Writing for Different Purposes and Audiences: Zombie Apocalypse (Year 9)

Lively, student-friendly project packs with over 10 worksheets and handouts to use in class or as homework. Guide your class through an engaging scenario as they work towards creating their own meaningful independent writing.

Excellently planned resource – very thorough, very detailed, very engaging

S Owen, HoD & Peer Reviewer

Assuming roles from astronaut to secret service official, students gain valuable experience in writing for a range of purposes and audiences across fiction and non-fiction. With a clear focus on the new 2014 National Curriculum, your class will be completely prepared for the writing demands of GCSE English.

A superbly-designed resource which would entertain, engage and stretch pupils across a variety of writing challenges. I would wholeheartedly recommend this resource to other KS3 English teachers

K Attwood, English Teacher & Peer Reviewer
Example writing tasks:
  • Letters
  • Newspaper articles
  • Travel writing
  • Speeches
  • Blog articles
  • ... and many more!
Interlinking activities with a continuous theme
  • Appealing, relevant tasks based on modern media to captivate students
  • Ideal blend of independent, pair and group work
  • Heaps of extension tasks to challenge your high-fliers

Student support throughout
  • Confidence-building preparation questions to aid the all-important planning process
  • Activities to support every learner type - mind maps, presentations, role plays...
  • Packed with checklists to keep students on track - great for AFL and quick marking
  • Enjoyable and engaging

    N Boyce, English Teacher & Peer Reviewer
  • Structured with example texts and sample activity answers for inspiration
  • Plus handy tips and essential guidance on SPaG

Zombie Apocalypse! (for Year 9)
Escape from a zombie invasion while learning about different writing forms with 12 creative writing activities. Your students will love the action-packed, imaginative tasks - from creating a zombie apocalypse survival kit to planning a design brief for fortifications. Suitable for all: support with writing frames and examples, and stretch with 'challenge' and 'extension' tasks. Written in entertaining and student-friendly language, this resource will harness pupils' creative potential, culminating in a varied portfolio of work.

What do teachers say about this resource? (6865)

Imaginative, creative and entertaining. It has a golden narrative thread running throughout the source... The author has shown a real flair for creativity and this shows in the careful presentation of the work... I really liked the variety of tasks and use of checklists to ensure pupils knew what to include for each piece of writing. One particular task I liked was the newspaper transformation task on page 13 asking pupils to transform tabloid writing to broadsheet writing. This is a particularly current skill syllabi are asking pupils to develop for GCSE and A-Level. The resource also includes particularly detailed suggestions for further reading and film suggestions... The educational value is that it takes the relatively dry topic of non-fiction writing and gives it a real sense of purpose and narrative across an entire scheme of work... immediately useable and fit for purpose... well-written and comprehensive. It creates a detailed narrative thread which students would enjoy and is based on a current topic which would engage pupils. I would recommend this to other teachers undertaking this topic... A superbly-designed resource which would entertain, engage and stretch pupils across a variety of writing challenges. I would wholeheartedly recommend this resource to other KS3 English teachers.

K Attwood, English Teacher & Peer Reviewer

Enjoyable and engaging unit that pupils will really identify with and love (especially boys)... Genuine English skills developed... Language feature sheet with examples at end of resource is really good... Develops writing skills in a range of forms and for different purposes... Very good resource for exam prep... A really different and fun resource. Compliments to the author - I know the boys I teach will enjoy a number of these tasks and I look forward to trying it out next year!

N Boyce, English Teacher & Peer Reviewer

It’s a terrific topic – a modern update on the “School Under Siege” format – everyone loves zombies!... It is easy to track the Literacy skills being used, and would certainly help to show evidence of the LNF... The prompt questions and planning grid for the short story are very good – it will get both strong and weak pupils thinking about their choices. I also like the tick list of techniques that could be used. This, and the description task, feed directly into skills that will be assessed at GCSE. I like the newspaper section a lot – provides both support (writing frame) and challenge (write a broadsheet rather than a tabloid) to get pupils to produce a convincing piece. The recount task is also good – it’s a specific checklist that helps pupils to think about use of connectives, tenses, chronology. Every task has been very carefully presented to ensure successful outcomes for all pupils. There is a full range of writing types here – pupils really need to think about Purpose, Audience, Language and Layout. There are opportunities to discuss, to peer-assess and to go back and redraft/improve their own work. There are very clear success criteria and planning work, so that pupils can really produce their best work... The resource is suitable for both weak and capable pupils. Particularly good is the self-assessment and commentary, so that pupils can be very clear about what progress they have made across the scheme... The resource covers many of the aspects of Reading, Writing and Oracy that are specified in the NC. The skills of writing precisely and creatively are tested at KS4, and any practice with these skills at KS3 is vital!... Excellently planned resource – very thorough, very detailed, very engaging.

S Owen, HoD & Peer Reviewer

Will be really effective in engaging more reluctant boys within the English classroom. The suggested reading lists would be effective for helping students find additional resources to engage them further within the genre cycle. It would help to further engage them... Clear project brief and popular focus for the unit of work... Effective range of writing tasks included to help cover demands of GCSE writing tasks (narrative and transactional for GCSE English Language)... Tasks are effectively structured... Really effective Language Feature/Term grids at the back... Clear links to demands of writing tasks within new GCSE courses and effective stimulus to engage them as they begin to prepare for the new 9–1 qualification

H Jackson, Assistant Headteacher, English Teacher & Peer Reviewer