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 clear, detailed and visually-appealing resource offers a complete reference point for children learning about Elizabeth I as a part of their history study of ‘Significant Individuals.’ It contains comprehensive sections entitled: Overview; Times in Her Life; Important Vocabulary; Elizabeth I Timeline; Answers to the Important Questions; Top Ten Facts. 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.

In this engaging lesson, children are introduced to the Iron Age. In particular, they learn how: -the world changed from the bronze age to the iron age; -people retrieved and used iron; -the iron age came to different civilisations at different times; -the discovery of iron, alongside other discoveries, changed daily life. The learning is guided by a clear and colourful PowerPoint presentation, which guides students through the following step-by-step journey: -Knowledge recall - gauging what children know/ can remember about the Stone Age and Bronze Age, in order to secure a foundation for their learning; -Discovering how iron was retrieved, and how it was first used at different times by different civilisations; -Being ‘Iron Age Detectives’ and exploring a range of sources (provided) to find out important information about daily life in the Iron Age; -Designing an Iron Age village based on everything that they have learnt about Iron Age life; -Self-reflecting on the extent to which they feel they have met the learning objective. Included is the comprehensive PowerPoint presentation (17 slides), the four historical sources and the research template (provided in both Word and PDF) In the past, I have used this lesson with children in lower KS2 (years 3 and 4) - the key learning is aligned with curriculum expectations for history. All images are licensed for commercial use.

This detailed and visually-appealing resource offers a complete reference point for students learning or revising knowledge of Women’s Suffrage. It contains comprehensive sections on: -Overview; -Major Events - The 1866 Petition, The Formation of the Suffragists and the Suffragettes, the Cat and Mouse Act and 1918 and 1928 Representation of the People Acts; -Timeline of Major Events; -Key People - Millicent Fawcett, Emmeline Pankhurst and Emily Davison; -Top Women’s Suffrage Facts. Key subject vocabulary is also provided for easy reference. The resource is designed to be printed onto either A4 or A3, and is provided as both a PDF and a Word version (so that you can edit if you want to). It can be used for a wide range of year groups, but was originally designed to support study at KS3.

This resource booklet contains a wide range of age-appropriate, engaging, and meaningful comprehension activities for use throughout the reading of John Steinbeck’s ‘Of Mice and Men.’ Teachers have found them particularly useful in exam revision, comprehension tasks, or guided reading sessions. They are perfect for aiding the progress of students towards meeting the KS4 expectations within the new National Curriculum framework - this makes the tasks suitable for all examining bodies. Students 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 students gain a deep understanding of the text. Activities within the booklet include: - ‘Context: The Great Depression’ - to aid students with ‘Drawing on knowledge of the purpose, audience and context of the writing, including its social, historical and cultural context and the literary tradition to which it belongs, to inform evaluation;’ - ‘Steinbeck’s Description’ - to aid students with ‘Analysing a writer’s choice of vocabulary, form, grammatical and structural features, and evaluating their effectiveness and impact;’ - ‘Curley’s Wife’ - to aid students with ‘Seeking evidence in the text to support a point of view, including justifying inferences with evidence;’ - ‘Editing the Text’ - to aid students with ‘Making an informed personal response, recognising that other responses to a text are possible and evaluating these.’ Plus many, many more activities (the booklet is around 30 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 students to make sustained and developed links between Dickens’ A Christmas Carol and its social and historical context. In particular, students learn about the harsh treatment of the poor in Victorian society, the selfishness and cruelty of those in power, and attitudes towards sin, religion, and the supernatural. The lesson explores how Dickens explores these ideas through the allegorical nature of the text. The lesson follows a step-by-step learning journey, in which children learn through: - Understanding key information about Charles Dickens, his life, and influences; - Researching and sharing key contextual understanding about the rich, poor, healthcare, and religion in the 19th Century; - Reading Stave 1 of ‘A Christmas Carol’ and identifying evidence of contextual influences; - Analysing how Dickens presents his views about the cruelty of 19th Century life through the opening of the text; - Peer assessing each other’s learning attempts. Included is: - Whole lesson PowerPoint - colourful and comprehensive; - Extract - Chapter 1 of A Christmas Carol; - Template for researching 19th Century life (and completed answer sheet for teachers); - 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 mixed ability year 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.

Template for you to create your own Pointless games - whatever subject or topic you are teaching! Based on the popular game show 'Pointless', this resource is perfect for use as a starter activity, plenary, or revision tool. Editable, so that you can change to any other topic or change the questions/answers. 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 built-in rounds of questions to build students' understanding in your topics, including: - Identifying terms from definitions - Anagrams of key terms round - Recalling the highest level knowledge. The nature of the game ensures that this resource can challenge students of all levels. NOTE: You can buy this resource alone, or in a bundle of 8 Pointless games, for only £1 more!

In this engaging lesson, children develop an understanding of Anglo-Saxons daily life, in particular: farming, jobs and village life, settlements and buildings and food. The learning is guided by a clear and colourful PowerPoint presentation, which guides students through the following step-by-step journey: -Knowledge recall - gauging what children already know about the Anglo-Saxon era (answers are provided); -Understanding that the scale of time between the Anglo-Saxon period and the modern day, helping to contextualise the how comparatively simple and harsh life was in the time of the Anglo-Saxons; -Interpreting and analysing four sources (provided) in order to gain a deeper understanding of each of the key areas of Anglo-Saxon daily life; -Completing their own extended research to find out more about one of the key areas of daily life; -Composing a creative piece in which they put themselves in the shoes of an Anglo-Saxon villager; -Comparing Anglo-Saxon daily life with other eras; -Self-reflecting on the extent to which they feel they have met the learning objective. Included is the comprehensive PowerPoint presentation (20 slides), the four sources for the source analysis activity, and the template upon which to record their findings. In the past, I have used this lesson with children in upper KS2 (years 5 and 6) - the key learning is aligned with curriculum expectations for history. All images are licensed for commercial use.

This clear, detailed and visually-appealing resource offers a complete reference point for students learning or revising knowledge relating to the The Holocaust. It contains comprehensive sections on: Holocaust overview; Stages of the Holocaust; Key People; Holocaust Timeline; Important Holocaust Events; Life in the Concentration Camps. 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). It is most suitable for students in upper KS2 and KS3.

This detailed and visually-appealing resource offers a complete reference point for students learning or revising knowledge of World War II. It is ideal for GCSE or upper KS3 students, and contains comprehensive sections on: Major Events - dates, images, descriptions, and key facts; Key People - Adolf Hitler, Benito Mussolini, Winston Churchill, Franklin Roosevelt, Joseph Stalin, Anne Frank; Main Participating Countries - Flags, Year joined and death toll; Timeline of Major Events; 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).

This wide-ranging and comprehensive KS2 history quiz contains 60 questions. It was originally designed for year 5/6 classes as an end of term activity, but may also be suitable for knowledge recall or retrieval practice activities throughout KS2. Questions are split into 6 rounds of 10 questions each. To add variety and promote engagement, there are a range of regular, finish the sentence, and picture questions. Answers are given at the end of each round. The rounds included are: 1.) Stone Age 2.) Ancient Greece 3.) The Romans 4.) The Vikings 5.) Victorians 6.) World War II A team answer sheet is included, and is provided in both Word and PDF.

This whole class reading session aims to develop children’s comprehension skills through a reading of the opening chapter of Emma Carroll’s ‘Secrets of a Sun King.’ The resource pack includes the extract and all of the activities for the session, which the class are guided through via a comprehensive PowerPoint presentation. The reading is followed by a series of activities aiming to develop children’s retrieval, explanation, inference, prediction and summarising skills. It also contains a vocabulary check immediately after the extract is read to clarify any unfamiliar/ difficult language. The tasks are comprised of quick-check questions, solo thinking, pair/ group discussions and deeper thinking activities. The session is best suited for children in Year 3 and 4, but it could feasibly be used with slightly younger and older year groups. The session is also suitable for home/ remote learning.