This is an annotated version of ‘Long Distance / Long Distance II’ (PDF) which includes suggested starter / discussion, personal responses, topics, structure / form observations etc. Note: This is only a subjective suggestion created by a teacher (I am only human!). I would have loved to have this at the release of the poems, and I sincerely hope that it helps and supports your delivery of the poem! (COMPLETE booklet of ALL poems annotated and in Word available in my ‘shop’!)

This is an annotated version of ‘The Spirit is too Blunt an Instrument’ (PDF) which includes suggested starter / discussion, personal responses, topics, structure / form observations etc. Note: This is only a subjective suggestion created by a teacher (I am only human!). I would have loved to have this at the release of the poems, and I sincerely hope that it helps and supports your delivery of the poem! (COMPLETE booklet of ALL poems annotated and in Word available in my ‘shop’!)

This resource is a podcast on Othello (page and line numbers correspond to the Oxford School Shakespeare Version) that analyses the language in detail. It can be used by teachers to develop their own annotations and understanding of the text - you won’t necessarily agree with all interpretations or observations - or set as homeworks for the pupils in order for them to annotate their own texts / write detailed notes. Some of the scenes selected in this series of podcasts are most suitable for homeworks as that leaves extended lesson time to focus on the ‘most important’ examples / quotations / scenes in the play.

This is an annotated version of ‘He Never Expected Much’ (PDF) which includes suggested starter / discussion, personal responses, topics, structure / form observations etc. Note: This is only a subjective suggestion created by a teacher (I am only human!). I would have loved to have this at the release of the poems, and I sincerely hope that it helps and supports your delivery of the poem! (COMPLETE booklet of ALL poems annotated and in Word available in my ‘shop’!)

This is an annotated version of ‘Funeral Blues’ (PDF) which includes suggested starter / discussion, personal responses, topics, structure / form observations etc. Note: This is only a subjective suggestion created by a teacher (I am only human!). I would have loved to have this at the release of the poems, and I sincerely hope that it helps and supports your delivery of the poem! (I also have a COMPLETE bundle / booklet with ALL of the CIE poems from Songs of Ourselves that includes a Word Document version and a blank anthology for students in my shop).

This is an annotated version of ‘The Telephone Call’ (PDF) which includes suggested starter / discussion, personal responses, topics, structure / form observations etc. Note: This is only a subjective suggestion created by a teacher (I am only human!). I would have loved to have this at the release of the poems, and I sincerely hope that it helps and supports your delivery of the poem! (I also have a COMPLETE bundle / booklet with ALL of the CIE poems from Songs of Ourselves that includes a Word Document version and a blank anthology for students in my shop).

This is a bundle of resources that includes a range of example essays, questions and paragraphs on Journey’s End. This is a hugely useful resource providing teachers with ideas for essays / analysis of the text. Similarly, it can be a useful example to students for them as a model of the kind of analytical writing expected of them in KS3 for high level ability students.

This is an anthology created to help teach the Stories of Ourselves prose collection for the 2024-27 exam series - CAIE IGCSE. The texts have been removed - for copyright purposes (though they could easily be added back in or studied / read separately to this anthology). BUT, the resource includes key contextual background, some simple (but fun / useful / effective) starter questions or discussions. Some of the ‘most important’ - albeit that is subjective, clearly there will be alternative opinons! But there is space to add further quotations AND to engage in essay planning. Texts in the syllabus / anthology booklet: ‘Nick’, Christina Rossetti – p. 9 (Text p. 13) ‘The Woman’s Rose’, Olive Schreiner – p. 23 ‘The Black Ball’, Ralph Ellison – p. 33 ‘The Gold Watch’, Mulk Raj Anand – p. 53 ‘When It Happens’, Margaret Atwood – p. 67 ‘The Man Who Walked on the Moon’, J G Ballard – p. 83 ‘A Walk to the Jetty’, Jamaica Kincaid – p. 103 ‘Showing the Flag’, Jane Gardam – p. 121 ‘Haywards Heath’, Aminatta Forna – p. 137 ‘Fluke’, Romesh Gunesekera – p. 150 This is to help organise the students and give more structure and coherence to the resources; it is particularly helpful if you have a good reprographics technician who can turn these into lovely wire-bound booklets for the students. Please note that this is purely the student copy - so there are no annotations or suggested answers / essay plans etc. in this resource . I have my own annotated copies - if people are interested, please message here; if there is enough interest, I will add the Teacher Resource version.

This is a poetry podcast in support of ‘The Spirit is too Blunt an Instrument’ - currently on offer as part of Stories of Ourselves on the CIE English Literature specification. It is a great resources for both teachers as students alike. It includes detailed analysis - including close language / imagery / tone analysis and explanation - of the entire poem, a suggested division into main topics / paragraphs and suggested personal responses. It also includes a simple supporting PowerPoint and handout that includes the key points about the author (i.e. brief context) and a starter idea.

This is a fully annotated version of ‘The Kraken’ that incudes line by line analysis of imagery, language, structure, tone etc. The analysis is also colour-coded so that points are already divided into suggested topics / paragraphs. It also includes a helpful student handout to support study (pre annotation) that gives an overview, key structural / form observations and a suggested division of the poem into topics.

This resource is a hugely helpful bundle that includes a range of example essays, paragraphs and questions on Journey’s End. It can be helpful for teachers in developing their understanding of the play and how their teaching might be shaped; it can also be useful as exemplar or model material that is given to pupils in order to help them to develop their understanding of how to write analytically at a high level in KS3 or reasonable / solid KS4 level.

This resource is a podcast on the Crucible Text (page numbers correspond to the Oxford University Press Version) that analyses the language in detail. It can be used by teachers to develop their own annotations and understanding of the text or set as homeworks for the pupils in order for them to annotate their own texts / write detailed notes. Some of the scenes selected in this series of podcasts are most suitable for homeworks as that leaves extended lesson time to focus on the most important scenes in the play. This podcast focuses on analysing the section where the narrative voice describes Hale (‘loaded down with half a dozen heavy books’) until his interrogation of Abigail about their dancing in the woods.

This bundle contains thoroughly detailed annotations of each of the poems contained within one of the key CIE poetry anthologies; this includes suggested observations about structure and how one might sub-divide the poems into different topics. It also includes a student-friendly and ready-to-print anthology with good spacing for annotations and extra notes pages between each poem. Note that each poem comes with a suggested ‘starter’ or discussion activity (e.g. some with links to videos or picture stimulus with suggested answers / ideas). They are certainly best used as teacher resources to guide understanding of the poems and to give inspiration for different interpretations - as well as detailed analysis of key language and imagery - but it can also serve as a useful revision resource given directly to students at the end of the course. NOTE: These are only suggested interpretations and are, of course, subjective (I am a teacher and, as such, very much human!). THIS bundle includes Word Document version (if scrambled, ensure that margins are narrow!), PDF document and blank Word Version of Anthology. The bundle includes all of the following poems: ‘The City Planners’ – Atwood, Margaret ‘The Planners’ – Cheng, Boey Kim ‘The Man with Night Sweats’ – Gunn, Thom ‘Night Sweat’ – Lowell, Robert ‘Rain’ – Edward, Thomas ‘The Spirit is too blunt an instrument’ – Stevenson, Anne ‘Long Distance II’ – Harrison, Tony ‘Funeral Blues’ – Auden, W.H. ‘He Never Expected Much’ – Hardy, Thomas ‘The Telephone Call’ – Adcock, Fleur ‘A Consumer’s Report’ – Porter, Peter ‘Request to a Year’ – Wright, Judith ‘On Finding a Crushed Fly in a Book’ – Turner, Charles Tennyson ‘Ozymandias’ – Shelley, Percy Bysshe ‘Away, Melancholy’ – Smith, Stevie

These resources are excellent for pupils to use prior to starting the text - the book covers resource is a particular favourite (where it gives pupils the opportunity to discuss the function of books covers, explaining what themes and issues they anticipate in the text and explain their inference).

This is an annotated version of ‘A Consumer’s Report’ (PDF) which includes suggested starter / discussion, personal responses, topics, structure / form observations etc. Note: This is only a subjective suggestion created by a teacher (I am only human!). I would have loved to have this at the release of the poems, and I sincerely hope that it helps and supports your delivery of the poem!

This is a simple, but effective, resource in getting the students to reflect on the various coping mechanisms employed by the characters in the play to deal with the trauma of the war and the horror of their experiences. This resource can be used when half way through the text or perhaps as a reflective task having completed the play as a whole. It could also form the foundation for an analytical essay and gives the students an opportunity to work on their ability to work through a text to find supporting ideas and evidence. I include a screen shot of the first slide / page as PDFs and ActivInspire Flipcharts do not always show up on pre-views.

This is a straightforward resource that focuses on analysing the final scene of Journey’s End and developing the students’ understanding of how and why it is so moving.

This is an annotated version of ‘Away, Melancholy’ (PDF) which includes suggested starter / discussion, personal responses, topics, structure / form observations etc. Note: This is only a subjective suggestion created by a teacher (I am only human!). I would have loved to have this at the release of the poems, and I sincerely hope that it helps and supports your delivery of the poem!

This is an annotated version of ‘The Man with Night Sweats’ (PDF) which includes suggested starter / discussion, personal responses, topics, structure / form observations etc. Note: This is only a subjective suggestion created by a teacher (I am only human!). I would have loved to have this at the release of the poems, and I sincerely hope that it helps and supports your delivery of the poem! (COMPLETE booklet of ALL poems annotated and in Word available in my ‘shop’!)