Acrostic Poetry - Year 7 This lesson teaches children about acrostic poetry in a fun and engaging way. First, it provides three examples of acrostics and explains what the ‘rules’ of acrostics are. It then provides a task that requires children to explore the examples and discuss the poems regarding layout, language and poetic devices. The second half of the lesson explains how to write an acrostic. Pupils are given a scaffolded approach and another example to help them construct a class and then individual acrostics. The resource is differentiated using ‘Gold’, ‘Silver’ and ‘Bronze’ activities to help all children achieve.

Eden Rock This two-lesson mini-unit explores Charles Causley’s ‘Eden Rock’ in detail. Designed for GCSE pupils studying the AQA Love and Relationships cluster, this resource looks at the poem in depth and explains how to compare it to other poems from the anthology. The resource is made up of a 57-slide editable PowerPoint presentation and 7 accompanying worksheets. The two lessons contain the following: Lesson One Context – A brief outline of Charles Causley’s life and factors that may have inspired the poem. First Contact – An initial reading of ‘Eden Rock’ with a glossary included. Comprehension questions with answers. Exploring Meaning – Analysing ‘Eden Rock’ in detail. Exploring key imagery and answering questions that delve deeper. Model answers provided. Essay Writing – An essay question to assess initial understanding. An example answer is included. Lesson Two Themes – Analysing the themes of ‘Eden Rock’ - parent/child relationships, memory, distance and death. Language – Exploring Causley’s use of language. An analysis of imagery and a line-by-line examination of the poem, with questions and answers. Structure and Form – How Causley uses the first-person perspective, caesura, rhyme and enjambment. The GCSE Exam – Comparing ‘Eden Rock’ with ‘Neutral Tones and ‘Mother, Any Distance’. Model answers included.

Following Instructions - Year 5 and 6 (35-slide PowerPoint-based lesson with 5 worksheets) This differentiated resource (gold, silver and bronze tasks) helps upper KS2 children develop their reading comprehension skills. It explains how to follow written instructions, why people sometimes make mistakes when following instructions and why understanding instructions can be essential in certain situations. The resource features whole-class, small group and individual activities. All answers are provided.

Walking Away This two-lesson mini-unit explores Cecil Day-Lewis’s ‘Walking Away’ in detail. Designed for GCSE pupils studying the AQA Love and Relationships cluster, this resource studies the poem in depth and explains how to write an essay comparing it to other poems from the anthology. The resource is made up of a 59-slide editable PowerPoint presentation and 7 accompanying worksheets. The two lessons contain the following: Lesson One Context – A brief outline of Cecil Day-Lewis’s life and factors that may have inspired the poem. First Contact – An initial reading of ‘Walking Away’ with a glossary included. Comprehension questions with example answers. Exploring Meaning – Analysing ‘Walking Away’ in detail. Exploring key imagery and answering questions that delve deeper. Model answers provided. Essay Writing – An essay question to assess initial understanding. A model answer is included. Lesson Two Themes – Analysing the themes of ‘Walking Away’: parent/child relationships, memory, time, distance and growing up. Language – Exploring Day-Lewis’s use of language. An analysis of imagery and a line-by-line examination of the poem, with questions and answers. Structure and Form – How Day-Lewis uses the first-person perspective, direct address, caesura, rhyme and enjambment. The GCSE Exam – How to write a comparison essay. Comparing ‘Walking Away’ with ‘Before You Were Mine’ and ‘Mother, Any Distance’. Model answers included.

This three-lesson mini-unit is designed to help GCSE students develop their reading assessment skills. It is made up of a 43-slide PowerPoint presentation, 7 worksheets and an assessment task using an extract from the crime novel ‘A Gun for Sale’. Contents: Lesson One An introduction to the ‘Reading Fiction’ section of the GCSE English exam How to approach the exam task Analysing an extract - first and second reading Understanding unfamiliar vocabulary, consolidation and using deduction skills How to write an extended answer about language Lesson Two How to refer to the text and use quotes effectively How to write about structure How to answer a 20 mark evaluation question effectively A 45-minute assessment task Lesson Three Feedback and discussion of student responses All five GCSE-type assessment questions and answers explored in detail Exemplar answers for all five questions GCSE Reading Fiction Comprehension has everything you need to help you develop essential exam skills.

KS3 Comprehension - Jamaica Inn This three-lesson unit is designed to help Year 9 learners develop their comprehension skills in preparation for GCSE. It is made up of a 44-slide PowerPoint presentation, 4 worksheets and a comprehension assessment that uses an extract from Daphne du Maurier’s ‘Jamaica Inn’. Unit Contents: Lesson One An introduction and advice about approaching a GCSE-type comprehension task Analysing the extract – what to do on a first and second reading Understanding unfamiliar vocabulary and reading between the lines How to write an extended answer about language and techniques Lesson Two How to refer to the text and use quotes and quotation marks accurately and effectively How to write an extended answer about structure How to answer a 20 mark evaluation question effectively A 45-minute 5-question comprehension exercise Lesson Three Feedback on student responses to the previous lesson’s comprehension task and discussion of success criteria All five comprehension questions and answers explored in detail Detailed exemplar/model answers for all five questions discussed KS3 Comprehension – Jamaica Inn has everything you need to help you develop essential comprehension skills at upper KS3.

Mother, Any Distance - GCSE English (26-slide PowerPoint and 5 worksheets) This two-lesson mini unit enables GCSE students to explore Simon Armitage’s ‘Mother, Any Distance’ in detail. The first lesson covers the context of the poem and introduces the sonnet form. After a differentiated ‘Do Now’ activity, students undertake tasks in response to information about Armitage’s ‘Book of Matches’. Following this, they are introduced to the Italian and English sonnet and the concept of iambic pentameter. The lesson concludes with a brief ‘true or false’ activity as a learning review. In the second lesson, students apply what they have learnt to an exploration of Armitage’s poem. After a similarly differentiated ‘Do Now’ activity, students undertake a double-sided worksheet and respond to a range of questions that cover content, structure and form and finally, language and imagery. At the end of the lesson, students summarise what the poem is about in no more than 20, 15 or 10 words. Suggested answers are provided for all tasks.

Reading and Understanding Instructions - Year 3 and 4 (32-slide PowerPoint-based lesson with 14 worksheets) This differentiated resource (gold, silver and bronze tasks) introduces Year 3/4 children to instructional texts. It guides them through a whole-class comprehension task and analysis of the main features of instructions before they move on to individual exercises, which are supplied with full answer keys.

Christmas SPAG Activities 2 - KS1 This Christmas themed KS1 SPAG teaching resource concentrates on punctuation, sentence structure, plural nouns and alphabetical order. Content includes: Capital letters and end of sentence punctuation activity with an accompanying worksheet Using commas to separate items in a list explanation with an activity and an accompanying worksheet Possessive apostrophe explanation with an activity and an accompanying worksheet Ordering words in a sentence activity with an accompanying worksheet Singular nouns to plural nouns (adding -s) explanation with activity and an accompanying worksheet Alphabetical order explanation with an activity and accompanying worksheet 'Christmas SPAG Activities 2 - KS1’ is a fully editable resource so you can adapt, personalise and differentiate it to suit your teaching requirements.

GCSE English - Reading Fiction This three-lesson mini-unit is designed to help GCSE students develop their reading assessment skills. It is made up of a 44-slide PowerPoint presentation, 8 worksheets and a reading assessment task using an extract from the novel Frankenstein. Contents: Lesson One An introduction to the ‘Reading Fiction’ section of the GCSE English exam How to approach the exam task Analysing an extract - first and second reading Understanding unfamiliar vocabulary, consolidation and using deduction skills How to write an extended answer about language Lesson Two How to refer to the text and use quotes effectively How to write about structure A 45-minute assessment task Lesson Three Feedback and discussion of student responses All five GCSE-type assessment questions and answers explored in detail Exemplar answers for all five questions GCSE Reading Fiction Skills has everything you need to help you develop essential exam skills.

Christmas SPAG Activities 1 - KS1 This Christmas themed KS1 SPAG teaching resource concentrates on word class, covering many of the curriculum objectives of the year 1 and 2 English programme of study. Content includes: A noun explanation with an activity and an accompanying worksheet An adjective explanation with activities and an accompanying worksheet A verb explanation with activities and two accompanying worksheets An adverb explanation with activities and two accompanying worksheets A word class sorting activity with an accompanying worksheet A Christmas super sentences activity with an accompanying worksheet 'Christmas SPAG Activities 1 - KS1’ is a fully editable resource so you can adapt, personalise and differentiate it to suit your teaching requirements.

Year 9 Comprehension – A Gun for Sale This three-lesson mini-unit is designed to help upper KS3 learners develop their comprehension skills with an eye towards GCSE. It is made up of a 44-slide PowerPoint presentation, 8 worksheets and a comprehension exercise using an extract from Graham Greene’s ‘A Gun for Sale’. Contents: Lesson One An introduction to KS3 comprehension How to approach a comprehension exercise (the dos and don’ts) Approaching an extract – what to look for on a first and second reading Understanding unfamiliar vocabulary and using deduction skills How to write an extended answer about language and techniques Lesson Two How to refer to the text and use quotes effectively How to write an extended answer about structure A 45-minute comprehension exercise Lesson Three Feedback on student responses to the comprehension task and discussion of success criteria All five comprehension questions and answers explored in detail Exemplar/model answers for all five questions Year 9 Comprehension - A Gun for Sale has everything you need to help you develop essential comprehension skills at upper KS3.

A Letter to Father Christmas - KS1 This festive writing teaching resource has been designed for pupils to develop their writing composition and SPAG skills, covering the objectives in the Year 1 and 2 English programme of study. Content includes: Using capital letters and full stops, question marks and exclamation marks with an activity and an accompanying worksheet Verbs in sentences with an activity and an accompanying worksheet Ordering words in a sentence with an activity and an accompanying worksheet Using commas to separate items in a list with an activity and an accompanying worksheet An exemplar letter to Father Christmas with word bank worksheet to accompany the writing to Father Christmas activity 3 differentiated letter to Father Christmas templates ‘A Letter to Father Christmas - KS1’ is a fully editable resource so you can adapt, personalise and differentiate it to suit your teaching requirements.

KS3 Comprehension - Frankenstein This three-lesson mini-unit is designed to help Year 9 learners develop their comprehension skills with an eye towards GCSE. It is made up of a 51-slide PowerPoint presentation, worksheets and a comprehension test using an extract from Frankenstein. Contents: Lesson One An introduction to comprehension at upper KS3 and GCSE How to approach a comprehension task (the dos and don’ts) Approaching an extract - first and second reading Understanding unfamiliar vocabulary, narrative consolidation and using deduction skills How to write an extended answer about language and the writer’s use of techniques Lesson Two How to refer to the text and use quotes effectively How to write an extended answer about structure A 45-minute comprehension task Lesson Three Feedback on pupil responses to the tasks and discussion of success criteria All five comprehension questions and answers explored in detail Exemplar answers for all five questions

The Tempest is a 192-slide PowerPoint-based unit of work with a 22-page booklet of accompanying worksheets. The resource contains a series of engaging lessons designed to develop knowledge and understanding of the play’s context, plot, characters, themes and language. The unit is designed for Year 9 but can be used at GCSE too. It covers a range of activities for pupils of all abilities, such as: How to approach Shakespeare (tips for reading Shakespeare’s language and understanding unfamiliar vocabulary) Analysing the characters Prospero, Miranda, Ariel, Caliban, Ferdinand, Antonio and Sebastian Understanding the play’s plot and subplots Examining Shakespeare’s use of language and poetic imagery Exploring the play’s themes - order and disorder, power and control, colonisation, slavery and freedom, redemption and forgiveness Getting to grips with the historical and social context of the early 1600s (attitudes to foreign countries and colonisation) Understanding Shakespeare’s creation and resolution of conflict and order Varied lessons - comprehension questions, spoken English tasks, extension activities, etc Learning how to write an essay-like answer about a Shakespeare text Use of video to help the learning of key scenes and characters

Porphyria’s Lover is a differentiated two-lesson GCSE mini-unit that explores Robert Browning’s poem in great detail. Designed to teach the poem to GCSE students studying the AQA Anthology, it covers context, structure, form, themes and language and contains an annotated copy of the poem. The 30-slide editable PowerPoint presentation (with 8 accompanying worksheets) contains a range of differentiated activities (all with suggested answers) for students of all abilities. Lesson One Content: Learners are introduced to the poem to help them to gain an understanding of its key ideas. After a differentiated ‘Do Now’ task, learners explore the context of the poem - Victorian attitudes to love, sexuality and women (AO3) - and the nature of the dramatic monologue form (AO2). Pupils complete a task to gain an understanding of the sequence of events in the poem and Browning’s presentation of the relationship between Porphyria and her lover (AO1). Pupils then explore Porphyria’s Lover in depth via discussion of an annotated copy of the poem. The lesson concludes with a brief review that asks learners to respond to a statement about Browning’s presentation of the speaker. Lesson Two Content: Students undertake a more detailed study of ‘Porphyria’s Lover’ exploring the writer’s use of pathetic fallacy, poetic techniques, imagery, rhyme and caesura. After a differentiated ‘Do Now’ task, pupils answer a series of questions which ask them to consider how both language and structural methods shape meaning in the poem. In the learning review, students consider the poem’s key themes, making one point in relation to Browning’s exploration of each theme in the poem.