These comprehension questions were designed to support student learning when studying the Rumens poem “The Border-Builder”. They could be completed in class (in groups or alone), or set as homework. They are aimed at MA-HA (I)GCSE students and come with an optional extra credit assignment for extension purposes. Multiple copies of the questions are printed on one page to aid printing, photocopying and distribution.

This literary and linguistic techniques matching game could be printed, laminated and cut out so that students can use it kinaesthetically (which is how I used it) or distributed as a worksheet where students just draw lines between the terms and their definitions (but you would need to mix up the definitions in the document first!). It was designed for IGCSE students but could be used throughout secondary depending on your students’ abilities. It includes literary devices such as flashbacks, as well as linguistic devices such as complex sentences. Great as a starter or plenary activity, or for revision.

These comprehension questions can be completed by students in groups or on their own, in class or as homework. They are also great revision resources and can be handy if you need to set cover work. Multiple copies of the questions are duplicated on one sheet in some cases, for ease of printing, photocopying, and distribution. The questions are designed for MA-HA students and range from identification and interpretation of techniques used (such as paradox) to encouraging students to explore issues surrounding translation, narratorial reliability, and choices of nomenclature in the novel. Motif and symbolism are also covered. Some extension tasks are included. These questions were originally developed for use by KS4 students working towards their IGCSE in World Literature. They could also be used for native French speakers, or students of IB/A Level French (although they would of course need to be translated).

This table is designed to be filled in by students to illustrate the moods and atmospheres in the novel, with techniques identified and effects explained, as well as examples given from the text (paraphrase or direct quote). The various columns could be used to differentiate between the abilities of different groups of students, or filled in by all students. The final question on the sheet could be used as extension or plenary. This was designed to be used by students of IGCSE World Literature, who were reading the novel in translation, but it could also be used by native French speakers, or by students of A Level/IB French.

This resource is great for KS4/KS5 Critical Thinking, Global Perspectives, TOK, or any similar courses. Students firstly have to identify knowledge claims on the sheet, as well as the grammatical particle that allows them to do so. They are then asked to assess how far they believe certain knowledge claims to be true. All of these activities could be done in groups or alone. The final statement on the sheet could be detached from the rest and used as a plenary activity, or as extension.

This resource consists of an article written in the Independent in 2011, plus accompanying comprehension questions which I created. It was originally used with EAL 6th-formers but could be used throughout KS4 and KS5, not just in English but also in politics lessons. The questions range from asking students to define extremism and terrorism, encouraging student understanding of policy-making, and inviting student opinion on aspects of policy.

This file consists of 9 questions in relation to poems 4-6 from Simon Armitage’s Black Roses collection. (The questions are repeated twice on one page in the file for easy printing/cutting out/distribution). Students could complete these in small groups or on their own. These were devised for a sixth-form group of EAL students. However, they could be used in KS4 as well (not sure I would recommend for KS3 as the content of the Black Roses collection could be disturbing for children who are too young).

This worksheet was designed for use with KS4 but could also be used with KS3. It is designed to help students differentiate between key factors that may change when delivering a speech for 2 different audiences on the same topic, such as duration and tone. The two audiences in question in this case are Grade 9/Year 10 students and senior staff/headteacher, but could of course be changed.

This lesson was designed for KS4 and was used in English lessons to illustrate the impact of persuasive language and connotation. However, it could also be used as part of lessons in business studies/marketing. Opportunities are given for whole-class and small-group discussion, as well as for students to work alone. Students are invited to compare their initial thoughts about a brand with the brand’s mission statement, and to chart their changing impressions over the course of a lesson. Students are also able to consider the ethics of companies’ decisions behind their choices of brand name. There are some elements of the PPT which pertain specifically to the IGCSE First Language English syllabus run by CIE; however, these are not the main part of the presentation and could be easily adapted or deleted. For extension in an English lesson, there is the opportunity to discuss euphemism (especially in relation to Simpsons episode Realty Bites) - or this could be done as a separate lesson. This PPT was created for use with KS4.

This worksheet/activity is designed to follow on from a lesson covering the poem’s content. Once students have understood its content, the sheet can be used. The first task encourages students to match techniques found in the poem with definitions. (Students can also find examples from the poem once they are done.) Suggested follow-up activities, mentioned on the sheet, include inviting students to guess information about the poem’s time period and author, and asking students to explain why the literary/linguistic techniques are used (with sentence stems included to start them off). Aimed at MA-HA KS3 but could also be used with KS4.

This chart helps students to identify techniques used by Gillian Cross in chapters 2 and 3 of The Demon Headmaster. Alliteration and assonance are the most obvious ones to focus on but this can be adapted according to your students’ existing skills (other possibilities include repetition, emphasis, metaphors and imperatives). Students also have space to give examples/quotes to support their ideas. Higher ability students are encouraged to fill in the third column to explain the effects of the techniques used. Aimed at MA-HA KS3 students.

Students can work in teams or alone to find quotes that show how Lloyd feels about Dinah (or the other way around), and write these into the evidence column on the chart. In the explanation column they should explain what this tells us. An extension question is also provided to stretch and challenge your more able students. Aimed at KS3.

This activity has 3 separate parts. After eliciting a class definition of idioms from students, the worksheet requires them to match idioms with their true meanings. Interesting discussion could follow, not just to correct the answers, but to explain how they knew/guessed if they were unsure. Students can then write sentences using the idioms before developing their ideas into a story (more than one idiom could be used in the story - e.g. through dialogue - or one idiom could be developed more thoroughly into a narrative). This was originally made to use with KS3 but could also be used with able KS2s.

This is a useful worksheet to be used as part of a wider selection of class activities or if you need cover work. It defines concrete, abstract and proper nouns, and then gives students a selection to sort into a chart (provided). Five should then be chosen and used in students’ own sentences. Depending on where you are, you could either remove the example of ‘God’ or use it as a stimulus for debate (proper or abstract, or both?). This latter activity could also segue nicely into a lesson on discursive or argumentative writing. This activity is aimed at KS3 but has a broad range of appeal depending on your students’ needs: it could for example be used with able KS2s or with KS4s who lack grammatical knowledge.

This would make a good revision activity for A Midsummer Night’s Dream, or is useful if you need to teach the play within a short space of time or need to set cover work. It is aimed at high-ability KS3 but could also be used with KS4. The extracts used focus on the moments that show Oberon realising Puck’s mistake, and fixing the problem. The extracts do not deal with other extracts/themes from the play. After reading the extracts (which I would recommend doing aloud, whether as a class or in small groups), there are questions for the students to complete (which could also be done in a carousel or other format if you prefer, or students can sit down and write). A short glossary is provided.

This resource is a great introduction to descriptive writing for students in Years 8-9. It uses Mark Haddon’s “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time” as a stimulus but you could adapt this to suit any text where the character finds a journey difficult. The PPT should get you through a minimum of 2 lessons depending on your students’ abilities. It goes through the basics of getting students to name the five senses and to talk about journeys they have completed, before progressing to finding textual evidence for why Christopher finds his journey to London difficult and planning/creating their own piece of descriptive writing based on a journey. Opportunities for peer assessment are also included.

This Wuthering Heights unit is designed for students aged 16-18. The lesson plans are not fully developed with objectives etc but these should be implicitly clear and give you the freedom to adapt them for your own class. The lesson plans are based on the idea of virtually all reading being done in advance of the lesson taking place. Many lessons are supported by Powerpoints, but not all are.

This unit of work is designed to guide Year 8/Grade 7 students through Gillian Cross' The Demon Headmaster. While Teachit resources are referenced (and are available for free download via that website), many other resources and activities are also included, which are designed to stretch students in this age bracket given the text involved. Ultimately, however, it is accessible to all, including ESL, with various differentiation suggestions included (e.g. vocabulary-based activities).

This unit plan for The Great Gatsby is aimed at students aged 14+. While many ideas will suit abler students more, it is ultimately made accessible to all with differentiation suggestions included. The unit should take around 4 weeks to complete (based on the idea of 4 x 55-minute lessons per week), but this may vary depending on your class' ability. Also included is an extension task regarding the reference to the 'Platonic conception of himself'.

Many of these resources were made by Penguin to support work on The Great Gatsby. They are also referred to in my lesson plan pack, available for download on TES. There is also a file containing ideas for teaching The Great Gatsby, compiled from around the internet. Finally, there is an article about flappers that can be used with your most able students.