This powerpoint guides students through the AQA GCSE English Language paper question by question (in that there are example questions and some guidance). There’s too much here for an hour’s lesson - could be extended over two or even three lessons. The text is a heavily abridged segment from “Casino Royale” by Ian Fleming in which Bond faces his enemy, Le Chiffre at the casino.

This is a simple and straightforward activity using the opening of Bram Stoker’s “Dracula’s Guest”. There are four, short tasks dealing with vocabulary, information retrieval, inference and analysis. Useful for homework or as home learning. Could be used to structure a guided reading activity. Could be used for flipped learning prior to analysing the next (more gothic) segment of the story in class. Useful for students at KS3 or to embed key sklls and build confidence at KS4.

Created as a homework task as part of a unit on gothic horror, this would also work as a cover activity. It uses a short extract from “The Mysteries of Udolpho” by Ann Radcliffe and there are 8 questions, most requiring a more extended answer, focusing on analysis. Useful for honing the reading skills that will be tested at GCSE and for exploring a less common text from the genre of gothic horror.

Created for a year 7 class as a homework to go alongside our class reader of 'Love That Dog', this is a comprehension (close reading and response) activity based on the segment from "The Call of the Wild" in which Buck fights Spitz to become top dog. There are 14 questions in total, focusing on vocabulary, inference and the effects of language. This would be a good cover activity or the questions could be used to structure a guided reading session.

Planned for my year 9 class as part of a unit of work on Journeys, introducing the skills and tasks of English GCSE, I have also used this with a year 10 group as we begin to tackle the unseen poetry question for English Literature. It uses Shakespeare’s sonnet 50 and is an opportunity to explore the sonnet form as well as the poet’s use of language and structural features.

Created for a higher-ability year 7 class as part of a unit of work on "Treasure Island" and pirates, this lesson plan takes the pupils through "The Ballad of John Silver" by John Masefield. Using images and drama to embed the idea of writing having a mood, the lesson culminates with the pupils selecting one of the verses from the poem and re-writing it in script form (model given on one of the slides), creating the same mood as the original poem.

The aim of this lesson is to explore the methods Shakespeare uses to present the character of Egeus. The lesson begins with a brief prose overview of the start of of the play and then the lesson moves to focus on Egeus’s speech to Theseus. The lesson uses questioning and asks the pupils to annotate their copy of the speech as well as zooming right in on a specific quotation and exploding it (again, through prompt questioning). There is a homework - a 10-question multiple-choice quiz intended to consolidate some of the learning from the lesson.

A straightforward lesson exploring Sassoon’s poem, “The Kiss” with questioning used to discuss the effect of the personification of bullet and bayonet. There are 8 close reading and response questions on slide 15. These could be used to structure a discussion or set for independent work. The lesson culminates with a task asking the students to draw inferences about the nature of the speaker in the poem, writing in role as a senior officer. Planned for year 9 but could be suitable to explore unseen poetry at KS4.

This is a simple and straightforward activity based on a letter of 4th February 1917 written by Wilfred Owen to his mother, Susan. The letter has been slightly abridged. There are 12 multiple-choice questions (answers provided). The first question is basic information retrieval. Subsequent questions ask pupils to identify methods and draw inferences. Some questions can act as springboards for deeper questioning. This could be set for a homework or used as a pre-teaching activity to identify gaps in pupil knowledge and understanding.

This is a simple and straightforward powerpoint created for cover but also useful for homework - or could be taught as a lesson or used to structure guided reading and writing. There are three slides. The first focuses on writing to describe, the second is a simple comprehension activity and the third is an opportunity for more extended creative writing. The intention was for the ppt to be displayed, reducing the need for photocopying, but the slides are easily editable if handouts are required.

Originally planned for KS3 students as part of a reading unit on the natural world, this could be used with much less confident readers at KS4, perhaps as part of a catch-up or intervention series. The text used is from “Nature Near London” (1905 so public domain) by Richard Jefferies. Alongside the short excerpt are some questions which can be used to diagnose gaps in reading skills and comprehension.

This is a multiple-choice quiz with 19 questions (answers provided) based on a description of setting from “David Copperfield”. This could be used for revision of reading skills at KS4 or could be part of a unit on Dickens at KS3. Alternatively, the questions could be used to structure a guided reading session or, as flipped learning, to identify gaps in pupils’ knowledge and understanding so that subsequent teaching can be more sharply focused.

This is a short comprehension activity using an excerpt from Kipling’s “The Mark of the Beast” in which Fleete turns into a werewolf. There are 7 questions. Suggested answers are provided. This could be used as a cover activity or set for homework to support a unit on gothic horror. Alternatively, the questions could be used to structure a guided reading session.

This is a revision powerpoint, more didactic than interactive, best used in year 11 for revision.

This is a straightforward comprehension activity using an excerpt from James Baldwin’s “Old Greek Stories” (public domain). There are ten questions. This could be used as a homework task, a reading assessment or for cover. Alternatively, the questions could be used to structure a guided reading session. Suggested answers are provided. Originally created for a year 7 class but might also be useful at KS2.

This is a very straightforward powerpoint using John Drinkwater’s public domain poem, “Moonlit Apples”. The powerpoint takes the students through a range of questions about the effect of methods used in the poem and concludes with an exam-style question.

This is a walkthrough of Tennyson’s “The Eagle”, asking the questions that candidates will need to ask of themselves during the exam. The powerpoint asks them to focus on various methods including anthropomorphism, rhyme, rhythm and contrast. The final slide is an exam-style question. As the poem is so short, it could be useful for building confidence when tackling an unseen poetry question.

This uses an extract from Arthur Machen’s story, written in 1914, (it is in the public domain) in which a group of English soldiers are facing a mighty German advance. There are 12 questions. The questions cover the reading skills of information retrieval, inference and explaining the effect of the writer’s methods. This task could be used for cover or for homework. Alternatively, the questions could be used to structure a guided reading activity. Suggested answers are provided - which means that this task could also be set for a student working from home who would like to do some self-assessment.

I made this for my year 11 class at their request, to revise “Ozymandias” prior to their February mock exam in English Lit. Please feel free to use/amend for your own classes. The intention is that the ppt slides provide prompts for probing questioning and whole-class discussion of the poem. Just to be clear - this wasn’t used for first teaching of the poem - my students had a (in many cases, very hazy) knowledge and understanding before they went through this lesson. I hope very much that you will find this resource useful and will be really grateful if you’ll take a minute to leave a review. Thank you.

GCSE resource for first teaching of William Blake's "London", part of the 'Power and Conflict' cluster.