Parents Handbook

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PARENTS ’ HANDBOOK

Academic Life Through our varied and exciting curriculum and extensive super-curricular programme, at Teddies we aim to foster a love of learning to last a lifetime.

Shell Curriculum The aim of the Shell Curriculum is to maintain as much breadth as possible, while building the values and cognitive skills that will allow pupils to flourish in the upper years and beyond. Pupils join us from many different schools and in the course of the year we aim to instil a shared sense of academic purpose and ambition. Unusually for Year 9 pupils, at St Edward’s we offer choice in which subjects pupils wish to study beyond a core set. A full guide to the Shell Curriculum is here . In summary, all Shells study Maths, English, Biology, Chemistry and Physics, TPE (Theology, Philosophy and Ethics), Music, Classics (Latin and Classical Civilisation), History and Geography along with PE and Wellbeing. In addition, they choose five more subjects from this list:

Middle School Curriculum

In the Middle School Programme (Fourth and Fifth Form), pupils take up to eleven GCSEs including the core subjects of Maths, English Language, World Literature, the sciences and a modern foreign language. A wide range of combinations of other subjects is available as GCSEs or our Pathways and Perspectives courses. Introduced in 2020, the Pathways and Perspectives courses were designed by St Edward’s in conjunction with leading educationalists and are accredited by the University of Buckingham. They are designed to be academically stretching and to equip pupils with the skills they need for study at Sixth Form and beyond, with a stronger focus on developing self-management, communication and developing ideas. For more information about the Middle School Curriculum please visit here . In March of the Shell year, pupils make their subject choices following consultation with parents, Tutors and Teachers. For those joining the School in the Fourth Form, pupils meet teachers and Tutors at St Edward’s before making subject choices with their parents. Super-Curriculum Beyond the classroom, we develop pupils' passions for their subjects and learning through clubs and societies, lectures and days spent in Oxford. For our current programme of events available to pupils see here .

• French • Spanish • German • Ancient Greek

• Art and ceramics • Computer Science

• Drama • Design

Shells choose at least one of French, Spanish or German and may choose up to two more modern foreign languages.