first interview after a 7yr break - HELP!

[Glittermud]

I've got 4 days to prepare a 30 min yr10 English lesson for an interview observation next week.

The trouble is, beyond some voluntary TA work, I haven't taught a lesson for seven years (took a break to raise a family) and I'm having a slight confidence wobble.

Generally speaking, what makes an interview lesson great in your experience? Absolutely any advice is extremely welcome!

Primary, so my experience may not be relevant, but here it is anyway. The relationship and rapport you manage to establish with the pupils. Do they warm to you? Do you look like you're interested in them?

I'm doing a science PGCE so I might be some help. For interviews we've been advised the following:
Make sure you have something small to engage them.
Pick one learning outcome and make sure you can prove you met it.
Prepare something extra to challenge anyone that finishes and in case it all goes horribly wrong, talk about this in the interview afterwards if you don't use it, to prove you thought about differentiation and appropriate levels of challenge.
Hope that helps a bit, sorry I only have a small amount of experience on this.
Have you got a particular topic to teach?

Thanks, very helpful. I should manage to get some rapport (hopefully), so need to just make sure that my lesson is focused and

Doesn't end abruptly. leaving interviewers and students thinking 'What? What?'

30 mins isn't long for Year 10. I would do something grammar orientated as the outcomes are very clear and measurable. Something like comma use or the different types of adverb. Do a punchy opener to get them to identify what they think might be errors in a game format, so you can assess for learning from the off, then do a group activity consolidating the input, finishing with a quick game to prove confidence in learning.If you can be bothered, lolly sticks in red, amber, green are very handy for instant AFl. AFL is very hot now so if you can prove you've done that all the way you are on to a winner. It's very big in primary (I use traffic lights) but even in secondary, when I taught there last (in 2008) I had cards to hold up and used mini white boards to instantly check understanding. Always got me praise. If you can have a list of names in ability order, with you tick boxes ready (Bob- LA - commas in lists - tick) then it really works easily.

Plus, the games format is also good for attention span, especially if you intoduce competition. To challenge the Ha you can get them to place / identify the grammar element within writing and for the LA you can "build" the knowledge and give them lots of hands on prompts.

Failing grammar, i'd do poetry!