by the Super Baby Project

Guides to poetry by Duffy, Armitage and Pre-1914 Poets

Task: You will work in pairs to produce a revision guide to one of the following poems (I will tell you which one). It must be suitable for use by other Year 11s. The aim of this is both to help you to revise the poems for your English Literature examination, and for you, as a class, to produce a pack of revision guides. This task must be complete by the end of today’s lesson.

Poems to cover:

Duffy
Anne Hathaway
Before You Were Mine
Havisham
Stealing

Armitage
Mother, any distance
...

This teaching guide for students of higher ability is designed as a self-contained unit which can be used to produce the AQA A GCSE Pre-1914 Prose coursework. It can also be used as a springboard for Original Writing.

A Modest Proposal is an excellent alternative for the more able students to the rather well-worn (though useful) Pre-1914 Prose path of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, Great Expectations and Pride and Prejudice. Its blistering satire allows students to produce some quite subtle and impressive analyses.

• The AQA A Pre-1914 coursework...

Poetry from Different Cultures

This teaching guide for high-ability students is designed as a self-contained unit which can be used to prepare for the AQA A Paper 2 Section A question on the poetry from different cultures in the Anthology.

Let us remind ourselves of the assessment objectives addressed by this section. Candidates are required to demonstrate their ability to:

(i) read, with insight and engagement, making appropriate references to texts and developing and sustaining interpretations of them;

(iv) select material appropriate to...

Compare the ways an event is described in ‘Blessing’ with the ways an event is described in ‘Island Man’.

Imtiaz Dharker and Grace Nichols are both clearly concerned with issues of identity and clashing cultures when exploring the main events in their poems ‘Blessing’ and ‘Island Man’. Despite the fact that Dharker originates from Pakistan, and Nichols from Guyana, each seems able to use similar poetic techniques to get to grips with wider issues beyond the apparently mundane occurrences in their poetry.

The concept of identity is...

Titus Andronicus

This teaching guide for higher ability students is designed as a self-contained unit which can be used to produce the AQA A GCSE Shakespeare coursework.

• The unit uses one of the lesser-known and less critically-acclaimed Shakespeare plays in order to encourage a high-quality and truly original response.
• The AQA A Shakespeare coursework is what is termed as a ‘cross-over’ piece; therefore, if you are using it for assessment for both English and English Literature GCSEs (the most common approach), you need to be able...

Romeo & Juliet

This teaching guide for high-ability students is designed as a self-contained unit which can be used to produce the AQA A GCSE Shakespeare coursework. The AQA A Shakespeare coursework is what is termed as a ‘cross-over’ piece; therefore, if you are using it for assessment for both English and English Literature GCSEs (the most common approach), you need to be able to address the assessment objectives for both. The resources referred to in this guide are listed at the end of the page under ‘Associated Resources’.

Let us...

Associated Resources

• Of Mice and Men Revision Guide on Loneliness.doc

This revision guide takes you through the central theme of loneliness in the novella “Of Mice and Men”.

Questions at GCSE often focus on this theme.

Consider the central theme of loneliness in the novel, Of Mice and Men.

Where and when is the novel set? Look on the first line of the first page. The action is set around Soledad. What does soledad mean in Spanish? Do you think it is a coincidence that this placename is chosen to set the tale?

Who are the two central...

A Pre C20th GCSE Assignment on Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte

Speaking & Listening and/or Written Response

I often get asked how to make Pre-Twentieth Century texts more accessible. This assignment has been used with a number of classes with children with statements of SEN and the students have enjoyed it. I hope you can make use of it too.

It can be used in conjunction with the full novel, the full chapters and/or the film version of the novel. The full chapters are available as a separate download and can be used on a whiteboard or...

Points to consider when assessing Chapter One of “Great Expectations” by Charles Dickens.

Some ideas to get you started…

• What makes this opening chapter a good read? It might be useful to colour code your sheets with a highlighter pen!
• Narrative technique – first person narrative. What effect does this have on you, the reader? What does first person have that third person misses and vice versa?
• Setting (Where is the story set?)

The setting is very important in Great Expectations in a number of key scenes. The varied settings...

The narrative technique employed by Emily Bronte is both complex and beguiling.

There are two obvious narrators in Lockwood and Nelly Dean but several other elements are incorporated within the novel to channel the story.

Bronte ensured that the action as a whole is presented in the form of an intricate collection of written fragments or verbal eyewitness accounts by characters who have all had some part to play in the story they unfold.

The author employs a general Rahmenerzählung approach to the narrative with Lockwood’s tale...

Read the LAST paragraph of this article FIRST, then go back to the beginning.

• Highlight or put a ring around issues which relate to the characters Mickey and Edward.

OR

• Write ten bullet points which sum up this article.

OR

• Draft a short reply to Philip Webster outlining your ideas on this topic.

The Times
January 12, 2009

Children of poorer families face as big a hill as ever

Philip Webster, Political Editor

A child’s chances of success still depend largely on the background and earnings of his or her parents despite the billions...

Getting your teeth into a text!

Look closely at the newspaper article on Heather Mills.

Heather’s rants wrecking case

Got the wind up ... Mucca with papers at GMTV yesterday

By VICTORIA NEWTON Showbiz Editor
Published: 09 Nov 2007, The Sun

HEATHER Mills was last night looking for new divorce lawyers – after the top firm she hired “fired” her over her bizarre TV war against Sir Paul McCartney.

Lady Mucca, 39 – who went on GMTV AGAIN yesterday – was phoned by legal eagles Mishcon de Reya and told they could no longer represent...

An English Media Assignment

Film Review by ………………..

Blade Runner

Look at the advertisement for the film below. Who are the central characters and who are they played by?

Which other characters in the film caught your eye? Why?

What type or genre of film is Blade Runner? You can look at the information below which was taken from the DVD.

Who directed the film? This person has made some changes to the original film that was shown in the cinemas in 1982. What do you think the director has done to it?

The film was based on a...

A Scaffolded Essay Guide to Lord of the Flies

At the beginning of the novel, Ralph stands on his head and celebrates the fact that there are no adult survivors.

This is a dream come true. How does this dream turn into a nightmare?

It is true that at the beginning of the novel that in conversation with Piggy that Ralph celebrates the fact that there are no adults on the island. I think he…

Within hours of celebrating the lack of adult supervision. Ralph assumes the role of…

The dream really turns into a night mare when…

Another key...

Binary Opposition

The way a text creates and shapes its reader’s interpretation to develop both meaning and feeling can be fruitfully and subtly analysed by means of binary opposition. Despite its apparent complexity, this method can easily be understood by students of varying levels and ability from GCSE upwards. It can allow them to create subtle analyses of texts of the kind that can fulfil the requirements of the highest grade bands.

The theory works from the premise that many words and phrases have, as Steve Campsall terms it, their...

Alfred Tennyson’s The Charge of the Light Brigade

Overview and Context

Written following the disastrous 1854 Battle of Balaclava in the Crimean War, this poem can be read as both jingoistic and as highlighting the horrors of war. Whilst Tennyson was Poet Laureate at the time and might have been expected to produce patriotic poetry, there is a...

Wilfred Owen’s Futility

Overview and Context

Futility is one of the 5 poems that WW1 poet Owen had published during his lifetime. Composed most likely in Ripon – though perhaps in Scarborough – this lyric is set against the First World War, a kind of macrocosm when placed against the feud in Verona in Romeo and Juliet. It explores the...

Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s Sonnet 43

Overview and Context

Browning wrote a 44 sonnet series about her love for her fiancé Robert Browning which was never intended for publication. It was entitled Sonnets from the Portuguese with the title stemming from the epithet ‘my little Portugee’ Browning used for her. Sonnet 43 is a Petrarchan sonnet...

Andrew Marvel’s To His Coy Mistress

Overview and Context

The poem might be viewed as a literary exercise in logic as much as a ‘love’ poem’. Marvell’s speaker uses a tripartite structure to follow his argument to its conclusion, effectively forming a ‘syllogism’.

Love and Conflict

In Romeo and Juliet, Shakespeare explores several themes but perhaps the twin themes of love and conflict were uppermost in his mind when he conceived and wrote the play. At GCSE, the play is often used as part of a controlled assessment task in which students explore the presentation of one of these themes and compare it with...

Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein subtitled ‘The Modern Prometheus’ is one of the most famous novels of the Gothic genre.  Frankenstein was an offshoot of a ghost-story writing project proposed by Byron in 1816. Mary Shelley’s explanation of how she came to write this novel is used in the introduction to the 1831 edition of Frankenstein: ‘I busied myself to think of a story… One which would speak to the mysterious fears of our nature and awaken thrilling horror.’

Shelley’s decision to ‘awaken thrilling horror’ can be seen,...

1984 Film Artwork by Shepard Fairey

Areas to focus on in Part 3:

• Chapter 1 | Winston’s imprisonment in the Ministry of Love; its description at the opening of the chapter and its contrast with conventional images of love; the lack of emotion Winston shows in relation to his mother now; Winston’s love for Julia stated as fact and then it disappears.
• Chapter 2 | Winston clings to O’Brien; Winston’s love for O’Brien; the death of love in Winston; the betrayal by Julia.
• Chapter 3 | Love...

1984 Film Artwork by Shepard Fairey

Areas on which to focus in Part 2:

• Chapter 1 | Julia’s first message to Winston and his response; their meeting in the crowd at Victory Square.
• Chapter 2 | Winston and Julia meet and consummate their relationship.
• Chapter 3 | Winston and Julia meet several times; the discussion of Winston’s temptation to murder to ideologically orthodox wife, Katharine.
• Chapter 4 | Winston’s plans to use Mr Charrington’s shop as a place for him and Julia to meet; the...

1984 Film Artwork by Shepard Fairey

Love and Relationships in 1984

1984 is commonly studied at A Level and is often cited as a fine modern example of dystopian fiction. At the heart of the narrative lies a relationship between two characters: the protagonist, Winston Smith and his girlfriend and accomplice, known simply as Julia: this has both thematic and symbolic significance. In addition, Winston’s relationship with his mother, his colleagues, and O’Brien, and the relationship between the present and the past, are important, as well as...

Act 5

Act 5 scene 1

Brutus and Cassius make a military mistake.
Cassius regrets letting Antony live.
Octavius and Antony compete for control.

The final Act concerns the final conflict between the two sides and is compressed into 5 fairly short scenes.  Again Shakespeare compresses time for dramatic purposes.  There were actually 2 battles at Philippi and they were about 3 weeks apart.  Shakespeare merges these into one continuous battle and brings Antony and Octavius face to face with...

Act 4

Act 4 scene 1

Antony and Octavius plan their revenge.

This scene contrasts with the previous one in that the result of Antony’s victory over Brutus at the funeral is shown as political – the deliberate, cold-bloodied drawing up of a list of conspirators who must die.  According to Plutarch the list ran to 300 names. 

Antony’s opening line is flat and unemotional in contrast to the grisly subject.  Octavius and Lepidus then try to bargain for the lives of various...

Act 3

Act 3 scene 1

Caesar reaches the senate but is surrounded by the conspirators.
Caesar is stabbed by all the conspirators, finally by Brutus.
Antony meets the murderers and is given permission to speak at the funeral of Caesar.

This is the pivotal scene of the play.  The scenes in both previous Acts have been building to this moment and it provides the motives for the actions in the rest of the play.

Caesar is surrounded by the conspirators – Artemidorus and the soothsayer...

Act 2

Act 2 scene 1

Brutus considers the murder of Caesar.
Brutus reads one of the false letters and is visited by Cassius.
The decision is taken not to harm Antony or any of Caesar’s other followers.

The storm from the previous scene is continuing and Brutus refers to the darkness in the opening speech.  Darkness is symbolic in this scene – it represents the darkness and confusion in Brutus’ mind.  The conspirators arrive in darkness later in the scene which adds to the feeling...

This guide has been written to help teachers in their reading, preparation and teaching of the play. Julius Caesar can be taught as a part of several exam board English Literature units:

• AQA GCSE English Literature 4710 | Unit 4: Approaching Shakespeare & the English Literary Heritage
• AQA GCSE English 4700 | Unit 3 Understanding and producing creative texts
• OCR GCSE English Literature | 2.1 Unit A661: Literary Heritage Linked Texts
• OCR GCSE English | Unit A641 Reading literary texts
• Edexcel GCSE English Literature | Unit 3: Shakespeare and...

The Language of Radio DJs

• AQA GCSE Spoken English CA SOW 2013.zip

This AQA GCSE Spoken English Scheme on The Language of Radio DJs contains the following resources:

Week 1

• EnglishEdu - AQA Unit 3c Spoken Language Study SOW Week 1.doc
• Introduction to Unit.doc
• Studying Spoken Language Intro.ppt
• A Glossary of Spoken Language Features - Teacher Copy.doc
• A Glossary of Spoken Language Features - Student Copy.doc
• Conventions.ppt
• Info on DJs.doc
• Key.doc
• Medium.ppt
• Radio Stations.doc
• Spoken vs Written Cards.doc
• Terminology.ppt
• Thought Bubble.doc

This anthology is used for the following courses:

GCSE English Spec Code 4700
GCSE English Language Spec Code 4705
GCSE English Literature Spec Code 4710

The Anthology can also be used for Controlled Assessments in the following:

GCSE English Literature Unit 5: Exploring poetry
GCSE English Unit 3: Understanding and producing creative texts
GCSE English Language Unit 3: Understanding spoken and written texts and writing creatively

Associated Resources

• Moon on the Tides: Character & Voice PPTs
• Moon on the Tides: Place PPTs
• Moon on the...

The following guide would be useful for AQA LITB1, Aspects of Narrative but also for many other A level (and GCSE) units, where Hardy’s poems might be studied.

• Neutral Tones
• The Darkling Thrush
• ­At Castle Boterel
• ­The Voice
• ­Drummer Hodge
• ­In Church
• ­The Oxen

To many, Hardy is a genius, worthy of the highest respect as a technician in his poetry: a poet able to move his readers deeply often by his portrayal of ordinary people and events, both rendered special by the manner of his telling; to others, his technical ability is never...

Associated Resources

• Blake - Innocent Sweep.ppt
• Blake - Experience Sweep.ppt
• Blake - Holy Thursday.ppt

Introducing William Blake

Abstract

The course discussed in these notes is designed as a short course of enrichment and development of skills of poetry analysis based in a personal response to pairs of poems from the Songs of Innocence and Experience.

It is not designed to cover too many of the poems, but rather to spark interest and enthusiasm.

It can be used as part of a cross-curricular activity and benefits from a high level of...

This is just a little taster of Jonathan Peel’s frankly suberb guide to Kazuo Ishiguro’s novel ‘Never Let Me Go’. At over 40 pages, it should provide you with more than enough material to engage with in and out of class.

• NLMG Guide.pdf

We might start this document by considering the genre of the writing. Is it science-fiction? Or dystopian literature in which a parallel world is developed which focuses on negative stereotyping (the opposite of a Utopia - look them up, it’s part of learning!). Or is it something else again?

I argue that...

Click on one of the links below to download Steve Campsall’s PowerPoint on An Inspector Calls.

• An Inspector Calls.ppt
• An Inspector Calls.pptx

Associated Resources

• A Student’s Guide to ’Much Ado About Nothing’ by Mandy Lloyd
• Much Ado Guide.doc

‘Much Ado about Nothing’ in context: ‘Comedy’ vs. ‘Tragedy’

Much Ado About Nothing is technically considered to be a Shakespearean ‘comedy’ of the classical kind; indeed, it’s even frequently taught at KS3 owing to its frequent comic tone. The witty and entertaining exchanges between the main protagonists Beatrice and Benedick have been the subject of much literary criticism and are often considered to be the most...

This anthology is used for the following courses:

GCSE English Spec Code 4700
GCSE English Language Spec Code 4705
GCSE English Literature Spec Code 4710

The Anthology can also be used for Controlled Assessments in the following:

GCSE English Literature Unit 5: Exploring poetry
GCSE English Unit 3: Understanding and producing creative texts
GCSE English Language Unit 3: Understanding spoken and written texts and writing creatively

Associated Resources

• Moon on the Tides: Character & Voice PPTs
• Moon on the Tides: Place PPTs
• Moon on the...

Associated Resources

• A Guide to Much Ado About Nothing by Steph Jackson
• Much Ado About Nothing - Student’s Guide.doc

This brief study guide focuses on the themes, language and issues of the play relevant to the current A-Level Literature specification AO2 requirement of form, structure and language: ‘demonstrate detailed critical understanding in analysing the ways in which structure, form and language shape meanings in literary texts’.

The guide also explores some areas of the historical context of the play which will assist you with...

This anthology is used for the following courses:

GCSE English Spec Code 4700
GCSE English Language Spec Code 4705
GCSE English Literature Spec Code 4710

The Anthology can also be used for Controlled Assessments in the following:

GCSE English Literature Unit 5: Exploring poetry
GCSE English Unit 3: Understanding and producing creative texts
GCSE English Language Unit 3: Understanding spoken and written texts and writing creatively

Associated Resources

• Moon on the Tides: Character & Voice PPTs
• Moon on the Tides: Conflict PPTs
• Moon on the...

This new EnglishEdu guide is aimed at GCSE English and English Literature students in Year 11 and, although based on poetry, it contains much of value regarding general essay writing skills and the use of the key essay writing “P.E.E / P.Q.C” technique.

Its strength perhaps is that it is based on an average student’s writing rather than that of a top grade student, as is often the case with published exemplars. This, it is hoped, will allow students of a variety of abilities to feel comfortable with the essay and not feel belittled by...

OMAM Post-reading Revision.ppt

OMAM Post-reading Revision.pptx

Associated Resources

DARTs Literary Analysis and Wuthering Heights.doc

I teach some students with special needs and I found one particular technique really useful when tackling Pre-Twentieth Century Literature recently.

To put the lesson in context, I try to enter my autistic students for GCSE English examination as soon as possible.

This gets them used to the system and the particular demands of the syllabus, particularly in coursework and the examination itself.

Some students thus take the examination as early as Year 8 or Year 9 in the...

This anthology is used for the following courses:

GCSE English Spec Code 4700
GCSE English Language Spec Code 4705
GCSE English Literature Spec Code 4710

The Anthology can also be used for Controlled Assessments in the following:

GCSE English Literature Unit 5: Exploring poetry
GCSE English Unit 3: Understanding and producing creative texts
GCSE English Language Unit 3: Understanding spoken and written texts and writing creatively

Associated Resources

• Moon on the Tides: Place PPTs
• Moon on the Tides: Conflict PPTs
• Moon on the Tides:...

Click on the link below to download Jo Winwood’s PPT on The Clown Punk by Simon Armitage.

The Clown Punk.pptx

The Clown Punk.ppt

This resource is relevant to the following courses:

AQA GCSE English spec code 4700
AQA GCSE English Language spec code 4705
AQA GCSE English Literature spec code 4710

The anthology can also be used for Controlled Assessment in the following:

AQA English Literature Unit 5: Exploring Poetry
AQA English Unit 3: Understanding and producing creative texts
AQA English Language Unit 3: Understanding spoken and...

Click on the link below to download Jo Winwood’s PPT on Medusa by Carol Ann Duffy.

Medusa.pptx

Medusa.ppt

This resource is relevant to the following courses:

AQA GCSE English spec code 4700
AQA GCSE English Language spec code 4705
AQA GCSE English Literature spec code 4710

The anthology can also be used for Controlled Assessment in the following:

AQA English Literature Unit 5: Exploring Poetry
AQA English Unit 3: Understanding and producing creative texts
AQA English Language Unit 3: Understanding spoken and written texts and writing...

Click on the link below to download Jo Winwood’s PPT on Horse Whisperer by Andrew Forster.

Horse Whisperer.pptx

Horse Whisperer.ppt

This resource is relevant to the following courses:

AQA GCSE English spec code 4700
AQA GCSE English Language spec code 4705
AQA GCSE English Literature spec code 4710

The anthology can also be used for Controlled Assessment in the following:

AQA English Literature Unit 5: Exploring Poetry
AQA English Unit 3: Understanding and producing creative texts
AQA English Language Unit 3: Understanding spoken and...

Click on the link below to download Jo Winwood’s PPT on Checkin Out Me History by John Agard.

Checkin Out Me History.pptx

Checkin Out Me History.ppt

This resource is relevant to the following courses:

AQA GCSE English spec code 4700
AQA GCSE English Language spec code 4705
AQA GCSE English Literature spec code 4710

The anthology can also be used for Controlled Assessment in the following:

AQA English Literature Unit 5: Exploring Poetry
AQA English Unit 3: Understanding and producing creative texts
AQA English Language Unit 3:...

A very useful zipped set of files from Aimee Williams including a Scheme of Work and Associated Resources for the new GCSE English “Spoken English” Unit. Although written for AQA, these will be fully transferable across other boards as this is a new universal GCSE English requirement.

Week 1 - Scheme & Resources

Week_1_Scheme.doc
Annotation_of_Txt_Message.pptx
Annotation_of_Txt_Message.ppt
Features.docx
Features.doc
Spoken_vs_Written_Cards.docx
Spoken_vs_Written_Cards.doc
Spoken_Vs_Written.docx
Spoken_Vs_Written.doc...[ read full article ] »

Associated Resources

• Discourse Markers Toolkit.doc
• Discourse Markers PowerPoint.pptx
• DISPLAY Discourse Markers.doc

A ‘discourse marker’ is a word or phrase that helps to link written ideas. These words are generally more formal lexical items that find little use in speech – which is perhaps why they do not always come naturally to students.

Discourse markers can be used, for example, to link ideas that are similar (e.g. the adverbs, also and similarly); and they can be used to link ideas that are dissimilar (e.g. however, alternately)....[ read full article ] »