20 stretch and challenge teaching ideas

Last updated: 15/11/2023
Contributor: Nicola Ashton
20 teaching ideas for stretch and challenge
Main Subject
Key stage
Category
English: Language
Resource type
Teaching ideas

This resource is ideal for inspiring inventive teaching and learning activities in the classroom or for homework. Designed to be used extensively with students across KS3-5, these creative teaching ideas enable deeper thinking, greater depth analysis and independent learning.

Each stretch and challenge idea supports learners to access challenge activities and develop higher order skills in line with relevant learning objectives. Useful for A-level and GCSE classes, as well as KS3 and smaller groups, these ideas can be dipped into as a stretch and challenge toolkit, helping students extend their learning and strengthen their evaluative skills.

Browse additional resources in our Teaching ideas section.

A sample extract from the resource:

Who’s coming to dinner?  With a list of characters from a novel/ play or a group of writers (such as WWI poets), students organise the seating for a dinner party.  They need to decide who can sit next to whom and why.  Get some paper plates for them to write names on.

Retail therapy.  Save, find or make up some shopping receipts.  In pairs, students infer what kind of person is represented and why.  Alternatively, they could make up a receipt for a literary character and get other students to guess who it is.

Calling SMSC!  Students research the seven deadly sins.  Set up a debate in which groups argue that one sin is more deadly than the others.

Text U L8R.  Choose a chapter from a novel/ scene from a play and get students to imagine a text conversation between characters about that ‘moment’.  They write out the text talk – perhaps omitting the names so others can guess who is interacting.

Pastiche.  Get students to write a ‘missing chapter/ verse/ paragraph’ for a text in the same style as the author.  This can be a very taxing activity (particularly if you’re studying Shakespeare!), but it can also easily be done in pairs or small groups if students need more support.

All reviews

Have you used this resource?

5

03/01/2019

With a special needs year 9 student. Thank you!

Hayley Wiggins

24/06/2017

Very Useful...thankyou

17/01/2014

5

5

03/01/2019

With a special needs year 9 student. Thank you!

Hayley Wiggins

24/06/2017

Very Useful...thankyou

17/01/2014

5

5

5

5

5

5

5