English

The English Learning Journey at St Aidan’s Catholic Academy is meticulously designed to build upon pupils’ primary experience taking them on a seven-year journey through the landscape of English Literature. It stands as a model of how to integrate chronological historical context, linguistic development, and grammatical understanding within a literature curriculum. Our curriculum aims not only to cover a wide spectrum of genres, historical periods, authors, and forms as mandated by the National Curriculum but also to delve deeper into the evolution of literature and its role in mirroring and shaping societal changes over time.

Our curriculum is reflective of a belief in the transformative power of literature education to equip pupils with the literacy and oracy skills necessary for full participation in society, while also fostering a deep appreciation for the richness of English literature and its capacity to explain, reflect, and influence the world. As a member of the Bishop Chadwick Catholic Education Trust, we work closely with our Primary School partners to ensure curriculum continuity. Consequently, we believe our curriculum allows pupils to make outstanding progress in the four domains: literary studies; complex composition; grammar and linguistics; and the art of rhetoric.

Curriculum Intention:

read easily, fluently and with good understanding
foster close links with our primary feeders to aid smooth transition to secondary school.
develop the habit of reading widely and often, for both pleasure and information
acquire a wide vocabulary, an understanding of grammar and knowledge of linguistic conventions for reading, writing and spoken language
appreciate our rich and varied literary heritage
write clearly, accurately and coherently, adapting their language and style in and for a range of contexts, purposes and audiences
use discussion in order to learn; pupils should be able to elaborate and explain clearly their understanding and ideas
be competent in the arts of speaking and listening, making formal presentations, participating in debate and sharing ideas confidently through discussion.
develop cultural capital by being able to read and understand texts from throughout literary history.

Curriculum Design

St.Aidan’s English 7 Year Progression Map

St.Aidan’s English Learning Journey 24-25

Course Information

English Language Course Information

English Literature Course Information

For more information about our sixth form course provision please follow the link below:

Courses « St. Anthony’s & St. Aidan’s Catholic Sixth Form (aaasixthform.com)

Implementation:

a sequential, age-related curriculum, based around key concepts and different literary approaches towards classical and modern texts. Such approaches and concepts will be re-visited and explored in different contexts in order to strengthen their journey through education
over 7 years, all pupils will have the opportunity to develop their authentic voice by reading age-appropriate texts every year. Their skills will be honed year-upon-year and the re-drafting process used within lessons will help pupils to understand their own writing ability
a structured curriculum allows pupils to see, understand, revisit and explore the underpinning ideas and themes from our rich, literary history
the curriculum is ambitious and inclusive for all and is especially supportive of our disadvantaged, SEND and EAL pupils
the curriculum is further built around a process of interweaving topics, self-assessing and re-assessing to aid the development of long-term memory, mastery of skills and implementation of knowledge acquired
pupils build and consolidate their reading skills over time encountering increasingly stretching material through the English Curriculum and the Scholarly Reading programme.
we ensure that we consistently follow our ARR handbook via assessment, frequently using two processes: formative and summative assessment. Pupils will complete low-stake and high-stake tests to ensure knowledge of key concepts is being embedded and fully understood. DIRT time will be allocated to allow pupils to be able to reflect on learning gaps and misconceptions

These areas will be assessed through the following Assessment Objectives:

Literature

A01: Read, understand and respond to texts. Pupils should be able to: maintain a critical style and develop an informed personal response, use textual references, including quotations, to support and illustrate interpretations

AO2: Analyse the language, form and structure used by a writer to create meanings and effects, using relevant subject terminology where appropriate

AO3: Show understanding of the relationships between texts and the contexts in which they were written AO4: Use a range of vocabulary and sentence structures for clarity and purpose

Language

Reading

A01: Identify and interpret explicit and implicit information and ideas, select and synthesise evidence from different texts

AO2: Explain, comment on and analyse how writers use language and structure to achieve effects and influence readers, using relevant subject terminology to support their views

AO3: Compare writers’ ideas and perspectives, as well as how these are conveyed, across two or more texts

AO4: Evaluate texts critically and support this with appropriate textual references

Writing:

AO5: Communicate clearly, effectively and imaginatively, selecting and adapting tone, style and register for different forms, purposes and audiences, organise information and ideas, using structural and grammatical features to support coherence and cohesion of texts

AO6: Candidates must use a range of vocabulary and sentence structures for clarity, purpose and effect, with accurate spelling and punctuation

Spoken Language

AO7: Demonstrate presentation skills in a formal setting

AO8: Listen and respond appropriately to spoken language, including to questions and feedback

AO9: Use spoken Standard English effectively in speeches and presentations

Impact:

St Aidan’s Catholic Academy considers the greatest impact of the curriculum to be high rates of student progress.

Progress in:

reading in different ways for different purposes, summarising and synthesising ideas and information, and evaluating their usefulness for particular purposes
drawing on knowledge of the purpose, audience for and context of the writing, including its social, historical and cultural context and the literary tradition to which it belongs, to inform evaluation
identifying and interpreting implicit and explicit themes, ideas and information
exploring aspects of plot, characterisation, events and settings, the relationships between them and their impact
seeking evidence in the text to support a point of view, including justifying inferences with evidence
distinguishing between statements that are supported by evidence and those that are not, and identifying bias and misuse of evidence
analysing a writer’s choice of: vocabulary; form; grammatical and structural features; and evaluating their effectiveness and impact
Making critical comparisons, referring to the contexts, themes, characterisation, style and literary quality of texts, and drawing on knowledge and skills from wider reading