Use a classic film clip from Charlie Chaplin’s The Great Dictator to kickstart a pacey persuasive writing KS3 lesson that will boost students’ writing skills…
You can adapt this KS3 lesson to teach a variety of writing styles. Here, we will be looking at how it can help students to create a piece of persuasive writing, but in the past I have changed it to teach descriptive, narrative and argumentative styles.
You can also use it to teach different text types with just a few quick and easy changes. Play around with the general ideas and see what you can come up with.
Why teach this?
Help students to learn how to dissect, analyse and create in one quick and easy lesson, while developing independence and resilience.
Persuasive writing KS3 learning objectives
- Apply knowledge of grammar, punctuation and structure to writing
- Discuss reading, writing and spoken language with precise, confident use of terminology
- Know purpose, audience and context of writing to support comprehension
- Use standard English confidently in writing and speech
Starter activity
Ask students to recount as many persuasive devices as they can. While they are doing this, show footage of Charlie Chaplin’s famous speech from The Great Dictator on the board.
This will aid and remind students. Feed back as a class and look at which devices they know how to use and which ones they are unsure of. This helps to plan for later in the lesson.
Anthony O’Brien is head of the English and Communications Faculty at Nightingale Academy in Edmonton, London. Browse more KS3/4 persuasive writing resources.
