English

In English Lessons at Wilson’s we foster the enjoyment of reading, writing, speaking and listening, and work hard to develop the associated skills. Everyone’s opinions are valued (even the teacher’s!) but we also challenge those of others where appropriate.

We investigate the vital role played by language in the real world.

We explore imaginary realms through the study of poetry, drama and fiction, and acquire the skills to create our own. The goal is always for pupils to leave lessons with broadened horizons, ready and keen to read, write and speak for themselves.

We have a broad and diverse curriculum, which we have revised extensively over the past three years. Pupils will see themselves and their lives reflected in the texts they study and the writing they produce, as well encountering experiences from perspectives other than their own. We believe passionately that the importance of the study of English Literature lies in the response of the individual to the texts studied and produce, and seek to champion creativity and individuality in our pupils’ work.

Poetry and Creative Writing are at the heart of our co-curricular provision; we have a strong history in the National Poetry by Heart championship, with a tradition of Wilson’s students performing poetry on stage at the Globe. We have Creative Writing societies for Key Stage Three and Four pupils. Poetry writing is a strong thread in our co-curricular provision for all years, with a Wilson’s anthology produced for Black History Month, winners in the Stephen Spender Poetry Translation Prize, and a history of entering the Foyle’s Young Poet of the Year competition.

Our Staff

Mrs Fletcher (Director of English)
Ms Footman
Miss Hughes
Dr Johnstone (Deputy Head of English)
Mrs Schofield
Ms Wells-Cole
Miss Williams

Key Stage 3

Year 7
In Year 7, students begin to move beyond the skills they have learned at primary school, by reading and analysing classic ghost stories of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, before writing their own ghost stories. They also study a selection of classic and modern poems that includes works by Blake, Tennyson and Maya Angelou.

In term two, students read examples of viewpoint writing, such as newspaper opinion columns on contentious issues such as the environment and trophy hunting, and learn how to produce their own viewpoint writing, using rhetorical methods. They then study Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, looking at selected scenes in detail and building on the analysis skills learned in term one.

In the final term of Year 7, students learn how to analyse the structure of extracts from fiction texts (text deleted) before studying the modern novel Artichoke Hearts by Sita Bramachari.

KS3 Core Concepts

Year 8
Students begin Year 8 by reading a selection of Arthur Conan Doyle’s ‘Sherlock Holmes’ stories, before putting into practice what they have learned about how to write good detective fiction, in their own stories. They then study Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing, building on the ability to understand and analyse Shakespeare’s writing begun in Year 7.

Term two begins with a focus on viewpoint writing. Students read broadsheet newspaper articles, as well as passages from famous speeches, on contentious issues such as the influence of technology and the media on young people, and the engagement of young people with politics. Students then produce their own viewpoint writing, in the form of a speech, focusing on a political figure of their choice; examples range from Jacinda Ardern to Nye Bevan to Leymah Gbowee. They then study a selection of poetry on the theme of ‘choices and decisions’, including works by Elizabeth Bishop, Tishani Doshi and Ha Jin.

In term three, students study how language is used in non-fiction writing from the nineteenth to twenty-first centuries, including texts by Charles Dickens and Isabella Bird. The term then concludes the with the study of George Orwell’s Animal Farm, building on the skills of analysis developed in Year 7.

Key Stage 4

Years 9-11: AQA GCSE English Language and Literature
In Year 9, students build the skills necessary for GCSE and broaden their knowledge of seminal and diverse works of English Literature. In 2021-2, all pupils begin by studying descriptive writing, using a range of literary sources to inspire their work. For top sets, this is then followed by a study of The Crucible by Arthur Miller and for our middle sets, this is followed by a study of A View From The Bridge by Arthur Miller.

In the second term, all pupils will study Iridescent Adolescent, a collection of contemporary diverse short stories. They will then study the skills of narrative and descriptive writing, using classic and contemporary fiction as templates, followed by unseen fiction analysis skills, as tested on AQA GCSE English Language Paper 1 ((Reading and Producing Fiction Texts).

In the third term, all pupils study a collection of classic and contemporary poetry about conflict and identity. This unit prepares students for the study of poetry at GCSE by broadening their reading, focusing on seminal texts about conflict such as war poetry by Wilfred Owen, and contemporary poetry on identity. Pupils also begin to study the Worlds and Lives collection, which includes poems by classic and contemporary writers such as Percy Bysse Shelley, Roger Robinson and Imtiaz Dharker. Pupils also continue to prepare for GCSE English Language Paper 1 and sit an examination on both this and their poetry texts. Finally, all pupils study presentation skills and deliver an individual presentation to their group on a topic chosen with their teachers.

Pupils begin Year 10 by preparing for GCSE English Language Paper Two (Reading and Producing Non-Fiction Texts). They next study a further selection from the Worlds and Lives Poetry selection. In January of Year 10 they sit mock examinations on both these papers.

In the second term, pupils study either Macbeth or Romeo and Juliet, and in the third term, top set students study The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson and middle set students study A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens.

Pupils begin Year 11 by revising the skills of unseen fiction analysis and of narrative and descriptive writing. They then sit a mock examination of GCSE English Language Paper 1 (Reading and Producing Fiction Texts) and of GCSE English Literature Paper 1 (Shakespeare and the Nineteenth Century Novel). After the mock examination, they study either Lord of the Flies by William Golding (top sets) or An Inspector Calls (middle sets).

In the second term of Year 11, pupils complete their study of the modern text. They then study the final section from the Worlds and Lives poetry selection. Next, they revise the skills of analysing Non-Fiction texts. In this term they sit a mock examination on GCSE English Literature Paper 2 (Modern Texts) and on GCSE English Language Paper 2 (Reading and Producing Non-Fiction Texts).

Key Stage 5

Edexcel AS and A Level English Literature
In the Lower Sixth, students prepare for AS English Literature. They have two teachers; Teacher A teaches them for five hours a fortnight, and Teacher B for four hours.

In the first term with Teacher A, pupils study half of the selection from Poems of the Decade. They also begin to study Dr Faustus by Christopher Marlowe. With Teacher B, they study Frankenstein by Mary Shelley and begin to study Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro.

In the second term with Teacher A, pupils complete their study of Doctor Faustus, followed by the second half of the selection from Poems of the Decade. With Teacher B, they complete their study of Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro and follow this with a comparative study of the two texts.

In the brief third term both teachers will revise material as appropriate for their own class. Following their return from study leave, all pupils begin to study the Metaphysical Poetry selection for A Level English Literature.
 
In the Upper Sixth, students prepare for A Level English Literature. They have two teachers: Teacher A teaches them for five hours a fortnight, and Teacher B for four hours.

In the first term with Teacher A, pupils complete their study of the Metaphysical Poetry selection. They then begin to study Othello by William Shakespeare. In the first term with Teacher B, pupils make an in depth study of The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro as preparation for their coursework unit. They then go on to study The Little Stranger by Sarah Waters, followed by The Buddha of Suburbia by Hanif Kureishi.

In the second term with Teacher A, pupils complete their study of Othello. They then review briefly Doctor Faustus by Christopher Marlowe. After their mock examinations, students prepare for the unseen poetry question. In the second term with Teacher B, pupil study Howards End by E.M Forster. They then agree upon the texts they wish to compare for coursework, construct a coursework title with their teacher, and receive group feedback on a first draft of their coursework. Finally, they begin their revision of Never Let Me Go and Frankenstein.

In the third term, pupils revise Metaphysical Poetry, Othello and Doctor Faustus with Teacher A, and revise concurrently Never Let Me Go and Frankenstein with Teacher B.
 
For the examined units, they study a selection of metaphysical poetry, Othello by Shakespeare, Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro and for coursework they study The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro and compare it with a text of their choice.

Enrichment

There is a weekly Creative Writing Club for Year 7 and Year 8 students.

We run a sixth form Literature society in the autumn and spring terms. Students have won prizes in the Tower Poetry Competition and the English and Media Centre’s TS Eliot Poetry Prize Shadowing Scheme.
Each year a group of sixth formers and staff attend the prize ceremony for the TS Eliot Prize for Poetry in the South Bank Centre.

We also have Debating Club two lunchtimes a week. Students have entered a wide range of debating competitions, including the London Debating Challenge and the Eton Open, and we have inter-house Debating competitions.