We aim to excite and enthuse our students and give them not only a love of literature, but a love of learning. We re-write our learning schemes each year and invest heavily in new books across the genres. We are an experienced team with a focus on personalised learning for each individual. This means that we plan, take action and review as a team and are committed to continuously strengthening our subject pedagogy. We have progression at the heart of all our planning and track student development so that personalised intervention can be provided.
Key Stage 3
Key Stage Three aims to provide students with varied and valuable experiences of English in action. Underpinned by the National Secondary Strategy and National Curriculum, the skills covered and acquired by students equip them for life. We have re-written all of our programmes of study to satisfy the new curriculum, and our overviews are below:
Key Stage 4
Key Stage Four prepares students for internationally recognised qualifications, for further education, and for a lifetime of global communication. Our KS4 students follow the AQA syllabus for study in GCSE English Language and GCSE Literature. The courses combine the study of reading and writing and speaking and listening. During the course, all students will be expected to challenge themselves and have high aspirations for attainment. Progress is monitored and all students are expected to actively engage with the wide variety of resources which are used to unlock their potential.
We ask that students come to lesson equipped with a pen, pencil, eraser, ruler and a reading book, as well as highlighters for identifying key points in texts. Homework is used to enhance and secure the skills needed to be successful in English, and to solidify the learning that has taken place in the classroom.
Students learn about a variety of text types and will focus on how authors covey themes, ideas and structure, as well as how they portray character and voice. All students will explore a variety of linguistic and presentational devices in a wide variety of media texts, including film, webpages and advertising. Lessons are structured, with clear learning objectives and learning outcomes, as well as a variety of motivational tasks throughout. We believe in collaborative enquiry and well as independent research, and students often mark their own work and that of others in the group.
Reading at Lostock
Students are provided with many opportunities to develop their reading skills. Critical reading and reading for pleasure is encouraged and time is made in lessons for each student to develop their reading skills. Texts covered include poems, plays, novels, short stories, magazines and newspapers, internet sites, advertisements, reviews, reports, brochures, diaries and travel writing. Each teacher shares their own reading experiences with their students, and we are always eager to hear about our student’s reading habits too!
Writing at Lostock
Students will develop their writing through participation in a variety of activities that will focus on styles, contexts and purposes. We will explore various planning methods to help students build on their ideas and develop detailed, structured writing. During the course, students will produce texts such as poems, stories, summaries, play scripts, reports, reviews, and creative and descriptive writing pieces. We run numerous competitions throughout the year and are proud of our past students who have had their works published in books and magazines.
Assessment for and of Learning
Students will be assessed in multifarious ways in English. Each half term will present students with the opportunity to complete two formally assessed pieces of work, either in reading, writing or speaking and listening. In addition to this, students will participate in learning activities where they review and assess their work with peers and individually. Once each piece is completed, the class teacher will work with the student to identify what has been achieved and highlight any areas of improvement. This process initiates target setting and helps develop our approach to personalised learning. Students are fully supported at each stage of the learning process and we are hugely proud of the achievements of our past students.
The English curriculum is enhanced by a number of enrichment activities including a reading club, homework clubs and a range of trips and visits. Some of our KS4 students have visited the Lowry to see a production of ‘Of Mice and Men’ by John Steinbeck, and we were lucky enough to see James Corden in ‘One Man, Two Governors’ before the show went to Broadway! We run creative writing competitions for those students interested in developing their writing skills and each year we take a trip to Oxford University for a tour of the colleges and to motivate our top achievers.