An example paper using three articles about reality TV, based closely on the CIE specimen. Works well as a mock exam or practice paper for revision, especially given that there is only one specimen paper so far from CIE.

A lesson focusing on the significance of the porter in Macbeth and Shakespeare’s use of comic relief more generally. Suitable for GCSE or able KS3 group.

Stories of Ourselves A* example essay on The Moving Finger with exam question.

A worksheet to help students see examples of effective openings to exam questions. They can use the mark scheme to annotate and then continue the answers themselves.

Mocked Up exam paper poetry and prose- Songs and Stories of Ourselves 0475

A list of exam style questions designed for Cambridge A Level Paper 5 on Percy Shelley’s poetry, but easily adaptable to other specifications. Two A grade example responses, one on a passage based question and one on an open essay question. Very useful as a resource to unpack success with students.

A collection of help sheets to get students to start writing successful exam responses on the CIE Songs of Ourselves poetry collection. Includes Rising Five, Sonnet 29, The Three Fates and She Dwelt Among Untrodden ways.

A booklet of passages from Of Mice and Men with targeted vocabulary, quotation and analysis questions. Excellent as pre-reading homework to ensure deep understanding of the key moments in the text. Included is also a differentiated version aimed at EAL students with more of a vocabulary focus and extensions for the most able readers. Ideal as GCSE preparation for new challenging specifications.

A simple and versatile collection of quotations to pair and analyse from across the play.

A mocked up exam paper for the new 2020 specification, based on CIE’s specimen. Useful as a mock exam or to work through in class.

Worksheets to aid narrative planning for section B of the exam. Tasks focus students on the characteristics of successful answers by asking them to ‘upgrade’ poor plans and to continue exemplar openings. Works well as a class or as independent homework tasks. Includes poster with key reminders which is a useful revision tool.

A fun activity to encourage students to identify common cliches in their narrative writing. Helpful for exam prep for WJEC and AQA.

A useful step by step to guide students through responses to passage based questions. Key reminders based on examiner reports.

A comprehensive planning sheet and tasks to help KS3 students plan better mystery stories. These lessons focus on the concept of the discovery of a mystery object which somehow reveals a secret. Students begin with physical objects (a shoe, a jewelry box- anything you have) and imagining their histories. After this, they come up with a few ideas of mystery objects and then plan out a short narrative using ‘set up, build up, climax, resolution/cliffhanger’. This is very successful with weaker groups who need clear direction, but also works well for curtailing the ambition of some budding novelists!

Simple, but active spelling strategies. Useful for display or to stick in the front of spelling books.

A fun version of the game Articulate, to encourage revision of key elements of the Gothic genre. Aimed at A Level Literature, but would work well with able Secondary groups too. Print in colour and laminate for best results.

Engaging worksheets using passages from 'Harry Potter' and 'The Hobbit' to explore characterisation and then encourage students to create their own heroes.

An adapted reading paper to meet the requirements of the 2021 specification with mark scheme.

Our co-constructed marking/feedback policy for English. Lots of ideas borrowed from research and great schools (all referenced). A good starting point for developing your own policy or for NQTs to think about good feedback.

A progress tracker for students to complete to keep track of assessment targets and their reported grades to encourage a focus on progress rather than attainment.