The OCR Level 3 Free Standing Mathematics qualification in Additional Mathematics gives students an introduction to the mathematics studied in AS and A Level modules. Taught alongside GCSE Mathematics in Years 10 and 11, it is designed as an enrichment programme for students who will be high achieving at GCSE (9-1). Although it is not a GCSE it will give students an excellent grounding for their future studies.

Syllabus:

This FSMQ builds on the skills, knowledge and understanding acquired during the GCSE (9–1) course. It consists of four main ‘pure’ mathematics topics, each of which contains an ‘applied’ dimension, and two numerical topics, all underpinned by an algebra section.

The single paper will assess content covering
• Algebra
• Enumeration
• Coordinate Geometry
• Pythagoras and Trigonometry
• Calculus
• Numerical Methods
• Exponentials and Logarithms

Curriculum enrichment:

• Opportunities to attend Royal Institution masterclasses
• Representing Crosfields School in local Maths competitions, ‘Maths Feast’ and UKMT Team challenges

Vibrant and dynamic, this GCSE course will enable students to build their technical skills through working with a broad range of media, studying art in both traditional and contemporary contexts.

Syllabus:

The GCSE course is designed to explore a range of art ideas and processes allowing students to develop their skills in an area of their interest. They are able to explore a range of media, including fine art, printmaking, textiles, ceramics and photography. Students are taken through a series of workshops at the start of the course to develop both skills and understanding of the creative process before having the opportunity to specialise in a media of their choice. They will explore ideas and techniques in response to the work of others and refine their work towards a final outcome. Independence is encouraged, especially in the latter stages of the course which will prepare students for study at A-level and beyond.

Curriculum enrichment:

• Visits to local galleries
• Overseas trip such as New York
• Visiting specialists
• Workshop for support and scholarship students
• Open studio time

Students will explore real business issues and investigate how businesses work. They will analyse the activities which happen behind the closed doors of businesses; managing money, advertising, and employment are all covered. The course gives students the opportunity to develop communication skills, numeracy in the real world, evaluative skills, organisation and teamwork. This is a great basis for those looking to work in the corporate world, or own their own business.

Syllabus:

• Enterprise and entrepreneurship- business ownership, setting business aims and objectives, stakeholder management and planning.
• Influences on businesses, ethical business practices, the economy, globalisation, legislation
• Human Resources, recruitment practices, team motivation and organisation structure and training
• Marketing including market research, understanding customers, the elements of the marketing mix

Curriculum enrichment:

• Curriculum trips to large national businesses
• Visiting speakers to share their real-life experiences
• Young Enterprise Club which is part of the co-curricular offering

The Computer Science GCSE courses has been designed to reflect the importance of computation in the modern world today and how it will do so in the future. Students will be able to understand and apply the fundamental principles and concepts of computer science and analyse problems in the computational terms through practical experience such as designing, writing and debugging programmes.

Students are encouraged to think creatively, innovatively, analytically, logically and critically to understand the impact of digital technology on the individual and wider society.

Syllabus:

There are six topics within the curriculum:

1. Problem solving- Developing a set of computation thinking skills that enable them to understand how computer systems work, and to design, implement and analyse algorithms for solving problems.
2. Programming- Students should be competent at designing, reading, writing and debugging programmes.
3. Data- Learning how different types of data are represented in a computer.
4. Computers- Students must be familiar with the hardware and software components that make up a computer system and recognise that computers take many forms from embedded microprocessors to distributed clouds.
5. Communication and the internet- Understanding the key principles behind the organisation of computer networks.
6. The bigger picture- Focusing on the influence of computing technology on their lives.

Curriculum enrichment: 

• A visit to Bletchley Park to connect encryption concepts to the real world.
• Reading is the heart of technology in the UK which affords our students opportunities to visit and witness day to day activities.
• We offer a coding club within our co-curricular activities to support learning and creativity.

The GCSE Design and Technology course is designed to develop creative thinking, apply problem solving skills to practical and technological problems and develop the communication skills central to design, making and evaluation. Students will be expected to apply their knowledge and understand the design and creation process. Students are encouraged to consider the impact of their work from a sustainability perspective. We encourage students to apply learning to areas of personal interest, developing a range of transferable skills and the attributes of the learner. They will need to develop the ability to make aesthetic, economic, moral and technical value judgements.

Syllabus:

Students will study three aspects of Design and Technology: core technical principles, specialist technical principles and design and making principles.

This qualification encourages creativity and has a focus on practical work. This allows students to develop an understanding and enjoyment of drama, developing group and individual skills and studying ways to communicate ideas and feelings to an audience.

Syllabus:

Drama is an exciting, creative and challenging subject: a practical based course and students are encouraged to pursue a fully integrated course that allows them to develop their performance skills within a theoretical framework. Practical work will develop both group and individual skills in relation to extracts from plays, other diverse stimuli, the theories of practitioners and dramatic work of the students’ own devising. Students take an integrated approach to the creation and/ or staging drama and will consider not just the function of actors but also that of designers such as set, costume, lighting and sound.

Curriculum enrichment:

• Trips related to plays studies as part of the course
• Participation in school productions
• LAMDA and drama sessions

This course aims to enable students of all abilities to develop the skills they need to read, understand and analyse a wide range of different texts covering the 19th, 20th and 21st century time periods as well as to write clearly, coherently and accurately using a range of vocabulary and sentence structures.

Syllabus:

Explorations in Creative Reading and Writing
The aim of this paper is to engage students in a creative text and inspire them to write creatively themselves by:
• in section A, reading a literature fiction text in order to consider how established writers use narrative and descriptive techniques to capture the interest of readers.
• in section B, writing their own creative text, inspired by the topic that they have responded to in section A to demonstrate their narrative and descriptive skills in response to a written prompt, scenario or visual image.

Writers’ Viewpoints and Perspectives
The aim of this paper is to develop students’ insights into how writers have particular viewpoints and perspectives on issues or themes that are important to the way we think and live our lives. It will encourage students to demonstrate their skills by:
• in section A, reading two linked sources from different time periods and genres in order to consider how
each presents a perspective or viewpoint to influence the reader.
• in section B, producing a written text to a specified audience, purpose and form in which they give their own perspective on the theme that has been introduced to them in section A.

Spoken Language
The aim of this assessment is to allow students to demonstrate their speaking and listening skills by:
• giving a presentation in a formal context
• responding appropriately to questions and to feedback, asking questions themselves to elicit clarification using spoken Standard English.

Curriculum enrichment:

• Opportunities to see plays and shows related to the texts studied
• Author visits
• Writing workshops

This course encourages students to develop knowledge and skills in reading, writing and critical thinking. Through literature, students have a chance to develop culturally and acquire knowledge of the best that has been thought and written. Studying GCSE English Literature should encourage students to read widely for pleasure, and as a preparation for studying literature at a higher level.

Syllabus:

Shakespeare and the 19th Century Novel
Students will study one Shakespeare play from a list of six set texts, and one novel from a list of seven set texts. In both cases, students should study the whole text.

Modern Texts and Poetry
Students will study one from a choice of 12 set texts, which includes post-1914 prose fiction and drama. They will also study one cluster of poems taken from the AQA poetry anthology, Poems Past and Present. There is a choice of two clusters, each containing 15 poems. The poems in each cluster are thematically linked and were written between 1789 and the present day. Students should study all 15 poems in their chosen cluster and be prepared to write about any of them in the examination. In the unseen poetry section, by way of preparation, students should experience a wide range of poetry in order to develop their ability to closely analyse unseen poems. They should be able to analyse and compare key features such as their content, theme, structure and use of language.

Curriculum enrichment:

• Trips related to set texts studied
• Author visits
• Poetry workshops

Economics studies how people, businesses and governments make their choices in order to maximise welfare. It is a course that anyone can access and is especially useful for those who are looking at Maths and Economics as A level choices. The course is split into Micro and Macro topic areas.  

Syllabus includes the following topics: 

Microeconomics 

• The economic problem  
• Demand, supply and market equilibrium  

• Business costs, revenues and profit  
• Business competition 

Macroeconomics 

• Macroeconomic objectives 

• Government policies 
• International trade 
• Exchange Rates  

Curriculum enrichment: 

• Online subscription to the Economist 

• Lunchtime investment club.  

This exciting course is based on a balanced framework of physical and human geography. It allows students to investigate the link between the two themes, and approach and examine the battles between the man-made and natural worlds. Students who complete the course will have the skills and experience to progress into A Level and beyond.

Students will travel the world from their classroom, exploring case studies in the United Kingdom, higher income countries, newly emerging economies and lower income countries. Topics of study include climate change, poverty, deprivation, global shifts in economic power and the challenge of sustainable resource use.

Syllabus:

1. Living with the physical environment including the challenge of natural hazards, the living world, physicals landscapes in the UK, geographical skills.
2. Challenges in the human environment including urban issues and challenges, the changing economic world, and the challenge of resource management.

Curriculum enrichment:

• Trips to local area
• Expert speakers
• Model United Nations co-curricular team

This IGCSE framework has been designed to develop a love of history and a keen understanding of international history. Students will evaluate historical evidence; justify their points of view and present information both individually and collaboratively. Over the course students will develop and extend their knowledge and understanding of specified key events, periods and societies in history. They will engage in historical enquiry to develop as independent thinkers, whilst developing the ability to ask relevant questions about the past.

Curriculum enrichment: 

• There will be two trips including the Imperial War Museum.

Mathematics is an exciting, creative and rigorous discipline that is at its most rewarding when it presents a challenge! As well as being a pursuit in its own right, mathematics underpins almost all areas of modern-day life. Students will be encouraged to appreciate the importance of sound mathematical understanding, whether that be as a gateway to further study in mathematics, engineering, the sciences or computing, or as the basis of good decision-making in their everyday lives.

The key aims and objectives of the Mathematics GCSE course are to enable students to:
1) Develop fluent knowledge, skills and understanding of mathematical methods and concepts.
2) Acquire, select and apply mathematical techniques to solve problems.
3) Reason mathematically, make deductions, inferences and draw conclusions.
4) Comprehend, interpret and communicate mathematical information in a variety of forms appropriate to the information and context.

During Year 10 we will decide if each student will sit the Higher or Foundation tier. Those very able students will also sit an Additional Mathematics qualification.

Syllabus:

All students will develop confidence and competence in the following areas:
Foundation Tier
Number 25%
Ratio, Proportion and Rates of Change 25%*
Algebra 20%
Geometry & Measures 15%*
Statistics & Probability 15%*

Higher Tier
Number 15%*
Ratio, Proportion and Rates of Change 20%*
Algebra 30%*
Geometry & Measures 20%*
Statistics & Probability 15%*
*% weightings are approximate.

Curriculum enrichment:

• Involvement in annual Maths Week England
• Opportunities to take part in national competitions such as UKMT Intermediate Maths Challenge
• Maths ‘clinics’ for supporting students
• Weekly Maths puzzles and Maths-themed hobbies

The GCSE French and Spanish courses have been developed to help students of all abilities progress and develop a passion for languages, through culturally engaging content.
This inspirational course will enable our students to manipulate and use the French or Spanish language effectively, independently and creatively, so that they have a solid basis from which to progress to A Level or employment. Students are required to choose one Modern Foreign Language in their core subjects, they can then choose the other language as one of their option subjects.

Syllabus:

The 3 themes are
• Identity and culture
• Local, national, international and global areas
of interest
• Current and future study and employment

The aims and objectives of this qualification are to enable students to:
• develop their ability to communicate confidently and coherently with native speakers in speech and writing, conveying what they want to say with increasing accuracy
• express and develop thoughts and ideas spontaneously and fluently
• listen to and understand clearly articulated, standard speech at near normal speed
• deepen their knowledge about how language works and enrich their vocabulary in order for them to increase their independent use and understanding of extended language in a wide range of contexts

*Native speakers are able to enter a GCSE in their native tongue from the end of Year 10. Contact Mrs Pepper, Head of Modern Foreign Languages for more information.

Curriculum enrichment:

• In Year 11 the students will have an intensive fun revision day at the Europa Centre

This GCSE course has been recently redesigned to reflect the demands of a truly modern and evolving music environment. It aims to form personal and meaningful relationships with music whilst engaging critically and creatively with a wide range of music. The students will develop an understanding of the place of music in different cultures; how music is used in the expression of personal and collective identities. It is designed to give equal weighting to performance and composition allowing development and progress in both skills. They will have the opportunity to learn in depth appraising skills for both the set works and how to analyse unfamiliar music.

Syllabus:

There are three components that form the music GCSE syllabus.

1. Performing– two performances are required including a solo and ensemble piece totaling a minimum of four minutes.
2. Composing– Two compositions are required, one is set to a brief and the second allows the student full creative choice.
3. Appraising– Four areas of study with two set works each; instrumental music 1700-1820, Vocal Music, Music for Stage and screen and Fusions.

Curriculum enrichment:

• Attend concerts and performances
• Workshops focusing on composing techniques and performance
• Career talks from musicians in different lines of work

The GCSE French and Spanish courses have been developed to help students of all abilities progress and develop a passion for languages, through culturally engaging content.

This inspirational course will enable our students to manipulate and use the French or Spanish language effectively, independently and creatively, so that they have a solid basis from which to progress to A Level or employment.

Students are required to choose one Modern Foreign Language in their core subjects, they can then choose the other language as one of their option subjects.

Syllabus:

The three themes are:
1. Identity and culture
2. Local, national, international and global areas of interest
3. Current and future study and employment

The aims and objectives of this qualification are to enable students to:
Develop their ability to communicate confidently and coherently with native speakers in speech and writing, conveying what they want to say with increasing accuracy. Express and develop thoughts and ideas spontaneously and fluently. Listen to and understand clearly articulated, standard speech at near normal speed. Deepen their knowledge about how language works and enrich their vocabulary in order for them to increase their independent use and understanding of extended language in a wide range of contexts.

Curriculum enrichment:

-A week immersion in France/Spain with the opportunity to meet French/Spanish students.

-Co-curricular French and Spanish opportunities available throughout the year

-Languages week celebrates culture and diversity in a variety of ways

-Spanish and French performances in the theatre

AQA have worked closely with the Youth Sport Trust to develop a new Physical Education course that will help students of all abilities to develop a well-rounded skill set and prepare them for progression to further studies. Candidates need to demonstrate that they are an all-round sportsperson with a developed, deeper understanding of the physical, psychological and practical demands of sports performance.

Syllabus:

The students taking this course will foster a theoretical understanding of sports performance and how it is affected physically, mentally and culturally. They will be able to study a chosen sports at a technical level, improving and analysing personal performance. The course will focus on seven areas:

1. Applied anatomy and physiology
2. Movement analysis
3. Physicals training
4. Use of data
5. Sports psychology
6. Socio-cultural influences
7. Heath, fitness and wellbeing

Curriculum enrichment: 

• Through our vast co-curricular programme students have access to a number of opportunities within a range of sports.

Psychology is the scientific study of the mind and behaviour. It encompasses every aspect of human experience and psychological findings and the impact to our day-to-day lives. Exploring high performance (from learning to sport) , trying to control the behaviour of nations, and better understand our own thinking processes, a foundation of knowledge in psychology has real-life impact on behaviours within the working world.

We are offering this course to give students an insight to their own thinking and behaviours. There are several crossovers with other subjects such as Biology, Maths, PE, Art, Drama and Business not only within GCSE but beyond. As well as direct links, there are transferable skills such as evaluation, essay writing and data analysis and interpretation. Psychology is one of the most popular A Levels and Degree subjects in the UK so a chance to study this subject at this stage give students an early chance to gain a strong foundation.

Syllabus:

• Memory- models used, types of memory and accuracy.
• Perception- senses, visual illusions constructivist theories.
• Development- child development (neural, nature vs nurture)
• Social influence- conformity, obedience, prosocial behaviour, collective behaviour
• Language– language and thought, human and non-human communication, non-verbal communication and body language.
• The brain and neuropsychology- the nervous system, neurons, structure and function of the brain, neuropsychology
• Psychopathology- mental health and treatments.
• Research methods- designing research, correlations, ethics, data collection and interpretation.

Curriculum enrichment:

• Students will have the chance to conduct and participate in research projects.
• Trips to places such as the Science Museum, Freud Museum.
• Brain Club which is part of our co-curricular offering.

Religious Studies is a rigorous and demanding academic discipline. It encourages critical thinking, decision making, collaboration and independent working skills that will benefit all subjects. It provides opportunities to explore, make and respond to meanings of life experiences in relation to the beliefs and experiences of others. The WJEC EDUQAS syllabus covers a range of the major world religions and ethical themes. Students will be challenged with questions about beliefs, values, meaning, purpose and truth. This will enable them to develop their own attitudes and beliefs whilst gaining an understanding of how religion, philosophy and ethics form the basis of our culture.

Syllabus: 

Students will consider different beliefs and attitudes to religious and non-religious issues in contemporary British society.

Science is a set of ideas about the material world. This course includes all the parts of good science whether it be investigating, observing, experimenting or testing out ideas and thinking about them. The way scientific ideas flow through the course will support students in building a deep understanding of science. This will involve talking, reading and writing about science plus the actual doing, as well as representing science in its many forms both mathematically and visually through models. GCSE science encourages the development of knowledge and understanding in science through opportunities for working scientifically.

Syllabus: 

Alongside the skills outlined in the course aims, all students will continue to nurture a curiosity of the world around them. Students will be encouraged to consider the power and limitations of science and the impact on our wider global community.Science will be taught in the 3 recognised areas of science Biology, Chemistry and Physics.

Biology – Cell biology, Organisation, Infection and response, Bioenergetics, Homeostasis and response, Inheritance, variation and evolution, Ecology.

Chemistry – Atomic structure and the periodic table, Bonding, structure and the properties of matter, Quantitative chemistry, Chemical changes, Energy changes, The rate and extent of chemical change, Organic chemistry, Chemical analysis, Chemistry of the atmosphere, Using resources.

Physics – Energy, Electricity, Particle model of matter, Atomic structure, Forces, Waves, Magnetism and electromagnetism.

The students begin their GCSE Science course at the start of Year 9. At the start of Year 10 we will decide if they will sit a GCSE in each area of Science or a combined Science course worth two GCSEs. This decision will be made on our experience of the children’s scientific ability.

Curriculum enrichment: 

• Trips to GCSE Science Live and The Science Museum
• Trip to Iceland
• Visiting speakers from Reading University and other organisations
• In our co-curricular programme there are options to look at astronomy and engineering