English
Stories are the fabric of life and literature is the human attempt to understand the world around us.
Our English curriculum is designed to ignite curiosity, develop independence and foster a genuine love of reading, writing and self-expression from day one.
Led by our award-winning Director of English, Charlotte Bateson – recipient of the 2024 Harris Federation Leader Award – our curriculum isn’t just about preparing students for exams. It’s about helping them explore powerful stories, diverse perspectives and the world around them through the lens of literature.
Your son will discover a wide range of texts that spark discussion, challenge thinking and broaden horizons, and we encourage students to form their own opinions, engage in thoughtful debate and write with purpose and confidence.
"Books may well be the only true magic.” Alice Hoffman, author
Inspiring young minds – our English curriculum aims
The study of literature explores the depths of human emotions. It educates us about ancient societies, opens our imagination to fantastical lands, lets us experience profound emotions and ultimately teaches us the pillars of empathy. Through our curriculum we aim to:
- challenge students’ ideas and perspectives, building independence and promoting enquiry
- foster an appreciation for reading, writing and spoken Standard English
- feature diverse texts that explore different cultures and experiences, while addressing gaps in cultural capital and fostering enjoyment of literature through widespread reading
- develop and cultivate central skills for future English study whilst avoiding mirroring the GSCE specification
- develop students’ skills in writing, refining their drafting and editing skills and developing resilience to write at length.
By the end of Key Stage 3, your son won’t just be ready for his GCSEs – he will be a confident communicator with a curious mind and a genuine appreciation for literature. Eighty per cent of students who have completed their secondary education and studied English at Harris Boys' Academy go on to university, with almost all others going on to study degree level apprenticeships.
"The limits of my language mean the limit of my world." Ludwig Wittgenstein, philosopher
Year 7 - taking students on a journey
In Year 7, the overall theme for the year is exploring the lives of others by exploring humanity and thinking creatively.
Year 7 begins with Private Peaceful by Michael Morpurgo, exploring WW1 from a male narrative perspective. Students develop knowledge around such themes as war, relationships, sacrifice, loss, bullying, loyalty, justice and injustice, family, bravery, cowardice and blame.
We move on to creative writing, discovering the structural elements that create a text and examining a variety of extracts as inspiration. We focus on creating engaging and well-constructed writing around character and setting. Understanding a writer’s conscious choices with the written word enables greater independent writing to take place, underpinned by key grammatical skills.
In Term 2, students study fantasy fiction and become familiar with the conventions of the genre. We focus on developing the students' creative writing skills and introducing themes such as the supernatural, which will be studied further in later years. Following on from this, Year 7 move to study Learning to Love Poetry, focusing on themes that ask them to explore a more emotional literature - feelings around love and loss, mental health and how to engage in thoughtful, consensual, and deepening relationships in every aspect of their lives.
As students progress into their final term of Year 7, they will study extract-based texts from Victorian Literature in a unit called, ‘Voices from the Past.’ Here, we see Year 7 explore some of the voices from the canon including Dickens, Kingsley, Bronte, Eliot, Kipling and Carroll. Inspired by Dickens and his depiction of children, students will then design their Dream School, learning to meaningfully collaborate with each other and develop their oracy skills. They will also complete an Introduction to Shakespeare, looking at a variety of his works and their common themes to prepare for studying full plays (Othello, Romeo and Juliet and Macbeth) in the following years.
The themes they are introduced to in Year 7 will be revisited in the following years and will play an important role in KS4 for their GCSE exams.
Year 8 and beyond - the exciting journey continues
The journey through literature continues in Year 8 with students developing their analytical reading skills looking at more complex themes and symbols from contemporary fiction and poetry. They will challenge themselves through studying Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, then reflect on the power of their voice as well as the need for equality and social justice while studying poetry from around the world. Students will look at gender representation and depictions of women in literature then study Malorie Blackman's Boys Don't Cry, an important text on morality, sexuality and personal choice. Finally, students will engage with topics of ethics, power dynamics and propaganda while exploring dystopian fiction and studying The Crucible.
In Year 9, students continue their exciting journey, studying fantasy, Shakespeare, Transactional Writing and Unseen Poetry, focussing on themes such as social responsibility, class, and the impact of individual actions on others. The journey begins with Jordan Ifueko’s Raybearer, a text exploring conflict, family and gender, followed by the ‘Love and Relationships Anthology' which encourages curiosity and confidence about the topic of romantic love. Building on themes already covered, students then move on to Shakespeare’s Othello with insights into human nature. A unit on Transactional Writing continues as students develop skills in how to convey information persuasively. Completing their journey, students focus on JB Priestley’s magnificent play An Inspector Calls, the first of their GCSE texts.
In Year 10, students begin their Key Stage 4 curriculum studying a wide range of texts including: A Christmas Carol. An Inspector Calls, Macbeth and the Power and Conflict Poetry Anthology. Students consider the big ideas of morality, power and equality whilst carefully considering the writer’s purpose and appreciating the writer's craft. The focus of Year 10 will be to gain core knowledge of advanced texts whilst building confidence so students can express their ideas fluently and with technical accuracy. We also begin to explore the English Language GCSE with a focus on fiction and non-fiction extracts, descriptive and transactional writing and this continues in more depth in Year 11. Year 11 is about consolidating and mastering knowledge, building independence and resilience, and developing skills to access the Master Key. They will be challenged to think in more depth about each text and form more thoughtful and developed, and for many, critical and conceptual approaches to these texts.
For further information about the English curriculum in Years 7-11 please contact Charlotte Bateson C.Bateson@harrisdulwichboys.org.uk.
"When we realise that there is never a single story about any place, we regain a kind of paradise." Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, author