This engaging and purposeful lesson is the fifth in a series of lessons that enable children to gradually build towards composing an effective, well-structured recount. This lesson focuses on helping children to vary their sentence structures, to produce interesting and imaginative compositions. The eye-catching and comprehensive PowerPoint presentation (20 slides) guides teachers and children along the following learning journey: -Knowledge recall - revisiting what children already know about recounts; -SPAG starter: Identifying word types: nouns, pronouns, verbs, adverbs, adjectives and determiners -Understanding that writing is more interesting and imaginative when writers vary the type of word that they open the sentence with (i.e. not always pronouns and determiners); -Enhancing a boring, monotonous example by adding variety to sentence openers (the worksheet for this is provided, both in Word and PDF); -Improving their earlier written attempts by following steps to increase the variety and quality of their sentences; -Following a model example to develop variety and imagination within the next paragraph of their written compositions (a structure strip is provided, in both PDF and Word format, to help them to organise and sequence this section of their composition); -Reflecting on their learning from across the lesson. These lessons were originally created for children in lower Key Stage 2 (Years 3 and 4). The focus of the recount in these resources is a ‘journey’, but the resources have been made in a way that they can be easily adapted to your chosen topic/ subject matter.

This resource booklet contains a wide range of age-appropriate, engaging, and meaningful comprehension activities for use throughout the reading of Michael Morpurgo’s 'When Fishes Flew.’ 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 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: ‘Morpurgo’s Language Techniques’ - 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;’ ‘Character Analysis of Nandi and Maria’ - 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;’ ‘An Interview with Nandi’ - 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;’ ‘Storyboarders’ - to enable students to demonstrate that they can: ‘Read books that are structured in different ways and for a range of purposes.’ Plus many, many more activities (the booklet is over 20 pages in length!) I’ve also added it as a PDF in case the formatting differs on your computer. The resource is suitable for home/ remote learning.

This engaging and purposeful lesson is the sixth and final lesson in a series of lessons that enable children to gradually build towards composing an effective, well-structured recount. This lesson focuses on helping children to edit and redraft their recount compositions. The eye-catching and comprehensive PowerPoint presentation (18 slides) guides teachers and children along the following learning journey: -Understanding why the learning is important, following a video (hyperlinked) which helps to outline why editing and redrafting is important. Listening to facts about how published artists repeatedly edit and redraft their work; -SPAG starter: Correcting basic SPAG errors in sentences, including spelling/ homophones, inconsistent tense, and omitted capital letters/ punctuation; -Applying this knowledge to proof-read and edit their own compositions; -Revisiting the key features of recounts and ensuring that these features are embedded within their own writing; -Learning the meaning of the term ‘uplevelling’ and understanding how more precise verbs, nouns and adjectives can impact on a sentence; -Employing this knowledge to uplevel their own recount compositions; -Once they are happy with their edits, following clear success criteria for redrafting their writing; -Reflecting on their learning from across the unit. These lessons were originally created for children in lower Key Stage 2 (Years 3 and 4). The focus of the recount in these resources is a ‘journey’, but the resources have been made in a way that they can be easily adapted to your chosen topic/ subject matter.

This engaging and purposeful lesson is the second in a series of lessons that enable children to gradually build towards composing an effective, well-structured recount. In this lesson, children learn to build vocabulary to use in their writing, drawing on a range of word types (nouns, verbs, adjectives and adverbs) and using each of their five senses. The eye-catching and comprehensive PowerPoint presentation guides teachers and children along the following learning journey: -Knowledge recall - revisiting what children already know about recounts; -SPAG starter: Word classes (nouns, adjectives, verbs, adverbs); -Establishing a three-part structure for the recount; -Watching a ‘Climbing Everest’ video (hyperlinked) to gain inspiration and consider how a journey can be structured and described; -Using a clear template and the five senses to build appropriate and effective vocabulary; -Sharing and building upon one another’s vocabulary and ideas; -Reflecting on their learning from across the lesson. The PowerPoint presentation (19 slides) and activity resources needed are provided (the worksheet template is provided in both Word and PDF). These lessons were originally created for children in lower Key Stage 2 (Years 3 and 4). The focus of the recount in these resources is a ‘journey’, but the resources have been made in a way that they can be easily adapted to your chosen topic/ subject matter.

This engaging and purposeful lesson is the first in a series of lessons that enable children to gradually build towards composing an effective, well-structured recount. The first lesson focuses on what recounts are, establishing the main features and techniques. The eye-catching and comprehensive PowerPoint presentation guides teachers and children along the following learning journey: -Knowledge harvesting what children already know about recounts; -SPAG starter: Homophones -Finding out more about recounts and the essential techniques through watching a BBC Teach ‘Michael Rosen’ video, and answering comprehension questions about what they have watched; -Establishing a success criteria for recounts; -Analysing a ‘WAGOLL’ (what a good one looks like) and identifying the features and techniques from the success criteria; -Reflecting on their learning from across the lesson. The PowerPoint presentation and activity resources needed are provided (any readings or worksheets are provided in both Word and PDF). These lessons were originally created for children in lower Key Stage 2 (Years 3 and 4). The focus of the recount in these resources is a ‘journey’, but the resources have been made in a way that they can be easily adapted to your chosen topic/ subject matter.

This whole class reading session aims to develop children’s comprehension skills through a reading of the opening chapter of Michael Morpurgo’s ‘When Fishes Flew.’ The resource pack includes the extract and all of the activities for the session, which the class are guided through via a comprehensive PowerPoint presentation. The reading is followed by a series of activities aiming to develop children’s retrieval, explanation, inference, prediction and summarising skills. It also contains a vocabulary check immediately after the extract is read to clarify any unfamiliar/ difficult language. The tasks are comprised of quick-check questions, solo thinking, pair/ group discussions and deeper thinking activities. The session is best suited for children in upper KS2, but it could feasibly be used with slightly younger and older year groups. The session is also suitable for home/ remote learning.

In this engaging and purposeful lesson, children develop an understanding of the well-known aviator Amelia Earhart, as a part of their study of significant explorers. In particular, they: -Learn who Earhart was and what she is best-known for; -Understand the context of the world in which she lived; -Explain what made her achievements so inspirational; -Evaluate how she demonstrated the characteristics of a successful explorer. The learning is guided by a clear and colourful PowerPoint presentation, which guides students through the following step-by-step journey: -Knowledge recall of basic history skills, key terms, and the meaning of exploration; -Gaining a background understanding of the world in which Amelia Earhart lived, including technological developments and gender expectations; -Learning about her life and her key achievements, and discussing which they feel are most impressive and why; -Discussing how Earhart was an inspiration, through discussing her achievements, legacy and key quotations; -Evaluating how Earhart demonstrated the key characteristics of successful explorers, through a ‘Diamond 9’ activity. -Self-reflecting on the extent to which they believe they have met the learning objective. Included is the comprehensive PowerPoint presentation (21 slides), which contains all of the information needed to teach the lesson. Also included are the templates for the Diamond 9 activity. In the past, I have used this lesson with children in lower KS2 (years 3 and 4) but they could easily be used with upper KS2 - the key learning is aligned with curriculum expectations for history. All images are licensed for commercial use.

In this engaging and purposeful lesson, children develop an understanding of Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay, the first climbers to reach the summit of Mount Everest. In particular, they: -Learn who Hillary and Norgay were and what they are known for; -Explain what made their achievements so incredible; -Learn more about the personality traits of both Hillary and Norgay; -Evaluate how both climbers were recognised after the climb. The learning is guided by a clear and colourful PowerPoint presentation, which guides students through the following step-by-step journey: -Knowledge recall of basic history skills, key terms, and the meaning of exploration; -Gaining a background understanding of the dangers of climbing extremely high mountains; -Watching an engaging video (hyperlinked) to gain a base understanding of the key details of the climb; -Considering the key details and personality traits of both climbers; -Evaluating how the recognition for Hillary and Norgay differed after the successful climb, reflecting on how fair they feel this was; -Self-reflecting on the extent to which they believe they have met the learning objective. Included is the comprehensive PowerPoint presentation (19 slides), which contains all of the information needed to teach the lesson. Also included are the images for the character profile activity. In the past, I have used this lesson with children in lower KS2 (years 3 and 4) - the key learning is aligned with curriculum expectations for history. All images are licensed for commercial use.

In this engaging and purposeful lesson, children develop their understanding of different explorers from over time. In this lesson, children sequence exploration events and compare explorers from over time. Specifically, they: -Recall the achievements of different explorers from across history; -Place significant exploration events in chronological order; -Consider how the role of explorers has changed over time. It was originally taught as the final lesson in a sequence of lessons focusing on different explorers. Please note that to complete the final written task, it does help if children have either been taught the prior lessons in this sequence (available on this platform) or have other prior understanding of at least two explorers. The learning is guided by a clear and colourful PowerPoint presentation, which guides students through the following step-by-step journey: -Knowledge recall of basic history skills, key terms, the meaning of exploration, and the achievements of different explorers; -Following clear instructions and utilising given resources to produce their own timelines of different exploration achievements from between 1400 to the present day. -Using information and prompts to compare and contrast different explorers from across time; -Self-reflecting on the extent to which they believe they have met the learning objective. Included is the comprehensive PowerPoint presentation (20 slides), which contains all of the information needed to teach the lesson. Also included are the event cards for the timeline activity. In the past, I have used this lesson with children in lower KS2 (years 3 and 4) but they could easily be used with upper KS2 - the key learning is aligned with curriculum expectations for history. All images are licensed for commercial use.

This clear, detailed and visually-appealing resource offers a complete reference point for children learning about John Logie Baird, either as a part of their history study of ‘Significant Individuals’, or research into famous scientists and inventors. It contains comprehensive sections entitled: Overview; Times in His Life; Important Vocabulary; John Logie Baird Timeline; Answers to the Important Questions; Top Ten Facts. The resource is designed to be printed onto either A4 or 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.

This fun and original assembly aims to inspire children to be ‘upstanders’ who know how to act when they see unsafe or unkind behaviour. The key aims of the session are to: -Understand why it is important to be an ‘upstander’ and not a ‘bystander;’ -Learn where the word ‘snitch’ comes from and understand why it is never ok to use the word against others in school; -Know the difference between ‘reporting’ and ‘telling tales.’ This assembly is tried and tested, and has always been really well received in the past. It is comprehensive (24 slides in total - there is enough material for a 30-35 minute assembly or perhaps two 15-20-minute assemblies). The slides are visually engaging and well-presented, and the subject matter is tailored to the interests and needs of young people. For example, there is an age-appropriate video to help explain the word ‘upstander’, entrance and exit music relating to the key themes, and references to scenarios and dilemmas that they themselves might find themselves in order to help them to make the right choices in their own lives. No further resources are required - everything that you need to present the assembly is included! It was originally delivered in a primary school, but may be tailored to suit the needs of your own students/ age ranges. The assembly presentation is fairly self-explanatory, but I’ve included guidance notes to assist the speaker just in case. Hope that you find this useful.

This engaging and interesting lesson enables students to demonstrate a clear and developed understanding of the historical context of Willy Russell’s Blood Brothers. In particular, students learn about the key social and historical events that took place in the UK in the 1970s and 80s (particularly around the play’s setting of Liverpool) and apply this understanding to characters and events in the play. The lesson utilises a range of tasks, that require students to be both independent and collaborative learners. It follows this learning journey: Considering and discussing ideas of class and class systems, both historically and in the present day; Sequencing and understanding the key features of the social and historical context of the UK/Liverpool in the 1970s and 80s; Using independent research to enhance their understanding of deeper contextual meanings; Linking the key events of the play to social and historical context, analysing Russell’s key messages; Taking part in a fun, interactive quiz in order to gauge their learning; Self-evaluating their learning in the lesson. Included in this resource pack are: A well-presented, thorough, and informative, whole-lesson PowerPoint presentation; Detailed cards for the sorting/timeline activity, presenting key contextual events; A ‘Researching Context’ template, to help guide students’ research; A template to help scaffold the main task, complete with quotes from the text; A comprehensive teacher guidance form/lesson plan to assist delivery. Resources are provided in both Word (for easy editing)and PDF (to prevent formatting issues between computers). All images in this resource are licensed for commercial use, and are cited on the final slide of the lesson presentation. Please note - the independent research activity (development task) in this resource pack requires students to have access to the internet.

This engaging and purposeful lesson is the second in a series of lessons in which children develop an in-depth understanding of Ancient Greece. There is a particular focus on the achievements of the Ancient Greeks and how these have influenced the world. In this lesson, children learn about Greek City states and how they were formed. In particular, they: -Understand why seafaring was essential for Ancient Greek civilizations; -Describe the seafaring skills that helped City-States to form and thrive. -Name Greek City States and recall key facts about daily life in them. The learning is guided by a clear and colourful PowerPoint presentation, which guides students through the following step-by-step journey: -Knowledge recall of basic history skills and baseline information about the Ancient Greeks; -Understanding key information about the Greek terrain and it necessitated the advancement of seafaring knowledge and skills; -Discussing and understanding the advantages gained by the Greeks by developing seafaring skills, and how this led to the development of city-states; -Learning what ship-building and navigational skills they developed; -Following navigational instructions to find and label the major Greek city states (the map for this is included, as both Word and PDF documents) -Watching an engaging video (hyperlinked) to find out more about life in city-states and how it relied on the sea; -Recalling key information about housing, food, education and work in Greek city-states; -Self-reflecting on the extent to which they feel they have met the learning objective. Included is the comprehensive PowerPoint presentation (23 slides), which contains all of the information needed to teach the lesson, and the maps required for the navigation activity. In the past, I have used this lesson with children in lower KS2 (years 3 and 4), however this was an advanced class and these resources could easily be used with upper KS2. The key learning is aligned with KS2 curriculum expectations for history. All images are licensed for commercial use.

This engaging and purposeful lesson is the sixth and final lesson in a series of lessons in which children develop an in-depth understanding of Ancient Greece. There is a particular focus on the achievements of the Ancient Greeks and how these have influenced the world. In this lesson, children consider how modern society has been influenced by the achievements of the Ancient Greeks. Specifically, they: -Understand how Ancient Greek discovery and learning has impacted the world; -Understand how Ancient Greek democracy and law has impacted the world. -Understand how Ancient Greek sport, culture and religion has impacted the world. The learning is guided by a clear and colourful PowerPoint presentation, which guides students through the following step-by-step journey: -Understanding the meaning of the key concept ‘legacy.’ -Considering Greek achievements in each of the key areas (discovery and learning, democracy and law, and sport, culture and religion) and then linking these achievements to what is seen in the modern world; -Using clear guidance and a structure strip (provided) based on what they have learnt to form a clear, organised response to the enquiry question: 'How have Ancient Greek achievements influenced the world? -Self-reflecting on the extent to which they feel they have met the learning objective, and considering the questions that they have for further learning. Included is the comprehensive PowerPoint presentation (24 slides), which contains all of the information needed to teach the lesson and the structure strip for the main enquiry-response activity (provided in both Word and PDF). In the past, I have used this lesson with children in lower KS2 (years 3 and 4), however this was an advanced class and these resources could easily be used with upper KS2. The key learning is aligned with KS2 curriculum expectations for history. All images are licensed for commercial use.

Based on the popular game show ‘Pointless’, this resource is perfect for use as a whole lesson resource, enrichment option, or revision tool. Editable, so that you can change to any other topic or change questions. (I’ve also added a blank template so that you can make your own games from scratch). Containing almost 30 slides of sound clips and suitably challenging questions, this resource is effective at both promoting engagement and enhancing learning. There are several full rounds of questions to build or revisit knowledge of characters, plot, and themes in ‘The Tempest.’ Round 1. The characters in The Tempest Round 2. Quotations from the text Round 3. Settings and Objects Round 4. Themes in The Tempest The nature of this game ensures that the resource can challenge students of all levels. A blank template has also been added, so that you can create your own games!

Based on the popular game show ‘Pointless’, this resource is perfect for use as a whole lesson resource, enrichment option, or revision tool. Editable, so that you can change to any other topic or change questions. (I’ve also added a blank template so that you can make your own games from scratch). Containing almost 30 slides of sound clips and suitably challenging questions, this resource is effective at both promoting engagement and enhancing learning. There are several full rounds of questions to build or revisit knowledge of characters, plot, and themes in ‘Nineteen Eighty-Four (1984).’ Round 1. The characters in Nineteen Eighty-Four Round 2. Quotations from the text Round 3. Settings and Objects Round 4. Themes in Nineteen Eighty-Four The nature of this game ensures that the resource can challenge students of all levels. A blank template has also been added, so that you can create your own games!

This engaging investigation activity allows students to use develop their innovation, creativity and collaboration skills to control the direction of their enterprise project. The resource set guides students through the entire project, from conception to evaluation, and includes resources/ guidance for the following activities: -Deciding upon different roles within their groups, in order to carry out multiple tasks effectively; -Designing a company name and appropriate logo and slogan; -Researching their product area, including competitors and USPs; -Conducting market research; -Budgeting; -Detailed product design; -Packaging design; -Creating instructions for users; -Formulating and presenting a persuasive pitch; -Surveying the target audience for their feedback; -Self-evaluating strengths and areas for development. A comprehensive PowerPoint presentation guides students through the project. There are at least a week’s worth of resources in here, enabling students to fully immerse themselves in the project. I orignally have used this with KS2 and KS3 students, but they could reasonably be adapted for students in KS4. All images have been cited at the end of the PowerPoint presentation and are licensed for commercial use.

This engaging and informative lesson enables students to use a range of varied and precise noun choices in their writing, through considering the specific meanings of different nouns and their potential synonyms. Students analyse examples of both effective and ineffective writing, considering the use of nouns, and editing where appropriate. They then apply this understanding to their own creative attempts. The lesson follows a step-by-step learning journey, in which children learn through: Understanding that most nouns have synonyms, and identifying these for high-frequency nouns; Developing an expanded vocabulary of varied nouns through a fun and interactive game; Choosing the best noun for different given situations, considering the connotations of words, and justifying their choices; Editing an example of an ineffective text, through implementing a range of interesting and varied nouns; Creating their own creative writing openings, utilising varied and specific nouns ; Peer assessing each other’s learning attempts. Included is: Whole lesson PowerPoint - colourful and comprehensive; Understanding connotations worksheet; -Editing a bad example worksheet, and extension activity; -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 7/8 classes, however colleagues have used them for between years 4 and 9 with some adaptations. All images are licensed for commercial use, and image rights are listed on the last page of the presentation.

This clear, detailed and visually-appealing resource offers a complete reference point for students learning or revising knowledge relating to the dinosaurs. It contains comprehensive sections on: Overview - the who, what, when, where of dinosaurs; Types of Dinosaurs - including Tyrannosaurus Rex, Triceratops, Stegosaurus and Brontosaurus, amongst others; Key Questions about Dinosaurs - including ‘How do we know dinosaurs existed? and How are fossils formed?’ and more; Dinosaur Timeline - including details about the Triassic, Jurassic and Cretaceous Periods; Top Ten Dinosaur Facts! 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). The resource could be adapted for a variety of ages and abilities, but I originally used this with Key Stage 2 children.

This informative session offers Early Years practitioners a more in-depth understanding of how to employ problem-solving activities effectively in their classrooms. It is intended to be used in a short, introductory, information-sharing CPD environment, and took me about 45 minutes to deliver. The session is rooted in findings from educational research (links included) and goes through: Exactly what constitutes problem-solving, and why it is so essential in the broader context of maths education; Key ingredients for ensuring that problem-solving tasks are engaging and effective; Some excellent model examples of problem-solving activities; How to incorporate ‘incidental problem-solving’ into classrooms; Useful links for resources and task ideas, and further reading. I hope that you find it useful!