Aimed at middle to low ability KS3, this lesson looks at the context of Victorian England, giving a range of information about life in the workhouse and looking at the difference between the lives of the rich and poor. There is also an extract from Berlie Doherty’s ‘The Street Child’ to analyse. Perfect for introducing any Victorian novel, but with A Christmas Carol in mind. Could be useful as re-capping context prior to exam.

This is intended for KS3 English lessons looking at Victorian context in preparation for English Literature at GCSE. This resource is a minimum of 2 lessons. Includes extracts from Lowood school (Jane Eyre) followed by a kahoot quiz, an extract from Dickens’ Nicholas Nickleby with a cloze exercise to describe the dilapidated school room, followed by an inference exercise on the boys of Dotheboys Hall. Drama task to finish capturing Mr Brocklehurts’s reaction to a curly haired, red-headed pupil at his school.

2 X LESSONS Students will look at Victorian society and the rise in crime rates that triggered the rise of the police force. They are then introduced to Jack the Ripper and encouraged to think how the context of the time actually enabled Jack the Ripper to commit his crimes so successfully / why the police were unable to catch him. Plenary tasks asks why detective fiction may have been popular at this time. Students look at the history of detective fiction, beginning with Poe / Murders at the Rue de Morgue. A focus on the character of the detective and detective conventions, testing knowledge by applying knowledge of conventions to extracts from The Sherlock Holmes Tale ‘The Adventure of the Sussex Vampire.’ Then, students look at images of Holmes study (Sherlock Holmes museum) and deduce ideas about his character. Lesson ends with fun observational skills competition where students spot the hidden animals in the pictures.

Students are shown a short set of slides defining women and marriage in Victorian times, including part of a Tennyson poem and Mrs Beeton’s Book of Household Management. Kahoot quiz follows (link available). Then students should match up a range of Pride and Prejudice quotations about marriage with the modern translation to get an idea of how important marriage was to women at this time. They will then watch the clip where Mr Collins proposes to Lizzie to show that she was atypical of victorian women of the time. Then we look at noble women and the extract where Lady Catherine de Bourgh visits Lizzie Bennet to show her disapproval of her alleged marriage to Mr Darcy. Discussion of language choices to show her attitude to the middle classes. Radio clip of a rich girl relating a day in her life; this links to the idea of governesses which are looked at in connection with middle class women and their jobs. Students can use two extracts to compare the job of a governess (Jane Eyre) with an account of the duties of a lady’s maid. Leads on to lower class women and a clip of Downton Abbey where students have to be observant and answer a series of questions about the servants’ roles. Leads to women (Nancy) who cannot get respectable work - students look at an extract and then freeze frame the emotions described. Ends with creating a wordle about all that they have learned.

This lesson is a general introduction into the artists and poets of the Romantic movement. Starts with a look at paintings by Turner and Constable, then moving onto 6 key Romantic poets - Wordsworth, Shelley, Coleridge, Keats, Byron and Blake. Ends with task to illustrate final stanza of Frost at Midnight to focus on presentation of Nature by Coleridge.

THIS COMPLETE LESSON LOOKS AT PERSONIFICATION, MOOD AND RHYME SCHEME. INCLUDES POEM. AIMED AT HA KS3.

This resource is made up of 3 extracts which all describe three famous detectives - Sherlock Holmes, Mma Ramotswe from the No.1 Ladies Detective Agency and Poirot. These extracts are perfect for students to use their inference skills to work out the characters of these detectives. They could use this as a springboard for creating their own fictional detectives.

A copy of the poem with some questions for students to answer. Teacher copy with answers provided.

AIMED AT MIDDLE ABILITY KS3, THIS POEM EXAMINES THE POET'S USE OF RHYME, PERSONIFICATION AND ALLITERATION. POEM INCLUDED WITH PPT.

USING THE BFG BY ROALD DAHL AS INSPIRATION, STUDENTS WILL CONSIDER WHAT MAKES AN INTERESTING CHARACTER FOR A READER. THEY WILL ANALYSE DAHL'S DESCRIPTION OF FLESHLUMPEATER, WITH STEP BY STEP ANALYSIS, HELP AND SUPPORT & STRETCH AND CHALLENGE. NARRATIVE WRITING THEN FOLLOWS WITH THE OPPORTUNITY TO CREATE THEIR OWN GIANT AND PEER ASSESS USING GIVEN CRITERIA. A CREATIVE AND SKILLS BASED LESSON SUITABLE FOR BOTH KS3 & 4.

Using Anthony Horowitz’s retelling of this myth (copy not provided), there are several activities looking at the different sections of this myth. This is the tale of Perseus and how he slays Medusa. Please see my ‘shop’ for further resources. As an optional starter task, you could create a ‘Pandora’s Box’ of objects related to the Gorgon’s Head myth, for students to use to predict what will happen. I have used toy snakes, pebbles, Halloween eyeballs etc. Students then use inference skills to create an impression of King Polydectes, draw the gorgons using the given extract, list four things they have learned about them (in the style of Language Paper 1 Q1) with answers supplied for easy self assessment. After this, students can research Athena on computers or phones. Students then analyse the writer’s use of language to describe Medusa’s cave using an evidence table which supplies suggested answers for easy assessment. Finally, draw Athena’s shield to include Medusa’s head and play the interactive whiteboard game ‘Gorgon’s Head’ to sum up learning.

THIS IS PART ONE OF MY DECLARATION SCHEME AIMED AT KS3. I USUALLY TEACH IT TO Y8 OR Y9 AND STUDENTS LOVE IT! IT'S A FAB DYSTOPIAN STORY THAT RELATES WELL TO OUR WORLD TODAY. THIS PART CONTAINS TEN LESSONS, INCLUDING 2 INTRODUCTORY LESSONS TO DYSTOPIAN FICTION. PART TWO IS ALSO AVAILABLE IN MY 'SHOP'.

This lesson works through Q1 and Q3 of one of AQA's KS3 practice papers for GCSE English Language. Answers are provided for Q1 to enable self assessment. Pupils are then asked to identify a set of given structural features before considering 4 different levels of example responses and deciding which is the 'best' one. Cloze exercise as a creative writing extension task.

A complete lesson looking at Gothic conventions, with particular focus on conventions of setting. Pupils identify techniques used in a range of example gothic setting descriptive sentences linked to a given gothic setting image. Using lesson knowledge so far, pupils create their own description of a gothic setting using a choice or combination of given gothic setting images.

Step by step approach to this past question on the supernatural. Students can work through the extract, finding relevant evidence and matching up suggested annotations to gain understanding of the key themes and ideas. Example paragraph response using extract evidence provided so that students can produce their own based on what they have uncovered. To address the second part of the question, students are given an example quotation from the wider play and an example paragraph which uses the reference to respond. Four further key quotations on the supernatural are provided so that students can use them to create their own paragraphs. The quotations can be printed off and used for revision purposes.

AIMED AT HA KS3, THIS COMPLETE LESSON LOOKS AT PERSONIFICATION AND METAPHOR. POEM INCLUDED IN PPT.

This is a poster for a collective memory activity, where pupils in small groups take it in turns to have a minute to memorise the images and quotes on the poster. The aim is to reproduce the poster as exactly as possible. This facilitates discussion about what the play might be about.

An introductory or revision task where small groups of pupils take it in turns to memorise the images and quotations on the poster. The aim is to reproduce it in their groups and use it as a talking point.

A LESSON LOOKING AT POSSIBLE EXAM QUESTIONS. ACTIVITIES INCLUDE A FOCUS ON MRS JOHNSTONE AND MRS LYONS (CUT AND STICK, TEAM COMPETITION) AS CHARACTERS WHO HIGHLIGHT THE DIFFERENT SOCIAL CLASSES SHOWN IN THE PLAY. GOOD PREPARATION FOR THE LITERATURE EXAM.