Together with a number of other eminent journalists and educationalists, I co-founded and help run the popular educational blog, Local Schools Network. I also blog for Mumsnet on Tales Behind The Classroom Door. My YouTube channel is Wonderfrancis. My Soundcloud Channel is Electric Schubert. I am @wonderfrancis on Twitter. Other blogs: A Streetcar Named Desire for […]

Assessment of educational needs should be overhauled, as parents may be encouraging misdiagnosis to access resources (This article was first published by The Guardian) Plans to change the “special needs” system in schools will have a big impact upon teachers like me, as well as millions of pupils and their parents. That said, the system does need an […]

For secondary school teachers like me, training sessions run by the exam boards are invaluable. And I’ve attended plenty of meetings where there have been strong hints about upcoming questions, similar to those exposed by the Telegraph this week. I’ve never heard an examiner being so open about the sorts of topics that the exam […]

Wilfred Owen’s poetry and life on Prezi

Using personal experience to improve on Prezi

I think I’m getting a bit better at making these videos now. I produced this video for my GCSE pupils who have not been to Edinburgh but really need to know how the city influenced the writing of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde for their English Literature exam. Robert Louis Stevenson had a love-hate relationship with […]

The key question that arises from much of the data that’s generated about pupils’ attainment is what test best assesses pupils’ ability in reading. We know that the current government like the PISA (Programme for International Student Assessment) a great deal and are suspicious of Key Stage 2 tests, which they don’t like because they […]

I used to be a bit sceptical about the whole idea of Media Studies until I started teaching it at A Level. The process of choosing a suitable syllabus (we opted for OCR), devising schemes of work and delivering the lessons over the last few years has now convinced me that it should be an […]

It’s official. Finally, Michael Gove, the Education Secretary, has proclaimed that Ancient History is more important than a whole raft of subjects that might actually teach our teenagers something of value. If you look at the list of “approved GCSEs” for the English Baccalaureate, you’ll see that Ancient History sits proudly there as an approved […]

  Plan: Passionate shepherd… Nymph’s reply… Sims: -Direct language -Rhythm Diffs: -Imagery (remember caesura!) – Answer: In ‘The Passionate Shepherd’ a shepherd is pleading to a nymph (a beautiful woman) to go and live with him in the countryside. To persuade the nymph to go with him, Marlowe uses beautiful imagery of nature being harmonious […]

Hemingway’s opening is dramatic for a number of reasons. Read through the first two pages and/or listening to my podcast, and then list FOUR ways Hemingway develops a real sense of anticipation in the opening of the novel. Do you agree with these points? 1. Hemingway immediately tells us that there is a great deal […]

Composed on Westminster Bridge; an audio explanation by Francis Gilbert “Composed upon Westminster Bridge, September 3, 1802” is a sonnet by William Wordsworth describing London, viewed from one of the bridges over the Thames, in the early morning. It was first published in 1807. Earth has not anything to show more fair: Dull would he be of […]

Please add in annotations to the poems if/when you see fit as you are answering these questions London What does Blake notice in every face he meets? (weakness, woe or sorrow) TRUE OR FALSE: ‘Mind-forged manacles’ are chains created by minds which have been oppressed or brainwashed They are a special type of clothing people […]

Comparing poem from Town and Country by FGI   Comparing The Passionate Shepherd to His Love and The Nymph’s Reply to the Shepherd. Marlowe’s poem is very passionate. What imagery does the poet use to make the shepherd’s love seem so passionate? What are the delights that the shepherd is offering? In Ralegh’s poem, the […]

 How to write a fandaglistic hyperpolished poetry essay in timed conditions. Use this frame to help you! Explore the different ways in which the poets portray nature  in ‘The Lake Isle of Innisfree’’ and ‘A Dead Harvest in Kensington’ Introduction: where you introduce the poems by explaining BRIEFLY what they are about. Remember you get […]

  Presentation format:     On PowerPoint: give some history and a task for pupils to do. All presentations must include some definitions on standardisation. Ask FGI for help if necessary.     Devise a presentation on how spelling was standardised, the development of printing, dictionaries, mass education. Devise a presentation on STANDARD ENGLISH and […]

 Starter activity: brainstorm the times when you were ill when you were a child. What did your carers say to you in connection with your illness? What are your memories of your first trip to the doctors, to hospitals? What language did people use to describe your illnesses etc? What did they say to comfort you? Learning […]

Learning objective: to learn how to use quotation to develop your criticisms of the poems Key quotes: “German guns” Eyes were wild blindfolded English bullet in his heart Abject fear of death Deserter’s grave Panicked down the trench Mother’s grief The Deserter “To add more sympathy at the end, the poet goes on to say […]

Format:     Explain poem 1   Explain poem 2   Similarities   In imagery and language   Structure and themes   Differences   In imagery and language   Structure and themes   Conclusion to the question.