Curriculum Overview
Curriculum Overview
Manshead CE Academy Curriculum 2023-2024
From September 2023 we are amending the structure of the school day to consist of six 50 minute lessons.
The key reasons for this decision, based on the research, are highlighted below:
- Research suggests that students may struggle to concentrate for more than 45 minutes and that productivity is often seen to decrease in the last 10 minutes of lessons that are an hour long.
- Visiting a subject more frequently across a week for shorter periods can help improve retention.
- Broadening of the curriculum for students in Year 7, 8 and 9 who will now have an increased number of lessons in humanities, design technology and PE. This will mean student have a greater knowledge and skill set in these subjects and be better prepared to be successful in them at GCSE.
- Students in all year groups will visit the core subjects more frequently, supporting progress and ultimately academic outcomes that enable students to take their next steps.
Along with these academic changes, we will see the introduction of a single, longer lunch time. This increased time will provide opportunities for an increase in extra curricular activities run over lunch time.
Taking into account the available research, feedback from other schools and most importantly an understanding of our students here at Manshead, we believe that this will make lesson time more effective and support students in making even greater progress.
Key Stage 3 for 2023-2024
Year 7
| Subject | Number of Lessons per Week |
| English (Language / Literature) | 5 |
| Mathematics | 6 |
| Science | 3 |
| Modern Foreign Languages (French / Spanish) | 2 |
| History | 2 |
| Geography | 2 |
| Music | 1 |
| Drama | 1 |
| Design Technology (Food Technology / Product Design / Textiles) | 2 |
| Art | 1 |
| Accelerated Reader | 1 |
| Ethics | 1 |
| Computing and ICT | 1 |
| Physical Education | 3 |
Students cover a Personal Development Education (PDE) programme through a combination of form time activities with their tutor and Personal Development days across the school year.
All students will study Design Technology (Food Technology, Product Design and Textiles) across Key Stage 3. Students will study two of the three technology subjects in Y7, Y8 and Y9, however there will be no Product Design in Y9.
Year 8
| Subject | Number of Lessons per Week |
| English (Language / Literature) | 5 |
| Mathematics | 6 |
| Science | 4 |
| Modern Foreign Languages (French / Spanish) | 2 |
| History | 2 |
| Geography | 2 |
| Music | 1 |
| Drama | 1 |
| Design Technology (Food Technology / Product Design / Textiles) | 2 |
| Art | 1 |
| Ethics | 1 |
| Computing and ICT | 1 |
| Physical Education | 2 |
Students cover a PDE programme through a combination of form time activities with their tutor and Personal Development days across the school year.
All students will study Design Technology (Food Technology, Product Design and Textiles) across Key Stage 3. Students will study two of the three technology subjects in Y7, Y8 and Y9, however there will be no Product Design in Y9.
Year 9
| Subject | Number of Lessons per Week |
| English (Language and Literature) | 5 |
| Mathematics | 5 |
| Science | 4 |
| Modern Foreign Languages (French / Spanish) | 2 |
| History | 2 |
| Geography | 2 |
| Music / Drama | 1 |
| Textiles | 1 |
| Food Technology | 1 |
| Art | 1 |
| Ethics | 2 |
| Computing and ICT | 1 |
| Physical Education | 3 |
Students cover a PDE programme through a combination of form time activities with their tutor and Personal Development days across the school year.
All students will study Food Technology and Textiles across Key Stage 3. Students will study two of the three technology subjects in Y7, Y8 and Y9.
Students will make a choice to study either Music or Drama.
Key Stage 4 for 2023-2024
Year 10 Curriculum
| Subject | English Language | English Literature | Mathematics | Science | Option | Ethics | Physical Education | |
| Combined | Triple | 1 / 2 / 3 | ||||||
| No. Lessons per Week | 3 | 3 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 3 / 3 / 3 | 2 | 2 |
Students cover a PDE programme through a combination of form time activities with their tutor and Personal Development days across the school year.
Year 11 Curriculum
| Subject | English Language | English Literature | Mathematics | Science | Option | Ethics | Physical Education | |
| Combined | Triple | 1 / 2 / 3 | ||||||
| No. Lessons per Week | 3 | 2 | 6 | 6 | 7 | 3 / 3 / 3 | 2 | 2 |
Students cover a PDE program through a combination of form time activities with their tutor and Personal Development days across the school year.
Key Stage 5 for 2023-2024
Year 12 Curriculum
| Subject | Option | Independent Study | PE | Enrichment Option | |||
| 1 / 2 / 3 | Core Mathematics | EPQ | Finance | Duke of Edinburgh | |||
| No. Lessons per Week | 5 / 5 / 5 | 12 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
Students will cover a Tutorship program including PDE, UCAS and University applications and discussion of current affairs through form time.
Year 13 Curriculum
| Subject | Option | Independent Study | Physical Education |
| 1 / 2 / 3 | |||
| No. Lessons per Week | 5 / 5 / 5 | 12 | 1 |
Students will cover a Tutorship program including PDE, UCAS and University applications and discussion of current affairs through form time.