...even tackles Dactylic Dimeter! This is an interesting poem which features in both AQA and Edexcel's anthology of Literature exam poems. The poem, if you don't know it, describes the advance made by the Light Brigade during the Battle of Balaclava, part of the Crimean War. It is a conflict poem which explores the themes of glory and tragedy in war which can be linked to other poems taught within a unit. The lesson begins by showing students some images of the Crimean war and asks them to list what they teach them about the battle and the context, thus predicting what the poem could be about. There is then a slide which lists important facts about the battle which are easy to read and discuss as a class. They are then introduced to the 'WPSLOMP' method of analysing poetry which they can then apply in pairs before colour coding quotes which explore the themes of violence and bravery. The ideas they pull together for this can then be pulled together as a class and there are slides which reveal the devices for them to then write about. I have added 2 slides to this presentation which go into depth about structure for more able students - particularly on Dactylic Dimeter which can be hard to explain. There is a clear annotation of a stanza and an explanation of how it works to add the crucial rhythm which this poem is famous for. The lesson ends with a chance for students to write independent essay paragraphs with AQA's exam success criteria but this can be adapted for your course. There are 3 options on how to approach essay writing: 'layers of meaning', PEA, or the 'reading ladder' which follow the same idea. There is then an opportunity to self or peer assess according to the key skills. Attached is; - A powerpoint with the lesson clearly outlined - A handout of glossary style word banks which students can stick into their anthologies - Essay PEA styles sentence starters writing frames for weaker students (these refer to a different essay question to the lesson but can be adapted) Within this powerpoint are also links to online analyses of the poem as well as the BBC Bitesize video.

In this lesson students are asked to explore how Stevenson uses patterns of imagery within the novel. The lesson starts by asking students to define descriptive devices that are used throughout the novel. Students are then offered a sheet of quotes from the novel which are examples of those devices. They can stick them in their books, annotate and highlight them in pairs and then the teacher can annotate them on the board where the class can feedback their ideas. Students are encouraged to think about the following questions: - What device is used and why? - Do these quotes links to others elsewhere? - How is the modern/Victorian reader supposed to react? - How does this imagery create an atmosphere? The lesson ends with a chance for students to write essay paragraphs independently using provided sentence starters which come in 3 formats: a 'layers of meaning' approach, PEA or the 'reading ladder'. An opportunity to self or peer assess their essay writing follows this. The success criteria provided refers to the AQA English Literature course but can be adapted to suit your course. All lessons in this series include: - Links to online videos (see 'notes' under Powerpoint slides) - Starter tasks which introduce the main idea of the lesson - Handouts of extracts from the novel - Differentiated tasks (the starter task has a 'challenge' and a word box appears by the quotes for weaker students) - Opportunities for pair and group talk within activities ('Talk for Writing') - Alternating opportunities for self and peer assessment - Essay writing prompts to allow students to write about the text - References to the AQA English Literature mark scheme, particularly to the demands for attaining a grade 5 - what is considered a 'good pass' for the qualification. It's suggested that you download the whole series to appreciate the full learning journey.

Even covers Iambic Tetrameter and Trimeter! This poem is featured in some GCSE English Literature syllabuses and explores themes such as loss, jealousy and courtly love which allows it to be useful to compare to other poems or texts. Attached is a bundle of resources: - A copy of the poem with a suggested colour code for students to identify key devices - A copy of the poem with annotations and detailed explanations of the poem's structure - (optional) a grid sheet asing how provided quotes reveal a loss of innocence - A powerpoint presentation of the lesson detailed below. The lesson starts by asking students to consider typical themes in poems about love and gives contextual details about Rossetti for a challenge task aimed at higher ability students. In pairs, students are then asked to read the poem and construct a flow chart of what is described and there is an optional task to match imagery to quotes. There is also a colour activity where students are to identify devices and they are welcome to annotate the effect of these since this is on an A3 page. The lesson ends with a chance for students to write essay paragraphs independently using provided sentence starters which come in 3 formats: a 'layers of meaning' approach, PEA or the 'reading ladder'. An opportunity to self assess essay writing follows this. The success criteria provided is very generic for all exam boards/ages and can be adapted to suit your course.

This lesson asks students to analyse what Mrs Birling’s dialogue shows about her as a character and consider how the audience is meant to react. The lesson starts by asking students to consider what what role she plays and how she develops as a character. There is a 'challenge task' also provided which asks them to think about how a modern audience responds to her. There is a list of quotes from across the play attached as a handout which students can think about in pairs and they can then be annotated on the board by students/the teacher. Students are then asked to list the positive and negative aspects of her character and what she does across the play. There are some suggestions which follow this. The lesson ends with a chance for students to write independent essay paragraphs with the AQA English Literature GCSE success criteria which can be adapted for your course. There are 3 options on how to approach essay writing: 'layers of meaning', PEA, or the 'reading ladder' which follow the same idea. There is then an opportunity to self or peer assess according to the key skills.

This lesson asks students to analyse what Mr Birling’s dialogue shows about him as a character and consider how the audience is meant to react. The lesson starts by asking students to consider what his attitudes expose about attitudes in 1912 and what he symbolizes as a 'challenge' task. 2 extracts from the play follow this which students can think about in pairs and they can then be annotated on the board by students/the teacher. There is a handout to use with this task attached which has a word box to explain some of his political comments. Also attached is a list of quotes from across the whole play which illustrate a range of ideas about Arthur (either what he says or what others say about him). Students can annotate these in their books or they can be blown up to A3 size to write on. The lesson ends with a chance for students to write independent essay paragraphs with the AQA English Literature GCSE success criteria which can be adapted for your course. There are 3 options on how to approach essay writing: 'layers of meaning', PEA, or the 'reading ladder' which follow the same idea. There is then an opportunity to self or peer assess according to the key skills.

Attached is a lesson which asks students to analyse how Steinbeck introduces Crooks in chapter 4 and interests the reader in him. The lesson starts by asking students to list what they know about the context of 1930's America and black people lives then. The second slide gives some facts about the end of slavery, lynching and the Jim Crow laws. Students are then asked in pairs or groups to read the quotes from chapter 4 (either before of after reading it in full) which are on the hand out sheet and consider what they show about him as a person. On the powerpoint there are some suggestions including references to any techniques that Steinbeck uses for effect. The lesson ends with a chance for students to write independent essay paragraphs with a generic success criteria which can be adapted for your course. There are 3 options on how to approach essay writing: 'layers of meaning', PEA, or the 'reading ladder' which follow the same idea. There is then an opportunity to self or peer assess according to the key skills. As with all my lessons, there are 'Talk for Writing' activities and Challenge tasks for more able students.

Attached is a bundle of resources which will help explore the character of Crooks in the novel 'Of Mice and Men'. The first 3 documents offer quotes which either describe Crooks or are part of his dialogue from across the whole novel. The last 2 documents focus on his role particularly in chapter 4 of the story where he attempts to undermine Lennie and becomes interested in the 'dream ranch' discussed by Candy and Lennie. Students can use the quote sheets to annotate their thoughts about him and to make links using coloured pens (the 'quote explosion' looks great on a display). There is a A3 essay plan sheet where students have plenty of room to plan their ideas for each paragraph - an ideal homework activity.

This lesson asks students to identify useful quotes about Eric and explain what they show about him and the world in which he lives. The lesson starts by asking students to consider what sins he committed in the play and what he symbolizes as a 'challenge' task. There are suggested answers to these questions which could be discussed as a class. 2 extracts from the play follow this which students can think about in pairs and they can then be annotated on the board by students/the teacher. Students are then asked to list the positive and negative aspects of his character and what he does across the play. There are some suggestions which follow this. Also attached is a list of quotes from across the whole play which illustrate a range of ideas about Eric (either what he says or what others say about him). Students can annotate these in their books or they can be blown up to A3 size to write on. The lesson ends with a chance for students to write independent essay paragraphs with the AQA English Literature GCSE success criteria which can be adapted for your course. There are 3 options on how to approach essay writing: 'layers of meaning', PEA, or the 'reading ladder' which follow the same idea. There is then an opportunity to self or peer assess according to the key skills.

Attached are two lessons which guide students in planning and performing a role play based sketch which explores the themes within the play 'An Inspector Calls' by J.B Priestley. Since students have the option of studying this for their English Literature GCSE it's often a good idea to ask them to rehearse or perform a Speaking and Listening assessment based on it as it's got a range of ideas to discuss. Lesson 1: Students are asked to consider which skills they need to work well within a group and generally in terms of being a good listener and public speaker. Suggestions are listed on the next slide and they are introduced to AQA's mark scheme (Pass, Merit, Distinction). They then have the choice of 3 scenarios based on characters and moments within the play. Some of these are hypothetical situations which may not have happened but are plausible and provide good scope for emotional conflict - these might be best explored by a stronger group which you could select. Attached is a planning sheet with logical steps on how to approach them. There is a chance to rehearse and peer assess notes. Lesson 2: Students are asked to check their notes and add any last ones before performing. Attached is a peer assessment tick sheet which is also useful for teachers to use and log grades whilst the class watches. At the end of the performances students are asked to consider the best performances and justify why as well as noting down their final judgement of their own performance linking it to the success criteria.

Attached are materials for 5 -6 lessons where students are given a list of ambitious words. Using either a computer or dictionary, working alone or in groups, they are to look up those words and attempt to use them within sentences. They are to write their findings on the attached sheet which encourages them to guess their meaning before hand and also investigate the origins of the word before looking it up. The lessons ends with a peer assessment of the sentences that they've made with them and extension task (instructions on how to make a word cloud online). The lists of words can be edited to include easier or harder words. These lessons would be useful for stronger KS3 / 4 sets or as lessons used in GAMA/G+T withdrawal or general learning support.

This is a lesson on a poem about the First World War which features in Edexcel and AQA's anthology of Literature exam poems. The poem, if you don't know it, describes the hopelessness of war and misery whilst living as a soldier in the trenches. It is a conflict poem which explores the themes of violence and fear in war which can be linked to other poems taught within a unit. It's particularly useful to compare to 'Bayonet Charge' by Ted Hughes and 'Remains' by Simon Armitage. The lesson begins by asking students to list what they know or can guess about the poet and the conditions in the trenches. There is then a slide which introduces them to Owen and gives a short list of important facts to consider. Students are then introduced to the 'WPSLOMP' method of analysing poetry which they can then apply in pairs before colour coding quotes which are examples of metaphors, simile and personification. The ideas they pull together for this can then be explored as a class and the slides can be annotated by the teacher on the board. Students are then asked to think about structure and there is a slide which introduces them to tercets, para-rhyme and explains the rhyme scheme. The lesson ends with a chance for students to write independent essay paragraphs with AQA's exam success criteria but this can be adapted for your course. There are 3 options on how to approach essay writing: 'layers of meaning', PEA, or the 'reading ladder' which follow the same idea. There is then an opportunity to self or peer assess according to the key skills. As with all my lessons, there are 'Talk for Writing' activities and Challenge tasks for more able students. Attached is; - A powerpoint with the lesson clearly outlined - A handout of glossary style word banks which students can stick into their anthologies - Essay PEA styles sentence starters writing frames for weaker students. - Links to online videos/readings (see 'Notes' under slides).

This is an English lesson on the poem ‘Frederick Douglass’ by Robert Hayden which explores the legacy of the escaped slave who became an Abolitionist campaigner. It discusses the themes of prejudice and freedom which can be linked to other poems taught within a unit. The lesson begins by asking students to consider their emotional reaction to images portraying Afro-Americans in the 1830s. There is then a slide which introduces them to Frederick Douglass and offers facts about his life as well as providing a video link. Students are then introduced to the ‘WPSLOMP’ method of analysing poetry which they can then apply in pairs before colour coding quotes which are examples of repetition and positive and negative ideas / imagery, as well as some more challenging features. The ideas they pull together for this can then be explored as a class and the slides can be annotated by the teacher on the board and there are also some quotes colour coded as the answers. Students are then asked to think about structure and there is a slide which asks them to consider why the poet broke the rules of a sonnet in this poem. The lesson ends with a chance for students to write independent essay paragraphs with an adaptable success criteria but this can be adapted for your course. Here I have used SQUID (Statement, Quote, Infer, Device/Develop which is similar to PEA). There is then an opportunity to self or peer assess according to the key skills. As with all my lessons, there are ‘Talk for Writing’ activities and Challenge tasks for more able students. Attached is: A powerpoint with the lesson clearly outlined The poem with a word bank on it Links to online videos/readings (see ‘Notes’ under slides). An extension task: write a poem about your chosen hero using this poem as inspiration. All images are from Openclipart.org or Wiki Commons.

‘Free Writing’ is where students write ‘stream of consciousness’ style passages under timed pressure without a chance to pause or worry about planning first. It’s asking them to be creative, impulsive and to take risks. I have designed this to be a series of 8 tasks done in ‘rounds’ which are clearly marked, however you may want to use them as starters across a few lessons. There is a template for each round if you’d like to use it. Blowing it up to A3 will obviously mean that students would have more space in which to write. There is an opportunity to peer assess at the end of each round so that students can see what others have done. All images are copyright free. Of course they can be adapted to suit your students’ needs.

This is a lesson inspired by the idea published by the National Poetry Society. It invites students to plan and write a piece of creative writing based on a physical object - here a button from an item of clothing. All you need is a jar of assorted buttons to inspire your students! This works really well with students of all year groups and abilities. The resources attached take students through the various stages of planning, writing and reflection time. As with all my lessons, there are ‘Talk for Writing’ activities and Challenge tasks for more able students. Attached is; A powerpoint with the lesson clearly outlined (it could of course be broken down into different lessons) A Word document planning grid which you can edit if needed.

Attached is a lesson where students are asked to identify how a writer has structured a text and comment on how that interests a reader (AO2, 3, 4). It uses an extract from 'I'm the King of the Castle' by Susan Hill. To start, students are asked to define the word 'structure' when we apply it to texts and as a 'challenge task' to list all the forms of structural devices that they are aware of. Slides follow with suggestions and a brief explanation of the AOs that they are assessed on by AQA in the English Language Paper 1. Students are then presented with the exam style question which in pairs they can identify the key words and suggest what the examiner is really looking for. The extract is attached with a word box and planning tasks which, after reading, students can tackle alone or with others. Another useful planning task follows where students are encouraged to break the story down into 4 stages. Suggestions for this follow on the next slide. The extract itself appears on the PowerPoint so that the teacher can annotate it on the board. The lesson ends with a chance for students to write structured paragraphs in response to the question and there are sentence starters in the form of PEA attached to help. The lesson ends with a chance to self assess, referring to the success criteria for a grade 5. This lesson, as my others, includes 'Talk for Writing' activities, pair and group tasks and differentiated tasks.

In this lesson students are asked to compare two major characters in Fitzgerald's novel, leading to an essay response. This powerpoint and attached extract provides AS students with ideas to build an essay exploring characterisation and encourages them to make links across the novel or at least the first few chapters if that's all they've read. This lesson has a reminder of AQA's AS level course structure (English Literature A -7711/2) and how students are marked in the Prose Paper 2 'Love through the Ages' which is also referred to in the essay success criteria. There is a simplified mark scheme and an essay checklist attached for students to use when they peer assess each others' essays. The checklist has 3 columns for assessment - self, peer, teacher and a box for teacher feedback - there are 2 versions of this attached so you have the choice of editing this to your needs.

In the lesson students are asked to create an interesting gothic style villain to use in their creative writing (AO5.1, 5.2). I put this lesson together for a year 9 scheme of work which referred to the AQA English Language marking criteria but the success criteria can be adapted beyond a level 3 so that it's more demanding for a year 10/11 class. To begin students are asked to consider Count Dracula's past (see the other lesson I did on him although it's not vital to use to do this lesson). This leads to a discussion about how important a villains' back story can be and whether they are sympathetic to readers at all. For this I have provided a link to the 'Dracula Untold' trailer which explores this idea. Next to get their creative juices flowing these are 2 slides with images of villains on them - students can work in pairs to write descriptive sentences about them using a list of key skills ranging from adjectives, similes to harder ones such as oxymoron and adverbs. Next students are asked to make up a gothic-style villain of their own and write a profile of them. The lesson ends with a chance to peer assess a partner's and offer advice on how their character plan could be improved.

This is an English lesson on the poem ‘America’ by the Jamaican born poet Claude Mckay. In it he explores his feelings about becoming an American citizen and lamenting how badly black people were treated by the establishment. It discusses the themes of prejudice and freedom which can be linked to other poems taught within a unit (see my poem on Frederick Douglass in my shop). The lesson begins by asking students to make judgements based on a group of images and consider the lifestyle of black Americans within the 1920s when Claude had moved there. There is then a slide which introduces them to some facts about the social context and another which offers facts about McKay’s life. There is then a slide reminding students of how sonnets are constructed and asks them to identify the clues that suggest that this poem is one and why that would be appropriate considering the content. Students are then introduced to the ‘WPSLOMP’ method of analysing poetry which they can then apply in pairs before colour coding quotes which are examples of personification and imagery well as some more challenging features. The ideas they pull together for this can then be explored as a class and the slides can be annotated by the teacher on the board and there are also some quotes colour coded as the answers. The lesson ends with a chance for students to write independent essay paragraphs with an adaptable success criteria but this can be adapted for your course. Here I have used SQUID (Statement, Quote, Infer, Device/Develop which is similar to PEA). There is then an opportunity to self or peer assess according to the key skills. As with all my lessons, there are ‘Talk for Writing’ activities and Challenge tasks for more able students. Attached is: -A powerpoint with the lesson clearly outlined -The poem with a word bank on it -Link to online videos (see ‘Notes’ under slides). -An extension task: write a poem about your country (here the UK) using this poem as inspiration. All images are from Openclipart.org or Wiki Commons.

In this lesson students are asked to comment on what Lady Macbeth's use of language shows about her intentions within the story. As with the last lesson, there is emphasis on how dramatic irony works within scene. Students are asked to identify where she is deliberately being polite in order to hide her murderous intentions towards Duncan who has arrived at her castle. After this stage, students are then asked to find imagery within her dialogue which is a key skill that these lessons encourage throughout the project. All lessons in this series include: - Links to online videos (see 'Notes' under Powerpoint slides) - Starter tasks which introduce the main idea of the lesson - Differentiated tasks - Opportunities for pair and group talk within activities ('Talk for Writing') - Handouts of scenes or a selection of quotes from scenes studied - Alternating opportunities for self and peer assessment - Essay writing prompts to allow students to write about the scene - References to the AQA English Literature mark scheme for Paper 1, particularly to the demands for attaining a grade 5 - what is considered a 'good pass' for the qualification. It's suggested that you download the whole series to appreciate the full learning journey.

This lesson asks students to analyse what Sheila Birling’s dialogue shows about her as a character and consider how the audience is meant to react. The lesson starts by asking students to list the moment important moments in the play involving her. There is a ‘challenge task’ also provided which asks them to think about what she may symbolise to a modern audience. There is a list of quotes from across the play attached as a handout which students can think about in pairs and they can then be annotated on the board by students/the teacher. Students are then asked to list the positive and negative aspects of her character and what she does across the play. The lesson ends with a chance for students to write independent essay paragraphs with the AQA English Literature GCSE success criteria which can be adapted for your course. There are 3 options on how to approach essay writing: ‘layers of meaning’, PEA, or the ‘reading ladder’ which follow the same idea. There is then an opportunity to self or peer assess according to the key skills.