A series of three lessons on Chapter 5 of Of Mice and Men, with a focus on Curley’s Wife. These consider whether she is a victim or villain. With chapter 5 of this novel, I think it’s important to read the chapter all in one go. As such, the first of these lessons focuses on what our previous opinions were of her, and then has a reading session. At the end of the lesson, pupils are asked to summarise what Curley’s wife’s dream was in a paragraph. In the second lesson, pupils start to consider their own ideas about whether she can be considered a victim or a villain. Starting by looking at what other characters think of her, pupils consider that there are different perspectives from which to look at her character. From there, pupils can use a worksheet to find quotations to back up both sides of the argument, before summarising opinions of her in a paragraph. Attached to this download is an extract, looking at the description of her shortly after she has been killed. I find this works rather well as a homework task, as pupils work independently to analyse the extract and pick out quotations that prove different ideas about her, before writing a paragraph considering how she can be considered to be misunderstood. The third of these lessons looks at practising persuasive writing skills: pupils are tasked to write a persuasive speech, arguing whether Curley’s wife was a villain or a victim. The lesson starts with a short example piece of persuasive writing, which is about Curley, and pupils are asked to identify the persuasive techniques within it as a starter activity. From there, pupils discuss whether she is a villain or a victim (you might want to make two separate lists on the board during this). The majority of the lesson looks at persuasive writing, with pupils producing their own speech. You could end this lesson with self or peer assessment, with pupils spotting the persuasive techniques in their work, as they did in the starter activity. I’ve designed these lessons for a lower-ability GCSE class, so therefore they could easily suit KS3 too. You could comfortably make them more challenging by removing some of the examples given.

A series of four lessons on chapter 3 of Of Mice and Men, with focuses on Slim, Candy’s dog, dreams, and the fight at the end of the chapter. This series of lessons starts with a lesson on Slim, which compares him to Curley and then goes on to look at why Slim has as much power as he does. There is opportunity for pupils to analyse some key quotations, which therefore provides a useful quotation list for revision. The second lesson looks and Candy’s dog’s death and the concept of survival of the fittest, and ends with a comparison between the relationship between Candy and his dog with that between George and Lennie, allowing pupils the possibility to predict what will come later in the novel. The third lesson focuses on the description of the dream that we see in this chapter, in which George goes into much more detail about what their plans are. There is a worksheet with an extract for pupils to annotate, with some questions to guide their annotation as a support. Finally this series of lessons ends with a look at the fight scene at the end of the chapter, and considers how Candy, who has been an observer for much of the action of this chapter, has reacted to it all with a diary task. I’ve used these lessons for a couple of years now, with classes of mixed ability. Prompt questions can be removed to make things more challenging for the more able. Moreover, I’ve used these lessons when we’ve been working in the classroom and remotely, and have found that they’ve translated quite well into remote-learning: for example, the annotation activity can be done on Google Docs or similar, with pupils using the comments function to make their notes.

This 28-slide lesson on ‘Of Mice and Men’ introduces the key context vital to understanding Steinbeck’s classic novella, as well as functioning as a general introduction to studying the text. The lesson includes key information about the Depression, the Dust Bowl, racism, patriarchal pressures and other prejudice during the 1930s in America. Steinbeck’s own life is also covered, as well as the meaning behind the text’s title, and students are invited to analyse various book jacket designs for the novella. Key themes are explored alongside a comprehensive introduction to the American Dream and its role in the novella. Questions and tasks are also included for students to tackle. PowerPoint saved as PDF.

A detailed knowledge organiser to support students studying ‘Of Mice and Men’ by John Steinbeck. It includes the following: Important quotes Descriptions of the key characters (George, Lennie, Crooks, Curley, Curley’s Wife, Slim and Candy) Important key words for studying the novel. Literary terms found in the novel. This can be used for setting homework, quizzing in classes or as a support mat. Leave a review and choose any other resource, of up to the same value, for free from the LikeAnExpert shop. I have a whole range of Of Mice and Men revision resources available in the shop and a range of revision videos on my YouTube channel (this is linked to in my shop).

A revision activity for the context of Of Mice and Men. Originally created for Edexcel IGCSE but could be easily adapted for other exam boards. It includes a task with guided questions for each area of context, an example of how context should be embedded, and a task for students to practice embedding context.

The ‘Of Mice and Men Bundle’ is a complete resource package for a profound understanding of John Steinbeck’s novella. It includes seven essential documents: Revision Workbook (25 Pages): Scene-by-scene analysis, questions, author and setting details, character profiles, favorite quote reflections, and an exploration of heroes/villains. Character Charts: Character images and questions to reveal character motivations and roles. End of Novel Test: 25 multiple-choice and critical thinking questions, plus Junior Cycle question options with a teacher’s answer key. Junior Cycle Sample Answers: 13 pages of sample answers to past questions. Key Moments: Detailed analysis of five pivotal moments with suggested questions and supporting quotes. Key Quotes: Exploration of 12 significant quotes with brief explanations. Key Themes: In-depth examination of five central themes in the novella. This bundle is your ultimate companion for a comprehensive study of ‘Of Mice and Men,’ suitable for students and teachers.

This resource booklet contains a wide range of age-appropriate, engaging, and meaningful comprehension activities for use throughout the reading of John Steinbeck's 'Of Mice and Men.' Teachers have found them particularly useful in exam revision, comprehension tasks, or guided reading sessions. They are perfect for aiding the progress of students towards meeting the KS4 expectations within the new National Curriculum framework - this makes the tasks suitable for all examining bodies. Students have found these resources extremely engaging, and for teachers there is explicit information within each task regarding which comprehension strands the task is designed to demonstrate. They also relate to key extracts, characters, and themes from the story, ensuring that students gain a deep understanding of the text. Activities within the booklet include: - 'Context: The Great Depression' - to aid students with 'Drawing on knowledge of the purpose, audience and context of the writing, including its social, historical and cultural context and the literary tradition to which it belongs, to inform evaluation;' - 'Steinbeck's Description' - to aid students with 'Analysing a writer’s choice of vocabulary, form, grammatical and structural features, and evaluating their effectiveness and impact;' - 'Curley's Wife' - to aid students with 'Seeking evidence in the text to support a point of view, including justifying inferences with evidence;' - 'Editing the Text' - to aid students with 'Making an informed personal response, recognising that other responses to a text are possible and evaluating these.' Plus many, many more activities (the booklet is around 30 pages in length!) I've also added it as a PDF in case the formatting differs on your computer. All images are licensed for commercial use, and are cited on a separate document (included).

A set of 27 PowerPoints aimed at a low ability year 9 class. Ideal for students to prepare for GCSEs. Reading each lesson. Key quotations throughout. Scaffold for exam style answers.

Of Mice and Men Revision Booklet including P.E.E. paragraphs and short questions.

We look at Of Mice and Men and Chapter One, with a focus on the relationship between Lennie and George and how John Steinbeck uses his language to get across their relationship and their personalities to the reader at the beginning of the novella. Additionally, we look at how Steinbeck uses foreshadowing to hint at the rest of the plot. A really useful lesson for students preparing for Literature exams but easily adaptable for younger students as well. Fully differentiated and resourced.

Two lessons on the first chapter of Of Mice and Men, focusing on Lennie and George’s characters, and what we learn about their dream, relating to context. (These would form my second and third lessons on the novel overall, following an initial introduction to the historical context.) The first of these two lessons includes some close analysis of the opening passage of the novel, asking pupils to pick out language that makes it seem idyllic. Following a section of reading, pupils are asked to analyse some quotations about Lennie and George, considering what we learn about their personalities and their relationship. This is structured for a lower ability class, but this could easily be made more challenging by removing some of the hints and pre-filled boxes on the worksheet. Consistent links are made to historical context throughout, and pupils are asked at the end to find all the evidence they can which suggests these two are typical migrant workers. The lesson ends setting a homework task, writing up their ideas about the characters. The second of these lessons focuses more on the end of the opening chapter of the novel, in which Lennie and George discuss their dreams. After a discussion about dreams, which should be steered towards getting pupils to understand the desire to own stuff and be one’s own boss, read the end of the chapter while noting the ideas about the dream as you go. Pupils can then be split into teams for a game: using the sheet with a list of points about the dream, cut up into separate slips of paper, each team needs to find a quotation that matches each point. It’s a great activity to get pupils thinking about how their evidence actually proves their point, thus improving their analytical writing. Each team sends one member to the teacher to explain their idea, and then is issued the next slip of paper to go and work on. These slips can then be used in the written activity at the end of the lesson. I’ve provided an example paragraph, and focused on discussing the context of the novel as relevant to the question. I’ve designed these lessons for a lower-ability GCSE class, but they could easily be tweaked by removing scaffolds to make them more challenging, and they would be useful at KS3 too for schools who no longer teach OMAM at GCSE level.

A very detailed Of Mice and Men Escape Room lesson that includes five mysteries that students work together in groups to solve. As they work together to move on to each new mystery, they look at character, plot, themes and context so that they can consolidate their learning and improve their understanding of these key areas. Perfect for engaging students and a lot of fun to teach, too! Includes differentiated activities

A series of four lessons on chapter 2 of Of Mice and Men, looking at characters, hierarchy and building up to writing an essay - with an example. The first of these lessons focuses on the setting, with pupils comparing the setting of the second chapter to the more tranquil and peaceful opening. In the second lesson, pupils focus on the concept of hierarchy, and as they start to meet characters they start putting them into hierarchical order. In the third lesson, we meet Curley’s wife and Slim, and consider how they are presented as characters that the reader is supposed to either like or dislike. There is opportunity to discuss the extent to which the reader’s opinion of Curley’s wife is tainted by the expectations we have of her following Candy’s description of her as a ‘tart’ previously. In the fourth of these lessons, pupils plan and prepare to write an essay looking at the society of the ranch. They return to the previous ideas about ranch hierarchy and there is opportunity to see if their ideas about the hierarchy have changed now that they have read a little more: you could make this as interactive as you like, depending on the class. I’ve provided a planning sheet with clear paragraph ideas, and an example essay that perfectly matches it: you could use it prior to writing the essay, or use it as a self-assessment tool following essay writing. I’ve created these lessons for GCSE pupils, and they could be easily tweaked up or down to suit your group.

This detailed and visually-appealing resource offers a complete reference point for students learning or revising John Steinbeck's 'Of Mice and Men.' It contains comprehensive sections on: - Context; - Chapter by Chapter Summary (with quotes); - Main Characters; - Themes; - Literary Features; - The Origins of the Book Title. Key words and ideas are underlined for easy reference. The resource is designed to be printed onto A3, and is provided as both a PDF and a Word version (so that you can edit if you want to). All images used are licensed for commercial use and are cited on a separate document (included).

SoW: Of Mice and Men Lesson 1 Of Mice and Men – Context and Background Bundle SoW: https://www.tes.com/teaching-resource/of-mice-and-men-12960378 FREE Animal Farm SoW: https://www.tes.com/teaching-resource/resource-12942163 Leave a review for a FREE single resource This SoW is designed in detail and is both differentiated and engaging, and allows you to move pupils through content efficiently. This SoW contains retrieval, dual coding, differentiation and exam questions throughout. Made to the highest standard and constructed using current research, both dual coding and retrieval practices are at the heart of this unit. A colour scheme also is also present to ease both your delivery and students’ comprehension. SoW: Of Mice and Men Lesson 1 Of Mice and Men – Context and Background Lesson 2 The American Dream Lesson 3 Sentences Lesson 4 Punctuation Lesson 5 Paragraphs Lesson 6 Assessment Lesson 7 Chapter 1 Lesson 8 Finishing Chapter 1 Lesson 9 Structure and Chapter 1 Lesson 10 Chapter 1 analysis Lesson 11 Chapter 2 Symbolism Lesson 12 - Chapter 2 Exploration of Character Lesson 13 Chapter 2 Extract Comparison Lesson 14 Chapter 2 and Persuasive Speeches Lesson 15 Chapter 3 Relationships Lesson 16 Language Analysis Chapter Three Lesson 17 Chapter 4 Marginalisation and Segregation Lesson 18 Crooks and Curley’s Wife Lesson 19 Chapter 5 Lesson 20 Death of Curley’s Wife Lesson 21 - Chapter 6 The End Lesson 23-24 Curley’s Wife Assessment Lesson 25 - DIRT If you leave a review of any of our resources, you can claim any FREE single resource from our ever growing library. Simply message the above email, which is monitored daily. teachercentralltd@gmail.com Best FREE Resources (Teacher Central) https://www.tes.com/teaching-resource/britain-losing-and-gaining-an-empire-12973075 https://www.tes.com/teaching-resource/financial-literacy-12898983 https://www.tes.com/teaching-resource/romeo-and-juliet-12908635 https://www.tes.com/teaching-resource/shakespeare-12908634 https://www.tes.com/teaching-resource/macbeth-gcse-12863697 https://www.tes.com/teaching-resource/animal-farm-free-sow-12942163 (FREE SoW) https://www.tes.com/teaching-resource/slavery-sow-12843084 (FREE SoW) https://www.tes.com/teaching-resource/-12727408 (FREE SoW) https://www.tes.com/teaching-resource/russia-1917-91-from-lenin-to-yeltsin-12834552 https://www.tes.com/teaching-resources/shop/TeacherCentral?sortBy=lowestPrice&p=5 I hope you find this SoW useful. If you have, I have created a series of resources. You can check them out here. https://www.tes.com/teaching-resources/shop/TeacherCentral

Of Mice and Men revision quiz, covering characters, events, quotes

A booklet helped to supplement class notes. Used in tutorial sessions. Not all work is my own.

Writing about quotes, literature, writing a lot about a little, Of Mice and Men, George, Lennie, Candy, Curley, Curley's Wife