I'm currently the head of English and raising standards leader at a secondary school in Birmingham. I'm passionate about my subject and passionate about ensuring that the young people we serve leave education with a high competency in English.
Prior to teaching I worked in the radio industry as a presenter for 7 years and so when I became a teacher I enjoyed the opportunity to teach Media studies.
You'll find hundreds of English and Media studies resources.
I'm currently the head of English and raising standards leader at a secondary school in Birmingham. I'm passionate about my subject and passionate about ensuring that the young people we serve leave education with a high competency in English.
Prior to teaching I worked in the radio industry as a presenter for 7 years and so when I became a teacher I enjoyed the opportunity to teach Media studies.
You'll find hundreds of English and Media studies resources.
Walking, talking, mock style resources to support the revision and practice for new specification GCSE 9-1 language paper 1 and paper 2
Included:
- guidance on how to tackle each question
- suggested timings
- tips on how to tackle each question on each paper
- acronyms to help make sure they tick all of the boxes on the mark scheme
- sample answers to questions in order to model the structure
- tips on what to do when they first open the papers
Exam revision for Jekyll and Hyde new specification GCSE AQA 9-1
Included:
- quotations with images to help learn quotations
- carousel activities to revise character, plot and context
- Context revision
- Extract to whole revision
- Sample assessments
- Analysis of writer’s methods practice
Resources to support the revision of the power and conflict poems plus unseen revision and sample assessment materials.
Included:
- revision quizzes (differentiated)
- revision card sort
- comparison revision and practice
- unseen poetry revision
- sample assessments for power and conflict
- sample assessments for unseen poetry
A resource to support students in linking their extract analysis to the novel as a whole and to context.
The resource provides 2 extracts and models how students may link to these areas using one of the extracts.
3 fully differentiated and meticulously planned lessons to explicitly teach AQA English language paper 2 question 3.
The lessons start from scratch and provide opportunities for teachers to assess student ability and work out where their areas for development are. Students can then be pointed in the direction of a particular task that will help to plug the gaps in their understanding and climb the mark scheme.
Lesson 1 focusses on the selection of judicious evidence
Lesson 2 focusses on the effect of language
Lesson 3 focusses on language analysis
Texts used:
1. Mail online article about a spoilt child
2. 19th century extract from 'Walks in and around London'
Differentiation:
purple = lower
blue = middle
yellow = higher
Resources provide opportunities to:
- read 2 texts
- use structure strips to form better analytical paragraphs
- select judicious evidence
- use the mark scheme
- self and peer assess
- teacher assess
- develop perceptive comments
- work on target grade specific tasks
- explore how language makes you think, feel etc.
- Analyse the effect of language
- improve a sample response
- grade sample responses
15 key quotations from A Christmas Carol, each with an accompanying image to help students remember them.
Perfect as a starter where students use the given quote and image to write an interpretation. Also great as part of a display.
Resource to support the revision of A Christmas Carol and how to form exam responses to an extract from the novel and make links to the novel as a whole.
These resources provide opportunities for carousel activities whereby students read 4 extracts from the novel and make notes to form an exam response. Students will consider other parts of the text as part of their answer.
4 extracts included
Resource to support the revision of A Christmas Carol and how to form exam responses to an extract from the novel and make links to the novel as a whole.
Meticulously planned and differentiated.
purple = lower ability
blue = middle ability
yellow = higher ability
These resources provide opportunities for carousel activities whereby students read 4 extracts from the novel and make notes to form an exam response. Students will consider other parts of the text as part of their answer.
2 lessons to support the teaching of the context of Macbeth before reading the play
Includes:
- Shakespeare facts activity
- imaginative writing
- group work carousel opportunity
3 pages of quiz cards for Romeo and Juliet to use as part of revision with answers.
Each question has a quotation and requires students to:
1. identify who said it
2. identify a technique used by Shakespeare
3. Answer a deeper question relating to the effect of the technique
When printed off and photocopied back to back each card will have the answer on the reverse.
I use these in folders (as shown in the image attached) and students spend the first 5-10 mins of certain lessons revising silently.
Every correctly answered question moves a step back in the folder. Any question answered incorrectly moves back to the front. This is known as the Leitner method for retaining knowledge as part of regular testing.
A revision scheme of work on Jekyll and Hyde for the 9-1 English literature course.
The scheme follows an extract booklet of 10 key extracts with lots of differentiated tasks for students to complete based on each one.
The scheme allows students to revise the text and apply the necessary skills for the exam.
Also included:
structure strips
sample exam questions
extract booklet
work sheets including tension graphs
peer/self assessment sticker template
A set of 24 quick questions to test students on their knowledge of Jekyll and Hyde.
Ask students approx 5 questions per day and increase over time.
There is a mixture of context based questions, chapter questions and quotation fill questions.
A selection of resources to support the exploration and teaching of writing to argue and persuade
Resources provide opportunities to:
- analyse texts
- write letters
- write speeches
- use structure strips to create and analyse arguments
- explore topic all issues as a stimulus for writing
Differentiation:
Purple - low
Blue - middle
Yellow - high
Fully differentiated resources to support the teaching of 'Of Mice and Men' chapter 1.
Differentiation:
purple = lower
blue = middle
yellow = higher
Resources provide opportunities to:
- explore pathetic fallacy in the opening
- analyse character presentation
- explore animal imagery
- use 'what, how, why' as a method for analysis instead of PEE which is too restrictive
- explore George and Lennie's American Dream
- work in groups in carousel activities
- use writing strips to structure better responses
With very few sample assessment materials provided by the exam boards I have created my own.
They have been made to look exactly like the assessments that students will sit in the real 9-1 examinations and are phrased in the same ways too.
The student responses can then be marked using the relevant mark scheme for literature.
The extract in this assessment is taken from stave 3.
14 key quotations from Animal Farm, each with an accompanying image to help students remember them.
Perfect as a starter where students use the given quote and image to write an interpretation.
Also great for use as part of a display.
Lessons to support the revision of the new specification English language paper 1 for AQA.
Perfect to use in class as a walking talking mock - whereby you guide students thorough each question and allow them the suggested time to complete each task.
Using a sample paper provide by AQA which uses an extract from 'City of beasts' the resources:
- guide students through how to tackle each question
- provide suggested timings
- provide sample answers
- provide tips and strategies for planning a response
- show the questions annotated to ensure students stick to the focus of the task
- provide opportunities to self/peer assess against the mark scheme criteria
Extract taken from: City of Beasts
Fully differentiated resources to support the teaching of the new specification AQA langauge paper 2 skills at KS3.
Opportunitites to:
- draw explicit and implicit information
- syntheise differences
- analyse langauge
- compare the perspectives of writers
- peer and self assess
All extracts included with some sample responses and writing frames.
Extracts taken from:
- articles about the musicians Stormzy and Paul McCartney
- Martin Luther King
and many more including extracts provided by AQA for KS3
Perfect for year 7 and year 8 and also for low ability KS4 students
Differentiates lessons to support the teaching of chapter 3 of 'Of mice and Men.'
Differentiation:
purple == lower
blue = middle
yellow = higher
Resources provide opportunities to:
- explore tension
- explore characterisation
- write analytically in line with the new specification 9-1 skills
- analyse language
- explore the theme of loneliness
- read actively
Lessons planned to encourage creative writing using a variety of stimuli.
Differentiation:
Purple - low
Blue - middle
Yellow - high
Resources for lower ability included
