A unit of work - designed to be used with any level of secondary school class - that lasts for 3 weeks. Our pupils enjoyed doing this online over lockdown, but also suitable for a homework booklet or classroom work. Choices of tasks for each week : one writing task and one design task from lists of options. Thoughtful instructions to aid reflection.

A quiz for 6 teams based on the Scottish set text poems: Originally Valentine Mrs Midas War Photographer The Way my Mother Speaks In Mrs Tilscher’s Class My class really enjoyed this as a revision activity

A really interesting activity I made up for my Advanced Higher class who are studying both plays. Great for revision purposes and a bit of end of term fun. Sets of questions for three teams with an answer sheet. general questions; multiple choice; who said…?; anagrams etc. My class really enjoyed it.

A unit of work to support pupils in the analysis of song lyrics, leading to an individual presentation about a song that means something important to them. Includes tasks based on 'Small Bump' by Ed Sheeran, 'My Young Man' by Kate Rusby, 'Beds are Burning' by Midnight Oil, 'The Streets of London' by Ralph McTell and 'Another Day in Paradise' by Phil Collins. Youtube links - but lyrics not printed for copyright reasons. Powerpoint also available to model presentation.

Lots of resources that I use when teaching 'The Merchant of Venice' to S4 (age 15/16) pupils. Questions on each scene, group discussion tasks on key themes, essay plans on several topics and more...

Developed to support pupils studying 'A Clockwork Orange' for Higher English in Scotland, but suitable for any teachers who want to support pupils in the writing of critical essays based on this text. It includes a pre-reading task based on Blake Morrison's fantastic introduction, and this prepares pupils really well for handling the Nadsat. Also includes discussion tasks, critical essay support sheets, tasks on themes and more...

A powerpoint for senior pupils to support a comparative study of ‘The Winter’s Tale’ and ‘The Tempest’. It focuses on the spectrum of power: the gulf between tyranny and impotence, with Leontes and Prospero initially characterising these polarised traits. Concludes with some reflection on the theme of redemption as explored in Shakespeare’s later plays. An excellent resource for studying the theme of power, kingship and authority. It also draws connections to King James 1 treaty: Basilikon Doron and his reflections on ideal kingship.

This is a powerpoint which contains all the information pupils need to help them write an essay about two Shakespeare plays that are thematically linked. My Advanced Higher pupils had a lot of success with this and found the topic really interesting.

A unit of work to support a workshop-style approach to teaching creative writing. I’ve been working on this for a couple of years and pupils really enjoy it. We look at excerpts from a range of inspiring texts (e.g. ‘Sophie’s Choice’ by William Styron, The Kite Runner’ by Khaled Hosseini, ‘Room’ by Emma Donoghue, ‘The Snapper’ by Roddy Doyle, ‘About Grace’ by Anthony Doerr and ‘Talking Heads’ by Alan Bennett) and go on to consider how these authors have utilised key techniques such as creating tension, narrator’s voice, vivid setting description, engaging openings etc… Pupils then attempt a short writing task based on each text. Texts not reproduced for copyright reasons, but page numbers and publishers listed. I have found that many pupils go on to purchase and read these texts after looking at them here.