CURRICULUM STRUCTURE

Our Mission states that we want all pupils to maximise their potential, develop a thirst for knowledge and the skills to enable life long learning.  To allow this to happen, our curriculum must be relevant, balanced and must be reviewed on a regular basis.

Schemes of Work

Schemes of work must reflect the needs of individual departments.  However, they do include the following common features:-

• Learning outcomes
• Assessment opportunities
• ICT opportunities
• Delivery of citizenship
• Resources
• Opportunities for independent learning, including homework suggestions
• Spiritual, moral, social and cultural aspects

Timetable

There are 40 lessons per week, each lesson being 40 minutes long.  Some lessons are double lessons and a few triple (e.g. Home Economics, Games).

Year 7, Year 8 and Year 9

All pupils study Science, Maths, English, Modern and Foreign Languages, History, Geography, Religious Studies, Music, Drama, Information Technology, Art, Textiles, Home Economics and Design Technology. 

We broadly follow the National Curriculum with pupils sitting Key Stage 3 SATs in English, Mathematics and Science at the end of Year 9. 

There is a PSHE lesson each week, in which issues relating to sex education and drugs are covered as well as other topics, e.g.  citizenship, careers, behaviour, finance.

In Year 7, there is a Study Skills course, which is designed to develop different ways of learning.

Pupils study French in Year 7 and then, for most pupils, German is introduced in Year 8. 

Pupils are placed in teaching groups according to ability – the school uses MidYIS data to help make the selection of pupils for groups reliable.

Years 10 and 11 - examination courses

In Year 9, pupils are given the opportunity to choose options.  Work in PSE lessons, together with an Options Evening for pupils and parents prepares them for this important stage.  Pupils choose the subjects in a straw poll from which 4 option blocks are established.  Their final choices are scrutinised by tutors and Heads of Department to ensure choices are suitable.  Some pupils are encouraged to choose 3 options to enable them to receive extra support whilst other pupils might choose a third Science or an accelerated language group.

The following are the option blocks offered to the current Year 10:

Extra-Curricular Activities

The School has a range of extra-curricular activities which support the curriculum and enhance life in the School.  The following activities are running this year:-

Senior Drama Club

Junior Drama Club

Music Clubs, e.g. Wind Band, Choir, Jazz Band, Orchestra

Sports Clubs, e.g. Cross Country, Athletics

Chess Club

Survival and Sustainability Club

The School also runs a number of trips.  This year, we are organising trips to Iceland, Normandy, Paris, Germany, and a ski trip.