The Story of English is a new 3 week language focused unit which forms part of our new curriculum content launch this Spring.
We caught up with Stephanie Kennedy, the writer of this unit, to learn more about her experience of research and creating the Story of English.
Does The Story of English follow a chronological structure?
This unit spans a period of 1500 years and pulls out key aspects of British and world history. Whilst it is centred around developing a chronological understanding of the development of the English language, it will also deepen children’s understanding of British and world history.
How do you relate the history of Britain to the rest of the world in this unit?
Although this unit is about the history of the English language and incorporates many aspects of British history, it also has an international focus. It explains how the English language developed as waves of successive settlers and influences came to the British Isles and how later, English grew into the language it is today, used all over the world.
Describe an exciting resource that you’ve included in this unit
I am really excited by the wide range of resources that are used in this unit. These included sources from the British Library such as artifacts of manuscripts, to the animated tales of Shakespeare and the interactive tool Google Ngram.
What do you think learners will enjoy about this unit?
This unit provides the opportunity to develop a chronological understanding of language through pupil driven research. Children are encouraged to learn through a range of diverse hands-on activities.
What do you think teachers will enjoy about this unit?
This units complements elements of English language teaching with a focus on etymology. It will encourage children to explore the richness of language and how words are used. By exploring different word origins, children will be better able to identify spelling patterns and words types. References to different texts such as Beowulf, The Canterbury Tales and various works of Shakespeare are included to give children a framework to understand how English has evolved. It links the development of language and literature from a range of angles, providing a snapshot of important events and figures throughout history.