5 IB English lessons made easy with DT+

Teaching IB English? The International Baccalaureate in English covers a wide range of texts and topics and aims to develop students' critical thinking, analytical and communication skills. With so many texts and topics to cover and limited class time, DT+ is highly recommended by IB teachers around the world. Here are 5 popular IB English lessons that are easy to teach with DT+...

IB English: World Poetry

Poetry is an example of the IB curriculum that can often be seen as "boring" by students who may have struggled with poetry in the past. However, World Poetry is a special way of celebrating different cultural identities. With popular anthologies included in a subscription, DT+ provides unique resources that can help students not only understand poetry, but also enjoy it. With analysis videos and engaging recitals, students can see the poem lifted off the page, which helps them feel connected to the poetry and further enhances their understanding! 

IB English: Literary Devices 

To be successful in IB English, students need to be able to analyse the use of literary techniques and devices that authors use to convey meaning and enhance their texts. Getting students to engage with the text you're teaching is often half the challenge, but IB English teachers in our community have often reported that helping students not only to understand the literary device or technique, but also to identify and use it confidently, is also a challenge. Perfect as a classroom starter, DT+ offers a series of bite-sized videos that carefully highlight key literary devices, including metaphor, tragic flaw, symbolism and more! These videos are designed so that students can see examples of the literary devices in action within familiar texts to better understand the device being used and the effect it has on the reader. 

IB English: Speaking and listening skills

It's not only important to develop students' speaking and listening skills when preparing for IB English exams, but also throughout the year. However, despite the importance of speaking and listening skills to students' future success, it can be difficult to balance the teaching of these skills with your ongoing curriculum-led teaching. DT+ has a dedicated range of video and written classroom resources that unlock these key skills. Focusing on group discussions, presentations and more, teachers often use them as homework because of the interactive knowledge-checking questions that help assess students' understanding of the specific speaking and listening skill you have set. 

IB English: Shakespeare

Shakespeare can be particularly daunting for students, which can often lead to a disconnect in the classroom and a real struggle to keep students motivated. A TES survey of over 500 teachers found that 56% felt their students found it difficult to relate to the Bard's plays. And 55% said their pupils were uninspired by his work. But as it is part of your curriculum, you still need to find ways to engage your students. Whether you're teaching Hamlet, Macbeth, Romeo and Juliet, Othello, King Lear or any other of The Bard's great plays, DT+ offers innovative tools to bring Shakespeare from page to stage, including productions from Shakespeare’s Globe, the Royal Shakespeare Company and more! You'll also have access to a series of fun, bite-sized e-learning videos that focus on the Shakespeare play you're teaching, helping to deepen students' understanding of themes, characters and language.

IB English: Novels

Whatever novel you're teaching your IB English students, diversifying your lessons when you have so much text to get through with your class and supporting reluctant readers can feel like a real challenge and take up a lot of preparation time! DT+ offers resources including graphic novels designed to help struggling readers understand the plot of popular novels (such as Pride and Prejudice, Jekyll and Hyde, Frankenstein, Alice in Wonderland, A Christmas Carol) and engaging productions designed to lift the text off the page and capture students' imaginations. Plus, you can save (much needed) preparation time with lesson plans and a host of teaching resources! 

Which IB English lessons do you need help with? Talk to our education experts today and they will give you access to DT+ resources to help your students. 

Want unlimited access to DT+? No problem! Take a tour of the platform and see how your IB English teaching can be made (a lot) easier!

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References: 

1. https://www.tes.com/magazine/archive/pupils-struggle-relate-shakespeare-survey-finds