Bradford Literature Festival (BLF) has launched a series of engaging online lesson plans and resources, completely free as part of their Digital Education Programme.
The online library includes nine lessons which enhance national curriculum topics, ranging from Year 3 to Year 11. Each lesson features artists and speakers who have performed at BLF, bringing the diversity, creativity and critical thinking found at the festival into classrooms around the country.
BLF’s lessons are each themed to a topic from encouraging students to write and perform their own poetry, to introducing younger learners to the brilliant language of Shakespeare; guiding students in designing a theatre production of Macbeth, to exploring the themes presented in George Orwell’s 1984, and much more.
A suite of flexible, inclusive resources is available for each topic including a lesson plan, a digital presentation for the class, student worksheets, and an engaging video.
“We know that teachers and home educators are under pressure to deliver creative, inclusive lessons with limited time and resources,” said Syima Aslam, BLF CEO & Artistic Director. “These free lessons are a way of sharing BLF’s creative approach with classrooms everywhere – starting in Bradford and reaching across the UK.”
Initial feedback for the online library from teachers and home educators in West Yorkshire has been positive. Amanda Wright, a Home Educator, said the lessons were “inspiring and entertaining“, and would recommend them to other Home Educators.
A Year 5 Teacher shared that one of BLF’s poetry lessons “kept students interested and focused, with activities such as videos, group discussions, and performance opportunities…the peer feedback sessions boosted their confidence and allowed them to learn from one another’s ideas“, also adding “the lesson aligned well with writing and speaking objectives, supporting students in honing their poetry skills while also enhancing their vocabulary and grammar.“
This new element of BLF’s Education Programme has been created with support from The Rayne Foundation.
Access the Digital Education Programme