Key Stage 3
In the lower school, students work in groups to develop their confidence in speaking and listening, reading and writing. Activities are varied and organised for whole class work, small group work, pair and individual work. The activities are mainly based around broad topics or themes, which include short stories, poetry, media, Shakespeare, creative writing, language skills and preparation for National Curriculum tests. ICT is used to support work where appropriate.
In order to engage our students and help them to become creative individuals, sharing a passion for our subject and developing life long learning skills, we have developed some really exciting and innovative learn to learn projects which promote independent learning, team work and Assessment for Learning. They encourage thinking for learning and customised learning, whereby students are encouraged to consider their own learning styles in their outcomes.
We promote Personalised Learning – helping students to analyse their strengths, to set themselves achievable goals, to evaluate their progress. We encourage them to critique their own work and engage in self evaluation.
We regularly offer theatre trips and organise visiting authors and companies to perform workshops with the students. We regularly use The Shakespeare Company, which is always a great hit with the students, and Alan Gibbons has done wonders for promoting reading and enjoyment of story writing for both boys and girls.
