This 27-slide lesson serves as the perfect introduction to J.B. Priestley’s ‘An Inspector Calls’, establishing the key context and background to the play. The lesson features information about Priestley’s life and views, capitalism, socialism, important historical dates, and pre-war and post-war context. The play’s key themes and ideas are explored, and tasks and discussion points are included throughout. At the end of the lesson is an extended writing task that could serve either as a class-based activity or homework task. This lesson is aimed primarily at GCSE students but could be used for KS3 too. PowerPoint is saved as PDF.

This 10-slide lesson activity allows students to explore how the Birling family (and Gerald) each wronged Eva Smith. Looking at the play through the lens of the ‘Seven Deadly Sins’ according to Catholic doctrine, we can see which sins each character commits, which may help us to determine which character - if any - is the most responsible for the death of Eva Smith. The lesson includes a table-based activity and questions for students to consider. These activities always lead to fascinating discussions and intellectual debates about the play. This is a particularly useful reflective activity or introduction to a deeper discussion of the play. PowerPoint saved as PDF.

This resource contains an extract from Ernest Hemingway’s ‘The Old Man and the Sea’ as well as 4 exam-style questions based on the AQA GCSE English Language Paper 1. Questions examine students on reading comprehension, language analysis, structural analysis, and constructing an argument in relation to the extract. This is an ideal mock for students to sit or a lesson resource for teachers to use with classes to practise and tackle the demands of each question.

This 17-slide lesson explores Seamus Heaney’s famous poem, ‘Mid-Term Break’. The lesson begins by deconstructing the poem’s title, before thinking sensitively about funereal procedure and atmosphere. Heaney’s life and work is introduced to prepare students for the autobiographical nature of the poem. Key vocabulary is presented for students to produce precise and sophisticated analysis of the poem. The poem’s key themes, imagery, and symbols are deconstructed, and students are encouraged to think critically about the poem’s language, form, structure, and rhyme. The tone of the poem is considered, and multiple readings of the poem are introduced. Discussion points and questions are included throughout. A visual task invites students to identify key images associated with the poem, which works nicely as an individual or group activity. An exam-style question is included at the end of the lesson. PowerPoint saved as PDF.

This 18-slide lesson offers an introduction to Stevenson’s use of setting in ‘The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde’. We consider how Stevenson’s use of setting facilitates Hyde’s dark deeds and the Gothic atmosphere of the novella. How the author’s childhood in Edinburgh influenced his depiction of Victorian London is also explored. Stevenson’s language and techniques are analysed, linked closely to the text’s overarching themes of duality and deception. Questions are included for students, too. PowerPoint saved as PDF.

This 30-slide lesson provides a comprehensive contextual introduction to Shakespeare’s ‘Romeo and Juliet’. Posing questions to students about young love, marriage, passion, and stereotypes, the lesson introduces key themes and ideas related to Shakespeare’s iconic tale of doomed romance. The genre of tragedy is considered, as are typical elements of romance. We look at Shakespeare’s life and work, and examine a series of posters for ‘Romeo and Juliet’ to see how the play is commonly presented in the cultural imagination. Important historical and theatrical context is explained, and key terminology is introduced to allow students to produce sophisticated analysis. Questions and discussion points are featured throughout, and there is a research task at the end of the lesson. Also included is a series of films inspired by ‘Romeo and Juliet’ to facilitate conversations around the play’s cultural impact. PowerPoint saved as PDF. Also included is a ‘Romeo and Juliet’ word-search.

This 21-slide lesson offers a fantastic introduction to George Orwell’s ‘Animal Farm’, including everything that students need to know about the novella’s historical context. Included is information on the Russian Revolution, Orwell, anthropomorphism, satire, and much more. This resource is ideal for GCSE students or KS3 classes. PowerPoint saved as PDF.

This 30-slide lesson explores the context of Shakespeare’s ‘The Tempest’. The lesson considers how European colonialism and the Age of Discovery influenced and impacted Shakespeare’s writing. Students are provided with an in-depth discussion of European colonial expansion in the Renaissance, including information on the Jamestown settlement and common artistic depictions of Indigenous Americans in Shakespeare’s lifetime. We think about how ‘The Tempest’ can be read as a product of the search for the ‘New World’. Shakespeare’s potential sources for this tragi-comic play are explored. Key words and themes are also presented, and the plot is outlined. We think about some of Shakespeare’s dramatic structure and stagecraft in the play, leading some critics to align Prospero with the playwright himself. Questions, discussion points, and tasks are included for students. This lesson could be used as a comprehensive introduction for pupils studying the play anywhere from high-attaining KS3 to A level. PowerPoint saved as PDF.

This 33-slide lesson explores and revises Gerald Croft in J.B. Priestley’s ‘An Inspector Calls’ in a thorough and comprehensive structure - perfect for those studying the play at GCSE. Gerald is perhaps the most complex character in the play and students often find him challenging to analyse effectively. This lesson walks step-by-step through Gerald’s role in the play and how Priestley presents him at different points. Included are Gerald’s key quotations and moments, his function in the play, his corresponding historical context, and regular consideration of Priestley’s message and use of Gerald as a symbol. Questions and thinking points are featured throughout the lesson. An exam-style question is included at the end. PowerPoint saved as PDF.

Explore Jessie Pope’s famous jingoistic poem ‘Who’s For The Game?’ in this comprehensive and engaging 20-slide lesson. Perfect for KS3 students with some introductory knowledge of World War I, but this could just as well work for a KS4 group who are analysing poetry. Questions, key vocabulary, and tasks are included, as well as some biographical information on Pope and context on the First World War. Exemplar analytical paragraphs on the poem are also included. PowerPoint saved as PDF.

This 27-slide PowerPoint is a great lesson on the beloved poem that we now know as ‘Daffodils’ by William Wordsworth. The lesson guides students through the poem, thinking about its language, structure, rhyme, and central ideas. A basic biography of Wordsworth is also provided, and a glossary of challenging vocabulary. Questions are included in the lesson (including short comprehension-based tasks), as well as a larger final task in which students write their own poem, inspired by Wordsworth’s. It is an ideal lesson for KS3 students, particularly Year 7 students who are still learning about poetic craft. The lesson functions either as a stand-alone study or could easily fit into a larger scheme of work on nature poetry or Romanticism, for example. A copy of the poem is also included in this resource. PowerPoint saved as PDF.

This 31-slide lesson on William Blake’s ‘The Little Black Boy’ offers superb analysis for those studying the poem at A level. In tackling one of the most complex and ambiguous of Blake’s ‘Songs’, this lesson provides sophisticated linguistic, contextual and thematic scrutiny. This is an ideal lesson for those studying Blake as a protest writer with AQA’s Political and Social Protest Writing course. PowerPoint saved as PDF.

This 35-slide lesson explores the role of women in Shakespeare’s ‘Othello’. Perfect for high-attaining students, this lesson analyses how female characters are presented in the tragedy, exploring the roles of Desdemona, Emilia, Bianca and others in light of the play’s themes and Jacobean context. We consider how various female characters are presented in the play, thinking about how female transgression and disobedience threatens the patriarchal authority of the male characters, and the tragedy that ensues. Fidelity, cuckoldry, and duplicity are explored, as are the roles of key props, such as the handkerchief. Directorial choices and how these might impact our interpretations of female characters are discussed. Misogynistic language and masculine violence is also debated, while the private and public personalities of characters are deconstructed. Students are equipped with ambitious vocabulary to facilitate sophisticated analysis of Shakespeare’s characters. Questions and discussion points are included throughout for students. We consider Shakespeare’s messages and intentions, and students are provided with fascinating critical opinions from academics on the female characters of the play. This is an ideal resource for revising this key element of the play. PowerPoint saved as PDF.

This lesson is a sophisticated and thorough introduction to the context and key ideas behind Henrik Ibsen’s ‘A Doll’s House’. This 23-slide PowerPoint lesson is perfect for those studying the play as part of AQA’s Political and Social Protest Writing course at A level, but easily adaptable to other A level courses (including Theatre Studies) too. The lesson includes biographical information about Ibsen, an explanation of Norway’s social history in the 19th century (with particular focus on the rights of women), and an introduction to the key themes and ideas in ‘A Doll’s House’. Questions and tasks are also featured for students. PowerPoint saved as PDF.

This 17-slide lesson explores Chapter 10 of George Orwell’s ‘Animal Farm’. In this comprehensive lesson, students consider how Orwell brings the novella to its dramatic and iconic conclusion. As the pigs become indistinguishable from their human rivals, students must debate whether the Revolution really was worth it. Looking back on the whole novella, we think about how things went so wrong, and whether any of the Seven Commandments remain unbroken by the end. The allegorical function of the novella is also closely studied, as pupils learn about how we look upon Stalin in hindsight and the fate of the Soviet Union. Questions, discussion points, and tasks are included for students. A creative summarising task is featured at the end. The lesson is ideal for KS3 or GCSE students. PowerPoint saved as PDF.

This 28-slide lesson on ‘Of Mice and Men’ introduces the key context vital to understanding Steinbeck’s classic novella, as well as functioning as a general introduction to studying the text. The lesson includes key information about the Depression, the Dust Bowl, racism, patriarchal pressures and other prejudice during the 1930s in America. Steinbeck’s own life is also covered, as well as the meaning behind the text’s title, and students are invited to analyse various book jacket designs for the novella. Key themes are explored alongside a comprehensive introduction to the American Dream and its role in the novella. Questions and tasks are also included for students to tackle. PowerPoint saved as PDF.

This 30-slide lesson offers the perfect introduction to the context of Shakespeare’s ‘Macbeth’. In the lesson, students explore Jacobean ideas of Kingship, looking closely at the reign of James I, the Divine Right and Great Chain of Being, and the atmosphere created by the Gunpowder Plot. We then look at Renaissance and Medieval ideas of gender (especially on the stage) and Aristotle’s rules for tragedy. The play’s key themes and ideas are explored, and students are encouraged to reflect on power and its relationship to corruption and even tyranny. Important vocabulary is explained, and students are tasked with researching other key words and ideas. Questions, discussion points and tasks are included for students. Also included in this resource is a copy of James I’s speech to Parliament in 1610 for the purpose of analysing the King’s attitudes to his Divine Right. Ideal for students reading the play at GCSE or upper-KS3. PowerPoint saved as PDF.

These two lessons (28 slides each) explore William Blake’s companion poems, ‘Infant Joy’ and ‘Infant Sorrow’, from the ‘Songs of Innocence and Experience’. The lessons explore Blake’s radicalism and context, analysing the poems’ language, themes, form, structure, and message in light of his political protest. Questions, tasks, and discussion points for students are included throughout, including extended essays. These lessons are ideal for those studying Blake’s ‘Songs’ as part of AQA’s A level ‘Political and Social Protest Writing’ paper, but could be adapted for other purposes. PowerPoints saved as PDF. 56 slides in total.

This is a perfect stand-alone lesson aimed at KS3 or KS4 for thinking about how language is used every day in advertising. Have you ever thought about how many adverts you read in a day? What are the most powerful words in advertising? Are you aware of when and how advertising tries to entice you? This lesson uses a wide range of adverts to demonstrate the different techniques used by advertisers. At the end of the lesson, students are tasked with creating their own advert/brand. PowerPoint saved as PDF. 23 slides in total.

These two lessons are perfect for analysing William Blake’s two ‘Chimney Sweeper’ poems from the 'Songs of Innocence and ‘Experience’. Both lessons contain detailed explorations of language, context, themes and ideas, especially in relation to Blake as a protest writer. Each stanza is deconstructed individually, and questions/tasks are included for students, including comparative and extended essay questions. These lessons are ideal for those A level students who are analysing Blake’s poetry as part of the AQA Political and Social Protest Paper, but easily adaptable for other exam boards too. The lesson on the ‘Chimney Sweeper’ of ‘Innocence’ is 36 slides in length. The lesson on the ‘Chimney Sweeper’ of ‘Experience’ is 26 slides in length. Two PowerPoints (saved as PDF) included.