1. Highfields School Thursday 8 October 2015

2. Welcome, thank you for coming Our Core Purpose To be an inclusive, happy community that values every individual and inspires them to achieve their full potential.

3. Key Stage 4 Curriculum Evenings Consider the challenges ahead, together Year 10Developing a detailed understanding of courses and assessment Year 11Final preparations for exams

4. This evening Part 1: 6.00pm-6.55pm - Wheeldon Hall Welcome from Mrs Rifkin, Assistant Headteacher and Mrs Ruston, Head of Year 10 Presentations from core examined subjects - English, Maths, Science and PRS

5. This evening Part 2: 7.00pm –8.00pm: 4x12-minute sessions (one per option)

6. Finding your way around

7. Learning support The Learning Support team are available in L6 all evening Please feel free to pop in if you have any questions or concerns, for example around support for your son/daughter’s learning or to discuss arrangements for exams or internal assessment.

8. Key Dates Assessment Profiles – Friday 20 November – Friday 29 January – Monday 11 July Y10 Parent Consultation Evening – Tuesday 8 March Work Experience – Monday 27 June to Friday 8 July

9. Key messages Communication Support Developing independent learners The importance of reading

10. Screen time A 2015 Cambridge University study found that on average, students spent 4 hrs per day average watching TV or on a computer, tablet or smartphone. An additional hour of screen-time each day was associated with 9.3 fewer GCSE points - the equivalent of dropping a grade in two subjects. Two extra hours of screen-time was associated with 18 fewer points - or dropping a grade in four subjects. Extra time spent watching TV had the most detrimental effect on grades Pupils who did an extra hour of homework and reading performed better than their peers. Pupils who put in an extra hour of homework or spent the time reading, did better in their GCSEs, scoring 23 points more than the average. Even if pupils spent more time studying, more time spent watching TV or online, still harmed their results.

11. Highfields School GCSE FROM 2015 English Language

12. Assessment Paper 1 (1 hour 45 minutes) Section A - Fiction Comprehension (1 text) Section B – Descriptive or Narrative writing Paper 2 (1 hour 45 minutes) Section A – Non-fiction comprehension (2 texts) Section B – Writing to present a viewpoint

13. Paper 1 Section A Questions based on a fiction extract Short, long and extended questions based on the extract’s content, language and structural devices 40 marks

14. Paper 1 Section B Extended writing which either describes or creates a story 40 marks (24 for content - 16 for accuracy) EITHER: Write a description suggested by this picture: OR: Write the opening part of a story about a place that reminds you of your childhood.

15. Paper 2 section A Questions based on a non-fiction text and a literary non-fiction text Short, long and comparison questions about the texts’ content and language devices 40 marks

16. Paper 2 Section B Extended writing which presents a point of view 40 marks (24 for content - 16 for accuracy) ‘Homework has no value. Some students get it done for them; some don’t do it at all. Students should be relaxing in their free time.’ Write an article for a broadsheet newspaper in which you explain your point of view on this statement.

17. Assessment Objectives Reading 1: Identify and interpret explicit and implicit information and ideas select and synthesise evidence from different texts. 2: Explain, comment on and analyse how writers use language and structure to achieve effects and influence readers, using relevant subject terminology. 3: Compare writers’ ideas and perspectives, as well as how these are conveyed, across two or more texts. 4: Evaluate texts critically and support this with appropriate textual references. Writing 5: Communicate clearly, effectively and imaginatively, selecting and adapting tone, style and register for different forms, purposes and audiences. Organise information and ideas, using structural and grammatical features to support coherence and cohesion of texts. 6: Use a range of vocabulary and sentence structures for clarity, purpose and effect, with accurate spelling and punctuation.

19. Assessment Paper 1: Shakespeare and the nineteen century Novel (1 hour 45 minutes) Section A - Shakespeare Section B – A Christmas Carol 40% of GCSE Paper 2: Modern texts and Poetry (2 hours 15 minutes) Section A –modern play or novel Section B – Power and Conflict poems Section C –unseen poetry 60% of GCSE

20. Paper 1 Section A An extract question based on a Shakespeare play Analysing the extract Linking to the rest of the play

21. Paper 1 Section B An extract question based on the nineteenth century novel A Christmas Carol Analysing the extract Linking to the rest of the novel

22. Paper 2 Section A An essay question based on a modern play or novel

23. Paper 2 Section B An essay comparing 2 poems from a cluster of 15 based on the theme of Power and Conflict

24. Paper 2 Section C An analysis of an unseen poem A comparison of that poem with a second unseen poem

25. Final ‘Grades’

27. Highfields School Thursday 8 October 2015