51����

A lesson on An Easy Passage by Julia Copus designed for the Edexcel A level qualification. The lesson begins with a simple starter on stereotypes of adolescents and adults. Following this is some information on ‘liminal space’, the literary concept of thresholds which applies to this poem, and students should take notes. Can they think of any examples of liminal spaces in literature? Then, some observations about the presentation of adolescence versus adulthood are provided and students are asked to gather evidence from the poem supporting these impressions. This leads on to students writing an analytical essay paragraph in response to a question on the theme of adolescence and adulthood, and an exemplar response is provided.

An updated version of this lesson designed for the extract from 127 Hours: Between a Rock and a Hard Place by Aron Ralston from the Edexcel IGCSE anthology for English Language specification A. This resource provides a two-lesson sequence analysing language, suspense and tension. It includes engaging activities on structural techniques, language analysis, and exam-style writing practice.

An upgraded version of this resource with more activities, including exemplar material, a quiz, and support material for extended writing. 2-3 lessons worth of content on Significant Cigarettes, an excerpt from Rose Tremain’s 2007 novel The Road Home, which appears in the Edexcel IGCSE Anthology. These lessons were used to help produce the poetry and prose coursework. Students wrote on the theme of ‘identity’ in three texts. There is a wide range of activities, including guided annotation, discussion questions, analysis and practice paragraph writing. The PowerPoint is 19 slides in length (with an additional 4 slides at the end unused by me in recent teaching), so there should be plenty for you to pick and choose from. The excerpt is not supplied with the lesson.

A lesson on the poem History by John Burnside designed for the Edexcel A Level Literature qualification. The lesson begins with a reading of the poem September 11th, 2001 by David Herd (p.85 of Poems of the Decade) without the title. Students give their impressions on what the poem could be about before the title is revealed. This provides a good stepping off point for discussion - why was 9/11 such a history-stopping event? Following this, there is a video where people recount where they were when 9/11 happened. Perhaps unlike other tragedies on a global level, everyone remembers vividly where they were when the terrorist attack occurred. Some brief information is offered, outlining what happened on 9/11, since students were not born when the events took place. The main activities for the lesson are: A ‘theme web’, where students identify the central themes in the poem and then mindmap a theme of their choice in a guided way. A ‘visual imagery map’, which encourages students to sketch (or generate) a key image from the poem and analyse the language by following prompts.

A full lesson designed to teach Helen Dunmore’s To My Nine-Year-Old Self for the Edexcel A Level Literature specification. The lesson contains: An engaging starter where students are asked to write to their nine-year-old self Information on the etymology of the word ‘nostalgia’, which will lead to better discussion of the emotion An activity where students complete a table to analyse language in relation to the theme of childhood versus adulthood An activity which guides students to explore the form of the dramatic monologue and how it influences the language and ideas in the poem The resource is highly visual and activities are all student-led.

A full lesson for teaching Giuseppe by Roderick Ford and Medusa by Carol Ann Duffy, designed for the Edexcel A Level Literature qualification. This resource facilitates engaging, structured analysis of both poems, focusing on themes of dehumanisation, power, victimhood, and guilt. This resource includes: An introduction to key themes – exploring dehumanisation, power, and the mistreatment of women in both poems. A ‘Stand and Justify’ activity – encouraging students to engage with different interpretations of Giuseppe. A poetic technique scavenger hunt – a group task focusing on symbolism, imagery, irony, tone, and characterisation. A structured comparison of Giuseppe and Medusa – guiding students to consider how each poet presents victimhood and power. Close reading and annotation prompts – encouraging detailed language and structural analysis. Success criteria for high-level comparative analysis – including language, structure, and thematic connections. Please note: The text of Medusa is not included due to copyright, but it is freely available online. Ideal for up to two lessons, this resource supports exam-style comparison skills and independent critical thinking. Perfect for unseen poetry practice.

fully-resourced lesson is designed for the Edexcel A Level English Literature (9ET0) course, specifically targeting the Poems of the Decade anthology. Focused on Patience Agbabi’s powerful and provocative poem Eat Me, the lesson guides students through contextual exploration, analytical skills development, and personal reflection. It promotes close reading, thematic analysis, and a confident understanding of form, structure, and voice. Lesson Stages: Starter Reflection: Students reflect on previous poetry study and their personal preferences and challenges. Reading the Poem: First reading of Eat Me with a brief contextual note on the word “juggernaut.” Personal Learning Goals: Students set individual goals for their progress in this unit. Gender Role Activity: Creative diagramming of the characters’ roles with supporting quotations to examine power dynamics. Imagery Analysis: Paired with visual prompts, students identify and evaluate imagery and associated poetic techniques. Form and Structure: Exploration of the dramatic monologue form, rhyme, enjambment, and stanza structure to assess how they reinforce meaning. Exit Cards: A final reflective task consolidating learning, inviting students to share a takeaway, reflection, or question.

This comprehensive resource provides a detailed analysis of Adam Thorpe’s On Her Blindness, a key poem from the Edexcel (9ET0) Poems of the Decade anthology. Perfect for A-Level English Literature students, this resource breaks down the poem’s themes and language to develop critical analysis skills. What’s Included? Starter: students consider society’s ordinary or stereotypical perceptions of people with disabilities with images as stimuli. Context & Literary Allusions: Exploration of the poem’s connection to Milton’s On His Blindness and the concept of ‘writing back.’ A class reading of the poem with discussion questions. A choice of close analysis task: students can either ‘explode’ key quotations, or there is a carousel activity with key themes and linked quotations. Comparative analysis: an exam-style tasks, inviting students to compare On Her Blindness with Blind Man by Jorge Luis Borges.

This engaging lesson is designed for students following the Edexcel A Level English Literature (9ET0) course, focusing on Ros Barber’s Material from the Poems of the Decade anthology. It encourages exploration of the poem’s key themes and provides a structure-approach to essay writing for a single poem. Lesson Stages: Starter Activity: Students tune into the themes and ideas of the poem through a reflective activity and discussion on the idea of sentimental value. Questions are provided. A whole class reading of the poem with some initial questions about its themes and imagery. An quotation gathering and note-making activity centred on the theme of motherhood. An exam style question (single poem only; not comparative) with an exemplar response. Clear and simple success criteria are provided for students whilst they write their own response to the question. Plenary: A reflection activity where students reflect on the presentation of the theme of motherhood as well as their own essay responses.

A lesson designed to teach the poem The Deliverer by Tishani Doshi for the Edexcel A level Literature qualification. The lesson begins with a video covering the abandonment of female children in India and then provides information on the Indian caste system. There is a group language analysis ‘jigsaw’ task, for which a separate worksheet with a set of instructions is provided. Following this, students can engage in a simple activity where they match elements of form and structure to their definitions, and then explore these features in the poem, commenting on their effects. Activities and a simple table are provided for the comparison of The Deliverer to either Child Burial by Paula Meehan or Refugee Mother and Child by Chinua Achebe as unseen poems. Due to copyright, the text of neither poem is supplied but they are easily sourced online. A warning that both poems contain sensitive subject matter and are very emotionally hard-hitting.

A full lesson for Chinese Cinderella from the Edexcel IGCSE English Language (Specification A) anthology. This resource provides a detailed exploration of the extract, focusing on key language and structural techniques to develop students’ analytical skills. What’s Included? Starter Activity: Discussion of the original fairytale’s plot and themes, and predictions for the extract. A class reading of the extract. Structural Features Task: A structured table activity to analyse how the text is organised and its impact. Exploding Quotations Carousel: A collaborative task focusing on 8 key extracts, encouraging deeper analysis of language, structure, and context. Exam-style Question: An example question 4 is provided with prompts to guide students on how to focus on the analysis of structure in particular.

This comprehensive lesson is designed for students following the Edexcel A Level English Literature (9ET0) course, focusing on Simon Armitage’s Chainsaw Versus the Pampas Grass from the Poems of the Decade anthology. It encourages exploration of the poem’s allegorical meanings, technical features, and themes, while also building vital comparison skills for the unseen poetry question. Lesson Stages: Starter Activity: Students evaluate two distinct approaches to poetry analysis—personal response versus technical analysis—and reflect on their own preferences. First Reading: Students read Chainsaw Versus the Pampas Grass and discuss surface-level meanings alongside deeper allegorical interpretations. Theme Exploration: Using key quotations, students analyse Armitage’s treatment of themes such as masculinity, control, violence, and nature. Imagery Analysis: A visual and language-based breakdown of the contrasting imagery linked to the chainsaw and the pampas grass, with optional colour-coded annotation for extension. Unseen Poetry Preparation: Students consider how they would approach an unfamiliar poem and develop their critical reading strategy. Comparative Study: Students compare Chainsaw Versus the Pampas Grass with Robert Frost’s Out, Out—, focusing on how both poems present power, violence, and the human relationship with tools and the natural world. Discussion & Feedback: A final discussion consolidates learning and invites personal and analytical responses.

A full lesson designed to guide students through an engaging analysis of Alan Jenkins’s Effects, part of the Edexcel A Level English Literature specification (9ET0). The lesson includes: Starter: Students discuss the the dual meanings of ‘effects’—both as consequences and personal belongings—while examining their relevance to the poem’s themes. Structured Analysis: Students track the gradual unveiling of information in the poem and analyse how Jenkins’s careful pacing impacts the reader’s emotional response. A table is provided for students to complete. Thematic Discussion: Students identify and discuss the poem’s central themes and ideas, including loss, memory, and grief. Imagery Analysis: Students find key quotations associated with pictures and assess the effects of central imagery on the reader.

Up to two lessons’ worth of teaching material on The Lammas Hireling by Ian Duhig, designed for the Edexcel A level Literature qualification. There resource includes: An activity on the central themes of the poem A jigsaw language analysis activity with a separate worksheet An exemplar paragraph responding to a question on guilt and repression A series of structured comparison activities to get students to compare The Lammas Hireling to The River God as an unseen poem An exemplar paragraph comparing the two poems Please note that I have not included the text of The River God due to copyright, but it is easily sourced for free online.

A full teaching resource designed to support the analysis of Genetics by Sinead Morrissey, aligning with the Edexcel A Level English Literature specification (9ET0). This resource provides a detailed exploration of the poem’s themes, language, and structure, with engaging activities. The lesson includes: Introduction to the Villanelle Form: An accessible breakdown of the villanelle structure and how it reinforces the poem’s themes of inheritance, love, and separation. Poetry Carousel Activity – A dynamic and interactive approach where students rotate between stations focused on key themes, language devices, structure & form, and personal response. AND/OR Guided Annotation & Discussion – A more detailed analysis with structured prompts and questions to lead students through key sections of the poem. Topic Sentence Practice: A writing task to develop sophisticated, evaluative arguments in line with AO1. Comparative Essay Writing: An essay question with prompts for comparing Genetics with either Inheritance by Eavan Boland or My Father’s Hats by Mark Irwin (texts not included due to copyright).

This fully-resourced lesson is designed for teaching From the Journal of a Disappointed Man by Andrew Motion as part of the Edexcel (9ET0) A Level Poems of the Decade anthology. It provides a structured sequence of activities that support analysis and critical engagement with the poem’s themes, language, and form. What’s included? Starter: Close analysis of the title. Key contextual information, including intertextuality and found poetry. The original diary entry by W.N.P. Barbellion. Key terms and definitions. Close analysis of masculinity as a central theme “Exploding” quotations: An annotation tasks with prompts on language, structure, and meaning. A structured comparison question with Digging by Seamus Heaney. The text of this poem is not included for copyright reasons.

This resource is a fully planned lesson (or potentially two lessons’ worth of material) designed for A Level English Literature students studying the Edexcel qualification (9ET0). It focuses on Ode on a Grayson Perry Urn by Tim Turnbull, from the Poems of the Decade anthology, and offers a comparative approach ideal for teachers whose class also studies John Keats as the chosen poet for the pre-1900 poetry component. The lesson draws out the parody and intertextual references to Ode on a Grecian Urn, and works best when students and teacher have a loose knowledge of Keats’s life, themes, and poetic style. The resource includes reading, discussion, group analysis, and contextual exploration, encouraging students to critically engage with both Turnbull’s poem and its classical influences. Starter: Imaginative museum-based task to introduce the concept of ekphrasis and future perspectives on art. Contextual Introduction: Guided questions exploring who Grayson Perry is, what an urn represents, and the influence of Keats. Key Concepts: Definitions and discussion of parody, ode, and ekphrasis. First Reading: Whole-class reading of Ode on a Grayson Perry Urn with guided questions for first impressions. Comparative Task: Reading and comparing with Ode on a Grecian Urn by John Keats. Class Discussion: Thematic connections between the two poems (e.g. immortality, truth, beauty, social commentary) Individual/Group Task: Students generate their own thematic statements about Turnbull’s poem. Language Analysis: Group annotation activity — one stanza per group, focusing on key lines and Turnbull’s use of language. Students select and ‘explode’ a quotation. Form and Structure Focus: Teacher-led unpacking of Turnbull’s formal techniques and how they parody Keats. Plenary/Reflection: Students consider which poem they prefer and why, drawing together comparisons of tone, structure, and message. An alternative task is included.

Up to two full lessons on Daljit Nagra’s Look We Have Coming to Dover! from the Edexcel (9ET0) Poems of the Decade anthology. This resource provides a structured approach to the poem, helping students explore themes and language. What’s Included? Starter: Students make predictions based upon the title of the poem. Context & Background: An exploration of the poem’s intertextual reference to Dover Beach by Matthew Arnold and its relevance to immigration and identity. A reading of the poem: A YouTube video is supplied with Daljit Nagra reading his poem. Poem Breakdown: A series of images which demonstrate the key imagery from the poem to aid students’ understanding of its literal meaning. Themes & Ideas: Discussion of key themes, including migration, British identity, and class divisions. Close Language Analysis: Examination of key poetic techniques and their effects through pre-annotated key sections of the poem. This didactic activity was designed as an example to the class of how to engage with poetic techniques and analyse them. A worksheet is provided on the final slide for students to unpick the layers of meaning in a quotation they select in a structured and guided way.

This lesson is designed for A-Level English Literature students studying Seamus Heaney’s Out of the Bag as part of the Edexcel English Literature (9ET0) Specification. It focuses on close reading, thematic exploration, and critical analysis to support students in developing detailed responses for the exam. Starter: Students engage with the title Out of the Bag, discussing the idiom’s meaning and predicting its relevance to the poem’s themes. Context Exploration: A brief introduction to Seamus Heaney, his influences, and the role of mythology and memory in his poetry. Key figures such as Asclepius and Hygeia are explained. Though context is not tested on this unit, the references are essential for student’s understanding. Close Reading & Group Analysis: Students work in pairs or small groups to explore key sections of the poem through the lens of a given theme. They annotate the poem, identifying relevant imagery, structural shifts, and tone changes. Exam-Style Question & Writing Task: Students respond to the question: Explore the ways Seamus Heaney presents transformation and revelation in Out of the Bag. A model/exemplar paragraph is provided to guide their analysis.

This resource provides a full lesson on Ciaran O’Driscoll’s poem Please Hold from Poems of the Decade, designed for A-Level English Literature students studying the Edexcel 9ET0 specification. The lesson encourages critical analysis, interpretation, and evaluation of the poem’s themes, language, and structure. The lesson involves: Starter activity: Students reflect on whether technology is improving or worsening human life with visual prompts. Class reading of Please Hold. Thematic interpretation activity: Students choose from several critical perspectives on the poem. They identify quotations supporting their chosen interpretation. Analytical questions: Key questions are provided to explore repetition, irony, tone, structure, and the critique of modern life. Extended writing question: An non-comparative, exam-style question is provided with success criteria to help students aim for Level 5 Responses. Plenary: A Think-Pair-Share activity where students relate the poem to their personal experiences. Do they agree with O’Driscoll’s critique of technology? The resource is now updated with a comparative essay question for Please Hold and Wole Soyinka’s Telephone Conversation. The poem itself is not included for copyright reasons, but is easily sourced online.