Examined Enrichment

Everyone takes at least one enrichment option in the Lower Sixth. The option you pick is up to you. You can stick with the mandatory skills -based course (either the version that supports an EPQ or the one that doesn’t) or you can pick one of the following examined courses. Where the timetable allows it, you may be able to pick both. You’ll pick your enrichment option/s at the start of September, but as many of these courses have a bearing on your BTEC / A level choices, we have produced the lists of options here for you to consider.

Examined Enrichment Options Art

Explore your creativity through a visually challenging and diverse course that will tease the very best out of you creatively, critically and contextually You will be taught by teachers from a variety of specialisms and have access to facilities that will stretch your abilities in the more traditional skills of drawing, painting and printmaking, whilst also enabling you to expand your knowledge in digital manipulation and darkroom experiences Depending on your preferences and willingness to give up your free time, this course leads either to the full Art A level or provides an opportunity to take your art further without the need to complete an exam it’s up to you!

Core Maths AS

In this option boys study the analytic, logic and problem-solving disciplines developed in AQA Level 3 Certificate in Mathematical Studies (Core Mathematics) course It’s usually completed in a year and complements the essay-writing and generic research skills developed in other subjects In the world today, it is a great advantage to be able to communicate mathematically and foster a strong understanding of statistics in the everyday world

The Course Maths course will be taught within four lessons per week, with two examinations at the end of the Lower Sixth Paper 1 covers three main topic areas: analysis of data, personal finance and estimation Most of the mathematical content will be a review of the GCSE course with one or two new styles of data representation and a much more in depth look at financial mathematics than pupils will have come across in any previous studies Paper 2 is predominantly statistics, including the normal distribution, correlation and regression Additionally, the depth of understanding of this mathematics and a focus on analytic skills ensures a stronger support for other A level choices, in particular Geography, Biology and Psychology

English Language AS / A level

In this course we ask such questions as, Why do we talk the way we do? Are we selling something? Gaining status? Exercising power? How do we go about persuading people? Do men and women speak differently? Should we even be asking that question in the 21st century? You’ll learn how linguistic theorists, sociologists and psychologists approach these issues, and how to write about them for a more general audience For AS, you will have a chance to analyse an extraordinary range of texts, from nit-comb ads to TV reviews, and even a letter of apology from the Government There are units on Language and Power, and Language and Gender For those who take the subject to A level, there’s an opportunity to learn about how children learn language, how language has changed over the centuries, and to study a dimension of language that’s entirely up to you – the choice of coursework options is amazingly free, and the board approves almost all projects, from the representation of women in hip hop to how tabloids present Brexit

Greek AS / A level

An A level in Classical Greek will reveal to you, if it has not done so already, the advanced foresight of the Greeks, who, by the end of the 5th century BC, were questioning the power of the gods in the realisation that mankind was now ‘the boss’, an insight not too distant from our own view that mankind is the most dangerous thing on the planet and that the fate of mankind lies in our own hands It provides you with the opportunity to read and explore some of the greatest playwrights, philosophers and historians As with Latin, you will also develop your understanding of language structures, you will write compositions in Greek and you will begin to appreciate the beauty of this ancient language (Classical Greek is not for the faint-hearted): it possesses a rigour beyond that of most other subjects, but the sense of satisfaction of unravelling a passage of complex Greek is immense

A level Greek comprises four examined papers: two language and two literature Your studies will include practice in unseen translation and comprehension, as well as composition, and most importantly and enjoyably the study of a number of classical authors

You will read a selection from Homer’s Odyssey, an epic poem of ‘extraordinary pleasures: it is a saltcaked, storm-tossed, wine-dark treasury of tales of terrifying monsters and sexy witches, of alluring sirens and inscrutable queens, a poem that takes you down to the coldly echoing chambers of the dead and back up to the coves and cliffs and winding paths of Ithaca

A poem of many twists and turns, like life itself ’ (Charlotte Higgins) As mentioned above, Classical Greek is not for the faint-hearted Or, depending on your teacher, a selection from Sophocles’ Ajax, a psychological play of the trauma of war, in which the warrior Ajax is driven mad when the armour of Achilles is given to Odysseus, and not to him

Modern Foreign Languages

Continuing with a language in the Sixth Form adds an extra dimension to a Sixth Former’s academic portfolio Universities value language studies and taking language modules in degree courses is becoming more popular, so this option will suit all Sixth Form pupils no matter the academic course being followed British businesses want linguists and prize cultural awareness

There are two possible pathways for enrichment French, German and Spanish. All pupils will study towards and take the internationally-recognised European languages B1 tests at the end of the Lower Sixth year: DELF (French), DELE (Spanish) Goethe Zertifikat (German) Pupils can continue in the Upper Sixth to take the AS exam and will have four periods a week focusing on the topic areas required for this exam The AS counts towards UCAS points and the European tests are a useful skill for future employment or study

The one-year DELE/DELF/ Goethe Zertifikat course will develop pupils’ spoken and written fluency in the language The exam is usually taken in June of the Lower Sixth It is skills-based and practical with an emphasis on language useful for work, study or travel

For the AS course pupils study aspects of the language’s culture and society as well as developing spoken and written fluency The topics deal with contemporary social issues relevant to young people, develop translation and interpretation skills plus the opportunity to explore in depth a film or work of literature The AS is examined at the end of the Upper Sixth The four key skills of speaking, listening, reading and writing are assessed Small classes with an emphasis on communication, interaction, exploration and enjoyment make the AS an attractive offer open to all Sixth Form pupils This has been particularly popular with future medics, vets and engineers

For those with a Mandarin GCSE or prior knowledge, the HSK course is taught at Sherborne School It is available at different levels according to ability and linguistic knowledge Pupils take a certificated exam at the end of the course

There are opportunities to study Italian B1 (PLIDA) and beginner-level Japanese at Sherborne Girls Pupils interested in studying Russian should speak to Mrs Thurman, the Head of languages at Sherborne School.