The Swaminarayan Senior School Curriculum Plan
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The Swaminarayan Senior School Curriculum Plan 260 Brentfield Road, Neasden London, NW10 8HE ‘The heart of Education is the Education of the heart, of the mind and of the spirit. This is not achieved by chance but brought about by great effort and care, both by the students and the schooling system that meets these needs’ His Divine Holiness Pramukh Swami Maharaj CONTENTS 1. Letter from the Head Teacher 3 2. Senior School Curriculum 4 3. English 11 4. Performing Arts 15 5. Drama 16 6. Mathematics 18 7. Biology 19 8. Chemistry 22 9. Physics 24 10. French 26 11. Geography 29 12. History 30 13. Art & Design 31 14. Physical Education 33 15. Duke of Edinburgh 35 16. Religious Studies 37 17. Gujarati 39 18. Information Technology 41 19. Business Studies 43 2 Dear Parents or Guardians, I am happy to enclose a copy of the 'Curriculum Guide' for your information. It has been written to keep you more informed about all the subjects that are being offered in the school and the main topics that will be discussed at the various year groups. You will also find details of the main content of the curriculum at each year group and the variety of assessment tools that will be employed by the school in each subject to monitor the progress made. May I particularly draw your attention to the sections on parental help for all the subjects, to enable you to help and support your children, in our joint efforts to bring out the best from them. You will also find the reading list for English, a useful guide to the type and variety of books that are expected to be read at each level. I hope you find the information provided useful. May I add that if there are any questions which arise from the guide, or for that matter anything else, please do come and see me. Yours sincerely, Nilesh M Manani Head Teacher 3 4 The Senior School Curriculum__________________________________________ The curriculum of the Senior School is organised with the unique nature of the Swaminarayan School and the needs of our pupils in mind. It takes the best elements of the National Curriculum and mixes that with what we consider to be important for our children. Whilst all pupils study the widest range of subjects at Years 7 & 8 as outlined below, we narrow them down through our option system at Year 9. This is in line with the school’s aspiration to start the teaching of the GCSE syllabus a year early. It is designed to challenge and extend every pupil to their fullest potential and equip them with the necessary tools for academic success at GCSE. The delivery of the curriculum is such that it stimulates and facilitates the curiosity of all our pupils, raising more questions for young inquiring minds to resolve, without ever losing direction. Though more challenging then general science or Double award, TSS has chosen to teach sciences separately as Biology, Chemistry and Physics throughout the school. There are some compulsory subjects which we consider important for a child’s growth into a successful adult in a western environment. In the Sixth Form in the first year, all students are required to select a minimum of four AS levels. The students may continue the same four AS levels to Advanced level. We place a lot of emphasis on pastoral issues, careers guidance and university applications. The senior school follows a two-week timetable with 55 minutes lessons. The Curriculum up to GCSE_(Two Weeks timetable - 55 minutes lessons)________ SENIORS 1and 2 SENIORS 3, 4 and 5 (ages 11-12) (ages 13-16) English English LAMDA Mathematics Mathematics Biology Drama Chemistry Biology Physics Chemistry French Physics Gujarati French RS Gujarati Business Studies/Economics* History History* Geography Geography * Art Art * Religious Studies Drama * ICT ICT * PA PE PE PHSCE Clubs Clubs or DoE PHSCE CT/Moral Education All subjects are compulsory * Optional subjects At Advanced Level____________________________________________________ A level subjects offered: Accounting, Art, Biology, Chemistry, ICT, Drama, Economics, English Literature, French, Further Mathematics, Geography, History, Mathematics and Physics. Other subjects will be considered if there is demand. This plan is subject to change from year to year 5 ENGLISH AT THE SWAMINARAYAN SCHOOL Aim and Philosophy The English Department exists to develop the skills of pupils in the areas of speaking, listening, reading and writing. We set out to foster an awareness and enjoyment of language and literature; we further aim to provide pupils with opportunities to improve their powers of communication and to aid personal growth through sounder understanding and expression. Our syllabus reflects and celebrates the rich, cultural heritage of our pupils while enabling them to fully participate in the culture of England, Europe and America. Our ultimate objective is to prepare pupils for success in external examinations, in higher education and in the outside world. Syllabus Overview During S1 and S2, pupils are encouraged and expected to participate in a wide number of speaking, listening, reading and writing activities, including oral presentations, interaction with partners, sharing ideas in group discussions, drama and role-play. By senior 3, pupils should be able to demonstrate competence in explaining, describing, narrating, exploring, analysing, imagining, discussing, arguing and persuading through writing and speech. In Senior 3, 4 and 5, pupils prepare for their GCSE examinations in both English Language and English Literature. They are given the opportunity to read plays, prose and poetry, including texts from cultures other than English, pre-20th century literature, texts by 20th century writers and at least two plays by Shakespeare. Pupils are given opportunities to write in a wide variety of forms, including narrative, poetry, scripts, dialogue and non-fiction. Language, including close attention to Standard English, will be studied across the areas of speaking, listening, reading and writing. Once the new qualification of GCSE Digital English becomes available, it is expected that pupils will study for this examination alongside English Language an English Literature. Homework and assessment Homework is usually set at least twice a week in Senior 1 and 2. A short piece of work is often set during the week, with a longer written task being assigned over the weekend. Homework may also take the form of reading, preparing for speeches, discussion and role-play, of revising topics learnt in class or of researching topics for longer projects. From Senior 3, pupils will also be engaged in preparing for controlled oral and written assessments. Pupils’ knowledge and skills are regularly assessed through classroom questions, through marking of homework and classwork, through regular testing and internal examinations. 6 External examination boards At the end of Year 11, pupils will sit the Edexcel GCSE examinations in English and English Literature (Syllabus Codes 2EN01 and 2ET01 respectively) which are assessed through terminal papers and controlled assessments. All pupils will take the Higher Tier examinations at GCSE, which should yield grade A-D. At A and AS level, pupils currently follow the AQA Literature Course. How you can help your child As well as encouraging and guiding your child in the usual parental way, you could regularly read and share in your child’s written work, offering advice when necessary and praise when due. You could act as an audience for your child’s reading of his or her own work; you could also listen while your child reads out a favourite passage from a book. Ensuring that your child joins and regularly uses a local library would be of immense benefit, as would occasional purchase of relatively cheap editions of novels and collections of stories. Access to wider reading is one of the keys to success in English. To give some shape and purpose to your child’s wider reading perhaps he or she could keep a reading log; keeping a diary may help your child’s writing skills. Above all, it is essential to create a home environment where reading, writing, speaking and listening are valued. You may find the attached reading list of use when choosing books. Core textbooks These are mainly to support teachers own material rather than form the basis for courses. Senior 1 and 2: Oxford English Programme, Books 1-3, John Seeley, Frank Green and David Kitchen; the Heinemann English Programme, Books 1-3, John Seeley and David Kitchen; True or False?, Peter Ellison, Language A to Z, Book 1, David Crystal; Discovering Poetry, Denise Scott; Poetry Then and Now, Sheila Hales. Senior 3 and 5: The Heinemann English Programme, Book 4, John Seeley and David Kitchen, Essential English for GCSE, Susan Davies, Language A to Z, Book 2, David Crystal; Parallel Poems, Mike Royston. Years 12-13: Shakespeare: ‘Antony and Cleopatra’; Bronte ‘Wuthering Heights’, Hardy ‘ Selected Poems’, Hare ‘The Judas Kiss’ and AQA ‘AS’ and A2 text books. Useful websites from where information about examination syllabi can be obtained: http://www.edexcel.com/quals/gcse/gcse10/english/language/pages/documents.aspx http://www.edexcel.com/quals/gcse/gcse10/english/literature/pages/documents.aspx 7 READING LIST (Seniors 1-2) The Wreck of the Zanzibar, Michael Morpurgo Private Peaceful, Michael Morpurgo War Horse, Michael Morpurgo Kingdom of Birds, N Manani My Year, Roald Dahl Boy, Roald Dahl Going Solo, Roald Dahl Lord of the Flies, William Golding Zed, Rosemary Harris A Wizard of Earthsea, Ursula Le Guin Emil and the Detectives, Erich Kastner Run For Your Life,