- Mrs T. Anslow, BA (Oxon)
- Mrs A Blond, MA (Westminster), BA(Bristol)
- Miss A. Cocksworth, BA (Cantab)
- Mrs S. Gamsu, BA (Leeds)
- Mrs S. Gilbert, MA (Cantab)
- Mr D. James-Williams, MA (London) (Head of English)
- Dr R. Ling, DPhil (Oxon)
- Miss V. Moss, MA (Cantab)
- Mrs K. Turley, MA (Oxon)
- Mrs H.A.Turner, MA (Cantab) (Director of the Sixth Form)
What we do:
At all levels, the English curriculum at North London is centred around the study of literature, with work on the mechanics of the language integrated into this. In years 7 to 9 all girls study a range of poetry, prose and drama, with a Shakespeare text being studied each year: A Midsummer Night's Dream in Year 7; Julius Caesar in Year 8; and Romeo & Juliet in Year 9. There is a strong sense of progression through the years, so whilst in Year 7 girls would read ‘The Rime of the Ancient Mariner', in Year 8 they would study Jane Eyre and in Year 9 look at love poetry and Great Expectations.
The curriculum in the lower years is always theme based so as to give a strong sense of coherence. Each year group also has its own extra-curricular competition aligned to what is being studied: in Year 7 all girls take part in a Poetry Recitation Competition; in Year 8 there is a Public Speaking Competition; and in Year 9 we have the Shakespeare Debates.
In the Upper School all girls take the iGCSE in English Language and the AS English Literature.
In the Sixth form girls can take the Cambridge Pre-U Literature in English Course, or if they decide to study the IB, English Literature is a compulsory component and girls can choose to take it at either a Higher or Standard level. English is very popular in the Sixth Form and both courses provide a sound grounding for those wishing to go on to study English or related disciplines at University. Around twenty girls annually choose to apply to read English and take part in an enrichment course during Year 12 and 13, which gives them a further opportunity to nourish their passion.
Extra curricular activities:
Extra-curricular provision in the department is diverse. We run the Literary & Dramatic Society, which holds a weekly book group after school and runs theatre trips every few weeks. The department also runs the Film & Media Society with its weekly Film Club and the Debating Society which runs high-profile weekly debates on Fridays and enters a number of national competitions. Creative Writing Society is also very vibrant and dynamic and publishes a termly journal called Weasel Words. Opera Club is also run by a member of the department; it meets weekly and organises regular outings.
In Years 10 and 11, girls can participate in all of the societies that the Senior girls run. They also have their own literary journal and compete in an annual debating competition, which from 2011 onwards will involve boys from John Lyon School.
There is a similar provision for girls in Years 7-9, with Debating Club, the Mad Hatter's Book Group, Middle School Creative Writing Group with its own publication, Archipelago, as well as the provision which is linked to the curriculum. Girls from Year 7 also participate in the annual Spelling Bee Competition organised by The Times.
The Department also runs a number of partnerships with other schools. The T. S. Eliot Poetry Prize Shadowing for Year 11 (run by Year 12) with Queen Elizabeth Girls' School runs during the Autumn and Spring terms where girls from the two schools meet at Canons after school to discuss the merits or otherwise of the short-listed poets. The English Department also has a longstanding partnership with Henrietta Barnett School, running days for both Years 7 and 9 on Shakespeare plays. Year 7 girls from both schools act out scenes from A Midsummer Night's Dream in the grounds of Canons and Year 9 do an acting and theme workshop on The Tempest. Having run a web-based partnership with a school in India in 2010, this year the English department has developed its international partnerships by establishing a link with St Cuthbert's School in Auckland. This link has provided the opportunity for Year 8 students to work with girls from St Cuthbert's, on a cross-curricular English and History project that explores the theme of empire. The project was run through Kaleidos, which provided an excellent platform for the girls to discuss ideas with each other and display their work. We have been pleased to be able to incorporate video clips and picture libraries into the project this year, an enhanced benefit of Kaleidos which has helped to bring the project to life for the girls. We also use blogging as part of the forum for discussion for girls in Year 13 doing their Personal Investigation as part of their Pre-U Literature in English course.
We also run a biennial trip to Dublin alongside the History Department for girls in the Sixth Form, where we explore its rich literary heritage and political heritage and how these are inextricably intertwined.