This engaging, in-depth lesson enables students to understand how plot and language are utilised to develop the characters of Beatrice and Benedick in William Shakespeare’s ‘Much Ado about Nothing.’ The lesson places a particular focus upon how language is used between the two characters to present the audience with ideas about their intelligence, attitudes, and emotions. Students also analyse how their behaviour develops over the course of the text. The lesson follows a step-by-step learning journey, in which students learn through: - Taking part in a fun team quiz to secure understanding of the two characters; - Completing a 'love graph' (backed up with textual evidence) to show how the prevailing attitudes and emotions of the two characters develops through the text; - Analysing quotations in which Shakespeare used advanced language techniques to portray both of the characters in a particular light; - Completing an essay style response in which they consider how Shakespeare's use of language helps to develop the two characters; - Peer assessing each other's learning attempts. Included is: - Whole lesson PowerPoint - colourful and detailed - just download and teach from it! - Love Graph - to track the two characters' feelings towards one another; - 'Beatrice and Benedick Quotations' worksheet; - 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 higher-ability year 9 and 10 groups, but can easily be differentiated for groups of different ages and abilities.

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 engaging, comprehensive lesson aims to improve students’ understanding of Jane Weir’s contemporary war poem ‘Poppies’ with particular focus upon the symbolism, language, and structure used within the poem. By the end of the lesson, students demonstrate their knowledge of the text analytically, through assured, appropriate, and sustained interpretations. The lesson follows a step-by-step learning journey, in which children learn through: - Defining what symbols are, and considering some popular examples (including poppies); - Securing contextual understanding of both the use of poppies, and Jane Weir the poet; - Reading and interpreting the poem, using a provided line-by-line analysis, and interactive group activities; - Developing their understanding through inferring and analysing key language and structural choices; - Analysing how the themes of loss and remembrance are conveyed through Weir's use of symbolism; - Peer assessing each other's learning attempts. Included is: - Whole lesson PowerPoint - colourful and substantial; (including hyperlinks to informative and engaging videos) - Copy of poem; - Deeper thinking worksheet (and teacher answer sheet); - 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 middle-ability year 9/10 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 engaging, comprehensive lesson aims to improve students’ understanding of Carol Ann Duffy’s contemporary war poem ‘War Photographer’ with particular focus upon the language and structure used within the poem to depict the photographer’s experiences. By the end of the lesson, students demonstrate their knowledge of the text analytically, through assured, appropriate, and sustained interpretations. The lesson follows a step-by-step learning journey, in which children learn through: - Defining the role of the war photographer, and understanding difficulties in their job; - Securing contextual understanding of Carol Ann Duffy - the poet; - Reading and interpreting the poem, using a provided line-by-line analysis, and interactive group activities; - Developing their understanding through inferring and analysing key language and structural choices; - Understanding how the war photographer's life varies between war-torn locations and 'Rural England;' - Analysing how language and structure are used to portray the photographer' experiences; - Peer assessing each other's learning attempts. Included is: - Whole lesson PowerPoint - colourful and substantial; (including hyperlinks to informative and engaging videos) - Copy of poem; - Deeper thinking worksheet (including a scaffolded version, and a teacher answer sheet); - 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 middle-ability year 9/10 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 interesting and highly-stimulating lesson enables students to make clear and sustained inferences and interpretations about the context and themes in Arthur Miller’s A View from the Bridge. In particular, students engage analytically with Alfieri’s opening monologue, demonstrating an understanding of what it reveals about Italian American culture and community at the time. The lesson follows a clear, logical, bite-size learning journey, which guides students towards differentiated learning objectives. Over the course of this journey, they become able to: - Understand the relevance of Brooklyn Bridge, both literally and figuratively; - Understand the relevance of Arthur Miller's life and influences; - Read and understand Alfieri's opening monologue, in which the geographical, social, and historical context is set, and infer and interpret the key information provided; - Understand the key term 'Omerta', and apply codes of honour to their own contexts; - Analyse Alfieri's opening monologue in terms of the key information it provides the audience with about context and community; -Peer assess each other's learning attempts. This resource pack includes: - A visually engaging whole-lesson PowerPoint presentation;; - Paper copies and online links to the extract needed for the lesson (Alfieri's opening monologue); - Cards for application activity; - Interpretations and inferences worksheet (including answer sheet for teachers); - A logically scaffolded essay template; - A detailed lesson plan, complete with what the teacher and students should aim to achieve at each stage of the lesson. All images are licensed for commercial use, and are cited on the final slide of the PowerPoint.

This interesting and engaging lesson enables students to build their understanding Arthur Birling, one of the chief protagonists in J.B. Priestley’s ‘An Inspector Calls.’ In particular, students learn about his characteristics, his attitudes and opinions towards the world around him and other people, and also his relevance to Priestley’s social and historical context. The lesson follows a clear, logical, bite-size learning journey, which guides students towards differentiated learning objectives. Over the course of this journey, they become able to: - Recall and understand the key features of Birling's character profile; - Link Birling to the social and historical context of the play; - Understand how Birling's character is significant in terms of Priestley's key message; - Read and understand the section of the play in which Birling is interviewed by the inspector; - Analyse key quotations by and about Birling in the text; - Read and understand the opening of the play; - Create a diary-entry piece in which they consider Birling's morals and sense of responsibility for the death of Eva Smith; -Peer/self-assess learning attempts. This resource pack includes: - A visually engaging whole-lesson PowerPoint presentation; - Images of Birling to be annotated for the starter task; - A clear and interesting worksheet for the introductory task; - An extract from Act 1 of the play for students to read and interpret; - P.E.E template for students to complete their character analysis; - A detailed lesson plan, complete with what the teacher and students should aim to achieve at each stage of the lesson. All images are licensed for commercial use, and are cited on the final slide of the PowerPoint.

This engaging and interesting lesson aims to improve students' knowledge of the social, historical, and cultural context of John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men. It also aims to build their skills in creating clear and specific links between the text and it's context, focusing on a specific extract from the novel. The lesson uses a range of tasks, that require students to use their visual and interactive skills. It follows this learning journey: - Understanding what dreams are and how they differ for each of us; - Defining the American Dream, The Wall Street Crash and The Great Depression; - Creating a timeline which visually depicts the other influential events of the time; - Reading and reflecting on an extract from the text; - Analysing the links between texts and contexts, from a success criteria; - Evaluating each others' analytical attempts. All images in this resource are licensed for commercial use, and are cited on the final slide of the lesson presentation. You can choose to buy this resource alone, or as part of the 'Of Mice and Men - All Lessons and Scheme' bundle, which contains seven full lessons, resources, teachers notes, and PowerPoint presentations, plus a Pointless Of Mice and Men game, for just £5!

This engaging and informative lesson enables students to make insightful and developed interpretations of Dickens’ use of language in describing ‘The Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come’ in A Christmas Carol. In particular, they explore how the descriptive language used to describe the appearance, mannerisms, and movements aid the haunting portrayal of the ghost. The lesson follows a step-by-step learning journey, in which children learn through: - Reading and understanding the key plot elements of stave 4 - in which The Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come appears; - Identifying and exemplifying the key language features used by Dickens in describing the ghost, including its appearance, actions, and mannerisms; - Analysing the extent to which the language used creates a haunting and imposing image of the ghost; - Peer assessing each other's learning attempts. Included is: - Whole lesson PowerPoint - colourful and comprehensive; - Extract - Stave 4 of A Christmas Carol; - Dickens' Language: The Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come Worksheet (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 engaging and detailed lesson aims to improve students’ understanding of the social and historical context of Mary Shelley’s gothic horror novel: Frankenstein. The lesson places a particular focus upon the developments in health, science, and technology at the time the text was written and set, the locations visited by the author, and the life of Mary Shelley. By the end of the lesson, students demonstrate their ability to link their understanding of context to specific sections of the text. The lesson follows a step-by-step learning journey, in which children learn through: - Considering how life has changed between the end of the 18th Century and the present day; - Researching key information about health, scientific understanding, and major events in the late 1700s; - Understanding the features of locations in the novel, and interpreting what they may symbolise; - Developing their understanding of the author: Mary Shelley, and considering the key events in her life that influenced her writing of Frankenstein; - Linking knowledge of time, place, and author, and relating these to specific areas of the text; - Peer assessing each other's learning attempts. Included is: - Whole lesson PowerPoint - colourful and substantial; (including an animated Frankenstein's monster to guide them through the lesson, and links to helpful websites); - Comparison between 1700s and the present day worksheet (and a teacher answer sheet); - Card sorting activity based on locations in the novel; - Mary Shelley worksheet (and a teacher answer sheet); - 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 middle-ability year 9/10 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. NOTE: One of the tasks requires access to researching materials, e.g. internet or library access.

This resource booklet contains a wide range of age-appropriate, engaging, and meaningful comprehension activities for use throughout the reading of John Boyne's 'The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas.' Teachers have found them particularly useful in comprehension or guided reading sessions. They are perfect for aiding the progress of children towards meeting the KS3 expectations within the new National Curriculum framework. Children have found these resources extremely engaging, and for teachers 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: - 'Context: The Holocaust' - to enable students to demonstrate that they can: 'Know the purpose, audience and context of the writing and drawing on this knowledge to support comprehension.' - 'Boyne's Description - The Ending' - to enable students to demonstrate that they can: 'Know how language, including figurative language, vocabulary choice, grammar, text structure and organisational features, present meaning.' - 'Bruno's Father' and 'Shmuel' - to enable students to demonstrate that they can: 'Study setting, plot, and characterisation, and the effects of these.' - 'Vocabulary Inspector' - to enable students to demonstrate that they can: 'Learn new vocabulary, relating it explicitly to known vocabulary and understanding it with the help of context and dictionaries.' 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).

These interesting and engaging resources enable students to build their understanding of the context of J.B. Priestley’s play ‘An Inspector Calls.’ In particular, students learn how to make clear and appropriate links between the social and historical context and the play itself. This gives students a really stable knowledge-base from which to make inferences and interpretations about other parts of the play. The lesson follows a clear, logical, bite-size learning journey, which guides students towards differentiated learning objectives. Over the course of this journey, they become able to: - Recall the main events that occurred between 1912 and 1945, through an interactive group activity; - Remember some key information about J.B Priestley and his beliefs; - Read and understand the opening of the play; - Make links between the opening of the play and the historical context - both in term of when the play was set, and when it was written; - Analyse how Priestley links historical context to his characters, in order to get his messages across to the audience; -Peer/self-assess learning attempts. This resource pack includes: - A visually engaging whole-lesson PowerPoint presentation; - A clear and interesting worksheet for the development task; - The opening of the text for students to read and interpret; - Context information cards for the card-sorting game; - A detailed lesson plan, complete with what the teacher and students should aim to achieve at each stage of the lesson. All images are licensed for commercial use, and are cited on the final slide of the PowerPoint.

This clear, detailed and visually-appealing resource offers a complete reference point for students learning or revising knowledge relating to the Vikings. It contains comprehensive sections on: Viking routes map (annotated); Viking Leaders and Explorers; Viking timeline; Viking places and events; Viking daily life. The resource is designed to be printed onto A3, and is provided as both a PDF and a Word version (so that you can edit if you want to). All images used are licensed for commercial use and are cited on a separate document (included). It is most suitable for children in KS2 and KS3.

These comprehensive checklists have been created to aid school leaders when performing learning walks with a particular focus e.g. questioning, differentiation, etc. Clearly structured and organised, they present a central idea surrounded by a breakdown of a number of its key components. For the user, this layout provides a simple reference list of each of the desirable skills, categorised appropriately. The checklists also provide an alternative to regular feedback methods, which often focus too heavily on the standard or ‘judgement’, as opposed to being a developmental tool. Alternatively, these are really handy for teachers looking to develop their practice in the key teaching areas listed below. Included in the pack are checklists for: -Questioning -Differentiation -Utilising Resources (including support staff) -Engagement -Building Literacy Skills -Planning and Expectations -Building Learning Power -A blank template for you to design your own based upon your own focus Note: The checklists are provided as both PDFs (for formatting stability) and Word (so that you can edit them easily) - the Word versions are in the zipfile. Many Thanks