Our Curriculum
The Curriculum Vision
At Presdales School, we aim to provide a curriculum which:
● Is as rich, inspiring and broad as possible with well designed, inclusive and carefully sequenced content.
● Provides students with opportunities to take their curriculum beyond the classroom to develop their love of learning, build their independence and expand their creativity.
● Enables students to build on prior learning, deepen the knowledge essential for each subject and enhance their skills
● Raises students aspirations and equips them with the knowledge, skills and ambition to flourish in their future careers.
● Will support all students to develop the character and resilience to face the constantly changing world in which we live.
● Fosters the development of students’ character, personal development, health and wellbeing preparing them to make a valuable and responsible contribution to society
The Curriculum Plan
Years 7 to 9
We have a very broad KS3 Curriculum covering 15 subjects meeting all the national curriculum requirements.
● All students study: Art, Computing, Design & Technology, Drama, English, French, Geography, History, Mathematics, Music, PE, Philosophy, Religion & Ethics and Science. In Year 7 students also commence study of another Modern Foreign Language (MFL), chosen from German, Italian, Russian and Spanish.
● In each year at KS3, students are taught in mixed ability teaching groups for all subjects, apart from Mathematics and MFL (except lessons in Year 7). In Year 9 students are put in sets for Science lessons.
● Personal, Social, Health and Economic education (PSHE) is delivered in teaching groups in Years 7, 8 and 9. Citizenship is delivered across the curriculum at KS3.
Years 10 and 11
Students begin to specialise to provide them with the opportunity to deepen their knowledge and understanding of the subjects they will choose to study to GCSE level.
● At KS4 all students study GCSEs in Mathematics, English Language, English Literature, Combined Double Science (Trilogy), or the three separate Sciences (Biology, Chemistry and Physics); either Geography or History.
● All but a few selected students then select up to three subjects from: French, German, Italian, Russian, Spanish (if they have studied it previously in Year 9), a second humanity (Geography, History), Fine art, Business, Design & Technology (Product Design or Textiles), Drama, Food Preparation & Nutrition, Health & Social Care (BTEC), Media Studies, Music, Physical Education, Philosophy, Religion & Ethics or Sociology.
● In addition students have lessons in PE, with PSHE taught on five single days on an ‘off timetable’ basis over the Key Stage. Citizenship is delivered across the curriculum at KS4.
Sixth Form
● All students follow two year courses which lead to A level in Year 13. Students will normally choose three A level subjects to study from: English Literature, English Language and Literature, Mathematics, Further Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, Biology, French, German, Spanish, Russian, Italian, History, Geography, Politics, Economics, Business, Philosophy, Religion & Ethics, Psychology, Sociology, Art, Photography, Music, Drama & Theatre, Media Studies, Design & Technology (Product Design or Fashion & Textiles) and Physical Education.
● GCSE qualifications in Mathematics and English are available for those students who have not attained a grade 4 in either of those subjects.
● All sixth formers follow courses in careers and physical education, whilst many also choose to take a Sports Leadership qualification and/or an Extended Project Qualification (EPQ) to supplement their academic studies.
● The curriculum is reviewed and evaluated annually to ensure it reflects the needs of our cohorts of students and to keep in step with cultural and technological changes and educational developments.
Additional Information
Subjects Studied outside of School
If you/your child wishes to sit a qualification with us that is not taught in school, please contact Ms Waite, Exams Officer with the details. You will need to include the subject, exam board and specification you/your child wishes to sit. We will then be able to look into whether or not we can accommodate your request. We will not be able to accommodate any qualifications that have a coursework or non examined assessment component. Please note that we will not enter students for any GCSE subjects before Year 11.
