Year 8 Coverage: Exploring British Literature
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Writing Types: (to include) ‐ Writing to Argue ‐ Writing to Describe Must include: * Features common to these writing types: TRAPPERS, SAMOSAPA * Exploration and analysis of good quality examples of writing in these forms * Argument about a controversial issue * Description of abstract concepts: 5 Rooms Poetry Across Time: ‐ Adrian Henri ‐ Carol Ann Duffy ‐ Ben Jonson ‐ Robert Browning ‐ Elizabeth Barrett Browning ‐ Derek Walcott ‐ William Shakespeare Must include: * Poetry from across last three centuries * Exploration of how a specific theme has been presented in different ways, from differing perspectives, across the ages * Analysis of literary features and structural devices * Comparative essay of how a theme has been presented by different poets from different eras Literary Heritage Text: (one of) ‐ ‘Frankenstein’ Mary Shelley ‐ ‘Great Expectations’ Charles Dickens ‐ ‘Wuthering Heights’ Emily Bronte ‐ ‘Oliver Twist’ Charles Dickens ‐ ‘Jane Eyre’ Charlotte Bronte Society
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Class Novel: (one of) ‐ ‘Fat Boy Swim’ Catherine Forde ‐ ‘Holes’ Louis Sachar ‐ ‘The Illustrated Mum’ Jacqueline Wilson ‐ ‘Stone Cold’ Robert Swindells ‐ ‘The London Eye Mystery’ Siobhan Dowd ‐ ‘Trash’ Andy Mulligan ‐ ‘Street Child’ Berlie Doherty ‐ ‘The Angel Collector’ Bali Rai ‐ ‘Boy in the Striped Pyjamas’ John Boyne ‐ ‘Private Peaceful’ Michael Morpurgo ‐ The Other Side of the Truth’ Beverley Naidoo ‐ ‘The Curious Incident’ Mark Haddon ‐ ‘Boys Don’t Cry’ Malorie Blackman ‐ ‘Goodnight Mister Tom’ Michelle Magorian Must include: * Focus on the presentation of social issues and thematic concerns * Passage based language analysis * Formal essay based on a significant societal theme raised within the text British Drama: (one of) ‐ Mark Wheeler’s Docu‐Dramas Must include: * Exploration of setting, props, character portrayal, evolvement of key events, effect on the audience * Significance of themes covered through the drama * Two part critical analysis: firstly a response to the presentation of a character through the course of the text and then also an analysis of The Darkness Within 
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Shakespeare: (Intro to and one of) ‐ ‘Twelfth Night’ ‐ ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ ‐ ‘The Tempest’ Must include: * Study of playwright’s life and the era * Exploration of Shakespeare’s language * Character development through language, action and subtleties * Consideration of the restrictions and constraints of stage performance * Three‐part question from a chosen extract of the text to be completed in exam conditions The Gothic: (to include extracts from a selection of) ‐ ‘The Withered Arm’ Thomas Hardy ‐ ‘The Signalman’ Charles Dickens ‐ ‘The Red Room’ H. G. Wells ‐ ‘The Tell‐Tale Heart’ Edgar Allen Poe ‐ ‘Dracula’ Bram Stoker ‐ ‘Frankenstein’ Mary Shelley ‐ ‘The Grey Woman’ Elizabeth Gaskell ‐ ‘The Yellow Wallpaper’ Charlotte Perkins Gilman ‐ ‘Uncle Montague’s Tales of Terror’ Chris Priestley ‐ ‘Wuthering Heights’ Emily Bronte ‐ ‘Twilight’ Stephanie Meyer ‐ ‘Beautiful Creatures’ Kami Garcia Must include: * Awareness of the stylistic conventions of the 
‐ ‘Pride and Prejudice’ Jane Austen Must include: * Study of context and era * Focused study of a heritage author: subject, style, politics, historical and social implications * Comparison alongside passages from original text * Passage based language analysis * A critical evaluation of the social and historical significance of the text and the author studied Spoken Language: Communicating and Adapting  A presentation relating to a topic the student feels strongly about 
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the presentation of a theme from the text covered Writing Types: (to include) ‐ Writing to Persuade ‐ Writing to Review Must include: * Features common to these writing types: ISAFOREST, APRICOT * Exploration and analysis of good quality examples of writing in these forms * Construct a choice of a letter, article or speech in which the student persuades their audience * Write a review of an artistic performance Spoken Language: Creating and Sustaining  Character hot‐seating  Monologue of a character from one of the texts studied  Scripting and performance of an interlude/conversation that is not contained within the novel / play studied 
genre * Exploration of how writers create certain tones and moods through description of settings and character * Thorough and detailed analysis of language * Consideration of how the genre has evolved over time * Wide range of extracts to be covered and appreciated * Unseen extract to be used as stimulus for a tiered questioned reading assessment * A written composition in which descriptive features are used to create own gothic setting or opening to a story Spoken Language: Interacting and Responding  Discussion prompts relating to character actions from the Shakespeare task studied