English
All students take GCSEs in both English Language and English Literature.
Girls are naturally interested in communication. We nurture this interest, supporting it with technical skills and a wider appreciation of literature. 
In Years 7 to 9 students learn how to use a variety of writing styles, look at text in different media, consider poetry, prose and theatre writing, and hone their own skills in a range of speaking and listening activities. Taking an active part in class is essential. Most of our students are voracious readers and many are gifted writers. We encourage them to share their ideas with each other and, sometimes, expand their reading lists!
| Autumn Term | Spring Term | Summer term | |
| Year 7 | Non-Fiction: Autobiographical Writing Prose Study: Skellig by David Almond |
Non-Fiction and Media: Advertising Poetry Study: The Romantic Period |
Shakespeare Study: The Tempest or A Midsummer Night’s Dream Prose Study: Pre-1914 Prose Project |
| Year 8 | Prose Study: Holes by Louis Sacher or Stone Cold by Robert Swindells Shakespeare Study: Twelfth Night or The Merchant of Venice |
Literary Non-Fiction: Travel Writing
Non-Fiction: The Language of Persuasion |
Poetry Study: 9/11 Project (An exploration of 21st Century Poetry) Media: Introduction to Film Analysis |
| Year 9 | Poetry Study: The Poetry of WW1 Prose Study: Frankenstein by Mary Shelley; Heroes by Robert Cormier; Woman in Black by Susan Hill | Shakespeare Study: Macbeth or Much Ado About Nothing Non-Fiction and Media: Developing Non-Fiction writing skills inspired by To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee | Poetry Study: Poems from Other Cultures GCSE Transition Unit: Developing skills of analysis and interpretation |
Sitting Exams up to and including Summer 2016
English Language IGCSE (AQA:8705)
Coursework (40%) - 1 exam (50%) - speaking and listening (10%).
In Years 10 and 11 students further develop their communication skills; learn how to express themselves creatively; to become critical readers who can use the work of other writers to inspire their own; to understand the patterns, structures and conventions used in written and spoken English; to relate these to identity and cultural diversity; and to adapt their own tone and style to different situations.
English Literature GCSE (Cambridge iGCSE: 0486)
1 Controlled Assessment (25%) - 2 exams (75%).
In Years 10 and 11 students consider texts from the English literary heritage; explore how texts from different times and places reflect or influence values; become critical readers of fiction and non-fiction prose, poetry and drama; learn to connect ideas, themes and issues from several sources; and experience the world through literary texts.
Sitting Exams from Summer 2017
English Language (AQA 8700)
Paper 1: Explorations in Creative Reading and Writing – reading questions based on an unseen passage from a literature text and a descriptive or narrative based writing task. 1hr 45min exam (50% of the total marks)
Paper 2: Writers’ Viewpoints and Perspectives – reading questions based upon one unseen non-fiction and one unseen literary non-fiction text and a piece of writing to express a viewpoint. 1hr 45 min (50% of the total marks)
Non-Exam Assessment: Spoken Language – students will be asked to deliver a presentation to an audience and respond effectively to questioning using Standard English.
English Literature (AQA 8702)
Paper 1: Shakespeare and the 19th- century novel – students will write two extended essays based upon extracts from one Shakespeare text and one 19th-century novel. 1hr 45min (40% of the total marks)
Paper 2: Modern Texts and Poetry – students will write one essay on a modern prose or drama text, followed by a comparative essay based upon anthology poetry and a response to an unseen poem. 2hr 15 min (60% of marks)
| Autumn Term | Spring Term | Summer term | |
| Year 10 | English Literature Paper 1: Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare English Literature Paper 2: Poems Past and Present (Power & Conflict) |
English Language Paper 2: Writers’ Viewpoints and Perspectives English Literature Paper 2: An Inspector Calls by J.B. Priestley |
English Language Paper 1: Explorations in Creative Reading & Writing Year 10 Revision Project including Spoken Language Assessment |
| Year 11 | English Literature Paper 1: 19th Century Novel Study (Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë) English Literature Paper 2: Approaches to Unseen Poetry |
English Language Paper 2: Writers’ Viewpoints and Perspectives Revision & Spoken Language Assessment English Literature Paper 1 & Paper 2 Revision | English Language Paper 1 & 2 Revision |
Love English? Consider English Language and English Literature A-levels .