I have adapted generic essay questions on 'A Streetcar Named Desire' to fit the new AQA specification for A-level Literature A, Paper 2 - 'Modern Times' where Drama is the core text. There are twelve different questions in this resource and it proves as a useful tool for final pre-exam revision.
This lesson and resources draw on the AQA GCSE mark scheme but could be adapted for any board. The presentation gives you the full lesson; the first word attachment contains the sample intros and concls, whilst the second is the answer sheet with the bands and marks awarded.
Lesson Plan below:
STARTER: INDIVIDUAL - Pupils note down what they think makes a good introduction and conclusion. Class list of features created from feedback.
TASK 1: GROUP - Pupils divide into four groups and each is given a different pair of introductions and conclusions from Band 4 and Band 5 exemplar essays. These are differentiated according to ability, with more complex writing provided to stretch those pupils already working within these bands. Pupils analyse and annotate the examples using the class list of features, as well as the AQA mark scheme from the previous lesson.
TASK 2: GROUP - Market-place activity: one pupil remains with their example whilst the rest of the group “visit” another example and listen to the leader’s response to it.
TASK 3: WHOLE-CLASS - Q and A so that responses can be added to the class list of what makes a good introduction and conclusion.
TASK 4: INDIVIDUAL – Using the class list and prior learning from the market-place activity, pupils start work on their own introduction for any given essay.
PLENARY: Peer-marking: pupils swap their introduction with a partner who assesses it using the class list of what makes a strong introduction as well as the AQA mark scheme.
I have designed two extract questions for 'The Sign of Four', one on mystery and one from chapter 4 on mystery and the other on chapter 6 on the character of Sherlock. I have also included a sample answer for the Sherlock question which is colour-coded in reference to the AQA assessment objectives.
I have designed ten sample questions on 'Othello' in the style of the new AQA AS exams. The questions cover all five acts so give an excellent overview for pupils to revise from and prepare for the AS examination.
I have designed three sample exam questions for Year 13 on 'Othello': the first focuses on the relationship between Othello and Desdemona in her death scene; the second the relationship between Othello, Iago and Desdemona in the "green-eyed monster" scene; the third - Othello's final speech in the play.
These worksheets, designed for GCSE Drama, takes pupils through a step-by-step process of how to write their own monologue using the stimulus of fear. It includes important prompt questions so that pupils can structure their piece effectively and engage their audience, as well as prompts on costume and set design. Rough outline below:
-TASK 1: Students write down a list of the most important things for a performed monologue.
-TASK 2: Students answer a range of questions about the character of their monologue.
- TASK 3: Students answer a range of questions about the dramatic features of their monologue.
- TASK 4: Students write up their monologue which must be one side of A4.
- TASK 5: Students perform their monologue to a partner/audience.
- TASK 6: Students edit and improve their monologue to create a final draft.
These resources are designed for Year 12 and include a mock sample exam question on power in 'Othello' for AS, followed by a feedback sheet with a colour-coded exemplar essay corresponding to the AQA assessment objectives. The activity worksheet allows pupils to engage with the exemplar and write a paragraph of their own.
I have designed this lesson with the AQA assessment objectives in mind, in particular AO5, to encourage pupils to think about the poem from multiple perspectives. The activity ask pupils to interpret the poem from three totally different view points. I gave my pupils a viewpoint in pairs; they then had a lesson to research all possible evidence for this and we debated the following lesson. The activity includes three AQA exam-style essay questions on the poem so these could be set for homework. The research questions are shaped to the five AQA assessment objectives too so it is a good revision activity.
This is a B-grade response on Donne's 'The Flea' which could prove as a useful model for pupils prior to peer assessment as it closely follows the AQA mark scheme and assessment objectives.
The attached work as two mock papers for Unseen Poetry. For the first attachment (Poetry Practice 2), I have actually used two poems from the old spec: 'Praise Song for My Mother' and 'Nettles'. The second uses poems from the Conflict cluster of the AQA anthology ('Storm on the Island' and 'Ozymandias') so would only work for pupils who have opted for the Relationships section.
This PowerPoint was designed with Year 12 in mind and contains two lessons: the first includes work on the skill of evaluation and Fitzgerald's use of colour in the novel. In the second lesson, pupils are introduced to the terms analepsis and prolepsis and are guided to work in pairs on a different extract of Chapter 4 to explore the author's treatment of time.
This 10-15 minute script designed for a book week assembly draws on the 'Who Wants to be a Millionaire' show but the competition is between famous villains throughout literature. Sherlock Holmes is the host and he questions the following villains: Bill Sykes, Katniss Everdeen, Lady Macbeth, Cruella D’Evil, Bellatrix Le Strange and Agatha Trunchbull. Hermione Granger also makes an appearance. I have included a PowerPoint with the theme tune and questions in the Millionaire format too. This goes down a storm with KS3!
This 10-minute script is designed for an assembly celebrating Roald Dahl Day. It features the characters of Matilda, the BFG, The Witches, James and his peach, Wonka and various teachers. The skit follows Matilda on her first day at a new school being given a tour of new departments which all link to a different Dahl novel. Some names would need changing for your own school but this will work well for any KS3 audience.
I have created 11 sample question for Paper 2, Section B of the A2 paper for AQA English Literature. They are for the third section of the exam where pupils link prose and poetry. The themes I have selected were designed for 'The Handmaid's Tale' and 'Feminine Gospels' but could be adapted to fit other texts.
I used this lesson for an observation with Year 6 so it includes a detailed lesson plan, full resources and opportunities for AfL, progress checks and extension tasks.
Brief outline of the lesson below:
STARTER: Pupils tell their partner what they think the “Holiday from hell” means. Extension: Students discuss what this might include.
TASK 1: Pupils are shown the question: What is a letter of complaint? Pupils write down one idea. They swap ideas with their partner and add to their thought cloud.
TASK 2: Pupils are shown a muddled list of the format of a formal letter. Pupils write down the correct order to re-cap the layout.
PROGRESS CHECK: Pupils are asked to volunteer one thing they know about a letter o
TASK 3: 2 minute class discussion to answer the question of what kind of language is used in letters of complaint.
TASK 4: Pupils are shown three language features of writing to complain. Pupils volunteer to come up to the board to match exaggeration, sensory description and rhetorical questions to their meanings and examples.
TASK 5: Students write their own letter of complaint using a structured worksheet to remind them of the layout of the letter and the techniques studied. Differentiation: an example is displayed on the board to offer support.
PLENARY: Pupils are asked to volunteer one thing they know about a letter of complaint.
This worksheet works well for Year 9 as a cover lesson or for a session of independent study. The worksheet includes six comprehension questions on the poem, work on the most important themes in the poem, as well as comparative skills and use of the Point, Evidence, Explain structure.
These two full Paper 1 mocks are designed for pupils who have studied ‘Othello’, the pre-1900 poetry cluster and ‘The Great Gatsby’, but they could be adapted easily to other texts. Each includes an ‘Othello’ exam question, an unseen poetry part, and a choice of two essay questions for comparing texts, Section C.
This document includes feedback that I gave my Year 13 class following a mock unseen poetry exam on Millay's 'I being born a woman' and Cope's 'After the Lunch' (see my resource on Unseen Poetry mocks for the full question) but this includes key poetic terminology and an high A pupil response.
As my class studied the pre-1900 cluster of AQA poetry, I have used poems from the post-1900 collection to create three mock exam questions for Section B of Paper 1 at A2.
These three lessons focus on the extract from the novel in which Lockwood spends his first night at Wuthering Heights. The mini-scheme is designed for Year 9 pupils preparing for Year 10 and the AQA 19th-century novel unit and so follow the new spec assessment objectives.