Bonfire Night English Teaching Unit - teaching resource

Bonfire Night English Teaching Unit – KS3 Non-fiction Writing

This six-lesson Bonfire Night teaching unit develops pupils’ writing and speaking skills through the imaginative task of organising a community event.

The resource includes a 68-slide editable PowerPoint, supporting worksheets and a six-lesson planning overview. Pupils explore how to adapt their language, tone and presentation for different purposes and audiences, from advertising an event to responding politely to a complaint.

The unit includes:

• Planning an event: discuss ideas, choose a suitable location and agree on a date and time
• Advertising posters: consider audience, persuasive language, imagery and essential information
• Visitors’ leaflets: explore example guides and create a clear, attractive leaflet incorporating a map
• Persuasive speeches: defend the event and reassure residents about safety, noise and litter
• Persuasive techniques: practise rhetorical questions, emotive language, direct address, the rule of three and reassurance
• Descriptive writing: gather sensory details and use a model to turn planning notes into vivid prose
• Formal and informal language: compare examples and explore the conventions of formal correspondence
• Letter writing: respond to a resident’s complaint through a formal letter to the local newspaper
• Drafting and redrafting: improve vocabulary, sentence choices, organisation, spelling, punctuation and grammar
• Speaking and listening: present ideas, share work and offer constructive feedback

Each task builds on the same event scenario, giving pupils a clear reason to write and helping them understand how communication changes according to its purpose. Examples, planning activities and step-by-step guidance support pupils as they develop and refine their work.

Ideal for English lessons in the run-up to 5 November, this Bonfire Night unit combines seasonal interest with purposeful practice in persuasive, informative, descriptive and formal writing.

Click the preview images to see the full contents of the Bonfire Night English Teaching Unit – KS3 Non-fiction Writing resource.

Get access to thousands of pages of resources. Find out more about membership here.