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Tess of the d'Urban Quills

Average Rating3.80
(based on 59 reviews)

I'm a passionate secondary English and History teacher and am the main planner of resources for my department; as such, I thought I would start sharing them here with the wider community of teachers and professionals. I am Australian trained, but currently teaching GCSE and A- Level (AQA specifications). All lessons are very visually engaging, with images, clips and a variety of activities. You won't find any boring/blank resources here!

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I'm a passionate secondary English and History teacher and am the main planner of resources for my department; as such, I thought I would start sharing them here with the wider community of teachers and professionals. I am Australian trained, but currently teaching GCSE and A- Level (AQA specifications). All lessons are very visually engaging, with images, clips and a variety of activities. You won't find any boring/blank resources here!
Year 7: Vocabulary Lesson
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Year 7: Vocabulary Lesson

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A single lesson that can be taught as part of any unit. Vocabulary building skills, particularly helpful for lower ability students.
KS3/4: Writing Creatively
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KS3/4: Writing Creatively

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A one off lesson if you’re teaching creative writing. Focuses on building descriptive paragraphs using image stimuli. Skills covered include: Using adjectives and verbs Sentence forms and lengths Crafting effective language devices
Conflict & Power= comparison revision
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Conflict & Power= comparison revision

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A useful lesson for revising how to compare poems in the Power & Conflict poetry cluster, for AQA’s GCSE. I recommend this resource if you have already taught the entire unit. A few skills that the lesson covers are: Detailed revision and analysis of poetic form Revision of contextual influences and the importance of these How to structure a comparison paragraph Activity sheets for printing are included in the PP.
GCSE Power & Conflict: Comparing Checking Out Me History & The Emigree`
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GCSE Power & Conflict: Comparing Checking Out Me History & The Emigree`

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These three lessons walk students through writing an essay that compares Checking Out Me History and The Emigree. Activities include: Higher order AO1 terminology for comparing poems Language, form and structure Higher-order contextual ideas Scaffolds and writing structures for introductions and paragraphs Models for both of these See the notes section at the bottom of PP slides for instructions for each activity. Enjoy!
GCSE: Unseen Poetry
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GCSE: Unseen Poetry

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For the GCSE literature paper 2. Whether you’re introducing this topic for the first time or revising it, this student-led project (spanning 4-5 lessons) covers the comprehension, analysis, and critical writing skills required for tackling this question in the paper. Can also be used as a general resource for teaching poetry skills. Poems are a combination of Romantic, modernist and contemporary, and there are lots of scaffolded activities that guide students through the process of unpacking themes and ideas, annotating, analysing language, structure, and form, and writing extended responses.
English reward postcards
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English reward postcards

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If you want to inject a bit of positivity in your classrooms and reward students for this, that and the other, then enjoy these Shakespearean postcards!
Macbeth Acts 4/5 Revision
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Macbeth Acts 4/5 Revision

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A revision lesson that briefly looks at the main themes, language and contextual features for Macbeth Act 4 and 5, followed by an examination of the Biblical in Macbeth (whole play). Enjoy!
The Tyger- William Blake
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The Tyger- William Blake

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An in depth series of lessons (2-4 depending on ability) for KS3 looking at William Blake’s “The Tyger”. In-depth, structured activities focusing on themes, language, form and structure. Am quite proud of this lesson! Enjoy
Year 10/11 Victorian Context Presentations
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Year 10/11 Victorian Context Presentations

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A quick resource I whipped up for my year 10s, who are about to start Jekyll & Hyde for their GCSE. They are going to research an extract from Victorian literature and present on how this text reflects contextual ideas. Please adapt the first few slides for your own use, but thought others might find the project useful! Includes: Presentation planning stage Research questions Marking criteria (made student friendly)
GCSE: 'The Emigree' poem, Carol Rumens
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GCSE: 'The Emigree' poem, Carol Rumens

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In the wake of the Christchurch terrorist attack, it is important that English teachers are confronting issues of xenophobia as the appear in literature with our students. I was inspired to revamp my resources for ‘The Emigree`’, drawing off this recent issue as a springboard for discussion of the rising threat of white supremacy in our world. This resource includes: 2 lessons (or more, depending on pace and ability) Discussions of xenophobia, otherness, normalisation and displacement Analysis of the poem’s themes, LF&S*, and context Plenty of differentiated activities Opportunity to weave in Language Paper 2 skills, through a study of an article. Sharing this lesson for free as more than ever, we need to find the opportunities to have these conversations with students. Education is the starting point for change! *Language, form and structure Article included taken from the New Yorker.
Power & Conflict Bundle
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Power & Conflict Bundle

3 Resources
Storm on the Island, a comparison of London, Ozymandias and The Prelude and a comparison-skills lesson- three individual lessons (originally individually priced) now bundled for your convenience!
GCSE: 'Remains' poem, Simon Armitage
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GCSE: 'Remains' poem, Simon Armitage

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2-3 lessons on the poem “Remains” for the Power and Conflict anthology. Covers all GCSE outcomes AO1-3, in depth annotation of the poem, and builds students’ deeper conceptualisation of the themes of dehumanisation, PTSD, moral injury, and psychological trauma.
GCSE: 'Kamikaze' poem, Beatrice Garland
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GCSE: 'Kamikaze' poem, Beatrice Garland

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In depth 2-3 lessons on the GCSE poem ‘Kamikaze.’ Covers all 3 assessment outcomes, and deepens students’ conceptualisation of Japanese culture and the West’s understanding of collectivism. Detailed annotations of the poem included, amongst other scaffolded activities. Enjoy :)
KS3: Writing dystopian fiction unit
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KS3: Writing dystopian fiction unit

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I teach a rowdy but bright year 7 boys class once a week (the classes are split on our timetable between teachers, annoyingly). I decided to do a creative writing module with them, focusing on dystopian literature. Included in this pack are 10 (or more, depending on pace) lessons that: Introduce dystopian fiction and its conventions Analyse extracts from famous dystopias Build creative writing skills Build planning, structuring, drafting and editing skills Activities are varied, with some introductory links to Language Paper 1 skills for the GCSE. Enjoy :)
KS3 How to write a paragraph crib sheet
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KS3 How to write a paragraph crib sheet

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A great crib sheet with lots of structured explanations for how students can begin to: Write critical paragraphs analysing language, structure and form Craft a creative story. I am using this currently as a guided revision tool for my year 7 class.