JC

Dave and English A Level

bEn: hOw dAvE mEt HiS Ex

JC
Ben is one of the original Sound of Pen student crew. As passionate about music as he is about English, his thoughts on Dave's 'love' songs are both insightful and inspired. It's worth noting too, that many of Ben's ideas will feel relevant to th... Read More...
Language AnalysisPen Gen 5
Taylor Swift Poetry

AniA: mAkE A WiSh

JC
Once in a while, you read something that takes your breath away. Today is that once in a while! Year 10 student, Ania, wrote this poem and it's BEAUTIFUL x ... Read More...
Pen Gen 4
YONAKA english class

yOnAkA: WoRmHoLes

JC
The 3 purple links below serve as wormholes. They'll take you straight into the pages of the texts you're studying at school. Use YONAKA's ideas to develop your understanding of 'A Streetcar Named Desire', light imagery and gender inequality! As ... Read More...
A-LevelGCSEWormholes 2
Holding Absence Literature A-Level GCSE

HoLdiNg AbSeNcE: WoRmHoLeS

JC
The purple links in this article serve as wormholes. Click on them and you'll find yourself walking through the pages of Oscar Wilde's 'The Picture Of Dorian Gray'. From there, you can tunnel into whichever text you're interested in exploring furthe... Read More...
A-LevelGCSEWormholes 2
A Level and GCSE English Lessons

ArTiSTs

JC
Against The Current Lily Allen All Time Low Anaal Nathrakh Ankor Architects As It Is Asking Alexandria Baby Queen Bazzi BEEA B... Read More...
Study 2

eLLa: DiScOnnEcT fRoM tHe WiReD wOrLd

JC
After looking at Kate Nash's blog, Ella realised she had something equally crucial to say. This is Ella's own beautiful and brilliant blog entry. Read it and be inspired to go outside OR to do something great OR to send your own important message ou... Read More...
Pen Gen 4
Top 20 artists

BeLLa: bEsT ArtIsTs eVeR

JC
It's impossible to pile all the music we LOVE at Sound of Pen into one genre. And yet there IS a thread that joins all our favourite music together. It's somet... Read More...
Pen Gen 4

aDeLa: iNtO ThE WooDs

JC
The first piece of student work has arrived! Adela was tasked with summarising her A-Level 'Love' learning. No one could have expected what came next - this BEAUTIFUL painting! Inspired in part by the Taylor Swift lessons, but mostly fuelled by t... Read More...
Pen Gen 4

YoNaKa: ToNe

JC
YONAKA's delivery is key. Theresa and the gang use different tones to convey a whole range of emotional states and ideas. https://youtu.be/HnkY2oTwnm8 The authors we study at GCSE and A-Level do the same. Let's look at a couple of the way... Read More...
Class 4

JC

English Teacher & Music Journalist

Favourite artists: Against The Current, Holding Absence, Trophy Eyes, Taylor Swift, Kim Petras
Favourite album: Blind Melon: Blind Melon
Favourite song: The Used: Taste of Ink
Best gig: 30 Seconds To Mars @ Main Square Festival, July 2013
Lyric worth remembering: Live right now, just be yourself; it doesn't matter if it's good enough for someone else
Most likely to feel: Inspired and determined
Favourite month and why: June – the start of festival season