Super Curriculum
The Becket Sixth Form
Work Hard. Be loving. Do the right thing.
What is the Super Curriculum at the Becket Sixth?
Super curricular activities are those that take your regular curriculum further. They take the subject you study in the classroom beyond that which your teacher has taught you or what you’ve done for homework. For example, you may go into more depth on something you picked up in the classroom, or learn about a new topic altogether. These activities are normally in the form of extra reading but they can take many other forms, like watching videos online, downloading podcasts, attending lectures, visiting museums, watching webinars, completing online courses (MOOCS) or entering academic competitions.
On this website, there are a range of resources and activities, suggested by teachers for you to stretch yourself and explore your subjects. They are by no means exhaustive lists but should get you started. The Sixth Form team would encourage you to share ideas and opportunities you come across with your teachers so that, over time, the recommended activities on this website can grow. In the future, employers or universities will be interested to hear about what Super Curricular activities you have engaged in; they will be interested in what you have learnt and impressed by your efforts.
We wish you well in your pursuit of super curricular activities!
Suggested Super Curricular Activities
Extra Reading
Listening to podcasts
Watching films or documentaries
Visiting places of interest
Watching webinars
Completing online courses (MOOCs)
Entering academic competitions.
Researching a question
Creating something new
The Super Curricular Process
By just adding one or two hours a week of super curricular activities, you could be enhancing your grades and opening more opportunities for your future simply by broadening your understanding of a particular subject area. The following gives you an example of how you might wish to break down a free study period and engage in Super Curricular.
ENGAGE (30 minutes)
Go ahead and read/watch/listen etc the entire source. While you are doing this be intentional about it. Do your best to understand where the author is coming from and what points he/she is trying to get across. If you need to re--read/watch/listen to it then do so.
There should be at least one bit of new information in the content you are going to examine, probably there will be more than one. This might be new research, a fresh perspective, or an original approach. It may be something you don’t fully understand, especially if the topic is new to you.
To analyse this source properly, you need to dig deeper. Research the authority of the author or producer, the claims they’re making, and any words or content you don’t understand. Does it conflict or support your previous opinions or understanding? Do you need to find out more before you can fully grasp the new knowledge and make connections? Or do you need to find out more before you can make an informed opinion?
The idea is to be able to fully comprehend the content contained in the source. If you don’t you won’t be able to analyse it.
REFLECT & RECORD (15 minutes)
After engaging with the source, you should be able to summarise the main points of the piece in your own words.
You now need to critically think about what you have just examined, you might ask yourself the following questions;
What are the key points from the source you just engaged with?
Was it well-written?
Was the information presented in a clear and compelling way?
More importantly, do you agree with the conclusions the author drew?
Why or why not?
Has it raised any further enquiry questions?
In your Super Curricular journal
Write down the date, the tittle of the source and the author/producer.
Record down your reflection, use the questions opposite to help you.
SHARE (15 minutes)
After you’ve acquired new information, filtered it through your individual lens–the way you see the world and the people in it–and formed your own opinion on the topic, you can then implement your new knowledge.
Write about it, bring it into lessons, essays where appropriate, talk to your mates and teachers about it and find more contrasting and comparable sources to see if your opinions and critical reflections might change.
You maybe asked to share or present your new knowledge during Becket Reads where it can inform discussion and debate.