Upper School (Year 5 to 8)
Leading, Living, Learning
At Monkton Prep we aim to deliver the very best education for our pupils, ensuring they are fully supported in their journey into young adulthood and equipped for what lies ahead.
There is an expectation that all students will develop leadership skills and step out in different contexts, with many opportunities both formal and social to guide and influence those around them for the good.
Our key principles are:
- At the heart of leadership is the desire to serve
- Leaders have influence
- Everyone can be a leader
- Leaders know when to lead and when to follow
- Leaders develop character
- We want everyone to grow as a leader
We want to help our pupils to become leaders - not simply the more traditional, hierarchical leaders but wholly positive ‘influencers’ wherever they find themselves.
In Year 6 we dedicate one lesson a week to teach Leadership.
In Year 7 we promote leadership roles both in the library and also as mentors to younger years.
In Year 8 we appoint different teams based around various areas of the school - prefects, wild monkton, tech provision, mentoring in lower years, house captains and boarding in Hatton.
We want our pupils to live life to the full, finding purpose and fulfilment in their lives and relationships, and contributing to the welfare of others. Also for our pupils to be lifelong learners, loving learning and achieving highly in whatever they choose to turn their hands to.
We know as professional educators that if we get these three things right, Monkton pupils will be more successful, will live fulfilled lives and will be the history makers of the future.
Curriculum
At Monkton our curriculum is broad, dynamic and focused on the process of learning as well as the outcomes the children will achieve. Our curriculum model focuses on effective academic preparation for Year 9 and beyond while also equipping the children with the skills and characteristics they need to succeed not just in their learning but also their relationships and wider endeavours. We believe in the importance of exams, but we coach the children in exam skills within an engaging, dynamic and broad curriculum which is focused not on the end of Year 8 as the major milestone, but ultimately the end of Year 13. With our Faculty system - STEM, Humanities and Languages, Expressive Arts and Art and Design - Monkton pupils learn in a cross-curricular and thematic way, drawing connections between different subjects and understanding the relevance of each in their wider lives and futures.
Our curriculum in the Upper School comprises English, Maths, Science, History, RE, Geography, French, Spanish, Classics, Design Tech, Information Tech, Art, Music, Drama, PE and Games, the vast majority of which is specialist taught by degree-level teachers. Our Elective Strands - where the Year 7 - 8 pupils choose what to study - incorporate Philosophy, Mechanical Engineering, Health and Sustainability, Classics and our Pre-Senior Project Qualification.
We offer a vast array of co-curricular clubs ranging from Mechanical Engineering to Shooting. Our Wild Monkton initiative provides all our pupils with extensive opportunities to learn outside of the classroom, engage with our beautiful environment and step out of their comfort zone.
Our Saturday School programme runs during term time between 09:15 and 12:15 and comprises everything we wish we could squeeze into the week’s learning. Pupils in Years 5 - 8 participate in a carousel of thematic activities and might be doing our Magpie Award one week (Monkton’s version of Junior DofE), battle reenactments another and then Inter House Debating the next!
Character Education
A crucial part of our educational offering is the incorporation of explicit character education. With the world developing at the pace it is and the future job market likely to be very different from its current state, ensuring our pupils are equipped with the characteristics, attitudes and skills to succeed is essential. We know that if we get the character education right then academic outcomes will follow.
We teach characteristics such as collaboration, resilience, positive failure, risk-taking, initiative, intrinsic motivation and independence explicitly, with teaching time in the Upper School dedicated to it during the week and teachers embedding it into their lessons. We also partner with the PSB (Pre-Senior Baccalaureate) to teach holistic learning skills across the whole of school life which the pupils understand and in which they play a pivotal role.
Stretch and Challenge
A central area of focus for us at Monkton is ensuring we stretch and challenge our pupils, from Early Years right the way through to Year 8. Off the back of the pandemic and the inevitable turbulence of multiple lockdowns felt across the country, it is all the more important to develop the way our pupils respond to challenge, improve study skills, strengthen investigative skills and engender deeper learning. From specific Study Skills sessions in the Upper School to our Academic Excellence Programme, Monkton is known for thinking differently, but we also think deeply. Explore our Faculty pages for more information.
Years 7 & 8
Year 7 and 8 are at the top of the school and are developing into young adults. To help them along this journey and to give them the sense of autonomy and independence that is so important as they grow older, they have a unique selection of opportunities, some of which are listed below: