Tag: English Literature

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Remember Why You Love Teaching

Beyond Team

I’m a sucker for a craze. Unless it’s flossing, which I think is distinctly overrated. But the current fad for decluttering, made so popular by Marie Kondo, has infected me. I love the concept of only keeping things if they still spark joy. It feels so cleansing. Inspired, I decided I will declutter my house; I’ll start at the top, and work down. And so, one afternoon, I find myself climbing up into my loft, braving the spiders and the cobwebs and the gross thing in the corner which is probably just a dust bunny but in my imagination is … Continue reading Remember Why You Love Teaching

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#SpeedPD: Teaching a Tricky Text

Beyond Team

It’s the thing we all dread as English teachers: doing that difficult poem or play or novel with a class. The one we don’t like, but have to teach anyway because it’s on the GCSE English Literature syllabus. So, what can we do to make it more bearable for ourselves? Try these top five tips: Make a list of five good things about the text. They might not be groundbreaking – it could even be ‘it’s short’! But force yourself to focus on the positives. Use someone else’s resources. Ask a colleague, or get onto the Twinkl site to see … Continue reading #SpeedPD: Teaching a Tricky Text

A Christmas Carol, christmas, English Literature, Exams, Form Time, GCSE, lessons, quiz, resources, Students, teachingLeave a comment

English Teachers – Have you Seen Twinkl’s 12 Days of Christmas Giveaway?

Beyond Team

It’s the run up to Christmas, things are starting to feel a bit festive, but you need something to challenge and absorb your class for those last few lessons. Never fear, our gift from Twinkl Secondary is a selection box of Christmas tasks to educate, engage and excite your students. All of the resources below are available, free, on the website for the remainder of 2018 – just make sure you have registered on the site. A Winter Poem Teaching Pack (https://www.twinkl.co.uk/resource/t3-e-119-new-a-winter-poem-teaching-pack, https://www.twinkl.co.uk/resource/t3-e-208-writing-prompts-winter-lesson-pack) Engage your KS3 pupils in a seasonal and fun lesson which includes a short, step by step … Continue reading English Teachers – Have you Seen Twinkl’s 12 Days of Christmas Giveaway?

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Gothic Fiction and Why I Love It

Beyond Team

Sam Turton talks us through her favourite genre. How It All Started My name is Sam and I’m a Gothic addict. Sign me up to Hotel Transylvania right now! When I first decided to study English at university, I never dreamt that I would get to study a whole module on Gothic fiction. I was in my element! We read Horace Walpole’s The Castle of Otranto, Ann Radcliffe’s The Mysteries of Udolpho, Sheridan le Fanu’s Carmilla, Anne Rice’s Interview with the Vampire and many others. My essay for the unit focussed on Rice’s novel compared with Stoker’s Dracula and the … Continue reading Gothic Fiction and Why I Love It