the genitive case (the apostrophe), contractions.

Prior Knowledge and Skills

• Shakespeare writes in a poetic and extremely intelligent style that our study of poetry will help us understand.
• We make use of the detailed analysis skills practised in the last module along with the subject terminology used to identify his methods.
• Reconsideration of poetic form

New Learning

• Exploration of tragic genre.
• Consideration of Elizabethan England.
• Study of a performative text.
• Exploration of dramatic conventions

Politics in Non-Fiction

Overview

Politics in Non-Fiction is a unit of work focusing on different debates, such as animal rights, feminism, healthcare and racial injustice. In this unit, we engage with a range of non-fiction texts and the methods writers use to convey political issues.

Grammar focus: Structuring discursive writing, semi-colons, dashes and colons. Using paragraphs for effect.

Prior Knowledge and Skills

• This unit of work seeks to develop and build on discussions and debates of political issues within non-fiction texts which links to your Year 7 scheme and ideas of non-fiction.
• We will also continue to develop and consolidate our grammar skills from last year.
• We will continue to consider authorial intent

New Learning

• Explore texts that centre around a particular political theme.
• Write articles that have a political focus.
• Explore the Aristotelian structure of writing an article.

Of Mice and Men

Overview

Of Mice and Men is a novella written by American author John Steinbeck in the late 1930s. The text itself explores many topical issues such as racism, economic depression, misogyny and murder. We will analyse the novella with a sharp focus on characterisation and theme, acknowledging the contextual background of the writer/text.
Grammar focus: Colloquial speech, dialects, syndetic and asyndetic listing, language as an indicator of marginalisation.

Prior Knowledge and Skills

• During Politics in Non-Fiction, we explored a range of texts from different time periods (including the 1930s) and how they were crafted.
• We continue to explore politics, particularly looking at marginalisation, but in a fictionalised text.
• Continue to explore elements of language and structure for analysis.

New Learning

• Exploration of mature themes
• Exploration of colloquial language for impact
• Focus on lexis and etymology
• Consideration of pathos

Nineteenth Century Literature

Overview

In this programme of study, Nineteenth Century Literature, we will study texts written during a previous century, identifying particularly how context has an impact on texts.
Grammar focus: Structure for purpose e.g. creating tension, sentence agility.

Prior Knowledge and Skills

• During Of Mice and Men, we explored the historical context at the time Steinbeck wrote the novella and considered how this might have affected his attitudes and ideas.
• Themes of prejudice based on race, gender, disability and class were also explored.
• Consideration of the novella as a vehicle to present a perspective on current affairs.

New Learning

• Exploration of specific Victorian language and more archaic terms.
• Exposure to a range of writers from a particular time in history.
• Study of writers such as Dickens, Shelley, Elliott, and Poe

Nineteenth Century Class Novel: The Curious Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde

Overview

In our study of A Nineteenth Century Novel (The Sign of the Four or Jekyll and Hyde), we will study a text in great depth written during a previous century, identifying how context has an impact on texts. We will look particularly at prevalent themes within the novel and how the writer manipulates their craft to showcase these.
Grammar focus: Sentence types and clauses

Prior Knowledge and Skills

• Building on awareness of nineteenth century context
• Exploring key themes such as class, and gender
• Writers’ use of their texts as a vehicle to present perspectives on current affairs

New Learning

• Study of a nineteenth century at a whole text level
• Exploration of key nineteenth century context prevalent to the particular text studied
• Consideration of motifs and symbolism

Global Perspectives

Overview

In our study of Global Perspectives, we will explore works from a range of varied writers from across the world, with links to global issues and different cultures. We will consider how writers use language and structure effectively and consider differences between contexts and cultures of writers.

Prior Knowledge and Skills

• Exploring the historical context of the time period
• Study how cultural background might have affected writers’ attitudes and ideas.

New Learning

• We are going to broaden our knowledge by applying our knowledge to a global context to see how cultures and contexts vary around the world.
• Exploration of marginalised voices.
• Consider the evolution of language and theme.

War Poetry

Overview

In our study of War Poetry, we will explore a range of poems on the topic of war. We will
focus on analysing language and structure and use our previous knowledge of poetic techniques to enhance and develop our analysis skills.
Grammar focus: rhyme, syllables, rhythm, free verse, sonnet, speaker, stanza, simile, metaphor, personification, alliteration, onomatopoeia, tone, theme, repetition.

Prior Knowledge and Skills

• Knowledge of the poetic form.
• Knowledge of metre.
• Study of poetic conventions.

New Learning

• Explore both pro-war and anti-war poetry, considering how writers have been influenced.
• Exploring ideas of context, but in relation to war.
• To explore war poets from a variety of backgrounds and cultures.

Shakespeare Play: Much Ado About Nothing

Overview

In our study of Much Ado About Nothing, we will focus on analysing language and structure by applying it to the genre of comedy. We will interrogate Shakespearean context/ history, research the Elizabethan era, and study different extracts of plays through a shared focus such as power, villains, heroes, magic

Prior Knowledge and Skills

• Exploration of Elizabethan context.
• Exploration of Shakespearean conventions.
• Sharp focus on language and structure.

New Learning

• Analyse with a sharp focus on comedy.
• Consider Shakespearean crafting of humour i.e. puns.
• Exploration of rhetoric.

Crime Writing

Overview

Crime Writing is a unit of work focusing on a range of fiction and non-fiction texts which enable us to develop our analysis (both language and structure) and exploration of writer intent. Creative writing elements within the scheme will also allow us to develop an understanding of crime writing conventions and how to use them to engage readers within our own writing.
Grammar focus: Semi-colon and colon, hyphen, parenthesis

Prior Knowledge and Skills

• Engaging with a range of fiction extracts.
• Consideration of authorial intent.
• Use of context to better shape understanding.

New Learning

• Explicit study of the crime writing genre.
• Study of writers such as Armitage, Dahl, Stevenson etc.
• Explore sub-genres and their effects.

Class Novel: Animal Farm

Overview

Animal Farm, a novella written by George Orwell in 1944, enables us to explore allegory and the power of story-writing to convey deeper meaning. You will explore historical context, writer’s craft and will complete an in-depth study of the political allegory.

Grammar focus: Topic sentences, paragraphs, introductions and conclusions.
Punctuation for effect.
Structural devices.

Prior Knowledge and Skills

• Explore political views of a writer.
• To consider authorial intent and context.
• Sharp focus on characterisation and theme.

New Learning

• Exploration of Marxism and Communism.
• Introduction to the allegorical form, particularly considering the politics of this.
• Consideration of the impact of The Russian Revolution.

Analysis Agility

Overview

Analysis Agility, a unit of work focusing on explicitly developing our analysis (both language and structure) of a variety of texts from different time periods and of different genres.

Grammar focus: Revision of all grammatical skills taught so far relevant to the emerging needs of teaching groups

Prior Knowledge and Skills

• This unit of work seeks to develop and consolidate your work on Animal Farm, where we analysed language and explored the structure of an extract.
• Consider methods used by writers.
• Consider authorial choice and intended impact.

New Learning

• Application of previous knowledge to a range of unseen extracts.
• Engage with only part of a text, being particularly evaluative about how methods are used.
• Engage with an opinion statement and direct your analysis in the relevant way.

Shakespeare Play: A Midsummer Night’s Dream

Overview

This unit of work focuses closely on developing our analysis (both language and structure) and exploration of writer intent. Within this, we will also be considering the importance of Elizabethan England and its relevance to the play and how this shapes meaning. Creative writing elements within the scheme will also allow you to develop an understanding of script-writing conventions and how to use them to engage readers within your own writing.
Grammar focus: Script writing conventions.
Aside, soliloquy, denouement, dramatic irony, foreshadowing, fourth wall, symbolism, chronology of characters and themes, stage directions, settings, props.
Parenthesis, italics.

Prior Knowledge and Skills

• Consideration of Elizabethan England.
• Recapping of poetic form and metre.
• Recapping of comedy genre.

New Learning

• We will study the conventions of script-writing, and put this into practice by writing our own script.
• Consideration of soliloquies and performative impact.
• Evolution of language and archaic terms.

Love and Relationships Poetry

Overview

Love and Relationships poetry is a unit of work focusing closely on developing your analysis (both language and structure) of poetry, drawing closely on context to explore the impact of culture and history on developing meaning within literature. We will learn and identify a range of poetic techniques and explore how they develop an understanding of the writer’s purpose, and consider how they differ from techniques used in narratives to provide different impacts on readers.
Grammar Focus: Poetic structure i.e. caesura, refrain, rhyme scheme, Iambic pentameter, free verse.

Prior Knowledge and Skills

• Explore a variety of poems that are thematically connected.
• Analysis and inference skills.
• Exploration of the poetic form

New Learning

• Learn how to approach poetry comparison.
• Higher level poetic terminology will be studied (i.e. Petrarchan vs. Elizabethan sonnets).
• Consideration of sub-themes and the significance of this.

Non-Fiction (Inference and Analysis)

Overview

Non-Fiction is a module using texts that are informative and factual, rather than fictional to further our analysis of writer’s perspectives. Students will explore multiple extracts alongside each other, analysing language and comparing writers’ viewpoints and perspectives.
Grammar Focus: Language change over time – lexis, syntax and presentation.
Revision of previous year, plus connections between sentences, drafting, proof reading.

Prior Knowledge and Skills

• Interleaving with Analysis Agility.
• Engagement with non-fiction extracts.
• Inference, deduction, and analysis skills.

New Learning

• Opportunity to compare two non-fiction texts by writers’ perspective.
• Explore the issue of representation in depth.
• Exploring how different methods can be used to express a mutual theme across texts.

Class Play: An Inspector Calls

Overview

When studying Priestley’s play, An Inspector Calls, we will closely develop our knowledge of the Edwardian period and post-war Britain. We will explore how key historical, political and societal issues during the time shaped literature.
Analysing language, structure, key themes and character portrayal within the play will enable us to consider the writer’s intentions and the importance of the text to its time period and beyond.
Grammar focus: Adverbs, comparative and superlative adjectives, nouns, plural nouns, the genitive case (the apostrophe), contractions.

Prior Knowledge and Skills

• The dramatic form.
• Study the text as a political vehicle.
• Exploration of political themes such as class and gender.

New Learning

• Explore how socialism and capitalism are personified through characters.
• Consider Priestley’s political inclinations when producing this text and the impact of this on an audience.
• To consider the intentional disparity between the play’s first performance, and the year in which the play is set.

Macbeth

Overview

We will be studying Macbeth, one of Shakespeare’s greatest tragic plays. We will focus particularly on themes and characters and track how these develop across the entire play. We will hone our analysis of language and structure in preparation for our GCSE Paper 1 in English Literature.
Grammar Focus: Vocabulary, the changing of language over time, form, iambic pentameter, trochaic tetrameter, stichomythia.

Prior Knowledge and Skills

• Study of a Shakespearean text.
• Tragic themes.
• Consideration of Jacobean context.

New Learning

• How metre can be exploited to marginalise (i.e. trochaic tetrametre vs. iambic pentametre).
• Adopt a historicist approach to analysing literature.
• Link to other Shakespearean tragedies not explicitly taught in the KS3 or KS4 curriculum (e.g. Titus Andronicus, King Lear, Othello).

Year 7

Non-Fiction

Short Stories

Class Novel: My Sister Lives on the Mantelpiece

Creative Writing

Poetry

Shakespeare play: Romeo and Juliet

Year 8

Politics in Non-Fiction

Of Mice and Men

Nineteenth Century Literature

Nineteenth Century Class Novel: The Curious Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde

Global Perspectives

War Poetry

Shakespeare Play: Much Ado About Nothing

Year 9

Crime Writing

Class Novel: Animal Farm

Analysis Agility

Shakespeare Play: A Midsummer Night’s Dream

Love and Relationships Poetry

Non-Fiction (Inference and Analysis)

Class Play: An Inspector Calls

Year 10

Macbeth

Power and Conflict Poetry

Unseen Poetry Analysis and Comparison

English Language Papers 1 and 2

Nineteenth Century Novel: A Christmas Carol

Writing using Literature as a Stimulus

Y10 to Y11 Bridging Unit

Year 11

Literature Revision

Language Papers 1 and 2 Revision

Modern Play: An Inspector Calls Revision (Approximately 20 lessons).

Unseen Poetry Analysis and Comparison

Literature Revision

Language Writing Focus