Lesson Plan

Lesson Plan
Grade: Date: 25/02/2026
Subject: English Literature
Lesson Topic: Considering the ways in which writers use – or depart from – conventions of literary forms of prose, poetry and drama and how those inform meaning and effects.
Learning Objective/s:
  • Describe the conventional features of prose, poetry and drama.
  • Analyse how writers manipulate form to alter meaning, tone or audience response.
  • Compare the effects of conventional versus unconventional uses of form.
  • Apply analytical language to evaluate textual evidence of form‑based choices.
Materials Needed:
  • Projector and screen
  • Handouts with a two‑column chart template
  • Extracts from Mrs Dalloway, “The Waste Land”, and The Caretaker
  • Whiteboard and markers
  • Sticky notes for quick reflections
Introduction:

Begin with a short video clip showing a dramatic pause that breaks audience expectations. Ask students what form they notice and why it matters. Outline today’s success criteria: identify conventions, spot departures, and explain their impact.

Lesson Structure:
  1. Do‑Now (5’): Students list three typical features of each literary form on sticky notes.
  2. Mini‑lecture (10’): Review conventional features and introduce common departures using the projected table.
  3. Group activity (15’): In pairs, compare a conventional and a non‑conventional excerpt; fill a two‑column chart and present one key effect.
  4. Creative rewrite (12’): Individually rewrite a short prose passage by changing narrative voice or chronology; share how meaning shifts.
  5. Drama staging (13’): Teams perform a brief scene, then restage it breaking the fourth wall; discuss audience reaction.
  6. Poetry re‑format (10’): Convert a stanza of “The Waste Land” into prose; debate which version conveys theme more powerfully.
  7. Check for understanding (5’): Quick quiz on terminology (e.g., “metafiction”, “enjambment”).
Conclusion:

Recap the ways form shapes meaning and how deliberate departures create new effects. Students complete an exit ticket stating one example of a departure they found most striking and why. Assign homework: write a 200‑word reflection analysing a form‑related choice in a text of their own choosing.