These comprehension questions were designed for use by MA-HA (I)GCSE students reading Edith Wharton’s short story “The Moving Finger”. These questions could be completed all in one go after reading the whole story (perhaps as homework) or could be completed after reading each part (maybe as a class activity). The questions encourage students to consider how characters are developed and evolve, as well as their overall significance to the story, using evidence from the text to support their ideas. As such these could also be used as stimuli for essays or presentations (as opposed to short answers). The final question could be done as an extension activity in writing and/or the quotation given to all students as a starter or plenary activity.

This worksheet was designed for use by MA-HA (I)GCSE students learning about Hopkins’ poem “The Caged Skylark”. The grid on the sheet encourages them to identify techniques and imagery used to compare the man and skylark, and to cite examples using line numbers. There is also room for students to expand upon their observations, which could be used as extension. This activity could be completed in groups or alone in class, used as homework, or completed for revision.

This activity has 3 separate parts. After eliciting a class definition of idioms from students, the worksheet requires them to match idioms with their true meanings. Interesting discussion could follow, not just to correct the answers, but to explain how they knew/guessed if they were unsure. Students can then write sentences using the idioms before developing their ideas into a story (more than one idiom could be used in the story - e.g. through dialogue - or one idiom could be developed more thoroughly into a narrative). This was originally made to use with KS3 but could also be used with able KS2s.

This resource consists of 7 comprehension questions (printed on the page three times for ease of printing/distribution) based on the Moniza Alvi poem ‘Presents from my Aunts in Pakistan’. The questions help students to interpret the use of techniques including juxtaposition, metaphor, and imagery, and to better understand the effects of these on the reader.

This literary and linguistic techniques matching game could be printed, laminated and cut out so that students can use it kinaesthetically (which is how I used it) or distributed as a worksheet where students just draw lines between the terms and their definitions (but you would need to mix up the definitions in the document first!). It was designed for IGCSE students but could be used throughout secondary depending on your students’ abilities. It includes literary devices such as flashbacks, as well as linguistic devices such as complex sentences. Great as a starter or plenary activity, or for revision.

These comprehension tasks in relation to Jhumpa Lahiri’s short story “The Third and Final Continent” were designed for MA-HA (I)GCSE students. They could be completed in class or alone as short-answer tasks, or used as revision or homework. Alternatively, different questions could be assigned to small groups and developed into a presentation; or, if you would prefer a longer/more detailed answer, individual questions can be set as essays. The questions require students to find evidence from the text to support their answers and focus mainly on cultural contexts and differences, and character development. Multiple copies of the questions fill the page for ease of printing, photocopying and distribution.

This is a fact sheet about the IRA designed to be distributed to students, or for teachers to use to give them some background knowledge. It has been adapted/created based on Wikipedia so naturally is basic/has limitations, but is suitable for student use and for teachers who are not history specialists. It can be useful for English teachers who are teaching plays or novels where this history is relevant, such as Brian Friel’s “Translations” or Joan Lingard’s “Across The Barricades”.

This handout provides students with a glossary and definitions of key terms to help them analyse comics (e.g. political strips in newspapers) and graphic novels (e.g. Maus, Fun Home, Persepolis), and is useful for revision purposes so that students can use the correct terminology accurately in assessment situations.

This Powerpoint introduces the etymology of ‘anthropomorphism’ and explains the differences between personification and anthropomorphism. The PPT then showcases examples of texts which use these, before setting students a task to anthropomorphise a classroom object and write a monologue ‘in character’ (students should be familiar with monologue-writing). There is still scope to add additional imagery/animations to the PPT if desired, as well as film clips (e.g. Fantastic Mr Fox, Toy Story, Cars).

These two pages of comprehension questions are divided by stanza, enabling students to work on these as they progress through the poem and allowing teachers to use them as a carousel or jigsaw activity if preferred. The questions cover comprehension of techniques (e.g. imagery, symbolism, allusion) as well as ideas.

This is a useful worksheet to be used as part of a wider selection of class activities or if you need cover work. It defines concrete, abstract and proper nouns, and then gives students a selection to sort into a chart (provided). Five should then be chosen and used in students’ own sentences. Depending on where you are, you could either remove the example of ‘God’ or use it as a stimulus for debate (proper or abstract, or both?). This latter activity could also segue nicely into a lesson on discursive or argumentative writing. This activity is aimed at KS3 but has a broad range of appeal depending on your students’ needs: it could for example be used with able KS2s or with KS4s who lack grammatical knowledge.

This PPT presentation/lesson encourages students to consider the differences between the way people speak in normal life vs how they speak on television documentaries. The starting question could be explored in a whole-class discussion or via various Kagan Strategies (e.g. Think-Pair-Share), and the resultant ideas revisited later on. An excerpt from a David Attenborough documentary (about the lyre bird) is transcribed onto the PPT for a student to read aloud in their normal voice. Students then watch the corresponding video clip (linked to in the PPT, or can be found on Youtube/supplied on request if there are problems with this). They should then compare how the student read it with how the text is spoken by Attenborough. They may wish to consider elements such as accent, pace and enunciation. Reference to the initial ideas generated by students is encouraged. The speech features terminology table (or a version of it adapted for your students) can be used optionally to help. I recommend using relevant exercises from the CGP GCSE English workbook as a plenary activity. This lesson was conceived of for students entering KS5 but is also suitable for KS4.

This resource shows visually, on a continuum line, the political leanings/affiliations of most major British print news outlets. This is particularly useful for international students who may have to deal with British media texts in examinations but are not familiar with the cultural aspects surrounding them. The continuum shows whether each paper is a tabloid or broadsheet and whether they lean politically to the right or left, or whether they are more centrist. There is further scope to add extra imagery if desired. Students are also provided with weblinks to four independent analyses of British newspapers’ politics and culture (all links still active as of July 6th, 2021).

This resource consists of anonymised quotations from real sixth-form student essays about Bao Ninh’s language use in the opening pages of “The Sorrow of War”. By asking students to identify what is good about them and what could be improved, it is possible to not only develop their justifications/opinions of these aspects of the novel itself, but also to allow students to critique the quality of the analysis. This helps to develop metacognitive and essay-writing skills as well as knowledge of the text. As such, it can be used with students who have no experience of the novel, as well as with students who are studying the novel directly. It would make a great starter/plenary activity, especially in the context of revision of the novel or essay-writing classes.

This worksheet/activity is great for revision, and can be filled out as students encounter characters upon first reading/throughout their initial reading of the play, or completed retrospectively. It has been filled in with the names of characters from Brian Friel’s play “Translations” but could be easily adapted/used for other plays. Students are encouraged to make notes on multiple features including the characters’ attitudes, impact on them as readers, and how the characters speak. I usually print one copy of this out on A4 and then blow it up to A3 size to give students more space to write. It can also be uploaded to your school’s VLE so that students can download extra copies if they need it (or if they prefer to type onto a digital copy).

The questions in this file are replicated multiple times to ease printing, photocopying and distribution. They deal with affirmations made by Barabas and Ferneze in this scene and require students to justify their answers with evidence from Act 5 scene 1, as well as from elsewhere in the play where appropriate. Students could be given one or both questions either to respond to with short answers or to expand/develop into an essay.

These comprehension questions were designed for MA-HA (I)GCSE students studying Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s poem “If Thou Must Love Me”. They could be used in groups or alone in class, or as homework. They would also be good as a revision activity or if you need cover work. The questions could also be split up and used in class using a carousel format. Extension questions are included, especially regarding the poem’s form, and contextual knowledge surrounding the poet’s husband, Robert Browning. Two copies of the questions are included per sheet of paper to ease printing, photocopying and distribution.

This chart helps students to identify techniques used by Gillian Cross in chapters 2 and 3 of The Demon Headmaster. Alliteration and assonance are the most obvious ones to focus on but this can be adapted according to your students’ existing skills (other possibilities include repetition, emphasis, metaphors and imperatives). Students also have space to give examples/quotes to support their ideas. Higher ability students are encouraged to fill in the third column to explain the effects of the techniques used. Aimed at MA-HA KS3 students.

This worksheet was designed for use with KS4 but could also be used with KS3. It is designed to help students differentiate between key factors that may change when delivering a speech for 2 different audiences on the same topic, such as duration and tone. The two audiences in question in this case are Grade 9/Year 10 students and senior staff/headteacher, but could of course be changed.

This webquest encourages students to investigate a variety of topics relating to media bias, including: what is bias factors influencing media bias how to assess whether bias is being used political agendas in the press balance of media coverage how readers of different newspapers tend to vote This webquest involves the use of a variety of skills, such as: interpreting data finding examples of facts and opinions in texts reading academic research summary-writing the use of in-text citations Students will read a variety of texts as part of this webquest, including: letters to newspapers fact-checkers First News research from the University of Oxford and the University of Hannover statistics from public opinion and data companies, such as YouGov and Statista Video resources are also included, along with ‘shortcuts’ for learners who can’t handle a full text, as well as a “go further” activity. The webquest is designed to not only develop students’ knowledge and understanding of bias, but also to develop their critical thinking skills. The resource is suitable for students aged 14 and up, particularly those studying Media, English Language, Global Perspectives, PSHE, Citizenship, TOK, Critical Thinking, or General Studies. This editable resource is designed for online learning, as students can type their responses directly into the document and click on the links directly. If uploaded to a collaborative workspace such as Google Docs, students could also work in groups to complete the webquest.