A thirty minute quiz activity for testing subject knowledge, encouraging discussion, and generating enthusiasm in any classroom. Hardly any teacher preparation is required. This quiz format can be used for any subject. The teacher makes a list of 20 questions on the topic pupils are working on. These can be delivered orally or typed onto the on screen blackboard. There is an optional one minute timer (with sound effects) to focus thinking. Pupils are divided into four mixed ability teams, with one pupil white board per team for writing answers. Scores for correct answers are added to the on screen display. (They can also be deducted if necessary. NOTE: You need to ensure that macros are enabled on your computer in order for the on screen blackboard to work. A security warning will appear when you load the file asking if you want to enable content.

The resource contains the texts of three poems: November and No! by Thomas Hood and an acrostic by Lewis Caroll. Pupils are asked to compare the two texts by Hood and to consider why the poet might have written two versions of what is, essentially, the same poem. They are introduced to the acrostic form and challenged to draft and redraft their own acrostic on November.

This is a nine slide presentation explaining in simple terms how the past subjunctive is used in such phrases as 'If I were you …" A linked worksheet is available separately.

A good resource for KS2 for the period from October to New Year. The non-fiction text is about the problems caused by fireworks in the period lasting from just before Hallowe’en to just after New Year. It is accompanied by a 20 mark comprehension exercise with a mark sheet. The text would make an excellent starting point for class debate, and for a writing assignment on balance argument or persuasive writing. The 15 slide PowerPoint is on capital letters and covers 14 cases when they should be used. It is accompanied by an extract from the reading text which has been stripped of all capital letters.

This resource consists of lesson plans, a PowerPoint presentation and 7 activity sheets. The material is enough for a unit on poetry lasting a week. It’s great for Hallowe’en, but is not limited to that. It is aligned to the following National Curriculum standard: "Prepare poems and plays to read aloud and to perform, showing understanding through intonation, tone and volume so that the meaning is clear to an audience; identifying how language, structure and presentation contribute to meaning; learn a wider range of poetry by heart" The focus is The Hag by Robert Herrick, and the week’s work provides an introduction to the analysis of structure, syllable count, metre and rhyme. It also features related work on glossaries and apostrophes for omission. It is linked to music and drama and provides paired and group activities through the week to support the learning of the poem by heart. The fifth session is intended to be an extended one in order to give pupils the opportunity to put together a performance of their work.

This is a 12 slide presentation which would be useful to anyone who is unsure about what the subjunctive is and how to recognise it. The slides show examples of how the present and past subjunctive appear in 9 set expressions in English. Students are challenged to write sentences using five of the expressions. There is a linked worksheet available separately.

Resource consists of a display copy of the poem Hallowe’en by Joel Benton, together with teacher notes with ideas of how to use the text in the classroom. This is a flexible resource - enough for one lesson or a week’s unit of work, depending on how many of the suggestions are explored. More seasonal poetry resources in my shop.

This is a 6 slide presentation on the use of the past subjunctive to express impossible or unrealistic wishes.

Each of the five worksheets in this pack targets a specific problem children (and many adults) have in the use of spoken and written English. At the top of each worksheet, there is a brief explanation of the rules, and then there are 10 fill the gap sentences where pupils have to insert the correct word of a pair or a limited selection. Answer sheets are provided.

This worksheet could be used for classes from KS2 and beyond. Even more useful, perhaps, for staff training. The subjunctive appears on the curriculum nowadays, but there are few adults who are confident in recognising or using it.

This resource has been written for KS2 and contains enough material for at least one lesson. It consists of a grammar exercise and a creative writing task. On each of 10 slides of the PowerPoint, there is a Hallowe’en themed sentence with the verb in the present tense. The first task is for pupils to change the verb to the past tense and then write it out. The sentences are sequential, and create the beginning of a Hallowe’en story. The writing task is simply to finish the story. Follow-up work could consist of editing and improving the story.

Worksheet on using the past subjunctive and recognising the difference between subjunctive and indicative mood. It’s in the National Curriculum f or KS2 English, but would be equally useful for KS3/4 and for staff training. Linked presentation on the past subjunctive is available separately.

This a a lively look at three versions of the origins of panettone. The comprehension exercise is accompanied by a detailed mark scheme. It should provide enough material for a whole lesson. It’s a great resource for English teachers looking for something that is Christmas themed, but still fits into the curriculum and provides an end of term challenge for pupils.

The resource consists of a copy of the text and a crossword with text-based clues.

Five worksheets targeting words that children often spell or use incorrectly. Some (there,their, they’re) are homophones . Others (who,whom) are used incorrectly because of grammatical difficulties. Good for KS2 and KS3.

The text is the scene where the Ghost of Christmas Past takes Scrooge to view the episode when his fiancee, Belle, tells him the relationship has to end. The comprehension exercise is accompanied by a mark scheme.

This is a 10 question worksheet where students have to fill the gaps in sentences with subjunctive forms of verbs after an expression of wishing.

Teacher controlled PowerPoint for whole class Look Cover Write Check activity. Words are revealed for reading, then hidden while pupils write them on whiteboards or in books. There are 59 two syllable words in the presentation, including some with medial double letters.

This resource has been updated and extended. There is now a 20 slide presentation (with teacher directed animation) which covers the various permutations of the basic Subject/Verb/Object sentence. It is constructed so that the teacher can work through the slides one by one while the pupils write down answers before they are displayed . The word ‘transitive’ is introduced and explained at the beginning of the presentation. The display slide consists of simple sentences demonstrating how to colour code words and phrases into Subject - Verb - Object. On the accompanying worksheet, the task is to colour code sentences. There is also an extension activity for early finishers - adding subordinate clauses to sentences.