This is a programme of peer assessments in education. It contains 16 different peer observation sheets, each having a different teaching and learning focus. The benefits of using different teaching and learning focuses in peer observations are: By giving each peer observation a different teaching focus to observe, it will encourage teachers to think about different areas of teaching and learning. It will ensure that completing a series of peer observations every year remains interesting. The process is less threatening and judgemental. The aim of observation is to think about the teaching and learning area of focus and for all staff involved to learn from the experience. The quality of the lesson itself is not to be analysed. Peer Observation Sheets Included: Behaviour Management Differentiation Questioning: Pitch Questioning: Intent Questioning: Different Questioning Activities Questioning: Differentiation Through Questioning Questioning: Pupil Involvement Individual Pupil Engagement Class Engagement Teacher’s Use Of Language Language Directed At An Individual Pupil Teacher’s Movement (Monitoring) Links To Other Subjects VAK Who Leads The Learning? What I Can Use In My Own Teaching This resource programme also includes an introduction text and a powerpoint presentation that can be used to launch the peer observation programme in a staff meeting. Organisation Of The Peer Observation Programme: • Teachers agree to complete a peer observation. (More than one teacher can observe one member of staff) • A meeting between the staff involved is held before the observation in which the time of the observation and the lesson focus is decided. • The teacher being observed plans the lesson with the teaching and learning focus in mind. • The lesson is observed with the observer completing the relevant peer observation form. • The teachers hold a post-lesson discussion, both completing the details on the observation form and discussing the lesson focus in detail. • The observer completes their peer observation record chart and shared it with the SLT. • The number of peer observations required in a year is decided by the SLT, but staff may wish to conduct more observations than this.

This resource consists of a literary text about life in the trenches and a soldier charging into no man’s land. The soldier has clearly lost his mind and appears to welcome death. However, during the charge his desire to live returns and this is reflected in the way the text is written. There are 4 different types of reading questions/activities for this text. The first asks the pupils to find five things mentioned in the text that show that life was hard for soldiers in the trenches. The second asks pupils to explain what part of the narrator the writer wants the reader to think was left in no man’s land when he first charged there (his mind). This is a 5 point question. The third activity gives the pupils a passage from the text and asks them to find 4 literary techniques used by the writer and to give an example of these techniques that they find in the passage. 8 points are offered for this activity, 1 for each literary technique and 1 for correct examples of these techniques found in the passage. The final question is for 10 points. It states, “The writer successfully changes both the atmosphere of the text and the main character’s mind-set in this passage.” It then asks the pupil how much they agree with this statement. They are to refer to the language used in the text and the literary techniques used by the writer in their answer.

This resource is designed to be used with Chapter 5 of the novel Private Peaceful by Michael Morpurgo. This chapter is titled ‘Twenty-Four Minutes Past Twelve’. The main events of this chapter include the discovery of Charlie and Molly’s secret relationship and The Colonel shooting Bertha. It contains a powerpoint presentation that is used to recap on the novel’s previous chapters, to check the pupils’ comprehension of this chapter and to generate a discussion on the different character’s thoughts and opinions on the main events of this chapter. This resource also includes some worksheets. These contain a lesson(s) plan, 2 activities and some extension work. The first activity asks pupils to write their own opinion of the events of the chapter. The second asks them to write a text describing how they think various characters feel about the chapter’s events. The extension work presents the pupils with a letter from Charlie to Molly which they have to correct and improve by adding adjectives. This resource should take at least two lessons to complete, but it could be used for more depending on how much time you allow for the discussions. The extension work could also be used as a whole class activity or as homework.

This is an Entry Level 2 Functional Skills English reading resource. It consists of 3 non-fiction reading texts with comprehension questions. The first text gives advice on how to safely make a bonfire, the second is an advertisement for a Guy Fawkes fireworks display and the third is an informative text about different ‘fire’ celebrations around the world. These texts can be used as class activities, exam revision or as homework. Please look at our other Functional Skills Bonfire Night/Guy Fawkes resources.

This resource asks students to write a Christmas dinner invitation. There is a task sheet giving instructions and a colourful template on which to write the invitations. These tasks are differentiated two ways, one for a written invitation and one for an invitation in the form of a poster. There is also an extension task based on what people around the world eat for Christmas dinner. This resource works well with our 'Who Would You Treat To A Special Christmas Dinner?" lessons. Please check out our other Functional Skills English Christmas resources too.

This resource is designed to be used with Chapter 7 of the novel Private Peaceful by Michael Morpurgo. This chapter is titled ‘Twenty-Eight Minutes Past One’. The is the final chapter set in the home village as they Peaceful boys leave for war at the end of the chapter. It is also the final chapter in which Molly, Mother Peaceful and The Colonel play a central role so they are a focus of this lesson. This resource contains a powerpoint presentation that is used to complete a pre-reading discussion, to check the pupils’ comprehension of this chapter and to generate a discussion whether the pupils think Molly, Mother Peaceful and The Colonel are ‘good’ characters or not. As a teacher, you can decide if you want ‘good’ to mean good in terms of their morals or if you want it to mean effective as a character. This resource also includes some worksheets. These contain a lesson(s) plan, 3 activities and some extension work. The first activity asks pupils to work in a group/pair and to discuss who are their favourite 3 characters and why. They can record their ideas on the worksheet for this activity . The second activity asks the pupils to write whether they think Molly, Mother Peaceful and The Colonel are ‘good’ characters and give reasons for their answers. This activity follows on from the class discussion on the powerpoint presentation. This third activity is an extended writing task which asks the pupils to write a character description of Molly, Mother Peaceful or The Colonel. They are given some tips on what they could include before they write. In the extension activity, pupils are given 10 actions that characters in the novel have done so far. They are asked to use a thesaurus to find suitable adverbs to describe how the characters do these actions. This resource should take at least two lessons to complete, but it could be used for more depending on how much time you allow for the discussions. The extension work could also be used as a whole class activity or as homework. Please look at our other Private Peaceful lessons in this series.

This resource explains what nouns are and gives pupils examples of nouns. They are then asked to write down different nouns that they can see in given images and in their present location. This activity can be used as a class activity, as extension work or as homework.

These four resources are used to help students to use different types of punctuation. There a variety of activities for using question marks, commas in a list, exclamation marks and for punctuating speech. Pupils are also encouraged to use capital letters and full stops correctly. These resources can be used as class activities, as extension work or as homework.

This resource contains two functional skills writing activities with instructions for the pupils to follow. The tasks could be used for either Entry Level 3 or Level 1 with the pupils’ outcome determining their level. You could ask the pupils to plan their work before writing if you wish. The first text asks pupils to write a letter to the local council applying for permission to host a bonfire night. In the second task, the council has asked the students to write an informative text to schools describing a celebration or festival and its historical or religious significance. Students can choose real celebrations and write about them and you may also want them to research the chosen topic as they plan their text. Alternatively you may allow pupils to invent their own celebration, adding some imagination to the functional task. We at Engage Education believe in making functional fun. Please check out our other Functional Skills English resources.

This template can be used when writing a medium term plan for any book or play. It contains tables for suggested reading writing and speaking + listening activities and for the novel’s themes. It also contains a rationale which explains the school’s policy for teaching literature. This is a valuable time saving resource for English teachers and Heads/Leads. It is quick and easy to complete, but includes all the relevant details and an impressive rationale.

This resource consists of a revision exercise for a Functional Skills Entry Level 3 assessment. It is for staff use, providing a topic for a discussion and a checklist to assess whether pupils have passed the test or not. Although this assessment follows the theme of Bonfire Night/Guy Fawkes, it can easily be edited for any topic and used multiple times. There are two pages for this resource, one for teachers to assess multiple pupils and one for assessing one pupil which can be placed in this pupil’s file. Please look at our other Functional Skills Bonfire Night/Guy Fawkes resources ranging from Entry Level 1 to Level 1 and including reading, writing and speaking and listening activities

This is a medium term plan for Fantastic Mr Fox. It contains possible activities for writing, reading and speaking + listening that could be taught with the novel. It states the novels themes and it begins with some text explaining the rationale behind the teaching of literature in a school setting.

This all encompassing observation form covers all bases. It includes each area and aspect of learning as detailed in the EYFS Profile as well as the characteristics of effective learning. It has a space for you to write detailed observations of the individual child and has a number of key questions for the adult to develop and embed learning. Finally there is a box to record the child’s next steps. Characteristics of effective learning are denoted by 3 cartoon characters - Dora the Explorer, Tree Fu Tom and Peter Rabbit. However you could change these images to suit your style or chosen characters.