

The complete teaching companion for Once Before I Go (Phillip McMahon) in the Leaving Cert English Comparative Study, Higher Level, with the preparation already done.
A 24-page PDF written for the teacher, covering all four Higher Level modes: Cultural Context, Literary Genre, Theme or Issue, and General Vision and Viewpoint. All coupling guidance is partner-agnostic, so it works whatever texts you pair the play with.
What’s inside:- Before you teach: an unusually full sensitive-content briefing, page-referenced so you can preview each passage — the terminally ill character’s decision to end his life on his own terms and what to check against your school’s guidance, a suicide attempt recounted inside a funny scene, the AIDS material shown on stage, a father’s violence, addiction and recovery across both time periods, transition and transphobia, reported racism, and the slurs the play is directly about — plus practical notes for the classroom.
- The play for the teacher: story and structure, the voices and figures who carry it, the world of the play, the themes read broadly, how the play is told, and the outlook.
- A key-moments bank and a quotation and reference bank: the pivotal scenes and the sixteen quotations that do the most work, each referenced by part and page and ready to hand to students.
- All four modes broken down: what examiners reward, where the play is strong, what to teach, the moments to lean on, and the errors to pre-empt.
- Teaching the text: a workable sequence built for a play told out of order — establish the three periods first, stop at the end of Part One and record the class’s verdict, teach the transition as a technique, then return to the board once the structure pays out — and the misreadings of Once Before I Go to pre-empt.
- Running the textbook’s working parts: how to use the companion Student Textbook’s comparison grids, sample paragraphs, mode primers and practice questions in class.
- Coupling guidance: choosing partner texts and running the comparison.
- Assessment essentials: PCLM marking, the PEAL paragraph shape, what lifts an answer, and timing.
- Question-angle banks for every mode, drawn from recent SEC papers.
Written by a practising teacher. Pairs with the companion Student Textbook (sold separately); buy both in the Complete Bundle and save.
Something went wrong, please try again later.
This resource hasn't been reviewed yet
To ensure quality for our reviews, only customers who have purchased this resource can review it
Report this resourceto let us know if it violates our terms and conditions.
Our customer service team will review your report and will be in touch.