1. Introduction and Overview
SECTION 2: In this section we'll take a selection of Shakespeare's plays in turn, identifying the theme question and developing a series of simple essay outlines
2. Macbeth
3. Romeo and Juliet
4. The Tempest
5. The Merchant of Venice
6. Much Ado About Nothing
7. Julius Caesar
SECTION 3: In this section we'll take a selection of 19th Century novels in turn, identifying the theme question and developing a series of simple essay questions
8. Robert Louis Stevenson The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde
9. Charles Dickens A Christmas Carol
10. Charles Dickens Great Expectations
11. Charlotte Brontë Jane Eyre
12. Mary Shelley Frankenstein
13. Jane Austen Pride and Prejudice
14. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle The Sign of Four
SECTION 4
15. Overview and Transition: What should I do next? Our task is to encourage students to develop knowledge and skills in reading, writing and critical thinking. Through literature, students have a chance to develop culturally and acquire knowledge of the best that has been thought and written. Studying GCSE English Literature should encourage students to read widely for pleasure, and as a preparation for studying literature at a higher level.
Courses based on this specification should also encourage students to:
read a wide range of classic literature fluently and with good understanding, and make connections across their reading
read in depth, critically and evaluatively, so that they are able to discuss and explain their understanding and ideas
develop the habit of reading widely and often
appreciate the depth and power of the English literary heritage
write accurately, effectively and analytically about their reading, using Standard English
acquire and use a wide vocabulary, including the grammatical terminology and other literary and linguistic terms they need to criticise and analyse what they read.