Planning an excellent 'Animal Farm' essay
I can effectively plan an 'Animal Farm' essay.
Planning an excellent 'Animal Farm' essay
I can effectively plan an 'Animal Farm' essay.
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Lesson details
Key learning points
- Annotate the key theme or character from the question with the writer's message.
- A successful plan follows a clear structure.
- A thesis is a clear overarching argument supported by the whole text.
- Topic sentences state a paragraph's main idea.
- Concluding sentences focus on the writer’s intentions and link to your topic sentence, without repeating it.
Keywords
Thesis - the overarching argument to an essay, supported by the entire text
Topic sentence - the first sentence of a paragraph. It states the paragraph’s main idea
Concluding sentence - the final sentence of a paragraph. It comes to a conclusion about the paragraph’s main idea, focusing on the writer’s intentions
Main quotations - quotations which support your topic sentence, and that require analysis
Supporting quotations - quotations which support your topic sentence, but don’t require analysis
Common misconception
That thesis statements and topic sentences are the same.
Differentiate; the thesis statement is a comment on the text as a whole, and a topic sentence has a focus on a specific part of the text.
To help you plan your year 11 English lesson on: Planning an excellent 'Animal Farm' essay, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your year 11 English lesson on: Planning an excellent 'Animal Farm' essay, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs.
The starter quiz will activate and check your pupils' prior knowledge, with versions available both with and without answers in PDF format.
We use learning cycles to break down learning into key concepts or ideas linked to the learning outcome. Each learning cycle features explanations with checks for understanding and practice tasks with feedback. All of this is found in our slide decks, ready for you to download and edit. The practice tasks are also available as printable worksheets and some lessons have additional materials with extra material you might need for teaching the lesson.
The assessment exit quiz will test your pupils' understanding of the key learning points.
Our video is a tool for planning, showing how other teachers might teach the lesson, offering helpful tips, modelled explanations and inspiration for your own delivery in the classroom. Plus, you can set it as homework or revision for pupils and keep their learning on track by sharing an online pupil version of this lesson.
Explore more key stage 4 English lessons from the Animal Farm: lies and deception unit, dive into the full secondary English curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.
Equipment
You will need access to a copy of 'Animal Farm' by George Orwell.
Content guidance
- Depiction or discussion of peer pressure or bullying
Supervision
Adult supervision recommended
Licence
Lesson video
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Prior knowledge starter quiz
6 Questions
Q1.In 'Animal Farm', what event triggers the animals' rebellion against Mr. Jones?
Q2.Match the character from 'Animal Farm' to the quote that describes them.
"was the oldest on the farm and the worst tempered"
"was a spy and tale-bearer"
"nimble movements, and a shrill voice"
"with a reputation for getting his own way"
"quicker in speech and more inventive"
"he was not of first-rate intelligence"
Q3.How does Orwell use the character Moses, the tame raven, to convey a message in 'Animal Farm'?
Q4.In 'Animal Farm', how does Orwell use the character Benjamin, the donkey, to comment on the revolution and the pigs' leadership?
Q5.How does Orwell use the character Mollie, the white mare, to highlight a particular aspect of society in 'Animal Farm'?
Q6.What does the character of Snowball represent in 'Animal Farm'?
Assessment exit quiz
6 Questions
Q1.What is the purpose of a thesis statement in an essay?
Q2.What is the function of a topic sentence in a paragraph?
Q3.Which of the following is not a characteristic of a good concluding sentence?
Q4.Match the features of an essay to its description.
Overarching argument, supported by the whole text.
It states the paragraph’s main idea.
References to the text which support your topic sentence.
Quotations which support argument and require analysis.
The final sentence of a paragraph.
Sums up your essay’s overall thesis.