I'm an English Teacher based in Northern Ireland, with extensive experience of delivering the CCEA Specification for GCSE and A-Level Literature and Language. I'm passionate about making resources that are effective, engaging and lesson-ready.
I also teach a little bit of KS3 Maths!
I'm an English Teacher based in Northern Ireland, with extensive experience of delivering the CCEA Specification for GCSE and A-Level Literature and Language. I'm passionate about making resources that are effective, engaging and lesson-ready.
I also teach a little bit of KS3 Maths!
These resources have been designed to allow pupils to understand the essential components of a creative writing piece and incorporate them into their own extended writing.
I have used these for both KS3 pupils and GCSE pupils.
This series of lessons begins with the fundamentals (adjectives, verbs, adverbs etc.) before moving onto more challenging elements of crafting a creative writing piece (narrative structure, sensory descriptions). Each lesson and activity incorporates Active Learning strategies to fully engage pupils in a fun and interactive study of creative writing, with plenty of opportunities to develop their descriptions as they proceed.
Included in these resources are PowerPoints and Worksheets on:
- Creative Writing Checklist
- Developing Descriptions: Adjectives, Verbs and Adverbs
- Understanding Metaphors and Similes
- Metaphor and Simile Homework Sheet
- Using Vivid Language
- Using Sensory Imagery (guessing game)
- Worksheets to help include Sensory Imagery
- Famous opening lines and Sentence Openers
- Inspiration for famous pieces of literature
- Descriptive Settings Guessing Game
- Structuring Stories
- Re-writing boring descriptions
- Settings images
This fun activity allows KS3 students to practice fractions of a quantity in a real-world example of a bargain hunt.
Students are presented with 5 shops that have 5 discounted items in each. The students must work in groups to work the discounted price and the saving, while determining the best overall deal in each shop (the highest saving).
This enjoyable activity has been used successfully at the end of a study of fractions at KS3 level.
These resources have been developed to assist pupils in their analysis of Non-Fiction texts.
It provides a series of questions to help guide pupils through the important aspect of Non-Fiction texts, with several short examples for pupils to practice on.
Also included is a detailed revision sheet to assist pupils in analysing linguistic devices, especially those pupils who find it difficult to discuss the effect of language.
These have been used successfully with GCSE pupils in preparation for their English Language exam, but they can also be used for KS3 English classes.
This worksheet has been developed to assist pupils in a study of Jessie Pope's "Who's for the Game?". It requires pupils to focus on poetic techniques, particularly the imagery that is used.
Also included is a poetic techniques list with detailed questions to prompt further analysis.
This has been used successfully with KS3 pupils studying poetry and History and with lower ability GCSE pupils.
This detailed 18 slide PowerPoint has been developed to assist teachers in delivering a detailed analysis of Heaney's "Had I not been awake" to Literature students.
There are detailed questions that prompt critical stanza-by-stanza analysis from pupils. Each set of questions enables pupils to focus on identifying and analysing poetic methods (AO2) and strengthening their understanding of the poem.
There are detailed and focused analyses of each stanza, focusing on poetic methods (AO2) to supplement the initial notes taken by students.
Also included in this document:
-Context on Seamus Heaney (AO3)
-Context on "Had I not been awake" (AO3)
-Pre-reading tasks
-Initial reading questions
-Questions on the Themes of Grief and Loss, Self-Discovery and Poetic Inspiration.
This detailed 27 slide PowerPoint has been developed to assist teachers in delivering a detailed analysis of Frostâs âThe Road Not Takenâ to Literature students.
There are detailed questions that prompt critical stanza-by-stanza analysis from pupils. Each set of questions enables pupils to focus on identifying and analysing poetic methods (AO2) and strengthening their understanding of the poem.
There are detailed and focused analyses of each stanza, focusing on poetic methods (AO2) to supplement the initial notes taken by students.
Also included in this document:
-Context on Robert Frost(AO3)
-Context on âThe Road Not Takenâ (AO3)
-Pre-reading tasks
-Initial reading questions
-Questions on the Theme of Journeys
This detailed 23 slide PowerPoint has been developed to assist teachers in delivering a detailed analysis of Armitageâs âOut of the Blueâ to Literature students. This poem features in the CCEA GCSE Conflict Poetry Anthology.
There are detailed questions that prompt critical stanza-by-stanza analysis from pupils. Each set of questions enables pupils to focus on identifying and analysing poetic methods (AO2) and strengthening their understanding of the poem.
There are detailed and focused analyses of each stanza, focusing on poetic methods (AO2) to supplement the initial notes taken by students.
Also included in this document:
-Context on Simon Armitage(AO3)
-Pre-reading tasks
-Initial reading questions
-Possible thematic connections to other poems in the Conflict Anthology
This bundle contains PowerPoints on every poem in the Conflict Anthology for the current CCEA GCSE Specification. These PowerPoints have been designed to promote student success in their exam response to Conflict poetry, and each one contains the following:
-Detailed, line-by-line analysis of poetic devices and language for each poem (AO2)
-Contextual information on each poet and poem (AO3)
-Related poems / themes to assist with the thematic connections within the Conflict Anthology(AO4)
-Detailed stanza-by-stanza/line-by-line questions to prompt critical analysis from pupils (AO2)
-Pre-reading tasks to assist in a thematic understanding of the poem
Included poems- The Charge of the Light Brigade, Vitai Lampada, The Man He Killed, Whoâs for the Game?, Easter Monday (In Memoriam E.T.)(1917), Anthem for Doomed Youth, An Irish Airman Foresees His Death, What Lips My Lips Have Kissed And Where And Why (Sonnet XLIII), Vergissmeinnicht, Bayonet Charge, Requiem for the Croppies, Mametz Wood, Last Post, Poppies, Out of the Blue.
These resources have been designed to assist teachers in delivering engaging lessons and activities that will foster an understanding and enjoyment of Fantasy Fiction in KS3 pupils.
Each resource includes opportunities to test prior pupil knowledge of Fantasy Fiction, explore different Fantasy Fiction texts and compare them to their on-screen counterparts.
These resources, are also used to help pupils generate ideas for their own piece of Fantasy Fiction in the form of a creative writing piece.
As a fun way to finish the lessons, there is also a Fantasy Fiction Quiz.
Included in this pack:
- Introduction to Fantasy Fiction
- Non-humans in Fantasy Fiction
- Non-human template
- Fairies in Fantasy Fiction
- Good vs Evil in Fantasy Fiction
- Codes and Riddles in Fantasy Fiction
- Codes and Riddles Worksheet
- Setting Worksheet
- Fantasy Fiction Quiz and Answers
This cover sheet has been developed to ensure that pupils maintain a consistent quality of writing when comparing and contrasting two poems in an essay.
Pupils are to use this checklist to tick off all of the essential elements of a successful answer, paragraph by paragraph, as they write it and present it when they submit their essay.
This ensures that pupils remain focused in presenting consistently analytical paragraphs.
I have used this successfully with both GCSE and A Level pupils.
These resources have been developed to assist teachers in introducing a study of Shakespeare's "Macbeth" to both KS3 and GCSE pupils. They allow pupils to engage with the world of Shakespeare and his play in an accessible manner, and stress the relevance of both Macbeth and his wider works in contemporary times.
Included in this bundle:
1. Introduction to Shakespeare (PPT)- explores the life and works of Shakespeare, evaluates the impact of Shakespeare on the modern world and tackles and pre-conceptions pupils have of Shakespeare.
2. Macbeth Plot Summary (PPT)- an accessible and concise summary of the play with visual aids.
3.Macbeth Context (PPT)- explains the social and historical factors that influenced the writing of Macbeth, including King James I and The Gunpowder Plot.
4. Gender Context (Doc)- explains the gender roles of men and women in Early Modern England and the conventional views on masculinity and femininity.
5. Macbeth and the Witches (PPT)- explores the Early Modern view of witches and compares it with pupils' contemporary view of witches.
6. Macbeth Themes (PPT)- a detailed exploration of the key themes in Macbeth: Ambition, Fate, Deception and Guilt.
7. Macbeth Motifs (PPT)- a detailed exploration of the motifs in Macbeth: Blood, Darkness/Light, Hallucination/Madness, Prophecy, Children/Family.
8. Macbeth PEED Paragraphs (PPT)- a guide to help pupils structure an analytical response to Macbeth, with an accompanying sample paragraph.
9. Macbeth: The Witches (Doc)- a literary and linguistic analysis of the witches in Act 1 Scene 1.
10. Macbeth Question Worksheet (Doc)- guided questions to assist pupils in their analysis of Act 1 Scene 1.
11. Macbeth: Key Quotes and Themes (PDF)- a series of key quotes and themes that will allow pupils to ascertain elements of the plot and meaning in Macbeth.
These documents are designed to assist students in exploring the thematic connections (AO4) between the Frost and Heaney poems in the CCEA A Level Anthology.
In the document, pupils are prompted to use the detailed arguments and connections between pomes (AO1, AO3) to locate textual references and poetic methods (AO2) to further their analysis and understanding of the poems.
These sheets would then be used as a basis for an essay on the poems and provided topic.
The paired poems and themes include: The Road Not Taken and The Peninsula (Journeys), Mowing and The Forge (The Creative Process), Mending Wall and Bogland (The Past).
There is also a blank template for both teachers and students to use for other poems/themes and a list of thematic connections between the poems.
My A Level students have found this approach immensely beneficial in finding the connections between poems and structuring written responses.
This bundle contains PowerPoints on every Seamus Heaney poem in the current CCEA AS Specification. These PowerPoints have been designed to promote student success in their exam response to Seamus Heaneyâs poetry, and each one contains the following:
Detailed, line-by-line analysis of poetic devices and language for each poem (AO2)
Contextual information on Heaney and specific context on each poem (AO3)
Questions on the relevant themes of each poem to assist with the thematic connections with Frostâs poetry (AO4)
Detailed stanza-by-stanza/line-by-line questions to prompt critical analysis from pupils (AO2)
Pre-reading tasks and post-analysis questions to consolidate understanding of the poem
Poems include- Personal Helicon, The Forge, The Peninsula, The Wifeâs Tale, Bogland, The Harvest Bow, The Railway Children, The Summer of Lost Rachel, Postscript, âHad I not been awakeâ, The Conway Stewart, The Baler.
This detailed 21 slide PowerPoint has been developed to assist teachers in delivering a detailed analysis of Frostâs âAfter Apple-Pickingâ to Literature students.
There are detailed questions that prompt critical stanza-by-stanza analysis from pupils. Each set of questions enables pupils to focus on identifying and analysing poetic methods (AO2) and strengthening their understanding of the poem.
There are detailed and focused analyses of each stanza, focusing on poetic methods (AO2) to supplement the initial notes taken by students.
Also included in this document:
-Context on Robert Frost(AO3)
-Context on âAfter Apple-Pickingâ (AO3)
-Pre-reading tasks
-Initial reading questions
-Questions on the Themes of Rural Life and Poetic Inspiration
This document has been designed to help students gain a meaningful understanding of Heaneyâs âAn Advancement of Learningâ.
This document features detailed questions that prompts critical engagement with the poem, while focusing on the effects of poetic devices.
There is also a brief bit of background information on the poem to assist with understanding.
I have used this worksheet for homework and classwork, and it has worked well with students using it individually, in pairs and as a group task.
An effective summary on how to use punctuation to enhance the quality and impact of a piece of writing. Useful for functional writing, personal writing and creative writing.
Pupils are provided with possible uses of the punctuation along with examples of each.
Please feel free to leave a rating, review or any feedback that you have.
This board game has been designed to support students in their revision of Steinbeckâs âOf Mice and Menâ.
The game is for 2-4 players and will require counters and a dice. The rules to follow are clearly documented at the bottom of the page.
It focuses on character, theme, quotes, plot, setting etc.
There are 96 tasks, including:
Plot retrieval
Inference
Debate topics / justifying arguments
Generating quotes relating to character / theme
Similarities / differences between characters
Character relationships / values
Movement tiles
This A3 document has been uploaded as a PDF for easier printing and a word document if teachers wish to tweak certain parts to suit the needs of their students.
Iâd recommend printing it in colour and laminating it.
This detailed 15 page A3 size document has been developed to assist both students and teachers in their understanding of the characters in âAn Inspector Callsâ.
Each character is designated 2 A3 sheets, with comprehensive lists of interpretations, notes and quotes. Each character has been split up into relevant themes and topics to assist in revision.
There are also approximately 10 exam questions for each character to help pupils apply the notes, quotes and their own understanding.
As this document goes through every character, there will inevitably be some overlap.
An A4 PDF version of this document has also been included for easier printing.
Characters/Topics/Themes include:
The Inspector: Responsibility to others / collective responsibility, Responsibility for actions, How the Birlings respond to the Inspector, Approach to the investigation, Views on Social Class, Physical Description
Mr Birling: Relationship with his family, Responsibility, Sheilaâs engagement to Gerald, Reaction to the investigation, Social Class, Treatment of Eva / his workers, physical description.
Mrs Birling: Relationship with her family, responsibility, Treatment of Eva/Daisy, Reaction to the Investigation, Social Class, Initial description.
Gerald: His relationship with Sheila, Responsibility, Relationship with Eva/Daisy, Reaction to the Investigation, Social Class, View of women, Physical Description.
Sheila: Responsibility, Relationship with her family, Relationship with Gerald, Reaction to the investigation, Social Class, Treatment of Eva, Initial Description.