This engaging and informative lesson enables students to make clear, detailed and well-informed links between Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird and its social and historical context. In particular, students develop their understanding of the 1930s American South, The Great Depression, and racial inequalities, before connecting this understanding with what they read in precisely-selected extracts. The lesson follows a step-by-step learning journey, in which children learn through: Creating American South timelines using clearly explained context cards, in order to establish an understanding of context; Researching further information about the social and historical context of the novel, using a guided research sheet;’ Reading selected extracts from the text, in order to link ideas regarding context and text together; Analysing how the features of context are portrayed in the novel; Peer assessing each other’s learning attempts; Included is: Whole lesson PowerPoint - colourful and comprehensive; Timeline Cards Research Template; Selected extracts (from chapters 1, 9 and 15); Essay template Comprehensive lesson plan. There are also opportunities for group learning, speaking and listening, peer assessment, and whole class discussion. I originally used these resources with year 10 and 11 classes, however colleagues have used them for between year 8 and year 13 with some adaptations. Please note that students will need internet access for the research introduction task. All images are licensed for commercial use, and image rights are listed on the last page of the presentation.

Perfect for enhancing writing tasks, these writing forms templates are perfect for helping to relate to students using a variety of writing forms that they are familiar with. Visually engaging and accurate, these templates can be used across the curriculum, enriching students' writing experiences whilst simultaneously proving their knowledge of texts, characters, key skills, and other learning. Included: - Social media page template - Tabloid newspaper template - Broadsheet newspaper template - Online blogger template - Email template - Whatsapp/messenger template - Postcard template. Most of these documents can be easily edited to suit your students' needs. Please note: All pictures are licensed for commercial use, details of authors can be provided upon the request.

Now with PDF version included! This resource booklet contains a wide range of age-appropriate, engaging, and meaningful comprehension activities for use in guided reading sessions. They are perfect for aiding the progress of children towards meeting the Year 5 expectations within the new National Curriculum framework. Children love learning from these resources, whilst they are also of great use to teachers, as there is explicit information within each task regarding which comprehension strands the task is designed to demonstrate. They are also generic enough to ensure that they are appropriate for use with all texts. Activities and games within the booklet include: - Word Tennis - to enable students to demonstrate that they can: 'Discuss their understanding of new words, and explore the meaning of words in context' - Understanding Literary Heritage Fiction - to enable students to demonstrate that they can: 'Read myths, legends, traditional stories, modern fiction, fiction from our literary heritage, and books from other cultures and traditions." - Conventions Bingo - to enable students to demonstrate that they can: 'Identify and discuss themes and conventions in writing.' - Figurative Language - to enable students to demonstrate that they can: 'Discuss and evaluate how authors use language, including figurative language, to create an impact on the reader.' Plus many more activities (the booklet is around 20 pages in length!) All images are licensed for commercial use, and are cited on a separate document (included.)

This 16-page resource booklet contains a wide range of challenging and engaging comprehension activities for use throughout the reading of William Shakespeare’s 'Sonnet 18: Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?’ The tasks draw on English Literature assessment objectives - suitable for all examining bodies - it is clearly highlighted within each task regarding which assessment strands the task is designed to demonstrate. The booklet is provided in both Word (to allow for easy editing) and PDF (to ensure for consistency of formatting between computers). Activities within the booklet include (amongst many others): ‘Analysing Context’ - helping students to ‘Show understanding of the relationships between texts and the contexts in which they were written.’ ‘Analysing Subject Matter, Language and Structure’ - to help students to ‘Analyse the language, form and structure used by a writer to create meanings and effects, using relevant subject terminology where appropriate.’ ‘Diary Entry’ - to help students to ‘Use a range of vocabulary and sentence structures for clarity, purpose and effect, with accurate spelling and punctuation. Make an informed personal response, recognising that other responses to a text are possible and evaluating these.’ ‘The Speaker’ - to help students to ‘Read, understand and respond to texts. Students should be able to: maintain a critical style and develop an informed personal response use textual references, including quotations, to support and illustrate interpretations.’

This resource booklet contains a wide range of age-appropriate and engaging comprehension activities for use throughout the reading of David Walliams’ ‘Gangsta Granny.’ Teachers have found them particularly useful in comprehension or guided reading sessions. They are perfect for aiding the progress of children towards meeting the upper KS2 expectations within the new National Curriculum framework. Children love learning from these resources, whilst they are also of great use to teachers, as there is explicit information within each task regarding which comprehension strands the task is designed to demonstrate. They also relate to key extracts, characters, and themes from the story, ensuring that children gain a deep understanding of the text. Activities within the booklet include: ‘An Interview with Granny’ - to enable students to demonstrate that they can: ‘Understand what is read by drawing on information from more than one paragraph, identifying key details that support the main ideas, and using quotations for illustration;’ ‘Walliams’ Description’ - to enable students to demonstrate that they can: ‘Explain meanings of words that they know and ask the meaning of new words. Link the meaning of new words to words that they already know;’ ‘Mr Parker Character Profile!’ - to enable students to demonstrate that they can: ‘Understand what is read by drawing on information from more than one paragraph, identifying key details that support the main ideas, and using quotations for illustration;’ ‘Figurative Language in Gangsta Granny’ - to enable students to demonstrate that they can: ‘Discuss and evaluate how authors use language, including figurative language, to create an impact on the reader.’ Plus many, many more activities (the booklet is 21 pages in length!) I’ve also added it as a PDF in case the formatting differs on your computer. All images are licensed for commercial use, and are cited on a separate document (included).

This 16-page resource booklet contains a wide range of challenging and engaging comprehension activities for use throughout the reading of William Blake’s poem 'The Tyger.’ They are perfect for aiding the progress of students learning poetry either in KS3 and KS4 in preparation for poetry/unseen poetry at GCSE, as the tasks draw on English Literature assessment objectives - suitable for all examining bodies - it is clearly highlighted within each task regarding which assessment strands the task is designed to demonstrate. The booklet is provided in both Word (to allow for easy editing) and PDF (to ensure for consistency of formatting between computers). Activities within the booklet include (amongst many others): ‘Analysing Context’ - helping students to ‘Show understanding of the relationships between texts and the contexts in which they were written.’ ‘Analysing Subject Matter, Language and Structure’ - to help students to ‘Analyse the language, form and structure used by a writer to create meanings and effects, using relevant subject terminology where appropriate.’ ‘Diary Entry’ - to help students to ‘Use a range of vocabulary and sentence structures for clarity, purpose and effect, with accurate spelling and punctuation. Make an informed personal response, recognising that other responses to a text are possible and evaluating these.’ ‘The Speaker’ - to help students to ‘Read, understand and respond to texts. Students should be able to: maintain a critical style and develop an informed personal response use textual references, including quotations, to support and illustrate interpretations.’

This engaging and informative lesson enables students to understand the role that the theme of ‘appearances’ plays in R.J. Palacio’s Wonder. In particular, students consider how appearances impact upon our lives on a daily basis, learn more about TCS (the condition affecting the protagonist - Auggie), and link what they find out to information in the novel. They then communicate their own ideas on the subject of judging people based on appearances. There is easily enough content for 2-3 lessons here, following a step-by-step learning journey. Children learn through: -Comprehending how appearances influence our lives - touching on the ideas of representations and stereotyping; -Learning about Treacher Collins Syndrome, through a short engaging video, and distilling key information; -Hot-seating, demonstrating empathy for characters whose appearance is ‘different’; -Linking what they have learnt to what is read in the opening pages of Wonder; -Communicating their ideas about judging people based on their appearances, as a part of a well-structured debate; -Peer assessing each other’s learning attempts. Included is: Whole lesson PowerPoint - colourful and comprehensive; Research template; Writing to Argue helpsheet; Comprehensive lesson plan. All resources are provided in Word (for easy editing) and PDF (to ensure formatting remains fixed between different computers). Word documents are in the zip file. There are also opportunities for group learning, speaking and listening, peer assessment, and whole class discussion. I originally used these resources with a year 6 class, however colleagues have used them for between years 5 and 8 with only minor adaptations. All images are licensed for commercial use, and image rights are listed on the last page of the presentation.

This engaging and informative lesson students to make sustained and developed links between Dickens’ A Christmas Carol and its social and historical context. In particular, students learn about the harsh treatment of the poor in Victorian society, the selfishness and cruelty of those in power, and attitudes towards sin, religion, and the supernatural. The lesson explores how Dickens explores these ideas through the allegorical nature of the text. The lesson follows a step-by-step learning journey, in which children learn through: - Understanding key information about Charles Dickens, his life, and influences; - Researching and sharing key contextual understanding about the rich, poor, healthcare, and religion in the 19th Century; - Reading Stave 1 of ‘A Christmas Carol’ and identifying evidence of contextual influences; - Analysing how Dickens presents his views about the cruelty of 19th Century life through the opening of the text; - Peer assessing each other’s learning attempts. Included is: - Whole lesson PowerPoint - colourful and comprehensive; - Extract - Chapter 1 of A Christmas Carol; - Template for researching 19th Century life (and completed answer sheet for teachers); - Analysis template with success criteria for creating well-structured responses; - Comprehensive lesson plan. There are also opportunities for group learning, peer assessment, and whole class discussion. This was originally taught to mixed ability year 10 groups, but can easily be differentiated for groups of different ages and abilities. All images are licensed for commercial use, and image rights are listed on the last page of the presentation.

This resource booklet contains a wide range of age-appropriate and engaging comprehension activities for use throughout the reading of R.J. Palacio’s 'Wonder.’ Teachers have found them particularly useful in comprehension or guided reading sessions. They are perfect for aiding the progress of children towards meeting the KS2 expectations within the new National Curriculum framework. Children love learning from these resources, whilst they are also of great use to teachers, as there is explicit information within each task regarding which comprehension strands the task is designed to demonstrate. They also relate to key extracts, characters, and themes from the story, ensuring that children gain a deep understanding of the text. Activities within the booklet include: ‘An Interview with Auggie’ - to enable students to demonstrate that they can: ‘Understand what is read by drawing on information from more than one paragraph, identifying key details that support the main ideas, and using quotations for illustration;’ ‘Palacio’s Description’ - to enable students to demonstrate that they can: ‘Explain meanings of words that they know and ask the meaning of new words. Link the meaning of new words to words that they already know;’ ‘Julian Alban’s and Summer’s Character Profiles!’ - to enable students to demonstrate that they can: ‘Understand what is read by drawing on information from more than one paragraph, identifying key details that support the main ideas, and using quotations for illustration;’ 'Figurative Language in ‘Wonder’ - to enable students to demonstrate that they can: ‘Discuss and evaluate how authors use language, including figurative language, to create an impact on the reader.’ Plus many, many more activities (the booklet is 21 pages in length!) I’ve also added it as a PDF in case the formatting differs on your computer. All images are licensed for commercial use, and are cited on a separate document (included).

This engaging and informative lesson enables students to understand the language features used by Michael Morpurgo to depict the horrors of war in War Horse. In particular, students analyse the effectiveness of his similes, metaphors and personification (amongst other devices) before creating their own descriptive device-filled writing about going ‘over the top!’ The lesson follows a step-by-step learning journey, in which children learn through: Defining and exemplifying range of different descriptive techniques; Identifying the descriptive language techniques in use in an extract from War Horse (chapter 8, in which Joey and the cavalry charge over no man’s land towards the enemy); Analysing the effectiveness of Morpurgo’s descriptive language, considering the effect on the reader; Creating their own first person descriptive passages about going ‘over the top’, using each of the descriptive language devices effectively; Peer assessing each other’s learning attempts; Included is: Whole lesson PowerPoint - colourful and comprehensive; Cards for the card-sorting activity; Descriptive language structure strip; Extract from War Horse; Writing to describe helpsheet; Comprehensive lesson plan. There are also opportunities for group learning, speaking and listening, peer assessment, and whole class discussion. I originally used these resources with year 7 and 8 classes, however colleagues have used them for between years 4 and 9 with minimal adaptations. All images are licensed for commercial use, and image rights are listed on the last page of the presentation.

This engaging and informative lesson enables students to gain a detailed insight into the social and historical context of Charlotte Brontë’s Jane Eyre. In particular, students learn about Brontë’s life, class, religion, love and health in the Victorian era – key themes throughout the novel. They then make clear and sustained links between the features of context and the text. The lesson follows a step-by-step learning journey, in which students learn through: Playing a fun and interactive quiz about the life of Charlotte Bronte; Completing carousel activities in groups to learn about the key features of religion, class, love, reputation, and health in the Victorian era; Linking their understanding of context to the key elements of the text; Peer assessing each other’s learning attempts. Included is: Whole lesson PowerPoint - colourful and comprehensive; All resources for the carousel activities, including sheets needed for ‘Religion Researchers’, ‘Ways to Die in Victorian Society’, and ‘Class and Gender Venn Diagrams.’ Linking the novel to social/historical context template; Comprehensive lesson plan. There are also opportunities for group learning, peer assessment, and whole class discussion. These resources were originally taught to GCSE students, but with subtle adaptations they have also been used with both younger and older (up to A Level) students. Please note that one of the carousel activities requires internet access. All images are licensed for commercial use, and image rights are listed on the last page of the presentation.

This engaging and informative lesson enables students to make precise interpretations of the descriptive language used by Michael Morpurgo in his description of Michael’s trip around the world in ‘Kensuke’s Kingdom.’ They learn to define, identify, and analyse the effectiveness of a range of descriptive devices, before applying these to form their own vivid and imaginative descriptions of places. The lesson follows a step-by-step learning journey, in which children learn through: Understanding the scale of the journey that Michael’s family undertakes, through a fun cross-curricular task; Defining each of the different types of descriptive devices, through completing an interactive group activity; Reading extracts from the text in which Michael describes the different places along his trip, and identifying the language techniques used to paint an image of place in the minds of the readers; Analysing the effectiveness of each of Morpurgo’s descriptive devices; Creating their own description of an ‘around the world trip’, utilising appropriate and effective descriptive devices to describe at least two different stops; Peer assessing each other’s learning attempts. Included is: Whole lesson PowerPoint - colourful and comprehensive; Cards for the Card Sorting Activity;’ World Map for the opening activity; Writing to Describe Helpsheet Comprehensive Lesson Plan All resources are provided in Word (for easy editing) and PDF (to ensure formatting remains fixed between different computers). There are also opportunities for group learning, speaking and listening, peer assessment, and whole class discussion. I originally used these resources with year 4 and 5 classes, however colleagues have used them for between years 3 and 8 with some adaptations. The word documents are within the zip file. All images are licensed for commercial use, and image rights are listed on the last page of the presentation.

This engaging and informative lesson enables students to understand the key features of the historical context of World War I, in order to gain a clearer of understanding of Michael Morpurgo’s Private Peaceful. In particular, students learn about the horrific ordeal faced by young soldiers in WWI, and then relate their understanding of historical context to different plot features throughout the text. The lesson follows a step-by-step learning journey, in which children learn through: - Researching and understanding key information about World War I, including enlistment, life in the trenches, and accusations of cowardice; - Linking the key features of context to sections of the text, including descriptions of Tommo’s trench and Charlie’s arrest; - Reading selected extracts from the text, in order to link ideas regarding context and text together; - Creating their own propaganda posters, detailing what war was really like for young soldiers; - Peer assessing each other’s learning attempts; Included is: - Whole lesson PowerPoint - colourful and comprehensive; - Research Template - Links to WWI worksheet (and answer sheet for teachers); - Comprehensive lesson plan. PDFs are included, and Word versions are in the zip file. There are also opportunities for group learning, speaking and listening, peer assessment, and whole class discussion. I originally used these resources with year 7 and 8 classes, however colleagues have used them for between years 3 and 9 with minimal adaptations. Please note that students will need internet or library access to complete the research introduction task. All images are licensed for commercial use, and image rights are listed on the last page of the presentation.

This resource booklet contains a wide range of age-appropriate, engaging, and meaningful comprehension activities for use throughout the reading of Jill Murphy's 'The Worst Witch.' Teachers have found them particularly useful in comprehension or guided reading sessions. They are perfect for aiding the progress of children towards meeting the upper KS2 expectations within the new National Curriculum framework. Children love learning from these resources, whilst they are also of great use to teachers, as there is explicit information within each task regarding which comprehension strands the task is designed to demonstrate. They also relate to key extracts, characters, and themes from the story, ensuring that children gain a deep understanding of the text. Activities within the booklet include: - 'An Interview with Mildred' - to enable students to demonstrate that they can: 'Understand what is read by drawing on information from more than one paragraph, identifying key details that support the main ideas, and using quotations for illustration;' - 'Murphy's Description' - to enable students to demonstrate that they can: 'Explain meanings of words that they know and ask the meaning of new words. Link the meaning of new words to words that they already know;' - 'Mrs Hardbroom!' - to enable students to demonstrate that they can: 'Understand what is read by drawing on information from more than one paragraph, identifying key details that support the main ideas, and using quotations for illustration;' - 'Figurative Language in The Worst Witch' - to enable students to demonstrate that they can: 'Discuss and evaluate how authors use language, including figurative language, to create an impact on the reader.' Plus many, many more activities (the booklet is 22 pages in length!) I've also added it as a PDF in case the formatting differs on your computer. All images are licensed for commercial use, and are cited on a separate document (included).