Years 7 & 8 Class
Welcome to the years 7 and 8 class
At Nenegate we have developed a topic based approach to learning which links subjects together and teaches the skills that underpin the whole curriculum. This approach includes visits and hand on experiences which enrich learning and encourage students to want to know more. Our topics are planned over a two-year programme, appropriate for each student, and are either history, geography, or science based with links being made to other areas as appropriate; putting the pupils’ learning in context. The skills in reading, writing, and maths are taught daily as part of the topic or as discrete lessons.
Our topics include:
For example, when learning about the Rainforest, pupils may cover the following:
Humanities – study maps to see which areas of the world are classed as rainforest and the climate they share and learn how rainforests have changes over time
Science – learn about the animals that live in rainforests and their habitats
English – write about the rainforest, persuasive writing to protect the Rainforest and endangered animals.
Computing – research elements of the rainforest and type out the stories they wrote in English
Art – create pictures of various animals in the rainforest using different artistic techniques and decorate the classroom as a rainforest
D&T – design fliers to raise awareness of deforestation
Class Trip – visit the rainforest at the London Zoo
Science: We deliver hands-on investigative science activities to promote a deep understanding of scientific concepts and help students develop effective methods of scientific enquiry. Our planning is arranged to take advantage of seasonal study opportunities and to ensure progression in scientific working skills, while covering the National Curriculum for England. We offer opportunities for our students to meet the full range of scientific investigative approaches entailing pattern seeking, exploring, problem solving, fair testing, and analysing secondary sources.
English: We also cover all aspects of the National Curriculum in English, including SPAG, within the context of a wide range of fiction, non-fiction and poetry genres, such as traditional tales, recounts and performance poems. Our approach is grounded in our belief that it is vital that we teach students to read and write with competence and confidence, while facilitating their desire to do so.
English teaching at Nenegate covers the development of students’ speaking, listening, reading, and writing skills. In our school, students are encouraged to express themselves and their ideas in speech, and we provide them with the opportunities to do so throughout the curriculum. We believe it is as important for a child to be able to listen as it is for them to be able to talk. We try to set an example by listening to the students and encouraging them to listen to others. Students also listen to various different poetry, stories, and music. Our pupils are given lots of opportunities to speak in front of different audiences, and drama is used to develop confidence, expression, and intonation.
Students learn to become enthusiastic and critical readers of stories, poetry, and drama as well as non-fiction and media texts. We aim to provide students with interesting and exciting opportunities to develop both their interest and skills in reading. Most importantly, we want students to regard reading as something which is enjoyable for them.
In our school, the skills of writing are taught through a wide range of activities, and all genres are covered. Pupils are given a wide experience of reading and then analysing the language and textual features of a type or genre of writing. Handwriting, grammar, and spelling are all given equal importance.
Mathematics: We cater for all our students’ needs individually through differentiation. Pupils develop their knowledge and understanding of mathematics through practical activity, exploration, and discussion. In our year 7/8 groups, pupils learn to use the number system more confidently. They move from counting reliably to calculating fluently with all four number operations. They always try to tackle a problem with mental methods before using any other approach. Pupils explore features of shape and space and develop their measuring skills in a range of contexts. They discuss and present their methods and reasoning using a wider range of mathematical language, diagrams, and charts.
Humanities: A subject provokes and answers questions about the natural and human worlds, using different scales of enquiry to view them from different perspectives. At Nenegate, geography and history are taught through a skills-based curriculum within topics. The students carry out geographical enquiry inside and outside the classroom. In doing this, they ask geographical questions and use geographical skills and resources such as maps, atlases, aerial photographs, and ICT. Pupils investigate their local area and a contrasting area in the United Kingdom or abroad, finding out about the environment in both areas and the people who live there. They also begin to learn about the wider world. They ask geographical questions about people, places, and environments, and use geographical skills and resources such as maps and photographs. Pupils investigate a variety of people, places, and environments at different scales in the United Kingdom and abroad and start to make links between different places in the world. They find out how people affect the environment and how they are affected by it. Pupils also consider how the past influences the present, what past societies were like, how these societies organised their politics, and what beliefs and cultures influenced people’s actions. They learn about people’s lives and lifestyles. They find out about significant men, women, and students, and about events from the recent and more distant past, including those from both Britain and the wider world. They listen and respond to stories and use sources of information to help them ask and answer questions. They learn how the past is different from the present. Our students also learn about change and continuity in their own area, in Britain, and in other parts of the world. They look at history in a variety of ways, for example from political, economic, technological and scientific, social, religious, cultural, or aesthetic perspectives. They use different sources of information to help them investigate the past, using dates and historical vocabulary to describe events, people, and developments.
ICT - Computing is ever increasingly used in todays’ society. All students at Nenegate are given opportunities to explore these uses. Our students need to develop confidence in computing in many ways and in different circumstances for different purposes.
Computing has deep links with mathematics, science, and design and technology, and provides insights into both natural and artificial systems. The core of computing is computer science, in which students are taught the principles of information and computation, how digital systems work, and how to put this knowledge to use through programming.
Students are also equipped to use information technology to create programs, systems, and a range of content. The students will become digitally literate and therefore will be able to use, express themselves, and develop their ideas through information and communication technology. This will help prepare our students for their adult life. We believe that effective use of information and communication technology is a life skill that will be part of the learner’s future both. The constant innovations in technology mean that we are equipping students for a future where technology will be hugely different in both form and application. To that end, we strive to embed computing and ICT so that it allows learners to be creative, to work collaboratively, and to solve problems.
Computing is embedded into curriculum teaching and learning. We ensure it is taught and applied within contexts that allow purpose and application. Students are taught to choose and use hardware and software to meet their needs and enhance their learning experience. Resources are available for wherever and whenever they are appropriate within any area of the curriculum.
Students begin to explore computing and ICT and learn to use it confidently and with purpose to achieve specific outcomes. The students will write and test simple programs. They start to use computing to develop their ideas and record their creative work. They become familiar with hardware and software.
Our students will then move on to designing and writing programs that accomplish specific goals, including controlling or simulating physical systems. The students use a wider range of ICT tools and information sources to support their work in other subjects. They develop their research skills and decide what information is appropriate for their work. They begin to question the plausibility and quality of information. They learn how to amend their work and present it in a way that is suitable for its audience.
Art - Students are given opportunities to develop their creative imagination. They become involved in shaping their environments through art and design activities. They learn to make informed judgements and aesthetic and practical decisions. They explore ideas and meanings through the work of artists and designers. Through learning about the roles and functions of art, they can explore the impact it has had on contemporary life and that of different times and cultures. At all times, we aim to provide a rich environment in which we encourage and value creativity. Our students experience a wide range of activities that they respond to using the various senses. Students use a range of tools and media and explore the work of artists and designers. In doing so, they begin to appreciate the different forms art can take and the function art has on contemporary life and that of different times and cultures.
During their time in our Y7/8 groups, the students use their own experiences and ideas as the inspiration for artwork. They share ideas using drawing, painting, and sculpture and explore a variety of techniques. The students learn about the work of a range of artists, artisans, and designers.
PSD - Personal and Social Development enables our pupils to become independent, confident, healthy, and responsible members of society. We encourage our students to play a positive role in contributing to the school and the wider community. We teach them how society is organised and governed. We ensure that they experience the process of democracy in school including through the Student’s Voice. We teach them about rights and responsibilities. They also learn to appreciate what it means to be a positive member of a diverse, multicultural society. We also deliver weekly social skills sessions.
At Nenegate we have developed a topic based approach to learning which links subjects together and teaches the skills that underpin the whole curriculum. This approach includes visits and hand on experiences which enrich learning and encourage students to want to know more. Our topics are planned over a two-year programme, appropriate for each student, and are either history, geography, or science based with links being made to other areas as appropriate; putting the pupils’ learning in context. The skills in reading, writing, and maths are taught daily as part of the topic or as discrete lessons.
Our topics include:
- Space
- Festivals and Celebrations
- British Values/ We are Britain
- Great fire of London
- Rainforests
- Famous people
- Sport
- Chocolate
- Natural disasters
- Greeks
For example, when learning about the Rainforest, pupils may cover the following:
Humanities – study maps to see which areas of the world are classed as rainforest and the climate they share and learn how rainforests have changes over time
Science – learn about the animals that live in rainforests and their habitats
English – write about the rainforest, persuasive writing to protect the Rainforest and endangered animals.
Computing – research elements of the rainforest and type out the stories they wrote in English
Art – create pictures of various animals in the rainforest using different artistic techniques and decorate the classroom as a rainforest
D&T – design fliers to raise awareness of deforestation
Class Trip – visit the rainforest at the London Zoo
Science: We deliver hands-on investigative science activities to promote a deep understanding of scientific concepts and help students develop effective methods of scientific enquiry. Our planning is arranged to take advantage of seasonal study opportunities and to ensure progression in scientific working skills, while covering the National Curriculum for England. We offer opportunities for our students to meet the full range of scientific investigative approaches entailing pattern seeking, exploring, problem solving, fair testing, and analysing secondary sources.
English: We also cover all aspects of the National Curriculum in English, including SPAG, within the context of a wide range of fiction, non-fiction and poetry genres, such as traditional tales, recounts and performance poems. Our approach is grounded in our belief that it is vital that we teach students to read and write with competence and confidence, while facilitating their desire to do so.
English teaching at Nenegate covers the development of students’ speaking, listening, reading, and writing skills. In our school, students are encouraged to express themselves and their ideas in speech, and we provide them with the opportunities to do so throughout the curriculum. We believe it is as important for a child to be able to listen as it is for them to be able to talk. We try to set an example by listening to the students and encouraging them to listen to others. Students also listen to various different poetry, stories, and music. Our pupils are given lots of opportunities to speak in front of different audiences, and drama is used to develop confidence, expression, and intonation.
Students learn to become enthusiastic and critical readers of stories, poetry, and drama as well as non-fiction and media texts. We aim to provide students with interesting and exciting opportunities to develop both their interest and skills in reading. Most importantly, we want students to regard reading as something which is enjoyable for them.
In our school, the skills of writing are taught through a wide range of activities, and all genres are covered. Pupils are given a wide experience of reading and then analysing the language and textual features of a type or genre of writing. Handwriting, grammar, and spelling are all given equal importance.
Mathematics: We cater for all our students’ needs individually through differentiation. Pupils develop their knowledge and understanding of mathematics through practical activity, exploration, and discussion. In our year 7/8 groups, pupils learn to use the number system more confidently. They move from counting reliably to calculating fluently with all four number operations. They always try to tackle a problem with mental methods before using any other approach. Pupils explore features of shape and space and develop their measuring skills in a range of contexts. They discuss and present their methods and reasoning using a wider range of mathematical language, diagrams, and charts.
Humanities: A subject provokes and answers questions about the natural and human worlds, using different scales of enquiry to view them from different perspectives. At Nenegate, geography and history are taught through a skills-based curriculum within topics. The students carry out geographical enquiry inside and outside the classroom. In doing this, they ask geographical questions and use geographical skills and resources such as maps, atlases, aerial photographs, and ICT. Pupils investigate their local area and a contrasting area in the United Kingdom or abroad, finding out about the environment in both areas and the people who live there. They also begin to learn about the wider world. They ask geographical questions about people, places, and environments, and use geographical skills and resources such as maps and photographs. Pupils investigate a variety of people, places, and environments at different scales in the United Kingdom and abroad and start to make links between different places in the world. They find out how people affect the environment and how they are affected by it. Pupils also consider how the past influences the present, what past societies were like, how these societies organised their politics, and what beliefs and cultures influenced people’s actions. They learn about people’s lives and lifestyles. They find out about significant men, women, and students, and about events from the recent and more distant past, including those from both Britain and the wider world. They listen and respond to stories and use sources of information to help them ask and answer questions. They learn how the past is different from the present. Our students also learn about change and continuity in their own area, in Britain, and in other parts of the world. They look at history in a variety of ways, for example from political, economic, technological and scientific, social, religious, cultural, or aesthetic perspectives. They use different sources of information to help them investigate the past, using dates and historical vocabulary to describe events, people, and developments.
ICT - Computing is ever increasingly used in todays’ society. All students at Nenegate are given opportunities to explore these uses. Our students need to develop confidence in computing in many ways and in different circumstances for different purposes.
Computing has deep links with mathematics, science, and design and technology, and provides insights into both natural and artificial systems. The core of computing is computer science, in which students are taught the principles of information and computation, how digital systems work, and how to put this knowledge to use through programming.
Students are also equipped to use information technology to create programs, systems, and a range of content. The students will become digitally literate and therefore will be able to use, express themselves, and develop their ideas through information and communication technology. This will help prepare our students for their adult life. We believe that effective use of information and communication technology is a life skill that will be part of the learner’s future both. The constant innovations in technology mean that we are equipping students for a future where technology will be hugely different in both form and application. To that end, we strive to embed computing and ICT so that it allows learners to be creative, to work collaboratively, and to solve problems.
Computing is embedded into curriculum teaching and learning. We ensure it is taught and applied within contexts that allow purpose and application. Students are taught to choose and use hardware and software to meet their needs and enhance their learning experience. Resources are available for wherever and whenever they are appropriate within any area of the curriculum.
Students begin to explore computing and ICT and learn to use it confidently and with purpose to achieve specific outcomes. The students will write and test simple programs. They start to use computing to develop their ideas and record their creative work. They become familiar with hardware and software.
Our students will then move on to designing and writing programs that accomplish specific goals, including controlling or simulating physical systems. The students use a wider range of ICT tools and information sources to support their work in other subjects. They develop their research skills and decide what information is appropriate for their work. They begin to question the plausibility and quality of information. They learn how to amend their work and present it in a way that is suitable for its audience.
Art - Students are given opportunities to develop their creative imagination. They become involved in shaping their environments through art and design activities. They learn to make informed judgements and aesthetic and practical decisions. They explore ideas and meanings through the work of artists and designers. Through learning about the roles and functions of art, they can explore the impact it has had on contemporary life and that of different times and cultures. At all times, we aim to provide a rich environment in which we encourage and value creativity. Our students experience a wide range of activities that they respond to using the various senses. Students use a range of tools and media and explore the work of artists and designers. In doing so, they begin to appreciate the different forms art can take and the function art has on contemporary life and that of different times and cultures.
During their time in our Y7/8 groups, the students use their own experiences and ideas as the inspiration for artwork. They share ideas using drawing, painting, and sculpture and explore a variety of techniques. The students learn about the work of a range of artists, artisans, and designers.
PSD - Personal and Social Development enables our pupils to become independent, confident, healthy, and responsible members of society. We encourage our students to play a positive role in contributing to the school and the wider community. We teach them how society is organised and governed. We ensure that they experience the process of democracy in school including through the Student’s Voice. We teach them about rights and responsibilities. They also learn to appreciate what it means to be a positive member of a diverse, multicultural society. We also deliver weekly social skills sessions.