AQA GCSE Practise Paper – Macbeth: The Captain’s Speech

Below is an AQA GCSE Practise Paper for Macbeth. The question is from the June 2019 GCSE exam paper for AQA GCSE English Literature. Use it to practise planning and writing, either as a full mock exam in timed conditions – or working through it in your own time and at your own pace. Thanks […]

How to Plan A Perfect Answer in Descriptive Writing

I’ve been writing a lot of descriptive writing fragments recently, so I thought I’d post them to help anyone who’s looking for ideas on how to plan a perfect answer. One thing that my students struggle a lot with is planning – how do you plan to describe something? It seems simple or straightforward, but […]

An Inspector Calls: Character Revision

Here’s a quick article to help you with the character revision in An Inspector Calls! If you’re revising for a GCSE exam, most of the questions are based on characters and/or themes so make sure you understand those in detail! For more help with ‘An Inspector Calls’ revision, you can access our full course. This […]

‘Mass Man’ by Derek Walcott – Context and Attitudes

Here’s a part of the analysis of the poem ‘Mass Man’ by Derek Walcott. It’s tailored towards students taking the CIE / Cambridge A-Level syllabus but will be useful for anyone who’s working on understanding the poem at any level.Great for revision, missed lessons, boosting analytical / research skills and developing students’ confidence in Walcott’s […]

‘Marrysong’ by Dennis Scott – Summary and Themes

Here’s a part of the analysis of Dennis Scott’s poem ‘Marrysong’, tailored towards IGCSE students but also suitable for those studying at a higher level. To get a full and detailed analysis of this specific poem, click here. Thanks for reading! For the full CIE IGCSE Poetry Anthology course and many more English Literature and […]

Summary of Keats’ “The Eve of St Agnes”

There’s no way around it, ‘The Eve of St Agnes’ is a looooong poem! So, before you start trying to read it directly, make sure that you understand the overall story and main events. This will make the process of reading the stanzas so much easier, and prevent you from getting confused or lost! We’ve […]

‘Gathering Leaves’ by Frost – Poem + Language and Form

Here’s a detailed analysis of Robert Frost’s poem ‘Gathering Leaves’. It’s tailored towards students taking the CIE / Cambridge A-Level syllabus but will be useful for anyone who’s working on understanding the poem at any level. Great for revision, missed lessons, boosting analytical / research skills and developing students’ confidence in Frost’s poetry at a […]

Grade Boundaries for AQA GCSE English Language (Explained for Students)

Here’s how to grade boundaries for AQA GCSE English Language yourself. Figuring out how to convert a mark into an actual grade can be very confusing! We’ve broken it down here for you so that it’s clearer and more manageable to see how you’re doing on practise questions and papers. Here are a few things […]

Keats’ Romantic Relationships: Isabella Jones + Fanny Brawne

John Keats and Isabella Jones Keats’ romantic relationships had a significant impact on his poetry: he met a lady called Isabella Jones in 1817 while on holiday in Hastings. She was a beautiful, intelligent, wealthy and well-read woman, and it is thought that she and Keats had a secret romance for a time; remaining close […]

Summary of “Isabella, or the Pot of Basil” by Keats

Here’s a summary of John Keats’ poem “Isabella, or the Pot of Basil”. What a sad poem! It’s very tragic and quite gothic too, kind of grotesque and beautiful and a bit absurd. Keats took the inspiration for this poem from Bocaccio’s story of the same name, and the narrative form of the poem makes […]