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Key Stage 3 · Year 8 - Development · Term 3
Gothic anthology - extracts from *Frankenstein*, *Jekyll and Hyde*, *Dracula*, Poe's "Tell-Tale Heart", modern Gothic (Susan Hill, Gaiman). Anchors: convention, setting as character, the doppelganger, pre-1914 prose stamina. Direct GCSE feeder.
Set text
Gothic anthology - extracts from Shelley, Stevenson, Stoker, Poe + modern Gothic
Big skill jump
Students can sustain atmosphere across an extended descriptive piece and recognise genre conventions across 200 years of writing.
End-of-half-term assessment
Analytical essay on a Gothic extract.
Week 2
Gothic conventions + Frankenstein opening (Walton's letter)
Mary Shelley, 1818. Walton's polar voyage letters open the novel. Establishes Gothic landscape and unease.
sublimeuncannyforeboding
Week 3
Frankenstein Chapter 5 - creation scene
Victor brings the creature to life on "a dreary night of November". The moment realises his ambition and his ruin.
hubrishorrortransgression
Week 4
Stevenson, Jekyll and Hyde - the door scene
Stevenson, 1886. Utterson and Enfield see the strange door where Hyde tramples a child. Sets up the duality at the heart of the novella.
doppelgangerdualityrepression
Week 5
Stoker, Dracula - Harker's journey to the castle
Bram Stoker, 1897. Jonathan Harker travels through Transylvania to Dracula's castle. Builds atmosphere through landscape, locals' warnings and omens.
atmosphereforeigneromen
Week 6
Poe, "The Tell-Tale Heart" (1843)
Poe's short story. Narrator insists on his sanity while confessing to murder. The reader doubts his every word.
unreliable narratorparanoiafirst person
Week 7
HT1 Assessment - analytical essay on a Gothic extract
Assessment week. Analyse how a Gothic writer creates atmosphere and unease.
analyseconventionmethod
End-of-half-term assessment
Own Gothic short story (1,500 words, redrafted).
Week 8
Building atmosphere - pathetic fallacy (modelling)
Begin transition from reading to writing. Use Gothic models as scaffolds. Weather and setting carry mood.
pathetic fallacymoodsensory detail
Week 9
Character and setting in Gothic writing
Gothic characters are isolated, curious, or haunted. Settings reflect or trap them. Build both together.
protagonistisolationcharacterisation
Week 10
Structuring tension - pacing and withholding
Gothic stories build slowly, hint, then reveal late. Sentence length controls pace.
pacingforeshadowingcliffhanger
Week 11
Drafting your own Gothic story
Bring atmosphere, character, structure together. Aim for 1200-1500 words.
draftcontinuitycohesion
Week 12
Peer review and redrafting
Improve drafts through structured peer feedback and targeted redrafting.
reviewredraftfeedback
Week 13
HT2 Assessment - final Gothic short story (1500 words)
Final assessment: polished Gothic short story of ~1500 words.
final draftassessmentreflection