Contextual Resources

A double lesson Power Point with Level 1 and Level 2 reading and writing questions. The lesson explores the controversy around violent music and the relationship between music and behaviour. You Tube links  add detail and context to the debate in an engaging and thought provoking way. Lesson 1 focuses on the Reading exam with Level 1 and Level 2 questions that can be displayed on the board to reduce printing. Texts A and B explore the two sides of Drill music and its influence on young people.

Based on a short, simplified text about Burns Night, this set of 14 questions covers all E3 Functional Skills English reading content descriptors plus a couple of writing elements. Unlike assessment papers, the questions are arranged under topics such as purpose, punctuation, organisation, etc. 

Editor's note

Based on an adapted newspaper report, this set of 26 reading questions covers many L1 and L2 Functional Skills English content descriptors. Unlike assessment papers, the 24 questions are arranged under topics so could be used for targeted revision: purpose and main points, detail and inference, punctuation (for understanding), style and tone, words and language, organisational features. Some questions are deliberately challenging and you may want all learners to tackle all the questions.

Editor's note

22/01/2023 22:30 (GMT) Errors fixed on page 1 and PDF file replaced

Worksheets to practise zero, first and second conditionals while using the language of social media. Can be used as an introduction to conditionals or a revision exercise. Then a reading text using conditionals in context of a social media site to practise reading comprehension, purpose, tone, features of text and dictionary skills.

Editor's notes

AQA Paper 2-style exam questions and non-fiction extracts. One extract is taken from Sinead O'Connor's memoir "Rememberings" (2021) and the other is from Stephen Hough's memoir "Enough: scenes from Childhood" (2023). In the real exam, Source B is always a 19th Century text, but here I've used another contemporary text, so that learners can more easily practice the exam skills of comparing two pieces of writing. In these extracts, both writers reflect upon the first time they encountered a piano.

A huge set of resources for E1-E2 reading, writing and SLC.

Can be used as revision, the core of two or more lessons (the writing tasks would make a good lesson on their own - there are four tasks, two for each level) or for assessment. Optional marks and detailed mapping is provided and many, but not all, questions are exam-style. 

1/5/2023 Sorry! Just seen that several pages have an incorrect heading of Halloween. Resource temporarily removed.  Now fixed and uploaded (11.15am 1/5/23) 

Reading and related activities focusing on a simplified version of a BBC news article reporting the results of the 2021 Australian Census. Ideal for practising reading strategies including:  relating images to text, using headings, skimming, scanning and using context to predict. My (Australian) students found it challenging but were engaged in the content. Lots of possible ways it could lead into other written and oral activities. Numbers and a graph involved so can also be used to revise numeracy concepts such as percentages and extracting information from graphs.

Short set of slides about different poppies used for Remembrance Day, to be used as a discussion prompt covering the British Values of Mutual Respect and Tolerance, and Individual Liberty.

Editor's notes

Super discussion prompt for the time around Nov 11th. Includes information about red, white, purple and black poppies - along with a link to a thought-provoking video from Benjamin Zephaniah. For Functional English, ESOL and wider use.