This series of five slides is designed to be printed off and stapled together in the top left and given to students to work through in roughly an hour. The question they will be working on is the following 8 mark WJEC Religious Education GCSE question: Explain from Christianity and Islam attitudes to the use of contraception. On the first page, students are given a very simple model answer an are tasked with explaining how it could be improved. On the second and third pages, students are given indicative content that could be included and are tasked with highlighting key information from both Christianity and Islam’s viewpoints on the issue. They are then, on the third slide, given a better model answer. They will read this and explain, given the information they now have in their heads from the previous two pages, how it could be improved. Finally, they are given space to write their own answer to the 8 mark GCSE question without looking at any notes. My students really liked this because it was clear and the tasks were ‘chunked’ into easy to digest pieces. There was a clear structure to the lesson which needs minimal teacher input since the instructions are clear on each page. Lined paper isn’t needed either - it’s all self-contained. By the end of the lesson every single student had made progress and, crucially, felt better able to answer 8 mark questions under timed pressure. Hope this helps, thanks for looking and hopefully it’ll save you some time in the hectic run up to exams! :)

These notes were created for students studying the WJEC / Eduqas AS Level Religious Studies specification and are designed to be ‘at a glance’ revision notes that go into detail for each part of the specification - i.e. what each student needs to know about Islam Theme 1 (religious figures and sacred texts) for their exam. For students who are predicted lower grades than their peers, I have found this resource is invaluable in giving them ‘slimmed down’ content for Islam Theme 1 and these notes allowed them to tackle revising the topic without the fear of drowning in lots of content. For my more able students they used these for self-quizzing and as a starting point for making their own very detailed notes (an important part of revision in itself). Thanks for looking and I hope this saves you a little bit of time in the run up to exam season! :)

These detailed course / revision notes were specially written to give OCR A Level History students a comprehensive overview of the key knowledge from the specification for Unit Y204: Genghis Khan and the Explosion from the Steppes c.1167–1405 1) Genghis Khan and the Creation of the Mongol Empire c.1167–1264 2) The Reign of Khubilai Khan 1264–1294 3) The Khanates 1294–1405 4) Impact of the Mongol invasions and interaction between East and West to 1405 These extensive notes are especially useful for students whose note-taking in lesson isn’t as good as others, or whose organisational skills mean they are missing notes/handouts on certain topics / areas. These notes will certainly help reduce the time it takes them to catch up with their peers, and also students like to use these as a checklist of topics to go into in further detail. They give peace of mind that every corner of the specification/syllabus has been covered. Hopefully these notes help to save your students (and you!) some time in the hectic run up to exams. Thanks for taking a look :)

These detailed course / revision notes were specially written to give OCR A Level History students a comprehensive overview of the key knowledge from the specification for Unit Y113: Britain 1930–1997: The Middle East c.550–620 The establishment of Islam c.620–632 The beginning of the Empire and the rule of the ‘Rightly Guided Caliphs’ The establishment and expansion of the Umayyad Empire These extensive notes are especially useful for students whose note-taking in lesson isn’t as good as others, or whose organisational skills mean they are missing notes/handouts on certain topics/areas. These notes will certainly help reduce the time it takes them to catch up with their peers, and also students like to use these as a checklist of topics to go into in further detail. They give peace of mind that every corner of the specification/syllabus has been covered. Hopefully these notes help to save your students (and you!) some time in the hectic run up to exams. Thanks for taking a look :)

This lesson is designed to fit neatly into an hour. It could equally be used as an assembly and can easily be shortened by taking out the discussion and written tasks that are included within the Powerpoint at pertinent points. It takes students step by step through the process of becoming an MP. It is meant to be both informative and aspirational - while at the same time pointing out some of the pitfalls present in the process. The lesson is fully dual coded and therefore information is presented throughout in a way that reduces cognitive load for pupils. There is also a coloured overlay on each slide to aid any pupils with dyslexia or Irlen’s who find this useful. Although, this can easily be deleted from each slide if it isn’t necessary for your pupils. There are quotations throughout from relevant literature and also from winning Members of Parliament and losing candidates. The rigour, length and cost of the process of becoming an MP is laid bare and students are constantly prompted with questions on screen regarding the time and financial costs versus the reward involved. This can also lead to questions surrounding whether our MPs are paid too much or too little, and whether candidates receive the support they need for the system to be truly fair. Thanks for taking a look and I hope this resource proves as useful for your students as it did for ours :-)

This lesson was designed for my GCSE English Lit students who were about to embark on their study of Othello. The lesson isn’t Othello specific though, it is more a brief overview of the cultural and social changes that were going on during Shakespeare’s own times - and prompting students through a variety of tasks to think about how this changing society ended up influencing Shakespeare’s writing and being reflected in his plays. E.g. Renaissance themes, Golden Age of Elizabethan England, increased prosperity including a video (embedded) looking at the emergence of the new merchant class - and the effect this had on what kind of audience Shakespeare came to write for. Also the number of theatres springing up in Elizabethan London is also looked at - along with prompt questions which students can answer in written form or verbally regarding the effect that increasing demand had on the number of plays Shakespeare wrote. At the beginning and the end of the lesson is a short quickfire quiz which is designed to get students thinking about the lesson content. The lesson was really designed with the idea of ‘world-building’ in mind i.e. getting the students to develop a really vivid picture of what Elizabethan England was like and the changes it was undergoing, in order to have excellent grounding to refer back to studying any Shakespeare play, enabling them to place much of Shakespeare’s idoms etc into context. Thanks for taking a look :)

This lesson takes students through the basic differences between Doric, Ionic and Corinthian Greek Temples. HD examples are included of a variety of temples from each ‘order’ of Greek Architecture. Blank templates are included so students can have a go at drawing their own columns for each order. A differentiated homework task is included at the end of the lesson to encourage further research and thinking. This lesson would be ideally suited to KS4+5 students who are studying Greek architecture for whatever reason for the first time.

This lesson was designed for my Year 10 students to study just before they started to read Othello for their GCSE. Before diving into the play proper with its difficult-to-access language I felt it would be really beneficial for them to study a summary of the plot of Act 1, so that they know who the main characters are and what their role in the play’s exposition and rising action might be. I found that my students were definitely more ready to tackle reading Act 1 of the play having done this lesson. The main thrust of the lesson revolves around reading the summary that is included as a hidden slide for printing, and using this to create an 8 part storyboard. The point of this is to both solidify the storyline of Act 1 in their minds, along with the characters that feature, along with providing them with something they can refer back to throughout their study of Act 1. For students who finish their storyboard quicker than others, there are extension questions designed to extend students thinking. It was really successful and students definitely appreciated the ‘why’ behind this lesson. The lesson has been designed with dual coding purposes in mind in order to reduce cognitive load, and in addition there are removable coloured overlays on each slide to aid those students with Irlen Sydrome or dyslexia. The lesson ends with an introduction to how typically Shakespeare structured his tragedies and they are encouraged to ‘spot’ features from Act 1 that are in line with this tragedic arc. Thanks for taking a look :)

This lesson was designed for my Year 10 class and was designed to set the scene for their study of Shakespeare’s Othello. Before embarking upon reading the play itself, this lesson can ground their understanding of who Othello, Iago and Desdemona are, and cement an understanding of the role of each character in students’ minds. This lesson provides students with all the contextual knowledge about the storyline of the play, which coupled with prior knowledge of Elizabethan England, provides a powerful introduction to the Tragedy of Othello. The main lesson task, done after a low stakes quiz starter and a look at the relative locations of Venice and Cyprus (and why they are important to the play), centres around students using their knowledge of the characters, which the teacher talks through one by one (info on slides) and adds exposition to, to fill in an info sheet (included as a hidden slide for printing) - but crucially and more importantly, begin to engage in the debate around which characters are tragic villains and which are victims, with Othello deliberately left until last in this debate, given the ambiguous nature of his role in the play. The lesson is made with the principles of dual coding in mind to reduce students’ cognitive load (which my students genuinely seem to appreciate) and there is a removable and editable coloured overlay to each slide to help those students with dyslexia or Irlen syndrome who feel they benefit from it. Thanks for taking a look :)

This PowerPoint is a ready-to-go T&L strategy to implement whole-school so that your teachers can get better outcomes / results from their lower ability groups. Students in lower ability groups, typically, tend to respond to certain teaching and learning strategies better than others. This strategy (in the form of a PowerPoint to be used as a presentation) uses the findings of research into what works, according to cognitive science, to ensure these students: retain more information make bigger learning gains from lesson to lesson make bigger learning gains over time enjoy school more get into a positive feedback loop The practicalities of achieving the above are outlined within the presentation, as are examples of how the T&L strategies might play out in reality. using this strategy at our school we have seen real results in terms of increasing the psychological safety of our lower ability pupils, increasing their buy-in and capacity to make greater leaps in their learning, resulting in better exam outcomes too. Thanks for taking a look and I hope this saves you some time :)

This in lesson resource is designed to get students to engage with the WJEC markscheme. Each side of the handout has a 5 and 8 mark question on it respectively, and a model answer to accompany it. Students are presented with both indicative content and the markscheme and their task is to re-write the answer that is given, but to improve it given the available information. My students found this task particularly engaging and useful as they didn’t feel like they were starting with a blank canvas, they were looking to improve an example that has already been created for them. In this way the task is very accessible and low stakes. Thanks for taking a look :)

Designed with the new 9-1 AQA History GCSE Spec in mind. 2 lessons covering in detail: The long term causes of the English Revolution/Civil War + associated worksheets & links to helpful videos. The short term causes of the English Revolution/Civil War + associated worksheets Each lesson includes a starter, plenary and progress check and are very easy for teachers and students to follow. They are designed to squeeze what is a large breadth of content into 2 simple lessons. Students will leave the lesson secure in the chronology of the events leading up to the English Revolution/Civil War and details of events + their significance in the process. A practice exam question with help on how to structure it is also included.

This lesson was designed for my GCSE students as an introduction to The US Economic Boom of the 1920s (AQA spec) prior to the Wall Street Crash in 1929. There's enough information on here to stretch higher ability students but a few of the tasks are simply differentiated to allow students of all abilities to access the information, without it ever being 'dumbed down'. An information handout is included at the end of the Powerpoint (2 copies for printing A5 size) There's some slides with information on (with an associated short written task) but it may be that you want to print these out too (depending on your departmental budget!) and give them to students. A link to a brief video clip is also included. which should make it easier for students to remember the main reasons for the Boom. In addition to the above there are also two Lower ability/SEN worksheets (one follows on from the other) which closely follow the tasks set on the board. I have found these helpful in getting better outcomes for those students who don't write particularly fast or who struggle with making quality notes to revise from. This allows these students to access the same tasks and information as their peers more readily.

This lesson was designed for my GCSE students in order to build on their knowledge of the causes of the US Economic Boom of the 1920s (AQA spec) prior to the Wall Street Crash in 1929. There's enough information on here to stretch higher ability students and the main task involves students creating a table full of information on the groups that didn't benefit from it and and why. It acts as a good foil for our first lesson on The Boom ( https://www.tes.com/teaching-resource/what-was-the-boom-a-detailed-look-at-the-us-economic-boom-of-the-1920s-11475396 ) which accentuates the positives of the Boom and why it happened. This is the lesson where the more nuanced thinking is introduced as regards the extent of the Boom for each area of society. There's some slides with information on (with an associated written task - handout also included) but it may be that you want to print these out too and offer groups of students all 3 and let them work independently. Students are encouraged to match their learning to an image (abstract or straightforward) and explain the link. If they can use their knowledge to make links between images even better! Something creative to finish with after dealing with some of the heavier concepts. In addition to the above there is also a Lower ability/SEN worksheet which closely follow the tasks set on the board. I have found these helpful in getting better outcomes for those students who don't write particularly fast or who struggle with making quality notes to revise from. This allows these students to access the same tasks and information as their peers more readily.

The lesson begins with a reminder of why the Plebeians had been unhappy under Tarquinius Superbus and should have had a lot to look forward to under the new Republican regime. There is then a handout included within the .ppt file (as a slide to be printed out) defining the Plebeians and describing their daily lives, occupations and concerns. There are some literacy and comprehension based questions that go with this that students are to answer (along with a challenge question to stretch the more able). Students are then presented, in turn, with the 6 concerns of the Plebeian class under the new Republican regime and reasons for this dissatisfaction. Students then fill in a table (included) with details of the concern and why each one caused such resentment towards the patrician class. There is then discussion surrounding just how politically aware the plebeian class would have been in the 5th c. BC with trade links with Athens providing us with the scant evidence for this. There is then finally an SMSC plenary looking at questions surrounding what people can do when they are oppressed and how ‘people’ can change/ have changed their societies for the better. Students are then encouraged to link this to the Roman Plebeians in a discussion. This lesson acts as a ‘scene-setter’ for the ‘Conflict of the Orders’ and the resulting publishing of the Twelve Tables and other reforms the plebeians managed to secure from the patricians.

This lesson is designed with the new OCR Ancient History GCSE in mind. The lesson starter involves a memory drawing game that is meant to draw out the theme of exile (a Q&A can then ensue regarding Lucretia and the circumstances of Tarquin’s exile form Rome). A quote from Livy is then included with students encouraged to reflect on what it tells us about Brutus’ character (and how he was motivated -challenge). There is then a missing words exercise (one expected, one challenge) which introduces students to the story of how Superbus went about trying to keep hold of his property once exiled. Two 6 mark exam questions are included (with help on structure and content) which take 6 minutes each as per the ‘mark a minute’ nature of the GCSE exam. One is based on a passage from Livy that students are encouraged to summarise into 5 parts before they beign their answer. There are a number of handouts included within the .ppt file as slides which are located in the place within the lesson they need to be used and can be easily printed out from here and given to students. It is also clearly signposted within the lesson slides when each handout needs to be used and how. The lesson ends with a series of abstract images, with students having to link the images to what they have learnt in the lesson.

This lesson is aimed at getting students to understand the difference between the Roman Senate of the Regal Period and the Senate of the Republican Era. Historical evidence is sketchy at best and students are made aware of this during the lesson. Students who are familiar with studying this period in Roman History (in GCSE Ancient History for example) will already be aware of the lack of evidence and also its unreliability. Students are introduced to Cesare Maccari’s ‘Cicero denouces Catiline’ fresco and are asked to make inferences about the Roman Senate from it. This establishes the stock view of the Roman Senate that most people are familiar with. It gives students an anchor point from which to begin learning about how the senate was different earlier in Rome’s history. There are then two handouts (both included as slides in the .ppt file at the relevant points) for printing out. Literacy and Comprehension questions follow based on these handouts. Students are then encouraged to summarise the difference between the senate under the Roman kings and the senate under the new Republic using this information. The lesson ends with exploratory questions surrounding the extent of the Senate’s power.

This lesson gives an introduction to Alexander the Great, his background and early life. It begins with a map of his empire to give students an idea of the scale of his later conquest and leads with a comprehension on the story of his taming of Bucephalus according to Plutarch (adapted so secondary students can understand it). It is then useful to show the scene from Alexander (2004) a link to which is attached and compare the interpretations of the event. Another scene from Alexander the Great (1956) is linked to and a discussion and explanation of the influence of Aristotle on his life can then ensue. Students are then introduced to his character at the beginning of his campaign (Plutarch again!) with the idea being that they need to understand that he was literate and intelligent. Students leave with an understanding that, like his hero Achilles, he died young. A 'challenge' article on his life from the Telegraph (adapted) is also included.

This lesson is designed with the new OCR Ancient History 9-1 GCSE spec in mind, although it would provide an excellent introductory lesson to Rome’s early history for any students embarking on a study of Rome. It would be helpful if students had some prior knowledge of Rome’s foundation myths (Romulus & Remus, Aeneas) but this is not essential at all. All worksheets referenced here and in the lesson are included as Powerpoint slides within the .ppt file and can be printed off and given to students. The lesson begins with a quick quiz and quick-fire answers provided to establish what students know already about Rome’s foundation stories. This quiz is repeated at the end to see if students can retain any of this information - the idea being that giving them time to forget and remember helps them to retain the knowledge in the long run. Students are then given accessible information on: Romulus’ political intitiatives Rome’s abduction of the Sabine women The development of the Senate under Romulus And complete a table worksheet (included in the .ppt file) with details and then they are encouraged to think which event was the most significant. Students can then challenge themselves by considering the long term significance of these events in relation to each other. Three 6 mark exam questions are then included + advice on how to answer them. These can be used simply as summary questions for those not studying the OCR Ancient History GCSE and will allow you to assess the extent of their learning. Finally (prior to students attempting the initial quiz again) there is a link to a video summarising Romulus’ impact on early Rome which students can use to add to their notes they have made in the lesson.

This resource is designed to be printed off and arranged in a timeline fashion on the class room wall. It is designed to be useful as a teaching aid from a distance and promote an understanding of the chronology of the AQA Unit: USA 1920-73: Inequality and Opportunity. It is also designed to be useful close up as a revision aid with some skeleton information included on each part. The idea is that students will find it easier to recall events from having interacted with this display each lesson. There are over 30 colour sections to this timeline so there is plenty to display.