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Curriculum

Developing a true love of learning.

Our curriculum is carefully planned to ensure our pupils experience a broad range of subjects, developing a true love of learning and having the opportunity to find their true passions.

From the starting point in Year 7, they will typically go on to focus on nine or ten subjects at GCSE and three at A Level.

The Curriculum

Lower School Curriculum

In the Lower School at St James Senior Boys’ School we aim to provide students with a broad curriculum, helping them to explore different subjects and areas of interest. The aim is to inspire students and light a fire of interest in particular fields of study.

In these years most lessons are taught in Forms, allowing boys to forge relationships and work effectively in mixed ability groups. Mathematics and some Language classes are set by ability.

We want to ensure that the boys have the necessary skills that will equip them for success at GCSE and beyond, so have designed a Lower School Curriculum that places great emphasis on the development of key skills. We want to inspire the boys with a love of learning, to embrace a wider range of assessments such as oral presentation, in-depth project work, and traditional forms of written assessment. Through the Harmony Project and other cross-curricular initiatives, we look to make connections between learning and the world beyond the classroom.

Upper School Curriculum

At the end of Year 8, students choose their GCSE subjects from a broad range of options. Our academic aim is to enable a boy to develop his powers of reasoning and each subject provides a unique discipline as well as helping develop these skills in different ways.

Therefore, the balance of subjects is important. As part of a bespoke transition process entitled Stepping into Adulthood, the boys are provided with an extensive programme of support that equips them to make those important GCSE choices that will help shape their educational journey.

With a wide range of 22 academic subjects, the boys are offered a Renaissance education for the modern world. Whether it is studying ancient languages such as Latin or Sanskrit, the traditional Science, Arts and Humanities courses, or looking to the modern world of innovation in areas such as Design Technology, Media Studies or Computing, we offer a rich and varied curriculum.

Stepping into Adulthood

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