Lesson 3 in the scheme of work on writing in the dystopian genre. The lesson could be used as a one-off resource but is designed to build on students’ prior knowledge of noun phrases, non-finite clauses and adverbials. The resource asks students to think about the conventions of the genre and then asks them to write their own story openings. An original exemplar story opening is included to discuss / annotate with the class, which showcases the techniques practised in the previous two lessons. The lesson has been designed for use with high-ability year 7s, but would equally be suitable for students in years 5, 6 or 8, dependent upon ability.

The second in a sequence of lessons on dystopian fiction which builds upon grammatical skills for writing. The resource works as a stand-alone lesson too. The lesson introduces students to adverbs and adverbial phrases through the blurb of Gone by Michael Grant, getting them to identify the different types of adverbial in the text before asking them to write their own blurb or story opening in the dystopian genre. This lesson was designed for Year 7 but could work for students in years 5, 6 or 8 dependent upon ability.

An introductory lesson aimed at Year 7 students on dystopian writing. The resource could be used with students in 5, 6 or 8 too, dependent upon ability. The lesson begins by deconstructing the etymology of the words ‘utopia’ and ‘dystopia’ and is then made up of a series of tasks on identifying, analysing and using nouns and noun phrases in relation to an extract from The Beach by Alex Garland. At the end of the scheme, students will use their learning to write a part of a dystopian story. Two separate starter activities are included in case you would like to spread the material across two lessons. There should be enough material to do so. Other lessons in the sequence will follow as they are completed.

A simple, highly-visual introduction to adjectives with a range of explanations and tasks for students to complete. There is also information and tasks on adjectival phrases and postmodification. The resource would make a good introductory lesson to this word class for primary age students (perhaps years 4, 5, 6) or early secondary age students who need a reminder (year 7).

A simple introduction to verb and adverb word classes including straightfoward definitions, colourful and animated examples, and a range of tasks designed to get students not only to recognise these word classes but to use them successfully in their own writing. The lesson would be suitable for students of late primary age (perhaps years 4, 5, 6) or early secondary (year 7), depending upon their needs and abilities.

A word document booklet, which can be printed or sent to students, containing extracts from six different texts, followed by 8-10 comprehension questions. Each set of questions is followed by a creative writing extension task themed around the extracts. The extracts have been sourced from the following texts: The Wolves of Willoughby Chase by Joan Aiken The Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling Cider with Rosie by Laurie Lee ‘Supersports High’ - an article from The Times (12.8.2012) Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha by Roddy Doyle The Silver Sword by Ian Serraillier The resource may be suitable for students in years 6-8 depending upon their reading ability.

A wide-ranging lesson which introduces the sonnet form through creative writing and comprehension questions about Barrett Browning’s use of it. I really liked the well-known resource ‘What’s a sonnet miss?’ (a poem about how sonnets are written), but found it too inaccurate. So, I have written and included my own sonnet about sonnets called ‘What’s a sonnet sir?’. Also included are comprehension questions which focus students on language and context, as well as a simple outline for an essay on the topic of the poet’s presentation of love. I found this an engaging and accessible way to introduce the Eduqas GCSE poetry anthology to my year 9 students. However, the lesson would work for any syllabus with Sonnet 43 on it.

The lesson takes students through some key aspects of context, including some of the language of the letter Keats wrote to Fanny Brawne which sheds light on the themes of this sonnet. There are slides containing comprehension questions designed to get students talking about Keats’s use of the sonnet form and comprehension questions which engage with the main imagery of the poem. The final part of the lesson provides questions to prompt comparisons with other poems by Keats.

A lesson which focuses on the language Keats uses to present the three figures (Love, Ambition and Poesy), as well as drawing connections and distinctions between this poem and the other great odes. There is little discussion of context here, save for the initial clarification of the epigraph as my students’ knowledge of Keats’s life is already strong.

A lesson which focuses mainly on building students discussion of AO2 (language analysis) through group work. Therefore, I have included no context and only a little reference to structure. My students seemed to really enjoy the lesson. The cover image and another image in the resource were created using AI.

A full lesson on Keats’s Ode to a Nightingale, covering context, form and structure, themes and language.

A full lesson covering (lots of) context, form and structure, tone and pace, language and interpretations of the poem.

A full lesson on Keats’s To Sleep, covering context in detail, form and structure, tone, imagery, themes and interpretations.

A full lesson on Keats’s La Belle Dame covering context, form and structure, interpretations and the central theme of the poem. The resource should enable the poem to be taught effectively in a single lesson.

A full lesson on The Eve of St Agnes by John Keats, taking students through key points of plot, context, form and structure, language features and themes. I used this over a two-lesson teaching sequence.

This resource can be used across 2-3 lessons and leads students through the plot, context, settings, characters and key themes of the poem. I have tried to throw in a few strategies to make the lesson more student-led and less discussion or teacher focused, such as asking students to come up with their own questions about a section of text. The slides also contain my thoughts and ideas where they may be helpful.

A step-by step look at John Keats’s ‘When I have fears that I may cease to be’. The lesson begins with a look at the context, the unusual form of the poem and then the language. It also asks students to begin to make comparisons to similar ideas in some of Keats’s other poems e.g. the ocean in On The Sea and the harvest in *To Autumn. *

A lesson which examines the imagery, form and context of Keats’s On sitting down to read King Lear once again. A group task is provided to facilitate study of the imagery of the poem quatrain by quatrain.

A lesson with group work tasks on Keats’s In drear nighted December. The tasks also provide links to Keats’s later poems including Ode on a Grecian Urn and To Autumn.

A lesson filled with contextual information on Keats’s On The Sea. Discussion points are also provided for Keats’s use of the sonnet form as well as his philosophy of negative capability and the role of the poet. Some images have been created using AI.