Year 8
English
Course

Keep progressing through Key Stage 3 English with our Year 8 English course.

Eleanor St John Sutton will cover everything from Shakespeare and women of the Elizabethan era to writing and developing a horror story.

from
£7
per lesson
Get started
14-day money back guarantee
or

By clicking, you agree to receive communications from MyEdSpace. You can unsubscribe anytime.

16,000+
Families have trusted us so far
3x more GCSE
Grade 9s achieved by our students vs the UK avg

Mondays 17:40

Wednesdays 17:40

Lesson duration: 60 mins

Live Lessons

Two engaging lessons per week delivered by the UK's top teachers

Tailored homework and workbooks

Custom workbooks and tailored homework, build confidence and exam-readiness

Step-by-step explanations

Every topic is covered with step-by-step video explanations and walkthroughs

Available 24/7, 365

Study any time, day or night with every lesson recording and course material available for revision all day, every day

What you’ll learn

Unit 1

Shakespearean women and daughters

  • Contextual review: Shakespeare and women of the Elizabethan era
  • Defiant daughter: Hermia in A Midsummer Night's Dream
  • Defiant daughter: Juliet in Romeo and Juliet
  • Defiant daughter: Desdemona in Othello
  • Outspoken woman: Katherine in The Taming of the Shrew
  • Outspoken woman: Portia in The Merchant of Venice
  • Outspoken woman: Lady Macbeth in Macbeth

Unit 2

Shakespearean villains, outsiders and power

  • Context: Who or what is a villain in Elizabethan England?
  • Villains are evil: The witches in Macbeth
  • Villains are tricky: Brutus in Julius Caesar
  • Villains are outsiders: Don Jon in Much Ado about Nothing
  • Villains are vengeful: Shylock in The Merchant of Venice
  • Villains are power-hungry: Macbeth
  • Villains are manipulative: Iago
  • Villains are monstruous: Caliban as a villain
  • Villains are justified?: Caliban as a victim

Unit 3

Gothic and horror: origins, context and classic texts

  • Introduction to the Origins of Horror, the Gothic
  • Conventions and context of the Gothic and Horror genres
  • The horrors of creation: Mary Shelley and Frankenstein
  • The horrors of guilt: Edgar Allan Poe and 'The Tell-Tale Heart'
  • The horrors of the superhuman: Bram Stoker and Dracula
  • The horrors of time: Oscar Wilde and 'The Picture of Dorian Grey'
  • The horrors within: Robert Louis Stevenson and 'Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde'
  • The horrors of society: Shirley Jackson and 'The Lottery'
  • The horrors of disguise: Stephen King and IT

Unit 4

Writing horror: characters and stories

  • Writing and developing a horror story
  • Crafting a horrific character

Unit 5

The Rime of the Ancient Mariner’: reading the ballad

  • Introduction to Coleridge, Ballads and Lyric Poetry
  • The Age of Exploration and Romanticism
  • Plot and poetic structure of 'The Rime of the Ancient Mariner'
  • Part I of 'The Rime of the Ancient Mariner'
  • Part II of 'The Rime of the Ancient Mariner'
  • Part III of 'The Rime of the Ancient Mariner'
  • Part IV of 'The Rime of the Ancient Mariner'
  • Part V of 'The Rime of the Ancient Mariner'
  • Part VI of 'The Rime of the Ancient Mariner'
  • Part VII of 'The Rime of the Ancient Mariner'
  • The Mariner: The Voice of Experience and Warning
  • The Wedding-Guest: The Listener

Unit 6

Writing ballads and journey narratives

  • Writing: Planning a Ballad about a Journey
  • Writing: Writing Journey Ballads

Unit 7

Protest songs and resistance

  • How are protest songs used as a form of resistance? 'We Shall Overcome' and the storytelling roots of protest songs
  • Billie Holiday's 'Strange Fruit' and the Civil Rights movement
  • Bob Marley:'s 'Redemption Song', 'Get Up, Stand Up' and Rastafarian resistance
  • Bob Dylan and 'The Times They are A'Changing': Vietnam War resistance
  • The Smiths' 'Meat is Murder' and the vegetarian movement
  • Paris Paloma's 'labour' and feminist resistance
  • Kendrick Lamar and Beyonce's 'Freedom', Common's 'Glory' and the future of protest songs
  • Writing: Imagining a better world through John Lennon's 'Imagine'

Unit 8

Action scenes in modern fiction

  • What is the purpose of action scenes in literature?
  • Suzanne Collins' The Hunger Games
  • Philip Pullman's Northern Lights
  • Louis Sachar's Holes
  • Alan Gibbons' Shadow of the Minotaur
  • Angie Thomas' The Hate You Give
  • S.E. Hinton's The Outsiders
  • Yann Martel's Life of Pi
  • Andy Mulligan's Trash
  • Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451
  • Writing: Planning an action scene
  • Writing: Writing an action scene

Unit 9

Grammar and language for effective writing

  • Grammar review: Cementing the basics
  • Prepositional phrases
  • Past, present and future tense usage
  • Conditional and nuanced language in writing

Unit 10

Non-fiction and the world of reporting

  • Introduction to non-fiction and the world of reporting
  • Fact-finding in non-fiction
  • Sources of information: Primary sources
  • Sources of information: Secondary sources
  • Inference and synthesis
  • Formal versus informal writing
  • Writing: Planning a non-fiction report
  • Writing: Developing a non-fiction report

Meet your teacher

@EleanorDoesEnglish
  • 6 years of teaching experience
  • Double 1st in English and Spanish from University of Pennsylvania
  • Scored 2380 in SATs (top 1%)

Video Unavailable

This video is currently unavailable. Please try refreshing the page or check back later.

Hear about the course from the people teaching it

Loved by students. — Trusted by parents.

Every child deserves to be A*

Best value — Save 43%
Annual £45/mo billed annually
Monthly £80/mo billed monthly
Full curriculum covered
The UK's top teachers
2x live lessons every week
Bespoke workbooks and homework
Lessons available on-demand, 24/7
10x cheaper than private tutoring
Full curriculum covered
The UK's top teachers
2x live lessons every week
Bespoke workbooks and homework
Lessons available on-demand, 24/7
No annual discount
£720
-43%
£409
for 72 lessons
£80
per month

14-day money back guarantee

or

By clicking, you agree to receive communications from MyEdSpace. You can unsubscribe anytime.

FAQs

Here are answers to some of the most common questions we receive.

What subjects do you offer?

We offer English, Maths and Science from Year 5 to A-level. The full list of subjects we offer, organised by Key Stage and Year Groups are:

  • Year 5: Maths, Science, English, 11+

  • Year 6: Maths, Science, English

  • Year 7: Maths, Science, English

  • Year 8: Maths, Science, English

  • Year 9: Maths, Science, English

  • Year 10: Maths, Biology, Chemistry, Physics, English

  • Year 11: Maths, Biology, Chemistry, Physics, English

  • Year 12: Maths, Biology, Chemistry, Physics, English Literature

  • Year 13: Maths, Biology, Chemistry, Physics, English Literature

All courses cover the full UK curriculum. GCSE science courses are available for either Combined or Triple, and we have separate Higher and Foundation classes.


How can I check your credibility?

Academically, the results of the 16,000+ MyEdSpace students speak for themselves.

⭐ Last year, MyEdSpace students achieved triple the national average of GCSE grade 9 results

⭐ Over half of our GCSE Maths grades were 7-9 (51%) - also triple the national average

⭐  Compared against non-MyEdSpace students, double the numbers of MyEdSpace A-level Physics students achieved an A or A* (67%), compared to the national figure of only 32%

⭐ Almost twice as many of our A-level Biology grades achieved A or A* (45%), nationwide it was 28%

⭐  Over half of our A-level students have been admitted into Russell Groups universities (55%) compared to only 27% across the UK

⭐ 100% of our A-level Maths students that completed 15+ homeworks achieved an A/A*

Anecdotally, the story is the same.

⭐ 95% of parents reported finding learning on MyEdSpace helpful for their child’s education

⭐ 83% of parents noticed a positive attitude change in their child after using MES

We’re proud that this is reflected in their reviews, where we’re rated ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ on both Trustpilot and Google Reviews.

We’re so confident you’ll see the benefits too, we offer a 14-day full money-back guarantee, so you can try it for yourself and get a full refund if we don’t meet your expectations.


Do you offer discounts for multiple courses or siblings?

Yes.

We offer a 20% discount for siblings, and a range of options to help make signing up for multiple courses more affordable.

Contact our Customer Success team for more details.

We’re so confident you’ll see the benefits too, we offer a 14-day full money-back guarantee, so you can try it for yourself and get a full refund if we don’t meet your expectations.


Why is this course better than one-to-one tuition?

Collaborative group learning provides numerous benefits which are lost in 1-to-1 tutoring and private tuition.

First, learning alongside their peers encourages more questions and collaboration, boosting confidence, engagement and energy levels, which can be lost in a more intimidating 1-to-1 setting where anxious students can feel ‘put on the spot’.

Our teachers are experts in providing safe, engaging learning environments, where there is zero-judgment and questions are encouraged. That’s a big part of why we hired them.

All student cameras are switched off, so no student appears on screen and their real-life identity is hidden behind the anonymity of a username and avatar.

We have chosen our specific way of delivering lessons to ensure that there’s no pressure to speak on camera or in front of the class – students can participate through the chat and ask questions anonymously.

We have found that this makes all students substantially more likely to contribute by asking and answering questions, while also providing a 'strength in numbers' feeling of reassurance and all the other benefits associated with collaborative learning.

We have found that each student on average sends 25 messages into the chat per lesson, creating an incredibly interactive atmosphere.

Additionally, the pro package includes a 1-1 Personal Mentor who you can contact outside of lesson time, which is not available in the Standard package.

It’s quite difficult to find the right tutors for your kids. Parents often have to decide between cheaper, but less experienced tutors or highly qualified ones that ask for thousands per subject.

We do things differently. We use technology and scale to cut overheads without cutting quality. By bringing people together, we ensure every child can access the UK’s top teaching talent at a fraction of the cost of hiring a private tutor.

Only the top 1% of teachers who apply to work with us are successful. Meaning you can rest assured that instead of a Grad Student looking to earn a few extra £s, your child is learning from highly-qualified teachers, who’ve spent years honing their talent for educating.

With MyEdSpace, there’s no compromise on quality - you’re just not paying for empty travel time or inefficiencies. It’s a 10x better education, at 10% of the cost.

Don't just take our word for it. We have over 1,500 5* star reviews from parents and students on Trustpilot.


What do MyEdSpace courses contain?

Our courses include two, interactive live lessons, per subject, per week, delivered by the UK’s top teaching talent.

Alongside the live lessons, each course also includes tailored workbooks, targeted homework and step-by-step video explanations for every topic, to reinforce learning. Recordings of the live lessons, plus all the additional materials are available 24/7, allowing them to be revisited at any time.

Students enrolled in the Pro package also receive personalised mentor support.

Meanwhile, parents receive a monthly progress report detailing how their child is getting on.


How can I be sure that each student gets enough attention?

Our teachers are experts in providing safe, engaging learning environments, where there is zero-judgment and questions are encouraged. That’s a big part of why we hired them.

To make sure every student is working at a level that’s right for them, every student’s progress is monitored and each month parents receive a progress report.

If we feel that a student is struggling, or not being pushed hard enough, we can adjust the year group, or course level up or down accordingly.

If you want to discuss changing levels at any time, our Customer Success team are here to help.

All student cameras are switched off, so no student appears on screen and their real-life identity is hidden behind the anonymity of a username and avatar.

We have chosen our specific way of delivering lessons to ensure that there’s no pressure to speak on camera or in front of the class – students can participate through the chat and ask questions anonymously.

We have found that this makes all students substantially more likely to contribute by asking and answering questions, while also providing a 'strength in numbers' feeling of reassurance and all the other benefits associated with collaborative learning.

We have found that each student on average sends 25 messages into the chat per lesson, creating an incredibly interactive atmosphere.

Additionally, the Pro package includes a 1-1 Personal Mentor who you can contact outside of lesson time.

Want to find out more?

We're here to help you!