This engaging and interesting lesson enables students to demonstrate a clear and developed understanding of the historical context of Willy Russell’s Blood Brothers. In particular, students learn about the key social and historical events that took place in the UK in the 1970s and 80s (particularly around the play’s setting of Liverpool) and apply this understanding to characters and events in the play. The lesson utilises a range of tasks, that require students to be both independent and collaborative learners. It follows this learning journey: Considering and discussing ideas of class and class systems, both historically and in the present day; Sequencing and understanding the key features of the social and historical context of the UK/Liverpool in the 1970s and 80s; Using independent research to enhance their understanding of deeper contextual meanings; Linking the key events of the play to social and historical context, analysing Russell’s key messages; Taking part in a fun, interactive quiz in order to gauge their learning; Self-evaluating their learning in the lesson. Included in this resource pack are: A well-presented, thorough, and informative, whole-lesson PowerPoint presentation; Detailed cards for the sorting/timeline activity, presenting key contextual events; A ‘Researching Context’ template, to help guide students’ research; A template to help scaffold the main task, complete with quotes from the text; A comprehensive teacher guidance form/lesson plan to assist delivery. Resources are provided in both Word (for easy editing)and PDF (to prevent formatting issues between computers). All images in this resource are licensed for commercial use, and are cited on the final slide of the lesson presentation. Please note - the independent research activity (development task) in this resource pack requires students to have access to the internet.

Based on the popular game show ‘Pointless,’ this resource is perfect for use as a whole lesson resource, enrichment option, or revision tool. Editable, so that you can change to any other topic or change questions. (I’ve also added a blank template so that you can make your own games from scratch). Containing almost 30 slides of sound clips, engaging visuals, and suitably challenging questions, this resource is effective at both promoting engagement and enhancing learning. There are several full rounds of questions to build or revisit knowledge of characters, plot, and themes in ‘Blood Brothers.’ Round 1. The characters in Blood Brothers Round 2. Quotations from the text Round 3. Settings and Objects Round 4. Themes in Blood Brothers The nature of this game ensures that the resource can challenge students of all levels. A blank template has also been added, so that you can create your own games!

This engaging, comprehensive lesson aims to improve students’ understanding of Thomas Hardy’s poem ‘The Man He Killed’ with particular focus upon the language, structure, and subject matter employed within the poem. By the end of the lesson, students demonstrate their knowledge of the text analytically, through assured, appropriate, and sustained interpretations. The lesson follows a step-by-step learning journey, in which children learn through: Considering the emotional impact of war on the individuas involvedl; Securing contextual understanding of The Boer Wars and Thomas Hardy’s life and beliefs; Reading and interpreting the poem, using a provided line-by-line analysis, and interactive group activities; Developing their understanding through inferring and analysing key language and structural choices; Analysing how the futility of war is conveyed through Hardy’s language and structure choices; Self/ Peer assessing each other’s learning attempts. Included is: Whole lesson PowerPoint - colourful and substantial; (including hyperlinks to informative and videos) Copy of poem (freely available online); Deeper thinking worksheet; Analysis template with success criteria for creating well-structured responses; Research worksheet; Comprehensive lesson plan. All resources are provided as word documents (for easy editing) and PDF documents (to ensure consistency of formatting between computers). There are also opportunities for group learning, peer assessment, and whole class discussion. This was originally taught to middle-ability year 10 and 11 groups, but can easily be differentiated for groups of different ages and abilities. All images are licensed for commercial use, and image rights are listed on the last page of the presentation.

This resource booklet contains a wide range of age-appropriate, engaging, and meaningful comprehension activities for use throughout the reading of Anne Frank's 'Diary of a Young Girl.' Teachers have found them particularly useful in comprehension or guided reading sessions. They are perfect for aiding the progress of children towards meeting the KS3 expectations within the new National Curriculum framework. Children have found these resources extremely engaging, and for teachers there is explicit information within each task regarding which comprehension strands the task is designed to demonstrate. They also relate to key extracts, characters, and themes from the story, ensuring that children gain a deep understanding of the text. Activities within the booklet include: - 'Context: The Holocaust' - to enable students to demonstrate that they can: 'Know the purpose, audience and context of the writing and drawing on this knowledge to support comprehension.' - 'Anne's Description - The Annex' - to enable students to demonstrate that they can: 'Know how language, including figurative language, vocabulary choice, grammar, text structure and organisational features, present meaning.' - 'Otto Frank and 'Peter van Daan' - to enable students to demonstrate that they can: 'Study setting, plot, and characterisation, and the effects of these.' - 'Vocabulary Inspector' - to enable students to demonstrate that they can: 'Learn new vocabulary, relating it explicitly to known vocabulary and understanding it with the help of context and dictionaries.' Plus many, many more activities (the booklet is 21 pages in length!) I've also added it as a PDF in case the formatting differs on your computer. All images are licensed for commercial use, and are cited on a separate document (included).

This engaging and informative lesson enables students to make sustained and insightful interpretations of the way in which the character of Utterson is presented and developed throughout ‘Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde.’ In particular, students analyse how the Utterson’s calm and rational demeanour is tested through the strange and tragic events in the novella. The lesson follows a step-by-step learning journey, in which children learn through: - Establishing how the key characteristics of Mr Utterson; - Reading and comprehending key extracts describing Mr Utterson in the text; - Analysing how Utterson’s character is developed through events in the text; - Empathising with Utterson’s character and establishing his viewpoints; - Peer assessing each other’s learning attempts. Included is: - Whole lesson PowerPoint - colourful and comprehensive; - Selected extracts from the text describing Utterson; - Utterson Emotion Graph for the development task; - Analysis template with success criteria for creating well-structured responses; - Comprehensive lesson plan. There are also opportunities for group learning, peer assessment, and whole class discussion. These resources were originally taught to GCSE students, but with subtle adaptations they have also been used with KS3 and A Level Students. All images are licensed for commercial use, and image rights are listed on the last page of the presentation.

These colourful, comprehensive, and well-structured revision cards have been creatively designed for students securing their understanding of Arthur Miller’s play 'A View from the Bridge.’ Each card is visually-appealing and highly-detailed, covering aspects of each feature including a full summary, cited quotations from the play, definitions/ examples, and a consideration of audience reactions. They are tried and tested, with teachers incorporating them in revision games, using them as essay writing aids, or utilising them as home revision aids. They are provided as both PDFs (to prevent formatting issues between computers) and as Word documents (for easy editing). The revision cards included in this pack are: Characters - Eddie, Beatrice, Catherine, Rodolpho, Marco, and Alfieri. Context - Arthur Miller, Italian Immigration, Omerta; Devices - Dramatic Irony, Stage Directions, Dramatic Tension; Scenes - Alfieri’s Prologue, Chair-Lifting Scene, The Tragic Ending; Themes - Community Law, Irrationality, Masculinity. For any questions or comments, please contact TandLGuru@yahoo.co.uk - Many thanks!

This engaging and informative lesson enables students to make clear, detailed and well-informed interpretations of Act IV Scene I of The Merchant of Venice. In particular, students develop their understanding of the key events/ implications of the scene, identify and analyse the language devices used by Shakespeare within key quotations from the scene, and consider the effect of these choices on Shakespearean audiences. The lesson follows a step-by-step learning journey, in which children learn through: Engage with an artist’s impression of the courtroom scene, honing their skills of inference and deduction; Reading and comprehending the main events and meanings in the courtroom scene; Identifying and analysing Shakespeare’s use of language through examples of Portia and Shylock lines in the scene; Considering Shakespeare’s intentions and the Shakespearean audiences reactions to the scene; Self assessing their learning through the lesson; Included is: Whole lesson PowerPoint - colourful and comprehensive; Language devices cards for the card-sorting activity; Key quotations cards; Copy of Act IV Scene I; Shakespeare’s Intentions/ Audience Reactions template; Comprehensive lesson plan. Resources are provided in PDF (to maintain formatting), Word (so that they are easily editable) and also in zipfiles. The lesson contains opportunities for group learning, speaking and listening, peer assessment, and whole class discussion. I originally used these resources with year 10 and 11 classes, however colleagues have used them for between year 9 and year 13 with some adaptations. All images are licensed for commercial use, and image rights are listed on the last page of the presentation.

This engaging and informative enables students to make precise and detailed interpretations of H.G. Wells’ language choices in describing the Martians in ‘The War of the Worlds.’ Students identify and analyse the effect of Wells’ writing, using their understanding of various language devices, before applying these concepts to their own descriptive writing attempts. The lesson follows a step-by-step learning journey, in which children learn through: Defining and exemplifying the descriptive writing techniques, through a fun and interactive activity; Identifying the language techniques that Wells uses in his description of the Martians;’ Analysing the effectiveness of Wells’ descriptive writing; Creating their own descriptions of imagined aliens, using Wells’ model example and the techniques that they have gathered over the course of the lesson; Peer assessing each other’s learning attempts, using a clear success criteria; Included is: Whole lesson PowerPoint - colourful and comprehensive; Card sorting cards Selected extracts printed onto one sheet (from Book 1, Chapter 4 and Book 2, Chapter 2). There are also opportunities for group learning, speaking and listening, peer assessment, and whole class discussion. I originally used these resources with year 10 and 11 classes, however colleagues have used them for between year 9 and year 13 with some adaptations. This lesson is suitable for home/ remote learning. All images are licensed for commercial use.

This engaging and detailed lesson aims to improve students’ understanding of the social and historical context of Mary Shelley’s gothic horror novel: Frankenstein. The lesson places a particular focus upon the developments in health, science, and technology at the time the text was written and set, the locations visited by the author, and the life of Mary Shelley. By the end of the lesson, students demonstrate their ability to link their understanding of context to specific sections of the text. The lesson follows a step-by-step learning journey, in which children learn through: - Considering how life has changed between the end of the 18th Century and the present day; - Researching key information about health, scientific understanding, and major events in the late 1700s; - Understanding the features of locations in the novel, and interpreting what they may symbolise; - Developing their understanding of the author: Mary Shelley, and considering the key events in her life that influenced her writing of Frankenstein; - Linking knowledge of time, place, and author, and relating these to specific areas of the text; - Peer assessing each other’s learning attempts. Included is: - Whole lesson PowerPoint - colourful and substantial; (including an animated Frankenstein’s monster to guide them through the lesson, and links to helpful websites); - Comparison between 1700s and the present day worksheet (and a teacher answer sheet); - Card sorting activity based on locations in the novel; - Mary Shelley worksheet (and a teacher answer sheet); - Analysis template with success criteria for creating well-structured responses; - Comprehensive lesson plan. There are also opportunities for group learning, peer assessment, and whole class discussion. This was originally taught to middle-ability year 9/10 groups, but can easily be differentiated for groups of different ages and abilities. All images are licensed for commercial use, and image rights are listed on the last page of the presentation. NOTE: One of the tasks requires access to researching materials, e.g. internet or library access.

This interesting and engaging lesson enables students to understand, identify and use past perfect and present perfect tense in writing. Students follow a clear and logical learning journey, in which they: -Define the terms past perfect tense and present perfect tense; -Understand what these tenses show, and identify them in writing; -Switch sentences from simple past tense to past perfect and present perfect tense; -Apply their understanding of past perfect tense and present perfect tense to a fun ‘police statement’ writing attempt; -Peer/self-assess their learning attempts. All resources are provided in both office (Word and PowerPoint) to allow for easy editing, and PDF, in case formatting differs on your computer. Resources are eye-catching and purposeful, including: -Visually engaging whole-lesson PowerPoint; -An interesting, imaginative, and well-presented worksheet (in Word and PDF); -Two interesting and purposeful helpsheets (also in Word and PDF); -Step-by-step lesson plan. All images are licensed for commercial use, and are cited on the final page of the slide.

This clear, detailed and visually-appealing resource offers a complete reference point for lower KS2 children when writing adventure stories. The organiser is also perfect for teachers, parents and English subject leaders - aiding their planning and supporting of children’s knowledge development for this writing text type. The organiser has a particular focus on the content, language and structural features required to write effective adventure stories at lower KS2. It contains distinct sections covering: -Overview: Adventure Narratives; -Content: Settings, Characters, and Quests; -Language: Descriptive Devices, Dialogue, Conjunctions, Punctuation Checklist, Sentence Openers and Word Mat; -Structure - Titles, Structure Mountains and other tips; -Key Vocabulary The content is fully aligned with the age-related expectations for lower KS2 children in writing. The resource is designed to be printed onto A3, and is provided as both a PDF and a Word version (so that you can edit if you want to). All images used are licensed for commercial use and are cited on a separate document (included).

This resource booklet contains a wide range of age-appropriate and engaging comprehension activities for use throughout the reading of David Walliams’ 'Demon Dentist.’ Teachers have found them particularly useful in comprehension or guided reading sessions. They are perfect for aiding the progress of children towards meeting the KS2 expectations within the new National Curriculum framework. Children love learning from these resources, whilst they are also of great use to teachers, as there is explicit information within each task regarding which comprehension strands the task is designed to demonstrate. They also relate to key extracts, characters, and themes from the story, ensuring that children gain a deep understanding of the text. Activities within the booklet include: ‘An Interview with Alfie’ - to enable students to demonstrate that they can: ‘Understand what is read by drawing on information from more than one paragraph, identifying key details that support the main ideas, and using quotations for illustration;’ ‘Walliams’ Description’ - to enable students to demonstrate that they can: ‘Explain meanings of words that they know and ask the meaning of new words. Link the meaning of new words to words that they already know;’ ‘Miss Root’s and Raj’s Character Profiles!’ - to enable students to demonstrate that they can: ‘Understand what is read by drawing on information from more than one paragraph, identifying key details that support the main ideas, and using quotations for illustration;’ 'Figurative Language in ‘Demon Dentist’ - to enable students to demonstrate that they can: ‘Discuss and evaluate how authors use language, including figurative language, to create an impact on the reader.’ Plus many, many more activities (the booklet is 21 pages in length!) I’ve also added it as a PDF in case the formatting differs on your computer. All images are licensed for commercial use, and are cited on a separate document (included).

This interesting and engaging lesson enables students to build their understanding Arthur Birling, one of the chief protagonists in J.B. Priestley’s ‘An Inspector Calls.’ In particular, students learn about his characteristics, his attitudes and opinions towards the world around him and other people, and also his relevance to Priestley’s social and historical context. The lesson follows a clear, logical, bite-size learning journey, which guides students towards differentiated learning objectives. Over the course of this journey, they become able to: - Recall and understand the key features of Birling's character profile; - Link Birling to the social and historical context of the play; - Understand how Birling's character is significant in terms of Priestley's key message; - Read and understand the section of the play in which Birling is interviewed by the inspector; - Analyse key quotations by and about Birling in the text; - Read and understand the opening of the play; - Create a diary-entry piece in which they consider Birling's morals and sense of responsibility for the death of Eva Smith; -Peer/self-assess learning attempts. This resource pack includes: - A visually engaging whole-lesson PowerPoint presentation; - Images of Birling to be annotated for the starter task; - A clear and interesting worksheet for the introductory task; - An extract from Act 1 of the play for students to read and interpret; - P.E.E template for students to complete their character analysis; - A detailed lesson plan, complete with what the teacher and students should aim to achieve at each stage of the lesson. All images are licensed for commercial use, and are cited on the final slide of the PowerPoint.

This engaging and interesting lesson enables students to develop the knowledge and skills needed to analyse the structural features of previously unseen poems. In particular, they define and understand each of the key structural devices, practice identifying them in poems and analyse their effectiveness upon the reader. The lesson utilises a range of tasks, that require students to be both independent and collaborative learners. It follows this learning journey: -Defining and exemplifying each of the structural features through a group card-sorting activity; -Identifying each of the structural features in two poems through an exploratory task; -Understanding the writer’s intentions and the effect on the reader of various structural techniques; -Applying their understanding of the structural features and their effect to a comparison between two related poems; -Peer-evaluating their learning in the lesson. Included in this resource pack are: -A well-presented, thorough, and informative, whole-lesson PowerPoint presentation; -Structural features cards for the card-sorting activity; -‘Analysing Structural Techniques’ worksheet for the development task; -Copies of the poems ‘The Falling Leaves’ by Margaret Postgate Cole and ‘next to of course god america i’ by E.E. Cummings for annotation (both freely available online); -A structure strip, a model example and a success criteria to guide the students throughout their comparative essay attempts; -A comprehensive teacher guidance form/lesson plan to assist delivery. Resources are provided in both Word (for easy editing - find in the zip file)and PDF (to prevent formatting issues between computers). All images in this resource are licensed for commercial use, and are cited on the final slide of the lesson presentation.

This resource booklet contains a wide range of age-appropriate, engaging, and meaningful comprehension activities for use throughout the reading of Roald Dahl's 'The Twits.' Teachers have found them particularly useful in comprehension or guided reading sessions. They are perfect for aiding the progress of children towards meeting the KS1 expectations within the new National Curriculum framework. Children love learning from these resources, whilst they are also of great use to teachers, as there is explicit information within each task regarding which comprehension strands the task is designed to demonstrate. They also relate to key extracts, characters, and themes from the story, ensuring that children gain a deep understanding of the text. Activities within the booklet include: - 'Feed Mr. Twit' - to enable students to demonstrate that they can: 'talk about their favourite words and phrases in the story;' - 'Dahl's Description' - to enable students to demonstrate that they can: 'Explain meanings of words that they know and ask the meaning of new words. Link the meaning of new words to words that they already know;' - 'The Mugglewumps' - to enable students to demonstrate that they can: 'Say what might happen next in a story based on what has happened so far;' - 'Mr. and Mrs. Twit' - to enable students to demonstrate that they can: 'Enjoy reading and discussing the order of events in books and how items of information are related.' Plus many, many more activities (the booklet is around 20 pages in length!) I've also added it as a PDF in case the formatting differs on your computer. All images are licensed for commercial use, and are cited on a separate document (included).

This engaging, comprehensive lesson aims to improve students’ understanding of Jane Weir’s contemporary war poem ‘Poppies’ with particular focus upon the symbolism, language, and structure used within the poem. By the end of the lesson, students demonstrate their knowledge of the text analytically, through assured, appropriate, and sustained interpretations. The lesson follows a step-by-step learning journey, in which children learn through: - Defining what symbols are, and considering some popular examples (including poppies); - Securing contextual understanding of both the use of poppies, and Jane Weir the poet; - Reading and interpreting the poem, using a provided line-by-line analysis, and interactive group activities; - Developing their understanding through inferring and analysing key language and structural choices; - Analysing how the themes of loss and remembrance are conveyed through Weir's use of symbolism; - Peer assessing each other's learning attempts. Included is: - Whole lesson PowerPoint - colourful and substantial; (including hyperlinks to informative and engaging videos) - Copy of poem; - Deeper thinking worksheet (and teacher answer sheet); - Analysis template with success criteria for creating well-structured responses; - Comprehensive lesson plan. There are also opportunities for group learning, peer assessment, and whole class discussion. This was originally taught to middle-ability year 9/10 groups, but can easily be differentiated for groups of different ages and abilities. All images are licensed for commercial use, and image rights are listed on the last page of the presentation.

This engaging and informative lesson enables students to gain a detailed insight into the social and historical context of Jane Austen’s ‘Pride and Prejudice.’ In particular, students learn about love, class, inheritance, and reputation in the Georgian and Regency eras – key themes throughout Austen’s novel. They then make clear and sustained links between the features of context and the text. The lesson follows a step-by-step learning journey, in which students learn through: - Playing a fun and interactive quiz about the life of Jane Austen; - Completing carousel activities in groups to learn about the key features of love, class, inheritance, reputation, and royalty in the Georgian/ Regency eras; - Linking their understanding of context to the key elements of the text; - Analysing how Austen is influenced by key features of 19th Century life in ‘Pride and Prejudice.’ - Peer assessing each other’s learning attempts. Included is: - Whole lesson PowerPoint - colourful and comprehensive; - All resources for the carousel activities, including sheets needed for ‘Love and Courtship Blind Date’, ‘Social Class Detectives’, and ‘Georgian and Regency Royalty.’ - Analysis template with success criteria for creating well-structured responses; - Comprehensive lesson plan. There are also opportunities for group learning, peer assessment, and whole class discussion. These resources were originally taught to GCSE students, but with subtle adaptations they have also been used with both younger and older (up to A Level) students. Please note that one of the introduction activities requires internet access. All images are licensed for commercial use, and image rights are listed on the last page of the presentation.

This detailed and visually-appealing resource offers a complete reference point for students learning or revising Charlotte Bronte’s ‘Jane Eyre.’ It contains comprehensive sections on: Context; Chapter by Chapter Summary (with quotes); Main Characters; Themes; Features of Structure; Bronte’s Literary Devices. Key words and ideas are underlined for easy reference. The resource is designed to be printed onto A3, and is provided as both a PDF and a Word version (so that you can edit if you want to). All images used are licensed for commercial use and are cited on a separate document (included).