This Key Stage 2 lesson on the myth of Thor, the Norse god of thunder, offers an exciting blend of storytelling and Evidence-Based Learning (EBL) skills, making it a valuable resource for teaching myth structure, historical perspectives, and critical thinking skills. Key Features: Exploring Thor’s Myth: Pupils are introduced to Thor’s story, focusing on how myths were used to explain natural phenomena. Through the lens of this Norse myth, pupils will understand how people historically explained thunder and lightning before scientific explanations were available. Integrated EBL Skills: Collaboration: A partner-based activity prompts pupils to discuss questions about Thor’s myth, promoting teamwork and the ability to articulate ideas. Thinking Skills: The lesson includes higher and lower-order questions, helping pupils analyse the myth and compare it with others, like King Midas, to understand different types of mythological storytelling. Self-Assessment: Pupils are encouraged to review their own written myths explaining why the sky turns dark, assessing both the quality and clarity of their work and identifying areas for improvement. Independent Learning: Individual activities include writing a myth and reflecting on how people once used stories to understand the world around them. Creative Writing Task: Pupils are tasked with writing their own myth to explain a natural phenomenon (why the sky turns dark at night), reinforcing their understanding of the myth structure and encouraging creative thinking. Five-Minute CPD for Teachers: Self-Assessment Included is a quick CPD activity on self-assessment, supported by educational research on its benefits, such as increased pupil reflection and ownership of learning. Teachers are prompted to reflect on the impact of self-assessment on pupils, with a checklist to guide classroom implementation. This resource brings together literacy, history, and critical thinking, making it a robust, engaging lesson for KS2 classrooms. It requires minimal preparation and provides pupils with a memorable learning experience that emphasises historical understanding and evidence-based skills.

This Key Stage 2 lesson on the myth of King Midas is a thoughtfully crafted resource designed to deliver essential Evidence-Based Learning (EBL) skills within a captivating story framework. It enables pupils to engage with the myth’s themes and structure while building crucial learning skills, making it an ideal tool for any KS2 teacher aiming to enrich their curriculum. Key Features: Engaging with Myth: The lesson centres around the story of King Midas, emphasising key elements such as character motivation, moral lessons, and the influence of the gods. Pupils will explore how myths convey lessons through a narrative, specifically the pitfalls of greed and the importance of thoughtful choices, with relatable activities like summarising key plot points and analysing the character’s transformation. This lesson offers a balanced approach, combining literacy and moral exploration with evidence-based learning strategies, making it an invaluable resource for developing independent, reflective, and collaborative learners. With minimal preparation required, it is a robust addition to a KS2 curriculum, aligning with core educational objectives while engaging pupils in meaningful, skill-focused learning.

This complete Key Stage 2 lesson on the legend of King Arthur and the Sword in the Stone offers a rich exploration of historical myths while building essential learning skills. The lesson draws on Evidence-Based Learning (EBL) practices to develop key cognitive and collaborative skills in pupils. Key Features: Focus on Legends: Through the classic story of King Arthur, pupils engage with the structure and themes of legends, understanding elements like fact vs. fiction, heroism, and moral lessons. EBL Skill Development: The lesson integrates five core EBL skills: collaborative learning, metacognition, peer assessment, thinking skills, and independent learning. These skills are woven throughout interactive activities such as a collaborative poster design, peer assessment, and individual reflection. Ready-to-Use CPD Component: A five-minute teacher CPD activity on metacognition is included, supporting teachers in explicitly developing metacognitive strategies in their classrooms. This engaging lesson encourages pupils to delve into the legend’s themes while fostering skills that enhance self-directed and reflective learning. The clear structure and ready-made resources make it an effective and convenient addition to a KS2 classroom.

Complete Lesson: The Three Types of Myth This ready-to-use lesson is designed for Key Stage 2, focusing on three primary types of myths: those that teach a lesson, explain a phenomenon, or set characters on a challenging quest. It uses engaging activities to develop essential skills in collaboration, self-assessment, and peer assessment, aligning with Evidence-Based Learning (EBL) principles. Lesson Highlights: Structured Learning of Myth Features - Students explore the characteristics of each myth type through examples like King Midas, making abstract ideas accessible and memorable. Collaborative Activities - Paired tasks develop teamwork and help students refine their understanding through shared insights. These exercises also include guided report writing, enabling students to practise factual writing while applying what they’ve learned. Self and Peer Assessment - The lesson includes structured opportunities for self-reflection and peer feedback, enhancing learning retention and encouraging positive reinforcement among students. Teacher Support - A quick CPD section offers insights into fostering a classroom environment supportive of self and peer assessment, with actionable reflection questions to ensure best practices. This lesson, complete with a report-writing scaffold, assessment templates, and CPD guidance, is an excellent choice for any teacher looking to build key thinking skills while introducing myths in an engaging and interesting manner.

Lesson Title: New Paragraphs and New Worlds – A Science Fiction themed English Lesson Dive into the imaginative world of science fiction with New Paragraphs and New Worlds, a fully resourced, ready-to-use lesson for Key Stage 2 designed to develop essential writing skills. This engaging lesson empowers pupils to craft paragraphs by understanding when to start a new one based on changes in time, setting, characters, dialogue, or action within a story. By working with sci-fi story extracts, pupils explore advanced storytelling techniques, making learning both educational and fun. Key Features: Target Skills: Five Evidence-Based Learning (EBL) skills, including collaboration, critical thinking, peer teaching, and self-regulation, enabling pupils to develop advanced learning capabilities. Structured Activities: Interactive exercises guide pupils through the distinct characteristics of science fiction and the five essential reasons for starting new paragraphs. Writing Practice: Story extracts prompt pupils to add new paragraphs, with guidance on tense, perspective, and dialogue to strengthen creative writing. Collaborative Learning: Paired and independent tasks encourage discussion, helping pupils consolidate understanding by teaching peers. Teacher Support: A 5-minute CPD on peer teaching for teachers, highlighting research-backed strategies to enhance collaborative classroom environments. This resource is perfect for teachers seeking an engaging, research-backed writing lesson that develops critical literacy skills through an immersive, story-based approach. This lesson is available for only £3 for whole-school use, making it an affordable and impactful addition to any classroom.

This complete lesson on the key features of fantasy stories is designed for upper primary pupils (Key Stage 2). Priced at just £3 for whole school use, it provides a comprehensive exploration of the genre using Alice in Wonderland as a core text. The lesson emphasises three key educational skills: collaboration, thinking skills, and peer assessment, all supported by evidence-based learning (EBL) principles. Lesson Highlights: Key Fantasy Story Elements: Through guided activities, pupils learn about fantasy story staples such as real vs. imaginary settings, characters (both good and bad), and magical portals. Interactive Activities: Higher and Lower Order Questions: Engage pupils in critical thinking. Collaborative Poster Design: Pairs of pupils create a poster showcasing fantasy story elements, reinforcing the material through visual creativity. Peer Assessment: Pupils review and give constructive feedback on their peers’ posters, honing evaluation skills. Teacher CPD: Includes a five-minute evidence-based CPD segment on collaboration, with practical tips for teachers on maximising pupil learning through peer interaction. This lesson combines literary analysis with skill-building exercises, making it an ideal choice for primary teachers looking to introduce fantasy literature in a meaningful, interactive way.

This resource, “The Hare and The Tortoise,” provides a soft introduction to metacognition through a familiar fable, making it accessible for young learners. The story illustrates how thinking about one’s own thinking—metacognition—can be more effective than relying on raw ability alone. In the story, Shelly the tortoise wins the race by using metacognitive strategies: planning, monitoring, and adjusting his approach. In contrast, Swifty the hare, despite his speed, fails because he doesn’t reflect on his actions. The story highlights that metacognitive skills like self-awareness and reflection can lead to better outcomes, both in races and in everyday tasks. The resource includes reflective questions that guide pupils to think about the story and their own learning behaviours. For example, pupils are asked how Shelly’s planning helped him succeed, how they might plan ahead in their own tasks, and how they could apply metacognition to activities like homework. This approachable and engaging resource helps teachers introduce the concept of metacognition in a way that encourages pupils to consider how they can think about their own learning processes and apply these strategies to improve performance. Teacher’s comment: “The fable used here is perfect. It’s both familiar to the pupil and accurate in how metacognition is presented. It immediately conveys to the student the benefits of metacognition in a fun and interesting way. It reinforces the message to the pupil that it is their approach to learning, rather than their ability, that makes the difference.” Pupil’s (aged 11) comment: “I really like this. I like the story and how Shelley used their thinking skills to win the race. It’s very inspirational.”

Getting to Grips with Connectives This learning resource titled “Getting to Grips with Connectives” is an excellent tool for teaching y5/6 students about the usage and importance of connectives in their writing. Here’s a summary of what the resource covers: It starts by explaining what connectives are and their purpose in making sentences and writing more interesting and coherent. The resource covers the different types of connectives such as ‘and’, ‘but’, ‘so’, ‘because’, ‘although’, etc., and how they can be used to join simple sentences into compound sentences or clauses into complex sentences. It provides numerous examples and exercises for students to practise writing compound and complex sentences using various connectives. The resource also teaches how to vary the structure of sentences by moving the placement of connectives, and how to use pairs of connectives like ‘if…then’ and ‘either…or’ in the same sentence. It demonstrates how connectives can be used to link sentences within a paragraph, making the writing flow better. Finally, it covers the use of time connectives like ‘firstly’, ‘secondly’, ‘finally’ to sequence paragraphs and events in a logical order. Overall, this resource is comprehensive, engaging, and full of practice opportunities. It uses a science-fiction theme which could appeal to y5/6 students. The exercises progress from simple to more complex, allowing students to gradually build their skills with connectives.

Getting to Grips with Similes (blurb) This resource is a comprehensive set of worksheets designed to teach year 5/6 students about the use of similes in writing. It covers the following key areas: Defining similes and distinguishing them from metaphors, with clear examples provided. Explaining how similes create vivid imagery by comparing two unlike things using “like” or “as”. Guiding students to craft their own original similes to describe concepts from the natural world, like the sea, sun, etc. Using similes effectively to bring story characters to life by comparing their traits to animals or objects. Identifying similes in poetry and analysing the comparisons being made. Applying similes to describe fantasy characters or scenes. The resource employs an engaging, multi-modal approach with written explanations, example similes, visuals of characters/animals, and plenty of practice exercises. Students get opportunities to demonstrate understanding by writing their own similes and short descriptive passages. The content is pitched appropriately for the upper KS2 level, with clear instructions and a gradual progression from identifying and explaining similes to generating original ones. Overall, this is a well-designed resource that uses relatable scenarios, images, and step-by-step scaffolding to build students’ skills in recognising, interpreting, and incorporating similes to enhance descriptive writing. The variety of exercises and examples caters well to different learning styles.

Getting to Grips with Metaphors Getting to Grips with Metaphors is a comprehensive packet focused on teaching upper KS2 students about metaphors. It covers the following key topics: Defining and distinguishing metaphors from similes, with examples. Explaining how metaphors create vivid imagery by comparing two unlike things directly. Analysing the deeper meaning behind common metaphorical expressions like “a storm in a teacup.” Guidance on how to craft original metaphors to describe concepts like the sun, sea, and night. Using metaphors effectively in poetry and prose writing. Practice exercises for identifying, creating, and converting between metaphors and similes. The lesson uses an engaging instructional style with clear explanations, sample metaphors, and opportunities for students to demonstrate their understanding through written responses. The visuals and imaginary scenarios help make the abstract concept of metaphors more concrete and relatable for year 5/6 students. Overall, this resource provides a structured yet creative way for teachers to build students’ skills in recognising, interpreting, and generating metaphors to enhance their descriptive writing abilities. The exercises and examples are pitched appropriately for upper KS2.

Noun Phrases 3 - Self-Assessment Having made notes with a partner (part 1) and experienced peer teaching (and peer learning) and making a video (part 2) in a group of four pupils should now be ready to work on their own. After answering the questions pupils then self-assess their own work. The idea is to check that pupils’ individual understanding of Noun Phrases is secure. After completing this question and answer self-assessment unit pupils are in a position to see whether they are a purple monster (peer learner) or a green monster (peer teacher) of this topic. Purple monsters should be encouraged to watch videos on this topic.

Noun Phrases 2 - Peer Teaching Working with a partner, pupils made brief notes on Noun Phrases in part 1. The same pair should now be ready to make a presentation on this topic to another pair. In return this other pair will also make a presentation (on the same topic) back to them. In this process, all four pupils experience peer teaching and being peer taught thereby creating four “experts”. There is a suggested page of notes included in this part for pupils to check their own notes against before they peer teach this topic to each other. These four experts then combine the best bits of both of their presentations to create a short video about Noun Phrases. This video will form part of a library of grammar topics to be shared among the class.

Engage Your Students with this Dynamic Boudica Resource Are you looking for an engaging way to introduce your students to Boudica, the Celtic queen who led a revolt against Roman rule in ancient Britain? This comprehensive resource on Boudica is perfect for KS2 students studying the Romans. What makes this resource so useful? It’s clearly organized into teaching units, student activities, and homework, making it simple to implement in your classroom. The teaching units provide key background context on Boudica, the Iceni tribe she ruled, and the tensions with Rome that sparked her rebellion. This context helps students understand what motivated Boudica. The student activities allow students to immediately apply what they learned. Multiple choice and short answer questions let students showcase their understanding. Two homework assignments encourage students to practice using new vocabulary and writing skills. You can easily assign these for homework or independent practice. Beyond the excellent content, the resource is formatted in an easy-to-use document. You can print or photocopy pages to distribute in class. No prep work needed! If you want to go beyond the textbook and deliver an interactive Boudica lesson, this resource has everything you need. The historical narrative and comprehension questions will get your students excited about this courageous woman warrior who stood up to Rome’s might. Download this engaging resource today! Based on the comprehensive nature of this Boudica resource, I would give it 5 out of 5 stars. Here’s a summary of why it deserves full marks: This complete Boudica learning resource deserves a full 5-star rating. It excels in every category: Content ★★★★★ - The teaching units provide extensive historical context while the activities and homework cement student understanding. Organization ★★★★★ - Well-structured into clear sections, it can be used as-is or tailored to your lessons. Engagement ★★★★★ - The compelling story of Boudica’s rebellion will enthral students. Activities allow active demonstration of knowledge. Adaptability ★★★★★ - Easy to print/photocopy and usable across various primary levels studying ancient Rome. Value ★★★★★- With both lesson and assessments included, this comprehensive resource is a steal. With intriguing primary source content, useful annotations for instruction, and opportunities for students to apply critical thinking, this 5-star resource has everything you need for dynamic Boudica lessons. It will make both teaching and learning about the Celtic warrior queen Boudica engaging and enjoyable.

A review of this resource (which also serves as a useful description) I recently came across an amazing Bloom’s Taxonomy resource that I believe could be an absolute game-changer for any teacher. It’s called “Bloom’s Taxonomy Meets Five Children & It” and it provides a clear, step-by-step guide to implementing Bloom’s in your classroom using the beloved children’s story. I would give this Bloom’s Taxonomy resource a 5 out of 5 star rating. It is an absolutely stellar teaching tool that provides immense value. This resource is ingeniously designed to elucidate the Bloom’s framework AND develop teacher competency in applying it through guided practice. The ability to move from theory to application is a game changer. Unlocking higher order thinking abilities in students is essential in today’s world. This Bloom’s resource allows you to do exactly that - in a simple, hands-on way. I could not recommend it more strongly to any teacher looking to maximize their students’ potential. Here’s why this resource is so powerful: Demystifies Bloom’s - It breaks down the often confusing Bloom’s levels into simple, easy-to-grasp explanations that make the framework crystal clear. Models the Full Process - You receive a complete walk-through of Bloom’s Taxonomy applied to the story, from basic remembering questions up to higher order creative questions. Builds Understanding - The explanations reinforce the core distinctions between question types, helping you deeply comprehend the taxonomy. Develops Teacher Skills - You are actively involved in writing your own questions for each level, scaffolding your ability to formulate taxonomy-aligned activities. Ready-to-Use Student Resource - A student handout is included allowing you to immediately have pupils work with the story and Bloom’s questions. This resource stands out for making a framework that is often vague and theoretical into something concrete and actionable for teachers. Breaking down barriers to classroom application is hugely important. The guided explanations paired with opportunities to create aligned questions yourself scaffolds the learning process, building confidence in using Bloom’s Taxonomy. Being able to immediately have students try a Bloom Taxonomy activity further cements this. For its clarity, methodical training approach, reinforced connections, and classroom integration, I believe this resource merits 5 shining stars. It empowers teachers to turn Bloom’s Taxonomy from an abstract concept into a powerful teaching strategy. The result is substantial gains in critical thinking and higher order skills among students. When you consider the immense educational benefits unlocked, the resource delivers absolutely top-tier value worthy of the highest recommendations. 5 stars all the way! The best way to understand the power of this resource is to try it out yourself! You and your students will quickly see the many benefits.

Our EBL lessons develop both KS2 English and the 8 Evidence-Based Learning (EBL) skills in an interesting and enjoyable way. Developing these skills will maximise students’ learning outcomes. This brochure is an overview of the EBL lessons available on our website.

In this lesson pupils work with a partner to make some brief notes about Noun Phrases. Ideally, pupils should make a note of only the essential aspects of this topic - say 5-6 main points (with examples). These notes are important because they will be used as a basis for peer teaching and making a video on this topic in part 2. This lesson has been written to enable to enable pupils to teach themselves without teacher input because each page has been carefully designed to nudge learning forward.

A complete lesson that uses history to develop the KS2 English skill of report writing and to also master the evidence-based Learning skill of self-regulation.