Year 8 – English

Head of Subject: Mrs H Lloyd


Intended Outcomes

Key Focus:  Person  
Focus on setting and the link to individuals and their context; emphasis moves towards analysis; reading supports a stronger awareness of form, purpose and audience, in fiction and non-fiction.   

  • Course Implementation

    Short Stories 

    Analysis of structure, comparison, creative writing to a given brief. Ongoing formative assessment of analytical reading skills and creative writing. 

    Multi-cultural Poetry 

    Skills for poetry analysis; exploring the poet’s identity and a sense of place and belonging; introduction to comparative skills. Ongoing formative assessment of analytical reading skills. 

    Gothic

    Developing understanding of pre 20th century prose fiction, with links to modern fiction and 19th century non-fiction; analysis takes place through the investigation of genre, setting, and various non-fiction texts. Formative Universal Assessment: Gothic Reading Assessment 

    Viewpoints and Perspectives in Non-Fiction Writing 

    Sustained engagement and analysis of non-fiction works; planning non-fiction writing whilst investigating different use of language by non-fiction writers; opportunities for independent non-fiction writing. Formative Assessment: Writing – Non-Fiction. 

    Author Study

    Sustained engagement and analysis of a longer fiction work; engagement with character’s viewpoint; introduction to context; exploration of ideas injustice and marginalisation; fictional opportunities for writing. Formative Assessment: reading – analysis of fictional language. 

    Shakespeare 

    Focus on dramatic form and genre (comedy); comparison of different interpretations using film stimuli; close, but playful analysis, of language in terms of character.  Ongoing formative assessment of analytical reading skills. 

    Grammar and core skills  

    Grammar and core skills, for writing are taught throughout all units, with discrete lessons focussing upon elements at germane points in the curriculum; especial focus on paragraphing, topic sentences, clauses and comma usage.   Assessment throughout the year including:  Writing Hub pre and post module quizzes, biannual reading and spelling tests and regular teacher marking. 

Learning Impact

Through formative assessment, each term, fundamental skills for crafting written pieces will have been assessed and advice, on ways to improve, will have been given; development of deeper analytical skills will have begun in preparation for KS4; pupils will develop KS3 skills from Year 7, and develop foundational writing strategies and their understanding of fundamental concepts for the future study of fiction and non-fiction texts. 

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