At Grange Park, our goal is to create an English curriculum that challenges and inspires our pupils to continually build their skills and confidence in reading, writing, speaking and listening. From classic novels to Shakespeare plays and modern fiction, pupils will enjoy reading and studying a broad range of texts. Pupils will also develop imaginative creative writing skills, from formal letters to descriptive stories. In addition, we focus on how this knowledge can be applied to the real world, supporting pupils to make the next steps in their future studies and careers. 

  

Intent 

Our intent is to ensure all students follow a pathway that gives them every opportunity to progress and succeed in English. Working in small group classes, pupils are supported within a nurturing learning environment and are given any help and guidance they may need. From Key Stage 2-5, they will follow an engaging, varied programme of study based on National Curriculum guidelines that is tailored to meet their individual needs. We carefully scaffold tasks to help pupils make progress, as well as providing enough stretch and challenge to help them make consistently good progress in all areas. 

  

English also leads the school in supporting pupils to continually improve the accuracy of their spelling, punctuation and grammar. This is essential for external assessments, such as coursework and examinations, and when pupils are applying for jobs or embarking on their first careers. 

  

Implementation 

Throughout their time at Grange Park, pupils’ learning in English will be informed by high quality, well-structured sequences of lessons that encourage them to think, articulate and write in engaging and challenging ways. We also provide clear verbal and written feedback that encourages pupils to quickly address misconceptions and make improvements that will help them in future lessons. 

 

At Grange Park, we aim that all pupils will leave Year 6 writing with confidence, fluency and understanding, using a range of independent strategies to take responsibility for their own learning including: an interest in words and their meanings; monitoring and correcting their own errors; and independently reviewing their learning.

 

Across KS2, lessons are always structured around carefully chosen, high quality texts which are linked to other areas of the curriculum. The teaching of English is broken into multiple strands – Writing, Spelling, Handwriting, Punctuation and Grammar. We follow a structured phonics programme to support children with their reading. Reading is taught separately in discreet lessons. Scaffolds and supports will be carefully tailored to support children develop their compositional, grammatical, spelling and punctuation skills to a variety of text types. They will be taught how to reflectively and purposefully edit and improve their own writing and our aim is for all children to leave Year 6 writing with confidence, fluency and understanding, using a range of independent strategies.

 

Lessons are always structured around key texts which is linked to the topic being studied each term.

 

During Key Stage 3, lessons are always structured around key texts, including novels, plays and poetry. These are carefully chosen to appeal to learners, giving them opportunities to hone their reading skills and inspire their creativity. To help with encouraging reading for pleasure, the department runs a carousel of experiences based around timetabled library lessons. Pupils have opportunities to choose their own books, develop their adeptness in reading for meaning and enjoy novels being read to them. 

  

From Year 9, most pupils will begin a two-year course in English Literature that will build on the skillset they developed earlier in Key Stage 3. Pupils needing additional support in English will complete the NCFE Essential English for Everyday Life course (Entry Level 3). As well as earning them a qualification, this will also help pupils work towards starting a two-year GCSE English Language course in Year 10. Furthermore, they will continue Key Stage 3 lessons centered around engaging fiction, plays and poetry. 

  

During KS4, pupils studying English Literature will be given extensive, personalised support to help them prepare for their examinations. After they have taken these exams, they will begin a year-long GCSE English Language course ahead of their transition to college. 

 

To ensure all pupils achieve an accreditation in English, we have also successfully run NCFE Entry Level courses and AQA’s Step Up to English. It is vital we can offer this flexibility to ensure all groups and individuals have an appropriate pathway to follow. 

  

At KS5, we continue to adapt to meet the needs of each new intake. Based on the qualifications pupils achieved at KS4, we can offer English Language GCSE, NFCE qualifications at Entry Level 2-3 or Functional Skills Level 1 qualifications to ensure pupils are suitably challenged. 

  

Impact 

The impact of our curriculum is demonstrated in our rapidly rising outcomes in English, including more students than ever before achieving GCSEs in Language and Literature.  

 

Furthermore, all pupils entered for Entry Level courses secured qualifications at their anticipated levels. Consequently, many of these pupils now have the confidence and skill base to begin the GCSE Language course. 

  

Across all year groups, pupils are increasingly independent in their work and more ambitious about the results they can achieve. 

  

For further information about our English curriculum, please contact our Head of English, Mr Paul Devlin.