Mr. Wright - Key Stage 3 Welcome

Hello and welcome to King’s Oak. My name is Mr Wright and I am Head of Key Stage 3. Key Stage 3 at King’s Oak is a very special place and acts as a bridge between Key Stage 2, where you end primary school and Key Stage 4, where you really begin to narrow down your choices in terms of picking your option subjects to study for your exams in Year 11. 

For many, the transition from primary school into the demands of secondary can be a difficult one as you go from being in one classroom and with one teacher for the vast majority of the day to being in a multitude of classes with different teachers for each subject. At King’s Oak we aim to ease that transition by running a primary model in Key Stage 3 - simply put, this means that our Key Stage 3 learners have a base class and only travel to specific classrooms where learning would be unable to take place within the confines of a general classroom, such a a laboratory for Science, a studio for Art or an industrial kitchen for Food Technology. KS3 are also in our own area of the building and we have separate beginning and end times to the school day as well as separate break and lunchtimes to KS4. This is something that was borne out of feedback given at School Council and is just one example of pupil voice in action. 

Within KS3 we study a range of topics through project style learning and establishing cross curricular links so that pupils are able to be part of purposeful learning that supports and prepares them for KS4 in a creative and engaging way and exemplifies the school’s vision of bringing your past and leaving with your future. 

I am very proud of the model we have built at KS3 and  feel confident that all pupils in this key stage feel safe, listened to and make progress both academically and socially.