History
Year 7:
British society in Medieval and Tudor England including the Battle of Hastings, the Wars of the Roses, the development of the Church during the reigns of Henry VIII, Edward VI, Mary and Elizabeth I with investigations into topics such as whether Richard III killed the young princes, how Henry VII consolidated power and the importance of portraits of Elizabeth I. In the final term pupils study the development of a typical British street from 10,000BC to the present day before studying the Roman Empire and its ongoing influence on life in Britain today.
Year 8:
British history from 1745-1901 including the Industrial Revolution, heroes such as the Duke of Wellington and Nelson and the slave trade. Pupils learn about the development of transport including the impact of railways in wider life and the work of Sir George Cayley, who once lived at Brompton Hall. In the final half-term pupils learn about the history of the holiday in England with a focus on the development of Scarborough.
Year 9:
British and world history during the 20th century. This begins by learning about the history and workings of the British Parliament and to support this we borrow a box of artefacts and props from the Houses of Parliament. It continues by investigating heroes of the 20th century such as Marie Curie, Nelson Mandela and Tim Berners Lee and considering their impact of recent history before learning about the Holocaust, The Cold War and the Qing Dynasty. Pupils also study the ancient and modern Olympics and explore important events of the 20th century, changing attitudes such as towards women and those with disabilities and developments such as the media and sponsorship by learning about the Olympics.
As of September 2019, Keystage 4 pupils are studying for the Edexcel GCSE History qualification. This is an entirely exam-assessed qualification with three exams taken at the end of Year 11. Pupils study the following options on the course:
Paper 1:
Thematic study: Medicine in Britain, 1250-present
Thematic study: British sector of the Western Front
Paper 2:
Period study: Early Elizabethan England
British depth study: Superpower relations and the Cold War
Paper 3:
Modern depth study: The USA, 1954-75
Geography:
Year 7:
Basic map-reading skills, The Arctic and Antarctic, glaciers and how they have shaped the landscape, the physical and human geography of Russia and endangered species. In the final term they develop their understanding of the world map including lines of latitude and longitude and terms such as hemisphere before studying the physical geography of the British Isles.
Year 8:
World population, weather and climate, the physical and human geography of Africa and the importance of rivers to humanity. In the third term they explore the physical and human geography of the Middle East and study developments in tourism and 21st century issues for the tourist industry and local communities.
Year 9:
Volcanoes, earthquakes and tsunami including their impact of human geography, employment trends, the physical and human geography of Asia and Earth’s natural resources including human consumption of these. In the last term they learn about international development including Fair Trade and modern-day China – its physical and human geography.
