Short stories are a vital part of English literature. These short story studies can be used to build a short story unit, to supplement other texts, or as a standby lesson. Use this with our FREE Introduction to Short Stories two-page handout. Each classic story is copyright free in Australia, the U.K. and U.S. Paragraphs are numbered for ease of reference. Activities correspond to Bloom’s taxonomy of lower- to higher-order tasks. A comprehension question checks knowledge and understanding Application questions ask students to apply their knowledge of literary or rhetorical technique Analytical questions interrogate the story’s effect, mood, and construction-strategies. Creative writing tasks use an aspect of the story as a springboard to write creatively, discursively, or persuasively. Dick’s comic short story has been successfully used with a Stage 5 / Year 9 class (14 years).

Short stories are a vital part of English literature. These short story studies can be used to build a short story unit, to supplement other texts, or as a standby lesson. Use this with our FREE Introduction to Short Stories two-page handout. Each classic story is copyright free in Australia, the U.K. and U.S. Paragraphs are numbered for ease of reference. Activities correspond to Bloom’s taxonomy of lower- to higher-order tasks. A comprehension question checks knowledge and understanding Application questions ask students to apply their knowledge of literary or rhetorical technique Analytical questions interrogate the story’s effect, mood, and construction-strategies. Creative writing tasks use an aspect of the story as a springboard to write creatively, discursively, or persuasively. Bierce’s classic story has been successfully used with a Stage 5 / Year 10 class (15 years).

John Hersey’s Hiroshima is one of the narratives that have shaped our world, and is a great core text for a study of journalism, modern non-fiction, or life-writing. This extensive unit comprises: An introductory section on the event Six sections on each of the work’s parts An extra/extension section on short films about nuclear issues A bibliography of the influence of Hersey’s journalism A close-reading exercise which compares Hersey’s style in 1946 and 1985 A list of long-form analytical and creative responses Several contextual texts including the JapaneseImperial Rescript of Surrender and the Renouncing of Imperial Divinity; poetry by other survivors, and other American essays justifying the military’s decision This unit was tested with a mixed-ability Year 10 class (age 15-16) and a lower-ability Year 11 (age 16-17) class.

Higher-order questions for each chapter of Orwell’s novel, and essay-style questions for each of Parts I, II, and III. Many of the chapter questions require close reading of a selected passage, and help students build a bank of quotes and concepts for essays.

Euripides’ Alkestis makes a great introduction to Greek tragedy, with its highly engaging story of a woman who volunteers to die in place of her husband. This unit was taught to a Year 9/10 (ages 15-16 years) mixed-ability class and can be taught with any good modern translation of the play. The 54-page unit comprises: An introductory lesson on Greek tragedy Lessons on the seven scenes of Euripides’ play, with questions which encourage lateral thinking, contextual reading, creative response, and comparison with other short texts These short texts are provided (modern poetry and short stories) An assessment question which requires students to write persuasively A selection of questions for other long-form responses NB If you buy this unit and would like to use the same play text as our class used, drop us a message and we’ll share it with you at no charge. We used George Theodoridis’ free translation (copyright to Theodoridis and the poetry in translation website. We have simply split Theodoridis’ text into seven scenes for ease of teaching.

This 54-page unit, written for Years 7-8 (ages 11-13) offers beginning high school students an introduction to genre, focusing on Andy Milligan’s adventure novel Trash. It comprises: an introduction to genre and the conventions of the adventure genre five sections on Trash with reading comprehension questions activities on the foundational elements of narrative (character, setting, conflict, plot, and voice). These activities ask students to identify the narrative element in the novel and write short examples of their own an exclusive short adventure story for reading extension or differentiation a two-part assessment task where students identify conventions in an unseen passage, then write creatively in the genre

This worksheet introduces students to an important element of poetry: theme - in this case, modern life and technology. It can be taught as a stand-alone lesson or as part of a wider study of poetry, and contains at least two poems for easy differentiation writing tasks for each poem following Bloom’s Taxonomy of lower- to higher-order questions

This worksheet introduces students to an important element of poetry: theme - in this case, cats and their relationships with men. It can be taught as a stand-alone lesson or as part of a wider study of poetry, and contains a one page-explanation of the device or technique at least two poems for easy differentiation writing tasks for each poem following Bloom’s Taxonomy of lower- to higher-order questions

This worksheet introduces students to an important element of poetry: symbolism. It can be taught as a stand-alone lesson or as part of a wider study of poetry, and contains a one page-explanation of the device or technique at least two poems for easy differentiation writing tasks for each poem following Bloom’s Taxonomy of lower- to higher-order questions

This worksheet introduces students to an important element of poetry: imagery. It can be taught as a stand-alone lesson or as part of a wider study of poetry, and contains a one page-explanation of the device or technique at least two poems for easy differentiation writing tasks for each poem following Bloom’s Taxonomy of lower- to higher-order questions

This worksheet introduces students to an important element of poetry: personification. It can be taught as a stand-alone lesson or as part of a wider study of poetry, and contains a one page-explanation of the device or technique at least two poems for easy differentiation writing tasks for each poem following Bloom’s Taxonomy of lower- to higher-order questions

This worksheet introduces students to an important element of poetry: rhyme and rhthym. It can be taught as a stand-alone lesson or as part of a wider study of poetry, and contains a one page-explanation of the device or technique at least two poems for easy differentiation writing tasks for each poem following Bloom’s Taxonomy of lower- to higher-order questions

This eight-section unit written for Years 8-9 (ages 13-15) focuses explicitly on poetic techniques and elements of poetry. It can be taught as a complete unit over a term, or in sections complementing a wider study of rhetorical and poetic devices. The unit comprises sections on rhyme and rhythm, personification, imagery, epithet, theme (cats and men; modern life); symbolism, and form (acrostic poetry). Each section can be bought separately. Each section includes: one page-explanation of the device or technique at least two poems for easy differentiation writing tasks for each poem following Bloom’s Taxonomy of lower- to higher-order questions And there’s a free summative assessment in short answers format!

The poetry of W.B. Yeats is a great choice for higher interest/ability senior students. This worksheet will take 1-2 lessons to complete. It provides: a copy of the poem a comprehensive series of questions structured according to Bloom’s Taxonomy for easier differentiation a creative writing task which students can complete as homework

The poetry of W.B. Yeats is a great choice for higher interest/ability senior students. This worksheet will take 1-2 lessons to complete. It provides: a copy of the poem a comprehensive series of questions structured according to Bloom’s Taxonomy for easier differentiation a creative writing task which students can complete as homework

‘Ecopoetry is nature poetry that has designs on us, that imagines changing the ways we think, feel about, and live and act in the world.’ This unit introduces students to ecopoetry and illustrates the difference between traditional nature poetry and poetry which responds to the Climate Crisis. It contains activities on: Pollution The Anthropocene Deforestation Flood Drought Species extinction Post-Human Worlds Each section comprises an introductory discussion, a selected poem about the issue with questions and creative writing activities, a list of poems to use as companion pieces, and links to further information about the issue which can be used for comprehension and discussion. This unit has been tested with a mixed-ability Year 10 group (age 15).

Voltaire’s brilliant philosophical satire has never been more relevant than now. Candide’s response to the belief that “all’s for the best in the best of all possible worlds” is a timely challenge for a climate in turmoil and the need for intelligent resilience. This 59-page unit contains An introductory task on the Enlightenment and its ideas and values An biographical task on Voltaire’s life Reading questions and activities on each chapter of Candide, supported by images A bibliography of short stories which can be used as support texts and for extension reading A number of essay questions suitable for senior students

The poetry of W.B. Yeats is a great choice for higher interest/ability senior students. This worksheet will take 1-2 lessons to complete. It provides: a copy of the poem a comprehensive series of questions structured according to Bloom’s Taxonomy for easier differentiation a creative writing task which students can complete as homework

The poetry of W.B. Yeats is a great choice for higher interest/ability senior students. This worksheet will take 1-2 lessons to complete. It provides: a copy of the poem a comprehensive series of questions structured according to Bloom’s Taxonomy for easier differentiation a creative writing task which students can complete as homework

The poetry of W.B. Yeats is a great choice for higher interest/ability senior students. This worksheet will take 1-2 lessons to complete. It provides: a copy of the poem a comprehensive series of questions structured according to Bloom’s Taxonomy for easier differentiation a creative writing task which students can complete as homework