A comprehensive Senior English teaching unit for Birdsong by Sebastian Faulks, designed to develop students’ analytical thinking, close reading, and essay-writing skills through the study of this acclaimed historical novel.

Through engaging and thought-provoking learning activities, students explore themes of love, loss, trauma, memory, sacrifice, and human resilience while examining the profound impact of war on individuals and societies. The unit also encourages students to analyse the novel’s structure, symbolism, characterisation, and narrative techniques to develop sophisticated interpretations of the text.

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What’s included
• Analysis of themes, characters, context, and cultural assumptions
• Exploration of war, memory, trauma, love, sacrifice, and human endurance
• Study of the historical context of World War I and its impact on individuals and communities
• Language features, text structures, symbolism, and figurative language analysis
• Examination of narrative structure, shifting timelines, and multiple perspectives
• Close reading and comprehension activities
• Essay questions, analytical writing support, and exemplar paragraphs
• Peer and self-assessment activities
• A 10-week teaching sequence with multiple learning activities each week
• Engaging, classroom-ready activities designed to promote discussion, interpretation, and critical thinking

Teaching approach
This resource follows a flexible, activity-based approach rather than a scripted lesson-by-lesson format. Teachers can adapt and sequence activities to suit their classroom needs while supporting students in developing deeper understanding through discussion, close analysis, collaboration, and analytical writing.

File info
• Provided as a non-editable PDF
• Not designed as an editable PowerPoint
How to use
• Upload to your LMS (Google Classroom, Canvas, etc.) for digital learning
• Print selected pages for classroom use
• Display pages to support discussion, analysis, and writing activities
• Upload to presentation or design platforms if you wish to adapt for your own use (formatting may vary depending on the program used)