At Maidstone Grammar School we believe that inspiring teaching inspires learning.

We aim to inspire our students to love learning, to be curious and to ask challenging questions. We stretch and challenge all our learners. We want them to be independent, know how to respond to feedback and see the connections across different subjects. We aim to inspire our students to take increasing ownership of their learning, to increase their capacities of metacognition and self-efficacy, and to ensure that they are able to engage with and benefit from the cognitive challenges of our curriculum.

These expectations are embodied in Inspire to Learn and the four Learning Habits we want our students to develop:

  • Maidstonians are effective in their use of assessment. They know how to reflect and are supported with differentiated learning to make rapid progress.
  • Maidstonians are curious and seek to explore. Greater learning is truly unlocked when we all ask challenging questions and persevere when striving to find answers.
  • Maidstonians are independent and resilient learners. They are able to immerse themselves in their studies, distil complex information and revise effectively.
  • Maidstonians understand that their subjects are connected and can make links between the skills and terminology within them.

These four Learning Habits are visible in every classroom and corridor, and they are used throughout our curriculum.

As part of our exciting and diverse curriculum, all Year 7 Maidstonians take part in our bespoke Learning to Learn programme across the course of the academic year focusing on the development of their learning skills which they are then able to apply across our range of academic disciplines.

Our staff too are always learning. Our teachers continually engage in research based professional development and they are well-informed of the best pedagogical practices in their subjects. Pedagogy at MGS is implemented with teaching that’s underpinned by pedagogical research, including Rosenshine’s 10 Principles of Instruction. The MGS Teachers’ Toolkit, which we’ve developed, is skilfully used across the school to improve classroom practice and drive students’ learning.

The Maidstonians Learning Journey is not solely confined to the classroom at MGS and our students equally develop their skills in the pastoral sphere, the broader contexts of co-curricular activities and self-study. We recognise that Maidstonians have extensive co-curricular commitments outside of school, we actively encourage them to do so as part of our vision for the school. We are committed to the growth of the whole Maidstonian and we value their time with their families. Therefore, we do not believe in setting homework for the sake of it, but instead when the time is right and when it helps Maidstonians make progress in their learning.

Maidstonians are of a very high ability and we endeavour to provide an aspirational level of challenge that befits this ability. For Maidstonians looking for stretch and challenge in a particular area, our Super Curriculum Booklet (KS3 & KS4), Super Curriculum Booklet (KS5) and Fourteen by 14 Reading List facilitate independent research and enquiry at the highest level.