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Humble English Teacher hoping to cut down on teachers' workload by providing high quality resources (from primary to secondary - mostly English but some other subjects too). Please share and review if you like what you see here.
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Humble English Teacher hoping to cut down on teachers' workload by providing high quality resources (from primary to secondary - mostly English but some other subjects too). Please share and review if you like what you see here.
English language arts
Of Mice and Men: Chapter 3
This 21-slide lesson explores Chapter 3 of John Steinbeck’s ‘Of Mice and Men’.
Students are encouraged to think about the pathos created via the death of Candy’s dog, and how George and Lennie’s fate continues to be foreshadowed. Significant focus is placed on Lennie’s fight with Curley, which leads students to an extract-based essay question to answer.
Top tips for how to approach the extract question are included here, plus an exemplar introduction and analytical paragraph as a model for students.
Questions, discussion points, and tasks are included for students. The extract-based question is also included in this resource.
Ideal for upper-KS3 or GCSE students.
PowerPoint saved as PDF.
An Inspector Calls: Character Notes
A worksheet for students to use for making notes on the key characters in ‘An Inspector Calls’.
A Doll's House: Context
This lesson is a sophisticated and thorough introduction to the context and key ideas behind Henrik Ibsen’s ‘A Doll’s House’.
This 23-slide PowerPoint lesson is perfect for those studying the play as part of AQA’s Political and Social Protest Writing course at A level, but easily adaptable to other A level courses (including Theatre Studies) too.
The lesson includes biographical information about Ibsen, an explanation of Norway’s social history in the 19th century (with particular focus on the rights of women), and an introduction to the key themes and ideas in ‘A Doll’s House’. Questions and tasks are also featured for students.
PowerPoint saved as PDF.
The Little Black Boy: William Blake
This 31-slide lesson on William Blake’s ‘The Little Black Boy’ offers superb analysis for those studying the poem at A level.
In tackling one of the most complex and ambiguous of Blake’s ‘Songs’, this lesson provides sophisticated linguistic, contextual and thematic scrutiny.
This is an ideal lesson for those studying Blake as a protest writer with AQA’s Political and Social Protest Writing course.
PowerPoint saved as PDF.
A Christmas Carol: Stave 2
This 30-slide lesson explores Stave Two of Charles Dickens’ ‘A Christmas Carol’.
Students are encouraged to consider how Dickens presents the Ghost of Christmas Past and how Scrooge is affected by memories of his youth. The lesson delves into Scrooge as a boy, his apprenticeship under Fezziwig, and the tragic end to his relationship with Belle. We think about how this all relates to Dickens’ authorial message.
Questions, discussion points, and tasks are included for students.
This is ideal for those studying the novella at GCSE or at KS3.
PowerPoint saved as PDF.
An Inspector Calls: Gerald Croft
This 33-slide lesson explores and revises Gerald Croft in J.B. Priestley’s ‘An Inspector Calls’ in a thorough and comprehensive structure - perfect for those studying the play at GCSE.
Gerald is perhaps the most complex character in the play and students often find him challenging to analyse effectively. This lesson walks step-by-step through Gerald’s role in the play and how Priestley presents him at different points.
Included are Gerald’s key quotations and moments, his function in the play, his corresponding historical context, and regular consideration of Priestley’s message and use of Gerald as a symbol.
Questions and thinking points are featured throughout the lesson. An exam-style question is included at the end.
PowerPoint saved as PDF.
Hawk Roosting: Ted Hughes
This 27-slide lesson explores Ted Hughes’ poem, ‘Hawk Roosting’.
The lesson begins with a comprehensive introduction to hawks, noting their mythological associations, biological behaviour, and linguistic connotations.
Students then learn about Ted Hughes’ unsentimental depiction of nature in his poetry. The poem is explored in detail, considering how Hughes characterises the titular hawk through his language, imagery, and first-person narrative. The violent and natural imagery of the poem is unpicked.
To consolidate students’ knowledge, there is an analytical writing task and a creative writing task. A high-quality model paragraph is included to help students with the analytical/essay writing task, and there is an opportunity for self-assessment.
This lesson is ideal for KS3 or GCSE students.
PowerPoint saved as a PDF.
A Christmas Carol: Ignorance and Want
This 26-slide lesson analyses and revises the characters of Ignorance and Want in Dickens’ ‘A Christmas Carol’.
The lesson considers the characters’ appearance and symbolism, linked closely to the context of Victorian society and the thematic explorations of the novella, as well as Dickens’ Biblical parallels and the characters’ structural significance within the story. Tasks and discussion points are featured throughout, and the lesson ends with an extended writing task on the characters.
Though they only appear briefly, this lesson demonstrates the significance of Ignorance and Want as symbols for urgent social issues observed and highlighted by Dickens in Victorian society.
This is an ideal lesson for GCSE students, but could easily be adapted for KS3.
PowerPoint saved as PDF.
The Crucible: Context
This 20-slide lesson provides a comprehensive introduction to Arthur Miller’s ‘The Crucible’.
Detailed notes are included on McCarthyism, the Cold War, the Red Scare, and the Salem Witch Trials. Important vocabulary is explained and several tasks/questions for students are included.
This lesson is ideal for GCSE pupils, and could be easily adapted for KS3.
PowerPoint saved as PDF.
An Inspector Calls: The Generation Gap
This 35-slide lesson is designed to explore and revise the ‘generation gap’ in J.B. Priestley’s ‘An Inspector Calls’.
The lesson considers the gulf between the younger and older characters in the play with reference to key quotations and character development. We think about how the elder characters blame and criticise the younger characters in the play, and how the younger characters judge their disappointing elders in turn. Priestley’s authorial intentions are also explored, thinking about how each character is used symbolically. Each character is dissected in detail, including the ambiguities of Gerald’s place in terms of generational divisions.
Questions, discussion points, and tasks are included for students. An essay question is featured at the end of the lesson.
This resource is perfect for GCSE analysis of the play.
PowerPoint saved as pdf.
Commas
Help students to finally master commas with this engaging 18-slide lesson that covers all the main rules.
We all know that many students struggle with commas. This lesson aims to explain the key rules alongside practical examples. It explains how to use commas in lists (including the Oxford comma), for fronted adverbials, and subordinate clauses.
Humorous comma errors are included for students to identify and amend.
This lesson is ideal for KS3, but could definitely be used for GCSE students struggling with apostrophes too.
PowerPoint saved as PDF.
To Kill a Mockingbird: Context
This is a thorough and comprehensive introduction to Harper Lee’s ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’, outlining the key context necessary to understanding the novel.
This 25-slide lesson details the novel’s key historical context, exploring the Deep South of the 1930s and the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s, as well as Lee’s own life and the novel’s key themes and legacy.
Questions, tasks and discussion points are featured throughout. An extended (potential homework) task is included at the end of the lesson.
PowerPoint saved as PDF.
Infant Joy & Infant Sorrow: William Blake (Innocence & Experience)
These two lessons (28 slides each) explore William Blake’s companion poems, ‘Infant Joy’ and ‘Infant Sorrow’, from the ‘Songs of Innocence and Experience’.
The lessons explore Blake’s radicalism and context, analysing the poems’ language, themes, form, structure, and message in light of his political protest.
Questions, tasks, and discussion points for students are included throughout, including extended essays.
These lessons are ideal for those studying Blake’s ‘Songs’ as part of AQA’s A level ‘Political and Social Protest Writing’ paper, but could be adapted for other purposes.
PowerPoints saved as PDF. 56 slides in total.
A Christmas Carol: Stave 5
This 30-slide lesson explores Stave Five of Charles Dickens’ ‘A Christmas Carol’.
Students are encouraged to consider how Dickens presents Scrooge’s metamorphosis from a miserly misanthrope to a charitable and responsible citizen in the final chapter of the novella. We think about how Dickens evidences Scrooge’s change, exploring what leads Scrooge to reconsider his relationship with charity, Church, his local community, Fred, and the Cratchits. As we finish the novella, we consider the allegorical function of the story and whether Dickens’ messages are still relevant to our own society.
Questions, discussion points, and tasks are included for students.
This is ideal for those studying the novella at GCSE or at KS3.
PowerPoint saved as PDF.
A Christmas Carol: Scrooge as an Outsider Essay (Top Band)
This is a top-band exemplar essay on how Dickens presents Scrooge as an outsider in ‘A Christmas Carol’.
Based on a genuine AQA Literature past paper, this essay is perfect for HA pupils to see how to structure a sophisticated and perceptive essay.
The extract and exam question are included on the first page.
A Christmas Carol: Context
This 25-slide lesson explores all the key context behind Dickens’ classic novella, ‘A Christmas Carol’.
It’s everything that students need to know before reading the text - including an introduction to Dickens’ life, understanding Victorian poverty, and an exploration of the key themes and concepts of the timeless story. Questions, discussion points, and tasks for students are also featured, including a research task at the end of the lesson (potentially a homework task).
This lesson is ideal for GCSE pupils studying the text, but is easily adaptable for KS3.
PowerPoint saved as PDF.
Macbeth: Crossword
This crossword on Shakespeare’s ‘Macbeth’ provides an enjoyable but academic activity for pupils to test their knowledge of the play.
It always works as a great starter or plenary task.
A Doll's House: Dr. Rank Character Analysis
A revision lesson designed to deconstruct Dr. Rank’s significance in ‘A Doll’s House’.
This is a detailed analytical summary of Dr. Rank, including his key quotations, function in the play, and an essay question for students to consider.
Perfect for those studying the play with AQA for A level (Political and Social Protest Writing).
Animal Farm: Crossword
This crossword on George Orwell’s ‘Animal Farm’ provides an enjoyable but academic activity for pupils to test their knowledge of the novella.
It always works as a great starter or plenary task. Ideal for KS3 or KS4.
Bundle
Animal Farm: Complete Lessons
This bundle includes lessons for all 10 chapters of George Orwell’s ‘Animal Farm’ as well as a detailed introduction to the novella’s social and historical context.
Lessons analyse the novella’s key characters, themes, and ideas, while offering close scrutiny of Orwell’s language. Close attention is paid to the novella’s function as an allegory of the Russian Revolution and subsequent rule of Stalin over the Soviet Union.
Questions, discussion points, and tasks are included for students throughout. Extract-based questions are also featured, as well as creative tasks.
This bundle also includes a crossword on ‘Animal Farm’, to be completed as an engaging revision/starter/homework task, and a ‘Seven Commandments Tracker’ for students to analyse when and how each commandment is broken as the novella progresses.
These lessons are ideal for KS3 or GCSE students (ages 12-16).
PowerPoints saved as PDFs.
Buyers of this bundle save 65% of the resources’ combined total price.