English Language lessons
English Language: language methods, text analysis, language and power, change and diversity, child language, and writing skills.
Key topics
- Language methods
- Analysing texts
- Language, power & gender
- Change & diversity
- Child language
- Writing & exam skills
Lesson course
Work through each lesson, run the interactive practice, and tick it off as you go.
1. Language methods
Core
Word classes & morphology
Identify word classes and word structure.
Word classes include nouns, verbs, adjectives and adverbs. Morphology studies word structure — prefixes, suffixes and inflections.
Label word classes in one paragraph.
Grammar & syntax
Analyse sentence structure for effect.
Syntax is sentence structure: simple, compound and complex sentences. Analyse clauses and word order for effect.
Classify five sentences by type.
Semantics & pragmatics
Distinguish meaning from meaning-in-context.
Semantics is the study of meaning; pragmatics is meaning in context, including implicature and politeness.
Find an example of implicature.
2. Analysing texts
Core
Mode & genre
Analyse spoken vs written mode and genre.
Texts differ by mode (spoken or written) and genre; analyse how form shapes language choices.
Compare a spoken and a written text.
Register & tone
Analyse formality and tone.
Register is the level of formality matched to context and audience, affecting lexical choice and tone.
Rewrite a text in a different register.
Discourse & cohesion
Analyse whole-text structure and cohesion.
Discourse structure organises whole texts; cohesion links parts together using connectives and reference.
Identify cohesive devices in a text.
3. Language, power & gender
Core
Language & power
Analyse how language reflects power.
Language constructs and reflects power — instrumental power (from authority/rules) and influential power (from persuasion).
Find instrumental and influential power in a text.
Language & gender
Apply theories of language and gender.
Theories such as the dominance and difference approaches examine how gender relates to language use.
Apply one gender theory to a transcript.
Language & occupation
Analyse occupational language.
Occupational groups use jargon and specialised registers to include members and exclude outsiders.
Identify jargon in a workplace text.
4. Change & diversity
Core
Language change
Explain processes of language change.
English changes over time — lexically, semantically and grammatically — through processes such as borrowing and broadening.
Classify five changes by process.
Accents & dialects
Analyse regional and social variation.
Accent is regional pronunciation; dialect is regional grammar and vocabulary. Attitudes to varieties differ.
Compare attitudes to two accents.
World Englishes
Explain global varieties of English.
English varies globally (e.g. Indian, Nigerian English), with standard and non-standard forms.
Compare two World English varieties.
5. Child language
Core
Spoken acquisition
Describe stages of spoken acquisition.
Children acquire phonology, lexis and grammar in stages; theories include Skinner (imitation) and Chomsky (an innate device).
Order the stages of spoken development.
Written acquisition
Describe development of writing.
Writing develops later than speech, through stages, with spelling and genre awareness growing through schooling.
Identify features of early writing.
Theories of acquisition
Compare theories of acquisition.
Compare behaviourist, nativist, cognitive and social-interactionist theories of language acquisition.
Match theories to evidence.
6. Writing & exam skills
Skills
Original writing
Craft writing for purpose and audience.
Craft texts for purpose, audience and form, controlling register and structure.
Write a text for a stated audience and form.
Analytical writing
Analyse texts with terminology.
Use the language levels framework and accurate terminology to analyse texts with examples.
Analyse one text using the language levels.
Mock exam
Apply frameworks to unseen texts.
Apply frameworks to unseen texts under timed conditions, supporting every point with evidence.
Analyse one unseen text to time.
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