Our Key Stage 3 curriculum is intended to exceed the KS3 National Curriculum, whilst providing a smooth transition between the knowledge and skills covered in KS2 with those required at Key Stage 4.
Our students in Year 7 come from over 40 feeder schools, with a wide demographic and prior learning experience. With a majority of High Prior Attainers, we ensure that we have a Key Stage 3 curriculum model that addresses students’ unique abilities and learning needs, providing appropriate challenge and support to ensure that all students, regardless of their starting point make rapid progress. We also serve a small group of students who have a lower ability profile on entry. Therefore, our curriculum is focused on identifying and closing gaps in knowledge of some students from KS2 whilst deepening others’ knowledge and passion for each subject, old and new.
As a high achieving girls’ school, we want our curriculum to be academically aspirational, implemented in an environment that inspires enjoyment and commitment to learning as well as developing the girls’ confidence to learn and resilience to overcome challenges and setbacks. Our curriculum provides our students with access to STEM subjects and extra-curricular activities that challenge gender stereotypes and empowers them to be confident to succeed, achieving their ambitions. Lessons in Dance, Drama, Music, Art and PE complement classroom-based subjects and provide Key Stage 3 students with a varied diet of learning experiences. We also want our students to see themselves as an active global citizen and the vast majority of our students study two languages so that they go on to study Spanish, French or both at GCSE.
We also appreciate the value of becoming literate and numerate citizens, so our curriculum also aims to develop a high level of literacy and numeracy, for all of our students, through a culture of reading for pleasure and inspiring maths lessons. Our cohorts are generally stronger in English than Maths and the curriculum model is adjusted accordingly to ensure that our students make rapid gains in their maths in the first year here.
Students who enter Year 7 with KS2 scores below age related expectations in reading are placed in our catch-up curriculum, ‘Achievement First’, which aims to provide students with extra literacy support so that they are meeting age related expectations by the end of Year 8 or sooner.
Year 7 Curriculum Intent
We are really proud of our Year 7 curriculum offer and in particular how it creates a smooth transition between
the content and skills your daughter covered in KS2 to the challenges and increased aspirations of our School Curriculum.
As well as identifying and closing gaps in knowledge from Year 6, our Year 7 curriculum deepens students’ engagement, knowledge and passion for each subject old and new. It actively aims to develop a high level of literacy and numeracy through a culture of reading for pleasure and inspiring maths lessons.
While the curriculum is academically aspirational it is implemented in an environment that inspires enjoyment and commitment to learning as well as developing for students the skills and confidence to learn.
Year 7 is an exciting time in your daughter’s education. This is the beginning of her learning journey at Hayesfield Girls’ School and the first steps into developing confidence, new skills and new ambitions for life-long success.
Please see our Curriculum Intent and Implementation Booklets
Year 8 Curriculum Intent
Year 8 is where the training wheels begin to come off and we put more emphasis on developing each student’s confidence as independent and self-motivated learners.
The learning environment continues to inspire enjoyment and foster a commitment and love of learning but here is where the challenge increases and we perhaps take more students out of their comfort zones.
Far from a ‘holding year’, Year 8 is a vital time in your daughter’s education. This is the stage of her learning journey at Hayesfield Girls’ School where she begins to seek challenges and find motivation for herself which will become the foundation of her future academic success.
Please see our Curriculum Intent and Implementation Booklets
Year 9 Curriculum Intent
Year 9 is perhaps the most important year of your daughter’s education so far. Many subjects, having covered the requirements of the National Curriculum, now introduce students to the knowledge and skills needed to be successful at KS4.
This is the transition year between KS3 and KS4, where we bring to a close some subjects and open up new ones. Much of the emphasis is on students finding their individual academic pathway while being guided to build a broad and balanced curriculum that meets every student’s needs and aspirations. The learning environment remains inspiring and fosters the commitment and love of learning from Lower School but, without doubt, Year 9 will expect more of your daughter; preparing her for the increased challenges and demands of GCSE knowledge and skills. Here is also where we lay the foundation for the independence that will serve her well at GCSE. We also promote the idea of an enquiring mind and we will inspire your daughter to challenge and question her learning so that it is further to broadened and deepened. Most importantly, we provide full support and motivation for every student to find her feet and grow her confidence so that she is ready for Year 10.
Please see our Curriculum Intent and Implementation Booklets
