Altrincham Grammar School For Boys

English Department

 

 

Welcome to the English Department

Organisation of Teaching Groups

In Years 7, 8 and 9 boys are taught English in their form groups.  They have seven lessons a fortnight in Year 7, six in Year 8 and five in Year 9.   Wherever possible, we try to ensure a degree of continuity in English teaching, so that a class will have the same English teacher for at least two consecutive years in Key Stage 3.   

In Years 10 and 11 boys are sorted into six teaching groups for English.  These are not set by ability.  They are taught for six periods a fortnight. 

In Years 12 and 13 there are normally two sets, one for each subject which we offer at AS and A2 Level.  Two teachers share the teaching for each group, each teacher taking five of the then allocated periods per fortnight. 

What are the lessons like?

KS3 (lower school)

Year 7
Library lesson programme
Introductory unit - My Father is a Polar Bear
Autobiography
Roald Dahl's Boy
Word games
Literacy through texts
Two novels as shared readers

Year 8
Library lesson programme
Two novels as shared readers.
Project on ballads and verse forms.
Shocking Shakespeare
Differences in language

Year 9
One shared novel
Shakespeare play - Macbeth
Poetry writing in a variety of forms such as the sonnet
An examination of texts on the same theme in preparation for SATs paper
Argumentative writing
Work on a variety of texts from other cultures.

All classes will cover the above material, which will then be supplemented by units devised by individual teachers.