English Subjects

Do you zone out during class novels? Does your mind take you to every other place rather than what's happening in your English class? Then this class is for you! 

Introducing TLDR (Too Long Didn't Read): this subject builds the foundations of literacy through topics you already know about. Bring your expertise, and we'll journey through the basics together.

What we'll do:

• Build our vocabulary

• Learn ways to understand texts

• Build our writing stamina

• Get an introduction to essay writing

Still reading? You're in!

Why do some stories stay with us long after we've heard them?

In Plot Twist, students explore how storytellers use words, music, images and sound to create meaning and connect with audiences. Through the study of poetry, song lyrics and film, students investigate techniques such as imagery, symbolism, metaphor, mood, colour, camera work, sound design and characterisation.

Students will analyse a range of accessible and engaging texts, from contemporary songs and spoken word performances to short poems and films. They will also develop their own creative voice through original writing and storytelling projects. Along the way, students strengthen core English skills including analytical writing, close reading, interpretation, textual evidence and creative expression.

This subject is ideal for students who enjoy stories, creativity, music, film and popular culture, and want to build confidence in English through a variety of text types.

Queer literature has a long, rich and celebrated tradition, and this subject puts it front and centre.

In this subject you'll read two landmark works of queer literature - Alison Bechdel's Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic, a layered graphic memoir about family, grief, sexuality and self-discovery, and Malinda Lo's Last Night at the Telegraph Club, a historical novel set in 1950s San Francisco exploring identity, belonging and courage at the intersection of race and sexuality.

Through close reading, discussion and analytical writing, you'll examine how queer writers use their craft to tell stories that have historically been silenced, and consider what literature can do that other forms of storytelling cannot. This is a subject for students who want to read seriously, think carefully and engage with writing that genuinely matters.

From the Globe Theatre to Broadway, from ancient Greece to contemporary Australia, plays have always been one of the most powerful ways humans tell stories, ask questions and hold a mirror up to the world.

All the World's a Stage is a rigorous, literature-focused subject for students who want to read plays seriously,  analysing them as some of the most sophisticated texts ever written. You'll study a variety of landmark play in depth, including a Shakespeare, examining how playwrights use dramatic structure, language, character and stagecraft to construct meaning on the page as much as on the stage.

Through close reading, discussion and analytical writing, you'll develop the skills to unpick how a play works, what it argues, and why certain works have endured for centuries while others have been forgotten. This is a subject for students who want to think carefully, write with precision and engage seriously with dramatic literature.

If a robot could think, feel and dream, would it be human? Questions like this are at the heart of Sci-phi-losophy, a subject that uses science fiction as a lens for exploring some of philosophy's biggest ideas.

In this subject you will read and analyse seminal science fiction texts, examining how authors use imaginative settings and scenarios to explore philosophical questions about knowledge, identity, morality, technology and what it means to be human. Through discussion and activities you will investigate how speculative fiction can challenge our assumptions about ourselves and the world around us. You will explore key features of the science fiction genre and consider how writers imagine possible futures. You'll also try your hand at speculative fiction yourself, either by writing your own science fiction story or by reviewing a text from the genre.

In Truth, Lies and Headlines, you'll investigate how media shapes the way we think about the world.

Through journalism, documentaries, film, news and social media, you'll explore bias, persuasion, representation and the power of storytelling.

You'll learn to analyse arguments, evaluate evidence and uncover hidden messages, and create persuasive and journalistic pieces of your own. Along the way, you'll tackle real-world issues and develop the critical thinking skills needed to navigate a world where it's harder than ever to know what's true.

If you've ever wondered who controls the narrative and how opinions are shaped, this is the subject for you.

Who holds the power? And what happens when it shifts?

This subject is for students who want to read ambitiously, think critically and write with sophistication. Through two of the most provocative dystopian novels of modern literature (Margaret Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale and Naomi Alderman's The Power) you will examine how gender, power, control and rebellion operate both in fiction and in the real world.

These two novels ask the same urgent question from opposite directions: what does power do to people, regardless of who holds it? Studying them together, you will develop sophisticated skills in close reading, argument analysis and essay writing, learning to unpick not just what these authors say, but how and why they say it.

This is a subject for students who enjoy being challenged, who want to form and defend their own views, and who are ready to engage seriously with ideas that matter.

Please note: the texts in this subject contain mature themes including gender-based violence and power. Students and families are encouraged to speak with the teacher if they have any questions about the content.

Think graphic novels are just comics? Think again.

Graphically Speaking uses graphic novels as a gateway into serious reading and writing skills, the same skills you need to analyse any text, from novels to news articles to films. Yes, there are images, but don't be fooled - graphic novels are an excellent way to explore how a story is constructed, how a character is developed, and how an argument is made.

You'll read and compare different graphic novels, develop your character analysis and comprehension skills, learn how images and words work together to construct meaning and argument, and build your paragraph writing, all through texts that are genuinely engaging to read.