In this lesson students are asked to explain how Shakespeare uses language in order to explore Macbeth’s state of mind before he kills Duncan. The lesson starts by asking students why Shakespeare's use of 'apostrophe' is an effective dramatic device and leads to asking how Banquo feels about the evening's atmosphere as he roams Macbeth's battlements. Students are then asked to identify quotes in Macbeth soliloquy (a link is provided to Patrick Stewart's performance) where he feels nervous and confused. 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 peer assess an extract from an essay and set themselves their own target based on their scrutiny of success criteria provided. After this, they are asked to identify and explain how Lady Macbeth uses language to persuade Macbeth to kill Duncan. Attached is a printable grid listing persuasive devices where students can annotate suitable quotes from the text. On these slides are essay prompts where students can then write up their findings, aiming to act on the target they set at the start of the lesson. 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 explain how and why Lady Macbeth has changed within the play so far. The lesson starts by offering students an analogy about Lady Macbeth and asks them to comment on it. Students are then asked to read the scene where she sleep walks and reveals her guilt to others (links to various film and stage slips are attached). In groups students are then asked to make links to what she says unwittingly here and to what she has previously said in the play. 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.

Here I chose to read Act 5 quite quickly with my class and this is how we did it. Feel free to adapt this into 2 or more lessons. In this lesson students are asked to comment on how Macbeth’s attitude to losing the throne highlights how he’s changed as a character. At the start of the lesson,students are presented with a list of qualities expected within a tragic hero and consider how Macbeth is clearly one himself. Students are then asked to read act 5 scene 3 and consider how his attitude towards his position has changed since the start of the play. For the study of scene 5, students are given selected quotes and asked to explore these ideas further, including his use of imagery for effect. There are film clips of his famous 'Tomorrow' soliloquy from both the Patrick Stewart and Fassbender film. To end the lesson students are then asked to consider whether Macbeth was a hateful or sympathetic character and present their ideas on a continuum. 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 is a bundle compiling of a powerpoint which introduces students to basic facts about Shakespeare, a sheet which lists facts about King James I, witchcraft and religious conflict in the 1600s that link to the play. Also there is a copy of act 1, scene 1 and an exit slip which can be used at the end of the lesson to assess students' understanding. 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.

Attached is a powerpoint introducing students the scene where we hear about Macbeth before we meet him. He is successful in defending Scotland and Shakespeare sets him up as the hero of the battlefield. The powerpoint starts by informing students about medieval warfare and then explains the context of the battle which rages at the start of the story. It then offers questions for students to consider in groups and then asks students to identify imagery and comment on its effect. 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.

If you haven't already, it's a good idea to have a bank of postcards which teachers can send out to parents to celebrate their child's progress in lessons or extra curricular activities. They can truly add a personal touch, more so than a text message which teachers are often asked to send. This competition offers all students in your school the opportunity to have a go at designing the postcard which teachers will send home. This bundle includes a powerpoint which can be adapted to use in assembly or in lessons and an A3 poster which can also be adapted to be used in corridors or form rooms. Most schools have a reprographics room or member of admin staff who can scan A4 designs and adapt them using software like Photoshop and cut them for use by teachers. Entries for the competition could be shown as part of a display within your department or in the school library.

Attached are 3 quote banks that are either 1 side of A4 or 2. All quotes are from across the novel. As a form of revision of the novel you could ask students to stick them across a double page in their exercise book and ask them to annotate them explaining what they show about those characters. They focus on Dr Jekyll, Mr Utterson and Mr Hyde only. They also contain word boxes which define any archaic language that would be useful for EAL students particularly. On some of these there are challenging questions which students can consider in groups or pairs.

In this lesson students are asked to connect the themes discussed in the novel as a whole with the background and social history in which is was set. The lesson starts by asking students what the words THEME and CONTEXT mean and then there are some prompts for a pair/class discussion on particular themes which arise in the story line. There are 3 slides with easy to follow facts on: crime, poverty and science within the Victorian period, some of which are easy to relate to moments or characters within the novel. Students are then asked in pairs or groups to read a sheet of 13 quotes from across the novel and connect to them to what they've learned about the novel's context. They can annotate and highlight them and they can then be annotated on the board when the class can feedback their ideas. 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 refers to the AQA English Literature course but can be adapted to suit your course. 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 extracts/quotes from the novel - 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, 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.

...even tackles Dactylic Dimeter! This is an interesting poem which features in both AQA and Edexcel's anthology of Literature exam poems. The poem, if you don't know it, describes the advance made by the Light Brigade during the Battle of Balaclava, part of the Crimean War. It is a conflict poem which explores the themes of glory and tragedy in war which can be linked to other poems taught within a unit. The lesson begins by showing students some images of the Crimean war and asks them to list what they teach them about the battle and the context, thus predicting what the poem could be about. There is then a slide which lists important facts about the battle which are easy to read and discuss as a class. They are then introduced to the 'WPSLOMP' method of analysing poetry which they can then apply in pairs before colour coding quotes which explore the themes of violence and bravery. The ideas they pull together for this can then be pulled together as a class and there are slides which reveal the devices for them to then write about. I have added 2 slides to this presentation which go into depth about structure for more able students - particularly on Dactylic Dimeter which can be hard to explain. There is a clear annotation of a stanza and an explanation of how it works to add the crucial rhythm which this poem is famous for. 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. Attached is; - A powerpoint with the lesson clearly outlined - A handout of glossary style word banks which students can stick into their anthologies - Essay PEA styles sentence starters writing frames for weaker students (these refer to a different essay question to the lesson but can be adapted) Within this powerpoint are also links to online analyses of the poem as well as the BBC Bitesize video.

Attached is a bundle of extracts that have been adapted from the original text which are more suitable for weaker GCSE English Literature classes and/or EAL students. In some cases I have taken out words, replaced them or omitted chunks of text so that they are more manageable, whilst aiming to keep the writer's original intention. In every document there is a simple essay question which students can focus on when reading the extract. I've found them useful to annotate in lessons and then ask students to respond using structured essay paragraphs. All extracts have a word box which defines archaic words. These would be useful for studying for any exam board and the question can be adapted to refer to the rest of the storyline. There are 14 extracts as follows: - How does Stevenson introduce Hyde as a villain?, Ch 1 - How does Stevenson make this scene tense?, Ch 2 (x 2 versions) - How does Stevenson show that Mr Utterson is worried about Hyde? Ch 2 - What type of atmosphere does Stevenson create in this extract? Ch 4 - How does Stevenson make Carew's murder dramatic? Ch 4 - How does Stevenson present Dr Jekyll as an isolated and desperate character? Ch 5 - Incident at the window, Ch 7 -How does Stevenson show Poole's fear of his master? Ch 8 - What do these quotes suggest could have happened to Jekyll? Ch 8 (list of single quotes, not extract) - How does Dr Lanyon feel about Hyde here? Ch 9 - How does Stevenson present the theme of addiction? Ch 9 - How does Jekyll feel about killing Mr Carew? Ch 10 - Jekyll wakes up as Hyde, how does Stevenson make this dramatic? Ch 10 - How does Stevenson make this a dramatic ending to the novel? Ch 10

Even covers Iambic Tetrameter and Trimeter! This poem is featured in some GCSE English Literature syllabuses and explores themes such as loss, jealousy and courtly love which allows it to be useful to compare to other poems or texts. Attached is a bundle of resources: - A copy of the poem with a suggested colour code for students to identify key devices - A copy of the poem with annotations and detailed explanations of the poem's structure - (optional) a grid sheet asing how provided quotes reveal a loss of innocence - A powerpoint presentation of the lesson detailed below. The lesson starts by asking students to consider typical themes in poems about love and gives contextual details about Rossetti for a challenge task aimed at higher ability students. In pairs, students are then asked to read the poem and construct a flow chart of what is described and there is an optional task to match imagery to quotes. There is also a colour activity where students are to identify devices and they are welcome to annotate the effect of these since this is on an A3 page. 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 is very generic for all exam boards/ages and can be adapted to suit your course.

This lesson asks students to analyse what Mr Birling’s dialogue shows about him as a character and consider how the audience is meant to react. The lesson starts by asking students to consider what his attitudes expose about attitudes in 1912 and what he symbolizes as a 'challenge' task. 2 extracts from the play follow this which students can think about in pairs and they can then be annotated on the board by students/the teacher. There is a handout to use with this task attached which has a word box to explain some of his political comments. Also attached is a list of quotes from across the whole play which illustrate a range of ideas about Arthur (either what he says or what others say about him). Students can annotate these in their books or they can be blown up to A3 size to write on. The lesson ends with a chance for students to write independent essay paragraphs with the AQA English Literature 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.

Attached is a lesson which asks students to analyse how Steinbeck introduces Crooks in chapter 4 and interests the reader in him. The lesson starts by asking students to list what they know about the context of 1930's America and black people lives then. The second slide gives some facts about the end of slavery, lynching and the Jim Crow laws. Students are then asked in pairs or groups to read the quotes from chapter 4 (either before of after reading it in full) which are on the hand out sheet and consider what they show about him as a person. On the powerpoint there are some suggestions including references to any techniques that Steinbeck uses for effect. 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. 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 bundle of resources which will help explore the character of Crooks in the novel 'Of Mice and Men'. The first 3 documents offer quotes which either describe Crooks or are part of his dialogue from across the whole novel. The last 2 documents focus on his role particularly in chapter 4 of the story where he attempts to undermine Lennie and becomes interested in the 'dream ranch' discussed by Candy and Lennie. Students can use the quote sheets to annotate their thoughts about him and to make links using coloured pens (the 'quote explosion' looks great on a display). There is a A3 essay plan sheet where students have plenty of room to plan their ideas for each paragraph - an ideal homework activity.

This lesson asks students to identify useful quotes about Eric and explain what they show about him and the world in which he lives. The lesson starts by asking students to consider what sins he committed in the play and what he symbolizes as a 'challenge' task. There are suggested answers to these questions which could be discussed as a class. 2 extracts from the play follow this which students can think about in pairs and they can then be annotated on the board by students/the teacher. Students are then asked to list the positive and negative aspects of his character and what he does across the play. There are some suggestions which follow this. Also attached is a list of quotes from across the whole play which illustrate a range of ideas about Eric (either what he says or what others say about him). Students can annotate these in their books or they can be blown up to A3 size to write on. The lesson ends with a chance for students to write independent essay paragraphs with the AQA English Literature 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.

Attached are two lessons which guide students in planning and performing a role play based sketch which explores the themes within the play 'An Inspector Calls' by J.B Priestley. Since students have the option of studying this for their English Literature GCSE it's often a good idea to ask them to rehearse or perform a Speaking and Listening assessment based on it as it's got a range of ideas to discuss. Lesson 1: Students are asked to consider which skills they need to work well within a group and generally in terms of being a good listener and public speaker. Suggestions are listed on the next slide and they are introduced to AQA's mark scheme (Pass, Merit, Distinction). They then have the choice of 3 scenarios based on characters and moments within the play. Some of these are hypothetical situations which may not have happened but are plausible and provide good scope for emotional conflict - these might be best explored by a stronger group which you could select. Attached is a planning sheet with logical steps on how to approach them. There is a chance to rehearse and peer assess notes. Lesson 2: Students are asked to check their notes and add any last ones before performing. Attached is a peer assessment tick sheet which is also useful for teachers to use and log grades whilst the class watches. At the end of the performances students are asked to consider the best performances and justify why as well as noting down their final judgement of their own performance linking it to the success criteria.

Attached are materials for 5 -6 lessons where students are given a list of ambitious words. Using either a computer or dictionary, working alone or in groups, they are to look up those words and attempt to use them within sentences. They are to write their findings on the attached sheet which encourages them to guess their meaning before hand and also investigate the origins of the word before looking it up. The lessons ends with a peer assessment of the sentences that they've made with them and extension task (instructions on how to make a word cloud online). The lists of words can be edited to include easier or harder words. These lessons would be useful for stronger KS3 / 4 sets or as lessons used in GAMA/G+T withdrawal or general learning support.

This is a lesson on a poem about the First World War which features in Edexcel and AQA's anthology of Literature exam poems. The poem, if you don't know it, describes the hopelessness of war and misery whilst living as a soldier in the trenches. It is a conflict poem which explores the themes of violence and fear in war which can be linked to other poems taught within a unit. It's particularly useful to compare to 'Bayonet Charge' by Ted Hughes and 'Remains' by Simon Armitage. The lesson begins by asking students to list what they know or can guess about the poet and the conditions in the trenches. There is then a slide which introduces them to Owen and gives a short list of important facts to consider. 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 personification. 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. Students are then asked to think about structure and there is a slide which introduces them to tercets, para-rhyme and explains the rhyme scheme. 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. Attached is; - A powerpoint with the lesson clearly outlined - A handout of glossary style word banks which students can stick into their anthologies - Essay PEA styles sentence starters writing frames for weaker students. - Links to online videos/readings (see 'Notes' under slides).

‘Free Writing’ is where students write ‘stream of consciousness’ style passages under timed pressure without a chance to pause or worry about planning first. It’s asking them to be creative, impulsive and to take risks. I have designed this to be a series of 8 tasks done in ‘rounds’ which are clearly marked, however you may want to use them as starters across a few lessons. There is a template for each round if you’d like to use it. Blowing it up to A3 will obviously mean that students would have more space in which to write. There is an opportunity to peer assess at the end of each round so that students can see what others have done. All images are copyright free. Of course they can be adapted to suit your students’ needs.