This is a lesson introducing students to the idea of the narrative hook, in other words how to write a killer first line or so to 'hook' the reader in. I put this lesson together for a year 9 scheme of work which referred to the AQA English Language marking criteria (A05+6) but the success criteria can be adapted beyond a level 3 so that it's more demanding for a year 10/11 class. The lesson starts with asking students what a narrative hook is and then to brainstorm in pairs different approaches that can be used to draw readers into a story. There are 3 'taster' first lines to show on the board where students can note questions that they have to illustrate the point. Then there is a handout of quotes which they can match to hooks in trios/groups/pairs and discuss. These can be lined up on their desks or pasted straight in. Of course, the 'answers' are provided on a separate teacher copy and the powerpoint itself (a few debatable ones are thrown in the exercise to encourage students to justify choices). Students are then given 2 scenarios to write about (gothic/horror genre based) demonstrating the use of a chosen narrative hook. A chance to self/peer assess follows to end the lesson where there is a success criteria box to refer to.

Attached are some resources for students to use in groups in order to make a magazine. This would be perfect for year 7 and 8 since from this age students need to be encouraged to read a wide range of non fiction texts in preparation for GCSE and magazines are a good place to start. I would suggest that you provide piles of different types of magazines for them inspect and scrutinize such as ones based on music, fashion, teen girl, cars, football/sport and gaming. Within their groups, students can assign roles and each student can plan and design their own page. Since I can't share images of front covers or pages from real magazines, I have left boxes on some of these planning sheets blank so that students can stick their own in to demonstrate their decision making. I have made these resources into PDFs so that the text boxes don't shift. The resources attached include: - Magazine Planning Sheet (a sheet to record their group's initial decisions) - Front Cover Analysis Sheets (provides space to stick examples and thinking prompts) - A suggested questionnaire for students to distribute or an exemplar which students can build on - Design a Contents Page - a planning resource - Design a Front Cover - a planning resource - Design a Letters or Problem Page - a planning resource - Design a Product Review - a planning resource - Page Templates - boxed sections to place text and images - Planning an Advert - a planning resource - Spellings - suggested spelling lists which can be adapted - Write a Feature Article - a planning resource.

This is an English lesson on the poem ‘Prayer Before Birth’ by Louis Macneice.The speaker of the poem is an unborn child asking for assistance in a cruel world which it will soon be born into. It discusses the themes of cruelty, injustice and freedom which can be linked to other poems taught within a unit. The lesson begins by asking students to decide what advice they would give to a younger sibling about life, based on their own life experiences. This can then open an interesting class discussion. Students are then introduced to the ‘WPSLOMP’ method of analysing poetry which they can then apply in pairs before colour coding quotes which are examples of positive and negative imagery as well as some more challenging features such as simile, metaphor and repetition. The ideas they pull together for this can then be explored as a class and the slides can be annotated by the teacher on the board and there are also some quotes colour coded as the answers. Three slides follow this which have pulled individual quotes from the first three stanzas which the class can brainstorm one at a time. The lesson ends with a chance for students to write independent essay paragraphs with an adaptable success criteria but this can be adapted for your course. Here I have used SQUID (Statement, Quote, Infer, Device/Develop which is similar to PEA). There is then an opportunity to self or peer assess according to the key skills. As with all my lessons, there are ‘Talk for Writing’ activities and Challenge tasks for more able students. Attached is: -A powerpoint with the lesson clearly outlined An alternative word search style starter using images to allow student to guess the meanings of harder words -The poem with a word bank on it (2 can be printed to an A4 page or 1 to a page) -Link to online videos (see ‘Notes’ under slides). -An extension task: write a poem giving advice to another about life, using this poem as inspiration. All images are from Openclipart.org.

In this lesson students are asked to consider how Shakespeare exposes Macbeth’s loss of control. The lesson starts by asking students to identify where in the play so far the theme of the supernatural has been explored. Students are then asked to read the scene where Macbeth alone sees Banquo's ghost and reacts wildly in front of his guests (a link is provided to Patrick Stewart's performance). In groups they are then asked to consider key questions about how his behaviour builds tension and how it reflects his loss of control. The lesson ends with an opportunity to respond independently by writing an essay paragraph. All lessons in this series include: - Links to online videos (see 'notes' under powerpoint slides) - Starter tasks which introduce the main idea of the lesson - Differentiated tasks - Opportunities for pair and group talk within activities ('Talk for Writing') - Handouts of scenes or a selection of quotes from scenes studied - Alternating opportunities for self and peer assessment - Essay writing prompts to allow students to write about the scene - References to the AQA English Literature mark scheme for Paper 1, particularly to the demands for attaining a grade 5 - what is considered a 'good pass' for the qualification. It's suggested that you download the whole series to appreciate the full learning journey.

In this lesson students are asked to explore how Roald Dahl describes his childhood in chapter 1 of his autobiography, Boy. It would ideal to use as part of a KS3 unit. The lesson starts by asking students to read the preface and respond to it in pairs. There is a group task for students to do after reading the chapter where they are given 4 questions on the board and a challenge task. All questions are linked to the GCSE reading skills AO1, 2, 3 where they have to think about language, structure and the readers’ reactions. There are slides with the text on for teachers to annotate on a smart board as well as a map to show the area in Wales in which Dahl grew up. The plenary asks students to discuss anecdotes about members of their own family which links to the text. This lesson, as my other Literature lessons do, includes: Starter tasks which introduce the main idea of the lesson Handouts of extracts/text Differentiated tasks Opportunities for pair and group talk within activities (‘Talk for Writing’)

An oldie but a goodie! This is still an interesting poem to explore with classes who you feel would benefit from studying the themes of conflict, prejudice and racism. This could be a lesson within a unit on conflict poetry in year 9 or may be used as a chance to explore an 'unseen' poetry which is not in your GCSE class's anthology of Literature exam poems. The poem, if you don't know it, describes a South African's feelings whilst walking through a familiar community that was devastated by the effects of the Apartheid in South Africa. The lesson begins by asking students to define the concept of segregation and then teases out any facts they may already know about the Apartheid regime. There are images and some facts for them to consider. They are then introduced to the 'WPSLOMP' method of analysing poetry as well as being asked to colour code devices the poet uses for effect (metaphor, simile, peaceful and violent imagery). The lesson ends with a chance for students to write independent essay paragraphs with a generic success criteria which can be adapted for your course. There are 3 options on how to approach essay writing: 'layers of meaning', PEA, or the 'reading ladder' which follow the same idea. Attached is; - A blank copy of the poem with a word box for tricky words - A handout of Apartheid images - Essay PEA styles sentence starters writing frames for weaker students - A worksheet with a range of tasks on it along with the poem (good cover work?) - A storyboard template - A powerpoint with the lesson clearly outlined

This lesson asks students to explore the character of Macbeth across the play by commenting on the significance of quotes (A01,2, 3). It refers to the success criteria of the AQA English Literature GCSE but can be adapted for your course. The lesson starts by asking students to summarize him as a character using adjectives and then to narrow down his appearances into 5 'top' moments in order to remind them of the wider picture. Slides reminding them of these follow as well as a list of links to online videos of some of these key scenes. Since there's not always time in lessons, perhaps they can be given to students to watch as homework. Attached is a 'quote explosion' sheet of quotes that he says or that others say about him. Students can stick these across a page in their exercise book and annotate what they show about him as a character and pick out any imagery (symbolism, metaphor, antithesis, apostrophe etc). It could also be blown up to A3 size (great for displays!) A copy of this is on a slide in the Powerpoint for the teacher / students to also annotate on the board when the class gathers their ideas together. Next there is a list of 'challenge/extension' tasks which explore Macbeth as a tragic hero. A list of qualities expected in tragic protagonists is listed and students can discuss how Shakespeare used this formula to enrich the plot. The lesson ends with a chance for students to write independent essay paragraphs with AQA's exam success criteria but this can be adapted for your course. There are 3 options on how to approach essay writing: 'layers of meaning', PEA, or the 'reading ladder' which follow the same idea. There is then an opportunity to self or peer assess according to the key skills. As with all my lessons, there are 'Talk for Writing' activities and Challenge tasks for more able students. Please see my other lessons on Macbeth which explain his state of mind in more detail.

This is perfect as an end of term treat! This is a powerpoint containing 42 challenging questions about the play as a whole as well as the answers to them which are to be found at the end of the presentation. I have asked the class to get into groups/houses and then asked them to write their answers on a piece of paper. They can swap their answers with another group and at the end, the answers are revealed question by question so you can see which areas they struggled with. This is ideal for a higher set because there are some sneakier questions but this can easily be adapted. It should take up the best part of an hour's lesson.

In this lesson students are asked to explore how a writer can write in vivid detail and create tension. It would ideal to use as part of a KS3 unit on autobiography. The lesson starts by asking students to write down what they know about Jessica Ennis. Other suggested starter tasks include listing synonyms for the word ‘victorious’. There is a slide with explains who Ennis is and why she is famous as well as a link to an online video narrated by her. There’s also a list of synonyms that they may wish to use later in the lesson. There is a group task for students to do after reading the extract from her autobiography where they are given 4 questions on the board and a challenge task. All questions are linked to the GCSE reading skills AO1, 2, 3 where they have to think about language, structure and the readers’ reactions. Students are then asked to colour code where in the article Jessica uses particular devices in order to create tension (emotive words, feelings, senses, metaphors). The extract has been pasted on some slides with the devices already shaded in for you so it’s quick and easy to go through with the class. There is some space around the text if you want to annotate it. The plenary asks students to write a paragraph describing their own victorious sporting achievement in an interesting way, using the key descriptive skills. There is a slide to set up a peer assessment. This lesson, as my other lessons do, includes: Starter tasks which introduce the main idea of the lesson Handouts of extracts/text Differentiated tasks Opportunities for pair and group talk within activities (‘Talk for Writing’)

These resources could be stretched across at least 3 lessons if you chose. Alternatively, a class might be split into 3 groups to discuss the suggested themes and then present to the class within one session. Attached is a powerpoint and a quote bank for the following themes: Power, Fate and Destiny and Good versus Evil in the play Macbeth. The quotes are taken from across the play and some themes share some quotes. In some cases the speaker is named but not always, so that it challenges students to remember them. I would suggest that the quote banks are copied onto A3 paper or at least as A4 sheets pasted across 2 pages in an exercise book so that students have the space to annotate them and link them. Students could colour code their ideas and identify the act, scene and speaker of the quotes as a form of revision for the Literature exam. These are also a good basis for a classroom display. The lesson ends with a chance for students to write essay paragraphs independently using provided sentence starters which come in 3 formats: a 'layers of meaning' approach, PEA or the 'reading ladder'. An opportunity to self assess essay writing follows this. The success criteria provided relates to the AQA GCSE standards for a grade 5 (a good pass) but can be adapted to suit your course.

...also explains anapestic tetrameter! This is a lesson on a poem which describes the Assyrian invasion of Jerusalem and how God intervened to protect the holy land - Byron based this on a biblical account of a real battle. It features in the Edexcel anthology of Literature exam poems. It explores the themes of violence and conflict which can be linked to other poems taught within a unit. It's particularly useful to compare to 'The Charge of the Light Brigade' (see a lesson on this in my shop). The lesson begins by asking students to predict the story behind the poem based on some images. There is then a slide which introduces them to the story of King Sennacherib's attempt to invade Jerusalem and then another which introduces Lord Byron as a poet. Students are then introduced to the 'WPSLOMP' method of analysing poetry which they can then apply in pairs before colour coding quotes which are examples of metaphors, simile and violent imagery, as well as some more challenging devices. The ideas they pull together for this can then be explored as a class and the slides can be annotated by the teacher on the board and there are also some quotes colour coded as the answers. Students are then asked to think about structure and there is a slide which explains the poet's use of anapestic tetrameter, rhyming couplets and end stopping. I have also added a slide which offers historical facts about the Temple of Baal/Bel in Palmyra which was recently destroyed by ISIS. Although it was built a long time after the historical battle and there would have been many temples dedicated to Baal at time, it symbolised the King's culture and its recent destruction mirrors the violence in this poem and people's attitudes to ancient gods. The lesson ends with a chance for students to write independent essay paragraphs with Edexcel's exam success criteria but this can be adapted for your course. There are 3 options on how to approach essay writing: 'layers of meaning', PEA, or the 'reading ladder' which follow the same idea. There is then an opportunity to self or peer assess according to the key skills. As with all my lessons, there are 'Talk for Writing' activities and Challenge tasks for more able students. Attached is; - A powerpoint with the lesson clearly outlined - A copy of the poem with a word bank - A handout of glossary style word banks which students can stick into their anthologies - A PEA style writing frame for weaker students - Links to online videos/readings (see 'Notes' under slides).

In this lesson students are asked to explain how Shakespeare builds tension on stage when we hear of Duncan’s murder. Initially the concept of tension is explored, then students are asked to identify where it is built in pairs. The questions posed in the central group work task centre around Shakespeare's stage craft and how news of his death is revealed to the crowd. Key dramatic devices such as elision and stichomythia are introduced and there is an opportunity for students to respond independently by writing an essay paragraph. All lessons in this series include: - Links to online videos (see 'notes' under Powerpoint slides) - Starter tasks which introduce the main idea of the lesson - Differentiated tasks - Opportunities for pair and group talk within activities ('Talk for Writing') - Handouts of scenes or a selection of quotes from scenes studied - Alternating opportunities for self and peer assessment - Essay writing prompts to allow students to write about the scene - References to the AQA English Literature mark scheme for Paper 1, particularly to the demands for attaining a grade 5 - what is considered a 'good pass' for the qualification. It's suggested that you download the whole series to appreciate the full learning journey.

In this lesson students are asked to explore how Roald Dahl describes his childhood in chapter 3 of his autobiography, Boy. It would ideal to use as part of a KS3 unit. The lesson starts by asking students to discuss their favourite sweets with a partner and they are then to read the chapter. There is a handout attached which is a template of a sweet jar which they can stick in their books and label with the quotes they find about Dahl’s favourite sweets mentioned in the text. The plenary asks students to write a descriptive paragraph about their favourite sweets using key skills, using Dahl’s writing as inspiration. The key skills which are mention fit into the ‘MASSIVEOP’ acrostic. There is a handout for this also attached. This lesson, as my other Literature lessons do, includes: Starter tasks which introduce the main idea of the lesson Differentiated tasks (challenge tasks in red) Opportunities for pair and group talk within activities (‘Talk for Writing’)

This is a lesson on the poem ‘Hurricane Hits England’ by Grace Nichols The lesson starts by asking students to think about the impact of hurricanes and there’s a link to a video recital of the poem. Students are then introduced to the ‘WPSLOMP’ method of analysing poetry which they can then apply in pairs before colour coding any imagery and key poetic devices. The ideas they pull together for this can then be explored as a class and there are slides which reveal the devices for them to then write about. The lesson ends with a chance for students to write independent essay paragraphs with a generic success criteria. There is then an opportunity to self or peer assess according to the key skills. As with all my lessons, there are ‘Talk for Writing’ activities and Challenge tasks for more able students. Attached is; A powerpoint with the lesson clearly outlined A copy of the poem with a word box.

In this lesson students are asked to analyse and explain how a writer constructs an effective story opening (AO2 + 4). I put this lesson together for a year 9 scheme of work which referred to the AQA English Language marking criteria but the success criteria can be adapted beyond a level 3 so that it's more demanding for a year 10/11 class. Students are asked to consider what a narrator and a narrative voice is and then how many ways a story can be told. There are a series of slides which explain 1st, 2nd and 3rd person narrative including any complicated options within those. Attached is an thriller / horror style extract they can then stick in and in pairs they can decide which narrative it uses. The next step is to consider how the writer interests the reader generally and students are asked to colour code the following devices: emotive vocab, similes, metaphors and effective punctuation. As an extension there are question boxes around the extract asking students further questions which in some cases refer to structure and how the story is developed. The answers for this activity are revealed in the next few slides when students can feedback their ideas to the rest of the class. The lesson ends with a chance for students to write independent essay paragraphs with the AQA English Language GCSE success criteria which can be adapted for your course. There are 3 options on how to approach essay writing: 'layers of meaning', PEA, or the 'reading ladder' which follow the same idea. There is then an opportunity to self or peer assess according to the key skills.

In this lesson students are asked to explore how Golding uses patterns of imagery within 'Lord of the Flies' in order to explore the sinister nature of the boys and the island itself. The lesson starts by asking students to consider how the boys would feel after arriving at the island and the challenge task asks them to consider why Golding chose the island as the setting at all. As a warm up, students are then asked to consider 2 quotes from the first chapter in pairs and list any techniques used and the effect of those comments. A slide follows with suggested ideas to discuss. Student can then in groups consider the list of quotes from across the rest of the novel attached.They can stick them in their books, annotate and highlight them and then the teacher can annotate them on the board where the class can feedback their ideas. Students are encouraged to think about the following questions: - What is Golding’s message to the reader? - What is he trying to say to us about what is happening to them? - The novel was published in 1954. How might these quotes link to people’s attitudes towards the world after WWII? - Some people think that the island is like a character itself. To what extent do you agree? Students are then asked to write essay paragraphs independently using provided sentence starters which come in 3 formats: a 'layers of meaning' approach, PEA or the 'reading ladder'. An opportunity to self or peer assess their essay writing follows this. To follow this, there is an exemplar essay about the island which students can peer assess in order to think again about the targets that they can set themselves. They can annotate this essay within their books and compare it to their own efforts. I've also added it to the powerpoint for class feedback annotations. The success criteria provided refers to the Edexcel English Literature course but can be adapted to suit your course. This lesson, as my other Literature lessons do, includes: - Links to online videos (see 'notes' under Powerpoint slides) - Starter tasks which introduce the main idea of the lesson - Handouts of quotes / extracts from the novel - Differentiated tasks - Opportunities for pair and group talk within activities ('Talk for Writing') - Alternating opportunities for self and peer assessment - Essay writing prompts to allow students to write about the text

In this lesson students are asked to explain how Shakespeare builds tension before, during and after the discovery of King Duncan's body. The lesson starts by asking students to identify clues in the 'Porter's scene' that something evil is occurring in the castle. Students are then asked to explore how the different characters react to the news of Duncan's death (a link is provided to Patrick Stewart's performance). The lesson ends with an opportunity to respond independently by writing an essay paragraph. All lessons in this series include: - Links to online videos (see 'notes' under Powerpoint slides) - Starter tasks which introduce the main idea of the lesson - Differentiated tasks - Opportunities for pair and group talk within activities ('Talk for Writing') - Handouts of scenes or a selection of quotes from scenes studied - Alternating opportunities for self and peer assessment - Essay writing prompts to allow students to write about the scene - References to the AQA English Literature mark scheme for Paper 1, particularly to the demands for attaining a grade 5 - what is considered a 'good pass' for the qualification. It's suggested that you download the whole series to appreciate the full learning journey.

This lesson asks students to explore the character of Lady Macbeth across the play by commenting on the significance of quotes (A01,2, 3). It refers to the success criteria of the AQA English Literature GCSE but can be adapted for your course. The lesson starts by asking students to summarise her as a character using adjectives and then to respond to images portraying her actions in key scenes. They are then to narrow down her appearances into 5 'top' moments in order to remind them of the wider picture. Slides reminding them of these follow. Attached is a 'quote explosion' sheet of quotes that she says or that others say about her. Students can stick these across a page in their exercise book and annotate what they show about her as a character and pick out any imagery (symbolism, metaphor, antithesis, apostrophe etc). It could also be blown up to A3 size (great for displays!) A copy of this is on a slide in the Powerpoint for the teacher / students to also annotate on the board when the class gathers their ideas together. The lesson ends with a chance for students to write independent essay paragraphs with AQA's exam success criteria but this can be adapted for your course. There are 3 options on how to approach essay writing: 'layers of meaning', PEA, or the 'reading ladder' which follow the same idea. There is then an opportunity to self or peer assess according to the key skills. As with all my lessons, there are 'Talk for Writing' activities and Challenge tasks for more able students. Please see my other lessons on Lady Macbeth which explain her role within key scenes in more detail - one of which has an exemplar essay which students can annotate to improve their performance in the exam.

Use of the Apostrophe - a grid sheet

Online activities to stretch English Skills