Stickmen Shakespeare
This lesson is one of three parts that won Conor the innovative lesson competition. Conor Sneyd has just finished his third year of studying English at Trintiy College. He's always loved English, because he's always loved reading, and he thinks that if Shakespeare was still alive he'd be annoyed that everyone takes him so seriously.
The aim of this lesson is to revise characters and themes in Shakespeare, to present information in a visual way, to get students actively involved in the lesson and to have a bit of fun with it
There is a lot going in a Shakespeare play, for example Hamlet, and it can be hard for students to remember the details of who exactly every character is, and what exactly they do. One way of revising characters and themes which I’ve found works well is by drawing everything on the board – simple drawings with stickmen. When drawing a character I ask the class things like what expression I should give them, and why – eg. giving Hamlet a sad face, as he’s sad that his father is dead and his mother has remarried so soon, or giving him an angry face, as he wants revenge on the man who murdered his father; or what they should be wearing or holding – eg. Claudius should be holding a bottle of poison because he poisoned Old Hamlet and tries to poison Hamlet during the duel, Laertes should be holding a sword because he’s trying to kill Hamlet; or who they should be standing beside – eg. Hamlet, Gertrude and Claudius should be together as they’re all part of the same family.
Sneaky Shakespeare
This lesson is one of three parts that won Conor the innovative lesson competition. Conor Sneyd has just finished his third year of studying English at Trintiy College. He's always loved English, because he's always loved reading, and he thinks that if Shakespeare was still alive he'd be annoyed that everyone takes him so seriously.
The Aim of this lesson is to make students feel more confident when approaching Shakespeare
A lot of students are very intimidated by Shakespeare, which is hardly a surprise. The biggest problem students have with it is the language: besides using lots of old words which a modern English speaker wouldn’t recognise, it is also written in a very abstract and poetic style which means that even if you do know all the words, you still might not have a clue what he’s on about. Reading Shakespeare can be a massive challenge even for a well-read adult who usually has no problems with comprehension, so for a secondary school student, who might not read a lot, or might have major difficulties with comprehension, it can be an absolute nightmare.
Learning from Mock Exams
The snow before Christmas had a knock on effect for many exam students this year. Students sat mock exams later than normal without getting a chance to finish any more of the course work. Everyone has anxiously awaited results and feedback. At The Homework Club we believe evaluation is vital to success. The Mock results don’t have to set what you will get in June. Included are some of the top tips we go through for our own students. The mocks are a test run! They test our endurance.
If you had a good mocks - you should be always be careful. Were you just lucky with the paper? are you likely to get the same questions in June? If yes, your on the road to success.
If you had a bad mocks - Don’t despair. Above all else stay confident. Always aim for the stars and you will reach success. Find your mistakes and learn from the experience. It's not the end of the world.
There are 8 main factors that effect exam performance
Subject Knowledge
Your Exam History
Exam Preparation
Exam Practice
Experience of the Subject
Writing Skills
Use of Time
Attitude and Approach
