Schemes › Romeo and Juliet
Romeo and Juliet: scheme of learning
AQA GCSE English Literature · Paper 1, Section A
33 lessons across about 7 to 9 weeks, built around one big question: who or what destroys Romeo and Juliet: the stars, the feud, or the choices made in a hurry by the people around them? Every lesson has slides, teacher notes and a student pack at three levels.
Three levels of support in every lesson · 4 Feedback Loop kits · an end-of-unit essay with model answers
Real pages from the scheme
Choose a page to see it larger. Lesson 3 is free to read in full, with its slides and student pages.
Teacher handbookCover
Unit mapTeacher handbook, page 6
Lesson notesLesson 3 in the teacher handbook
SlidesLesson 3: exploding the quotation
SecuringLesson 3 task, aiming for a 4
StrengtheningLesson 3 task, aiming for grades 5 to 6
SoaringLesson 3 task, aiming for grades 7 to 9
Whole-class feedbackFeedback Loop kit 1
Model answersA grade 8–9 answer with notes
Revision workbookFor studentsOne question, three levels
Lesson 3 asks every student the same question: How does Shakespeare show that the feud has spread through all of Verona? Each student pack keeps the task and changes the support around it.
Securing
Aiming for a 4
A word bank, a choice of exact quotations, a worked example on a different quotation, and sentence starters for What, How and Why.
All three levels are in the free Lesson 3 sampler.
Strengthening
Aiming for grades 5 to 6
Prompts for What, How and Why, a paragraph planner and a success checklist.
All three levels are in the free Lesson 3 sampler.
Soaring
Aiming for grades 7 to 9
A debatable statement to argue with, prompts to think about, analytical verbs, and an argument planner that asks for an alternative reading.
All three levels are in the free Lesson 3 sampler.
Five sequences, 33 lessons
Feedback Loop kits and the end-of-unit essay are planned into the sequence. Lesson 3 is free: choose it to read the whole lesson.
Context and Act 1Lessons 1 to 7
- 1Two householdsWhat does the Prologue tell the audience, and why does Shakespeare give away the ending?
- 2Reading Act 1How does the feud open the play, and how do Romeo and Juliet meet?
- 3Do you bite your thumb at usFreeHow does Shakespeare show that the feud has spread through all of Verona?
- 4A stranger in the worldHow does Shakespeare present Capulet as a father at the start of the play?
- 5O brawling loveHow does Shakespeare present Romeo as a lover before he meets Juliet?
- 6She hath forsworn to loveFeedback Loop kit 1How does Shakespeare present Romeo’s love for Rosaline in Act 1 Scene 1?
- 7Feedback: Romeo in Act 1How can you move your paragraph on Romeo’s love for Rosaline up a level?
The feast and the balconyLessons 8 to 13
- 8She doth teach the torchesHow does Shakespeare set love and hate side by side at the Capulet feast?
- 9Palm to palmHow does Shakespeare make Romeo and Juliet’s first meeting feel holy?
- 10Reading Act 2How do Romeo and Juliet move from a first meeting to a secret wedding in one day?
- 11What’s in a nameWhat does Juliet wish she could change, and what does Shakespeare show about names and families?
- 12Too rash, too suddenFeedback Loop kit 2How does Shakespeare present Juliet as the more cautious lover in the balcony scene?
- 13Feedback: the balcony sceneHow can you move your paragraph on Juliet’s caution up a level?
Act 2 Scene 3 to Act 3Lessons 14 to 20
- 14Violent delightsWhy does Friar Lawrence agree to marry the lovers, and what does he fear?
- 15Reading Act 3How does one hot afternoon in Verona destroy the lovers’ hopes?
- 16A plague o' both your housesHow does Shakespeare present the death of Mercutio?
- 17Fortune’s foolWhy does Romeo kill Tybalt, and who does he blame?
- 18O serpent heartHow does Shakespeare show Juliet torn between her cousin and her husband?
- 19Hang thee, young baggageFeedback Loop kit 3How does Shakespeare present Capulet’s power over Juliet?
- 20Feedback: Capulet in Act 3How can you move your paragraph on Capulet’s power over Juliet up a level?
Acts 4 and 5Lessons 21 to 28
- 21Reading Act 4What is the Friar’s plan, and what does it ask of Juliet?
- 22My dismal sceneHow does Shakespeare show Juliet’s courage and her fear as she takes the potion?
- 23An untimely frostHow does Shakespeare use dramatic irony when the Capulets find Juliet on her wedding morning?
- 24Reading Act 5How do Romeo and Juliet die, and how does the feud end?
- 25I defy you, starsHow does Shakespeare present Romeo’s response to the news of Juliet’s death?
- 26Eyes, look your lastHow does Shakespeare make Romeo’s death both beautiful and terrible?
- 27All are punish’dFeedback Loop kit 4Who is to blame for the deaths of Romeo and Juliet?
- 28Feedback: who is to blameHow can you move your paragraph on the feud and the lovers’ deaths up a level?
Themes and the examLessons 29 to 33
- 29Love in many formsWhat kinds of love does Shakespeare show, and which does the play value?
- 30Fate or choiceAre Romeo and Juliet destroyed by the stars, or by the choices people make?
- 31Planning the exam answerHow do you move from the extract to the whole play in 50 minutes?
- 32End-of-unit essayEnd-of-unit essayAssessment: how does Shakespeare present conflict in Romeo and Juliet?
- 33Feedback and improvementFeedback lessonHow can you move your essay up a level?
Plan it in your calendar
Pick the date of the first lesson and the days you teach this class. You get a calendar file with the 33 lessons in order, for Outlook, Google Calendar or Apple Calendar.
Ten folders, ready to teach from
- 00Start here7 pages: how the scheme fits together
- 01Teacher handbook145 pages: intent, unit map, lesson notes, assessment guide, knowledge bank
- 02Slides33 PowerPoint decks with teacher notes, and a PDF copy of each
- 03Student packsSecuring, Strengthening and Soaring, 99 pages each
- 04Independent practiceThree booklets, 22 pages each
- 05Feedback Loop kitsFour kits, 6 pages each
- 06End-of-unit assessmentEssay paper and teacher guide with model answers
- 08Soaring stretch bookletReading beyond the set text for students aiming for grades 8 and 9
- 09Missed a lessonA one-page catch-up sheet for every lesson, with a box for the teacher’s check-in
- 10InclusionNotes for students with SEND, students learning English and pupil premium students, and a key words list
Both licences also include the model answer pack (23 pages) and the revision workbook (43 pages). Everything arrives as zip files of editable Word and PowerPoint files, with a PDF copy of each.
Choose a licence
Both licences include every file in the scheme, the model answer pack and the revision workbook.
The teacher licence, £60 incl. VAT, covers one named teacher with their own classes. It moves with you if you change school, and upgrades to a school licence for the difference.
Your school needs the school licence, £150 + VAT. It covers every teacher and student at one school on one site, with every correction and update to the unit until the reformed GCSE replaces it.
Half price for the second school. Each further school in the same multi-academy trust has its own school licence for the same unit at half the school licence price. Email hello@btl.education with the trust’s name and both schools’ names to buy it.
A revision pack suits home better. The scheme is for teaching. The Romeo and Juliet revision pack has the revision workbook, the model answer pack and practice at three levels, as PDFs, for £15 including VAT.
Not covered. Private tuition isn’t covered by the teacher or school licence. Email hello@btl.education to ask about it.
One teacher
For your own classes
£60incl. VAT
- Print and adapt for your own students
- Put it on your school’s own secure learning platform
- Upgrade to a school licence for the difference
School
Every teacher and student at one school
£150+ VAT
- Print and adapt for every class in the school
- Put it on your school’s own secure learning platform
- Each further school in the same trust pays half
Several schemes together cost less: see the routes. To upgrade a teacher licence, or to license another school in your trust at half price, email hello@btl.education. Please don’t share the files outside your school or upload them to public websites.
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Yes, on your school’s own learning platform, where only your students can see them. With a school licence, the school’s staff and students can see them there too. Not on any website or sharing service that people outside the licence can reach, Tes included.
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