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Prep school curriculum is a fairly complicated subject. Schools tend to offer a summary of the curriculum in their prosectusses and other promotional literature. These summaries are a helpful introduction before devealing into this topic in more detail. Of course the curriculum varies from school to school, but there are many similarities.
Birchfield prepares boys for entry to Public Schools. Most boys enter the school when they are between five and eight years old, but may be accepted up to the age of twelve. Parents are encouraged to arrange for their boys to join the school as early as possible, since experience has shown that the special attention given in the junior form ... provides an excellent introduction to Birchfield. Boys usually leave some time after their thirteenth birthday having taken eith the Common Entrance or a Scholarship examination. Although boys are encouraged to work hard, they are not expected to concentrate on success in examination to the exclusion of other activities. A limited amount of homework is set for the senior forms. For the Common Entrance examination a boy must take papers in Mathematics, English, French, History, Geography, Science, and Scripture, and may also sit in the Latin paper. In addition to these subjects, all boys have lessons in Art, Music, and Physical Education. In the junior part of the school, emphasis is on English and basic Mathematics, while French is introduced at the age if sevrn and Latin at ten.
Birchfield School Prospectus
The regular curriculum consists of Spripture, English, French, Mathematics, Science, History, Geography, Latin, Singing and Art. The aim of the syllabus is to ensure that an average boy shall have no dufficulty in passing his Common Entrance examination between the ages of thirteen and fourteen, and that the boy of more than averahe ability shall be fit to sit for a scholarship. All boys are trained to take examinations in their stride, without intensive preparation. One of the means by which this is achieved is the abolition of the traditional annual examinations, and the substitution of a weekly test, conducted under examination conditions: thus on one Saturday of term there is a French test, on another a Mathematics test, and so on until all the major subjects have been covered, when the series is repeated. By this means, the boys are accustomed to examinations and lose their 'stage fright", and the staff is able to keep an eye continuously on each boy's individual progress. This system has been in progress for many years, and is proving a sound basis for the concept of continuous assessment, which is now so mych a part of the G.C.S.E. examination.
When a boy joins the school after his seventh birthday, it is hoped that he will be able to read, write, and know most of his tables. French and Latin are intridyced at the age of nine and ten plus, respectively. The Common Entrance syllabus in Science is started in the Forth Form, but boys do informal Science and Nature Study all through the school.
Barfield School Prospectus
Although the majority of our pupils go on to the Senior School, some boys go to other Public Schools and a few girls thake the Girls' Common Entrance at 11+ and 12 +. All the usual subjects required for Common Entrance and Scholarship are taught, including Latin, French, Mathematics, History, Geography, Scripture, English, and the different brances of Science, Geology and Natural History are taught in the lower forms and Greek in the Scholarship form. There is a Current Affairs lesson for all forms each week.
Dean Close Junior School Prospectus
