This resource booklet contains a wide range of age-appropriate, engaging, and meaningful comprehension activities for use throughout the reading of Michael Morpurgo’s ‘Private Peaceful.’ 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: World War One’ - 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.’ - ‘Morpurgo’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.’ - ‘Horrible Hanley’ - 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).

These creative writing structure strips are designed to help children with formulating creative writing pieces based on 10 different Greek Myths. They include content to include in each paragraph, questions to consider, and key language techniques. They are tried and tested in the classroom - they are loved by teachers and students, and have helped to enable some incredible compositions! Included are structure strips for aiding students’ creative writing about: -Daedalus and Icarus -Echo and Narcissus -Hades and Persephone -Hercules’ Labours -Hermes and Apollo -Odysseus and Cyclops -Pandora’s Box -Perseus and Medusa -Theseus and the Minotaur -The template to create your own structure strips! These structure strips were initially designed for KS2 children, however (perhaps with a tweak here and there) they could be used for lower KS3 or upper KS1. Provided in both PDF (to prevent formatting issues between computers) and Word (to allow for easy editing). Each A4 page contains 4 structure strips. Hope that they prove useful for you too - Enjoy!

This interesting and highly-stimulating lesson enables students to gain a clear understanding of key information regarding the historical and cultural context of Ancient Greece. They also learn to logically organise the key information that they gather, and make clear links between Greek myths and their newly-gained understanding of context. This lesson enables them to construct a solid foundation of contextual understanding for future deeper learning of Greek myths. 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: - Read and interpret key information regarding Ancient Greek gods, geography, culture, and landmarks; - Share their understanding through engagement in a jigsaw model task; -Order key events in Ancient Greek History through the creation of a dated timeline; - Link their understanding of historical and cultural context to an independently-researched Greek Myth; -Peer assess each other’s learning attempts. This resource pack includes: - A visually engaging whole-lesson PowerPoint presentation; - Key information sheets on Ancient Greek gods, geography, culture, and landmarks; - Ancient Greece Timeline Events Cards (and answer sheet for teachers); - 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. Note: The final two tasks work best with access to ICT/internet resources.

This detailed and visually-appealing resource offers a complete reference point for students learning or revising John Keats’ poem 'Bright Star.’ It contains comprehensive sections on: Context; Line-by-Line Analysis; Poetic Devices/ Language Devices; Themes; Form/Structure; Poems for Comparison; Links to Wider Reading. 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).

These resources offer an original and efficient way to approaching the spelling expectations of the 2014 National Curriculum. They contain over 30 slides of spelling rules, 5-minute stand-alone activities, and application tasks to apply spelling patterns to more extended writing opportunities. This lower KS2 (year 3-4) pack provides comprehensive and varied tasks for approaching spelling rules, such as: - The prefixes un-, mis- and dis-; - The prefixes in-, im-, il- and ir-; - The suffixes -ion and -ian; - The suffix -ssion; - The /eɪ/ sound spelt ey, ei, or eigh; - Spellings of 'borrowed' words such as ch making a /k/ sound (from Greek) and -que and -gue endings (from French); - Common homophones; - Common suffix rules; - Apostrophes for possession - both singular and plural; - The year 3/4 appendix words. All images used are licensed for commercial use, and are cited on the final slide of the presentation.

This 16-page resource booklet contains a wide range of challenging and engaging comprehension activities for use throughout the reading of John Donne’s sonnet 'Death, Be Not Proud.’ They are perfect for aiding the progress of students learning poetry either in KS3 and KS4 in preparation for poetry/unseen poetry at GCSE, as the tasks draw on English Literature assessment objectives - suitable for all examining bodies - it is clearly highlighted within each task regarding which assessment strands the task is designed to demonstrate. The booklet is provided in both Word (to allow for easy editing) and PDF (to ensure for consistency of formatting between computers). Activities within the booklet include (amongst many others): ‘Analysing Context’ - helping students to ‘Show understanding of the relationships between texts and the contexts in which they were written.’ ‘Analysing Subject Matter, Language and Structure’ - to help students to ‘Analyse the language, form and structure used by a writer to create meanings and effects, using relevant subject terminology where appropriate.’ ‘Diary Entry’ - to help students to ‘Use a range of vocabulary and sentence structures for clarity, purpose and effect, with accurate spelling and punctuation. Make an informed personal response, recognising that other responses to a text are possible and evaluating these.’ ‘The Speaker’ - to help students to ‘Read, understand and respond to texts. Students should be able to: maintain a critical style and develop an informed personal response use textual references, including quotations, to support and illustrate interpretations.’

This 16-page resource booklet contains a wide range of challenging and engaging comprehension activities for use throughout the reading of Robert Frost’s poem 'Fire and Ice.’ They are perfect for aiding the progress of students learning poetry either in KS3 and KS4 in preparation for poetry/unseen poetry at GCSE, as the tasks draw on English Literature assessment objectives - suitable for all examining bodies - it is clearly highlighted within each task regarding which assessment strands the task is designed to demonstrate. The booklet is provided in both Word (to allow for easy editing) and PDF (to ensure for consistency of formatting between computers). Activities within the booklet include (amongst many others): ‘Analysing Context’ - helping students to ‘Show understanding of the relationships between texts and the contexts in which they were written.’ ‘Analysing Subject Matter, Language and Structure’ - to help students to ‘Analyse the language, form and structure used by a writer to create meanings and effects, using relevant subject terminology where appropriate.’ ‘Diary Entry’ - to help students to ‘Use a range of vocabulary and sentence structures for clarity, purpose and effect, with accurate spelling and punctuation. Make an informed personal response, recognising that other responses to a text are possible and evaluating these.’ ‘The Speaker’ - to help students to ‘Read, understand and respond to texts. Students should be able to: maintain a critical style and develop an informed personal response use textual references, including quotations, to support and illustrate interpretations.’

This resource booklet contains a wide range of age-appropriate and engaging comprehension activities for use throughout the reading of T.H. White’s 'The Sword in the 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 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 Wart’ - 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;’ ‘White’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;’ ‘Merlin’s and Uther Pendragon’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 ‘The Sword in the 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 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 detailed and visually-appealing resource offers a complete reference point for students learning or revising William Wordsworth’s relationships poem 'A Complaint.’ It contains comprehensive sections on: Context; Line-by-Line Analysis; Poetic Devices/ Language Devices; Themes; Form/Structure; Poems for Comparison; Links to Wider Reading. 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 lesson enables students to gain a detailed insight into how the social and historical context of post-apartheid South Africa influences J.M. Coetzee’s Disgrace. In particular, students learn about how power and patriarchy, two key themes in the novel, are heavily informed by real-life features of South African society. They demonstrate strong communication skills in making 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: Defining ‘patriarchy’ and understanding the key features of patriarchal society; Reading and comprehending a key news article outlining the key features of ‘macho’ South African society; Linking their understanding of context to the key elements of the text; Considering how the nature of patriarchal society affects different people in society. Included is: Whole lesson PowerPoint - colourful and comprehensive; Guardina Newspaper Article (freely available online) Power and Patriarchy worksheet; Teacher guidance/ lesson plan. There are also opportunities for group learning, peer assessment, and whole class discussion. These resources were originally taught to A Level students, but with subtle adaptations they have also been used with younger (GCSE) students. 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 clear, detailed and well-informed interpretations of the character of Ruth in ‘Never Let Me Go.’ In particular, students develop their understanding of how the character is introduced and developed, drawing on a varied range of textual evidence from across the novel, before demonstrating their understanding of how the character through writing a letter from her viewpoint. The lesson follows a step-by-step learning journey, in which children learn through: Reading an extract detailing Ruth’s introduction in the novel and answering comprehension questions about the initial portrayal of her character; Finding quotations in order to back up ideas about how her character is developed over the course of the novel; Understanding how Ruth reflects Ishiguro’s key meanings and ideas; Using their deep understanding of Ruth’s character to write a letter from her perspective; Peer assessing each others’ learning attempts. Included is: Whole lesson PowerPoint - colourful and comprehensive; Quote Detectives Worksheet; Selected extract (from chapter 5); 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 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 lesson enables students to make clear, detailed and well-informed interpretations of the theme of life and death in ‘Never Let Me Go.’ In particular, students develop their understanding of how this theme is introduced and developed, drawing on a varied range of textual evidence from across the novel, before demonstrating their understanding of how the theme is used to get across Ishiguro’s key ideas. The lesson follows a step-by-step learning journey, in which children learn through: Reading an extract detailing the introduction to the theme of life and death in the novel, and answering comprehension questions to demonstrate understanding; Tracking and analysing the development of the theme of life and death throughout the novel, through a interesting timeline task; Understanding how the theme of life and death is used to portray Ishiguro’s key meanings and ideas; Using their deep understanding of the theme of life and death to answer an exam-style question; Peer assessing each other’s learning attempts. Included is: Whole lesson PowerPoint - colourful and comprehensive; Novel TImeline Template; Selected extract (from chapter 7); Essay Template 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 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 lesson enables students to make clear, detailed and well-informed interpretations of Tommy’s characterisation in ‘Never Let Me Go.’ In particular, students develop their understanding of how his character is introduced and developed, drawing on a varied range of textual evidence from across the novel, before demonstrating their understanding of how the character reflects Ishiguro’s intentions. The lesson follows a step-by-step learning journey, in which children learn through: Reading an extract detailing Tommy’s introduction in the novel and answering comprehension questions about the initial portrayal of his character; Reading around quotations in order to track how Tommy’s characterisation is developed over the course of the novel; Understanding how Tommy reflects Ishiguro’s key meanings and ideas; Using their deep understanding of Tommy’s character to write a diary entry from his viewpoint; Peer assessing each other’s learning attempts. Included is: Whole lesson PowerPoint - colourful and comprehensive; Quote Interpretation worksheet; Selected extract (from chapter 1); Diary writing succcess criteria; 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 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 interesting and engaging lesson enables students to gain a detailed understanding of the masquerade ball scene (Romeo and Juliet’s first meeting) in William Shakespeare’s romantic tragedy ‘Romeo and Juliet.’ Students learn to make sustained and detailed inferences and interpretations in relation to the language and structures utilised by Shakespeare. The lesson also guides them through a close analysis of the figurative language used by the lovers in their opening dialogue. The lesson utilises a range of tasks, that require students to be attentive and interactive learners. It follows this learning journey: - Establishing the events that lead up to the Masquerade Ball; - Reading and interpreting the prologue and Act I Scene V, interpreting and inferring the key meanings; - Understanding the complications of Romeo and Juliet’s feelings for one another; - Analysing Shakespeare’s use of language and structure throughout Romeo and Juliet’s opening dialogue; - Peer/self evaluating the learning in the lesson. Included in this resource pack are: - A well-presented, thorough, and informative, whole-lesson PowerPoint presentation; - Resources for the reading and interpreting activity - full scene transcript with space for notes; - A template to help scaffold the main task, complete with P.E.E instructions; - A challenging and thought-provoking worksheet, and an answer sheet for the teacher. All images in this resource are licensed for commercial use, and are cited on the final slide of the lesson 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 ‘Romeo and Juliet.’ Round 1. The characters in Romeo and Juliet Round 2. Quotations from the play Round 3. Settings, themes, and objects Round 4. Who appears in Act 1 Scene 1? The nature of this game ensures that the resource can challenge students of all levels.

This engaging and informative lesson enables students to develop a detailed understanding of the dramatic devices used by Shakespeare throughout The Tempest. In particular, students define a wide range of dramatic devices, before identifying and analysing their use in Act 3 Scene 3 of The Tempest. The lesson follows a step-by-step learning journey, in which students learn through: Defining each of the main dramatic devices; Reading and comprehending Act 3 Scene 3 of the play, identifying and analysing the dramatic devices; Applying this understanding to a range of ‘Bloom’s Taxonomy’ related learning activities; Creating their own play-script scene, using the range of dramatic devices appropriately and effectively; Self-assessing their learning throughout the lesson; Included is: Whole lesson PowerPoint - colourful and comprehensive; Dramatic Devices Cards; Act 3 Scene 3 Extract (freely available online); Dramatic Devices Bloom’s Taxonomy Activities Worksheet; Comprehensive lesson plan. Resources are provided in PDF (to maintain formatting) and Word (so that they are easily editable - they can be found in the zipfile) 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 interesting lesson enables students to make clear and developed interpretations of the characters of Mrs Johnstone and Mrs Lyons in Willy Russell’s Blood Brothers. In particular, students infer and interpret key information about the characters from their introductions into the play, before tracking how their characters develop through close analysis of key quotations. The lesson utilises a range of tasks, that require students to be both independent and collaborative learners. It follows this learning journey: Considering the meaning of the key term ‘stereotype’ and how Mrs Johnstone and Mrs Lyons represent stereotypes of social groups; Engaging with the opening to the text and interpreting how Mrs Johnstone and Mrs Lyons are presented; Tracking how the characters are developed throughout the play, through engagement with key quotations; Answering an essay-style question about the introduction and development of the characters; Self-evaluating their learning in the lesson. Included in this resource pack are: A well-presented, thorough, and informative, whole-lesson PowerPoint presentation; Appropriate extracts from the play; A worksheet with key quotations to enable students to track the development of characters; 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.