Department - English

Staff List

Ms S Gallagher – Acting Learning Leader English

Ms J Leary – Acting Learning Leader English

Ms Michelle Burke - Teacher of English, Assistant Headteacher

Mr E Lynch - Teacher of English

Mr A Scott – Teacher of English

Ms P Chohan - Teacher of English

Miss U Ejike - Teacher of English

Ms M Manabat – Teacher of English

Mrs J Le-Gendre-Williams – Teacher of English

 

Vision

CGS English ensured that students of all backgrounds and abilities were engaged and challenged through their ability to:

  • DEVELOP a love for learning through a variety of fiction and non-fiction texts
  • EXPRESS themselves by being thoughtful listeners and articulate speakers
  • COMMUNICATE their ideas through an increasingly sophisticated use of the English language

Intent

According to Christine Kenneally in her book The First Word, "Today there are about 6,000 languages in the world, and half of the world's population speaks only 10 of them. English is the single most dominant of these 10. The English language is the primary language of the United Kingdom from where it can be said it originates and is fundamental to how people in the United Kingdom communicate with each other”. Therefore, at Cox Green School we (intend to) enable students to communicate as effectively as possible to better engage with the world in which they live, developing their sense of identity so they can express ideas and emotions effectively and with a sophisticated vocabulary in a logical way. In studying literature students can engage with poetry, prose, and drama to help them gain a deeper understanding of their surroundings and what it means to be human. This enriches their cultural capital and enables them to empathise and understand the situations of others different as well as similar to themselves. This can influence their decisions about personal choices, attitudes and values in a positive way.

In line with the National Curriculum of 2014, the curriculum at Cox Green School will therefore:

  • Help students develop a love of literature by encouraging them to read widely and independently
  • Enable students to express themselves confidently and creatively using rich and diverse language
  • Develop reading skills to examine literature from multiple eras, cultures, and genres with critical understanding
  • Improve research skills to enable them to expand, from a variety of perspectives, their own readings of literature and understanding of language
  • Encourage students to become successful learners and responsible citizens

Implementation

Our whole curriculum is shaped by our school vision, which aims to enable all children, regardless of background, ability, additional needs, to flourish to become the very best version of themselves they can possibly be.

We teach the National Curriculum, supported by a clear skills and knowledge progression. This ensures that skills and knowledge are built on year by year and sequenced appropriately to maximise learning for all children. It is important that the children develop progressive skills whereby they can, amongst other things, identify and interpret explicit and implicit information and ideas in texts, explain and comment on how the language, form, and structure of a text and its effects and influences on readers, and be able to compare writers’ ideas and perspectives. We will develop students critical thinking skills, as they read, understand and respond to texts, ensuring that students recognise the context in which a text was written as well as in which it is received can impact on their understanding.

Impact

By the time the children at Cox Green School leave our school, they should have a developed an ability to:

  • understand and analyse explicit and implicit information, selecting and synthesising evidence from different texts.
  • explain, comment on and analyse how writers use language, form, and structure for effect ensuring they use relevant subject terminology to support their views
  • communicate clearly, effectively and imaginatively, selecting and adapting tone, style and register for different forms, purposes and audiences using a range of vocabulary and sentence structures with accurate spelling and punctuation.
  • listen and respond appropriately to spoken language and to use spoken Standard English effectively in speeches and presentations.
  • read, understand and respond to texts maintaining a critical style and develop an informed personal response with textual references, including quotations, to support and illustrate interpretations
  • show understanding of the relationships between texts and the contexts in which they were written
  • use a range of vocabulary and sentence structures for clarity, purpose and effect, with accurate spelling and punctuation

Outcomes in tests and classwork exercise books, evidence a broad and balanced English curriculum and demonstrate the children’s acquisition of identified key knowledge.

Children review the agreed successes at the end of every term and are actively encouraged to identify their own target areas, with support from their teachers.

Children also record what they have learned comparative to their starting points at the end of every topic.

Skills are built through a variety of teaching styles and techniques to allow students to develop as independent and actively curious lifetime learners. Through their understanding of literature, learners leave CGS with a knowledge of the wider world and how actions impact on the lives of others. They can see the relevance of the skills they were taught and know how to use them to their advantage to achieve more than they first thought possible