MYP English – Teacher’s Guide

What Is MYP Language and Literature?

The Middle Years Programme (MYP) for students aged 11–16 (Grades 6–10) is part of the IB continuum. Language and Literature is the language A course, typically taught in the student’s first/best language (like English).

This course aims to:

• Develop critical thinking and communication.
• Explore texts from diverse cultures and periods.
• Analyze language, structure, theme, and authorial choices.
• Connect literature to global and personal contexts.

Key Features a Teacher Must Understand

A. Concept-Based Curriculum

• Teaching revolves around Key Concepts: Communication, Creativity, Perspective, Identity.
• Supported by Related Concepts: Audience imperatives, character, context, genre, intertextuality, point of view, purpose, self-expression, setting, structure, stylistic choices, theme, tone, voice, argument, conventions, and language.
• Global Contexts give real-world significance: Identities and Relationships, Orientation in Space and Time, Personal and Cultural Expression, Scientific and Technical Innovation, Globalization and Sustainability, Fairness and Development,.

B. Inquiry Cycle

All units must have:

1. Statement of Inquiry (big idea)

Inquiry Questions: Factual, Conceptual, and Debatable.

Factual Questions: These focus on knowledge and comprehension. They often begin with what, when, where, or who and help students build foundational understanding. Example: “What are the key features of a memoir?”

Conceptual Questions

These focus on understanding abstract ideas and concepts. They promote analysis and connections across texts and disciplines. Example: “How does setting influence character development in literature?”

Debatable Questions

These promote critical thinking, multiple perspectives, and argumentation. They often begin with should, to what extent, or how far and are used to spark discussion and debate. Example: “To what extent can literature influence social change?”

Sample Set for an MYP English Unit (e.g., on Autobiography)

• Key Concept: Identity
• Related Concepts: Voice, Context
• Global Context: Identities and Relationships

Inquiry Questions:

• Factual: What makes a text autobiographical?
• Conceptual: How do writers use voice to shape identity?
• Debatable: Can an autobiography ever be truly objective?

3. Conceptual Understandings tied to skills

C. Approaches to Learning (ATL) Skills

These are transdisciplinary skills that must be explicitly taught:

• Communication.
• Research.
• Self-management.
• Thinking.
• Social

Text Types and Genres

• Teachers can use novels, plays, poems, short stories, films, articles, speeches, blogs, graphic novels, etc.
• Should vary genres, time periods, and cultures
• Texts should support intercultural awareness and critical literacy

MYP Language and Literature Objectives

Each objective corresponds to an assessment criterion:

1. Analyzing: How well students understand and interpret text, authorial choices, and context.
2. Organizing: How well students structure their ideas using cohesive language.
3. Producing Text: Students’ creative or personal writing.
4. Using Language: Grammar, spelling, vocabulary, and stylistic effectiveness

Assessment in MYP

• Assessments are criterion-based, not percentage- or mark-based
• Use task-specific clarification to match the rubric to the assignment
• Teachers grade on an 8-point scale per criterion.

Assessment criteria:

1. Analyzing – Essay analyzing a character’s development
2. Organizing – Structured speech or letter.
3. Producing Text – Creative diary entry or alternate ending.
4. Using Language – Any task, judged for style and grammar.

Unit Planning

Each unit must include:

• Key Concept + 1–2 Related Concepts.
• Global Context.
• Statement of Inquiry.
• Inquiry Questions (Factual / Conceptual / Debatable).
• Learning objectives and assessment aligned with the 4 criteria.
• ATL skills explicitly taught.
• Formative and summative assessments.

Unit Content

• Key Concept: A big idea like Communication, Identity, or Creativity.
• Related Concepts: Subject-specific ideas like Context, Voice, or Genre.
• Global Context: Real-world theme like Identities and Relationships or Fairness and Development.
• Inquiry Questions: Factual, Conceptual, and Debatable questions that drive learning.
• Texts/Content: Literary or non-literary works studied (novel, poem, article, etc.).
• Learning Objectives: What students should know, understand, and be able to do.
• ATL Skills: Approaches to learning (e.g., communication, critical thinking).
• Assessment Task(s): Criteria-based assignments to measure student achievement.

Assignment Types

1. Textual Analysis Essay: Students analyze how language, structure, and style convey meaning in a text.

• Analyze the use of irony in Shirley Jackson’s The Lottery.
• Examine how setting influences tone in Edgar Allan Poe’s The Tell-Tale Heart.
• Explore the theme of conformity in Animal Farm.
• Analyze the role of metaphor in “Ozymandias” by Percy Bysshe Shelley.
• Discuss how suspense is created in The Landlady by Roald Dahl.
• Examine the use of contrast to build character in Of Mice and Men.
• Analyze how diction and tone reveal identity in a Maya Angelou poem.
• Explore how symbolism is used in The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time.
• Analyze how the narrator’s voice shapes meaning in The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian.
• Examine how imagery in a chosen war poem evokes emotional response.

2. Creative Writing Task: Students produce a short story, poem, or diary entry inspired by a studied text or theme.

• Write a diary entry from the point of view of Boo Radley in To Kill a Mockingbird.
• Create a short story based on the theme “displacement and belonging”.
• Rewrite a fairytale from the antagonist’s perspective.
• Compose a letter from Macbeth to Lady Macbeth after the battle.
• Write a news report covering the trial in The Merchant of Venice.
• Create a poem titled “What I Wish You Knew”.
• Imagine you’re a refugee child and write a blog entry.
• Write a conversation between two characters who never meet in Romeo and Juliet.
• Compose a children’s book retelling a major historical event.
• Write a sci-fi story exploring artificial intelligence and ethics.

3. Oral Presentation: Students present their ideas verbally, using media or performance.

• Present a TED-style talk on the power of storytelling across cultures.
• Analyze a character’s transformation in The Outsiders through a speech.
• Present a comparison between spoken word poetry and traditional poetry.
• Give a persuasive speech on banning censorship in literature.
• Recreate a news broadcast covering an event from Lord of the Flies.
• Deliver a monologue as a misunderstood character from literature.
• Present your own interpretation of a poem using visuals and props.
• Conduct a literary podcast episode analyzing a short story.
• Discuss how cultural context affects meaning in a chosen poem.
• Perform a book review using expressive language and media.

4. Comparative Essay: Students compare two texts or a text and a visual/media piece.

• Compare how power is portrayed in Animal Farm and a political cartoon.
• Compare two poems on the theme of war.
• Explore how justice is depicted in To Kill a Mockingbird and 12 Angry Men.
• Compare portrayals of mental health in a novel and a short film.
• Analyze gender roles in Romeo and Juliet and a contemporary song.
• Compare media bias in two news reports on the same issue.
• Compare the portrayal of migration in a poem and a memoir.
• Compare a dystopian text and a real-world government policy.
• Compare how two protagonists deal with personal loss.
• Explore cultural identity in a novel and a docum

5. Visual/Multimodal Project: Students use images, posters, digital media, or video to communicate ideas.

• Create an infographic summarizing character relationships in a novel.
• Design a movie poster with visual symbolism for Of Mice and Men.
• Create a comic strip retelling a Shakespeare scene.
• Design a magazine spread exploring a novel’s central theme.
• Make a digital timeline of a protagonist’s internal journey.
• Develop a photo essay titled “Voices of Silence”.
• Produce a trailer for a short story.
• Create a graphic novel page based on a refugee story.
• Design a propaganda poster for Animal Farm.
• Make a collage exploring identity in poetry.

6. Dramatic Performance or Script: Students create or perform a monologue, scene, or skit based on a literary theme or text.

• Write and perform a courtroom scene for a character from a novel.
• Create a puppet show retelling Romeo and Juliet.
• Write a dramatic monologue for a minor character from The Book Thief.
• Adapt a short story into a skit with modern dialogue.
• Create a radio play for a suspense story.
• Reimagine a Shakespeare scene as a soap opera.
• Write and perform a debate between two characters with opposing views.
• Script a missing scene from Lord of the Flies.
• Recreate a scene from a novel with a twist ending.
• Stage a dialogue between two literary characters from different texts.

7. Reader’s Journal / Reflection: Ongoing or one-time personal reflections on texts, themes, or concepts.

• Reflect on how a protagonist’s journey connects to your own life.
• Write about how a text made you change your thinking on identity.
• Respond to a controversial moment in a novel: What would you have done?
• Reflect on how the setting shaped the plot of a story.
• Write a journal entry reacting to a character’s difficult decision.
• Reflect on how the global context shaped your understanding of a text.
• Respond to a poem using personal connections and emotional reaction.
• Reflect on how your perception of a theme changed throughout the unit.
• Journal your predictions and how they changed while reading a novel.
• Reflect on how you applied feedback to improve your creative writing.

7. Reporting Grades

At the end of the year, each of the 4 criteria gets a final mark out of 8. These are added (total out of 32) and converted to an MYP grade (1–7)

• 28–32 = Grade 7.
• 24–27 = Grade 6.

• Read MYP Language & Literature Guide (latest IB publication).
• Use MYP planners to structure units.
• Get comfortable with formative feedback loops.
• Keep a bank of real-world text types.
• Use peer assessment and reflection activities.
• Co-construct rubrics with students when possible.
• Encourage literary and media literacy.