Two medium term plans for a short transactional writing section of the KS3/4 curriculum.

Objective: To identify the features of a broadsheet opinion (comment) article. Outcomes: To apply our understand to plan a short comment piece, using the required features. Lesson is a differentiated version of one in my shop. Low set year 9 KS3. Lesson allows pupils to plan with heavy modelling throughout. The pupils can use the one on the board, or use the differentiated gold/silver/bronze provocative responses to write their own comment piece.

Two lessons in one PPT on 'A Wife in London' by Thomas Hardy with Boer War context in one lesson with a table of comparison and the other full lesson to analyse AWiL by utilising an A3 sheet to 'chunk' down the learning and ask questions. A3 sheet available in original publisher file and PDF for ease of use. PPT encourages independent learning with a more pupil-led analysis rather than 'copy this'. Comprehension and creative task at the end of the poems analysis for the pupils to describe a scene of a eerie, foggy London using as much vocabulary as they can from the poem. This worked very well. Observation: Good/Outstanding lesson. Lesson 1: Objective: To investigate the context (AO3) of A Wife in London by researching the Boer War. Outcomes: To engage with a clip and present this in a table. Starter: Questioning - could use a post-it, what do you think these three images on the board are telling you? (British flag, SA flag, gold). Verbalise and engage. Introduction to the Boer War, main facts and statistics for context. Task with clip: Split your page in two, one side British Army, one side The Boers. Note down any key contextual facts you hear E.g. statistics, soldiers, methods of fighting. Share your partner and pick a fact to share with the class. Telling pupils this is AO3 context - linking to GCSE exam criteria. Plenary: Name three facts you have learnt about the Boer War. Lesson 2: Objective: To analyse the language and structure of A Wife in London. Outcomes: To describe a scene of an eerie, foggy London evening in the 19th Century. Literacy objective task. Starter: Engage - how does this picture make you feel? 3 adjectives. Task: Closed question activity, filling in the blanks to recap from last lesson (answers on next slide). Then going through the A3 extract sheet. Teacher to read through the poem, pupils to write any devices they spot around the poem. Task: Pair work with questions on the board for stimulus - most questions links to a box on the sheet, or pupils can annotate around. Challenge boxes to differentiate up. Task: Describe an eerie, foggy 19th Century London. Plenary: Imagine Twitter was around in the 19th Century. Summarise the thoughts of the wife either after she has received the first message or her husband’s letter. Use emoji's to illustrate this. Lesson worked well with low set year 9 and year 10.

A mixed bag of lessons exploring The Ghost of Christmas Past, Scrooge's childhood, his relationship with Fezziwig, the relationship between Scrooge and Marley and language used within Stave 1/2. This was for a top set GSCE class. The range of activities worked extremely well. There is also a graded outstanding lesson included. A range of challenge and support is also included. I adapted these lessons for my lower sets, so differentiated worksheets are also included.

Three full weeks of A Monster Calls study for Year 7/KS3. This goes up to 'destruction'. All lessons have outcomes/objectives/homework included and a range of engaging activities. This worked very well with year 7, but then I swapped novels halfway through the half term.

An array of lessons and worksheets exploring class prejudice, Eric's involvement, comparisons between Sheila and other characters, socialism in the play. Also includes an observation lesson which was judged good overall. This was for a top set GCSE class, stimulating talking points are included and fun engaging activities e.g. Eric's Tinder profile. Lessons are also AO focused.

This is a full lesson planned for Sci-Fi conventions and use of dialogue. The start of the lesson the PowerPoint shows a few film posters typical of the Sci-Fi genre and the children are asked to raise their hands if they know what we're talking about. The PowerPoint then goes over the Golden Rules of dialogue and the Uses of Dialogue. Then the pupils can be paired and they work in pairs to create a mind map. I used colourful card and differentiated the planning task. Lower ability had two image stimulus of a human and an alien. Clear human and alien set for them, and their mind-map was already sectioned off to give some structure. Higher attainers were only given the question. Colourful pens can be handed out to the class too in order to ensure who has wrote what on the plan, to gauge progress. The main task for the lesson is to write dialogue between a human and an alien. One of these characters is pleading for their lives. The class will then present this in a dramatic reading, using their dialogue tags as directions e.g. whimpered, shouted, bellowed. If you wanted, the pupils could freeze, and then teacher could point to pupils and say "which convention of Sci-Fi have partner A and B used?" The class I delivered this lesson to loved it, very creative and it sparked imaginations.

KS3 lesson writing short fiction. Taking inspiration from a local news story about Merseyside boxer, Tony Bellew, being cast for a Hollywood film, 'Creed', and changing this into a short fiction story. The worksheet gives pupils free reign to create a fictional story, either from the perspective of the boxer, or from the character inside the film, 'Creed', with YouTube clip for inspiration. Tasks to encourage literary device usage and narrative structure.

KS3 lesson developing noun and verb use, including an extract to complete. Precise noun: A noun (naming word) which is more descriptive and aids in telling the reader more about the story. E.g. ‘Mercedes Benz’ instead of car. Ambitious verb: A verb (doing word) which gives more description so the reader can picture images in their mind. E.g. ‘Slithered’ instead of walked (to describe someone who was sneaking around). Learning Objective: To learn how to develop nouns and verbs to create descriptive sentences. Learning Outcome: All will rewrite sentences using ambitious vocabulary and tasks in the PowerPoint Most will complete the Skellig work sheet Some will complete the extension work and create their own sentences using knowledge they have learnt so far (reward – Vivo points/IRIS rewards etc) To differentiate the work, I have included a variety of resources including a match-up task on the board. Fill-in the blanks work sheet and a challenge task for the HA in the class to complete, with added rewards (Vivo points) to encourage the children to take on this challenge task.

Learning Objective: To learn how to develop characters and character voice in your writing. Learning Outcome: To plan and write an imaginative character description, including a specific tone in their character voice. Year 7 lesson on character profiles and character voice, exploring character voice using Harry Potter characters, and moving on to create their own character using Facebook profiles (to explore character profiles) and a Facebook status (for character voice). Worksheets included: blank Facebook status work sheet (two per page) and Facebook profile worksheet. Whole lesson and two work sheets included.

Two lessons for literary device revision. Includes two differentiated lessons with different activities. For low ability, a literary device bingo with 9 bingo tiles and a card sort. Higher ability, 12 bingo tiles and no card sort game. Extract is differentiated, high ability will find the devices themselves, and low ability will annotate the devices which are already underlined in different colours (they can work out the key).

This lesson goes over the features of informal letters (KS3) in preparation for the transactional writing part of the GCSE language exam. Stick-in sheet for pupils to make some notes on in their books included. The lesson also focuses on ambitious vocabulary and has a literacy homophone starter (where/were/we're). It goes over tone and style of informal letters, then 'spot the errors' in a small informal letter which is far too formal. Easily differentiated by editing the example. Main task is to write an informal letter to a friend: this includes a brief for the pupils to follow. Success and challenge criteria included. Peer assessment for AfL and plenary included at the end.

Two full lessons on review writing for Y9 taken from GCSE specification. Homophone starter 'Your/You're' Lesson 1 Objective: To identify the different features of film reviews. Outcome: To plan a film review using the required features. Lesson 2 Objective: To investigate the different features of film reviews. Outcome: To apply our knowledge and write a film review, using the required features. First whole lesson, complete with a small section of film reviews to analyse takes pupils through different features of reviews, and the purposes of them (inform, describe, persuade and advise). A starter activity is to go through different kinds of reviews (book/film/restaurant) and who is the possible audience. Then the pupils (in pairs) go through a short review and try and spot the features. Then they can mind-map these features in their books or together on the board at the front of the classroom. Then the pupils watch an embedded clip (trailer for Pirates of the Caribbean) and then can plan to create a review. Extension tasks are added for the most able pupils. In the second lesson, pupils (on their whiteboards/in books) go through a recap (what is a review, purpose, audience), rewrite a paragraph of a film review using ambitious punctuation, read a WAGOLL (what a good one looks like) to look for AFORREST persuasive features, then read a bad example of a film review. Class then write an WWW/EBI for the reviews. Go over the structure of a review, then write their film review for an independent 15 task. I have also included success criteria checklists to print off for your classes.

Objective: To identify the features of a broadsheet comment article. Outcome: To apply our understanding to write a short comment piece, using the required features. Literacy objective: Effect/Affect This lesson starts with a discussion to whether the opinions of the journalist should ever influence their writing - issues of bias. Then this leads onto comment articles (opinion writing). It then discusses the features of opinion writing and what it must include e.g. the news peg and a leading statement which shocks the audience. Main body of the text - writers opinion, quotes and main issues. Conclusion - summary and driving-home the most powerful point. Main task is to read though a comment piece to identify the features. Then pupils are given four briefs with provocative statements on with issues, quotes, statistics etc. Task: Your job as a journalist is to write a comment (opinion) article about one statement. There are news facts, quotes and statistics included in your brief to help you, and the structure to follow. Plenary to calculate the headline count for different headlines, then create their own.

Starter activity for pupils to learn how to calculate the headline count of different articles. Handouts for the headline counts can be created, but this is also on the PowerPoint. Pupils are then given scenarios and they should create the best headline they can within their count e.g. full of alliteration, puns, shocking vocabulary etc.

Objective: To identify the features of a tabloid news article. Outcomes: To apply our understanding to write a lively and engaging tabloid article. Homework: Read your tabloid article and analyse the features, purpose and tone, using the table on the right. Literacy starter: Effect/Affect Starter activity is a card sort between the features of a broadsheet newspaper and a tabloid newspaper. Then a spot the features article to find the AFORREST features and how the writer has engaged the audience. Slides then move on to the main task, but first they go through example headlines to guess what the tabloid news article might be which we're writing about for an independent 10 task. Pupils then plan their tabloid article with a list of success criteria e.g. a shocking headline. Independent 10 task: Write an engaging article for a tabloid newspaper.

Full lesson on GCSE transactional writing (reports). Objective: To identify the features of a report. Outcomes: To produce a plan for a report using detailed content and the required structure. Literacy objective: An apostrophe must be used to show you have missed out letters in a contracted word. E.g. Should'nt - should not. Literacy starter is a contraction wheel. Lesson goes through what a report is, the purposes of a report, the audience and possible content. Starter allows the pupils to think for themselves what might be in a report (content), and a vocab-builder allows them to engage with formal vocabulary A06. The lesson then picks apart a report question, and allows pupils to investigate the purpose/audience/tone and format of the transactional writing question. Pupils then complete a table of positives/negatives to do with a school facility, read through a model report (either alone or with classroom teacher) and then complete their aims/questions in their introductory paragraph and their data collection paragraph in independent 10 task time with success criteria and a grammar challenge. Plenary to assess their knowledge of the features of a report.