gcse english

A message for us all from Dickens

Dickens – and the message of A Christmas Carol is everywhere – even though the season of goodwill is over four months away. He was on the lips of Labour MP David Lammy in the wake of the Grenfell Tower disaster, repurposing the title of A Tale of Two Cities… Read More

The Lazy Larry Show: assisting you in the teaching of SPAG

The Lazy Larry Show: an online animated series designed to assist in the teaching of spelling, punctuation and grammar, from Peter Morrisson. “Once again ladies and gentlemen, for both your edification and your entertainment, welcome to The Lazy Larry Show, starring that paragon of teenage idleness himself, Lazy… Read More

The Power of the Motif: How to Ace Descriptive Writing

After reading many torturous stories (‘and then… and then… and then…), I think that most of us have been steering our students towards the Descriptive rather than the Narrative task in the GCSE English Language Paper. The focus on one place or situation frees up many students to concentrate on… Read More

Hammering it home: how writers use imagery to create effects!

By Peter Morrisson He’d left his laptop open, and still switched on. As her hand had brushed against the screen, it had shamelessly flickered into life, brazenly displaying the profile of a young woman with a shock of red hair, piercing green eyes and heavy pancake makeup who called herself… Read More

The simple power of the opening sentence (or two).

I have an obsession. One that drives my teaching and learning. One that caught your attention just now. Go on – admit it. A short sentence which begins ‘I have an obsession’ probably makes you think I am going to reveal bones in the caretaker’s cupboard, a hoard of football… Read More