The words contemplare et contemplata aliis tradere – to contemplate and to hand on the fruits of contemplation to others, lie at the heart of the Dominican mission. As the fruits of contemplation and study that we hand to our pupils must be enriching, our approach to English at St. Martin’s predicates on all students’ entitlement to learn ‘the best which has been thought and said in the world’ (Arnold).
Through our curriculum, we teach our students the origins and development of the Western literary canon. All students are taught the same curriculum content. Year 7 begin their time with us learning about Greek mythology, move on to studying the Odyssey and tales from Ovid’s Metamorphoses before leaping through time and changing location to the Dark Ages of Britain and the study of Beowulf. Year 8 continues the journey; students explore the Middle Ages, the emergence of Middle English and encounter Chaucer and his wonderful satirical portraits in The Canterbury Tales. When our students reach Year 9, having already developed their writing and analytical skills, enhanced by their study of Rhetoric through the ages, they enter the world of 19th century Gothic Fiction which prepares them for the texts they will study for GCSE.
Much of our curriculum is delivered through workbooks. These include context, key vocabulary, and tasks designed to develop fluent reading, thorough analysis, and sophisticated, fluent written expression. All these skills are honed through the study of challenging and culturally rich texts and delivered by a department of specialists who have high aspirations for every student they teach.
YEAR 7
INTRODUCTION TO MYTHOLOGY
ORIGINS: HOMER
FROM GREECE TO ROME – OVID’S METAMORPHOSES
FROM ANGLO SAXON TO MIDDLE ENGLISH
YEAR 8
FROM ANGLO SAXON TO MIDDLE ENGLISH
RHETORIC
AN INTRODUCTION TO THE RENAISSANCE AND A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM
YEAR 9
THE 19th CENTURY NOVEL
MACBETH
YEAR 10
DR JEKYLL AND MR HYDE
AN INSPECTOR CALLS
POETRY (CONFLICT) ANTHOLOGY
YEAR 11
Macbeth revisit
Poetry & exam skills
Exam skills – Lang and Lit
