Reading Scheme of Work KS3– Autumn 2 (Lessons 1 and 2)

KS3 Whole-Class Reading (Years 7–8)
Genre Focus: Fiction (Classic Literature)
Core Text: Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland – Lewis Carroll

This set of lessons forms the first and second session of the Autumn 2 whole-class reading unit for KS3 (Years 7–8), focusing on the study of classic fiction through Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. The unit builds pupils’ reading fluency, comprehension and literary understanding by introducing them to a high-quality text from the English literary heritage.

Lessons 1 and 2 introduces pupils to the opening chapter of the novel and provides a structured approach to vocabulary development, oracy, and key comprehension domains, including retrieval, inference, and authorial reasoning. Pupils explore challenging tier 2 vocabulary from the extract, engage in discussion-based tasks that strengthen spoken language skills, and respond to progressively complex comprehension questions that support deeper understanding of character, setting and narrative technique.

The lesson is fully aligned to the KS3 National Curriculum Reading aims, supporting pupils to:

1. Develop an appreciation of literature through engagement with a significant classic text.
2. Read critically, drawing on retrieval of explicit information and inference of implicit meaning.
3. Understand increasingly challenging vocabulary, using context to clarify meaning.
4. Discuss and evaluate texts, using evidence to support their ideas in spoken and written responses.
5. Build clear and coherent spoken language skills, contributing to structured pair, group and whole-class discussion.
6. Analyse how language, structure and authorial choices shape meaning in the opening of the novel.

Across the Autumn 2 unit, pupils will continue to explore elements of fiction through whole-class reading, developing both comprehension and oracy, while building familiarity with literary conventions, narrative voice and characterisation.