This folder contains everything that you need to understand Maya Angelou’s brilliantly uplifting poem. A 48 slide Powerpoint introduces the poem and then goes through the significant features verse by verse. A separate Word timeline of facts from the advent of slavery in America to the Civil Rights Movement contextualises the poem. Follow-up activities include visualising the positive images used in the poem. A copy of the poem is also included.

Approximately 7,000 words have come into English from French and there are several ‘true friends’, words that are the same in both languages. Surprise your students with how much French they know already with these forty clues to French words. If the clue is too difficult, the first letter of the word is also included on the slide. All answers provided. Students can work independently or in groups and mark their own work.

Ten lessons on poetry based on the theme of superheroes aimed a weak Key Stage 3 students or Key Stage 2 students. Folder includes nine lessons with powerpoints and a twenty-five page student activity book. The scheme culminates in students creating their own superhero and then writing a story about a typical day in the life of their superhero. The poems are hilarious. Have great fun with this scheme of work. All fully adaptable in Word and Powerpoint format.

A six-page information booklet on The History of the English Language with a cloze timeline to help students gain and an overview of the evolution of the language. It covers The Celts, the Romans, the Anglo-Saxons, the Vikings, Normans, Middle English, William Caxton and standardisation. Word documents so fully editable.

Do you ever feel frustrated that your students have simply stopped using capital letters? This twenty-seven slide powerpoint reviews the rules in a fun and interactive way, then explains the difference between use of capital letters for common nouns and proper nouns. There are copious amounts of exercises to correct, which can be done on the board as a class or can be printed off for homework. If you want to embed the use of capital letters, this is the lesson for you. To complete all activities would take over one hour.

This Powerpoint introduces the historical context of witches in Macbeth with a true or false game where students have to identify the correct or incorrect statements about witches. Students are then given some information about James V1th’s role in witchcraft persecution. Before studying Act One Scene One they are presented with a modern translation so that they understand what is going on. They then read Shakespeare’s Act One Scene One and consider what was lost in the translation and why Shakespeare’s scene is much more powerful. Students enjoy reading and acting out the scene in groups. They are then asked to design three costumes for a modern version of the play, focusing on representing the witches as powerful, evil and frightening. At the end of the lesson, you can show them Roman Polanski’s opening scene and compare and contrast their costumes with Polanski’s choices. Could be used as a precursor to my lesson on the witches’ spell; as part of an introduction to Shakespeare or as part of a scheme on Macbeth.

Designed to last thirty minutes, this editable Powerpoint explains the rule of subject verb singular and plural agreement and contains three sets of exercises to clarify this rule. Firstly students are asked to choose the correct form of the verb “to be” in the present tense; next they have to choose the correct form of the verb “to have” in the present tense and finally the correct form between “was/were”. Students are also reminded about irregular foreign plurals. Help your students to become masters of standard English with this fun activity.

This twenty-two slide powerpoint introduces the poet and her relationship with her husband; focuses on key language features; scaffolds students to write two PEE paragraphs on language and allows them to investigate the sonnet form. It concludes with them considering how love is presented in the poem in preparation for an exam-style question.

There are eighteen lessons covering the twelve chapters of Neil Gaiman’s horror story for children, “Coraline”. Lessons explore Gaiman’s original use of language as you progress through the book, in particular his description of colours, smell and his use of similes. The scheme of work culminates in students writing their own horror story about “The Other School” that they attend and the “other teachers” who they have to battle to defend their school from. Some lesson folders contain more than one choice of activity. The key theme of bravery is also explored also.

In Act One Scene One of “Romeo and Juliet”, we meet Romeo for the first time and realise that he is in love with the idea of being in love with Rosaline due to his use of elaborate oxymorons to describe his feelings. This powerpoint explains the context of the play, the definition of oxymorons. The accompanying worksheet guides students to identify Romeo’s oxymorons and then gives them the beginning of oxymorons for them to create themselves. Could be used with the play or as a stand alone lesson on oxymorons.

This twenty slide Powerpoint guides students through how to have fun creating a 50 word mini-story with lots of examples, tips and golden rules. Students are given help to polish and re-draft their stories, culminating in them reading them out. It will take two to three lessons. It is good for getting them to think about beginnings, middles and ends, which they need for the creative writing element of the GCSE.

Support your students to write a formal letter with this powerpoint which contains a very letter from a grumpy member of the older generation complaining about teenagers today. Students have to identify the writer’s arguments and then plan how to write a successful letter in response. Perfect for preparing students for GCSE transactional writing.

Using Wes Magee’s simple, yet effective poem “What is the Sun”, students learn how what metaphors are and why writers use them. They are then given a choice of elements from the natural world, such as the Moon, the starts, a waterfall and have to emulate Magee’s poem, using five separate and original metaphors to describe their subject. Students love this lesson and it is very effective in getting them to use metaphors, which are much more difficult than similes. Creates lovely display material also.

Full scheme of work on the graphic novel by Alan Grant and Cam Kennedy. Eight lessons in total aimed at lower ability students with accompanying worksheets. Worksheets focus predominantly on cloze exercise summaries of the chapters, so that students remember the plot. Each lesson contains a powerpoint also.

Learn to spell irregular words ending in -f or -fe that can take -s or -es in a fun way with this powerpoint and worksheet. The rule is explained on the powerpoint and then students are given a look/cover/spell/check worksheet to learn the spellings ready for a test. The powerpoint contains eighteen spellings with graphics for clues, which will help and second language speakers in your class. A further worksheet can be used to consolidate the activity in class or for homework. All answers provided, so students can mark their own work.

Students learn to spell irregular plurals that end in -es with this sixty slide powerpoint. Students decide whether the twenty-five words presented on separate slides end in -s or -es. Cartoon graphics are used as extra clues and to help English as a second language speakers. A further consolidation worksheet is included to embed the learning, which students can fill in at the end of the activity or at home. A fun way to learn irregular plurals.

As a follow on from Nouns (Common, proper, abstract), this twenty slide powerpoint teaches students to extend their vocabularies with a range of exercises and quizzes on collective nouns, all with answers provided. The lesson then covers compound nouns, modifying nouns, countable nouns and uncountable nouns. A final cloze exercise summarises the learning. This could be two thirty minute lessons.

Focusing on four of the seven types of pronouns that are commonly mis-used, this twenty slide powerpoint explains common misconceptions with activities to embed correct usage. All answers are provided and the powerpoint is fully adaptable. The lesson should take thirty to forty-five minutes.

Did you know that sixty percent of words in English come from Greek and Latin? Consolidate your students’ knowledge of the building blocks of the English language with slideshow designed to be delivered as a quiz. Containing several clues to eighteen Greek roots, answers are provided at the end. There is also a final worksheet that can be used for consolidation of the learning.

Foster a love of reading in your students by using this thirty-two slide powerpoint on the life and career of Jacqueline Wilson to inspire your students to research an author of their own choosing. The project can either be print-based or Powerpoint-based, as in the example, if you have access to ICT resources. There are two accompanying worksheets to support the project with lots of ideas for potential authors and how to structure the project. The project could be done at school or set for homework.