Using an excerpt from Roald Dahl's autobiography, 'Boy' - The Great Mouse Plot - a booklet of highly differentiated activities which address skills tested by Qs 1 to 3 of the new AQA Language Paper 2A exam paper, but for students whose reading age is significantly lower than their chronological age. It's a good way to introduce the focus of each question, and to get students responding in appropriate ways at a level that is appropriate to their ability. I hope this is useful to you and your students. Matt :)

Using an extract from George Orwell's non-fiction, "Down and Out in Paris and London" (1933) and an article taken from The Daily Mail online from 2014, the theme of these two non-fiction texts is attitudes towards the homeless in England in different centuries. I have adapted the texts, simplifying a little vocabulary and sentencing to make them a little more accessible to students whose reading ages are significantly lower than their chronological age, to provide an appropriate point of access to the skills demanded by the new AQA GCSE Language Paper 2A exam paper. Also included is a set of SMART Notebook slides for whole-class interactive whiteboard teaching. I have adhered to the phrasing of the questions, but the tasks are differentiated thus: Q1 - same as the actual exam paper Q2 - cloze exercise of the summary (this could be easily tweaked to sentence stems) Q3a - highlight and write down 3 relevant examples of language used to convey viewpoint Q3b - cloze exercise of use of language to convey viewpoint and attitude (again, this could easily be tweaked to the sentence stems of PEE paragraphs where pupils supply the point, evidence and explain how language is used to convey the author's viewpoint.) I have not included the Q4 'comparison of methods to convey attitudes' task as it is a skill currently beyond the ability of the students for whom I have produced this resource. The students I plan to use these resources with have reading ages between 6 years 6 months and 10 years old. I hope that it might be of some use to others. I have produced 8 of these resources now, all FREE at my 'shop'. Help yourself! Matt :)

Inspired by fellow English teachers @Team_English1 over on Twitter, I've produced these essay plan starters for use with AQA GCSE English Literature: MACBETH. The intention is to use them frequently as starters to maintain retention and to develop students' recall skills, which are essential in the context of closed book examinations. I have produced the resource in TWO formats: EITHER as Powerpoint OR as SMART Notebook. Hope it's helpful to you. Matt :)

The new GCSE English Language and Literature Assessment Objectives 'boiled down' to 5 CORE WRITING Skills and then those core skills are traced through a hierarchy of competence, using phrases common to new AQA Language and Literature mark schemes (highlighted in bold on the progression maps), linked to the new numerical grades 9 to 1, using the FFT 'refined' model. If you find them of use, check out the Planning for Progression in Reading: New 9 to 1 Skills progression map also uploaded to TES. I hope they are of some use to you.

This resource was inspired by an excellent blog on Twitter by @LauraLolder and a subsequent resource for R&J that was produced by @MissMFrost and shared via @Team_English1 Using @MissMFrost's PPT presentation format, I have produced 13 essay plan starters for use with A Christmas Carol and have uploaded them in Powerpoint format and also SMART Notebook format should you prefer to use this instead. I hope they are of use to you. Matt :)

This is a set of 16 x weekly SPaG review PPT slides. Each slide comprises 6 common error SPaG review tasks. The template was designed and shared by Chris Curtis (@Xris32 over on Twitter!) Hope it’s useful. NOTE: Just don’t sell it or you’ll be cursed!

A practice exam paper for the new AQA Language Paper 1: Explorations in Creative Reading and Writing The extract is taken from Roald Dahl’s short story, 'Lamb to the Slaughter', written in 1953. In this extract, Patrick Maloney - a senior police officer – informs his heavily pregnant wife, Mary, that he is ending their marriage. His wife has other ideas ... The text and the format of the exam Qs 1 to 4 follows that of AQA's approved specimen papers. The SMART Notebook slides are designed to support your teaching of Qs 1 to 4, Q by Q. NOTE: I've uploaded LOADS of AQA practice exam Paper 1s AND 2s to my 'shop', ALL FREE of charge. Please help yourself - just leave a review. Thank you! Matt :)

15 x PPT slides, each containing 5 Qs encouraging students to recall previously learned knowledge of the text. Based on the latest educational research which suggests that spaced retrieval of previously learned material leads to better transfer of knowledge to long term memory. Hope they’re useful. Please leave a review. Matt

25 x PPT slides, each containing 5 retrieval practice Qs to encourage regular recall of previously learned information. The latest research suggests retrieval practice improves transfer of knowledge to long-term memory. Hope they’re useful. Please leave a review.

Using a journal entry penned by Samuel Pepys as an eyewitness account of the Great Fire of London and a Guardian newspaper article of the King's Cross tube station fire in 1987, the theme of these two non-fiction texts is different perspectives of fires in the city of London. I have adapted the texts ever so slightly, simplifying some vocabulary and sentencing to make them more accessible to students whose reading ages are significantly lower than their chronological age, to provide an appropriate point of access to the skills demanded by the new AQA GCSE Language Paper 2A exam paper. Also included is a set of SMART Notebook slides for whole-class interactive whiteboard teaching of the resource. I have adhered to the phrasing of the exam questions, but the tasks are differentiated thus: Q1 - same as the actual exam paper Q2 - cloze exercise of the summary (this could be easily tweaked to sentence stems) Q3a - highlight and write down 3 relevant examples of language used to convey viewpoint Q3b - cloze exercise of use of language to convey viewpoint and attitude and an extension task where pupils complete PEE paragraphs, supplying relevant evidence and explanations. I have not included the Q4 'comparison of methods to convey attitudes' task as it is currently beyond the ability of the students for whom I have produced this resource. I hope that it might be of some use to others. I've produced 8 of these highly differentiated papers for Paper 2A now and all are available FREE at my 'shop' with SMART Notebook resources too. Help yourself! Matt :)

A practice Paper 1 exam paper based on the ending of Susan Hill's novel,'I'm the King of the Castle', published in 1970. In this dramatic extract, taken from the climax of the novel, the protagonist - a victim of bullying named Charles Kingshaw - drowns himself in a nearby pond, unable to bear the torment he endures at the hands of a boy who is about to become his step-brother. UPDATED APRIL 2017: a REVISED series of SMART Notebook slides to accompany TES contributor Claire Mesher's practice exam paper so that you can teach this extract and Qs 1 to 4 interactively, supplying also a model response to Q3 where the focus is on structure and using key subject terminology appropriately, a Q3 key vocab matching starter activity and a new Q4 slide. I hope this is of some use. Thanks, Matt :)

A set of ten editable PPT slides for use with revision or consolidation of Priestley’s play, “An Inspector Calls.” Each slide features a quotation integral to one of the play’s main themes or characters and each contain four tasks: identifying a writer’s methods; linking the quotation to the play’s social, cultural or historical contexts, contrast (or connect) to elsewhere in the play; and synthesising details in the quotation for more sophisticated textual analysis. Feel free to tweak them, or add your own. There are sets for Macbeth and A Christmas Carol, too, if you like the format! Hope they are useful.

Designed for the NEW AQA (2015 onwards) English Language Paper 2B - WRITING TASK A variety of writing tasks, each linked by theme, to accompany various Paper 2A practice exam resources I have already produced, all available FREE of charge from my 'shop'. Help yourself and leave a review! The 2B tasks in the Word document are designed to accompany the following practice 2A papers I have uploaded: * NURSING - THEN & NOW * CAPITAL PUNISHMENT * RAIL DISASTERS * CRIME & PUNISHMENT * CHILD LABOUR and each writing task follows the format of the published AQA specimen exam paper for Paper 2B. I hope you find these of use to accompany resources you may have already downloaded. Matt :)

Designed for less able students at Key Stage 3 or 4, this is a practice exam paper for the NEW AQA English Language Paper 1A: Reading 20th C Fiction texts. I have adapted an extract taken from Liam O'Flaherty's short story, 'The Sniper' (1923), simplifying a little of the vocabulary to make the text a little more accessible for students whose reading age might be lower than their chronological age. I have also designed a series of SMART Notebook slides for interactive teaching of this highly differentiated practice exam paper Q by Q. The format of the paper is as follows: Q1 - the same Q2 - cloze exercise focusing on how the writer uses language Q3a - sequence a series of statements to show understanding of narrative events / structure Q3b - cloze activity, modelling Q3 response, for pupils to complete. I know that the new GCSE paper is untiered and students will not be given this level of support in the exam. However, this resource is intended to provide an appropriate point of access and opportunities for students whose literacy is a barrier to learning to practise the reading response skills demanded by this exam - and to support the teachers who have to deliver it! I hope that it is of some use to you. If you want others, the following are all available FREE at my 'shop': War of the Worlds, Skellig, Frankenstein, Dracula, The Machine Gunners, Buddy, The Pearl, To Kill a Mockingbird, Z for Zachariah, The Hobbit, The Monkey's Paw and others. I've also uploaded loads of typical specimen new AQA Language Paper 1 and 2s to my shop, all available free of charge. Please leave a review and help yourself! Matt :)

Attached are a couple of context based exam questions I have mocked up for use with the NEW AQA English Literature Paper 1: 19th C Novel, which invites students to write about the "here" and "elsewhere" to show their understanding of the novel as a whole. One practice paper invites discussion of attitudes to Christmas in the novel The other paper invites discussion of how Dickens presents ideas about poverty in the novel. The length of extract as stimulus and the format and wording of the Qs adheres to the format published by AQA on their specimen paper. Hope they are of some use. Matt :)

A set of ten editable PPT slides for use with revision or consolidation of Shakespeare’s ‘Macbeth’. Each slide features a quotation integral to one of the play’s main themes or characters and each contain four tasks: identifying writer’s methods; linking the quotation to the play’s social, cultural or historical contexts, contrast (or connect) to elsewhere in the play; and synthesise details in the quotation for more sophisticated textual analysis. Feel free to tweak them, or add your own. There is a set for A Christmas Carol, too, if you like the format! Hope they are useful.

A highly differentiated resource to support students whose literacy is a barrier to accessing the new GCSE English Language exam papers. I have adhered to the question format of Qs 1 to 3 of the exam paper but have scaffolded the responses to enable less able students to practise the skills demanded by the new AQA English Language Paper 1A: Reading exam. To accompany the pupil workbook, I have produced a set of SMART Notebook slides for whole class interactive teaching of the resource. Q1 - the same Q2 - cloze exercise Q3a - sequence the statements to show understanding of narrative events Q3b - cloze exercise to show comprehension of narrative events, using specialist terminology I have uploaded lots of these differentiated practice papers now, using extracts from texts including: Frankenstein, War of the Worlds, Dracula, Buddy, To Kill a Mockingbird, The Sniper, The Pearl, The Monkey's Paw, Z for Zachariah, A Christmas Carol and The Hobbit. Also FREE at my 'shop' are lots of Paper 2s, differentiated in similar ways, as well as loads of specimen Paper 1s and 2s with SMART Notebooks for whole-class teaching Q by Q. Help yourself and please leave a review. Matt :)

A highly differentiated resource to support students whose literacy is a barrier to accessing the new GCSE English Language exam papers. I have adhered to the question format but have scaffolded the responses to enable less able students to practise the skills demanded by the new AQA English Language Paper 1A: Reading exam. To accompany the pupil workbook, I have produced a set of SMART Notebook slides for whole class interactive teaching of the resource. Q1 - the same Q2 - cloze exercise Q3a - sequence the statements to show understanding of narrative events Q3b - cloze exercise to show comprehension of narrative events, using specialist terminology I have uploaded lots of these differentiated practice AQA Paper 1s, using extracts from: To Kill a Mockingbird, War of the Worlds, Skellig, The Hobbit, The Monkey's Paw, The Sniper, Buddy, Dracula, Z for Zachariah, The Pearl and Frankenstein, as well as several differentiated Language Paper 2s, all available FREE at my 'shop'. Also, loads of 'actual' specimen papers with SMART Notebook slides for whole-class interactive teaching, Q by Q! Help yourself and please leave a review.

The Examiners' Report for the June 2017 series commented on candidates' responses to Paper 1B writing tasks by stating that "Many students would have benefitted from a quality rather than quantity approach: having the confidence to take time to plan, and then craft a shaped and structured response in two or three sides, with time at the end to revise and improve." These 200 Word challenges are designed to encourage narrative or descriptive writing in response to an image, with either three techniques or three vocabulary choices to include in their 200 words long response, produced in 30 minutes, with 10 minutes spent proofreading, editing and correcting. I hope that they are of use to you.

Designed for NEW AQA Language paper 1A: a practice exam paper using the opening of Robert O'Brien's novel, 'Z for Zachariah', published in 1974. This extract, written in the form of a first-person diary, is narrated by a 16 years old girl named Ann Burden who believed herself to be the only survivor in her town after a nuclear war. She thinks someone is coming and she is no longer alone. Is this person a friend or a foe? The format of the exam questions matches those in AQAs specimen exam papers. UPDATED APRIL 2017: included is a REVISED series of SMART Notebook slides for teaching the exam paper Q by Q; a Q3 key terminology matching starter activity; a modelled Q3 structure response and a new Q4 slide. NOTE: I've uploaded LOADS of AQA practice exam Paper 1s AND 2s to my 'shop' ALL FREE of charge. Please help yourself - just leave a review. Thank you! I hope this is of some use to you.