This 11 page workbook introduces your students to the life and times of Shakespeare. It is designed to be interactive and requires students to research much of the information themselves. It includes a template to create Shakespeare’s biography in the form of a resume, fun facts on life in Elizabethan England, some background on the Globe, Shakespearean insults to be hurled at one another, a flag creating activity, well- known phrases we use today which were coined by Shakespeare and a research project on life at that time. The resource includes a teacher’s copy which provides more background information and comprehensive suggested answers to questions so you don’t have to dig around for answers! It is suitable for secondary students who are studying their first Shakespeare.

*UPDATED TO INCLUDE AN EXTRA SET IN PRINTER- FRIENDLY BLACK & WHITE! (PRINT ON COLOURED CARD FOR THE SAME EFFECT) This vivid set of 26 posters offers tips to help your students to have a successful and less stressful exam period. Suitable for Secondary/ High School age groups. They can be printed and laminated and used year after year in your class, displayed altogether to create a striking, alluring and informative wall or brought out individually and used as interchangeable classroom decor. There is no set order they need to be displayed in. Also INCLUDES a mind map poster and additional exam day tips. (The full set of 52 posters are available for download in a Zip file; additional copies are included so that you can view a sample before purchase)

INCLUDES TEACHER’S COPY This workbook consists of 20 pages of work for students to do when and after watching the Baz Luhrmann version of *Romeo and Juliet. * The film study is designed to be used as an activity following a first reading of the original play and to get students thinking about Shakespeare’s techniques and asserting an informed opinion on techniques used by both Shakespeare and Luhrmann in his 1996 adaptation. It includes characterisation and focus questions on some of the main scenes. It also lists some of Luhrmann’s “Easter eggs” hidden in the film for students to hunt for whilst watching.

This ** 24 page workbook** introduces students to the elements of healthy communication, including: **Assertiveness Boundary setting and saying no Having difficult conversations Our primitive “lizard brain” Active listening Owning our own feelings** It describes each topic in an easy-to-follow and engaging manner with small partner based and class discussion activities throughout. It teaches coping techniques and also includes four bold posters which you can print and hang in class as reminders of these lessons. The workbook can be printed and handed out to each student as is, or pick and choose the worksheets and areas you want to focus on. Each topic blends into the next which allows for them to be used as a series of lessons over the course of a few days or weeks. Most of the worksheets are print-and-go ready, although one listening and communication activity does involve having to print (and potentially laminate) the task cards in advance. The download also includes a teacher’s copy which contains guiding notes on the kinds of answers and reactions to expect and how to lead the discussions. Suitable for Secondary School age groups. Your feedback is important! I’d love to hear how you this goes. Follow me on Instagram: @teaching_underthedesk

Introduce or revise 25 Literary Terms with your students through an interactive game of Bingo! Includes 3 mix ‘n’ match sets (28 pages) to thoroughly explore and understand figurative language: Terms Definitions 2 sets of Examples mostly from real texts- Level 1 for introducing the terms and Level 2 for a in-depth exploration of figurative language through more challenging examples. The bingo sets include **both colour and black and white ** tiles to be cut out and laminated, and 5 variations of the same Bingo Cards so that not every student has the exact same order of boxes on their card. Full instructions and Master Copy included for a classic Bingo Game as well as suggestions of other interactive ways to use these cards. Follow me on Instagram: teaching_underthedesk

This reflective learning handout is designed as a self- assessment tool for students prior to handing in an assignment for marking. The 1-10 scale is a simple way for students to express how they feel they performed on a piece of work, and the follow- on questions allow them to jot down notes for their own future use. It allows students to pin- point their perceived strengths and weaknesses while the topic is still fresh in their minds and before the teacher provides external feedback. The completed handout can be attached to assignments and used by students to refer back to before exams; it also allows teachers to gauge whether students are on track and if they have clear and realistic expectations of their own learning. There are two slightly different versions of the assessment form here: one asks students to draw an emoji which corresponds with the 1-10 scale of their work; the other asks for students to simply indicate a score from 1 to 10 on the scale.

A fun activity to introduce students to the concept of prophecy and to later question whether Macbeth was driven by greed and manipulated into creating his own destiny, or whether the witches’ prophecies really did come true! Cut out the 30 “prophecies” provided and have students pick one from a hat. Give students a week to see if any of their prophecies come true (they are all pretty vague, some of them are bound to!) There is a summative handout for students to complete after and from here a general class discussion and sharing of stories will give students something to think about and later link to the question of Macbeth’s fate.

This work book consists of 25 pages which introduce students to the acronym “PERSUADER”- an excellent tool for both identifying and remembering persuasive techniques. It explains each persuasive technique individually and provides examples from famous speeches from history. The workbook is scaffolded with tasks first introducing the technique and then asking students to** identify and highlight** its use before requiring them to** practise the technique** themselves. Finally they annotate an extract from Martin Luther King Jr’s “I Have a Dream” speech using what has been learnt. The work book ends with the summative exercise of writing a speech of your own whilst utilizing the “PERSUADER” techniques. “PERSUADER” is a useful acronym for students’ tool belts as it can be used for any kind of directed writing including letters, articles and discursive or argumentative essays, as well as speeches. INCLUDES a printable A4 poster for classroom display.

Class decoration and mindfulness activity! Use this resource as a collaborative mindfulness project to help your students to become aware of and foster a sense of gratitude for small, good things which happen each day. Great for Valentine’s Day! This download consists of 19 different paper chain templates in both colour and printer friendly black and white (print on bright paper or have students decorate their links). Hand out to students and ask them to think about one positive experience or kind gesture that they have experienced recently, or one thing that they are grateful for today. Then glue together these links and create a chain which can be strung around the classroom or hallway as a tangible reminder of life’s little blessings :) Gratitude is a learned behaviour; this and focusing on positive experiences increases happiness and reduces stress. Use as a daily class meditation and let the kindness chain grow each day. Suitable for all ages. Click here to follow me on instagram Follow me on tes so that my latest products appear on your screen when you login!

This 15 page workbook introduces students to the use of PEEL (Point, Evidence, Explanation, Link) to write a detailed Literature Essay. Using Emily Dickinson’s “Because I Could Not Stop For Death” students first annotate and then complete a series of topic statements to create PEEL paragraphs in a scaffolded poetry analysis essay. Students then cut out and unscramble the completed paragraphs to create a coherent essay, adding in additional information where necessary and writing their own conclusion. The resource includes an additional poster-making activity and template and a suggestion on other ways that PEEL can be implemented in self- assessment activities, as well as a choice of **5 bright PEEL posters **which teachers can print for classroom display. Follow me on Instagram: teaching_underthedesk

This print-and-go Romeo and Juliet crossword puzzle consists of** 18 clues** designed for both revision and adding depth to students’ knowledge of the** main characters** in the play. This is an fun **revision **activity and can be used as a tool in creating character logs. Suitable for any range of age groups studying the play. What’s included: A single printable worksheet for students (crossword and character clues). A teacher’s copy with answers. Follow me on Instagram to see my latest products: teaching_underthedesk

This poster adds a splash of colour to your classroom walls whilst fostering an environment where kindness flourishes and encouraging students to think before they speak; especially when it comes to gossip, rumours and bullying. Appropriate for all age groups.

Use this **free worksheet as an engaging introduction **to the characters of Shakespeare’s beloved Romeo and Juliet. This download includes two variations: Level 1 is an easier wordsearch which includes a list of names for students to find, and does not include any diagonally placed clues. Level 2 is more challenging. It includes the same words as Level 1 but does not provide a list to search for and includes diagonally placed clues in the grid. What’s included: 2 single printable worksheets for students (wordsearch). Choose the difficulty level according to your students’ ability. Teacher’s copies with answers. Enjoyed this resource? Take a look at my other Romeo and Juliet and Shakespeare based resources: An Introduction to Shakespeare Agree or Disagree? Romeo and Juliet Pre-Reading Activity- FREE Romeo and Juliet Character Identification Crossword Puzzle Revision Romeo & Juliet Crossword Puzzle: Complete the Famous Quotations Romeo & Juliet Film Study WORKBOOK for Baz Luhrmann’s 1996 film (LIT REVISION) Follow me on Instagram: teaching_underthedesk

This 10 slide PowerPoint is great to accompany a first reading of Nichols’ “Praise Song for My Mother”. It offers biographical information and then contains a stanza by stanza break down with points of interest which can be discussed either altogether in class or as a small group activity. It ends with a GCSE/ IGCSE style essay question and a series of bullet point questions to serve as scaffolding and guidance in writing the essay.

This 8 page resource introduces the main devices found in the poem including the main features of an Italian and Shakespearean sonnet, iambic pentameter, imagery, personification, alliteration, onomatopoeia and a Cambridge- style essay question at the end in which the understanding gathered from the various activities can be applied to write the essay. This would be a great resource for a first reading and teaching of Owen's poem with the focus on revising the literary devices found in the poem and building up an informed response to the writing which can then be used for the cumulative task of writing a Cambridge style essay.

This 5 page worksheet is a break- down of the STILTS acronym which is a useful and easy tool to arm students with when analyzing a poem for the first time. This worksheet gives an overview of how STILTS works and then asks students to apply it to Maya Angelou’s “Africa”. It rounds off the exercise with a sample unseen Cambridge style essay question (Syllabus 0486 Paper 42) where the student is asked to plan the essay using the analysis techniques described and practised in the worksheet. Updated to include a teacher’s copy with basic answers to guide the lesson!

This ‘Mingle Bingo’ is a great ice- breaker for the start of the year. There are 25 spots on the card, each describing a physical attribute (such as green eyes), a capability (such as being able to lick your elbow!) or something specific about family and home (such as having a dog, or having two sisters). Students embark on a scavenger hunt to find someone in the class who fits that description . There are two slightly different Bingo cards (although they do have some of the same points on them) which could be used together with everyone randomly handed one or the other, or choose which you prefer according to what you know about characteristics within your class. The idea is that everyone mingles and asks each other specific questions. When students find someone who “ticks” one of the boxes on their sheet, that person writes their name down in the space provided. Each person can only be used once, so students have to use a little bit of tactical thinking about whose name to place where! For smaller classes adjust the game by giving students a certain number of boxes to fill in, or ask them to complete a row or two. The activity would also be great for use in a module on Geneticsas many of the Bingo boxes ask about characteristics which are dominant and recessive genes. The cards could also be used in an English as Second Language class in an activity about describing people.

A series of 45 conversation cards, ranging from the pure ridiculous through to real mind- bogglers! Print, cut and laminate and keep as a deck of cards to use year after year to break the ice with a new class, to fill awkward spaces of time or as discursive and argumentative writing or debate topics. Encourage students to elaborate on their answers and talk about themselves. These are suitable for a wide range of ages from Elementary/ Primary all the way to Secondary/ High School students. There is also a Black & White set included for more economical printing, and a blank template so you can add in more of your own, or reverse the activity and ask students to make up some for themselves!

This 19 slide PowerPoint presentation is an excellent introduction to Owen’s “Anthem for Doomed Youth”. It provides a basic biography, a line-by- line analysis of the poem including points of interest and discussion, and ends with an IGCSE/GCSE style essay question. It could also be used for revision and recap purposes.

A collection of IGCSE essay- style questions made up by my class (and edited by me) for revision purposes on poems 1-6 from Volume 1 Part 5 of “Songs of Ourselves” (Dickinson’s “Because I Could Not Stop for Death” through to Nichols’ “Praise Song”- examinable 2017). Not a particularly pretty handout, but I hope you’ll find it useful!