After teaching English in Thailand for three years I moved home in 2015 to complete my PGCE course. I am now a newly qualified English teacher, specialising in Literacy and ESOL based in the North West of England. All of my resources are from my time teaching Functional Skills English to adult learners I currently teach Level 1 & 2 Functional Skills (Edexcel) and Foundation GCSE English Language
Enjoy, and please take a little time to leave a review if you find my resources useful!
After teaching English in Thailand for three years I moved home in 2015 to complete my PGCE course. I am now a newly qualified English teacher, specialising in Literacy and ESOL based in the North West of England. All of my resources are from my time teaching Functional Skills English to adult learners I currently teach Level 1 & 2 Functional Skills (Edexcel) and Foundation GCSE English Language
Enjoy, and please take a little time to leave a review if you find my resources useful!
This lesson is focused on formal letters for Functional Skills English Level one or Level two.
There is a warm up task where by students must find the errors within a sample formal letter (errors such as spelling, tenses, SVA etc.) with an answer sheet.
There is a layout reordering task.
A sample formal letter exam question and a planning document to support lower level learners or those who are only just being introduced to formal letter writing.
A presentation explaining the key info about purpose of text, relating to Functional Skills reading exams at L1 and L2. The presentation aims to teach the fundamental skills of identifying WHY a text has been written and the different features students can spot to help them. Some matching activities throughout to recap, with a final homework writing task (Writing a set of instructions for someone wanting to join an English course)
These two worksheets are gap-fill exercises are focused on the different elements of body language, to go alongside the speaking listening and communications elements of the FS English qualification.
It can be used as a warm up or re-cap activity.
The EL3 worksheet gives a space per letter for the answer whereas the L1/2 does not.
Simple exercise to reinforce body language and its importance in SLC.
This is the second session for Level 2 language features, making up the complete list provided by the Level 2 Pearson Edexcel exam spec.
It covers:
Emotive language
Exaggeration/hyperbole
Abbreviations
Simile
Acronyms
Metaphor
Informal language
Alliteration
Contrasts
Sibilance
Positive/negative language
Slogans
With examples of each taken from well known places. There is a short activity for language feature spotting, There is a Jam Board activity for which you would need to create a new Jam Board. Also a matching activity to be done on the smart board with correct answers.
The session ends with a consolidation activity exam style question taken from a Pearson Edexcel mock exam.
There is a table for recording the definition of each feature.
This PowerPoint goes through the grammatical rules of choosing the correct article in written English
1. Today’s lesson plan- objectives
2. Lesson warm up- how many words can you make from the letters given
3. An introduction to articles
4. The difference between two sentences- one with ‘a’ and one with 'the’
5. Terminology- space for the class to give definitions for ‘definite article’, ‘indefinite article’ ‘count noun’ and 'uncount noun’
6. Some grammatical rules
7. Noun sorting activity - sorting count and uncount (resource two is the student resource for this activity. This slide is left blank for teacher to put the nouns in the relevant categories as students give answers.
8. Some examples with missing articles to complete as a group
9. The rules for choosing ‘a’ or 'an’
10. The rules for using 'the’
11. Writing task to use articles- students asked to chose a recipe they like to make and list the ingredients and some basic instructions, as food is a good way to use articles.
A jeopardy style quiz based on mostly general knowledge and fun facts about Christmas. I usually split into teams of around 4 students and record scores on the board. It works best with 2 teams, but will depend on your class size.
There are 5 categories of questions (General Knowledge, Christmas facts, True or false, Spelling and English traditions).
Each category has 5 question, worth 100 up 500 points, which increase in difficulty/reward.
Each slide has the answer on it (shown by animation).
All slides link to the first page, with a ‘home’ icon in the bottom right of all pages.
It works best to go to your question, reveal answer, then use the home icon to go back to the first page and mark off which questions have been asked.
On the final slide there is a final jeopardy question worth 1000 points, which means this final question can change everything!
Main topic of apostrophe and comma usage/rules with consolidation activities, being contextualized in a written review in line with Pearson Edexcel possible writing exam task.
Short sentence recap (5 question quiz)
Apostrophe uses with activities
Comma uses with activities
Sentences taken from a written review of a fitness watch to insert commas
Whole review, featuring previous task sentences with accurate commas
Final consolidation quiz based on all apostrophe and comma learning
A presentation with direct teaching of the first 9 language features, these are the 9 features needed for Level 1 (as specified by Pearson Edexcel literature) so this can be adapted to suit a L1 class.
They also make up the first 9 that L2 students need, a second presentation is available with the remaining language features needed at L2. I usually use this as the first week on this topic. (Second L2 session also available)
Each one is explained in detail and leaves room for discussion, there are examples throughout, recap questions, a link to a word wall revision quiz and a final task for consolidation.
Lesson on writing speeches, originally aimed at Level one and two Functional Skills English students but can be adapted to suit other lessons/learners/levels. Students are introduced to the different language techniques used within speeches, such as; alliteration, the rule of three, facts and figures, emotive language and rhetorical questions. The presentation includes instructions for tasks, answers to tasks and discussion points.
Pack includes:
Power Point presentation to guide the lesson, with activity instructions, definitions, key information and tips for speech writing.
Identify speech techniques activity worksheet/exercise- students given a speech to label the different techniques from the ideas given.
A printable MLK extract for students to label on their own (no key provided).
A matching exercise with techniques and examples.
The information required for the ‘Drink driving’ speech writing task can be found on The Skills Workshop website for free.
This lesson looks at developing simple compound and complex sentences with built in activities and tasks throughout and two separate activities
1. Warm up- as the lesson before was based on articles, the warm up is a re-cap quiz, but this can be taken out if it is not suitable
2. rule one: A sentence must make sense
3. rule two: A sentence must have the correct punctuation- space to record why this is important
4. rule three: A sentence must have a subject and a verb- examples
5. Label the sentences- label the subject and verbs, and punctuation in the sentences provided
6. There are three types of sentences we can use- space for simple compound and complex
7. Teacher exposition on compound sentences, grammatical construction and definitions
8. Blank slide for examples
9. Teacher exposition on complex sentences
10. Label the complex sentences
11. Writing task with specific grammar targets (worksheet above)
This booklet acts as a revision guide for the EL3 FS English qualification, specifically City and Guilds but can be tailored to other exam boards.
1. A gap fill exercise about what to expect on the exam
2. How to use the question to make a plan and draft
3. Making your plan
4. Writing your draft
5. Writing your final piece
6. Space to complete the final piece.
The guide takes students through the whole process of a written task with spaces for them to write ideas/plan/draft/final throughout. There is also a short vocab re-cap and formal/informal language recap.
There resources aim toward the OCT functional skills English qualification but I am sure they could be tailored to other exam boards. The PowerPoint presentation guides through the lesson and different activities.
Comma activity to warm up
Intro- what do we already know about emails? discussion
Key elements of an email- labeling activity using the sample email provided
Key elements listed- for discussion
Emails in the exam- teacher exposition
Individual writing task- using any sample email task.
I have also included an error correction task using a sample email with a teacher’s copy for the answers and an email re-cap quiz which can both be used at any stage of the lesson or as homework.
This lesson can be adapted for L1 and L2.
The lesson is led by the Power Point presentation, starting with aims and objectives for the lesson.
The first activity gives students a list of funny article headlines for the students to decide of they are real or fake. This is a fun warm up task which usually gets the students laughing! The Power Point also gives the answers to the activity and can provide discussion points.
The initial tasks gives students two articles to read and comment on; one from a gardening magazine and one from a music magazine. The Power Point and printable worksheet both have instructions for the task. This task then leads into a group discussion.
Another short task depicts an article layout and asks for students to label the different components of an article. This task works well with an interactive smart board, but can be adapted to suit relevant resources.
The final task is a written task, asking students to write their own article on a subject of their choice. Dependant on the group you could provide some ideas to choose from. Instructions are listed on the Power Point.
I have also uploaded an optional extension task which asks students to match the headlines with the publications they think they have come from.
This activity is aimed at EL3 Functional Skills English written exam practise.
The activity gives an exam type question, with room for planning and drafting before space for the final written piece, which particularly aligns with the City and Guilds qualification.
The basis is a customer feedback form after visiting a local restaurant.
The activity can be adapted to group or paired planning to suit the needs of the group, or as a mock exam task.
The PowerPoint presentation goes through some common spelling rules/patterns in a basic manner. There are lots of opportunities to list new words and practice the rules throughout, so you can make it as long or as short as you wish/need.
1. I and E
2. Silent letters
3. Y to I
4. Double consonants
5. Q and U
The worksheet is a gap fill activity with two options to choose the correct spelling version, all based in the above 5 categories. It is based upon a lottery win, and what the lady would do if she won. There are colorful illustrations throughout the activity.
This lesson aims to provide an introduction to homophones, common examples and their uses in sentences and spelling tips.
Lesson aim and objectives:
Aim: To introduce students to homophones and how to use them in context.
Objectives:
Define what a homophone is.
List examples of common homophones and write own sentences.
Correct sentences using homophones.
Initially I like to ask students if any body has any prior knowledge of homophones, before showing the definitions on the first slide of the presentation.
Discussion about how homophones can change the meanings of sentences, using comedic illustrations.
Some common mistakes that may be familiar with students; their there they’re, too two to, where were we’re. Dependant on ability level it could be useful to ask students to correctly use each of the nine homophones by writing sentences, however some groups may not need this practise.
Shows the correct use of each.
Short quiz using images of common homophone pairs, example: Board and bored. The images make the quiz more fun. Students can complete this individually, in pairs or as a group activity. Answers displayed on slide.
Some tips for helping students remember homophone pairs and the correct usage.
A second, more difficult quiz again using images, which works well if students work together in pairs. Dependant on ability you may need to provide clues or allow students to use dictionaries.
Worksheet where students chose the correct homophones to use in a sentence. Again, dictionaries may be useful. Or the attached ‘homophone bank’ which has the definitions of each homophone pair can be used as a ‘help sheet’. The aim of the homophone bank is that students can add new homophone pairs to it as the come across them.
Four worksheets with different topics for students to write their personal views and opinions on.
These are great as a warm up to get students thinking and to start a class debate or discussion.
(The topics chosen can be sensitive)
1. Knife crime in schools- should mandatory knife-related first aid be taught in schools?
2. Life skills in schools- are life skills such as cooking, budgeting, laundry etc. more important than maths equations and English grammar?
3. Social media? Is social media ruining our lives and our personal relationships?
4. Dogs and their owners- should dog owners be prosecuted when their dog attacks another person?
L1 or L2 English grammar/writing class focussed on sentence writing specifically compound sentences. Lots of varied sentences and activities, writing own sentences and identifying sentences
PowerPoint presentation which also serves as a lesson plan, with activities throughout, group tasks, paired tasks and individual tasks
Dictionary hunt/game warm up activity
Matching clauses game (can be adapted to suit a whole group games or paired
Email without mistakes- teacher’s copy
Email with mistakes to correct (and used further on to identify some compound sentences)
This PowerPoint presentation goes through the different elements and terminologies of spelling. I used it for a low level summer spelling workshop but it could also be used in other ways too. I also used it in conjunction with some vowel sound word searches which I found online.
1. Warm-up activity- how many words can you make from the given letters?
2. Introduction to the topic
3. Explanation of syllables with activity
4. Over view of long and short vowel sounds
5-10. Long A,E,I,O,U sounds with examples and accompanying images
The PowerPoint is bright and colourful with pictures and activities. The topic itself lends itself to many activities and spelling practice.
The Power Point presentation goes through the key aspects of writing a letter of complaint. The lesson was originally aimed at FS English level 1 and 2 students but can be adapted to other levels.
Activities include:
Main letter writing task - instructions on PP presentation
Fun warm up task- students chose the true and false complaints (answers on PP presentation)
A short task with key phrases which may be found in a letter of complaint. Each phrases has specific preposition missing, which students must choose from the list provided. Idea for a warm up task of closing/revision task.
Printable checklist corresponding to lesson content for students to refer to when writing their letter of complaint