KS3 Extra-Curricular Challenges

Our KS3 Extra-Curricular Challenges offer an exciting opportunity for students to go beyond the curriculum and discover just how much they can achieve. Designed to stretch and challenge students in Years 7 to 9, these activities spark curiosity, reward creativity, and encourage ambitious thinking. Open to all students who are eager to challenge themselves, the programme celebrates enthusiasm, perseverance, and a love of learning, helping young people build confidence, develop new skills, and stand out as independent motivated learners.

Please see below for our current challenges : 

Subject
Task
Science

Human Digestive System

Research and create a detailed diagram of the human digestive system, showing the path food takes through all major organs. For each organ, explain its role in digestion, the types of food it acts on, and any enzymes or chemicals involved. Choose one enzyme to investigate in more detail, describing where it is produced, what it breaks down, and how it works. Optionally, add a creative element such as a journey map or comic strip showing a piece of food traveling through the digestive system. Finally, include at least one real-life application of digestion and share your work with your science teacher.

English

Celebrating Poetry 

Following National Poetry Month in November, can you please create your own blackout poem. Choose a page from your favourite narrative and black out all the words that you do not want to use in your poem. Do this by colouring over them in dark ink. The words that are left create your poem. 

Can you then write a paragraph explaining what your poem is about, how you have used language to tell a story and why you wanted to communicate the message that you created. If you have any questions on the task or wish to discuss the chosen book, please come and see Mrs Moore in E7. 

Music

Choose any musical instrument that interests you and research its background. Explore where the instrument comes from, the country or culture and time period it is associated with, and how it produces sound. Investigate musicians who are famous for playing this instrument and why they are important. Choose one to three pieces of music featuring the instrument and explain why your chosen piece is your favourite, referring to its sound, mood or style. Use this task as an opportunity to explore your own musical interests, listen widely, and enjoy discovering something new about music.

PE

Match Report 

Watch a sporting event live or in person and write a match report on the event you saw.

Content to include:

  • Stand out performers 

  • Scores and statistics 

  • Turning points in the match

Mathematics

Problem Solving Topic : Numbers

  1. How many of the three-digit numbers that can be made from all of the digits 1, 3 and 5 (used only once each) are prime?

  2. I wrote down a 4-digit number that was divisible by 3, 4, 5 and 6, but I spilled a cup of tea on it and can only see the first two digits. The first two digits are 95 (in that order). What were the last two?

  3. Grandma bakes a cake for her grandchildren who are going to visit her.

She has forgotten whether 3,5 or all 6 of her grandchildren will visit.

She wants all of the cake to be eaten by her grandchildren and would like each grandchild to get the same amount of cake.

To prepare for all three possibilities, what is the smallest number of pieces into which she should cut the cake?


 
History
  1. Year 7: The Anglo-Saxon exhibition at the British Library – Stephen Liddell

 

Open the link and study the details of the exhibition. How far does this exhibition challenge the popular perception of the so-called Dark Ages?

 
  1. Year 8: Lesson 12 The lives of Black Georgians.pptx

 

Study the attached powerpoint and complete questions from this worksheet:

Lesson 12 Black Georgians.docx

 
  1. Year 9: https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2019/02/why-nonviolent-resistance-beats-violent-force-in-effecting-social-political-change/

 

Study the article carefully. Why has non-violence proved to have been more effective than violence? Are you surprised?

Geography

https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/datablog/2016/apr/25/where-is-the-riskiest-place-to-live-floods-storms

 

Read the article; where is the riskiest place to live? What is your criteria? 

Drama

Write a play for the Royal Court Theatre’s Young Playwright’s Award - Miss Langdon will read your draft and give you some feedback! Info here: 

https://royalcourttheatre.com/write-and-create/schools-young-people/young-playwrights-award/

Art

Find an object around your house that you can see your reflection in. This could be something shiny, smooth, or reflective—like a mirror, spoon, kettle, window, phone screen, or metal surface.

Look closely at your reflection in the object and draw a portrait of what you see. Pay attention to how your face looks in that surface.

Bonus challenge: Choose an object that distorts your reflection (bends, stretches, or squashes your face). The more unusual the reflection, the more interesting your portrait will be!

Focus on careful observation rather than perfection—embrace the weird shapes and unexpected details.

Dance

Dance theatre review 

Watch this great interview by Matthew Bourne explaining his ideas for the show Sleeping Beauty 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WQCsx8Q4lQE

Then you can watch thefull work on BBC iplayer https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/m001ty2k/matthew-bournes-sleeping-beauty

Then write up a 500 word theatre review - using these questions to help you 

  • What was your overall impression of the production? 

  • What emotions or thoughts did the production leave you with? 

  • How did the set and props contribute to the storytelling? 

  • How would you describe the genre used for the movement? 

Food Technology

Healthy Eating

When choosing food and drinks,it is important to follow the current healthy eating guidelines.

Watch the video clip,research more information on Healthy Eating and complete the tasks.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kQELdUX2HP8

  1. Plan a menu for a day that applies the principles of the Eat well Guide and the 8 tips for healthier eating. 

  2. Make one of the dishes,(take a picture of your dish) complete a sensory evaluation.

  3.  Design a Healthy snack to be launched in the school canteen.

Spanish

Agencia_de_viajes-Spanish.pdf

Spanish_Passport.pptx