This resource booklet contains a wide range of age-appropriate, engaging, and meaningful comprehension activities for use throughout the reading of Anthony Horowitz's ' 'Stormbreaker.' 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: - 'Links to the Setting of the United Kingdom' - 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.' - 'Horowitz's Description' - to enable students to demonstrate that they can: 'Know how language, including figurative language, vocabulary choice, grammar, text structure and organisational features, present meaning.' - 'Herod Sayle' and 'Jack Starbright' - 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 over 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 resource booklet contains a wide range of age-appropriate, engaging, and meaningful comprehension activities for use throughout the reading of Suzanne Collins' 'The Hunger Games.' 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: - 'Links to the Historical Myth of Theseus and the Minotaur' - 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.' - 'Collins' Description' - to enable students to demonstrate that they can: 'Know how language, including figurative language, vocabulary choice, grammar, text structure and organisational features, present meaning.' - 'President Snow' and 'Peeta Mellark' - 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 over 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 and informative lesson enables students to make detailed and precise interpretations of the language used by Charles Dickens in describing Miss Havisham in Great Expectations. In particular, students analyse the interesting vocabulary choices, similes, metaphors, and other language devices employed to depict Miss Havisham’s decayed appearance and surroundings, before utilising the techniques in a similar manner through their own vivid descriptions. The lesson follows a step-by-step learning journey, in which children learn through: - Defining and exemplifying each of the descriptive language devices; - Reading extracts from ‘Great Expectations’ in which Miss Havisham is described, identifying the descriptive devices used; - Precisely and in detail, analysing how Dickens uses each of the descriptive language devices for effect; - Creating their own imaginative and appropriate descriptions of mysterious characters, using a wide range of descriptive language devices; - Peer assessing each other’s learning attempts. Included is: - Whole lesson PowerPoint - colourful and comprehensive; - Extracts from Great Expectations; - Cards for card-sorting activity; - Analysis template with success criteria for creating well-structured responses; - Blank character profile template; - Model example character profile template; - Writing to describe helpsheet; - Comprehensive lesson plan. All documents are attached as Word and PDF in case formatting differs on your computer. 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.

This engaging and informative lesson enables students to make sustained and developed links between Dickens’ Great Expectations and its social and historical context. In particular, students learn about the contrasts between the lives of the rich and poor in Victorian society, crime and the justice system, and the implications of an underdeveloped healthcare system. They then link this understanding to what they read in the opening of the novel. 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, crime and the justice system in the 19th Century; - Reading extracts from the opening of ‘Great Expectations’ 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 - Opening of Great Expectations; - 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. All documents are attached as Word and PDF in case formatting differs on your computer. 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.

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 ‘Great Expectations.’ Round 1. The characters in Great Expectations Round 2. Quotations from the text Round 3. Settings, Ideas, and Objects Round 4. Themes in Great Expectations 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 resource booklet contains a wide range of age-appropriate, engaging, and meaningful comprehension activities for use throughout the reading of Charles Dickens’ ‘Great Expectations.’ 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: 19th Century Britain’ - 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;’ - ‘Dickens’ Description’ - to aid students with ‘Analysing a writer’s choice of vocabulary, form, grammatical and structural features, and evaluating their effectiveness and impact;’ - ‘Abel Magwitch’ and ‘Miss Havisham’ - 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 interesting and engaging lesson enables students to understand the key functions and purposes of auxiliary and modal verbs. Furthermore, students learn how to use auxiliary and modal verbs accurately, and apply these to their own writing. Students follow a clear and logical learning journey, in which they: -Define and identify the key functions and purposes of auxiliary and modal verbs; -Understand why these verbs are needed in sentences, and how they can alter sentence form and meaning; -Identify each of the different types of auxiliary and modal verbs, including how they are affected by tense and context; -Read and analyse the use of modal verbs in an example text, determining how the use of these verbs affects meaning; -Apply their understanding of modal/ auxiliary verbs to their own writing attempts; -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); - A useful helpsheet (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.

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 'A Christmas Carol.' Round 1. The characters in A Christmas Carol Round 2. Quotations from the text Round 3. Themes, Ideas, and Objects Round 4. Places where the ghosts take Scrooge 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 resource booklet contains a wide range of age-appropriate, engaging, and meaningful comprehension activities for use throughout the reading of J.K Rowling's 'Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone.' 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: Magic' - 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.' - 'J.K Rowling's Description of Harry' - to enable students to demonstrate that they can: 'Know how language, including figurative language, vocabulary choice, grammar, text structure and organisational features, present meaning.' - 'Severus Snape' and 'Ron Weasley' - 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 24 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 resource booklet contains a wide range of age-appropriate, engaging, and meaningful comprehension activities for use throughout the reading of J.K. Rowling's 'Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone.' Teachers have found them particularly useful in comprehension or guided reading sessions. They are perfect for aiding the progress of children towards meeting the upper 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 Dumbledore' - 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;' - 'Rowling'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;' - 'Severus Snape!' and 'Ron Weasley!' - 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 Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone' - 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 22 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 resource booklet contains a wide range of age-appropriate, engaging, and meaningful comprehension activities for use throughout the reading of Jill Murphy's 'The Worst Witch.' Teachers have found them particularly useful in comprehension or guided reading sessions. They are perfect for aiding the progress of children towards meeting the upper 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 Mildred' - 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;' - 'Murphy'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;' - 'Mrs Hardbroom!' - 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 The Worst Witch' - 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 22 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 resource booklet contains a wide range of age-appropriate, engaging, and meaningful comprehension activities for use throughout the reading of Lewis Carroll's 'Alice's Adventures in Wonderland.' Teachers have found them particularly useful in comprehension or guided reading sessions. They are perfect for aiding the progress of children towards meeting the upper 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 Alice' - 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;' - 'Carroll'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 Cheshire Cat!' - 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 Alice's Adventures in Wonderland' - 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 22 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 understand the key structural, language and content features of Haiku poems, and to utilise these features accurately and imaginatively in their own Haikus. Students follow a clear and logical learning journey, in which they: -Define and identify the key structural and language features of Haikus; -Understand the origins and purposes of this form of poetry; -Read Haikus, answering questions about the content and use of language and structure; -Compare and contrast Haikus, evaluating their effectiveness; -Plan and create their own Haikus, using a guiding helpsheet and the knowledge/skills that they have accrued over the lesson; -Peer/self-assess their learning attempts. Resources are eye-catching and purposeful, including: -Visually engaging whole-lesson PowerPoint; -An interesting, imaginative, and well-presented worksheet (in Word and PDF); - A useful Haiku helpsheet (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 engaging and informative lesson enables students to to make precise interpretations regarding the characters of Charlie and Tommo in Private Peaceful. In particular, students analyse how the relationship between the two characters is introduced and then developed throughout the novel. They also make key inferences about the similarities and differences between the brothers. The lesson follows a step-by-step learning journey, in which children learn through: - Comparing and contrasting the characteristics of the two brothers; - Comprehending how the brothers’ relationship is introduced by Morpugo in the opening chapters; - Tracking and analysing how their relationship develops over the course of the novel; - Creating character profiles for both brothers, using a (provided) template and the information that they have gathered over the course of the lesson; - Peer assessing each other’s learning attempts. Included is: - Whole lesson PowerPoint - colourful and comprehensive; - Character Profile Templates (Word and PDF); - Relationship Development Graph Template (Word and PDF); - Extracts from Private Peaceful; - Comprehensive lesson plan. There are also opportunities for group learning, speaking and listening, peer assessment, and whole class discussion. I originally used these resources with year 7 and 8 classes, however colleagues have used them for between years 3 and 9 with minimal adaptations. Please note that students will need internet or library access to complete the research introduction task. 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 understand the language features used by Michael Morpurgo to depict the horrors of war in Private Peaceful. In particular, students analyse the effectiveness of his similes, metaphors and personification (amongst other devices) before creating their own descriptive device-filled writing! The lesson follows a step-by-step learning journey, in which children learn through: - Defining and exemplifying range of different descriptive techniques; - Identifying the descriptive language techniques in use in an extract from Private Peaceful (the section in which Tommo and his comrades are gassed); - Analysing the effectiveness of Morpurgo’s descriptive language, considering the effect on the reader; - Creating their own descriptive passages, using each of the descriptive language devices effectively; - Peer assessing each other’s learning attempts; Included is: - Whole lesson PowerPoint - colourful and comprehensive; - Cards for the card-sorting activity; - Descriptive language essay template; - Extract from Private Peaceful; - Writing to describe helpsheet; - Comprehensive lesson plan. There are also opportunities for group learning, speaking and listening, peer assessment, and whole class discussion. I originally used these resources with year 7 and 8 classes, however colleagues have used them for between years 3 and 9 with minimal adaptations. All images are licensed for commercial use, and image rights are listed on the last page of the presentation.

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, interesting tasks, 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 ‘Private Peaceful.’ Round 1. The characters in Private Peaceful Round 2. Quotations from the text Round 3. Settings and Objects Round 4. Themes in Private Peaceful 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 and informative lesson enables students to understand the key features of the historical context of World War I, in order to gain a clearer of understanding of Michael Morpurgo’s Private Peaceful. In particular, students learn about the horrific ordeal faced by young soldiers in WWI, and then relate their understanding of historical context to different plot features throughout the text. The lesson follows a step-by-step learning journey, in which children learn through: - Researching and understanding key information about World War I, including enlistment, life in the trenches, and accusations of cowardice; - Linking the key features of context to sections of the text, including descriptions of Tommo’s trench and Charlie’s arrest; - Reading selected extracts from the text, in order to link ideas regarding context and text together; - Creating their own propaganda posters, detailing what war was really like for young soldiers; - Peer assessing each other’s learning attempts; Included is: - Whole lesson PowerPoint - colourful and comprehensive; - Research Template - Links to WWI worksheet (and answer sheet for teachers); - Comprehensive lesson plan. PDFs are included, and Word versions are in the zip file. There are also opportunities for group learning, speaking and listening, peer assessment, and whole class discussion. I originally used these resources with year 7 and 8 classes, however colleagues have used them for between years 3 and 9 with minimal adaptations. Please note that students will need internet or library access to complete the research introduction task. All images are licensed for commercial use, and image rights are listed on the last page of the presentation.