In my last two blog posts, I wrote about the ladder of abstraction and (a) its application to disciplinary literacy and (b) responding to literature. In this short blog, I want a look a little closer at how we can use the ladder to improve the depth of a student’s writing. The ideas here derive… Continue reading Teaching writing using the ladder of abstraction.
In the last post, I wrote about how we used the ladder of abstraction in a ‘disciplinary thinking’ session. In this short post, I will explain how the ladder can be used to help students develop more detailed responses to literature (or their reading in general). Remember that the ladder of abstraction is a way… Continue reading The Ladder of Abstraction Part Two: Responding to Literature
I’ve been working with my Year 11s on their AQA GCSE English Language paper 2 writing question. Before I talk about what we’ve been doing, let me share what I’ve told students not to do: they don’t need to worry about sub-headings, columns, by-lines, standfirsts, or even headlines. And don’t draw any pictures! These are… Continue reading AQA GCSE English Language: paper 2 question 5. Coherence and cohesion 1: importance of planning
Some thoughts on walking in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein For many of us, the moment is seared into our cultural memory: a door opens in a darkened, stone-walled cell, its aperture filled with the frame of something huge that walks, unsteadily, and backwards, across its threshold towards us. Whilst its face is hidden, there is no… Continue reading Walking with Frankenstein
I’ve been reading ‘The Writing Revolution’ by Judith C. Hochman and Natalie Wexler (2017) and early on in that book, the authors refer to the simple technique of using the ‘because-but-so’ sequence to help structure pupils’ thinking and responses. Given a sentence stem (i.e. ‘Cars are convenient’), students are then asked to complete the stem… Continue reading Because – but – so: thinking about Jekyll, Hyde and the human condition.
I’ve been working with a group of pupils in Year 11 whose aspirational targets, at the moment to them, seem a little distant. I’ve got six lessons with them to make some difference, and I can’t help thinking that understanding structure is one of the keys to unlocking reading. And unlocking structure is about slow-reading,… Continue reading Structure, talk and slow-reading
Updated November 2017: the link to the resources is now here: https://www.dropbox.com/s/dojccihmctyepyh/Comparing%20images.pptx?dl=0 A short blog on paper 2 skills. On a recent visit to a school, one of the English teachers talked about how they are using images to help develop synthesis and summary skills for paper 2. Inspired by this, I’ve put together a… Continue reading Using images to practise summary and synthesis skills for Lang paper 2 question 2
In the summer, I came across Rebecca Lowe’s compelling account of her recent bicycle ride across Europe and the Middle East: you can read her fascinating blog, The Bicycle Diaries, here. Her writing is evocative, personal but also accessible. Some of the content might be a little adult, so a little editing might be in… Continue reading Travel Writing for GCSE English Language Paper 2
Hi year 11 Here is a language paper 2 you can have a go at in preparation for next week’s exam. It’s based on two texts that some of us looked at in a recent revision class, but it’s worth revisiting. Later on this week, I’ll put together some tips and a bit of a… Continue reading Y11 – a sample language paper 2
Structure is all about how the text is put together, why the writer has done it this way and the effects it has on the reader’s appreciation and understanding of the text. The question wants you to analyse the effects of the writer’s use of structure. You should refer to precise points in the text… Continue reading Y11 – a reminder about Q3 structure (again…)
Mr Hanson's English 