- This topic has 104 replies, 17 voices, and was last updated December 28, 2023 by
.
-
Posts
-
-
-
Summary for Lesson 1
In today’s lesson we began our study of the first genre we will be looking at in this course: short story writing. We spoke about what makes a short story different from a novel other than the fact it is shorter and considered some of the authors famous for writing short stories such as Roald Dahl. We then moved on to thinking about how short stories often centre around one unusual, bizarre or unique situation in order to hook the reader in, such as a woman picking up roadkill on the side of the motorway. We spoke about minimalism in short story writing and the different ways in which we can implement it through features such as show don’t tell, using fewer characters and ‘locked-room’ settings. The class then wrote their own six-word stories in the style of Ernest Hemingway thinking about how to squeeze a story down to its bare bones. Finally we learned some things about the gothic genre in preparation for homework. Lovely work today class, well done for all your amazing ideas & writing throughout which were super inspiring, energised and creative. Keep up the wonderful work and see you next week 🙂
The Hitchhiker (this is the silliest of all of them & not creepy at all): On the PDF attached to this summary, just search in the document
Lamb to the Slaughter (this one is a little creepy but not very scary at all & quite silly/ ridiculous): https://theshortstory.co.uk/devsitegkl/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/Short-stories-Roald-Dhal-Lamb-to-the-Slaughter.pdf
The Landlady (this is the spooky one that’s quite creepy so don’t choose this one if you don’t like mystery or creepiness): https://www.teachingenglish.org.uk/sites/teacheng/files/landlady_text.pdf
Here are some other Roald Dahl short stories. The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar is also great if you don’t want a mystery story, it is a funny one (will attach as a PDF below):
Homework
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
Hi Beth
Here is my homework for lesson 1 :In the book lamb to the slaughter, I think that it is a brilliant short story because it teaches you not to kill people with a lamb’s leg. Although it gives you a bad influence on murdering people, I still think that it is an amazing short story because it includes a lot of tension in the book and I think that the short story is still a good one.
I think that it is a really exciting short story because the author throws the action and Roald Dahl really knows how to include the action in his books. I also somehow recommend this short story to people who like murder mystery stories because it is Mary Maloney who kills Patrick Maloney because he said that he wanted to leave her. Surprisingly, he killed her by whacking a lamb’s leg on his head and then he fell on the floor on the carpet. The thing I didn’t really like about this story was why it had to be based on murder. I already know that all books can be different genres but I know that Roald Dahl is a brilliant author but he writes children’s books. Personally, (in my opinion) I do not think that this is very appropriate for children because it might make children try to whack their husband with a lamb’s leg in the future.
In shorter detail, I think that the author has tried to fit all of that tension and all of the exciting events in such a small book ( I definitely would not have been able to do that ) and I can tell that he has paid really close attention to every detail of the book. I would say that the short story is quite gothic because it includes romance and it is also quite scary ( which is what the word gothic kind of reminds me of ) and it includes loads of mystery
Thank you
Sanya -
-
Hi Beth,
Here is my homework.
Thank you for the great lesson! (I enjoyed reading the stories) 😀
Shangchen
-
-
-
-
-
-
Hi Beth,
Thank you for the lesson. I loved reading all of the extracts. I’ve done my homework on on The Lamb to the Slaughter, my favourite one.
Thank you,
Jessie
-
-
-
-
Hi Beth,
I chose my favourite short story to do the homework on, The Lamb to the Slaughter
I think this book is amazing because it teaches you one way not to kill someone. It was a little bit creepy as it gives you a bad influence on murder, but overall I think the book is great. The book creates tension and still is a good one.
I would recommend the book to people who like murder-mystery stories as Roald Dahl throws the story into action and he knows how to make these stories short as well as action-packed. I feel it is weird for someone to be able to kill someone else with a leg of lamb. I think this story is for kids that are over 10 so they won’t feel so scared about this story and they will be sensible about what they do to their husband in the future. Roald Dahl writes stories for children although if I were writing this book I would recommend it for children above 10 years old.
I feel that Roald Dahl has really ”squeezed the juice out ” of this book and got the main events in as well as explained them well. He is really good at writing short stories which I wouldn’t be able to myself. This book is quite mysterious as well as gothic because it has romance and can be scary.
Thank you,
Katherine
-
-
Summary for Lesson 2
In today’s lesson completed our work on short story writing, thinking about putting into practice the conventions we had learned last week and reviewing Dahl’s way of telling short stories to help us do so. The class began with a fab, lively discussion of Dahl’s short stories, where they discussed how effective each story was and why. We then looked at key tips for creating a poignant and powerful short story, such as building tension with every scene, focusing only on necessary detail, embracing minimalism and creating twists and turns in the narrative leading up to a climactic and revelatory ending. The class then all brainstormed gripping beginnings and endings based on some excellent prompts they invented. Wonderful work everyone, you all came up with some captivating ideas and were super engaged throughout. Well done- keep up the amazing work 🙂
Short story tips: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DLxeTh8QO0o&t=41s
Anti-social writing tips (watch before homework!): https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=2&v=flthk8SNiiE&feature=emb_logo
Short story ideas to inspire you: https://blog.reedsy.com/short-story-ideas/
Homework
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
Hi Beth
This is my Short story homework, thanks! Sanya
As I woke up from my terrible night’s sleep, I drew my beddings back and looked around. This wasn’t the house where we normally lived. Ahh now I remember, I was in Butlins with my family and my snoring sister. BANG! CRASH ! What was that, I’m sure that no one was here except from a n- BANG WOOSH ! Now this was getting serious, As quick as I could I woke up my mum and my dad to come see what was happening. Unfortunately, my sister woke up. I definitely woke my dad up because he was hulk
I knew she wasn’t any help so I tried to ignore her ( which was really hard because she was chatting away with her silly friends ). Anyway, it all started really strange, so my dad grabbed a hockey stick ( which was weird ), and my mum took my rubber pen ( which was even weirder ). I tried to calm down but it was very very hard. We were all wondering how this was happening and who or what was in this wonderful place anyways. This was when the really weird part happened, so I know that i am not really the type of person that would do this, but I did it anyway, I went out of the room and checked downstairs “AMY, AMY !!!!’’ My mum and dad were calling me but I didn’t care, I was going to save them (at this part, I know it sounds like a superhero comic but it isn’t). I gradually noticed that the sound was coming from outside, So I went there, NO NO, NO it couldn’t be .
All of a sudden rain started pouring down from the sky and it landed on my slippers. This was bad. Today was the day I was expecting for me and my family to go down to the seaside.But then I noticed something worse. The whole building was crashing down. I didn’t care if I was going back. I warned my whole family and spoke in the loudspeaker, “ Please pay attention A..ttenttion’’ It didn’t work out how I wanted it to go like, So instead I screamed my head off in the middle of the building “EVERYBODY GET OUT OF THIS BUILDING RIGHT NOW!!’’ And that also turned out way louder than I expected it to as well. Fortunately, and somehow ,everyone in the building heard me and ran out immediately. The concrete was crackling and the walls were breaking and I was last in the line to get out. The doors were breaking and not even half of the people were through yet. We smashed through the glass and it was too late . I was trapped inside . Tears were rolling down my cheeks as I banged on the doors. MY dad clearly had enough. He took something out of his pocket and smashed the glass. I was free! ( I couldn’t believe my luck ). “What was that daddy ?” I asked . But he didn’t answer. All I noticed was that there was a broken hammer laying by the doors. Ahh I thought So he is Hulk .
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
Summary for Lesson 3
In today’s lesson we had our first class on speech writing, the second genre that we will be studying in this course. We began by thinking about what makes a speech a speech, discussing the fusion of poetry, politics and philosophy that speeches often encompass. We then spoke about some examples of famous speeches and speakers, ranging from Martin Luther King to various activists to politicians. The class learned some top tips for what makes a speech powerful and memorable, such as the use of humour, knowledge of the audience and appeals to wider issues and themes. Finally, we focused on a speech about the Nobel Peace Prize and the class wrote their own examples advocating for an activist of their choice. Excellent and impassioned work today everyone, I can’t wait to hear your research next week. Keep up the fab work and see you soon 🙂
Speech writing tips video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oV1h7n0HcTE
Some speeches you can watch for research:
Greta Thunberg at the UN: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=haewHZ8ubKA&t=2460s
Martin Luther King ‘I Have a Dream’: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_yOBncaiito
Homework
-
-
-
-
-
-
Hi Beth,
here is my homework for lesson 3 :
Chosen topic : Reading
Why is reading important ? This is a question that most people struggle with answering although all you have to really do is research and listen to me . Reading is a wonderful way to visit places that you have never been to before even if you are sitting in a horrible dirty attic. Some people think reading is just a waste of time but in this piece of writing, I will show you that that is not true.
Reading can expand your imagination and vocabulary whilst it can also keep you busy. Reading is a wonderful thing to do because it exercises your brain and keeps it going and by reading more, you get smarter y because you are giving in a lot of information. Two really important quotes about why reading is so important to us : “My brother has his sword, King Robert has his warhammer, and I have my mind … and a mind needs books as a sword needs a whetstone , Is it to keep its edge.’’ And another really important quote that is really famous is, “The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you’ll go.’’
Another reason why reading is so important is because you will become better at having conversations. Books help expand your vocabulary so you can then express yourself better. Your speech will then be refined and intelligent. Also, since reading is a food for your brain, you will be able to participate in any conversation. With the knowledge you get from reading, you can add a unique perspective and be included in any argument. In this case, reading non-fiction could be better because you can learn about topics that show up more often in a regular conversation. But there are also ways where reading fiction is better, like when there’s a really popular movie based on the book and you already read the book. Reading includes focus and concentration because when you read, your attention is only focused on the story.
After reading a story, you should really like it. YOU SHOULD NEVER JUDGE A BOOK BY ITS COVER . I have learnt this before and this has really helped me. I have read a book before called the amazing story of adolphus tips. I thought that this was a really boring book because I looked at the cover and I thought that it was just about a little cat that saved the war but when I read the first couple of pages, I regretted what I had said.YOu should read the first 10 pages or fist 3 chapters to decide if you like the book or not.
Overall, I think that reading is a wonderful thing to do and it is really important.
Thank you a lot, Sanya 🙂
-
-
Summary for Lesson 4
In today’s lesson we completed our work on speech writing, thinking about the most important elements a speech should include and thinking carefully about tone and emotion. We began with sharing research, thinking about what makes a good orator and discussing the most attention-grabbing ways to hook an audience. We spoke about the structure a speech should follow and considered techniques for evoking the emotions of the audience, discussing how different topics may elicit different responses ranging from hope to laughter through to anger, guilt or sadness. We studied how to condense an argument into fewer than twenty words and spoke about why clarity of argument is so crucial. Finally, we considered the PERFECT acronym which outlines the key techniques of speechwriting. Fantastic and fascinating work today everyone, really great ideas throughout and your research sounds so compelling- I can’t wait to read the full speeches! Well done and see you next week for our mini-mock 🙂
Obama’s powerful speech techniques video to help with homework: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OFPwDe22CoY
Video on speech openings we watched in class: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7tzentBmmUc
A great revision guide on speech writing that can help you think of some fantastic speech-writing techniques: https://www.lovelearningtutors.com/main-blog/2018/4/30/how-to-write-a-speech-english-gcse-exam
Homework
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
Hi Beth,
Here is my homework for Lesson 4 :
Topic : Why should we save our Bees 🐝
Good morning. My chosen topic is Bees because I really love them and I learn about them in school. Bees are bee-rilliant little creatures that pollinate lots and lots and lots of our food. Albert Einstein said that if bees disappeared , then we would only have 4 years to live.
We should look after our bees for many reasons. One of them is that we need to live and bees help us do that. Did you know that 1 out of every 3 mouthfuls of our food depend on bees ? And did you know that it takes 12 worker bees to make a teaspoon of honey. If you like avocados, 🥑berries 🍓, blueberries,🫐 cherries,🍒 lychees, macadamias, melons,🍈 onions🧅, strawberries,🍓 summerfruit, 🍉and vegetables🍅 then PLEASE look after our lovely creatures because they pollinate all of these things. Interestingly, bees also pollinate cotton and most of our clothes are made out of cotton. And also, TREES NEED BEES !! And what do trees do? They give us oxygen . So, Without bees we wouldn’t have trees. Without trees we would not have oxygen and without oxygen then we wouldn’t be able to live (so basically, bees make oxygen ). 🌲
In a hive, there are about between 20,000 and 80,000 bees in a hive. There are also three types of bees, A queen bee, a worker bee and a drone. There is only one queen bee in a hive. The worker bees search far and wide to find a queen and if the queen dies, then they would have to find another one. Did you know that a queen bee can lay up to 2,000 eggs 🪺a day ?. The worker bee is a female and females only have stingers and there are about 100 worker bees in the hive. Drones are rarely seen but you can find them in the summer. Their job is to mate with the queen. Unfortunately, female bees have a stinger and if they sting with their stinger then they sadly die. But we can stop this .If you see a bee, Please don’t be afraid of it. Remember, it will only sting you if they get scared so if you stay as still as a statue,🗿then you will be fine. If you like mangoes like me then you should look after bees because no bees, then no yummy mangoes for you or me 🥭.
Please look after these amazing creatures by doing anything you can such as planting bee-friendly flowers. Our bee-autiful friends need our help so help them or life will end for you.
Thank you
-
-
-
-
-
-
Dear Beth,
Here is my homework for lesson 4. I hope that it’s not too long (I found a LOT of interesting stuff about my subject)!
Have a nice day!
Claire
-
-
Dear Beth,
Thank you for the lesson on Speech Writing.
I really enjoyed writing our homework, which I did on raising the awareness of Climate Change and why we actually need to act about it. Thank you! 🙂
Kind Regards,
Jessie
-
-
Hi Beth,
Here is my homework,
Topic: Environment and earth 🌍 ✨
Hello everyone 👋 ,
Let’s explore the profound importance of taking care of our environment. Let’s think of our planet earth as a humongous team where all the animals, plants, air, and water all work together. Each part of earth has a special role, just like players on a sports team. Preserving the environment is like being the PE teacher making sure every player does their best for their team, this is exactly like people saving out world. 🐶☘️🌊💨
Biodiversity is like having different positions in a game like football. Every species whether it’s big or small has a job in keeping everything in balance. It’s not just about saving cute and beloved animals, it’s about making sure our earth stays strong and healthy. ❤️🩹
Our health is connected to the environment too. Clean air is like our MVP (also known as Most Valuable Player) because it helps us breathe well. Clean/Safe water is like our secret weapon, making sure we stay strong and hydrated. By taking care of the environment, we’re basically cheering for our team’s success and our own well being. 🫧
Now let’s talk about climate change. It’s like playing a game with rules that are getting trickier and trickier. Our actions, like using too much energy or cutting down too many trees can make the game harder. But if we play smart and use our resources wisely, it’s like giving earth a strategy to win.🫡
Resource conservation is a bit like managing our teams equipment. We want to make sure we have enough for everyone and for the future. It’s not just about using things; it’s about using them in a way that keeps our team strong for a long time. 💪
Remember, being a part of Team Earth is not just about saving the environment – it’s about making sure everyone gets a fair chance to enjoy it. We’re all players on this team, and by taking care of our environment, we’re showing teamwork and responsibility towards earth. So, let’s be Earth champions and play our part for a much greener, much healthier planet. 🏆
TEAM EARTH! 🌎✨
-
-
-
-
-
-
Summary for Lesson 5
In today’s class we completed our mini mock exam, with the class choosing from an array of prompts to answer that were a mix of speeches and short stories. Wonderful work today everyone, really well done for all your inspired, creative and excellent ideas over the past five weeks. You have written such dynamic and exciting pieces and it’s been lovely to see you all. See you soon & have a lovely holiday season 🙂
Homework
-
-
-
Hi Beth, here is my homework mini mock for week 5 :
MINI MOCK BETH LESSON 5 CLASS TEST
Tick-tock. Tick-tock. Alyssa was in her house waiting for her daughter Aurelia to return home from school. She was taking ages. She was meant to be home at 5: 30pm and it was 9:00pm and she has still not arrived home. Her dinner was also getting cold. Let me text her… she thought I haven’t tried that yet . She was always very informal when she spoke to her daughter so she wrote, hurry up you idiot, your dinner is cold and your dad is waiting . She thought about it for a couple of seconds and then without thinking what she was doing, she sent it. She checked who she sent it to but OH NO ! She sent it to Loutish Louise .
Louise was her grumpy old next door neighbor and she was always really moody about everything. Last time she tried to talk to her, she said , “Go away, I didn’t invite you to my house !” Alyssa’s daughter hated Louise’s daughter called Sofia because of the trouble that she caused . Everyday in school, when she was trying to have a nice conversation with her friend Liara, she always butts in and her Idiotic Ivy (Louise’s best friend) always follows what she says when half the time, she doesn’t even know what we are talking about. Alyssa was freaked out because she knew that if Louise looked at her phone, then she would be going straight to the police. Then she had an idea. She knew that it was going to be daring but she was going to do it anyway. Ding-dong. Ding-dong. The doorbell rang. Uh-oh. Was it going to be Louise ? She turned off all the lights and quietly tip-toed to the door.
It wasn’t Louise, it was Aurelia ! ” I am going to shout at you for being late but I need to tell you something first !” Alyssa shouted.
“Is it that you accidently sent a message to our terrible next door neighbor?” asked Aurelia as cool as a cucumber
“ Yes, how did you know that ?”
“Because they told me and they said that you upset her ?”
“Upset her ? Did she tell the police?”
“NO”
“What did she do “
They carried on talking until Alyssa found out that Louise wanted to say sorry. “I also told her that it was an accident’’. Said aurelia
They had a mug of hot chocolate with cream and marshmallows and had fun in the end of the day !
The end
Also wanted to show you my friends in the story :
Alyssa : My Best friend
Aurelia : Another one of my Best friends
Louise : My enemy
Ivy : My enemys best friend
Sofia : My friend
Liara :My friend
Thank you
Sanya
-
-
-
-
<p style=”text-align: center;”>Hey Beth,</p>
<p style=”text-align: center;”>Here is my mock exam I wrote,</p>
<p style=”text-align: center;”>Topic: Attempting to persuade you to stop mock examsHey Beth!</p>
<p style=”text-align: center;”>I hope you’re doing well and having a good time. I wanted to talk to you about something that’s been on a lot of peoples mind, the upcoming mock exam.</p>
<p style=”text-align: center;”>We all have so much going on with our schoolwork and other activities like extra curriculum. So I was thinking, maybe we could take a little break from the exams. I’m not trying to avoid our responsibilities, but I think it could be a good idea to give everyone a fair chance to succeed and have fun.</p>
<p style=”text-align: center;”>I know that exams are important for various types of things like testing our understanding of the subjects, but things are a bit different right now. With the current situation, many of us are facing unique challenges that can affect our ability to perform at our best. Some people may be dealing with technical difficulties during online exams because of their Wi-Fi and that’s not really are fault, while others may be struggling with the lack of in-person support and resources. So I think by taking a break from all these exams, we could work together to overcome these challenges and ensure that everyone has an equal opportunity to succeed.</p>
<p style=”text-align: center;”>During this break, we can also focus on strengthening our understanding of the material. We could have more interactive discussions, engage in group activities, and seek additional guidance from our teachers. This would not only enhance our learning experience but also foster a sense of collaboration and support among students. It would give us a chance to ask questions and get more help if we need it. Plus, it would give our teachers a chance to make sure the assessments are fair for everyone, taking into consideration the unique circumstances we’re facing.</p>
<p style=”text-align: center;”>Something I want to make it clear is that I’m not saying exams aren’t important. They play a crucial role in evaluating our knowledge and skills. However, given the current circumstances, it’s important to adapt and find alternative ways to assess our understanding. By taking a temporary break from exams, we can ensure that the assessments are meaningful and accurately reflect our abilities.</p>
<p style=”text-align: center;”>I believe that if you consider this suggestion, it would really help all of us students. It would provide us with the support and flexibility we need to thrive academically, even in these challenging times. It would show that you truly care about our well-being and success.</p>
<p style=”text-align: center;”>Thanks for taking the time to think about this. Me and other students all appreciate your dedication to our education and growth.</p>
<p style=”text-align: center;”>Thank you for listening and I appreciate your time,From Jin!</p>
-
Sorry I tried to use a font but it doesn’t work,
Here it is,
Hey Beth!
I hope you’re doing well and having a good time. I wanted to talk to you about something that’s been on a lot of peoples mind, the upcoming mock exam.
We all have so much going on with our schoolwork and other activities like extra curriculum. So I was thinking, maybe we could take a little break from the exams. I’m not trying to avoid our responsibilities, but I think it could be a good idea to give everyone a fair chance to succeed and have fun.
I know that exams are important for various types of things like testing our understanding of the subjects, but things are a bit different right now. With the current situation, many of us are facing unique challenges that can affect our ability to perform at our best. Some people may be dealing with technical difficulties during online exams because of their Wi-Fi and that’s not really are fault, while others may be struggling with the lack of in-person support and resources. So I think by taking a break from all these exams, we could work together to overcome these challenges and ensure that everyone has an equal opportunity to succeed.
During this break, we can also focus on strengthening our understanding of the material. We could have more interactive discussions, engage in group activities, and seek additional guidance from our teachers. This would not only enhance our learning experience but also foster a sense of collaboration and support among students. It would give us a chance to ask questions and get more help if we need it. Plus, it would give our teachers a chance to make sure the assessments are fair for everyone, taking into consideration the unique circumstances we’re facing.
Something I want to make it clear is that I’m not saying exams aren’t important. They play a crucial role in evaluating our knowledge and skills. However, given the current circumstances, it’s important to adapt and find alternative ways to assess our understanding. By taking a temporary break from exams, we can ensure that the assessments are meaningful and accurately reflect our abilities.
I believe that if you consider this suggestion, it would really help all of us students. It would provide us with the support and flexibility we need to thrive academically, even in these challenging times. It would show that you truly care about our well-being and success.
Thanks for taking the time to think about this. Me and other students all appreciate your dedication to our education and growth.
Thank you for listening and I appreciate your time,
From Jin!
-
-
Dear Beth,
Here is my mock exam. Thank you so much for the wonderful lessons! See you in January!
Kind Regards,
Claire
-
-
Hi Beth,
Thank you for our lessons on this course, I’ve enjoyed every single one.
Here is my writing. I chose the short story prompt of being stuck in a lift with a stranger on Christmas Eve.
Thank you again and Merry Christmas! 🎄❄️
Kind Regards,
Jessie 😊
-
-
-
-
Hi Beth,
Thank you for all the lessons of this course, i’ve enjoyed all of them. My writing is below.
Merry Christmas!❄️🎄
Charlotte
-
-
-
-
-
Hi Efay,
Happy Christmas and Happy New Year to you too!
Good work on your mock, I’ve attached your feedback below. See you soon 🙂 -
-
-
-
-
-
-
- You must be logged in to reply to this topic.