English (Language and Literature)

Passion makes learning fun and there is no shortage of passion within the English department! Join us in diving in to a rich variety of fiction and non-fiction texts; investigate the context and the inspiration that drove the authors to put pen to paper; study the writers’ methods to express their views, thoughts and passions and be inspired to express yourself through your own writing. GCSE English isn’t just about reading and writing, but about exploring and appreciating the world around us and having fun on that journey through the past, present and future.

 English Vision Statement and Curriculum Overview

 

Curriculum Intent:

"Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire.”
― William Butler Yeats

Education has the power to change lives and improve life chances. It brings meaning to and understanding of the world around us. It breaks down barriers, inspires us to believe in ourselves and to not limit our goals and aspirations - no matter what our background.

English has the power to open doors and lower walls for our pupils to the wider world around them. At Merrill Academy, through the exploration of a wide and diverse range of literature texts we can challenge our pupils thinking, spark their curiosity and drive them to question and critique what they read. This allows them to form their own ideas, views and opinions and to independently seek out more knowledge to further enhance and challenge their understanding. This in turn grows and nurtures their joy and passion for reading and enhances their ability to express their views effectively, to be listened to and most importantly, to be heard.

By expanding pupils’ knowledge, vocabulary and communication skills they are able to see the world from different perspectives, influence and bring about positive social change, contribute to improving the communities they live in and to achieve their goals and aspirations.

KS3  Curriculum Overview

Year 7

Unit 1: Beowulf and Chaucer: The Origins of Language

Unit 2: Homer’s ‘The Odyssey’ and other Epics, Myths and Legends

Unit 3: Creative Writing: Descriptive and Narrative

Unit 4:Introduction to Shakespeare and his Heroes and Villains

 

Year 8

Unit 1: Frankenstein and the Gothic

Unit 2: Concepts of Morality: Dr Faustus and World Literature

Unit 3: The Romantics and The Enlightenment: Humanity’s Changing Relationship with the World

Unit 4: Stevenson’s Jekyll and Hyde: Investigating Crime, Punishment and the Duality of Human Nature

 

Year 9

Unit 1:Shakespeare’s Macbeth: A Close Study

Unit 2: Mastering the Art of Rhetoric and She Wolves

Unit 3: Orwell’s Animal Farm and Dystopian Literature

Unit 4: An Introduction to the Victorians

 

KS4 Curriculum Overview – Pupils study AQA English Language and English Literature GCSEs

Year 10

Unit 1: A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens

Unit 2: Language Paper 1

Unit 3: Power and Conflict Poetry

Unit 4:Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet

 

Year 11

Unit 1: An Inspector Calls by J B Priestley

Unit 2: Language Paper 2

Unit 3: Revision and Recall

Free to use English books

A Christmas Carol

Romeo And Juliet 

An Inspector Calls