'Jekyll and Hyde': planning a successful essay
Lesson details
Learning outcome
I can plan an essay response, showing a clear understanding of key terms which structure a successful plan.
Key learning points
- Annotate an essay question so you know its focus.
- 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 main idea, focusing on 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
Concluding sentences are the same as conclusions.
Concluding sentences conclude a single paragraph. Conclusions come at the end of a full essay.
Teacher tip
Try getting pupils to improve a thesis statement or concluding sentence as a class using a pupil's example and a visualiser or mini-whiteboards.
Equipment
You will need access to a copy of 'The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde' by Robert Louis Stevenson for this lesson.
Content guidance
Depiction or discussion of sensitive content
Depiction or discussion of violence or suffering
Supervision
Adult supervision recommended
Licence
Lesson video
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Prior knowledge starter quiz
6 Questions
Q1.Complete this quotation from 'The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde': "doomed to such a dreadful ."
Q2.In 'The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde', which of the following adjectives means 'feeling guilt'? Some readers may use this adjective to describe Jekyll.
Q3.Complete this quotation from 'The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde': "braced and delighted me like ."
Q4.When writing analytically, a paragraph outline is useful when __________ an essay.
Q5.Complete this quotation from 'The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde': "like some disconsolate "
Q6.What word means 'the overarching argument to an essay, supported by the entire text' and is found in your introduction?
Assessment exit quiz
6 Questions
Q1.The first sentence of an analytical paragraph, which states the paragraph’s main idea, is called a ?
Q2.Which of the following is true of a thesis but not a topic sentence?
Q3.When you write essays about 'The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde', you will include concluding sentences at the end of each paragraph. What should a concluding sentence do?
Q4.Match the following to where you would expect to find them in an essay.
introduction
at the start of each analytical paragrap
at least once in every analytical paragraph
as much as required in analytical paragraphs
at the end of each analytical paragraph
Q5.When writing main body paragraphs in an essay on 'The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde', you should include main quotations. What is the meaning of the term main quotation?
Q6.There are some key essay terms which are useful to know and understand before you write any essay on 'Dr. Jekyll and Mr Hyde'. Match the key terms to their definitions.
overarching argument to an essay, supported by whole text
states the paragraph's main idea
comes to a conclusion about the paragraph's main idea
quotations which require analysis
quotations that don't require analysis
To help you plan your 10 English lesson on: 'Jekyll and Hyde': planning a successful essay, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your 10 English lesson on: 'Jekyll and Hyde': planning a successful 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 Jekyll & Hyde: duality and evil unit, dive into the full secondary English curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.