A reading comprehension based on the classic poem The Spider and the Fly. Suitable for upper KS2 or lower ability KS3. Answer key provided for time-saving. Question types include inference, vocabulary, paraphrasing and exploring literary techniques.

Poem 1 It’s Bonfire Night describes the excitement of Bonfire Night for a child, which is contrasted to the fear of his pet cat. Poem 2 Why? explores the old tradition of asking for A Penny For The Guy and explores the fear of a young child who is not quite convinced the Guy is not real. Question types include literary devices, retrieval and inference . Bonus material- descriptive writing slides & word bank for Bonfire Night creative writing

Four Halloween poem reading comprehensions for upper KS2. The Witches’ Ride - describes a traditional witch on a broom. October- combines a description of the season of Autumn with all the fun and mischief of Halloween Night. Ghost in the Garden - describes a mysterious ghostly presence or could it just be the poet’s imagination? Quieter than Snow - the narrator return to school a day early after the summer holidays only to discover the school is haunted. Focus is on understanding literary devices and their effects as well as inference and reasoning skills, with each poem increasing in challenge level. Bonus material- ISPACE Halloween sentence openers

Halloween idea. Activities based on the first eight chapters of Harry Potter & The Philosopher’s Stone. Similes gap-fill worksheet Reading comprehension on the Great Hall from Chapter 7 with answers for time-saving Reading comprehension on the Potions Master Chapter 8 with answers for time-saving Quiz on sentence types- simple, compound or complex