Years 7 - 9 (Key Stage 3)

Years 7, 8, and 9 make up Key Stage 3, which serves as the foundation of students' seven-year educational journey at St Simon Stock Catholic School. Their learning in Key Stage 3 prepares them for Key Stage 4 (Years 10 and 11), where they study for their GCSE qualifications. Following this, students progress to Key Stage 5, also known as Sixth Form (Years 12 and 13), where they have the option to pursue A Levels or BTEC qualifications.

Summary of Curriculum Time

Years 7, 8 and 9 - hour per fortnight

	Year 7	Year 8
Religious Education	5	5
English	7	7
Mathematics	6	6
Science	6	6
Art	2	2
Computer Science & IT	2	2
Design & Technology	3	3
Drama/Oracy	2	2
French or Spanish	5	5
Geography	3	3
History	3	3
Music	2	2
Personal, Social & Health Education	1	1
Physical Education	3	3

The Key Stage 3 Curriculum

Further information about the Key Stage 3 curriculum, including detailed course outlines for each of the separate subjects, can be found on the Subjects page of our school website.

How we Assess Learning in Key Stage 3

In Key Stage 3 teachers assess the students' attainment using the criteria of Emerging, Developing, Secured and Mastered. In addition, we grade students Attitude to Learning.

Home Learning in Key Stage 3

Each subject sets one homework task per week although there may be some occasions where a longer project may be assigned that covers, for example, 2-3 weeks. Guided time per subject is 20-30 minutes and 60-90 minutes total per evening. Students are also taught how to use their time for Independent Learning of the topics they study, so that they can extend their learning through their own reading/research.