Examples of and links to Super Curricular activities for our Year 7 students include:
English
Watch:
- Find out about different Shakespeare plays and you can also watch key scenes being performed by the Royal Shakespeare Company – Shakespeare Learning Zone | Royal Shakespeare Company (rsc.org.uk).
- Watch this funny video about how language is constantly evolving. What new words would you invent? Erin McKean: Go ahead, make up new words! | TED Talk.
- Watch the adaptation of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein. It may be in black and white and from 1931, but it is superbly exciting and one of the most popular adaptations of Shelley’s novel to date! Watch the trailer here – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BN8K-4osNb0. And find the full movie on You Tube or Amazon Prime.
Listen:
- Develop your knowledge as a writer by listening to The Writing Life podcast, produced by the National Centre for Writing at Dragon Hall in Norwich. Every two weeks they release a new episode and ask real writers for tips and advice to help you improve your writing – https://player.fm/series/the-writing-life.
- Listen to this podcast. What have you learnt about the book? (This does include spoilers!). BBC Radio 4 – In Our Time, Frankenstein.
- Listen to these Shakespeare stories (retold in a new way) – BBC Sounds – Shakespeare Retold – Available Episodes.
Read:
- Why not have a go at reading Arthur Conan Doyle’s complete anthology of Sherlock Holmes stories? You can find every adventure here – https://maggiemcneill.files.wordpress.com/2012/04/the-complete-sherlock-holmes.pdf.
- Read this article about real life crimes that have been solved. Write down what you have learnt about how the crimes were solved – Close Up – Forensic Linguistics – Lehrstuhl für Englische Sprachwissenschaft (uni-wuerzburg.de).
- Intrigued by a taster? Read the whole book from our ‘Growing Up’ unit. We read a short extract from: The Book Thief, Anne Frank’s Diary, Curious Incident of the Dog at Night-time, Great Expectations and Northern Lights. You could write a review of the book.
Participate:
- Watch the performance and write a review – The Hound of the Baskervilles – Theatre Royal Bury St Edmunds.
- Visit Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre to watch one the bard’s iconic plays for as little as £5! You can even sign up for the brand-new, walk-through exhibition when you’ll be immersed in the sights, sounds, and secrets of Shakespeare’s London.
- Visit the Sherlock Holmes museum in London (221B Baker Street). Create a piece of learning (e.g. a video, a slide show or a creative piece of writing about what you have learnt).
Modern Foreign Languages
Watch:
- Une Vie de Chat – Animated adventure film
- Kirikou et la Sorciere – animated adventure film based on elements of West African folk tales.
- Watch a Disney film you know in French with subtitles in English.
Listen:
- Babbel’s Parlez Away – French podcasts.
- Listen to the free access Podcasts at Coffeebreak French.
Read:
- Mary Glasgow French magazines for French learners available from Scholastic. Some free online samples are on the website.
- Lingua.com – Beginners short texts to read and answer questions about.
- For an English book where the story is set in Paris, France – try Rooftoppers by Katherine Rundell.
Participate:
- Duolingo.
Science
Watch:
- Watch the video on Cells – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9mvJ6GmMn1k.
- Acid vs Lava! – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JdFRjsEZrmU.
- Watch ‘Exploring Our Solar System’ – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qd6nLM2QlWw.
Listen:
- Listen to the podcast ‘The Cell’ – https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/episode-10-the-cell/id385427377?i=1000543266510.
- Listen to ‘The Periodic Table’ song – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rz4Dd1I_fX0.
- Listen to the podcast, ‘So you want to be an astronaut’, – https://www.nasa.gov/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/ep325.5-so-you-want-to-be-an-astronaut.mp3.
Read:
- Research how Robert Hooke is linked to cell biology.
- How are elements named? Where did the following names come from (choose five): Barium, Californium, Einsteinium, Geranium, Gold, Helium, Iron, Lead, Mercury, Mendelevium, Nobelium, Potassium, Sodium, Uranium.
- Research the Solar System – https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/articles/zxyw7yc#zvqr96f.
Participate:
- Create a 3D model of a specialized cell of your choice.
- Choose an element from the list and create a poster/PowerPoint.
- Create a model of the solar system and show the relative sizes of the planets and distances away from the sun. Visit the Planetarium at https://www.rmg.co.uk/whats-on/planetarium-shows.
Maths
Watch:
- Problems and graphs – https://nrich.maths.org/737.
- Percentages explained – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JeVSmq1Nrpw.
- Order of operations – https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/topics/znmtsbk.
Listen:
- Maths stories – https://wild.maths.org/tags/mathematical-stories.
- Basic algebra – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YokKp3pwVFc.
- Introducing Probability – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KzfWUEJjG18.
Read:
- Maths Games for Clever Kids.
- Murderous Maths – Easy Questions, Evil Answers.
- Murderous Maths – Guaranteed to Mash Your Mind.
Participate:
- Cambridge Science Centre activities – https://www.cambridgesciencecentre.org/.
- Arrangements – https://nrich.maths.org/32.
- Maths Problems – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YokKp3pwVFc.
Technology
Watch:
- How it’s Made: Table Tennis. Watch – How it’s made – table tennis table.
- Grand Designs. Watch episodes of the Channel 4 TV Programme. Presenter Kevin McCloud follows some of Britain’s most ambitious self-building projects, as intrepid individuals attempt to design and construct the home of their dreams. Watch here.
- Order of operations – https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/topics/znmtsbk.
Listen:
- Listen to a podcast from a famous chef/designer.
Read:
- A History of Great Inventions by James Dyson. This volume of scientific history by award-winning inventor James Dyson details the greatest achievements of the human imagination since early hominids invented stone tools about 250,000 years ago.
Participate:
- Food – five-a-day. Draw around your hand – and then create a ‘5 A Day’ poster to encourage those that live with you to eat a variety of fruit and vegetables each day.
- Visit a local restaurant and try a new dish or cuisine.