Please note: this resource assumes you have a copy of the Anthony Horowitz retelling of this story. This is a fun and engaging couple of lessons on the story of Glaucus and Scylla (the one where gets Circe to change Scylla so that she loves him but actually changes her into a monster). Starter activities include a Greek Goddess memory game and a look at the symbols of some of the goddesses. Students then imagine what they would like to control, if they were a Greek god or goddess and design a symbol to represent their power. Following this, there are language activities looking at the writer’s use of words and phrases and sentence forms (as in Language Paper 1) when introducing the character of Circe. Then an examination of the language techniques used to describe Scylla’s transformation.

This lesson works through Q1 and Q3 of one of AQA's KS3 practice papers for GCSE English Language. Answers are provided for Q1 to enable self assessment. Pupils are then asked to identify a set of given structural features before considering 4 different levels of example responses and deciding which is the 'best' one. Cloze exercise as a creative writing extension task.

This resource contains lessons on The Storm, Piroska, Pitch, The Boy in the Boat, Nature, Mud and Monkey from Chris Priestley’s Tales of Terror from the Black Ship. Some focus on identifying and writing skills such as simile, onomatopoeia, alliteration, metaphor and inference. Aimed at Y7 & 8.

These are a selection of activities to compliment the reading of this wonderful book by Mark Lowry. I did this with my LA Y8s and they really loved it. I would say that Y7 and 8 would be most suited to this book and these activities. Mark Lowry cleverly works in poetry to this story so it is ideal to dip into poetry alongside enjoying this story of two brothers. Included are activities on Haiku and Limericks, plus some non-fiction relating to dolphins and persuasive writing.

Two lessons focusing on Q2 and Q4 of AQA English Language Paper 2 (one lesson each) using Rory Stewart’s Afghanistan travel extract and an extract from Dorothy Wordsworth’s Grasmere Journals.

A short unit covering Reading, Writing and Speaking and Listening. Could be used as a whole class unit of work, or small literacy group. Mixed ability but could be differentiated up or down. Extracts (all provided) from Robinson Crusoe, Life of Pi, Lord of the Flies. Real life survivor account analysed for descriptive writing techniques. Students invent their own survivor scenario and write diary entries and descriptions based on the example extracts and trailers shown in lessons. Opportunity to create class island map and use as stimulus for writing. Some lessons may take slightly longer than an hour so I estimate this unit is between 4 and 6 hours of lessons, depending on the pace.

This mini unit aims to introduce KS3 pupils to the way female figures have been historically presented in poetry. Originally written as a remote scheme, these would work equally well in the classroom. Copies of the poems are included as part of the powerpoints and can be easily found on the internet. Pupils will read a range of poems (see below) which portray views of the female, in line with the context of the time period. They will be encouraged to apply new knowledge of the context in which the poem was written, in their readings. The unit will introduce inference skills, as we consider the connotations of the poets’ language choices and imagery. Poems covered are: ‘Perfect Woman’ by William Wordsworth ‘The Lady of Shalott’ by Alfred Lord Tennyson ‘Cousin Kate’ by Christina Rossetti ‘Mirror’ by Sylvia Plath.

Wondering what quotations to suggest your students learn for their exam? Here are fifteen carefully chosen quotations. Some include the ‘obvious’ ones but others are chosen to show the examiner that your students can select more judiciously. They can be edited if you wish and printed out to be stuck on walls for revision or on classroom walls. Each slide comes with an explanation of the quote with key terminology to help students understand its relevance. There are also suggested exam questions which each quotation might be useful for answering. There are similar resources on An Inspector Calls, Macbeth and Blood Brothers available in my shop.

Step by step approach to this past question on the supernatural. Students can work through the extract, finding relevant evidence and matching up suggested annotations to gain understanding of the key themes and ideas. Example paragraph response using extract evidence provided so that students can produce their own based on what they have uncovered. To address the second part of the question, students are given an example quotation from the wider play and an example paragraph which uses the reference to respond. Four further key quotations on the supernatural are provided so that students can use them to create their own paragraphs. The quotations can be printed off and used for revision purposes.

This complete lesson takes your students through this question step by step. it is useful to break down this question since may students do least well on this question in the exam. The lesson starts by asking students to answer questions which clarify understanding of key structural terms such as ‘climax’ and ‘flashback’. Students are given tips on how to approach the extract to provide themselves with a quick summary of what happens, where and when (a key mantra for this question). They use the Tales of Terror extract (see linked language lessons that can precede this lesson) to practise the advice. They are given examples of what structural features might be selected in the given extract and tips of what key phrases to include in their written response. This is demonstrated in an example paragraph response and then students have the option to answer the question themselves, using their notes and ideas.

AIMED AT HA KS3, THIS COMPLETE LESSON EXPLORES THE EFFECTS OF IMAGERY AND STRUCTURE. INCLUDES POEM.

AIMED AT HA KS3, THIS COMPLETE LESSON LOOKS AT PERSONIFICATION AND METAPHOR. POEM INCLUDED IN PPT.

AIMED AT MIDDLE ABILITY KS3, THIS COMPLETE LESSON LOOKS AT THE IDEA OF A POEM HAVING A SPEAKER. ALSO COVERED IS LANGUAGE USED TO CREATE TONE. INCLUDES LINK TO HOMELESS DOCUMENTARY AND INCLUDES SOME CREATIVE ACTIVITIES.

Aimed at higher ability KS3 or 4, this lesson provides a range of WW1 poetry related tasks. Students are asked to consider what they already know about WW1 and create a colourful wordle (word cloud). Then, using stills from WW1 in Lego, students match lines from famous WW1 poems to the images. Finally, students decorate a template of a poppy (choice provided), with images and quotations from their learning. This could be provided as a competition. Possible introductory lesson to WW1 poetry.

This resource is made up of 3 extracts which all describe three famous detectives - Sherlock Holmes, Mma Ramotswe from the No.1 Ladies Detective Agency and Poirot. These extracts are perfect for students to use their inference skills to work out the characters of these detectives. They could use this as a springboard for creating their own fictional detectives.

The main resource here is the Powerpoint presentation exploring three different possible exam questions for Blood Brothers. This includes a cut out activity as preparation for one of the questions. Once preparation has been completed, students can complete the question in full as a class activity. Other resources include various worksheets looking at Mickey and Eddie's friendship, the characters of Mrs Johnstone and Mrs Lyons and some worksheets analysing characters & themes. These can be adapted for other characters too.

This lesson is aimed at encouraging students to love reading. It has links to author readings and recommendations from celebrities. There is a genre quiz that helps students work out the kind of story that might interest them, amongst other activities. Aimed at Y6 - Y8.

A 20 MINUTE, THREE TASK LESSON LOOKING AT INFORMATION RETRIEVAL / MEMORY, INDEPENDENCE AND SUMMARISING TO ENABLE KS3 ENGLISH STUDENTS TO REVISE TEXTS FOR ASSESSMENTS.

Example essay for students to learn from. Could be used as a class marking activity. Island Man by Grace Nichols