In this lesson students are asked to comment on what Lady Macbeth's use of language shows about her intentions within the story. As with the last lesson, there is emphasis on how dramatic irony works within scene. Students are asked to identify where she is deliberately being polite in order to hide her murderous intentions towards Duncan who has arrived at her castle. After this stage, students are then asked to find imagery within her dialogue which is a key skill that these lessons encourage throughout the project. All lessons in this series include: - Links to online videos (see 'Notes' under Powerpoint slides) - Starter tasks which introduce the main idea of the lesson - Differentiated tasks - Opportunities for pair and group talk within activities ('Talk for Writing') - Handouts of scenes or a selection of quotes from scenes studied - Alternating opportunities for self and peer assessment - Essay writing prompts to allow students to write about the scene - References to the AQA English Literature mark scheme for Paper 1, particularly to the demands for attaining a grade 5 - what is considered a 'good pass' for the qualification. It's suggested that you download the whole series to appreciate the full learning journey.

Use of the Apostrophe - a grid sheet

In this lesson students are asked to explore how Golding uses patterns of imagery within 'Lord of the Flies' in order to explore the sinister nature of the boys and the island itself. The lesson starts by asking students to consider how the boys would feel after arriving at the island and the challenge task asks them to consider why Golding chose the island as the setting at all. As a warm up, students are then asked to consider 2 quotes from the first chapter in pairs and list any techniques used and the effect of those comments. A slide follows with suggested ideas to discuss. Student can then in groups consider the list of quotes from across the rest of the novel attached.They can stick them in their books, annotate and highlight them and then the teacher can annotate them on the board where the class can feedback their ideas. Students are encouraged to think about the following questions: - What is Golding’s message to the reader? - What is he trying to say to us about what is happening to them? - The novel was published in 1954. How might these quotes link to people’s attitudes towards the world after WWII? - Some people think that the island is like a character itself. To what extent do you agree? Students are then asked to write essay paragraphs independently using provided sentence starters which come in 3 formats: a 'layers of meaning' approach, PEA or the 'reading ladder'. An opportunity to self or peer assess their essay writing follows this. To follow this, there is an exemplar essay about the island which students can peer assess in order to think again about the targets that they can set themselves. They can annotate this essay within their books and compare it to their own efforts. I've also added it to the powerpoint for class feedback annotations. The success criteria provided refers to the Edexcel English Literature course but can be adapted to suit your course. This lesson, as my other Literature lessons do, includes: - Links to online videos (see 'notes' under Powerpoint slides) - Starter tasks which introduce the main idea of the lesson - Handouts of quotes / extracts from the novel - Differentiated tasks - Opportunities for pair and group talk within activities ('Talk for Writing') - Alternating opportunities for self and peer assessment - Essay writing prompts to allow students to write about the text

In this lesson students are asked to consider how Shakespeare exposes Macbeth’s loss of control. The lesson starts by asking students to identify where in the play so far the theme of the supernatural has been explored. Students are then asked to read the scene where Macbeth alone sees Banquo's ghost and reacts wildly in front of his guests (a link is provided to Patrick Stewart's performance). In groups they are then asked to consider key questions about how his behaviour builds tension and how it reflects his loss of control. The lesson ends with an opportunity to respond independently by writing an essay paragraph. All lessons in this series include: - Links to online videos (see 'notes' under powerpoint slides) - Starter tasks which introduce the main idea of the lesson - Differentiated tasks - Opportunities for pair and group talk within activities ('Talk for Writing') - Handouts of scenes or a selection of quotes from scenes studied - Alternating opportunities for self and peer assessment - Essay writing prompts to allow students to write about the scene - References to the AQA English Literature mark scheme for Paper 1, particularly to the demands for attaining a grade 5 - what is considered a 'good pass' for the qualification. It's suggested that you download the whole series to appreciate the full learning journey.

In this lesson students are asked to explore how Roald Dahl describes his childhood in chapter 1 of his autobiography, Boy. It would ideal to use as part of a KS3 unit. The lesson starts by asking students to read the preface and respond to it in pairs. There is a group task for students to do after reading the chapter where they are given 4 questions on the board and a challenge task. All questions are linked to the GCSE reading skills AO1, 2, 3 where they have to think about language, structure and the readers’ reactions. There are slides with the text on for teachers to annotate on a smart board as well as a map to show the area in Wales in which Dahl grew up. The plenary asks students to discuss anecdotes about members of their own family which links to the text. This lesson, as my other Literature lessons do, includes: Starter tasks which introduce the main idea of the lesson Handouts of extracts/text Differentiated tasks Opportunities for pair and group talk within activities (‘Talk for Writing’)

An oldie but a goodie! This is still an interesting poem to explore with classes who you feel would benefit from studying the themes of conflict, prejudice and racism. This could be a lesson within a unit on conflict poetry in year 9 or may be used as a chance to explore an 'unseen' poetry which is not in your GCSE class's anthology of Literature exam poems. The poem, if you don't know it, describes a South African's feelings whilst walking through a familiar community that was devastated by the effects of the Apartheid in South Africa. The lesson begins by asking students to define the concept of segregation and then teases out any facts they may already know about the Apartheid regime. There are images and some facts for them to consider. They are then introduced to the 'WPSLOMP' method of analysing poetry as well as being asked to colour code devices the poet uses for effect (metaphor, simile, peaceful and violent imagery). The lesson ends with a chance for students to write independent essay paragraphs with a generic success criteria which can be adapted for your course. There are 3 options on how to approach essay writing: 'layers of meaning', PEA, or the 'reading ladder' which follow the same idea. Attached is; - A blank copy of the poem with a word box for tricky words - A handout of Apartheid images - Essay PEA styles sentence starters writing frames for weaker students - A worksheet with a range of tasks on it along with the poem (good cover work?) - A storyboard template - A powerpoint with the lesson clearly outlined

In this lesson students are asked to explore how Roald Dahl describes his childhood in chapter 4 of his autobiography, Boy. It would ideal to use as part of a KS3 unit. The lesson starts by asking students to ‘think, pair, share’ about when they may have been surreptitious. They are then to read chapter 4. There is a group task for students to do after reading the chapter where they are given 4 questions on the board and a challenge task. All questions are linked to the GCSE reading skills AO1, 2, 3 where they have to think about language, structure and the readers’ reactions. There are slides with the text on for teachers to annotate on a smart board. The plenary asks students to write an essay paragraph using the SQUID structure provided. There is a slide which demonstrates how students can self assess their essay writing skills. This lesson, as my other Literature lessons do, includes: Starter tasks which introduce the main idea of the lesson Handouts of extracts/text Differentiated tasks Opportunities for pair and group talk within activities (‘Talk for Writing’)

Online activities to stretch English Skills

In this lesson students are asked to explain how Macbeth and Lady Macbeth’s roles have reversed in the story judging by their language. The lesson starts by asking students to identify the differences between them as people, referring to what they have previously learned. Students are then asked to read the scene where Macbeth admits to his torturous guilt (a link is provided to Ian McKellan and Judi Dench's performance). They are then to colour code where they find particular patterns in the imagery Macbeth uses and then invited to compare his use of language to his wife's previous use within her soliloquy near the start of the play. The lesson ends with an opportunity to respond independently by writing an essay paragraph. All lessons in this series include: - Links to online videos (see 'notes' under the powerpoint slides) - Starter tasks which introduce the main idea of the lesson - Differentiated tasks - Opportunities for pair and group talk within activities ('Talk for Writing') - Handouts of scenes or a selection of quotes from scenes studied - Alternating opportunities for self and peer assessment - Essay writing prompts to allow students to write about the scene - References to the AQA English Literature mark scheme for Paper 1, particularly to the demands for attaining a grade 5 - what is considered a 'good pass' for the qualification. It's suggested that you download the whole series to appreciate the full learning journey.

This lesson asks students to identify how Shakespeare establishes Macbeth as a cunning character and builds tension within a scene. This powerpoint offers pertinent questions for students to consider about the dramatic irony which underlies the scene where Macbeth plays host to King Duncan. There is a tick sheet where students are to identify how key quotes refer to key themes and a chance to 'explode' a key quote as part of the plenary. All lessons in this series include: - Links to online videos (see 'Notes' under Powerpoint slides) - Starter tasks which introduce the main idea of the lesson - Differentiated tasks - Opportunities for pair and group talk within activities ('Talk for Writing') - Handouts of scenes or a selection of quotes from scenes studied - Alternating opportunities for self and peer assessment - Essay writing prompts to allow students to write about the scene - References to the AQA English Literature mark scheme for Paper 1, particularly to the demands for attaining a grade 5 - what is considered a 'good pass' for the qualification. It's suggested that you download the whole series to appreciate the full learning journey.

This lesson asks students to analyse what Mr Birling’s dialogue shows about him as a character and consider how the audience is meant to react. The lesson starts by asking students to consider what his attitudes expose about attitudes in 1912 and what he symbolizes as a 'challenge' task. 2 extracts from the play follow this which students can think about in pairs and they can then be annotated on the board by students/the teacher. There is a handout to use with this task attached which has a word box to explain some of his political comments. Also attached is a list of quotes from across the whole play which illustrate a range of ideas about Arthur (either what he says or what others say about him). Students can annotate these in their books or they can be blown up to A3 size to write on. The lesson ends with a chance for students to write independent essay paragraphs with the AQA English Literature GCSE success criteria which can be adapted for your course. There are 3 options on how to approach essay writing: 'layers of meaning', PEA, or the 'reading ladder' which follow the same idea. There is then an opportunity to self or peer assess according to the key skills.

This is a lesson on an extract from a longer poem about a young man who steals a boat and becomes afraid of the sight of a mountain in the distance which makes him return to land. It features in AQA and Edexcel's anthology of Literature exam poems. It explores the themes of isolation and fear which can be linked to other poems taught within a unit. It's particularly useful to compare to 'Remains' by Simon Armitage and 'Storm on the Island' by Seamus Heaney. The lesson begins by asking students to consider their emotional reaction to images connected to the poem and predict which themes could be explored in it. There is then a slide which introduces them to William Wordsworth as a poet. Students are then introduced to the 'WPSLOMP' method of analysing poetry which they can then apply in pairs before colour coding quotes which are examples of metaphors, simile and references to nature, as well as some more challenging features. The ideas they pull together for this can then be explored as a class and the slides can be annotated by the teacher on the board and there are also some quotes colour coded as the answers. Students are then asked to think about structure and there is a slide which introduces them to blank verses, sibilance and contrast. The lesson ends with a chance for students to write independent essay paragraphs with AQA's exam success criteria but this can be adapted for your course. There are 3 options on how to approach essay writing: 'layers of meaning', PEA, or the 'reading ladder' which follow the same idea. There is then an opportunity to self or peer assess according to the key skills. As with all my lessons, there are 'Talk for Writing' activities and Challenge tasks for more able students. Attached is; - A powerpoint with the lesson clearly outlined - The poem with a word bank on it - A handout of glossary style word banks which students can stick into their anthologies - A set of PEA style writing frames for weaker students to use (cut into strips to stick in books) - Links to online videos/readings (see 'Notes' under slides).

This is a lesson on a poem about a War Photographer which features in AQA's anthology of Literature exam poems. The poem, if you don't know it, describes how a photographer struggles with their feelings after taking photos of conflict in a war zone. It explores the themes of violence and isolation in war which can be linked to other poems taught within a unit. It's particularly useful to compare to 'Remains' by Simon Armitage since it touches upon P.T.S.D and of course 'War Photographer' by Carole Satyamurti (see my lesson on that in my shop). The lesson begins by asking students to consider what it would be like to be a war photographer and why they would be an effective focus for a poem. There is then a slide which introduces them to Carol Ann Duffy as a poet and offers a quote about her thoughts about it as a form of journalism. Students are then introduced to the 'WPSLOMP' method of analysing poetry which they can then apply in pairs before colour coding quotes which are examples of metaphors, simile and contrasts, as well as some more challenging devices. The ideas they pull together for this can then be explored as a class and the slides can be annotated by the teacher on the board and there are also some quotes colour coded as the answers. Students are then asked to think about structure and there is a slide which introduces them to sestets, internal rhyme and the 'volta' as well as explaining the rhyme scheme. The lesson ends with a chance for students to write independent essay paragraphs with AQA's exam success criteria but this can be adapted for your course. There are 3 options on how to approach essay writing: 'layers of meaning', PEA, or the 'reading ladder' which follow the same idea. There is then an opportunity to self or peer assess according to the key skills. As with all my lessons, there are 'Talk for Writing' activities and Challenge tasks for more able students. Attached is; - A powerpoint with the lesson clearly outlined - A copy of the poem with a word bank - A handout of glossary style word banks which students can stick into their anthologies - A PEA style writing frame for weaker students (to be cut into strips and stuck into books) - Links to online videos/readings (see 'Notes' under slides).

Attached is a lesson where students are asked to identify how a writer has structured a text and comment on how that interests a reader (AO2, 3, 4). It uses an extract from 'Spies' by Michael Frayn. To start, students are asked to define the word 'structure' when we apply it to texts and as a 'challenge task' to list all the forms of structural devices that they are aware of. Slides follow with suggestions and a brief explanation of the AOs that they are assessed on by AQA in the English Language Paper 1. Students are then presented with the exam style question which in pairs they can identify the key words and suggest what the examiner is really looking for. The extract is attached with a word box and planning tasks which, after reading, students can tackle alone or with others. Other useful planning tasks follow such as colour coding structural devices and breaking down the story down into 4 stages. The lesson ends with a chance for students to write structured paragraphs in response to the question and there are sentence starters in the form of PEA attached to help. The lesson ends with a chance to self assess, referring to the success criteria for a grade 5. There is also a suggested homework task asking for student to research spies during the war and an accompanying video. This lesson, as my others, includes 'Talk for Writing' activities, pair and group tasks and differentiated tasks.

This is a lesson on a poem which explores the consequences of the American attacks on Vietnam during the war. It features in the Edexcel anthology of Literature exam poems. It's particularly useful to compare to 'Kamikaze' by Beatrice Garland (AQA) or 'War Photographer by Carole Satyamurti (see my lesson on this in my shop). The lesson begins by asking students to comment on Vietnamese cultures based on images presented on the slide. There is then a slide which introduces them to the Vietnam war and then Denise Levertov as a poet. Students are then introduced to the 'WPSLOMP' method of analysing poetry which they can then apply in pairs before colour coding quotes which are examples of peaceful and violent imagery, as well as some more challenging devices. The ideas they pull together for this can then be explored as a class and the slides can be annotated by the teacher on the board and there are also some quotes colour coded as the answers. Students are then asked to think about structure and there is a slide which refers to the use of anaphora, alliteration and the overall effect of the poem's layout. The lesson ends with a chance for students to write independent essay paragraphs with Edexcel's exam success criteria but this can be adapted for your course. There are 3 options on how to approach essay writing: 'layers of meaning', PEA, or the 'reading ladder' which follow the same idea. There is then an opportunity to self or peer assess according to the key skills. As with all my lessons, there are 'Talk for Writing' activities and Challenge tasks for more able students. Attached is; - A powerpoint with the lesson clearly outlined - A copy of the poem with a word bank - A handout of glossary style word banks which students can stick into their anthologies - PEA style writing frames which can be cut out to support weaker students in their essay writing - Links to online videos/readings (see 'Notes' under slides). - A separate powerpoint with 2 suggested homework activities linked to this poem. If you like this resource, please review it!

This lessons asks students to plan how they could write convincingly in role, using persuasive techniques to develop their ideas whilst referring to their knowledge of the play Macbeth. The lesson is good writing practice for AQA English Language Paper 2, section B and of course the Literature Paper 1. Students would need to know the whole play in order to complete this task. The lesson starts by asking students to list persuasive devices (I have used the DAFOREST acrostic here but you could change to which ever you use). They are then asked, initially in pairs, to plan for the following task: Imagine you are Lady Macbeth. You have been put on trial for the involvement in King Duncan’s murder. You must convince the judge that you were not responsible for the murder… It was all your husband’s fault! There is a slide which suggests some ideas and a planning sheet to help them articulate their ideas using the devices discussed previously. This could be taught across two lessons (1 to plan and 1 to write it). There is an opportunity to either peer or self assess the plan or the written argument at the end of the lesson which refers to the exam's success criteria.

In this lesson students are asked to identify key moments from 'Lord of the Flies' and comment on how the writer explores the theme of violence throughout the story (A01, 3). The lesson starts by asking students what violence is and list all the relevant moments from the book that they remember. A slide follows with suggested ideas to discuss. Student can then in groups consider the list of quotes from across the novel on the A3 sheet attached. They can stick them in their books, annotate and highlight them and then the teacher can annotate them on the board where the class can feedback their ideas. Since there are a lot of quotes on this sheet, student may want to allocate a section to each member of the group in order to get through it all. Students are encouraged to think about the following questions: - What is Golding’s message to the reader? - What is he trying to tell us about what is happening to the boys? - The novel was published in 1954. How might these quotes link to people’s attitudes towards the world after WWII? - Some people think that the island is like a violent character itself. Do you agree? Why is this effective? Students are then asked to write essay paragraphs independently using provided sentence starters which come in 3 formats: a 'layers of meaning' approach, PEA or the 'reading ladder'. An opportunity to self or peer assess their essay writing follows this. The success criteria provided refers to the Edexcel English Literature course but can be adapted to suit your course. This lesson, as my other Literature lessons do, includes: - Links to online videos/websites (see 'notes' under Powerpoint slides) - Starter tasks which introduce the main idea of the lesson - Handouts of quotes / extracts from the text - Differentiated tasks - Opportunities for pair and group talk within activities ('Talk for Writing') - Alternating opportunities for self and peer assessment - Essay writing prompts to allow students to write about the text

This is a lesson on a poem about a Japanese pilot during the Second World War who failed in a Kamikaze mission. It features in AQA's anthology of Literature exam poems. It explores the themes of isolation in war and shame which can be linked to other poems taught within a unit. It's particularly useful to compare to 'Remains' by Simon Armitage and 'War Photographer' by Carol Ann Duffy (see my lesson on that in my shop). The lesson begins by asking students to consider what Kamikaze is and why those Japanese pilots would be an effective focus for a poem. There is then a slide which introduces them to Beatrice Garland as a poet. Students are then introduced to the 'WPSLOMP' method of analysing poetry which they can then apply in pairs before colour coding quotes which are examples of metaphors, simile and emotions, as well as some more challenging features. The ideas they pull together for this can then be explored as a class and the slides can be annotated by the teacher on the board and there are also some quotes colour coded as the answers. Students are then asked to think about structure and there is a slide which introduces them to sestets, sibilance and line length. The lesson ends with a chance for students to write independent essay paragraphs with AQA's exam success criteria but this can be adapted for your course. There are 3 options on how to approach essay writing: 'layers of meaning', PEA, or the 'reading ladder' which follow the same idea. There is then an opportunity to self or peer assess according to the key skills. As with all my lessons, there are 'Talk for Writing' activities and Challenge tasks for more able students. Attached is; - A powerpoint with the lesson clearly outlined - The poem with a word bank on it - A handout of glossary style word banks which students can stick into their anthologies - A set of PEA style writing frames for weaker students to use (cut into strips to stick in books) - Links to online videos/readings (see 'Notes' under slides).

This is perfect as an end of term treat! This is a powerpoint containing 42 challenging questions about the play as a whole as well as the answers to them which are to be found at the end of the presentation. I have asked the class to get into groups/houses and then asked them to write their answers on a piece of paper. They can swap their answers with another group and at the end, the answers are revealed question by question so you can see which areas they struggled with. This is ideal for a higher set because there are some sneakier questions but this can easily be adapted. It should take up the best part of an hour's lesson.

...also explains anapestic tetrameter! This is a lesson on a poem which describes the Assyrian invasion of Jerusalem and how God intervened to protect the holy land - Byron based this on a biblical account of a real battle. It features in the Edexcel anthology of Literature exam poems. It explores the themes of violence and conflict which can be linked to other poems taught within a unit. It's particularly useful to compare to 'The Charge of the Light Brigade' (see a lesson on this in my shop). The lesson begins by asking students to predict the story behind the poem based on some images. There is then a slide which introduces them to the story of King Sennacherib's attempt to invade Jerusalem and then another which introduces Lord Byron as a poet. Students are then introduced to the 'WPSLOMP' method of analysing poetry which they can then apply in pairs before colour coding quotes which are examples of metaphors, simile and violent imagery, as well as some more challenging devices. The ideas they pull together for this can then be explored as a class and the slides can be annotated by the teacher on the board and there are also some quotes colour coded as the answers. Students are then asked to think about structure and there is a slide which explains the poet's use of anapestic tetrameter, rhyming couplets and end stopping. I have also added a slide which offers historical facts about the Temple of Baal/Bel in Palmyra which was recently destroyed by ISIS. Although it was built a long time after the historical battle and there would have been many temples dedicated to Baal at time, it symbolised the King's culture and its recent destruction mirrors the violence in this poem and people's attitudes to ancient gods. The lesson ends with a chance for students to write independent essay paragraphs with Edexcel's exam success criteria but this can be adapted for your course. There are 3 options on how to approach essay writing: 'layers of meaning', PEA, or the 'reading ladder' which follow the same idea. There is then an opportunity to self or peer assess according to the key skills. As with all my lessons, there are 'Talk for Writing' activities and Challenge tasks for more able students. Attached is; - A powerpoint with the lesson clearly outlined - A copy of the poem with a word bank - A handout of glossary style word banks which students can stick into their anthologies - A PEA style writing frame for weaker students - Links to online videos/readings (see 'Notes' under slides).