English

Year 10

Subject: English

In the Autumn Term we focus on Unit 1: English today which involves analysing media texts. This Unit is divided into reading and writing.
Reading: In developing their reading, students will engage with a range of contemporary texts to understand how writers construct meaning through words, sentences, images and whole texts. They will examine the ways in which texts may be interpreted differently by different readers.
Writing: In developing their writing skills, students will use their understanding to create a written text selecting a format suited to audience and purpose. They will select content and adapt the style and language as appropriate.
Two Controlled Assessments will take place for this Unit 1- reading the week before the October half-term and the writing the beginning of December. Each controlled assessment is two hours long.

Students will study a cultural novel such as: ‘Of Mice and Men’ – this will crossover for the Language and Literature examinations.
For the second part of the term students will study a Shakespeare text. For the Shakespeare task students will:
• show how language, structure and form contribute to a writer’s presentation of ideas, themes and settings
• makes comparisons and explain links between texts, evaluating different ways of expressing Shakespeare’s meaning and achieving effects
A two hour controlled assessment will be completed on Shakespeare the week before the Easter holidays.

Students will study a contemporary drama play such as: ‘Educating Rita’ by Willy Russell. For the contemporary drama students will:
• develop and sustain independent interpretations of whole texts, supporting them with textual references

A controlled assessment on the contemporary drama text will take place the week before the end of the Summer Term.