English - Year 8

English Overview

Term 1 and 2: Frankenstein in the context of the Gothic

'Frankenstein' (the play version). The play will be read, allowing us to explore the concept of nature versus nurture, as well as other themes in the text. Students will develop creative writing skills, focusing on building atmosphere. Additional study of extracts from Shelley's original version will be used as a point of contrast, and challenge students to understand the complex language and ideas in the original. Students will explore a selection of short stories within the Gothic genre to enrich their understanding.

  1. Written response based on the entirety of the play.
Gothic

Gothic fiction, which is largely known by the sub-genre of Gothic horror, is a genre of literature and film that combines fiction and horror, death, and sometimes, romance.

Ghost

An apparition of a dead person which is believed to appear or become manifest to the living, typically as a shadowy or blurry image. Ghosts featured key elements and key themes in 19th century gothic stories.

Victorian

This period falls between 1837 and 1901 and is when Queen Victoria was on the throne. The literature was very different to the preceding era which had focused on nature, whereas the Victorian era was more realist or focused on the unknown.

Mystery

A novel, play, or film dealing with a puzzling crime, especially a murder. Also something that is difficult or impossible to understand or explain.

Unknown

Something which one is not certain about or is not able to understand. In Gothic novels there is often something classed as 'The Unknown', which is something which is spooky or not as it should be.

Fear

An unpleasant emotion caused by the threat of danger, pain, or harm. Also to be afraid of something.

  • Spiritual
  • Moral
  • Social
  • Cultural
Develop the individual:

Students will learn about the context of Frankenstein . They will be encouraged to use empathy in order to put themselves into a character's shoes. They will also work on discussion and debate, developing their confidence in spoken word.

Create a supportive community:

Students will be confident in sharing their own ideas. They will develop higher level listening skills.

Term 5: Speak out poetry

This unit is an engaging blend of poetry and reading through speaking and listening, helping students to hone their public speaking and performance skills. Students will engage with a range of diverse poems, on topics from identity to the environment, encouraging engagement and enjoyment in literary texts. Through a range of activities, including journaling, they gain confidence in speaking poetry aloud and through exploratory discussion and free writing of poetry. These elements combine to increase students’ confidence in understanding structure, language and sound in poetry. Alongside this, students engage with a range of stimulating non-fiction texts to hone their comparative skills, picking out not only key similarities and differences in content and style, but also carefully considering writers’ purposes.

  1. Comparative poetry paragraphs
Ode

A type of poem, usually praising something.

Point

The theme/technique/ word which your quote proves. P from PEE.

Evidence

The quote. PEE.

Explanation

How does your point and evidence answer the question. PEE

Simile

Comparing one thing with another thing which it is not using like or as.

Metaphor

A word or phrase applied to something that it is not. Saying something is something else.

Alliteration

When more than one word in sequence starts with the same letter.

Hyperbole

Excessive exaggeration.

5 Senses

Using imagery that describes: Sight Smell Hearing Touch Taste

Adjective

A describing word.

Dialogue

A conversation between two characters, using speech marks.

Verb

A doing word.

Personification

Applying human characteristics to non human objects.

Rhetorical Question

Asking a question without requiring the reader to respond.

List

More than one idea connected by commas or semi colons.

Assonance

Close repetition of vowel sounds.

Caesura

A full stop in the middle of a line, to create impact at the pause.

Couplet

Stanza of 2 lines or pair of lines, often rhyming.

Enjambment

Continuation of a sentence across more than one line, noticeable by the lack of punctuation at the end of a line.

Epigraph

A short note or verse from another text, placed at the beginning of the poem.

Line

A line of the poem which forms part of a stanza.

Meter

The rhythm of a line.

Refrain

A repeated line within the poem.

Rhyme

Words that sound alike, especially words that end in the same sound.

Rhythm

The beat of the poem.

Stanza

Group of lines in a poem.

Punctuation

Using a variety of punctuation to enhance a piece of writing. For example using: . , ; : - ? ! " ()

Repetition

Saying the same word or idea more than once to create impact.

Onomatopoeia

Words that sound like the noise they are describing

Ballad

A type of poem, usually arranged in quatrains and is narrative in style.

  • Spiritual
  • Moral
  • Social
  • Cultural
Develop the individual:

Students will consider a range of poetic forms, devices and styles from across the world. They will learn how to approach an unseen poem, focusing on language, form and structure. Students will be asked to use empathy skills in order to appreciate the context of the poems they read.

Create a supportive community:

Students will explore ideas and feelings, building on one anothers' ideas and listening to each other. Students will be asked to recognise positive contributions in order to foster a great atmosphere for debate.

Term 3 and 4: Times of Challenge

Students will work with their teachers on annotating a range non-fiction extracts from writers who have been faced with some form of difficulty or adversity. They will read texts that tackle a range of issues, from the tragic to the comedic.

  1. 1) Reading and analysing of a non-fiction text. 2) Writing a memoir.
Point

The theme/technique/ word which your quote proves. P from PEE.

Evidence

The quote. PEE.

Explanation

How does your point and evidence answer the question. PEE

Simile

Comparing one thing with another thing which it is not using like or as.

Metaphor

A word or phrase applied to something that it is not. Saying something is something else.

Alliteration

When more than one word in sequence starts with the same letter.

Verb

A doing word.

Onomatopoeia

Words that sound like the noise they are describing.

List

More than one idea connected by commas or semi colons.

Punctuation

Using a variety of punctuation to enhance a piece of writing. For example: . , ; : - ? ! " ()

Sentence

Use a combination of sentence types. Simple, compound and complex.

Repetition

Saying a word or idea more than once to create impact.

Rhetorical Question

Asking a question without requiring the reader to respond.

Connectives

Using linking words to connect ideas.

  • Spiritual
  • Moral
  • Social
  • Cultural
Develop the individual:

Students will explore their ideas as they engage with different extracts. They will be able to develop their ideas through their own transactional writing.

Create a supportive community:

Students will explore their ideas together, developing listening and appreciation skills.

Term 1 and 2: Detective Fiction

Students will be reading a range of fictional detective short stories and extracts from across the ages. They will be learning the features and conventions of detective writing, such as using eccentric characters, mysterious events, and red herrings and t

  1. 1) Reading tasks based on the opening of a fictional detective story. 2) Creative Writing assessment based on a picture stimulus.
Point

The theme/technique/ word which your quote proves. P from PEE.

Evidence

The quote. PEE.

Explanation

How does your point and evidence answer the question. PEE

Simile

Comparing one thing with another thing which it is not using like or as.

Metaphor

A word or phrase applied to something that it is not. Saying something is something else.

Alliteration

When more than one word in sequence starts with the same letter.

Hyperbole

Excessive exaggeration.

5 Senses

Using imagery that describes: Sight Smell Hearing Touch Taste

Adjective

A describing word.

Dialogue

A conversation between two characters, using speech marks.

Verb

A doing word.

Personification

Applying human characteristics to non human objects.

Onomatopoeia

Words that sound like the noise they are describing.

List

More than one idea connected by commas or semi colons.

Punctuation

Using a variety of punctuation to enhance a piece of writing. For example using: . , ; : - ? ! " ()

Sentence

Using a combination of sentence types. Simple, compound and complex.

Repetition

Saying the same word or idea more than once to create impact.

Rhetorical Question

Asking a question without requiring the reader to respond.

Connectives

Using linking words to connect ideas.

  • Spiritual
  • Moral
  • Social
  • Cultural
Develop the individual:

Students will explore their ideas as they engage with different extracts. They will be able to develop their imagination and creativity through their own creative writing.

Create a supportive community:

Students will explore their ideas together, developing listening and appreciation skills.

Term 3 and 4: Shakespeare: Romeo and Juliet

To build on their English Literature Skills from Year 7, pupils will read sections of William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet'. They will practise reading and comprehension of a Shakespeare text, analysing the writer’s craft.

The key focus here will be on understanding plot, character and themes from the play. However, pupils will also explore the contextual factors underlying the play, such as patriarchy in Elizabethan England; Shakespeare's Globe theatre and its theatrical conventions; visting the theatre in Elizabethan times and the beliefs, traditions and values of the period, which would have shaped the ways in which Shakespeare's audiences received this play.

Pupils will be taught to write in clear PEE (Point/ Evidence/ Explanation) paragraphs, selecting suitable quotations from the play as supporting evidence to demonstrate their understanding of textual content.

  1. Literature: An analytic written response to the whole play.
forbidden love

This is the main theme of Shakespeare's 'Romeo and Juliet'. In this tragic tale, two fated lovers risk everything, even life itself, to be with each other. They go against family, friends and fate to be together.

fate

Romeo and Juliet's ill-fated lives are described as 'death-marked', as they are a pair of 'star-crossed' lovers. Shakespeare sets the two families against each other, and the lovers can do nothing about this as it is destined to go tragically wrong.

friendship and enmity

Key themes of 'Romeo and Juliet'. There are several examples of friendship in the play in contrast to the hostilities between individuals and families. Ultimately, enmity prevails over friendship, bringing the play to its tragic end.

patriarchy

This means the dominance of men in society. The Elizabethan society (which first saw Romeo & Juliet) was patriarchal as it was male-dominated and men decided even who their daughters married.

parental control

Both Romeo and Juliet's parents decide on what they are able to do, and forbid the lovers from seeing each other. This control is arguably one of the causes of their deaths.

secrecy

The characters, primarily Romeo and Juliet who are forced to hide their relationship in order to continue seeing each other, are forced to keep secrets due to the family feud.

  • Spiritual
  • Moral
  • Social
  • Cultural
Develop the individual:

Students will have an opportunity to engage with this era from history and explore ideas about beliefs and traditions different from their own.

Create a supportive community:

Students will gain confidence performing and reciting Shakespeare's verse. Students will work together to develop ideas and interpretations.

Term 6: Revision for end of year exams:

Pupils will develop skills across both writing and reading in preparation for their end of year examinations. There will be practice papers provided for both sections and teachers will set 'walking-talking' mocks which enable students to practise their skills under timed conditions with support from the class teacher. A range of reading skills lessons (focused on non-fiction texts) will develop students' skills in identifying, explaining and analysing language and structural techniques. Not only will students be taught a range of structural devices and language techniques to use in their own transactional writing, but also, they will be explicitly taught spelling, punctuation and grammar rules to boost their accuracy and written expression.

  1. Reading and writing of non-fiction texts (2 lessons)
Point

The theme/technique/ word which your quote proves. P from PEE.

Evidence

The quote. PEE.

Explanation

How does your point and evidence answer the question. PEE

Simile

Comparing one thing with another thing which it is not using like or as.

Metaphor

A word or phrase applied to something that it is not. Saying something is something else.

Alliteration

When more than one word in sequence starts with the same letter.

Verb

A doing word.

List

More than one idea connected by commas or semi colons.

Punctuation

Using a variety of punctuation to enhance a piece of writing. For example: . , ; : - ? ! " ()

Sentence

Use a combination of sentence types. Simple, compound and complex.

Repetition

Saying the same word or idea more than once to create impact.

Rhetorical Question

Asking a question without requiring the reader to respond.

Connectives

Using linking words to connect ideas.

Onomatopoeia

Words that sound like the noise they are describing

Opinions

A viewpoint, statement or belief.

Facts

Something that is proved true. Information used as evidence.

Counter Argument

An argument that is opposing to the main argument you are making.

Statistics

Percentages, data and any other numerical facts which can be used to prove an argument.

  • Spiritual
  • Moral
  • Social
  • Cultural
Develop the individual:

Students will learn how to revise effectively in order to become more independent. They will learn to be aware of their own strengths and weaknesses and how to address them.

Create a supportive community:

Students will engage with a number of texts that will help to develop their ability to identify, explain and analyse.