Tbc Literacy Hour

Teacher’s GuideYear 4

Teacher’s GuideLiteracy Hour Lesson Plans

Just like a human baby, a seal pup needs special food.

A formula made from mashed fish, fish oil, vitamins and

minerals is fed by a tube feeder that is gently pushed

into the pup’s mouth. When a pup is older, it will eat

raw fish.

By the time a seal pup is three months old, it can swim

and catch live fish on its own. It has also acquired social

skills, enabling it to live with other seals. Soon, it will

be transported in an animal carrier to a shallow bay near

a known seal haul out (or habitat). There, it will be

released – ready to return to life in the sea.

Never pick up a lone seal pup without getting advice!

Sometimes, a pup is just resting on the rocks or shore,

while its mother hunts for food. You can best help

a lone pup by making

observations of it from

a distance. If the mother

has not returned to the

pup after four hours, call

the police or the Marine

Fisheries Service for help.

From The Story of Small Fry by Marcia Vaughan

© Kingscourt Publishing 1999Year 4

Fiction, Non-Fiction, Poetry, Plays... and more!Fully correlated to NLS term-by-term requirements.

Parrot: You should have accepted.Tortoise: Nonsense.Anansi is much better.Peacock: You’re all ignoring my beautiful legs. I should marry Miss Selina.Monkey: Be quiet! Here comes Anansi now.

(Anansi approaches Miss Selina’s home.)Anansi: I’m a bit late. Haven’t had any time to tidy myself up. Never mind. Miss Selina will marry me for what I am, not what I look like. Good morning Miss Selina.Selina: Good morning, Anansi.

Teacher’s GuideYear4

Teacher’s Guide

Literacy Hour Lesson Plans

Both reading and writing are emphasised. The careful balance of shared and independentwork helps all children build skills, creativity and confidence.

Many genres! Kingscourt’s Big Books and posters

cover the variety of text types specified in the NLS.

These range from fiction and poetry to a wealth of

non-fiction material, with many links to subject areas

such as maths, science, history and geography.

Text-level, sentence-level and word-level workincluded in every Lesson Plan.

Pupil Activity Sheets for independent work,

all correlated to the NLS.

Support for every part of the Literacy Hour. Every Lesson Plan directly matches the structure ofthe Literacy Hour, from the critical whole-class focusat the start of the Hour to independent activitiesthat will engage children while you are workingwith small groups.

Every title and Lesson Plan carefully correlated to

NLS term-by-term objectives.

More than 50 Literacy Hour lesson plans, making it easy for you to get the most out of ALLKingscourt’s shared reading resources.

Key Features of this Resource

Literacy Links Plus2

Big Books: Stories and a PlayTraditional stories, stories from other culturesand a play.

See page 6

Poetry Big BookPoetry based on animals, classic and modernpoetry, poems from different cultures andpoetry in different forms (such as monologue,conversation, rhyming verse and haiku).

See page 7

Enlarged Text Charts:Fiction and Non-FictionExtracts from Kingscourt’s popular chapterbooks, carefully selected to help childreninvestigate text types and language features specified in the NLS.

See page 8

Non-Fiction Big BooksHigh-interest topics explored through text types including recounts, persuasive texts,explanations, reports and instructional texts.

See page 9

Non-Fiction from Other Subject AreasBig Books and posters featuring stunningphotography, bold graphics and accessible text; unique resources that provide a perfectmarriage between children’s study of non-fiction and their exploration of key concepts about mathematics, science, history and geography.

See pages 10 and 11

The Components

Remember that Literacy Links Plus for Key Stage 2 also includes a wealth ofmaterial for guided and independentreading. See the back cover of thisTeacher’s Guide for more information.

Literacy Links Plus 3

Contents

Overview of ComponentsBig Books: Stories and a Play 6

Poetry Big Book 7

Enlarged Text Charts 8

Non-Fiction Big Books 9

Non-Fiction from Other Subject Areas:Big Books and Posters 10

Term 1 19 Lesson Plans

Term 1 Overview: Lesson Plans and NLS Objectives 12Lesson PlansRumpelstiltskin TRADITIONAL STORY 2 lessons 14

The Wish Fish EXTRACT FROM A NOVEL 1 lesson 16

Anansi PLAY 2 lessons 17

Summer Song and Ode to the Pig: His Tail POEMS 1 lesson 19

The Eagle POEM 1 lesson 20

Pigeons POEM 1 lesson 21

The Crocodile POEM 1 lesson 22

Lion POEM 1 lesson 23

Samuel POEM 1 lesson 24

All the World’s a Stage!EXTRACT FROM NON-FICTION CHAPTER BOOK 1 lesson 25

Mathematics from Many CulturesNON-FICTION 1 lesson 26

All About ForcesSCIENCE NON-FICTION 2 lessons 27

Fantastic FlightMATHEMATICS NON-FICTION 2 lessons 29

The Sun NON-FICTION 2 lessons 31



Term 2 Overview: Lesson Plans and NLS Objectives 33Lesson Plans

The Fisherman and His Wife TRADITIONAL STORY 2 lessons 35

Because of Walter EXTRACT FROM A NOVEL 1 lesson 37

The Bad Luck of King Fred EXTRACT FROM A NOVEL 1 lesson 38

A Football Game POEM 1 lesson 39

The City Dump and City POEMS 1 lesson 40

On the Skateboard, Freewheeling on a Bike andPortrait of a Motor Car POEMS 1 lesson 41

Silver POEM 1 lesson 42

Winter Moon and Summer Full Moon POEMS 1 lesson 43

Under the Ground NON-FICTION 2 lessons 44

The Wonderful World of PlantsSCIENCE NON-FICTION 2 lessons 46

Nature’s Mathematical Marvels NON-FICTION 2 lessons 48

Mathematics from Many Cultures NON-FICTION 1 lesson 50


Term 3 Overview: Lesson Plans and NLS Objectives 51Lesson Plans

Why Flies Buzz TRADITIONAL STORY FROM AFRICA 2 lessons 53

Why Frog and Snake Can’t Be FriendsTRADITIONAL STORY FROM AFRICA 2 lessons 55

Peter the Pumpkin-Eater EXTRACT FROM A NOVEL 1 lesson 57

Wrestling POEM 1 lesson 58

Salt and Pepper POEM 1 lesson 59

Can You Sing? POEM 1 lesson 60

Skipping Rhyme and The Swings in the Park POEMS 1 lesson 61

The Story of Small Fry EXTRACT FROM A NOVEL 1 lesson 62

Egyptian Genius MATHEMATICS NON-FICTION 2 lessons 63

Nature’s Shapes and Patterns SCIENCE NON-FICTION 2 lessons 65

Mathematics from Many Cultures NON-FICTION 1 lesson 67

Extinction Is Forever NON-FICTION 3 lessons 68

Activity Sheets 73Index 103



23/7/1999 9:09 AM Peter M 9151-LitHour T/Guide Intro Gr 4

These highly engaging books are especially designed for whole-class useand offer a variety of genres including traditional tales, legends, stories from other cultures and a play. All have accompanying small books.

Rumpelstiltskin A traditional story.Featured in Term 1• exploring characterisation and chronology;

writing character sketches and a playscript;performing the play as readers’ theatre

• detailed sentence/word-level work focusingon verb tenses, adverbs, adverbial phrases,suffixes and more.

See Lesson Plans 1 and 2.

The Fisherman and His Wife A traditional story.Featured in Term 2• exploring expressive and descriptive language;

creating settings and imaginary worlds

• detailed sentence/word-level work focusingon adjectives, word order, words thatimply gender, suffixes andalternative words and expressions.


Why Flies Buzz & Why Frog and Snake Can’t Be FriendsTwo traditional stories from Africa.Featured in Term 3• exploring stories from other cultures;

identifying moral issues; understanding andusing paragraphs; writing alternative endings

• detailed sentence/word-level work focusingon the grammar of different types ofsentences, punctuation, compoundwords, using its/it’s, suffixes and word building.

See Lesson Plans 36 to 39.

Anansi A play based on a traditional story from Nigeria.Featured in Term 1• exploring the conventions of playscripts;

investigating characterisation, dialogue,and narrative order; writing a newspaperreport; converting a playscript to narrative

• detailed sentence/word-level work focusingon adverbs, verbs, double consonants andregular verb endings.


Big Books: Stories and a Play

Thrills and Chills is a wonderful anthology(Big Book and small books) designed to supportNLS objectives for children’s study of poetry throughoutYear 4. Every poetry Lesson Plan is accompanied bya pupil Activity Sheet for independent work.

Term 1Poems based on animals.• exploring language patterns; poetic devices

and characterisation; comparing and contrasting poems; writing poems based on those read

• detailed sentence/word-level work focusingon adverbs, suffixes, verbs, pronouns, adjectives, tense, prefixes and punctuation.

See Lesson Plans 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 and 11.

Term 2Classic and modern poetry.Poems from different cultures.• exploring and using expressive, descriptive

and figurative language; comparing and contrasting settings; writing poetry based on poems read

• detailed sentence/word-level work focusingon adjectives, apostrophes, suffixes andprefixes, word order, syllabic patterns,using commas and connectives and examining the effect of punctuation.

See Lesson Plans 24, 25, 26, 27 and 28.

Term 3Poetry in different forms (monologue,conversation, rhyming verse and haiku).• recognising forms of poetry and their

features; identifying and exploring social issues; writing poems; exploring use of rhyme

• detailed sentence/word-level work focusingon tense, punctuation, word building,changing and extending words, sentence structure, parts of speech and more.

See Lesson Plans 41, 42, 43 and 44.

23/7/1999 9:09 AM Peter M 9151-LitHour T/Guide Intro Gr 4


Poetry Big Book


These laminated poster-size charts feature extracts from Kingscourt’spopular chapter-book range (a rich resource of thematically linked titlesthat are ideal for independent reading and directed group activities).The double-sided charts support focused, close investigation of a variety offiction and non-fiction text types and related sentence-level and word-levelwork. They can be the basis of stand-alone lessons but are also excellent foruse in conjunction with the related chapter books to set the scene forreading and/or to extend and deepen children’s appreciation of a text.

Term 1• exploring characterisation and the

language of commands; identifying features of non-fiction texts; examining opening sentences

• detailed sentence/word-level work focusing on verbs, tense and homophones, spelling by analogy with known words, investigating word order and punctuation.

See Lesson Plans 3 (The Wish Fish) and 12 (All the World’s a Stage!).

Term 2• exploring descriptive and expressive

language in imaginative writing;understanding paragraphs; note-making

• detailed sentence/word-level work focusing on adjectives, compound words, the possessive apostrophe, wordsthat imply gender and using suffixes tocreate adjectives.

See Lesson Plans 22 (Because of Walter)and 23 (The Bad Luck of King Fred).

Term 3• exploring and using paragraphs;

evaluating the main issues in a text; summarising

• detailed sentence/word-level work focusing on the effect of punctuation and word order, using the apostrophe,pluralisation and prefixes and suffixes.

See Lesson Plans 40 (Peter the Pumpkin- Eater) and 45 (The Story of Small Fry).

Enlarged Text Charts

Adhesive “Wikki Stix” are ideal for circling or underlining keywords and/or phrases on the Text Chart during discussion.Water-based markers and removable labels are also useful.

For even more activities, see the Teachers’ Booklets packagedwith each set of Text Charts. For activities built around thechapter books themselves, see the Literacy Links PlusChapter Books Teacher’s Guides.

As we got out of the car, the door opened. Theywere all there. Mr Parker, Mrs Parker, and Victoria.Mr and Mrs Parker were smiling. Victoria wasn’t.She glared at me with small, grey eyes. Mrs Parkerasked me to come in and they showed me aroundthe house. It had a cosy entrance hall, full ofraincoats and boots, and a huge wooden staircase.There were four bedrooms, and Mr Parker had hisown study. My room was blue. It was the prettiestroom I’d ever seen. It had an old brass bed with a blue quilt. The wallpaper and curtains were thesame blue and white pattern. The best thing about itwas the view. From my window I could see the sea.“Would you like to have a look at the beach,Kaysha?” Mr Parker asked after Roberta had left.“We can walk to it from our house.”

From Because of Walter by Carol Krueger© Kingscourt Publishing 1999

Year 4

I’ll never forget the first time I saw the house.

The car stopped outside this beautiful, rambling old

house. I thought Roberta had forgotten something,

or was going to look at her map.

“This is it,” she said.

“This is where the Parkers live?” I said, shocked.

“This is where you are going to live.”

The house was tall and painted white. It had

window boxes on the upstairs windows, which were

full of bright spring flowers. A vine of pink roses

rambled up one of its walls. It had a large front

porch, with a friendly, bright blue door right in the

middle. There were tubs of lavender on each side

of the stairs.

From Because of Walter by Carol Krueger

© Kingscourt Publishing 1999

Year 4

Peter would have loved to cultivate a carnivorousplant. Insect-snapping Venus flytraps are always a bighit. However, Peter finally decided to grow cactusesbecause he liked the sound of some of the names:jumping cholla, prickly pear, and organ pipe.But, more important, he wanted to grow cactusesbecause he’d heard that just about anyone could do it.Twice a day, Peter lovingly fed compost and water

to his cactuses. He talked to them in his most caringand soothing voice and played calming piano musicfor them.But, sadly, in just

over one week, Peter saw the mountain bikeslipping out of his reach.His cactuses weren’t

doing well.

From Peter the Pumpkin-Eater by Janine Scott© Kingscourt Publishing 1999

Year 4

Young Peter the Pumpkin-Eater’s involvement with

plants started when he entered the “Grow and Show”

competition, held every year at the Garden Society

Headquarters.

Peter wasn’t the gardening type. He was only

interested in winning first prize – a mountain bike –

for the most unusual plant.

However, there was a slight hitch to Peter’s

competition début. He didn’t have a green thumb or

a green finger or, for that matter, any other green

part of his body.

Flower beds, vegetable

patches, parks, and

jungles were all very

foreign to city-slicker

Peter. The only jungles

that he was aware

of were concrete ones.

From Peter the Pumpkin-Eater by Janine Scott


Year 4

He felt a little better when the servant arrivedwith his breakfast tray. King Fred dug the spooninto his favourite porridge and scooped up a mouthful. The hot cereal rolled over his tongue and down his throat.He started to smack his lips, then paused.Something was not quite right. He took a smallerspoonful and tried the porridge again. There was no flavour. The porridge tasted like warm paste.The king pushed the tray aside and called for the royal cook. Within minutes, the cook shuffledthrough the door, wringing his hands in his apronand bobbing his head up and down.King Fred said, “Something is wrong. My porridge tastes like paste.”

Year 4From The Bad Luck of King Fred by Anna-Maria Crum© Kingscourt Publishing 1999

The next morning, King Fred was very miserable.

The night before, a violent thunderstorm had raged

for hours and hours, shaking the palace walls and

pounding the palace roof.

Even worse, his bed was full of the salt he had

thrown over his shoulder. No matter how much he

brushed off the sheets, there was still enough left

to scratch his skin.

He heard tapping at the door. It was the royal

gardener. After hearing of the king’s woes, she had

brought King Fred another four-leaf clover, because

twelve cloves are always better than eight. King

Fred was very relieved. Surely the new clover

would break his run of bad luck.

Year 4From The Bad Luck of King Fred by Anna-Maria Crum


Just like a human baby, a seal pup needs special food. A formula made from mashed fish, fish oil, vitamins andminerals is fed by a tube feeder that is gently pushedinto the pup’s mouth. When a pup is older, it will eatraw fish.

By the time a seal pup is three months old, it can swimand catch live fish on its own. It has also acquired socialskills, enabling it to live with other seals. Soon, it willbe transported in an animal carrier to a shallow bay near

a known seal haul out (or habitat). There, it will bereleased – ready to return to life in the sea.

Never pick up a lone seal pup without getting advice!Sometimes, a pup is just resting on the rocks or shore,while its mother hunts for food. You can best help a lone pup by making observations of it from a distance. If the mother has not returned to the pup after four hours, call the police or the Marine Fisheries Service for help.

From The Story of Small Fry by Marcia Vaughan© Kingscourt Publishing 1999

Year 4

In the spring and early summer, large numbers of seals

gather at rookeries to mate. Some rookeries have

colonies of more than 100,000 seals.

Twelve months later, the females return to give birth,

often at the same crowded rookery where they

were born.

A female seal (or cow) usually gives birth to just

one pup at a time. Even at a noisy, crowded rookery,

a mother can recognize her pup by its cry and smell.

Sometimes, however, boats or people may frighten

a mother seal away. A pup permanently separated

from its mother is called an

orphan. Without food and

protection, an orphan seal

pup will die.

From The Story of Small Fry by Marcia Vaughan


Year 4

Pedro was a kind man, so he put his net back into thewater and set the fish free.

As the red fish swam away, he called, “I am a Wish Fish. If you ever need to wish for something,stand at this spot and call me.”

Pedro watched the fish, till he could see it no longer. He then walked home with his few small fish.

His wife grumbled loudly. “You lazy man! If you caughtmore fish, we could move out of this wooden hut!”

Pedro waited patiently for his wife to stop grumbling.He then told his story about the Wish Fish and about the reward that he had been promised.

From The Wish Fish Adapted by Carol Krueger© Kingscourt Publishing 1999

Year 4

Long ago, on the coast of Spain, there lived a poor

fisherman named Pedro and his wife. Every day, Pedro

would go out to catch fish and, every day, his wife

would grumble. “You never catch enough fish,”

she would say. “You’re just too lazy!”

Pedro tried to please his wife, but the fish were scarce

and hard to catch.

One day, when he pulled in his net, he found a

magnificent red fish. It was the biggest fish Pedro had

ever seen. “This fish will fetch a big price!” he said.

The fish looked at Pedro with sad eyes. “Please let me

go!” he said. “I promise that if you let me go, I will

reward you!”

From The Wish Fish Adapted by Carol Krueger


Year 4

List the props the script says you must have,and add things you’d like to use. See if the otheractors have any ideas.Think about what you will do with food or drink. Remember, not everything has to be real,it only has to look real!

Practise using your props. Pick them up and usethem as you rehearse. Try using them in new anddifferent ways.

Checklist✓ List the props the scriptsays you must have.✓ Add props you want

to use.✓ Put props in a place

where you can quickly find them.✓ Rehearse using

your props.

From All the World’s a Stage! by Angie Lee, Davis Nuss, and Anna-Maria Crum


Year 4

A prop is anything a character uses during the play,

like an umbrella, a bucket, or a piece of string.

Props can make a play more fun and more realistic.

It is a good idea to have each actor get his or

her own props. Scan the play once more to decide

on the props you’ll need. While you are reading,

ask yourself:

Where does the play take place? What kind

of things would you find in such places?

When does the play take place? In the past,

present, or future?

INSIDER’S TIP

Make sure no one is

allergic to the food or

drink you use. Check with

an adult first and make

sure your food will be

safe to eat.

From All the World’s a Stage! by Angie Lee, Davis Nuss, and Anna-Maria Crum


Year 4

Varied and appealing subject matter and text styles, top-quality photography, andinteresting features of layout all combine to make these books highly engaging.These are rich resources for shared reading of non-fiction and for whole-class orgroup activities focused on key sentence-level and word-level work.

The SunFeatured in Term 1• exploring features of non-fiction and the

difference between fact and opinion;planning a narrative; summarising

• detailed sentence/word-level workfocusing on word building, homophones,adverbs and verbs.


Under the Ground Featured in Term 2• identifying features of explanatory texts;

summarising and note-making

• detailed sentence/word-level work focusingon punctuation, words that imply gender,adjectives, word order and defining words.


Extinction is ForeverFeatured in Term 3• investigating and writing arguments;

summarising; presenting a point of view

• detailed sentence/word-level work focusingon pluralisation, compound words, verb endings and prefixes and suffixes.

See Lesson Plans 51, 52 and 53.

Mathematics from Many CulturesIncluding a Big Book and Posters, this resource provides a unique blending of mathematical concepts with fascinating insights into history and many different cultures.

Featured in Term 1• investigating and writing instructional texts• verb tenses and homophones.in Term 2• investigating and writing explanatory texts• adjectives and word order; defining words.and in Term 3• investigating and writing persuasive texts;

summarising• extending words using prefixes and suffixes.See Lesson Plans 12, 25 and 50.


Non-Fiction Big Books

Mathematics from Many Cultures also features in Kingscourt’s Maths Links Plus programme. There the teachers’ resource material provides dailymathematics lesson suggestions supporting the National Numeracy Framework.

This Maths in Context series features high-interest topics and comprisessets of posters along with student books. All titles provide excellentmodels of non-fiction text types, and feature photography, graphs, chartsand diagrams that help to build children’s visual literacy. Literacy HourLesson Plans for each title focus on investigating key aspects of readingand writing non-fiction. They also provide a wealth of activities foressential sentence-level and word-level work.

Fantastic FlightFeatured in Term 1• identifying the typical features of

non-fiction texts; investigating andwriting instructional texts and anewspaper report; understanding fact and opinion

• detailed sentence/word-level work focusing on tense, punctuation,homophones, defining words andword building.


Nature’s Mathematical MarvelsFeatured in Term 2• analysing the features of non-fiction and

explanatory texts; collecting andpresenting information in a usefulformat; using descriptive language

• detailed sentence/word-level workfocusing on adjectives, uses of suffixes, using the apostrophe and alternativewords and expressions.


Egyptian GeniusFeatured in Term 3• exploring styles and purposes of non-fiction

texts; investigating and writing advertisements; summarising

• detailed sentence/word-level workfocusing on verb endings, pluralisation,extending words, using its/it’s and exploring the grammar of different sentence types.


Non-Fiction from Other Subject Areas


Maths in Context titles are also featured in Kingscourt’s Maths Links Plusprogramme, where teachers’ resource material focuses on daily mathematicslessons supporting the National Numeracy Framework.

The Science Alive Big Books offer stunning photography, bold, colourfulgraphics and accessible text – a combination of features carefully craftedto engage and inform young readers as they explore concepts thatexplain our world. Each title is invaluable for helping children to explorekey aspects of effective reading and writing of non-fiction material.

All About ForcesFeatured in Term 1• exploring the typical features of

non-fiction texts; investigating and writing non-chronological reports and instructional texts

• detailed sentence/word-level work focusing on commas, tense, verbs, adverbs and homophones.


The Wonderful World of PlantsFeatured in Term 2• exploring different ways of presenting

information; investigating and writing explanatory texts; using notes to write prose; summarising

• detailed sentence/word-level work focusing on adjectives, prefixes,suffixes and using apostrophes.


Nature’s Shapes and PatternsFeatured in Term 3• identifying key ideas; summarising and

rewording; investigating and writing arguments; presenting a point of view

• detailed sentence/word-level work focusing on connectives, compound words, using its/it’s, punctuation and word building.


Non-Fiction from Other Subject Areas


For each Big Book, four separate small book titles are also available; these are high-interest non-fiction booksthat allow children to explore in greater depth the topicsand concepts in the Big Book.

The above titles are also featured in Kingscourt’s ScienceAlive programme, along with teachers’ material and activity cards that provide a wealth of hands-on Scienceactivities to complement the big and small books.

Term 1 Overview

• substituting own words and ideas to help clarify a poem’s meaning • writing from the point of view of a character• comparing and contrasting poems• investigating verbsActivity Sheet 6: NLS references S2 & 4, W3 & 11

The CrocodilePoetry: humorous rhyming poem

Lion Poetry: word play

• investigating how characters and themes develop • exploring humour and language play, including innovative uses of

typography and its effect on the reader• writing poems linked to poems read• investigating prefixesActivity Sheet 7: NLS references T19, S2, W12

1

2

3

4

Lesson Plans Key Skills and Strategies(Specific NLS references are listed on each lesson plan)

RumpelstiltskinFiction Big Book

The Wish FishFiction Text Chart

Rumpelstiltskin

AnansiBig Book Play

5 Anansi

• comparing poems with different language styles• investigating viewpoint and its effect on the reader• writing scripts for role-plays and interviews• investigating suffixes and adverbsActivity Sheet 3: NLS references T11, S4, W5

• investigating main characteristics of key characters• exploring narrative order• planning a story in stages• investigating verb tenses and powerful verbsActivity Sheet 2: NLS references T11 & 25, W3 & 12

• investigating details that build a character• describing, and expressing responses to, the form and language of a poem• investigating viewpoint and its impact on the reader• writing prose descriptions using ideas and images from poetryActivity Sheet 4: NLS references T1, S2 & 3, W7

• identifying specific language features, including metaphor, and their impact, • writing scripts based on poems• comparing and contrasting poems on similar themesActivity Sheet 5: NLS references T2, S4

6 Summer Song and Ode to thePig: His TailPoetry: free verse and humorousrhyme

7 The EaglePoetry: classic rhyming poem

8 PigeonsPoetry: contemporary free verse

• investigating how characters are built up from small details• writing about the characteristics of main characters• exploring chronology in narrative• investigating adverbs and adverbial phrases

• exploring characterisation• comparing story openings• preparing, reading, performing and writing playscripts• investigating adverbs and adjectivesActivity Sheet 1: NLS references T24, S3

• investigating main characteristics of key characters• writing character sketches• investigating verbs and verb tenses• exploring regular and irregular verb endings

• investigating how characters and settings are developed• preparing, reading and performing playscripts• writing a newspaper article• investigating verbs and adverbs

9

10



11

12

13

14

15

16

17

18

19

SamuelPoetry: first-person free verse

All the World’s a Stage!Non-Fiction Text Chart

Mathematics from Many CulturesNon-Fiction Big BookSee also Lesson Plans 35 and 50 forfurther work with this book

All About ForcesNon-Fiction from Other Subject Areas

All About Forces

Fantastic FlightNon-Fiction from Other Subject Areas

Fantastic Flight

The SunNon-Fiction Big Book

The Sun

• discussing personal responses to poems and comparing form and language• investigating language patterns sometimes found within free verse• identifying point of view, and its effect on the reader• writing scripts based on known stories • investigating verb tensesActivity Sheet 8: NLS references T1, S2

• investigating features of non-fiction texts• investigating instructional texts• exploring homophones

• investigating and writing instructional texts• investigating verb tenses• exploring homophones• investigating irregular tense changes

• investigating features of non-fiction texts• examining opening sentences• writing a non-chronological report• investigating verb tenses• using commas to mark grammatical boundaries

• investigating instructional texts• investigating verb tenses and powerful verbs• exploring adverbs• exploring homophonesActivity Sheet 10: NLS reference T22

• investigating features of non-fiction texts• identifying opening and key sentences• writing a newspaper report• investigating commas• exploring irregular tense changes

• understanding the terms fact and opinion• investigating and writing instructional texts• defining familiar vocabulary in own words• placing words in alphabetical orderActivity Sheet 11: NLS reference T22; Activity Sheet 12: NLS references S2, W9

• identifying and planning the stages of a narrative• exploring different types of text and their purposes• understanding the terms fact and opinion• investigating verbs, adverbs and homophones

• examining key sentences and phrases that capture interest and conveyimportant information

• exploring verbs and verb tenses• investigating adverbs• placing words in alphabetical orderActivity Sheet 13: NLS references T24, S2


1Shared Reading and Writing

• Display the front cover of Rumpelstiltskin. Ask the children what theyalready know about the story. Do they know any of the charactersand/or any of the key events? Write their responses on the board.

• Read the story to the children. Allow time for general discussion ofthe story and its characters. Then re-read pages 1–3. Ask thechildren to describe the characters of the king and the shepherd; forexample, the king could be described as greedy, and the shepherd asboastful. Encourage them to refer to details of the characters’dialogue and actions to help justify their descriptions.

• Discuss the time-frame of the story. Ask the children if they think itis set over a period of days, weeks or years. List their responses andreasons. Then display each page of the book and invite them toidentify the words and phrases that indicate the passing of time,such as That night (page 4), By morning and tonight (page 7), and soon. Write these words and phrases on the board. Then, using these,work with the children to estimate the time-frame of the story.

• Work with the children to write a character profile forRumpelstiltskin. Before writing, re-read the story, pausing to askthem to describe Rumpelstiltskin’s characteristics and appearanceusing the illustrations, his dialogue and actions to help them. Writetheir ideas on the board (under appropriate headings). Then, usingthis information, scribe the character profile for the children; forexample, Rumpelstiltskin is a little, ugly man, who is also very greedy…As you scribe, invite the children to help you choose words that bestdescribe his character. Read the character profile together.

Word and Sentence Level Work• Write spin on the board. Remind the children that, like most verbs,

the word spin can be used in different forms (span, spinning, spun) toindicate whether it relates to a singular or plural subject and toshow tense. Invite them to compose sentences that show the differentforms of the verb in use; for example, Rumpelstiltskin spun the strawinto gold. They could find and change other irregular verbs from thestory, such as give, begin and wept.

• Remind the children that adverbs often end in “-ly”. Invite them tofind one adverb on page 13 (sadly). Discuss the function and effect ofthis word in the sentence. Then ask them to find an adverbialphrase on this page (Once more). Discuss the role of this phrase inthe sentence. Challenge them to find other adverbs and adverbialphrases in the book, such as happily, At once, and so on.

• Write amazement on the board, and discuss how the addition of thesuffix “-ment” changes the word amaze (a verb) into a noun. Thenwrite happy on the board and ask the children what suffix can beadded to this word to change it to a noun (“-ness”). Challenge themto suggest other words that can change to nouns using the “-ment”and “-ness” suffixes; for example, sad/sadness, amuse/amusement,and so on. Write their suggestions on the board.

Rumpelstiltskin

BackgroundRumpelstiltskin provides excellentopportunities for children to explorecharacterisation and chronology innarrative. Two lesson plans areprovided (see also Lesson Plan 2) tohighlight different aspects of the text.This lesson focuses oncharacterisation, while the secondlesson focuses on dramatisation(readers’ theatre) and writingplayscripts.

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Independent WorkChildren could:• re-write page 3, writing dialogue

for the daughter so that shedefends herself and contradictsher father’s claim that she canspin straw into gold

• write a list of reasons stating howwe know that this is a fantasy tale;for example, it is not possible tospin gold from straw, and so on

• imagine they are the girl and writea personal recount of her thoughtsand feelings when she was left inthe room on the first night;alternatively, write about the samemoment from the king’s point ofview

• script a conversation between thethree characters on the bottomright-hand corner of page 18; forexample, “Here comes the King’smessenger. He must be searchingfor that little man who is trying totake the Queen’s baby away!”

• design a “Wanted” poster forRumpelstiltskin.

NLS ReferencesT1 investigating how characters are

built up from small detailsT2 identifying the main

characteristics of key charactersT3 exploring chronology in narrativeS4 identifying adverbs and adverbial

phrases and understanding theirfunction; identifying commonadverbs with “-ly” suffix anddiscussing their impact onmeaning

W9 recognising and spelling suffixes

Fiction Big Book



• Display the book and ask the children to tell you everything theyknow about the story of Rumpelstiltskin. Who are the characters?What happens at the beginning, middle and end? Do they like thestory? Why or why not? Write their key points on the board.

• Suggest that Rumpelstiltskin could be read as readers’ theatre (thecoloured type will help the children identify the dialogue). Discussthe idea that readers’ theatre is similar to performing a play.Children can read the characters’ parts with as much expression asthey would use in a play, but the reading needs no stage or props,and the readers/actors read directly from the book.

• Invite the children to identify the cast members (king, shepherd,shepherd’s daughter, Rumpelstiltskin and narrator). Tell them thateach part will be read by several children together. Discuss howvoice can help to bring a character to life. Invite them to read somelines, trying different voices to establish appropriate voice styles foreach character.

• Ask the children to decide which part they will read, and to form agroup for each cast member. Decide whether the narrator-group willread or skip each he/she said, and so on. Then “perform” the story,allowing for some trial and error. Discuss extra challenges a readerin readers’ theatre might have compared to an actor in a play, suchas no stage directions, having to work out when to read his or herpart, and so on.

• Work with the children to re-write pages 18 and 19 as a playscript.Start by brainstorming how a playscript is set out. (If necessary, lookat a playscript together and discuss its layout and structure.) Workout how many characters are talking and the action that mightneed to be described in stage directions. Scribe the playscript onchart paper and read it, with children reading the different parts.Discuss whether the characters’ moods and feelings come across inthe play. Invite them to suggest improvements to the stage directionsto help “actors” read with appropriate expression.

Word and Sentence Level Work• Re-read page 19 and ask the children to identify the verbs used for

introducing and concluding dialogue (asked and laughed). Thendisplay each page and ask them to identify the verbs used tointroduce or conclude speech. Write them on the board. Discuss theimpact of these verbs and how the “mood” would change if thedialogue were introduced with just said. Challenge them to think ofadverbs to use with said that would convey a similar meaning as thespeech verbs in the text, such as the Queen said tearfully instead of theQueen sobbed.

• Write daughter and laughed on the board. Discuss the “augh” letterstring and compare the different sounds represented by it. Invitechildren to suggest other words with the same letter string and toclassify them by sound; for example, caught, taught; draught, laugh.They could also brainstorm a list of words with the /ar/ sound thatwe hear in laugh, to find a number of spelling patterns, such ashalf/calf, car/part, heart/hearth, and so on.

Rumpelstiltskin

BackgroundRumpelstiltskin features coloured typethat is ideal for supporting dramaticreading and adaptation of a narrativeto create a play. In this second lessonplan focusing on Rumpelstiltskin (seealso Lesson Plan 1) children practisedramatic reading by planning andpresenting a shared-reading versionof readers’ theatre. Several childrencan share each part, allowing thewhole class to be involved. Thisprovides an opportunity for childrento compare the challenges presentedto readers in readers’ theatre to thoseof actors performing the play.

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Independent WorkChildren could:• complete Activity Sheet 1

(page 71)• copy a picture from the book and

add speech and/or thoughtbubbles to illustrate what thedifferent characters could besaying and/or thinking

• write about what happens toRumpelstiltskin when hedisappears at the end of the story

• think up multi-syllabic names forRumpelstiltskin’s brothers andsisters, using the same number ofsyllables as Rumpelstiltskin

• write an alternative story frompage 5 onwards

• imagine having been placed in thesame situation as the girl in thestory and write about what theywould have done; or alternatively,they could imagine they were inthe place of another character.

NLS ReferencesT1 investigating how settings and

characters are built up from smalldetails

T5 preparing, reading andperforming playscripts; comparingorganisation of scripts with stories

T13 writing playscriptsS4 identifying adverbs and their

function; collecting andclassifying examples of adjectives

W3 recognising common letter stringsActivity Sheet 1: T24, S3

Fiction Big Book



• Read both sides of the chart to the children. Tell them that this is thebeginning of a traditional tale. Ask the children to identify the maincharacters (Pedro, his wife and the Wish Fish). Allow time fordiscussion of the events and the characters in the story.

• Discuss the importance of direct evidence, especially when makinginformed judgements about people or events. Invite the children todiscuss what has been revealed about the characters, and to predictfuture events in the story. If you have a copy of The Wish Fish, readthe rest of the story to the children and compare their predictions.

• Discuss the main characteristics of the characters with the children.Remind them that they can use the characters’ dialogue and theiractions to help them decide on the personality traits of eachcharacter. Ask them how they would describe Pedro. Encourage themto refer to specific words or phrases in the text to justify their views.Ensure they understand Pedro’s relationship with his wife,encouraging them to discuss the actions and dialogue that help toestablish this relationship. Repeat this process for the other twomain characters. Record the characteristics of each character on achart.

Word and Sentence Level Work• Highlight lived, poor, go, grumble and say in the first paragraph.

Invite the children to think of at least one synonym for each wordthat would maintain the meaning, but make the passage moreinteresting; for example, existed, impoverished, venture, complain andexclaim. Challenge them to experiment with substituting thesewords, and discuss the resulting text. Ensure they understand thatthe author’s original choice of words may have been a reflection ofthe desired reading level.

• Review the children’s understanding of adjectives. Ensure theyunderstand that an adjective is a word that describes a noun or apronoun. Point out the following adjectives on the chart: poor, lazy,biggest, big, sad and kind. Challenge the children to identify thenouns or pronouns that each adjective describes. Discuss how eachof the adjectives reflects a degree of intensity. Brainstorm otheradjectives that could be substituted to change this intensity; forexample, poor/destitute, sad/miserable, kind/compassionate.

• Remind the children that sometimes, to show the intensity ofadjectives, we use the suffixes “-er” and “-est”. Use the examples bigand biggest from the chart. Ask them to find comparatives andsuperlatives for the other adjectives. Alert children to the exceptions;for example, good/better/best, eager/more eager/most eager. Encouragethem to think of other examples.

• Ask the children what tense the chart is written in and which words(verbs) indicate this tense. Highlight some of these verbs and theninvite the children to experiment with re-writing parts of the chart inboth present and future tenses. Make a list of some of the wordchanges; for example: lived/lives/will live, tried/tries/will try, was/is/willbe, and so on.

The Wish Fish

BackgroundThis chart comes from The Wish Fish,a collection of traditional talesadapted by Carol Krueger (LiteracyLinks Plus Stage 9). There are fourtales on the theme of wishing. Thechart presents the opening scenesfrom the fourth and final story, TheMagic Fish, a Spanish traditional taleabout how greedy wishes canbackfire.

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Independent WorkChildren could:

• write a variety of story endings thatshow a range of attitudes to greed;for example, greediness punished,greediness rewarded, greed forpublic or private good, and so on

• re-write the story using a moderncontext

• draw a picture of their own wishes(with captions). Pages 54–55 of TheWish Fish show some examplesthat the children could use tostimulate their own ideas.

• compile a collection of stories withsimilar themes and add thecollection to the class library.

NLS ReferencesT2 identifying characteristics of key

characters; drawing on the textto justify views; and using theinformation to predict actions

T11 writing character sketchesS2 revising work on verbs;

investigating verb tensesW3 & 7 spelling regular and

irregular verb endings

Fiction Text Chart



• Display the cover and the title page. If some children already knowabout the character Anansi or Anansi stories, ask them to share theirideas. Invite the children to discuss their predictions for the storybased on the cover and illustrations of the cast. Display pages 2 and 3and discuss the layout of the playscript; for example, the characters’names and their dialogue, and stage directions in brackets.

• Read up to page 5. Discuss the different characters’ behaviour andcharacteristics. Ask the children to decide what part they would like to read and to form a group for each cast member. (Alternatively, youmight ask for individuals to volunteer for the parts.) Remind themthat voice can help bring a character to life and invite them to trydifferent voices. Then read the play up to page 5 with the childrenreading their respective parts.

• Invite the children to make predictions about what might happen.Write their ideas on the board. Discuss how the characters’personalities and moods are developed through the dialogue andstage directions. Ask them to identify the small details in the playthat have helped them build up an “image” of each character. Invite them to comment on Anansi, even though he hasn’t appeared yet. What do they know about him from the text so far? Do they think Selina will marry him? Read the rest of the play withthe children reading the different parts as before. Discuss the ending,referring to the children’s initial predictions.

• As a shared writing activity, work with the children to compose a briefnewspaper report announcing Selina’s decision to marry Anansi. Firstdiscuss the layout, voice, level of formality and structure of the article.Invite them to suggest a headline; it could be witty or serious. Discussthe impact of the different styles of headline and agree on a style.Scribe the article, inviting them to help you with word choice. Readthe article together, making sure that all the important events andcharacters have been included.

Word and Sentence Level Work• Re-read page 11 and discuss the words rascally and rapscallion. Ask the

children if they know what the words mean, or, if not, to try to workout the meanings from the text. If necessary, use a dictionary anddiscuss the definitions. Also discuss the idea that when “-ly” is addedto rascal it forms an adjective (rascally) that describes a noun(rapscallion). Ask them to suggest an “-ly” adverb that could be used to describe how Tiger is speaking; for example, angrily, furiously.Challenge them to think of lists of “-ly” adjectives and adverbs anduse each appropriately; for example, smelly socks, chilly weather/criedloudly, quickly escaped.

• Ask the children to find two-syllable verbs containing doubleconsonants in the play, such as offer, marry, and so on. Challengethem to suggest how these words are written in the past tense.

• Brainstorm words that use marry as a root word; for example, married, marrying, marriage, unmarried, and so on. Then challenge thechildren to put these words into alphabetical order.

Anansi

BackgroundAnansi and the Old Tiger Riding-Horse is a playscript featuring thetraditional “trickster” character Anansithe spider. (Children may be familiarwith other Anansi stories.) The play isexplored in two lesson plans (see alsoLesson Plan 5). It features parts forseven characters and provides anexcellent opportunity for dramatisedreading. It is also ideal for exploringcharacterisation, including howcharacters are developed throughdialogue and stage directions.

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Independent WorkChildren could:• write a character portrait of one of

the characters• re-write the play as a story• imagine that they saw the play

performed and write a review ofthe performance, including whichcharacter they liked the most andwhich scene in the play was themost enjoyable

• write a story from Tiger’s point ofview about his disappointment atnot being chosen by Selina

• imagine they were Selina andwrite about her reasons forchoosing Peacock as her husband

• write a story about the future lifeof Selina and Peacock as husbandand wife. (Where do they live? Dothey have children? etc.)

NLS ReferencesT1 investigating how settings and

characters are built up fromsmall details

T2 identifying the maincharacteristics of key characters

T5 preparing, reading andperforming a playscript

T24 writing a newspaper articleS4 identifying adverbs and

understanding their functionW5 investigating two-syllable words

containing double consonantsW7 spelling regular verb endings

Big Book Play



• Discuss Anansi and the Old Tiger Riding-Horse with the children. Askthem what they remember about the play. What was it about? Whoare the characters? What happens at the end? Ask them theiropinion of the play. Did they enjoy it? Why or why not?

• Read the play. Allow time for general discussion. Invite the childrento compare and contrast the characters of Tiger and Peacock bycompiling a list of their different characteristics; for example, Tiger:vain, confident, well-groomed… Peacock: vain, ignored, confused…Encourage children to use the text to support their views.

• Discuss the main stages in the narrative order (introduction, build-ups, climax/conflict and resolution). With the help of the children,work through the book to find the key event where each stageoccurs; for example, Resolution: Selina chooses to marry Peacock. Writethe information under appropriate headings. Use this information todiscuss at which points the play could be split into acts/scenes, suchas Tiger arriving to see Selina (page 6) could begin a new scene.

• Display page 5. Discuss the stage directions for Peacock’s second lineof dialogue (to himself). Ask the children how an actor playing thepart of Peacock might read the dialogue taking into account thisinstruction (he/she would speak quietly). Invite them to suggestother stage directions for this page; for example, Parrot: (jumping upand down excitedly) Oh! Here he comes… Discuss the impact thesedirections have on the way the dialogue is read.

• Discuss how the play could be written as a story. Ask the children tosuggest the different ways a story can be planned, such as usingnotes and diagrams. As a shared writing activity, use one of thesesuggested methods to plan an outline for a story of several chaptersbased on the play. For example, you could use notes divided into thedifferent chapters, with headings and sub-headings, includingsetting descriptions, character sketches and key events. Scribe theplanning notes, inviting the children to ensure that all the necessaryinformation is included. Read and discuss the plan together.

Word and Sentence Level Work• Read the stage directions on pages 2 and 5. Ask the children to

identify the verbs (sitting, ignores, approaches, carrying). Write theverbs on the board. Ask the children what tense these verbs are in(present), and how they know. Then challenge them to suggest thepast tense of each of these verbs (sat, ignored, approached, carried).

• Read Anansi’s first line of dialogue on page 12. Work with thechildren to write a stage direction for Anansi. Encourage them to usepowerful verbs that make it as dramatic as possible; for example,Clutching his throat or Gasping for breath.

• Write monkey, marry and Anansi on the board. Ask the children whatsound these words have in common (the long /e/ sound). Challengethem to think of other words with the long /e/ sound. Scribe theirsuggestions. Then work with them to group the words according tothe spelling pattern; for example, key/monkey/donkey, marry/hurry,Anansi/ski, he/me, see/tree/knee, tea/flea.

Anansi

BackgroundThis lesson plan builds on earlierwork with Anansi and the Old TigerRiding-Horse (see also Lesson Plan4). This lesson reinforces thechildren’s knowledge of theconventions of playscripts, includinglayout and stage directions. Inaddition, the play can be used toexplore narrative order, and is idealfor children to use as a basis forplanning a story version of the play.

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(page 72)• write a personal recount from

Anansi’s point of view about hisdisappointment at not beingchosen by Selina

• imagine being a set designer andwrite a description of the settingfor the play

• substitute each of the animals inthe cast with animals native to thecountry where they live

• draw their own pictures of keyscenes from the play and writethought bubbles for the charactersillustrated

• write a review of the play,including their opinion of theending of the play; do they thinkSelina has made the rightdecision? If not, who would theyhave preferred Selina to choose?Is Peacock happy about marryingSelina?

NLS ReferencesT2 identifying the main

characteristics of the keycharacters

T4 exploring narrative order;identifying and mapping the mainstages in a story

T10 planning a story, identifying thestages of its telling

S2 investigating verb tenseS3 using powerful verbsW3 recognising common letter stringsActivity Sheet 2: T11 & 25, W3 & 12

Big Book Play



• Before reading the poems, remind the children that in many poemssomeone other than the poet is “speaking” – someone the poet hasinvented. Invite them to read just the first two words of each poemand suggest who might be speaking: perhaps the poet herself inSummer Song, while Ode to the Pig is definitely in the voice of the pig.

• Read Summer Song to the children. Then re-read it together. Ask thechildren whether or not the poet seems to enjoy the crickets’ song,and why they think so. Also invite them to describe any patternsthey can find in the language, such as the repetition of sing andsummer and the rhyme of sing, evening, wing and string. Ask them ifthey think that these patterns, such as rhyme, would stand out asclearly if the words were in one long line rather than in short lines.

• Invite the children to substitute the word I for the word Crickets atthe start of Summer Song (I sing and sing and sing). Discuss how thissimple alteration changes the voice of the poem.

• Explain that an ode is a poem that expresses strong or enthusiasticemotion. Read the children Ode to the Pig: His Tail, and then re-readit together. Ask the children what they think of the pig. Discussseveral responses, encouraging them to refer to specific parts of thepoem to help explain and support their views. Also invite them tocompare and contrast the two poems; they might comment onhumour, rhyme and rhythm, the simplicity/complexity of thelanguage, and the use (or not) of similes.

• List the words impressive, elegant, excessive, expressive, conceit,possessive, aggressiveness, and master touch on the board. Work withthe children to compose sentences that help to show what the wordsmean; for example, If something is elegant, it is graceful and attractive.A master touch changes something from ordinary to special, and so on.

Word and Sentence Level Work• Write the word excessive on the board, and discuss with the children

how the addition of “-ive” changes the word excess (a noun) into anadjective. Ask them to find other words ending in “ive” that havechanged from a noun (or verb) to an adjective. Then draw theirattention to the word aggressiveness and invite them to add “-ness”to excessive. Scribe the new word on the board. Ask them what kindof word it is now (a noun). Invite them to suggest what other wordsending in “-ive” can change into nouns by adding “-ness”; forexample, passiveness, inventiveness, imaginativeness.

• Remind the children that adverbs often end in “-ly”. Invite them tofind two words in Ode to the Pig: His Tail that end in “-ly” (awfullyand foolishly). Ask them if these are adverbs in the poem – do theytell us anything about the verbs? (No.) Discuss with the children howthe words are being used as “intensifiers” to add to the meaning orstrength of adjectives, as in foolishly possessive. Invite them to usefoolishly as an adverb in a simple sentence; for example, He behavedfoolishly. Challenge them to find other adjectives from the poem thatcould have “-ly” added to become adverbs, such as impressively,elegantly, neatly, and so on. Discuss and list their suggestions.

Summer Song and Ode to the Pig: His Tail

BackgroundSummer Song by Jessica Wallace andOde to the Pig: His Tail by Walter R.Brooks introduce a series of poemsabout animals. Summer Song evokesthe sounds of an enthusiastic cricketsong – “a song of love and summer”– on a warm summer evening. Ode tothe Pig: His Tail treats us to a pig’scelebration of his own tail. Far fromagreeing with the popular image of apig as a stupid and inelegant creature,the pig that speaks so eloquently inthis poem is almost overflowing with self-esteem.

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• complete Activity Sheet 3(page 73) and Activity Sheet 9(page 79)

• re-read the poem in the small book

• list “-ly” adverbs to describe howcrickets might sing; for example,Crickets sing loudly, rowdily,expressively, boldly, brightly

• find other poems written from ananimal’s point of view; these couldbe included in a class anthology ofanimal poems

• write a scripted interview with thepig; children might includequestions such as How do you feelabout the reputation of pigs asdirty, fat and snorting animals?

• choose an animal and write apoem from the animal’s point ofview about its own very specialfeature or master touch; forexample, a lion’s mane; a snake’shiss. Alternatively, children couldscript a conversation amongseveral creatures in which eachboasts that it has the mostimpressive special feature of all.

NLS ReferencesT7 comparing poems T13 writing scripts based on texts

read S4 identifying adverbs and

investigating their functionW14 investigating suffixesActivity Sheet 3: T11, S4, W5

Poetry Big Book:Thrills and Chills



• Before reading the poem, invite discussion of the title and illustration.Ask the children what comes to mind when they think of an eagle.List and briefly discuss suggestions; for example, bird of prey; powerful;hunter, and so on. Write the word regal on the board, and discuss themeaning (like a king or queen). Ask the children to think about thesuitability of this word for the eagle as they listen to the poem.

• Read the poem to the children. Explain the meaning of crag andazure if necessary, and ask children what picture Ringed with theazure world makes them see (the eagle so high above land and seathat only the blue sky surrounds him). Then read the poem together.Ask the children if they think Tennyson sees the eagle as a regalcreature, encouraging them to refer to specific parts of the poem.

• Invite the children to describe the rhyming pattern of the poem andto find other patterns of sound, such as the alliteration in lonelylands and in the repeated use of initial “hard c” in the first two lines(clasps, crag, crooked, close). Remind the children that poets tend tochoose words with great care – for meaning as well as for sound.

• Ask the children what they think Tennyson means by Close to thesun. Suggest that “very high” conveys the idea of superiority. Askthem what other metaphors and similes are used and how theyaffect us. For example, the simile like a thunderbolt conveys a sense ofgreat power; the eagle’s “fall” towards its prey is effortless butdeadly. Children could also suggest why the poet might have chosencrooked hands; they might think of the eagle’s bent talons as beinglike hands, or could suggest that the use of hands lets us think of theeagle as a king gripping the arms of his throne.

• For a shared writing activity, work with the children to compose adescription of the eagle using ideas and images from the poem,along with the idea of royalty. You could suggest a starter, such asHigh above the world on his craggy throne, the eagle beholds his vastkingdom. He… Scribe for the children as they agree on the text,encouraging them to pay careful attention to word choice and toguide you with spelling and punctuation.

Word and Sentence Level Work• Remind the children that a complete sentence will have, at least, a

subject and a verb. Invite them to suggest sentences with a minimalnumber of words, using word sequences taken directly from thepoem; for example, He clasps the crag. He falls. He stands. Now askthe children if the first line of each verse forms a complete sentence,and if we could make complete sentences by joining the second andthird lines of each verse. (The answer in both cases is yes.) Helpthem to identify the subject and verb in each case.

• Ask the children what three personal pronouns are used in the poem(he, him, his). Remind them that the poem is written in the thirdperson, and briefly explain why we use this term. Now ask thechildren to put the whole poem into the first person; that is, in thevoice of the eagle himself. Remind them that they might have tochange more than the pronouns; for example, verb forms may needto change, as in like a thunderbolt he falls/like a thunderbolt I fall.

The Eagle

BackgroundThe Eagle, a poem of tribute to oneof the lords of life, is rich in bold andthrilling images. The eagle ispresented to us as a monarch,fearless and proud. The feelingsexpressed in the poem are very muchin keeping with those we findelsewhere in Alfred Tennyson’s(1809–1892) poetry: bravery ishonoured and mastery is admired.

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• complete Activity Sheet 4(page 74)

• re-read the poem in the smallbook

• write a third verse for the poem,in keeping with the first two,describing the eagle falling on hisprey and swooping back to hismountain crag

• write (and later act out for theclass) a confession from anunusual eagle who is scared ofheights

• research and prepare a report onthe habits and habitats of variousbirds of prey, if possibledescribing those that are found inparticular parts of the UnitedKingdom

• look in anthologies for other shortpoems about eagles and/or othercreatures of prey

• write a description of the eaglefrom the point of view of another,smaller bird that the eagle mightprey upon; you could suggest thatthe eagle might be seen as aterrible demon of the skies in theeyes of this vulnerable creature.


built up from small detailsT7 comparing the form and

language of poemsT11 writing character sketchesS2 investigating verb formsW1 identifying phonemes in speech

and writingActivity Sheet 4: T1, S2 & 3, W7




• Display Pigeons. Before reading the poem remind the children thatwe are the only creatures on earth with language, and that we havethe freedom to tell stories about other creatures. The other creatures,of course, cannot tell us that we are wrong or right in what we sayabout them. Ask the children to keep this in mind as they listen tothe poem.

• Read the poem to the children. Then read it together. Ask thechildren to suggest some adjectives that would suit the pigeons inthe poem; for example, boring, dull, unadventurous, unexciting. (Alsoask the children if they think the pigeons would agree with this viewof their lives.) Now ask the children which adjectives relate to: a/ thefinal line; b/ They seldom try the sky; c/ A pigeon never sings of hill andflowering hedge, and d/ but busily commutes from sidewalk to his ledge.Encourage the children to refine and/or add to their adjectives iftheir list does not include words to suit all these lines.

• Ask the children if they think the poem might be about people aswell as birds. Why/why not? Encourage them to focus on the termscity folk and the words but busily commutes from sidewalk to his ledge.You could also ask them in what ways might human city folk whobusily commute be like Lilian Moore’s pigeons.

• Invite the children to compare the pigeons and their environmentwith Tennyson’s eagle and its surroundings (page 4). Discussion ofcontrasts could lead to a shared writing activity, focused oncomposing sentences that mention both birds. For example, Theeagle soars, with all the world below him, while pigeons seldom rise abovethe rooftops. Discuss several possible approaches before childrenagree on text for you to scribe. For example, they could take thepoint of view of a contented city pigeon, as in a sentence such as The eagle may be king of the skies, but the city is my castle.

Word and Sentence Level Work• Write pigeon on the board. Invite children to think of some other

words that use the unusual letter string “eon” (such asbludgeon/dungeon/surgeon). Then focus discussion on the “soft g” (/j/sound), and challenge them to think of other words in which a “g”between two vowels represents the /j/ sound; for example, age, cage,rage, advantage. Now ask if they can find two words in the poem inwhich the /j/ sound, following a vowel other than “a”, is made by “g”in conjunction with another consonant (hedge and ledge). Ask themif they can think of more rhyming words for hedge with the same“dg” combination (for example, edge, sledge, wedge), and “dg” wordswith other vowel sounds, such as bridge, dodge and fudge.

• Using the word seldom as a starting point, brainstorm with thechildren words that indicate frequency or quantity withoutspecifying a number. A list for frequency could include the adverbsoften, rarely, usually, occasionally and regularly, and a list relating toquantity could include the words several, few, some, many, and so on.Discuss what each word means and encourage the children to puteach word into a sentence.

Pigeons

BackgroundPigeons (Lilian Moore) looks withgentle and slightly puzzled disdain atthe habits of city birds that rarely usetheir gift of flight. With someguidance, children may discover anunderlying comment on aspects ofhuman experience as well. The poemprovides a perfect contrast (in termsof subject) to Tennyson’s The Eagle,while at the same time suggestingthat Lilian Moore and Tennyson mayshare certain values and beliefs.

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• script a conversation betweenpigeons, talking about how busythey have been in the city

• write a dialogue between a pigeonand an eagle in which eachdefends the life he or she prefers

• research pigeons and their habits,with a special aim of discovering(if possible) facts that wouldcontradict the version of pigeonlife in the poem

• write the story of a pigeon thatyearns to become an eagle (orvice versa)

• list Rules and Regulations thatmight be agreed upon by a groupof “city folk” pigeons; for example,Rule I: No singing of hills!Definitely no singing of floweringhedges! Rule 2: No unnecessaryuse of wings…

NLS ReferencesT7 comparing and contrasting

poems on similar themesT13 writing scripts, using known

stories as a basisS4 collecting and classifying

examples of adverbsW3 spelling by analogy with other

known wordsActivity Sheet 5: T2, S4




• Display the poem and read it to the children. Ask them what wordin the poem suggests that it was written some time ago (doth). Alsodiscuss improve, which in this context might mean something like“polish” or “make more beautiful”. Tell the children that the poemcomes from Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland, published in 1865.

• Re-read the poem together. Encourage the children to explain howthey can tell that the poet wants his depiction of the crocodile to behumorous. For example, they could mention the phrases littlecrocodile; and gently smiling jaws, pointing out that the words littleand gentle really relate to the opposite of what the crocodile is like.

• Draw the children’s attention to the three uses of how in the poem.Discuss the use of how to begin statements (usually a statementexpressing strong feeling) rather than questions. Then ask thechildren to make a How sentence in the poem into a questionwithout changing the words; for example, the exclamation mark atthe end of the first stanza could become a question mark, while inother cases the word order needs to be changed as well. Also invitethe children to suggest statements that “match” Lewis Carroll’sironic tone but begin with What; for example, What a welcomingsmile the crocodile has!

• After re-reading the poem, work with the children to compose asimilarly ironic text about another dangerous creature. Scribe for thechildren as they agree on sentences, linking adjectives that meangentle and harmless with animals that are dangerous. For example,the new text might begin, How sweetly the snake hisses before it strikes!or, How tenderly the wolf looks at the rabbit!

Word and Sentence Level Work• Refer once again to the word doth in the poem (meaning does or do).

Ask the children if they have ever come across other words like doth(such as hath, goeth). Remind the children that English has changeda great deal over the years, and that verbs such as “to do” and “togo” no longer have “th” endings. Also discuss words such as thee,thou and thy and ask the children if they can tell you what pronounswe now use in place of these (you/your).

• Discuss the meaning of pour. Remind the children that, like mostverbs, this base word can be used in different forms (pours, poured,pouring) to indicate whether it relates to a singular or plural subjectand to show tense. Invite children to suggest sentences that show thedifferent forms of the verb in use. They could find and change theform of other verbs in the poem; for example, grin/grinning/grinned,welcome/welcoming.

• Ask the children what it is in the poem that the crocodile welcomes.When you are told fishes, write the word fish on the board and askthe children if you are right or wrong to leave off “es”. Now askthem if they can tell you any other animal’s name that can be madeplural without the addition of an “s” or “es”. Scribe the suggestionson the board; for example, deer, sheep, swine, and so on (explainthat these cannot have “s” or “es” as an alternative plural form).

The Crocodile

BackgroundThis famous and delightful poem byLewis Carroll (1832–1898) is takenfrom Alice in Wonderland. Thechildren may also be interested toknow that it is a parody of another,equally famous poem by Isaac Watts(1674–1748), Against Idleness andMischief (How doth the little busybee/ Improve each shining hour…).Encourage the children to compareThe Crocodile with other verse byLewis Carroll, in addition tocomparing it with other poems in thiscollection that focus on animals.

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• work in pairs to write an interviewwith a crocodile, in which heclaims to be misunderstood andactually a great friend of all livingcreatures

• write a warning sign for fish usingsome of the language of thepoem; for example, Beware thejaws of the crocodile! Any sign ofa welcoming smile is just a trick,and means that you are in dangerof being eaten. Do not be takenin!

• research crocodiles and alligators,preparing a report that includesan explanation of why thesecreatures might be thought to besmiling and also what is meant bythe term crocodile tears

• find other poems by Lewis Carrolland learn or practise reading afavourite to present to the class;or write about similarities anddifferences between The Crocodileand one other animal poem theyhave read in Thrills and Chills.

NLS ReferencesT7 comparing and contrasting

poemsT8 finding out more about poetsT11 writing character sketchesS2 investigating verbsW7 spelling regular verb endingsActivity Sheet 6: S2 & 4, W3 & 11




• Display the poem. Ask the children to focus on the “look” of thepoem, and to suggest why some of the words are in capitals; forexample, these words should be read more loudly. Children will alsonotice that the word LION is split over two lines and that there arelarger spaces and fewer punctuation marks than usual. Ask them tothink about these features as they listen to the poem.

• Read the poem to the children, using the large spaces asopportunities for dramatic pauses, and saying LI-ON as a roar andopening your mouth wide on the first syllable. Invite children’sspontaneous reactions and comments. Then read the poem together.

• Invite children to suggest how the phrase jaw unhinges helps toemphasise or exaggerate the way a lion roars (and the way the wordlion is “unhinged” in the poem). Invite individual children to act outa lion’s attempt to say the other animal names while roaring withwide-open jaws, and to explain how the words flea, toad and peacockmake this difficult. They could also try saying the word roaring to seeif they think the sound would satisfy the lion.

• Talk with the children about teeth flash white, guiding them to seethat this comprises noun, verb and adverb (since white, althoughusually an adjective, here qualifies flash). Ask the children if theycan find the same three-word format elsewhere in the poem (nameopens wide). Now ask them to suggest an adverb, this time ending inly, that could follow jaw unhinges; for example, enormously,ferociously, savagely. Work with the children to compose similarphrases for other creatures; for example, Flea bites sharply; Toad hopslazily; Peacock struts proudly. Scribe the suggestions on the board.

• Write the following quotation from Romeo and Juliet on the board:That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet. Tell the children where the quotation comes from, and ask themwhat they think it means and whether they agree. You could ask,Would we feel any differently about a lion if it were called a “glug”?Why/why not?

Word and Sentence Level Work• Ask the children to find a word in the poem beginning with the

prefix “un-”. Ask the children if they can think of two good reasonsfor the poet choosing this word (to avoid repeating open, andbecause a jaw actually is a hinge). Then discuss the use of “un-” toform opposites and ask them to suggest examples (unhappy,uncomfortable, and so on), together with sentences in which eachword could be used. Discuss and list suggestions. Then challenge thechildren to find words in the poem that could have “un-” as aprefix; the words could be altered to accommodate the prefix, as inunopened (from open) and unspoken (from speak).

• Ask the children what they notice about the punctuation of thepoem. Invite them to guide you in punctuating it moreconventionally as you write the text on chart paper as “normal”sentences. When the newly punctuated text is complete, ask thechildren to compare it to the original. Which do they prefer? Why?

Lion

BackgroundLion (Barbara Juster Esbensen) is ananimal poem with a difference, in thatit is about the lion’s name as much asit is about the lion himself. The ideathat the name “Lion” is perfect forbeing said with a roar will appeal tothe children and provide startingpoints for their own imaginativewriting about animals and sound.

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• pick a name for themselves andone for a friend to suit them interms of their personalities.(Remind them that the sound ofthe word chosen should be animportant part of the suitability.)They could use these names asthe basis for poems aboutthemselves that are modelled onthe structure of Lion.

• list and explain other animalnames that seem suited in soundor feeling to the creature theyname; for example, snake whichstarts with a hissing, sibilant /s/,and hippopotamus, which soundsheavy and ponderous

• find a picture of a lion, or printone from a computer program,and fashion the words of thepoem around it so that they forma type of concrete poem

• write an acrostic poem for theword LION or the word ROAR; forexample, Lord of the jungle,Impossible to silence, One fierceroar, Numbs his foes.


built upT14 writing poems linked to poems

readS4 identifying adverbs and

understanding their functionW3 spelling using phonemesActivity Sheet 7: T19, S2, W12




• Display the poem, but before reading, write on the board: Amphibianof the order Urodela. Now read the poem to the children, then re-readit together. Explain that the words describe Samuel the salamanderin scientific terms. Ask the children if the poem would work as wellas it does if we were to change the opening lines to read: I found thissalamander/ Near the pond in the woods/ Amphibian of the orderUrodela… Ask the children what lines particularly suggest that thechild who found the salamander would not be satisfied with ascientific description of the little creature (Right away I loved him,along with the repetition of Samuel, I called him…). Discuss the desiremost people have to give a pet a “personal” name. Invite thechildren to talk about the names of pets they have or know.

• Ask the children about the mood of the poem and the emotions ofthe speaker in the poem. Remind them to quote lines from the poemto support their comments. They could also explain anddemonstrate how they think certain lines should be read: whatpace? what tone? what volume? what emphasis?

• Talk with the children about the absence of adjectives in the poem.(Coffee is the only adjective.) Ask them if they think the minimaldescription seems right, and if so, why. Suggest that they try addingsome adjectives to see what impact they have and whether theyassist or interfere with the poem’s expression of simple, strongfeelings. Scribe the more descriptive version of the poem on chartpaper; for example, I found this interesting salamander/ Near the pondin the leafy woods… Read it together and discuss what has beengained and/or lost.

Word and Sentence Level Work• Refer to the verb slept in the second stanza and write it on the board.

Remind the children that many verbs do not simply have “-ed”added when put into the past tense. Ask them to suggest otherirregular verbs, including some that have a past-tense form using “-pt”, such as creep/crept; leap/leapt; weep/wept. Another irregularform they could find in the poem is found, and they could think ofother verbs that use the “ound” letter string in the past tense, as inbind/bound, wind/wound, grind/ground. Children could also suggestrun/ran, shake/shook, take/took, do/did. List and discuss the irregularverbs, grouping them where possible by spelling pattern.

• Refer to the word sometimes in the poem. Remind the children thatsometimes indicates the frequency of an event without specifying theexact number of times it happens. Ask them if they can think ofother expressions such as this. (You may wish to mention that thesewill be adverbs or adverbial phrases of time.) For example, often,usually, occasionally, rarely, now and then. List and discuss suggestions,encouraging the children to give examples of sentences using theexpressions. As a follow-up, children could suggest adverbs oradverbial phrases that give more specific details of frequency ortime, such as every morning, annually, at 3 o’clock, when I wake up,tomorrow night.

Samuel

BackgroundThis poem is linked to others in thecollection by its animal theme. But itis unlike the others in that it is aboutfeelings that are associated withhaving a pet. The “pet” salamanderdoes not remain alive for very long(and might have been aninappropriate choice for a start) butstill the unnamed owner experiencesstrong emotions of attachment andloss, along with regret. Bobbi Katz,the author of many fine poemsappealing to children and adults alike,skilfully weaves both poignancy andhumour into this excellent example offree verse.

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• research salamanders, finding outabout their habits and giving somedetails of the famous myth of thesalamander: that it can live in firewithout being harmed

• act as medical detectives,speculating (on the basis of somestudy) on just why poor Samueldied in the classroom and writinga report of their conclusions orhypotheses

• write a story based on the poem• work in pairs to write an interview

with the child in the poem• imagine that Samuel could tell his

story, and write what he might sayabout being found, put into thecoffee tin and taken to school.

NLS ReferencesT7 discussing personal responses to

poems and comparing the formand language

T13 writing scripts using knownstories as a basis

S2 investigating verb tensesS4 identifying adverbs and

understanding their functionW3 spelling by analogy with other

known wordsActivity Sheet 8: T1, S2




• Read the opening paragraph on side one. Ask the children whatinformation it contains (it explains what props are, and how theyare used). Then ask them what type of text this is (non-fiction) andhow they know.

• Read both sides of the chart. Discuss the differences between this textand fiction text. List some of the features used and discuss why theymay have been used; for example, bold text (to highlight key words),boxed text, enlarged text and italic type. Discuss other methods thatcould be used to present this information, such as in a diagram.

• Draw the children’s attention to the checklist, and discuss how ithelps the reader quickly review the major points in the chart. Askthem to describe the language of the points in the checklist(instructions or commands). Discuss the language used ininstructions and how the pronoun you is usually either used orimplied. Challenge them to identify other examples of commandson side two of the chart.

• Re-read the opening paragraph on side one. As a shared writingactivity, work with the children to use this information to write aglossary entry for props; for example: props: things that characters usein plays to make the play more realistic. Scribe for the children. Readthe entry together, encouraging them to make suggestions thatimprove the clarity. You could extend this activity by writingglossary entries for other words from the chart, such as play, actor,script, and so on.

Word and Sentence Level Work• Discuss some homophones that the children may be familiar with,

such as to/two/too and their/there. Ensure they understand thatalthough homophones sound the same, their meanings andspellings are different. Challenge them to find words in the chart forwhich homophones exist, such as or, more, piece, no, see, not, be, new,where, and so on. Discuss the other spellings and meanings of thesewords. Write these words on chart paper and display them for thechildren to refer and add to.

• Review the children’s understanding of how common rimes can beused in conjunction with onsets to help spell new words. Write thewords must, drink, pick and mind from the chart on the board. Askthe children to use onsets to form new words with the rimes. Theycould add other words to the list and use the list to help them withtheir spelling.

• Ask the children to identify an example of a statement, a questionand a command on the chart. Discuss the word order and use ofpunctuation in each case. Then challenge them to change thequestion Where does the play take place? into a statement (The playtakes place here.); and to change the command Put props in a placewhere you can quickly find them, into a question (Where can we put theprops so we can quickly find them?). Invite the children to locate otherexamples of statements, questions and commands in the chart andrepeat the activity. As you scribe, discuss the word order andpunctuation of the different sentences.

All the World’s a Stage!

BackgroundThis chart presents Chapter 6 of thenon-fiction chapter book All theWorld’s a Stage! by Angie Lee, DavidNuss and Anna-Maria Crum (LiteracyLinks Plus Stage 8). The bookexplores the many elements (sound,lighting, costumes) that combine tomake a successful play. The chartexplains what props are, and howthey can be used safely andeffectively in a stage play.

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Independent WorkChildren could:• create a checklist for another

event; for example, a familymember’s or friend’s birthdayparty, a friendly sports game withanother team or group

• compose sentences using thehomophones from the chart thatshow their meaning

• find and read a play and make alist of the props that would beneeded to put on a performance

• work with classmates to write andperform a short play that useseasily obtained props.

NLS ReferencesT17 identifying features of non-

fiction textsT18 examining opening sentencesT22 identifying features of

instructional texts, including thelanguage of commands

S1 re-read own writing to check forgrammatical sense

W3 spelling by analogy with otherknown words

W6 distinguishing between thespelling and meanings ofcommon homophones

Non-Fiction Text Chart



• Display the cover and title page of the book. Ask the children whattype of text they expect to find inside (fiction or non-fiction) anddiscuss their reasons. Flip through the book so they can see thelayout of the text. Ask them to identify the features of non-fiction inthe book; for example, headings, sub-headings, captions, and so on.

• Display each page of the book, allowing time for children to skim read. Discuss the content of the text and features of layout atthe end of each page. Ask them how specific features of the layouthelp them understand the information presented; for example, thediagram on page 6 makes it easier to undersand why the NorthernHemisphere receives more sunlight in June.

• Re-read pages 12–13. Invite the children to tell you (in their ownwords) what they have learned from reading these two pages. Whatfeatures of the layout did they find helpful? Invite them to talkabout their experiences of board games and to outline the differentrules, aims and materials of the game(s). Discuss the Konane andYote board games described on these pages. In what ways are theysimilar or different to games the children know about?

• Select two children to play Yote using the overhead transparency ofthe board. Before you start, re-read the instructions together. Dividethe class into two groups, with one group guiding each player toplay the game. Continue playing until each player has jumped atleast one of the other player’s pieces. Discuss the effectiveness of theinstructions provided. Could they be improved? If so, how?

• Work with the children to re-write the instructions for Yote so thateach instruction begins with an imperative; for example, 1. Move yourpieces backwards or forwards to an empty position on the board. 2. Jumpone of your opponent’s pieces whenever you can do so safely. 3. Try tocapture all your opponent’s pieces. Scribe the instructions. Read themtogether, inviting the children to suggest how they could be improvedand to ensure that all the necessary information is included.

Word and Sentence Level Work• Display pages 12 and 13. Discuss the tense of the instructions

(present) and how we know this. Work with the children to composean oral recount (in the past tense) of their experience of playingYote; for example, Ian jumped five of his opponent’s pieces in a row andcaptured them all. Discuss the changes to the verbs, such asjump/jumped, capture/captured.

• Write the words take and lose on the board. Ask the children how wewrite these words in the past tense (took, lost) and discuss thechanges. Challenge them to suggest other irregular verb tensechanges; for example, go/went, can/could, understand/understood.

• Highlight some words in the text for which homophones exist, suchas in, by, see, would, herd. Discuss the other spellings and meaningsof these words. Ask them to locate other homophones in the textand to compose sentences using the words, taking care to make themeanings of each homophone clear. Scribe their suggestions.

Mathematics from Many Cultures

BackgroundMathematics from Many Cultures is arich resource that helps children toexplore many features of non-fictiontexts, including instructions andexplanations. It is explored in moredetail in Lesson Plan 35 in Term 2 andin Lesson Plan 50 in Term 3. Thisbook is a compilation of posters thatcan be used in any order.

PreparationThis lesson focuses on pages 12–13,(instructions for two board games:Yote and Konane). To prepare, makean overhead transparency of theKonane board, along with 100counters (coloured transparentcounters or two different shapes)ready to be set up. Allow time for thegame over several days, so that allchildren have a chance to play.

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Independent WorkChildren could• write instructions for a popular

present-day game; they could writefor their own age group, or for anolder or younger audience

• write answers for questions in theblue boxes

• choose a spread and re-write theinformation for a youngeraudience, such as Year 2 children

• write an article about the discoveryof Yote and Konane, describing therules of each game; encouragethem to use linking words, such asfirst, then, next, and so on, toexplain how the games are played

• write a short report comparing theway they multiply numbers withthe way the Ancient Egyptians andthe Arabs did; encourage them touse organisational devices, such asheadings and numbered lists.

NLS ReferencesT17 identifying the features of

non-fiction textsT22 identifying the features of

instructional textsT25 writing clear instructionsS2 investigating verb tensesW6 distinguishing between the

spelling and meanings ofcommon homophones

W8 spelling irregular tense changes

For detailed maths investigations building on Mathematics from Many Cultures, see Kingscourt’s Maths Links Plus programme.

Big Book and PostersNon-fiction from other subject areas.



• Display the cover. Ask the children what type of book they expect AllAbout Forces to be (non-fiction), and to explain why. Display thecontents page. Discuss with the children what information the bookcontains, and how this information appears to be ordered; forexample, the first section of the book contains a definition/explanation of forces. They might also notice that there are twosections for each “type” of force, as in Gravity and Using Gravity.

• Read pages 2–5, pausing at the end of each page to discuss thecontent and invite children to express key ideas in their own words.Also ask them to identify non-fiction layout features and how theyhave been used; for example, the headings name the topic for thedouble-page spreads, the photographs illustrate the different forcesthat are being discussed, and so on. Return to the contents page andask the children to select the section they would like to read. Readthe whole book in this way, discussing the information on eachpage.

• Remind the children that one of the helpful features in many non-fiction texts is an index. Display pages 2–5, drawing their attentionto the photographs of the animals. Then suggest that they use theindex to find other pages that contain information about animals.Display each page and ask them to find the animal(s) in each case.As they look at each example, they could discuss where forces(pushes and pulls) are involved; for example, the cat on page 2 doesnot need to use force to move, but its paw might be pulling on theside of the wheelbarrow to aid stability, and so on.

• As a shared writing activity, work with the children to write shorttexts about some of the animals from the book, and the forces theyare using; for example, you could use the draught horses (page 6)and/or the sled dogs (page 4). Encourage them to use strong openingsentences to capture the reader’s attention, such as Forces areimportant for animals that have to pull loads. Scribe the text, invitingthe children to help you with word choice. Read the text together.

Word and Sentence Level Work• Write the first two sentences from page 8 on chart paper, omitting

the punctuation. Read them with the children and discuss what ismissing. Then work with them to punctuate the text. Read throughthe amended text and discuss the effect of the punctuation.Compare this text with the original text.

• Write the first paragraph from page 10 on the board. Ask thechildren to identify the tense (present) and to explain how theyknow this. Work with them to put it into the past tense. Discuss thewords that changed (is/was, occurs/occurred, move/moved). Repeat thisactivity with other text from the book.

• Challenge the children to build words from force; for example, forces,forceful, forced, and so on. Discuss the use of force as a noun and as averb. Challenge the children to compose sentences that use force asboth a noun and verb, and to suggest other words that can be usedas both a noun and verb; for example, walk, jump, laugh, drive, andso on.

All About Forces

BackgroundAll About Forces (also explored inLesson Plan 15) provides excellentopportunities for exploring the typicalfeatures of non-fiction, including thecontents page and the index, andorganisational features such asheadings and diagrams. The book’sphotographs are ideal as a basis forwriting.Children will also benefit fromreading the four additionalinformation books (small books) fromthe All About Forces module:Gripping and Slipping, Down DownDown, Work and Machines, Nature’sForces.

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Independent WorkChildren could:• write a short report on the types of

forces using the information fromthe book; encourage them to useorganisational devices, such asheadings and numbered lists

• draw a scene, such as a footballmatch, and use arrows to showthe different forces being used; forexample, the ball falling to theground is gravitational force

• write captions for some of thephotographs in the book

• write about their experiences oflearning to ice-skate, or ride abike, or row a boat

• write a newspaper article focusingon Forces of Destruction (pages 18and 19); e.g. they could describethe damage caused by a hurricaneor a flood

• read the All About Forces smallbooks.

NLS ReferencesT17 identifying features of non-fiction

textsT18 examining opening sentencesT27 writing a non-chronological

reportS2 investigating verb tensesS5 practising using commas to mark

grammatical boundariesW3 building words from words with

similar patterns and meanings

Big Book (Science Alive)Non-fiction from other subject areas.

For detailed science investigations building on the Big Book, see the All About Forces module of Kingscourt Science Alive programme.Literacy Links Plus 27


• Display the cover of All About Forces and discuss what the childrenremember about the book. Display the contents page to remindthem of the key topics, and allow time for general discussion.

• Ask the children what they remember about gravity and/or anygeneral information they might know about it. Re-read pages 6–9.Discuss the main ideas in the text, encouraging the children toidentify key sentences; for example, Earth’s gravity pulls everythingtowards the centre of the planet. Also discuss the photographs, invitingthem to describe how each one relates to the topic of gravity.

• Cover-up Steps 1 and 2 on the overhead transparency of ActivitySheet 10 and display it to the children. Read the sections that areshown and then ask the children what information they think iscovered up. Write their suggestions and discuss their validity. Revealthe first two steps and compare them to their predictions. Alsodiscuss the layout and the language used in these instructions; forexample, the use of an imperative to start each step. Read theinstructions together. Provide materials to allow the children tomake the paper spinners, and an opportunity for them to test them.Discuss the forces that are involved in the spinners’ movements.

• As a shared writing activity, work with the children to write a shorttext that describes how they made their paper spinners. Use the stepsin the instructions as a guide to what information to include.Remind them that the tense and voice will need to change; forexample, instead of the instruction Fold the paper…, it would becomeI folded the paper…, and so on. Also remind them to use words thatlink sentences and show sequence, such as first, then, next; forexample, First, I folded the paper in half, then I folded it in half again…Before writing, plan the text with the children, encouraging them tothink about the information that needs to be included and how itcould be organised. Scribe the text. Read it together, inviting them tocheck that all the relevant information is included.

Word and Sentence Level Work• Using the text from Shared Writing, work with the children to add as

many “-ly” adverbs as possible to describe how they made theirspinners; for example, First, I folded the paper in half very carefully… Icut the paper slowly…, and so on. Discuss the impact these adverbshave on the text. They could also suggest adverbs that describe howthe spinners performed; for example, a spinner might have fallenquickly, smoothly, and so on.

• Work with the children to compile a “forces verbs” word bank usingwords from the book; for example, pull, push, shove, squeeze, bang,lift, and so on. Then challenge the children to change these verbsinto the past tense; for example, squeezed/squeezes/squeezing, and soon. Discuss any irregular tense changes, such as fly/flew, and so on.

• Ask the children to find homophones in the text; for example, to, no,greater, and so on. Discuss their different spellings and meanings.Challenge them to put these words into sentences that make theirmeanings clear. Scribe the sentences.

All About Forces

BackgroundThis is the second lesson focusing onAll About Forces (see also LessonPlan 14). It extends children’sunderstanding of typical features ofnon-fiction. There is a specialemphasis on the organisationaldevices and language features ofinstructions.PreparationChildren can make their own paperspinners in this lesson. Create anoverhead transparency of the PaperSpinner (Activity Sheet 10 on page80). The children will need paper andscissors.

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Independent WorkChildren could:• research a topic they found

interesting in the book• present the key points they have

learned from the book as a largeposter; they could divide theposter up into the different forcesand their uses

• plan a science fiction or fantasystory that involves all or many ofthe forces described in the book;for example, it could be aboutgoing into space and experiencingno gravity; or going to a strangeplanet where their feet stick to theground, or what would happen ifthe wind lifted them up off theground and into outer space

• make another paper spinner,using colours and patterns todecorate it; they could also write alist of Helpful Hints for someonewho might be trying to make apaper spinner for the first time

• read the All About Forces smallbooks.

NLS ReferencesT17 identifying the features of

non-fiction textsT22 exploring instructional textsS2 investigating verb tensesS3 identifying powerful verbsS4 identifying “ly” adverbsW6 investigating homophonesW7 & 8 spelling regular and

irregular verb endingsActivity Sheet 10: T22


For detailed science investigations building on the Big Book, see the All About Forces module of Kingscourt’s Science Alive programme. Literacy Links Plus28


• Display the front cover and title page of the book to the children.Brainstorm their ideas about flight. Ask questions, such as What canfly? (planes, birds, helicopters, balloons, and so on). How do they fly?Record the children’s responses as a word web under appropriateheadings. Discuss whether the forms of flight on the word web arenatural or mechanical.

• Display each poster, allowing time for the children to comment on the content and layout, and to identify typical features of non-fiction, including headings, sub-headings, captions, and so on.Discuss the role of the different features; for example, headings arein large type to allow the reader to identify the main topic. Discussthe effectiveness of these features in helping the reader to identifyand understand the information.

• Ask the children to identify the posters that are particularly relevantto the history of “human flight” (Day Dreamers, Beautiful Balloons,Awesome Airships, Hanging Around, Propeller Planes, Jetting Around, andRacing Rockets). Then read three or four of these posters (the childrencould choose which ones they would like read). Invite them to pickout the key sentences that capture their interest; for example, on DayDreamers, the opening sentence immediately attracts attention, andthe title might intrigue a reader by how it relates to flight.

• Using the Beautiful Balloons poster, work with the children to write anewspaper article about the first balloon flight. Before writing, re-read the poster and ask them to suggest what information should be included. Scribe their suggestions. Discuss how theinformation could be organised in the article; for example, they will need to come up with a headline and to compose an openingsentence that captures the readers’ attention. Scribe the article forthe children, encouraging them to help you with word choice and to check that all the relevant facts are included. Read the finishedarticle, inviting the children to make any improvements.

Word and Sentence Level Work• Write fly, flew and has flown on the board. Discuss that flew and has

flown are the past tense of fly. Remind the children that many verbsdo not simply have “-ed” added when they are put into the pasttense. Ask them to suggest other flight-related verbs that haveirregular tense changes; for example, take off/took off, rise/rose, andso on. Ask them to suggest other verbs that have irregular tensechanges, such as weep/wept, bind/bound, run/ran, do/did, and so on.

• Write flight on the board. Invite the children to think of some otherwords that have the letter string “ght”; for example, fright, fight,might, light, bright, tight, and so on. Scribe their suggestions.

• Write the first paragraph from the Awesome Airships poster on chartpaper, omitting the punctuation. Read it with the children anddiscuss how the absence of punctuation affects the reading. Workwith them to punctuate the text. Read the punctuated text togetherand discuss how it has improved. Compare their punctuation withthe punctuation in the text from the poster.

Fantastic Flight

BackgroundFantastic Flight is one of the titles inthe exciting Mathtastics series, whichprovides a set of high-interest postersas well as books with additionalinformation and related activities.Fantastic Flight looks at the history offlying, from birds and balloons, toplanes and rockets. The material isideal for exploring typical features ofnon-chronological reports andinstructions. Two lesson plans areprovided to focus on different aspectsof non-fiction reading and writing.(See also Lesson Plan 17.)

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4 1

Independent WorkChildren could:• design a futuristic mode of air

transport, including an explanationof how it works

• write comical instructions for apre-flight brief for the sheep, duckand rooster who flew in theMontgolfier balloon; for example,Don’t try to jump out! Don’t runaround madly!

• compile a list of “-ly” adverbs toqualify fly; for example, swiftly,dangerously, excitingly

• think up new attention-grabbingheadings for each poster

• write a definition for the wordflight using the information theyhave learned from the posters

• write about their experiences ifthey could fly for one day. Wherewould they go? What would theysee? How would it feel to be highabove the world?

NLS ReferencesT17 identifying features of non-fictionT18 selecting opening and key

sentencesT24 writing a newspaper style reportS5 using commasW3 spelling by analogyW8 spelling irregular tense changes

For detailed maths investigations building on Fantastic Flight, see Kingscourt’s Maths Links Plus programme.

Posters and Book (Maths in Context)Non-fiction from other subject areas.



• Ask the children what they remember about the Fantastic Flightposters. Scribe and discuss their ideas. Display some of the postersthat relate to “human flight” (for example, Day Dreamers, BeautifulBalloons, Awesome Airships, Hanging Around). Discuss the main ideasand different ways in which the information is presented.

• Display the Awesome Airships poster. Draw the children’s attention tothe Fact Sheet and read the information to them. Ask the childrenwhat fact means. How is a fact different from an opinion? Use anexample of an opinion such as People should not fly in planes, andask them to explain why this is an opinion rather than a fact.

• Cover the You will need section and steps 1 and 2 of the overheadtransparency of Activity Sheet 11 and display it to the children. Askthem what information is covered up. Write and discuss theirsuggestions. Reveal the text and compare it to their predictions.Discuss the layout and language used in the instructions; forexample, the use of steps, list of equipment, and illustrations. Readthrough the instructions together. Provide the materials for thechildren to make the paper gliders, and an opportunity for them totest them and discuss their performance.

• As a shared writing activity, ask the children to imagine they had toteach a baby bird how to fly. Work with them to compose clearinstructions for the baby bird. Before scribing, ask them to suggestall the things they might need to tell the baby bird so it can learn tofly without hurting itself. Write their ideas on the board. Also discusshow the information could be organised; for example, they coulduse numbered steps as in the paper glider instructions: Step 1: Standon the edge of a low branch of a tree. Step 2: Test your wings by flappingthem a few times… Remind the children that these instructions willneed to be very clear and easy to follow. Agree on and scribe theinstructions. Read through them together, inviting the children tocheck that all the necessary information is included and that theyare clear.

Word and Sentence Level Work• Write the sentence A fly can fly on the board. Ask the children to

comment on the different uses of the word fly (as a noun and averb). Remind them that the word fly is a homophone. Challengethe children to suggest other examples of homophones in the posterswith the same and different spellings and to use them in sentencesthat make their meaning clear; for example, plane/plain, feat/feet,soar/sore, land, trip, bee/be, beat, see/sea, and so on.

• Brainstorm words and/or phrases that use the word fly as the rootword; for example, fly, flew, flying, flight, flight path, flown, flies, flyingfish, flying start, and so on. Then challenge the children to put thesewords into alphabetical order.

• Work with the children to compile a list of flight-related words; forexample, balloon, kite, plane, wingspan, migration, aircraft, glider,propeller, and so on. Then challenge them to give a clear oraldefinition of each of the words.

Fantastic Flight

BackgroundThis second lesson plan on FantasticFlight builds on the children’sknowledge of the typical features ofnon-chronological reports andinstructions (See Lesson Plan 16 forthe introduction to the posters andbook.)

PreparationChildren can make their own papergliders in this lesson. Create anoverhead transparency of the PaperGlider Activity Sheet 11 on page 81.The children will need paper, scissors,ruler, tape and a coin.

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4 1


(page 82)• write a personal recount about

their experiences of flying a kite• research the Hindenberg airship

fire in 1937 and write a newspaperarticle about it, including anattention-grabbing headline

• write a recount from a bird’s pointof view about one of the forms of“human flight” discussed inFantastic Flight; for example, itcould be critical of our efforts tofly: Just because the new Boeing777 Stretch can carry hundreds ofpeople, I still think it isunattractive and clumsy,compared to my graceful andlovely wings – and the noise itmakes! …

• imagine that they were astowaway in the Montgolfierballoon and write a story abouttheir experiences.

NLS ReferencesT19 understanding the terms fact

and opinionT22 identifying the features of

instructional textsT25 writing clear instructionsS1 checking own work for

grammatical sense and accuracyW11 defining familiar vocabulary in

their own wordsW12 putting words into alphabetical

orderActivity Sheet 12: S2, W9

For detailed maths investigations building on Fantastic Flight, see Kingscourt’s Maths Links Plus programme.




• Discuss the cover. Ask the children what they already know aboutthe sun and what they would like to find out from reading the book.Record responses under the headings, What I already know about thesun and What I want to find out about the sun.

• Read the main heading and body text of each double-page spreadwith the children (or read up to page 11 and save the remainingsection for a follow-up lesson). Pause after each spread to discussmain ideas. Also help children to explore how sub-headings, picturesand captions contribute to these ideas and to the overall impact.Record points relevant to children’s initial ideas in note form.

• Invite the children to comment on features of layout andtypography that they find interesting, attractive and/or helpful. Alsoinvite them to comment on aspects of the book, if any, that theythink are less effective.

• Revisit pages 2 and 3. Discuss the concepts of fact (something provento be true) and belief. Note examples of beliefs or legends about thesun, using ideas from the book; for example, The sun is a golden egglaid every morning. Then introduce the concept of opinion (a point ofview). Brainstorm with the children examples of facts and opinions.For example, Facts: The sun is a star. The sun is the only star we see ona clear day. Opinions: The sun shining in the sky is beautiful. An eclipseis scary.

• Work with the children to plan a narrative version of one of the sunlegends mentioned on pages 2 and 3; for example, the legend abouta sky dragon causing an eclipse. Brainstorm ideas for theintroduction, build-up, climax, and resolution; for example, theintroduction might focus on the dragon waking up and feelinghungry. Scribe for the children to help them develop a draft plan.Creating the story itself could also be a shared writing activity.

Word and Sentence Level Work• Challenge the children to come up with as many words as possible

that have sun as a root word; for example, sunny, sunburn, sunlight,sunset, sunrise, sunshine. Remind the children that a suffix could beused to form an antonym of sunny (sunless).

• Discuss homophones with the children, starting with words from thetext; for example (pages 2–3), sun (son), where (wear), knew (new), by(buy), would (wood), made (maid), great (grate). Work through the textwith the children to find other homophones and discuss theirdifferent meanings.

• Challenge the children to suggest “-ly” adverbs that qualify theverbs shine or shining: brightly, brilliantly, dimly, shyly, and so on.(Ensure that the terms verb and adverb are used and clarified.) Ifappropriate, extend the activity to include adverbial words and/orphrases that do not have the “-ly” pattern; for example, often,sometimes, seldom, in the afternoon, every morning. Encourage thechildren to suggest complete sentences using a variety of structures;for example, Shining brightly, the sun kept us warm all day. The sunshone brightly and kept us warm all day.

The Sun

BackgroundThe Sun is a very accessible non-fiction big book that exploresmany aspects of the sun, rangingfrom ancient myths and legends, tocontemporary environmental issues.Two lesson plans are provided toallow children to explore manydifferent aspects of text and layout,and to use the book as a springboardfor a variety of writing activities. (See also Lesson Plan 19.)

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4 1

Independent WorkChildren could:• write about a world without a sun• write their own stories (new

“legends”) to answer thequestions on page 3 (Where doesthe sun come from? or What is aneclipse?) or another question oftheir choice

• write a letter to the sky dragon orthe great goose of the skymentioned on page 3, perhapsasking for the creature’s help inmaking sure that the people ofearth are never without the sun,and explaining why this is soimportant

• personify the sun and write acharacter description

• make a poster that shows all thedifferent ways in which we dependon the sun. Children should givethe poster a title and also use avariety of organisational devices topresent the information clearly tothe reader.

NLS ReferencesT4, 9, 10 identifying and planning

stages of a narrativeT16 identifying and exploring different

types of text and their purposesT19 exploring and distinguishing

between fact and opinionS2 revising work on verbsS4 identifying adverbs and their

functionW3 word buildingW6 exploring homophones

Non-Fiction Big Book



• Discuss and list main points about the sun that children recall fromtheir earlier work with the Big Book. Also invite them to pose anynew questions they may have about the sun. Record these under theheading What I want to find out about the sun.

• Invite the children to say why this is a non-fiction book. Discuss thedifferent types of text and the non-fiction text features that allow thereader to gain information efficiently, asking the children to findand describe specific examples in the book.

• Read pages 12–15 of the book with the children and discuss thecontent of the text. Work with them to identify and list the keysentences (or words or phrases) that help the reader to understandwhat is meant by the heading Our sun needs help.

• Work with the children to plan a poster or wall display showing thedifferent threats to the sun. Decide on key headings, possibleillustrations and captions, labelled diagrams, and so on. As a sharedwriting activity, work with them to compose a paragraph that willsum up the key ideas and serve as an introduction to the poster ordisplay. Place particular emphasis on having a clear openingsentence that will set the scene and capture interest. Scribe the text.Read through the work and ask them to check it makes sense and ifthere is anything else they wish to add. Later, for independent work,they could write and illustrate posters of their own and/or work ontheir individual contributions to the classroom wall display.

Word and Sentence Level Work• Use the verbs move/moved, trap/trapped, shine/shone as the starting

point for a discussion about regular and irregular verbs and past-tense forms. Brainstorm more examples and list them on chartpaper, discussing spelling patterns as you write. Suggestions couldinclude rise/rose, keep/kept, verbs that do not change, such as let, andalso examples of “-ed” or “-t” alternative endings, as in burn/burned/burnt, learn/learned/learnt.

• Use “sun” words (sunny/sunburn/sunlight/sunset/sunrise and so on) tohelp children practise arranging words alphabetically using 3rd- and4th-place letters.

• Work through the book with the children and ask them to note allthe words that are in italics (such as day and night on page 6).Discuss why these words are in italics. Work together to put theminto alphabetical order and write concise definitions for them.

• Use the words danger, destroy, protection, friend and heat as the basisfor word building activities; for example, danger, dangerous,dangerously, endanger, endangered, endangering; destroy, destroyed,destruction, destructive; friend, friendship, friendly, friendliness, and soon. Work with the children to place the words on a chart, usingheadings for the different parts of speech (noun, verb, adverb,adjective). Encourage them to see that sometimes one word can bemore than one part of speech; for example, The sun’s heat… (noun);The sun can heat… (verb). As a follow-up, children could use some ofthe words in different ways to form different tenses.

The Sun

BackgroundThe Sun was introduced in LessonPlan 18. If appropriate, refamiliarisethe children with the key features andmain ideas of the parts of the bookthey have already explored beforemoving on to the activities suggestedin this lesson plan.

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4 1


(page 83)• make a poster that shows all the

ways in which we depend uponthe sun. They could think of a titlefor the poster and use a variety oforganisational devices to presentthe information.

• write, for younger readers, areport on the sun, usinginformation from the book.Remind them to think about themain topics they wish to cover andkey headings that help make thereport accessible and interesting.

• write a dialogue between the sunand rain in summertime; e.g. “Idon’t know why you won’t just goaway and let me do my job!” Sunsaid to Rain./”I’m not going to letyou spoil my fun,” Rain replied.

• list good and bad things about thesun; for example, Positive: Plantsneed the sun so they can maketheir own food. Negative: The suncan burn our skin and scorch theland. The children should thinkabout how they wish to presentthe information, e.g. a chart.

NLS ReferencesT17 identifying features of

non-fiction textT18 selecting and examining key

sentences and phrases thatcapture interest and conveyimportant information

S2 exploring verbs and verb tensesS4 identifying adverbsW3, 7, 9 building from words with

similar patterns and meaningsW12 using 3rd- and 4th-place letters

in alphabetical sequencingActivity Sheet 13: T24, S2




Term 2 Overview

20

21

22

23


The Fisherman and His WifeFiction Big Book

Because of WalterFiction Text Chart

The Fisherman and His Wife

The Bad Luck of King FredFiction Text Chart

24 A Football GamePoetry: descriptive rhyming poem

• discussing the use of figurative language in poetry, and evaluating its impacton the reader

• comparing and contrasting settings• writing poetry based on poems read• using alternative words to be more accurate or interesting and extend

vocabularyActivity Sheet 16: NLS references T10, S1 & 2

• understanding the use of figurative language• understanding the effect of expressive and descriptive language• writing poetry and other texts based on poems read• investigating and using prefixesActivity Sheet 15: NLS reference T2

• comparing and contrasting poems• identifying patterns of rhyme in poetry• writing descriptive poetry and/or other descriptive texts based on poems read• investigating the effect of expressive and descriptive language on the reader• using connectives and commas to join clausesActivity Sheet 17: NLS references S4, W3 & 6

• identifying words which suggest a poem is not contemporary• discussing figurative language• writing descriptive poetry and/or other descriptive texts based on poems read• adding suffixes to nouns and verbs to make adjectivesActivity Sheet 18: NLS references T4, S2 & 4, W13

25 The City Dump and CityPoetry: contemporary poems onthe same theme

26 On the Skateboard, Freewheelingon a Bike and Portrait of a MotorCarPoetry: free verse

27 SilverPoetry: classic rhyming poem

• investigating how writers create imaginary worlds• investigating the use of descriptive and expressive language to create

moods and describe emotions• exploring adjectives• investigating word order• exploring words that imply genderActivity Sheet 14: NLS references S2, W12

• investigating how writers create imaginary worlds• identifying patterns of rhyme• writing poetry based on the structure of poetry read• exploring adjectives, including adding suffixes to nouns and verbs to make

adjectives

• investigating how writers create imaginary worlds• investigating and developing settings• exploring adjectives, including adding suffixes to nouns and verbs to make

adjectives

• investigating the use of descriptive and expressive language to create moods anddescribe emotions

• note-making• investigating the apostrophe of possession• exploring words which imply gender



29

30

31

32

33

34

35

Under the GroundNon-Fiction Big Book

Under the Ground

The Wonderful World of PlantsNon-Fiction from Other Subject Areas

The Wonderful World of Plants

Nature’s Mathematical MarvelsNon-Fiction from Other Subject Areas

Nature’s Mathematical Marvels

Mathematics from Many CulturesNon-Fiction Big BookSee also Lesson Plans 13 and 50 for further work with this book

• scanning a non-fiction book to appraise its contents and usefulness• identifying key words and phrases• investigating paragraphs• exploring commas to separate clauses• defining words

• identifying key words and phrases and using these to summarise text• investigating explanatory texts• exploring adjectives• investigating word orderActivity Sheet 20: NLS references T23, W10

• investigating and writing explanatory texts• using notes as a basis for writing• exploring adjectives• spelling by analogy with other known words

• identifying key words and phrases and using these to summarise text• exploring adjectives and adjectival phrases• investigating apostrophes for contraction and possessionActivity Sheet 21: NLS references T21, S3

• collecting and presenting information in a useful format• examining comparative and superlative forms of adjectives• investigating apostrophes for contraction and possession

• writing using descriptive and expressive language• investigating explanatory texts• exploring adjectives and adjectival phrases• exploring alternative words and expressionsActivity Sheet 22: NLS references T15, S4, W3

• investigating and writing explanatory texts• examining comparative and superlative adjectives• investigating word order• defining words

• comparing and contrasting poems on similar themes• identifying specific language features and poetic techniques that create

impact• describing how a poet does or does not use rhyme• understanding how words can be changed• writing scripts based on poemsActivity Sheet 19: NLS references T13, W3

Winter Moon and Summer FullMoonPoetry: classic and contemporary verse

28


• Display the front cover, and then page 3. Ask the children what theycan tell about the characters based on these illustrations. Then readthe story to or with them. After general discussion, ask them toidentify features of the story that make it a fiction text; for example,it is set in an imaginary world. Ask them if the ending is happy orsad, and to give their reasons. For example, it could be sad becausethe fisherman and his wife lose everything the fish gives them.However, it could also be happy because the fisherman’s wife learnsa valuable lesson about greediness. Discuss their responses.

• Discuss the personalities of the characters. Ask the children todescribe the fisherman’s wife; for example, greedy, selfish, mean, andso on. Also discuss the characters of the fisherman and the fish. Howare they different from the wife? Encourage the children to useexamples to support their answers.

• Re-read page 4. Ask the children to locate words that help create the“mood” of the scene; for example, strange, enchanted. Then read page8 and ask them what words/phrases in the first paragraph help thereader imagine the setting, such as lovely little cottage and white picketfence. Discuss how adjectives are often used to create vivid scenes ormoods. Re-read a few more pages with the children, challengingthem to find adjectives that help to make the scene vivid.

• As a shared writing activity, work with the children to compose aletter from the fisherman’s wife to her sister about her lovely cottage (page 8); for example, Dear Marigold, Finally I have a decent house!That hut was dark and smelly, and horribly small! Now I have a lovelycottage, with big windows and flower boxes filled with bright red roses…Encourage the children to suggest expressive and descriptivelanguage to create a vivid scene and convey an appropriate mood.As they agree on each sentence, scribe the text. Discuss the layout ofthe letter as you write. Read the text together.

Word and Sentence Level Work• Re-read page 12. Ask the children to identify the words that imply

gender (for example, wife, fisherman, queen) and ask them to suggest“matching” words for the other gender (husband, fisherwoman, king).Then challenge them to think of other examples, such as goose/gander, stallion/mare, prince/princess, hero/heroine, brother/sister.

• Display each page of the book and ask the children to identify thewords that are used to introduce dialogue: cried, called, asked, said,and so on. Invite them to suggest alternative words that could beused. For example, his wife said (page 16), could be his wifedemanded, or his wife yelled ferociously, and so on. Discuss the effectthese words have on the text and a reader’s response.

• Write the fisherman’s wife on the board. Ask the children what taskthe apostrophe performs here (showing possession). Then ask thechildren what the plural forms of man and wife are (men and wives).Discuss how to use the apostrophe of possession in these words(men’s and wives’). Challenge them to think of words that have thesame pattern when they are made plural possessive, such aswoman/women/women’s, thief/thieves/thieves’, and so on.


BackgroundThe Fisherman and His Wife, atraditional tale, is explored in twolesson plans in this term (see alsoLesson Plan 21). The story providesan opportunity for children to explorethe importance of expressive anddescriptive language in helpingwriters to create imaginary worlds.The characters of the fisherman andhis wife are ideal for comparing andcontrasting. You may also wish to usethe story as a starting point fordiscussing features of traditional tales.

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(page 84)• write a moral for this story, such

as, Be content with what youhave, or If you ask for too much,you may end up with nothing.Children could also write moralsfor other suitable traditional tales.

• compare and contrast thebehaviour and characters of thefisherman and his wife

• write a personal recount from thepoint of view of the enchanted fish

• write a list of things they wouldwish for if they met an enchantedfish (keeping in mind whathappens to the fisherman’s wife!)

• imagine where the wife wouldwant to live next if the fishallowed her one more wish, anddescribe it using as manyadjectives as possible.

NLS ReferencesT1 understanding how writers

create imaginary worldsT4 understanding how the use of

expressive and descriptivelanguage can create moods anddescribe emotions

S1 revising work on adjectivesS3 understanding the significance of

word orderW9 using alternative words and

expressionsW10 exploring words which imply

genderActivity Sheet 14: S2, W12

Fiction Big Book



• Ask the children what they remember about The Fisherman and HisWife. Where is the story set? What happens to the fisherman and hiswife in the end? Scribe key points. Then work together to re-organisethe information under the headings: “Characters”, “Setting” and“Sequence of events”.

• Display page 22. Draw the children’s attention to the words in bold(another and home) and ask them why they might be in bold. Readthe text together, emphasising the words. Then display page 24 andask them to choose two words that could be given similar emphasis;for example never and again. Discuss their suggestions and whatimpact the extra emphasis has on the reading of the text.

• Ask the children how they know that this story is fantasy; forexample, it is set in an imaginary world where enchanted fish makewishes come true. Work through the book, inviting them to identifysections in which the fantasy quality is evident, such as when thefish talks. Encourage them to refer to specific words/phrases in thetext to support their answers.

• As a shared writing activity, work with the children to write repliesfrom the enchanted fish to each request made by the fisherman,using the same rhyming pattern. Before you begin, brainstorm andlist adjectives that describe the fisherman and his wife; for example,the wife could be described as weak, greedy and selfish. Then help thechildren to compose the fish’s rhymes; for example, to thefisherman’s second request the enchanted fish could reply: Sadfisherman who is calling me,/Sad fisherman, I hear your plea./What doesyour selfish wife need?/I am astounded by her greed! Scribe the new text.Then have some children read the fisherman’s requests, with othersreading the fish’s responses.

Word and Sentence Level Work• Write greedy on the board and ask the children what part of speech

it is (an adjective). Discuss how greedy would change if we wanted tosay one person was “more greedy” than another person (greedier).Also discuss how greediest is used; you could use an example, suchas The first demand the wife made was greedy. The next demand wasgreedier than the first, but the last was definitely the greediest of all.Challenge the children to suggest another word that describes thewife or her demands; for example, unhappy, and then composesentences that use the comparative and superlative forms of theword. Then use selfish to discuss how more and most are used toindicate different degrees of selfishness. Ask the children to use themin a sentence about the wife; for example, The wife is more selfishthan the fisherman. She is the most selfish character in the story.

• Write man and home on the board. Ask the children what part ofspeech these words are (nouns). Discuss how they can be changedinto adjectives by adding “-ly” (manly, homely). Extend the discussionto include other words (nouns and verbs) that can be changed intoadjectives by adding a suffix; for example, colour/colourful,excite/excitable or exciting, magic/magical. Brainstorm examples withthe children.


BackgroundThis is the second lesson planexploring The Fisherman and His Wife(see also Lesson Plan 20). This lessonbuilds on earlier work done on thedevices writers use to create vividcharacters and scenes and conveymoods. It also uses the rhyming text inthe story as a model to help childrento write their own rhyming text.In shared reading and re-reading ofthe story, children could take turnsreading the characters’ “parts” (directspeech).

YEAR TERM

4 2

Independent WorkChildren could: • write a personal recount from the

point of view of the fishermanabout how he felt each time hereturned home only to have hiswife demand he ask theenchanted fish for more

• write a poem based on the story• compare and contrast The

Fisherman and His Wife withother traditional tales

• write a personal recount from thepoint of view of the wife, includingthe reasons for her wishes

• script, and later role-play for theclass, an interview with thefisherman and his wife about howthey feel about their experienceswith the enchanted fish

• choose another animal that couldbe “enchanted” like the fish andwrite a story based on the eventsof The Fisherman and His Wife;for example, an enchanted cowcould grant wishes to a dairyfarmer.


create imaginary worldsT7 identifying patterns of rhymeT11 writing poetry based on the

structure of poetry readS1 revising and extending work on

adjectives; relating them to thesuffixes and adverbs whichindicate degrees of intensity

W13 adding suffixes to nouns andverbs to make adjectives


Fiction Big Book

22

37Literacy Links Plus

Shared Reading and Writing• Read the chart with the children. Then re-read the description of the

outside of the house. Ask the children if they can paint a picture intheir minds of what the house looks like. Ask them to locate thewords and phrases the author has used to make the descriptionmemorable. These could include bright spring flowers, rambled, brightblue door, tubs of lavender. Discuss the use of description in expressivewriting, especially in building up settings. Talk about the use ofimagination and interesting language to help create an original andinteresting scene.

• Re-read the description of the inside of the house together, and invitethe children to locate the specific words or phrases that help createthe scene. Discuss the parts of speech that are often used to build avivid description. In most cases, these are likely to be adjectives,verbs and adverbs.

• Discuss the characters’ behaviour. Ask the children how thedescriptions help the reader to understand the characters and theirfeelings. Encourage them to locate specific text that supports thisview; for example: “This is where the Parkers live?” I said, shocked.“This is where you are going to live.”

• As a shared writing activity, work with the children to compose ashort text from Kaysha’s point of view that describes what happensnext. Encourage them to use descriptive, interesting language tohelp create the scene; for example, We walked for a short time, windingour way along a narrow, twisting path. Then, suddenly, I felt the warmthand softness of the sand beneath my feet. I looked up and there it was,the spectacular turquoise sea… Scribe the text for the children. Read ittogether, inviting them to make any improvements.

Word and Sentence Level Work• Review the children’s understanding of compound words, inviting

them to recall some of these. Then challenge them to identifycompound words on the chart; for example, outside, upstairs,raincoats, staircase, bedrooms and wallpaper. Scribe them on theboard. Ask them to identify the two words in each and to have somefun combining them to make “made-up” compound words, such asoutstairs, or rainrooms.

• Ask the children to suggest common suffixes. List them. Discuss howsome words can be changed by using a suffix; for example, hope,hopeful, hopeless and hoping. Then ask the children to identifyadjectives in the text chart that contain a suffix, such as beautiful,rambling and friendly. As a follow-up, challenge the children tosuggest the root word for each of these adjectives and, whereappropriate, extend this to creating other parts of speech; forexample: beautiful, beauty, beautify, beautifully; rambling, ramble,rambler; friendly, friendship, befriend.

• Point out the word flowers on side one. Ask the children to suggestsuffixes that can be added to flowers to make adjectives, such asflowering, flowery, or flowered. Encourage them to use each of the newwords as an adjective in a sentence. Scribe the sentences.

Because of Walter

BackgroundThis chart presents the first half ofChapter 2 from the novel Because ofWalter by Carol Krueger (LiteracyLinks Plus Stage 8). This moving storyis a first-person narrative told by themain character, Kaysha, who haslived in a number of foster homes.She hopes her new foster family, theParkers, will be a lasting placement.

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4 2

Independent WorkChildren could:• write a “prequel” to the scene

outlined on the chart, explaininghow Kaysha might have come tobe a foster child

• use the descriptive passages on thechart as a model and writedescriptions of their ideal room,house, view, street, orneighbourhood

• write about why Victoria might notbe pleased that Kaysha is comingto live with her family

• make predictions about how thechapter might end and check thesepredictions by reading Because ofWalter (if it is available)

• make suggestions about whoWalter is and what his significancemight be later in the story.


create imaginary worldsT2 understanding how settings

influence events and incidents instories and how they affectcharacters’ behaviour

T10 developing settings in writingS1 revising and extending work on

adjectivesW13 investigating a range of suffixes

that can be added to nouns andverbs to make adjectives

Fiction Text Chart


• Read the first paragraph on side one of the chart. Highlight thesentence that begins The night before... Ask the children to imaginethe scene that is being described. Ask them to locate the specificwords and phrases that have been used to create the scene; forexample, violent thunderstorm, raged for hours and hours, shaking andpounding. Also ask them to describe the feeling or mood that theauthor is trying to evoke in the first paragraph.

• Read the second paragraph together. Discuss the way it differs fromthe first paragraph in its lack of description. Ask the children whatthe main purpose of this paragraph is (providing information ratherthan describing a scene). Then read the third paragraph and discussits purpose (plot development). Discuss the strategies the author hasemployed to create moods, build tension and develop the plot. Readthe rest of the chart together.

• As a shared writing activity, work with the children to make notesabout what they believe the author’s intent to be in each of theremaining paragraphs. Also encourage them to identify theexpressive or descriptive language the author has used. Scribe thenotes under appropriate headings. Read the text together, invitingthe children to add examples from the text if necessary and to makeany improvements to the notes.

Word and Sentence Level Work• Highlight words on side one that contain “ou”; for example, hour,

pounding, shoulder, brought and would. Discuss the pronunciations ofthese words with the children. Point out the importance of thesurrounding letters, especially those after the letter string, in thepronunciation of the ou. Discuss any spelling-pronunciation patternsthey can find; for example, pound/round/sound, could/ would/should.Ask them to locate other examples of words containing the “ou”letter string on side two. List these and encourage them to suggestrhyming words that contain the same spelling pattern.

• Ask the children to find words on the chart with double consonants;for example, matter, tapping, better, arrived, porridge and bobbing.Scribe these on the board. Challenge the children to identify thewords that always contain the double consonant, and those wherethe final consonant has been doubled when a suffix was added.

• Write King Fred on the board and ask the children, If King Fred had awife called Francesca, what would her title be? Discuss the idea that kingand queen are titles that indicate the gender of the person. Invite thechildren to suggest other words that indicate gender; for example,prince/princess, chicken/rooster, fox/vixen, and so on.

• Write King Fred's wife is called Francesca on the board. Ask thechildren to identify the apostrophe and describe its purpose(possession). Then ask them where the apostrophe would be placedif you were talking about more than one king (kings’). Then ask thechildren what the plural of wife is (wives). Challenge them to placethe apostrophes in the following sentence: The kings wives hats werepink (kings’, wives’). Discuss the location of each apostrophe.

The Bad Luck of King Fred

BackgroundThis chart presents the text frompages 20–24 of the novel The BadLuck of King Fred by Anna-MariaCrum (Literacy Links Plus Stage 8).The use of humour to illuminate age-old superstitious practices is a featureof this book. Superstitions relating tofour-leaf clovers and salt are the focusof the chart text.

YEAR TERM

4 2

Independent WorkChildren could:• write about their experiences of

storms at night, focusing on thethoughts that went through theirminds as they waited for the stormto end

• create some amusing explanationsfor why King Fred’s bed was full ofsalt

• design a cartoon sequel thatcontinues the story of how KingFred solves the problem with hisporridge

• interview older family membersabout other superstitions theyknow about.

NLS ReferencesT4 understanding how the use of

expressive and descriptivelanguage can create moods,arouse expectations, buildtension, describe attitudes oremotions

T14 making notesS2 using the apostrophe to mark

possessionW3 using independent spelling

strategiesW10 exploring and discussing words

that imply gender


Fiction Text Chart



• Display the poem, then read it to the children. Re-read it together.Allow time for a brief discussion of the children’s experiences ofattending a football game, or another game.

• Re-read the final stanza and ask the children if they think there is amessage, and if so, what that message might be. (Encourage thechildren to quote directly from the poem.) Discuss the idea that it isbetter to play any game for the fun of it, rather than to win, and askthe children if they would agree with this message. Why/why not?Also ask them if they can find any lines that might seem tocontradict the message (for example, two teams that won’t give in and“Go, fight, win!”).

• Discuss the mood of the poem with the children. Invite them tosuggest adjectives that could describe the mood. Scribe theirsuggestions on the board, encouraging them to quote from the poemto support their choices; for example, if they suggest cheerful, thenlines such as It’s the colours everywhere, or It’s a thrill… could bequoted to support that view. Discuss the rhymes and rhythm of thepoem, and ask children how effective they think these are. Ask thechildren if a slow and mournful rhythm would be more or lessappropriate for the subject of the poem, and why.

• Draw the children’s attention to the rhymes whiff/sniff and thrill/chill.Ask the children if they can tell you what is special about theseparticular rhymes (the words not only rhyme, they are related intheir meaning). As a shared writing activity, challenge the childrento think of other matched rhymes like these, and put them intosentences for you to scribe on the board. For example, hurry andscurry; prattle and rattle; doom and gloom; light and bright; fearful andtearful; weary and dreary.

Word and Sentence Level Work• Draw the children’s attention to the word popcorn in the second

stanza of the poem. Ask the children what is unusual about popcornas the name for a food (its name describes the process of itspreparation). Challenge the children to think of other food namesthat have the same or a similar characteristic; for example, appleturnover, crackers, bubble and squeak, mashed potatoes, milk shake, stir-fry. List the names on the board as the children offer them, thenask the children to put three of their suggestions into a singlesentence, using connectives other than and. For example, I ate anapple turnover after drinking the milk shake, but this meant I had noroom left for the stir-fry.

• Discuss with the children the task of adjectives, and the importantpart they play in this poem. Ask them if they can find two examplesof adjectives being used to make a noun stronger and more intense(deep, breathless hush; desperate grasp). Challenge them to useadjectives to make some of the unqualified nouns more intense inthe same way; for example, a sigh could become, a long, heartfeltsigh. Other nouns that could be qualified in this way are: cheer, roar,band, colour, thrill, chill.

A Football Game

BackgroundA Football Game is the first in a seriesof poems that focus on aspects ofcontemporary life. Alice Van Eck’spoem is about sport and the passionsit arouses. The children will relate toand have fun with the descriptions ofthe energy and excitement of afootball match. They are also giventhe opportunity to discuss whetherthe aim of sport is enjoyment, orwinning. While children are discussingthe poem, you could ask them howthey can guess that it was originallywritten about American footballrather than soccer (e.g. the referenceto popcorn).

YEAR TERM

4 2


(page 85)

• re-read the poem in the small book• write an additional stanza for the

poem, keeping the same 2/4rhyming scheme

• compose their own football clubtheme song (to an existing tune,perhaps) that focuses on the funand thrill of the game, rather thanwinning

• write an account of the things theymost enjoy about attending afootball match (or any sportingevent), either as a spectator or aplayer

• write a poem or story about themost thrilling and chilling sportingevent they have ever witnessed orbeen involved in.

NLS ReferencesT4 understanding the effect of

expressive and descriptivelanguage

T7 identifying patterns of rhyme inpoetry

T13 writing examples of descriptive,expressive language

S1 revising and extending work onadjectives

S4 using connectives and commasto join clauses


Activity Sheet 15: T2



• Before displaying the poems, discuss with the children some of themore common subjects of poetry; for example, nature, animals andpeople. Tell them one of the poems they will be reading today isabout a rubbish dump; ask them whether this seems a very likelysubject and invite them to suggest what might be in the poem.

• Read The City Dump to the children. Re-read it together. Ask them ifthey think the poet is disgusted with the dump, or has discovered adifferent, more positive side to it. Invite them to quote specific linesfrom the poem to support their view, and to find the word in thepoem that the poet has used to sum up all of the images we areoffered (carnival). Ask them what creatures are enjoying this carnival(mice, seagulls). Challenge them to find things that happen at thedump that could be compared to the things that might happen at acarnival; for example, There are lots of different sorts of foods to try, likegrapefruit rinds and apple peels. Scribe the comparisons on the board,using inverted commas for quotations from the poem.

• Read City to the children, then re-read it together. Discuss the moodof this poem. Allow time for discussion of the children’s impressionsof the differences in a big city in the morning and at night. Askthem if they think the poet has made the city an attractive place oran ugly place. Discuss with the children what the poet hascompared the city to in each stanza (a bird and jewels). Ask them ifthey think the comparisons work to help us imagine the city as anappealing place at different times of the day, and why/why not.

• As a shared writing activity, invite the children to create a “menu”for the dump, adding to the foods already mentioned in the poem.Encourage them to choose words that rhyme, as in the lines crustsand crumbs/ And pits of plums; for example, bits of cheese and the shellsof peas. The children could also suggest a name for the “dumprestaurant”. Scribe the children’s suggestions on the board, invitingthem to guide you with spelling and punctuation.

Word and Sentence Level Work• Challenge the children to find two words in the poem that we use to

name things we have thrown away and consider useless (garbageand refuse). Scribe these words on the board. Then ask the children ifthey can think of any other words that we use for the same purpose;for example, debris, rubbish, muck, trash, swill, junk, litter. Scribe thesenew words on the board.

• Ask the children to identify the punctuation marks in the two poems(full stops and ellipses). Work with them to punctuate the poemsmore fully. Scribe the lines of each poem on chart paper, adding thechildren’s suggested punctuation as you go (for example, City asleep,City asleep, Papers fly at the garbage heap). Take this opportunity todiscuss the use of any punctuation marks they may be unfamiliarwith, such as semicolons. Encourage the children to look at the twoversions of each poem and suggest reasons why the poets did notuse more punctuation; for example, perhaps they wanted to leavethe words on the page uncluttered.

The City Dump and City

BackgroundThe City Dump provides a wonderfulexample of the way a poet can lookat something ordinary to make us seesomething extraordinary. FeliceHolman found inspiration in a rubbishdump and turned a heap of rubbishinto a carnival. (Children will readilyunderstand mild Americanisms suchas dump, and pits rather than pips.)City, by Langston Hughes, similarlytransforms the ordinary into thespecial: the city is no longer tired,polluted and dull, but a place thatsoars into life, while at night the lightsappear like fabulous jewels. Thechildren will enjoy thinking of theirown unusual topics for poetry.

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4 2


(page 86)

• re-read the poem in the small book• choose and write about another

feature of the city, in the way thatLangston Hughes has; city featuresmight include the hustle andbustle of busy shoppers, or thecity skyline

• write a more complete menu forthe creatures that visit the dump,with hors d’oeuvres, a maincourse, side dishes, desserts anddrinks, all based on what wouldbe found on a garbage heap

• choose an activity or a locationthat we usually considerunattractive or uninviting andwrite about it in a way that makesit seem fascinating; for example,washing a pile of dirty clothes;sweeping up the rubbish from thestreets; a butcher’s shop.

NLS ReferencesT3 comparing, contrasting and

evaluating settingsT5 understanding the use of

figurative language in poetryT11 writing poetry based on poems

readS4 investigating the effect of

punctuationW9 using alternative words to be

more accurate or interestingActivity Sheet 16: T10, S1 & 2





• Display the three poems and read On the Skateboard to the children,then re-read it together. Ask the children if they think the choice ofwords in the poem suits the subject. Encourage them to quote linesand phrases from the poem that they think are well chosen and thathelp them imagine how it feels to ride a skateboard; for example,skimming, swerve, curve, sway, speed.

• Draw the children’s attention to the lines I’m the sailor and the sailand I’m the driver and the wheel. Ask them if they know what we callthis type of description (metaphor). Invite them to describe how thewords I swerve, I curve, I sway relate to these metaphors. Then discusswith them how these metaphors improve the description of theskateboarder’s motion. Challenge them to think of other metaphorsthat would convey the joy of motion; for example, I’m the pilot, andthe plane. Scribe the suggestions on the board.

• Read Freewheeling on a Bike to the children, then re-read it together.Ask them what the metaphor is in this poem (butterflies of sunlight).Invite them to talk about what this metaphor is describing and whatit makes them imagine; you could suggest that perhaps the speedingcyclist is cycling under the branches of trees and experiencing the“fluttering” of sunlight as it shines through the leaves.

• Display Portrait of a Motor Car. Read the poem to the children, thenre-read it together and invite spontaneous comments. Invite them todiscuss what sort of car they imagine from the poet’s description andhis use of metaphor. Draw their attention to the illustration and askthem if they imagine it looking anything like this. Scribe thechildren’s suggestions on the board, building up a description of thecar. As a shared writing activity, work with the children to composeother “animal” metaphors that could describe the car; for example,A sidewinding snake of a car; A rearing, foaming-at-the-mouth, greatblack thoroughbred of a car. Scribe the new metaphors on the board.

Word and Sentence Level Work• Ask the children to identify words from the poems that contain an

apostrophe, such as I’m. Ask them what task the apostropheperforms in each word, and what words are joined in each one. Nowchallenge them to think of other common contractions starting withI; for example, I’ll, I’d, I’ve, I’m. Then ask the children to suggestexamples of words with possessive apostrophes; for example, a car’swheels, children’s skateboards. List and discuss several examples tofocus on where the apostrophe is placed and why.

• Refer to the word freewheeling. Remind the children that free is alsothe first part of other words, although it is not actually a prefix, likedis or pre. Ask them if they can think of other words or terms thatstart with free, such as free-fall, free-for-all, freeloader, free-range. Invitethe children to put these words into sentences that show the word’smeaning. You could repeat this activity for the prefix auto inautomobile; for example, autograph, automatic, automation.

BackgroundThese poems all capture andcelebrate the poetry of motion. Onthe Skateboard (Lillian Morrison)follows a skateboard rider skimmingan asphalt sea; Freewheeling on aBike (Robert Gray) pinpoints amoment of sheer delight as a cyclistspeeds beneath overhangingbranches and experiences flickeringsunlight; Carl Sandburg’s famouspoem Portrait of a Motor Car finds asmuch to enjoy about the look andperformance of a sleek automobile asothers might find in the grace andspeed of an eagle. The poems areideal for exploring metaphors.

YEAR TERM

4 2


(page 87)

• re-read the poem in the small book• write a poem or story about their

own experiences of speed andmotion on wheels

• write an extra line or lines foreach of the poems, showing howanything on wheels can come to asudden, undesired halt; forexample, a new final line forPortrait of a Motor Car might be,Then, pow!… Puncture! and thedriver had no spare!

• write a script for a scene thatshows the skateboarder, thecyclist and the motor car driver allcolliding at an intersection, andthen having to explain themselvesto the police. They could usemetaphors from their respectivepoems; for example, Well,constable, I think that butterfliesof sunlight must have obscuredmy vision. They could perform thescene for the class.



T5 understanding the use offigurative language

T11 writing poetry based on poemsread

S2 using the apostrophe to markpossession

W7 using prefixesActivity Sheet 17: S4, W3 & 6

On the Skateboard, Freewheeling on a Bike and Portrait of a Motor Car



• Suggest to the children that one special thing about human beings isthat we notice things, not only things to do with survival, but thingsthat are beautiful, or unusual, or mysterious, or just plaininteresting. We also want to express what we notice and how itmakes us feel – sometimes through poetry. Tell them that the poemthey will be reading is about a scene in moonlight. Invite them todiscuss the title, Silver, and to suggest what features of a moonlitnight a poet might write about.

• Display the poem and mention that it includes an old Scottish word,shoon, which means shoes. Read the poem to the children. Discussany other unfamiliar vocabulary, such as cote (a shelter), couchedand moveless. Then read the poem together.

• Ask the children what features of the moonlit scene they think thepoet wants to emphasise. They could talk about particular thingsthat are mentioned and how they are described, the way the moonis given characteristics of a person, and the overall sense of peaceand restfulness. Ask them to quote specific phrases or lines from thepoem to support their views.

• Discuss the poet’s use of rhyme. Ask the children what they noticeabout the words that end each line. Suggest that they “test” whetherthe poem features rhyming words that are easy to rhyme; whatother rhymes can they think of for moon, sees, catch, log, peep, by,gleam? Children could also suggest why silver, one of the key wordsof the poem, is not used at the end of a line: how easy would it havebeen for the poet to find a rhyme?

• Refer to the word scampering in the poem. Ask the children tosuggest other descriptions of the movement of creatures – but onlyusing words that would not interfere with the hush of the poem. Forexample, snakes slithering, whisper-quiet; cats creeping on paddedpaws… Discuss and scribe several suggestions.

Word and Sentence Level Work• Refer to the term silvery thatch in the poem. Ask the children if they

can think of any reasons why we sometimes add “y” to a word thatcan stand by itself, as silver can. Is silvery different from silver? Inwhat way? Why can we say silver shoes or silvery shoes or shoes ofsilver, but not shoes of silvery? (Silver can be a noun as well as anadjective.) Also discuss the word shadowy. Then invite the children tosuggest other adjectives or nouns that can have “y” added whilekeeping their original sense; for example, feathery, lumpy, hairy.

• Refer to the word kennel in the poem. Ask the children to suggestother words that end with an /l/ sound. List suggestions, groupingthem by the spelling pattern of the end of the word; for example, adouble letter as in tall, “le” as in pale, “ial” as in special, or othervowel combinations as in real, cool, feel, coal, and so on. Help themto think of as many words as they can (there are not very many)that have a single “e” followed by “l”, like kennel; examples couldinclude barrel, quarrel, panel.

Silver

BackgroundSilver, by Walter de la Mare(1873–1956) looks at the effects ofsilvery moonlight on a landscape. Thepoet finds in the moonlight a unifyingquality; something that places eachfeature of the landscape, and eachanimal, in the cradle of nature. Thechildren will respond to thepeacefulness conjured by the poet,and could compare it to the energyand racket of some of the othernature poems in this collection.

YEAR TERM

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(page 88)

• re-read the poem in the small book• describe a landscape in which rain

or bright sunshine has changedthe look of everything, as themoonlight has in the poem

• look in anthologies for other shortpoems by Walter de la Mare, anddescribe features that are similarto those found in Silver; forexample, the rhyming scheme, thefascination with nature andpeacefulness

• imagine and write about what theanimals in the poem think of themoon; the mouse, for example,might think it a great help to himat night, while the dog might thinkit strange and mysterious

• write about the effects of silverymoonlight on a scene that theyknow well, such as a local streetor park, or their own garden.




T6 identifying clues such as archaicwords which suggest poemsfrom the past

T13 writing examples of descriptive,expressive language based onthose read

S3 understanding the significance ofword order

W13 adding suffixes to nouns andverbs to make adjectives

Activity Sheet 18: T4, S2 & 4, W13





• Before displaying the poems, discuss with the children thefascination that people have with the moon. Ask them if they cansuggest reasons for this fascination; for example, the illusion of itschanging size and shape; its domination of the night sky; or perhapsa belief that it influences people’s moods and lives. Then ask them ifthey have ever imagined the moon to look like something else.Discuss and list suggestions.

• Display the two poems and read them to the children. Refer back tothe list on the board to see if any of their views relate to the imagesof the moon in the poems. Ask them if they find it easy to imaginethe moon as a curved blade, or as a dish of milk. Also ask themwhether they have ever looked at the clouds and seen interestingshapes in them, like the Persian cat that James Kirkup saw.

• Re-read the poems together. Discuss with the children the use ofmetaphors and similes, and the differences between them. Ask thechildren whether Winter Moon uses a simile or a metaphor. Then askthem if the description of the moon as a dish of milk in Summer FullMoon is a simile or a metaphor. Refer the children to the simile Thecloud tonight is like a white Persian cat and challenge them to re-writeit as a metaphor; for example, A white Persian cat rests in the skytonight. Scribe the metaphors on the board, inviting the children toguide you with spelling and punctuation.

• Ask the children to identify the adjectives that describe the moon inthe second line of Winter Moon (thin and sharp, and ghostly white).Challenge them to add another adjective to the description; forexample, thin and sharp, glimmering and ghostly white. Work with themto see how many words they can add to the description. Then askthem if they can think of a simile that relates to the description ghostlywhite (as white as a ghost). Challenge the children to think of othercolours that are used in similes; for example, as black as night; as greenas grass; as red as a lobster. Scribe their suggestions on the board.

Word and Sentence Level Work• Ask the children to find two words in Summer Full Moon that contain

double letters (lapping and brimming). Ask them to name the part ofspeech each word is (verb and adjective, respectively). Challengethem to think of a sentence (based on the poem) in which lappingcould be used as an adjective; for example, The lapping tongue of thecat . . . Also invite children to suggest other words that can be usedas verb or adjective. Discuss and list suggestions, along withsentences showing the words used as different parts of speech.

• Ask the children if they can think of other words, like lapping andbrimming, that have the last letter doubled when “ing” is added; forexample, hop/hopping, run/running. Discuss with them what thereason might be for doing this (to avoid confusion in pronunciationwith words that have had an “e” dropped when “ing” is added, suchas hope/hoping). Challenge the children to find other words in thepoems that double the last letter when “ing” is added (star/starring;slim/slimming; shut/shutting; thin/thinning).

Winter Moon and Summer Full Moon

BackgroundWinter Moon (Langston Hughes,whose poem City is also included inthis collection) and Summer FullMoon (James Kirkup) invite thechildren to speculate on the greatpopularity of the moon as a subjectfor poets. Both poems are appealing,and their similes and metaphorsprovide an opportunity for children toexplore the importance of figurativelanguage as a tool for the poet.

YEAR TERM

4 2


(page 89)

• re-read the poem in the small book• reverse the images in the poems;

for example, How round and fullis the moon tonight!/ How roundand full and white/ Is thebrimming milk dish of the moontonight

• research the phases and motion ofthe moon, and write anexplanatory text on its “change” ofsize and shape

• imagine and write about whatpeople living thousands of yearsago might have thought about themoon and its changes, and whatsimiles and metaphors they mighthave used

• script a conversation betweenLangston Hughes and JamesKirkup in which the two poetscriticise each other’s depiction ofthe moon, and suggest alternativeimages for them to offer; forexample, The moon doesn’t looklike a dish of milk – it looks like agiant billiard ball!




T13 writing examples of descriptive,expressive language based onthose read

S1 revising and extending work onadjectives

W1 identifying syllabic patterns inmulti-syllable words

Activity Sheet 19: T13, W3



• Display the cover and discuss it with the children. Ask them whatinformation the book might contain. Then ask them how they couldfind out if this book could help them if they had to write a report onlife underground. Would they need to read the whole book, or isthere a more efficient way? Discuss the different ways a reader canfind out if a book contains relevant information; for example, byusing the index and the contents, by scanning the headings andcaptions, and so on. Try some of these suggestions with Under theGround and discuss whether this book will be useful for writing areport on life underground. Also ask where else they could go to findmore information, such as the library or the Internet.

• Read pages 8–13. Then display each double-page spread and discussthe main ideas with the children. Ask them to identify key sentences(or words and phrases) that relate to the topic of life underground;for example, on page 8, a key sentence could be Ants, rabbits andsome termites live in underground colonies. Invite them to suggest thebest way to record these key ideas, such as in a list or underheadings. Work with the children to record these notes for a report.Scribe their suggestions and discuss the effectiveness of their chosenmethod of note-making.

• Re-read page 12 and discuss the use of paragraphs. Ask the childrenwhy the author would have separated this information into twoparagraphs. Then work with them to write two paragraphs of textusing some of the notes they compiled in the previous activity. Scribethe text for them, inviting them to guide you on when to commencea new paragraph. Read the new text together.

Word and Sentence Level Work• Write under and ground on the board. Challenge the children to

define these words; for example, under: when something is beneathsomething else. Scribe their definitions. Then work with them toreduce the number of words, where possible, in the definitions; forexample, the definition for under could be reduced to beneath.

• Write the first paragraph from page 11 on chart paper, omitting thepunctuation. Work with the children to punctuate the text. Thencompare it with the text in the book. Discuss the two uses of thecomma (to separate items in a list and to separate clauses). Thenwrite the text from the bottom of page 10 on chart paper and invitethem to punctuate it. Discuss the use of the comma in this text.

• Re-read pages 8–9. Ask the children to identify the words that implygender (buck, doe, queen). Then challenge them to think of otherwords used to distinguish the gender of different animals; forexample, goose/gander, stallion/mare, and so on.

• Challenge the children to come up with as many words as possiblethat have under as the root word; for example, underneath, underarm,undercover, undergo, underdone, underhand, understand, and so on.Then challenge them to compose a sentence using as many of thesewords as possible. You could repeat this activity for the word ground;for example, grounded, grounding, and so on.

Under the Ground

BackgroundUnder the Ground is a fascinatingnon-fiction big book that explores avariety of things that go on under theground, from animals and humansthat live there, to mining andunderground networks, such as trainsand electricity. Two lesson plans areprovided (see also Lesson Plan 30);these allow children to investigatetypical features of non-fiction andexplanatory texts, and to practise theirnote-making and summarising skills.

YEAR TERM

4 2

Independent WorkChildren could:• use other sources of information

to research, make notes and writea short report on animals andpeople that live underground

• write a list of questions theywould like to ask the people inCoober Pedy about their lifestylesunderground

• imagine that they livedunderground in Coober Pedy andwrite a letter to a friend inEngland explaining what theirhouse is like and what theylike/dislike about livingunderground

• design an underground house;they could include secret tunnelsand rooms. Children could presentthis as a detailed labelled diagram.

NLS ReferencesT15 scanning a non-fiction book to

appraise its contents andusefulness

T17 locating key words and phrasesT19 investigating paragraphsT22 filling out brief notes into

connected proseS4 recognising how commas are

used to separate clausesW10 exploring words that imply

genderW12 defining familiar words within

constraints



30


Shared Reading and Writing• Invite the children to talk about what they recall from the previous

lesson on Under the Ground, specifically about life underground.Display the contents and skim through some of the pages. Ask themhow they know that this is a non-fiction book; for example, itcontains a glossary, the information is arranged under headings,there are photographs with captions, and so on. Ask them what elsethey expect or would like the book to tell them. Write their ideas andquestions on the board.

• Invite the children to choose the chapters they would like to read.Read their chosen text. At the end of each double-page spread, allowtime for general discussion of the key ideas. Then ask them to locatekey words or phrases from each spread. Scribe these words/phraseson the board. Discuss the children’s predictions about the content ofthe book and whether any of their questions have been answered.

• Write What happens underground? on the board. Discuss with thechildren the planning process that would be needed in order to writean answer to this question. Ask them to suggest what steps would beinvolved; for example, selecting the most relevant information fromthe book, note-making, deciding on the format that the informationwill be presented in, the headings to use, and so on. Work with thechildren to answer this question by presenting the information as asimple wall chart; for example, they could have the question in themiddle with arrows pointing to different things that happenunderground under headings such as Transport, Mining, and so on.Scribe the text for the children, inviting them to help you with wordchoice and the best way to organise the information.

Word and Sentence Level Work• Write ground on the board. Challenge the children to suggest other

words containing the “ou” letter string. Discuss the letterssurrounding “ou” and any spelling-pronunciation patterns thechildren can find, such as pound/round/sound, should/could/would,and so on.

• Display page 4. Ask the children to suggest adjectives that describethe molten rock; for example, hot, smoky, red, and so on. Then askthe children to suggest other adjectives (besides hot) that describetemperature; for example, cold, warm, chilly, freezing, boiling, and soon. Then challenge them to place the words in order, from “coldest”to “hottest”; for example, freezing, cold, warm, hot, boiling. To extendthis activity, discuss how the suffixes “-ish”, “-er” and “-est” can beadded to warm to indicate degrees of intensity (warmish, warm,warmer, warmest). Ask them to suggest other words that these suffixescould be added to in the same way.

• Write the first sentence from the caption at the bottom of page 11 onthe board. Work with the children to re-order the sentence (addingwords if necessary) without changing the meaning; for example, Tohelp it tunnel through the soil in search of worms and grubs to eat, themole uses its forepaws and claws. Repeat this activity with othersentences from the book. If relevant, discuss any changes in meaning.

Under the Ground

BackgroundUnder the Ground was introduced inLesson Plan 29. This lesson exploresthe book further. It provides anopportunity for the children to planand write their own explanatory textabout what happens under theground, using the information in thebook.

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4 2


(page 90)• research and write a short text

explaining why rabbits live inburrows under the ground

• write alternative chapter headings• write a letter to put into a time

capsule; the letter could includeinformation about themselves andpredictions of what life might belike in the future

• look up any unfamiliar words in adictionary; for example, molten,minerals, crystals, tapped,unstable, plates, and so on

• draw a labelled diagram of wherethey live, showing all the differentnetworks under the ground (theycould use the illustrations onpages 16–17 to help them)

• imagine that they werespeleologists and write about anexciting adventure they had whenexploring a cave.

NLS ReferencesT17 locating key words and phrases,

useful headings and keysentences to use as tools forsummarising text

T14 note-makingT20 identifying key features of

explanatory textsS1 revising and extending work on

adjectives: comparing adjectiveson a scale of intensity; relatingthem to the suffixes whichindicate degrees of intensity






• Display the cover. Ask the children to suggest what might be in thisbook; for example, pictures of plants, information on how plantsgrow, and so on. Also ask them how the book might be organised,such as in sections for different types of plants. Then invite them todiscuss what they already know about how plants grow. Discuss andwrite their responses on a word web under appropriate headings.

• Read the contents with the children and discuss the organisation ofthe book; for example, the first section is an Introduction and there isan Index at the end of the book. Discuss the different sections,inviting them to predict what information might be in each one.

• Tell the children that a writing activity in this lesson will be to writean explanatory text that answers the question How does a seed growinto a plant? Then read the book up to page 13, pausing at the endof each double-page spread to discuss the relevance of theinformation to the question. Invite them to locate key words andphrases that relate to the question. Scribe their suggestions, invitingthem to help you organise this information in the best way for usein Shared Writing. When you read pages 4–5, highlight the keyfeatures of explanatory texts, such as structure (discuss the role ofparagraphs to organise information), language features (technicalwords such as inactive and sprouting) and layout (text andphotographs presented in an interesting and clear way).

• Using the notes you have compiled, work with the children to writean explanation that answers How does a seed grow into a plant?Organise the text in paragraphs, asking the children to indicatewhen a new paragraph could be started, and where diagrams,photographs or illustrations would be required. Read the finishedtext together, inviting the children to comment on its structure,language features and presentation. Invite them to suggest how thetext could be improved.

Word and Sentence Level Work• Draw the children’s attention to the words with prefixes on page 4

and 5 (unfavourable, inactive). Then challenge them to find words onthese pages that could have prefixes added to them; for example,grow/outgrow, ability/disability/inability, eaten/uneaten, broken/unbroken, and so on. Challenge them to find other words in the textwith prefixes, or words that could have prefixes added to them.

• Read page 14. Ask the children to identify the adjectives in the firstparagraph (bright, wonderful, amazing, appealing). Then ask themwhat the comparative and superlative forms are for these words(brighter/brightest, more wonderful/amazing/appealing, most wonderful/amazing/appealing). Write the caption from page 15 on the boardand ask the children to identify one adjective that does not reallyhave comparative or superlative forms (green). Discuss why andchallenge them to suggest other adjectives that do not have degreesof intensity, such as full and dead.

• Using the word light (page 7) challenge the children to suggest otherwords with the same “ight” letter string; for example, bright, fight,might, sight, right, and so on. Scribe their suggestions.


BackgroundThe Wonderful World of Plants (alsoexplored in Lesson Plan 32), looks athow plants grow and theirimportance in our lives. In this lessonthere is a special emphasis onexplanatory texts. Children explorethe different formats for organisingexplanations and experiment withthese in their own writing.Children will also benefit fromreading the four additionalinformation books (small books) fromThe Wonderful World of Plantsmodule: Plants Galore, Plant Works,Adapt or Die!, People and Plants.

YEAR TERM

4 2

Independent WorkChildren could:• use the picture of the germinating

seed on page 9 to write diaryentries, either from the point ofview of the seed or someonegrowing the seed. Encourage themto use descriptive language.

• show all the ways seeds can bedispersed, using a labelleddiagram of a garden

• write a description of theirfavourite vegetable/fruit/flower forsomeone that has never seen it.Remind them to think about theirfive senses and to use descriptivelanguage and appropriateorganisational devices.

• read The Wonderful World ofPlants small books.

NLS ReferencesT20 identifying key features of

explanatory textsT22 filling out brief notes into

connected proseT25 writing explanationsS1 revising and extending work on

adjectives; examiningcomparative and superlativeforms




For detailed science investigations building on the Big Book, see The Wonderful World of Plants module of Kingscourt’s Science Alive programme.

32


Shared Reading and Writing• Display the book and ask the children what they remember about it.

Ask them what type of book it is (non-fiction). Also ask them if theyremember details about how a plant grows from a seed.

• Display the contents and ask the children which sections they haveread, and then which sections they would like to read next. Beforeyou read, ask the children to keep in mind the question, How doplants help us live? Then read their chosen pages, pausing at the endof each double-page spread to allow time to discuss the content andlayout of the text. Challenge the children to identify key words orphrases, and to use them to summarise the content of the text in afew sentences. Also ask the children what information is relevant tothe question of how plants help us to live.

• Display pages 2 and 3. Ask the children to imagine they are at oneof the locations in the two central photographs, and to describewhat it would be like to be there. What can they see, hear, smell andfeel? Discuss and scribe their responses. Then ask them to identifyfive “features” of each location; for example, in the secondphotograph there are mountains, snow, grass, flowers and sky. Writethese on the board. Then challenge them to suggest at least twoadjectives for each “feature”. Scribe their suggestions. As a sharedwriting activity, work with the children to write detailed descriptionsof the photographs; for example, If I walked into the picture I wouldsee... hear… smell… and feel… Encourage them to use interestingadjectives; for example, instead of nice and tall, they could suggestspectacular and towering. Scribe the text. Read the descriptionstogether, inviting the children to make improvements.

Word and Sentence Level Work• Write the words flower, bud, eat, and help (from pages 18 and 20) on

the board. Ask the children to identify what part of speech thesewords are (nouns and verbs). Then work with them to add suffixesthat change them to adjectives (flowering, budding, edible andhelpful). Challenge them to suggest other words that these suffixescould be added to; for example, differ/differing, cheer/cheerful,sense/sensible, and so on.

• Re-read pages 16 and 17. Ask the children to locate the word thathas an apostrophe (don’t) and to identify the two words that havebeen contracted. Ask them to locate three other examples on thispage where two words could be contracted using an apostrophe (theyare/they’re, they have/they’ve, do not/don’t). Write The cones contain theconifer’s seeds on the board and ask them what role this apostropheplays (possession). Ask them where the apostrophe would be placedif the sentence were referring to more than one conifer (conifers’).

• Write the word travel (from page 6) on the board. Ask the childrenwhat happens to the “l” in travel when the suffix “-ed” is added (itdoubles). Ask them to think of other words where the final “l”doubles when a suffix is added; for example, levelled/levelling,compelling/compelled, modelled/modelling, and so on. Work together toformulate a rule for adding suffixes to words that end in “l”.


BackgroundIn this second lesson on TheWonderful World of Plants (see alsoLesson Plan 31) the emphasis is onthe importance of descriptivelanguage in conveying information.

YEAR TERM

4 2


(page 91)• write a description of what could

be happening in the mainphotograph on page 24; theycould write about who the peopleare, where they are going, whathappens to them, and so on

• write a list of the foods that theyhave eaten today and classifythem under the headings of Plantand Animal

• imagine they were a seed andwrite a personal recount of theirexperiences of being “scattered”(see pages 6 and 7); for example,by the wind, on water, via a hairyparachute, or an animal

• write a description of one of theother photographs on page 3,using their Shared Writing work asa model

• read The Wonderful World ofPlants small books.

NLS ReferencesT17 scanning texts to locate key

words or phrases and use theseas a tool to summarise

S1 revising and extending work onadjectives; constructing adjectivalphrases

S2 distinguishing between uses ofapostrophes for contraction andpossession

W5 investigating what happens towords ending in “l” whensuffixes are added

Activity Sheet 21: T21, S3


For detailed science investigations building on the Big Book, see The Wonderful World of Plants module of Kingscourt’s Science Alive programme.


• Display the cover of the book. Ask the children to think about what“nature’s marvels” might be and why; for example, huge mountains,waterfalls, volcanoes, storms, and so on. Ask them if nature’s marvelsnecessarily have to be beautiful. Could they also be strange orfrightening or unnattractive? Discuss their responses.

• Read the posters Growing Up, Going to Extremes, Built Big and CreepyCrawlies, allowing time for general discussion and for children tocomment on the layout and the different ways in which informationis presented; for example, the picture graph on Growing Up. Alsodiscuss the use and impact of illustrations and photographs; forexample, you could ask them why they think illustrations were usedinstead of photographs in Creepy Crawlies and Built Big.

• Display the remaining posters in turn, asking the children to identifyways, other than text, in which information is presented; forexample, diagrams, arrows, pictures with labels, and so on. Discussthese different methods, asking the children to appraise theirusefulness and suitability to the information they are conveying.

• Re-read the Creepy Crawlies poster with the children. Then help themto work out the size of each of the creatures. Write thesemeasurements on the board. Then discuss how this informationcould be presented in a graph. Discuss what information the childrenneed (the names and measurements of the creatures), and whatneeds to go on the two axes of the graph. Also ask them to suggest aheading. Work with them to create the graph on chart paper. Whenyou have finished, ask them which they think is more effective inpresenting the information – the poster or the graph. Why?

Word and Sentence Level Work• Discuss the idea of comparative and superlative adjectives. Then

display Built Big and ask the children to find examples in the poster(tallest, largest, bigger). Challenge them to suggest others to do withsize; for example, fatter/fattest, small/smallest, wider/widest, and so on.Discuss the spelling of these words. Then ask them to think ofadjectives that use more and most in their comparative andsuperlative forms, such as amazing, beautiful, ferocious, and so on.

• As an extension to work on comparative and superlative adjectives,challenge the children to find examples that could be turned intoadverbs; for example, ferociously/more ferociously/most ferociously,beautifully/more beautifully/most beautifully.

• Write nature’s marvels and world’s tallest on the board and ask thechildren what the apostrophe indicates in each of these words(possession). Then discuss the use of apostrophes for contraction andchallenge the children to use nature’s and world’s where the ‘’srepresents has or is; for example, The world’s gone mad.

• Use the words marvel and natural as a basis for word building; forexample, marvellous, marvellously and naturally. Discuss whathappens to the final consonant in some of these words when a suffixis added (it doubles). Ask them to suggest other examples where thishappens, such as beautiful, travel, fur, star.


BackgroundNature’s Mathematical Marvelsprovides a unique and fascinatingview of the natural world. In this firstlesson (see also Lesson Plan 34)children explore a selection of postersthat are ideal for highlighting typicalfeatures of explanatory non-fictiontexts.

YEAR TERM

4 2

Independent WorkChildren could:• write about aspects of life on Earth

that they would describe as“marvellous”

• write a story about how it wouldfeel to experience one of the“weather extremes” mentioned onthe Going to Extremes poster

• present the information from theBuilt Big poster in two graphs, onefor height and one for weight

• research the bird-eating spiderfrom the Creepy Crawlies posterand present the information on aposter; they could research other“special” spiders as well

• choose one of the planets fromthe Somewhere in Space posterand write a description of theenvironment on that planet and/oran imaginative story about spacetravel.

NLS ReferencesT16 preparing for factual research by

reviewing what is knownT23 collecting information and

presenting it in one usefulformat

S1 examining comparative andsuperlative adjectives; relatingthem to adverbs which indicatedegrees of intensity

S2 distinguishing between the usesof the apostrophe for contractingand possession

W3 building from other words withsimilar patterns and meanings

W5 investigating what happens towords ending in “l” whensuffixes are added

Literacy Links Plus48 For detailed maths investigations building on Nature’s Mathematical Marvels, see Kingscourt’s Maths Links Plus programme.


34


Shared Reading and Writing• Review ideas from the posters/book that were discussed in the

previous lesson. Display the contents page and ask the childrenwhich posters they examined. Invite them to describe specificnatural “marvels” they read about.

• Choose posters that have a more explanatory emphasis, such asBeautiful Balance, Natural Cycles and Around and Around. Read themwith the children and invite comments on the content and layout.Discuss what the text is explaining on these posters; for example,Natural Cycles explains natural events that mark intervals of time(day, month and year), and Around and Around answers the questionHow does turning symmetry work? Also discuss the language featuresand the different ways information is presented (diagrams, graphs,photographs, and so on).

• Display the Beautiful Balance, Perfect Fit and Around and Aroundposters. Ask the children to give oral descriptions of the creatures; forexample, the starfish has five “points”, a mini star-like shape in its centreand a pattern all over its body, and so on. Challenge them to think ofone or two describing words for each creature. Then select onecreature for the children to describe in detail. Encourage them tothink of words that describe its features accurately and interestingly.Also ask them to imagine and describe what the creature might feellike to touch. Scribe their responses in note form. Then work togetherto organise these notes into a written description; this could startwith the sentence When I look at the [starfish] I see... Read thecomplete description, inviting the children to comment on theeffectiveness of the text and to suggest possible improvements.

Word and Sentence Level Work• Select adjectives from the posters and challenge the children to

suggest which ones have opposites; for example, dark/light, hot/cold,big/small, wet/dry. Also discuss words and expressions that couldsometimes be used as alternatives to these adjectives; for example,gloomy, shadowy; light: bright, sunny. Scribe the children’s suggestionson the board.

• Display the Creepy Crawlies poster and work with the children tosuggest adjectival phrases for the different creatures; for example,large and hairy to describe the bird-eating spider; delicately patternedto describe the butterfly; blue, winged and six-legged to describe thewasp. You could repeat this activity for one of the other posters.

• Write mathematics on the board. Ask the children what suffix couldbe used to form an adjective (“-al”, as in mathematical). Then writethe words marvel, symmetry, amaze and pattern on the board andchallenge children to suggest how these nouns and verbs could bemade into adjectives; for example, marvellous, symmetrical, amazing,patterned. As a follow-up, children could find adjectives in some ofthe posters and discuss how nouns could be formed from these; forexample, hot/heat.


BackgroundThis second lesson plan for Nature’sMathematical Marvels (see alsoLesson Plan 33) reinforces children’sknowledge of features of non-fiction,with a focus on explanatory texts. Thephotographs and illustrations in thebook also provide an excellentstarting point for writing descriptions.

YEAR TERM

4 2


(page 92)• write about why some aspects of

nature can be described as“mathematical marvels”, includinga variety of examples

• write descriptions of other animalson the poster, using the work theydid in Shared Writing as a model

• research starfish and write a shortexplanation of how they eat

• research one thing about naturethat they find amazing or unusualand present their findings as aposter

• use the alliteration in some of theposter titles, such as Built Big,Mighty Mountains, Nature’sNumbers, as models to writealliterative titles for Going toExtremes, Growing Up andNatural Cycles; for example,Explosive Extremes, and so on.

NLS ReferencesT13 writing using descriptive and

expressive languageT20 identifying the key features of

explanatory textsS1 revising and extending work on

adjectives; constructing adjectivalphrases

W9 using alternative words andexpressions which are moreaccurate or interesting than thecommon choices

W13 investigating a range of suffixesthat can be added to nouns andverbs to make adjectives

Activity Sheet 22: T15, S4, W3

For detailed maths investigations building on Nature’s Mathematical Marvels, see Kingscourt’s Maths Links Plus programme.

Posters and Book(Maths in Context)Non-fiction from other subject areas.


• Display the cover. Then flip through the book, allowing the childrento skim-read some of the pages. If they explored the book earlier (seeLesson Plan 13, Term 1), ask them what they remember about it.

• Read pages 10–11 with the children. Discuss the text on page 11. Askthem to identify what “type” of text this is (explanatory). Discuss thetypical features of explanation on this page; for example, it explainsa process (how the Arabs performed multiplication), it contains asequential explanation, it is written in the present tense and it usesdiagrams. Use the explanation as a guide for multiplying somenumbers, and then discuss its effectiveness in explaining the process.

• Write How I got to school today on the board. As a shared writingactivity, work with the children to use one child’s journey to schoolas a basis for writing an explanation of the process (use theexplanation on pages 10–11 as a model). They could include whathappens at home before he/she leaves, such as getting dressed,eating breakfast, and so on. Remind them that the steps should bearranged in chronological sequence. They could also indicate wherediagrams would be useful, such as a simple map showing the routefrom home to school. Scribe the text for the children. Read theexplanation together, inviting them to comment on its effectivenessand possible improvements; for example,using sub-headings. Makeappropriate changes and re-read the text.

Word and Sentence Level Work• Ask the children to choose familiar words from pages 10–11; for

example, easy, multiply, quick, and so on. Work with them to identifywhat part of speech each word is and to suggest definitions. Writethe words and their definitions on the board. Read them togetherand then discuss whether it is possible to cut down the number ofwords used in the definitions. Remind them that some definitionsmay need to be re-written in order to reduce their length, whileothers may not be able to be reduced at all.

• Write largest (from page 10) on the board and ask the childrenwhether this is the comparative or superlative form of the adjectivelarge, and how they know. Ask them to suggest the comparativeform of large (larger). Then invite them to suggest sentences to showhow they are used; for example, Alice’s room is large. It is larger thanher sister’s room. In fact, it is the largest room in the house. Also discussadjectives that follow different spelling patterns or use more and mostin their comparative and superlative forms, such as tiny/tinier/tiniestand enormous/more enormous/most enormous.

• Read the first sentence on page 8. Then write All over the world,shapes use simple people for decoration. Discuss how this re-orderinghas changed the meaning. Then challenge the children to re-order itwithout changing the meaning (People all over the world use simpleshapes for decoration). Choose other sentences from the book for thechildren to re-order without changing the meaning. Remind themthat it may be necessary to delete or add words.


BackgroundThis is the second lesson onMathematics from Many Cultures(the book is introduced in Lesson 13in Term 1 and explored further inLesson Plan 50 in Term 3). In thislesson the children exploreexplanatory texts, analysing thefeatures that help to explain a processor answer a question. They use theexplanation in the book as a modelfor writing their own explanatory text.Because this Big Book is acompilation of posters that can beused in any order, children can use itto create a contents page, index andglossary.

YEAR TERM

4 2

Independent WorkChildren could:• choose a spread from the book

and re-write it for a youngeraudience, such as Year 2 or 3children

• write a detailed description ofsomething with a tessellationpattern on it; for example, a rug,or tiles

• interview older family members orfriends about the board gamesthey played when they werechildren and ask them to explainthe rules

• create a contents page for thebook

• create a glossary and/or an indexfor the book.

NLS ReferencesT20 identifying the key features of

explanatory textsT25 writing an explanation of a

processS1 revising and extending work on

adjectives; examiningcomparative and superlativeadjectives


W12 defining familiar words withinconstraints; considering how toarrive at the best use of words

Literacy Links Plus50 For detailed maths investigations building on Mathematics from Many Cultures, see Kingscourt’s Maths Links Plus programme.



Term 3 Overview

• investigating language features such as alliteration and describing theirimpact

• describing how a poet does or does not use rhyme• investigating features of different forms of poetry, such as haiku• investigating homophonesActivity Sheet 28: NLS references T4, W3 & 5

Skipping Rhyme and TheSwings in the ParkPoetry: traditional skipping rhymeand haiku

36

37

38

39


Why Flies BuzzFiction Big Book

Why Frog and Snake Can’t BeFriendsFiction Big Book

Why Flies Buzz

Why Frog and Snake Can’tBe Friends

40 Peter the Pumpkin-EaterFiction Text Chart

• discussing figurative language and how it creates powerful images• investigating the effect of expressive and descriptive language on the reader• exploring the impact of viewpoint; writing from different points of view• investigating verb tensesActivity Sheet 25: NLS references S3 & 4, W3 & 5

• understanding how paragraphs and chapters are used• exploring punctuation• distinguishing between the two uses of the apostrophe

• discussing the message of a poem• investigating how characters and themes develop• writing a script• discussing and using direct and indirect speech• investigating suffixes and prefixesActivity Sheet 26: NLS references T4, S3, W3

• exploring humour and language play • investigating the use of direct speech and how it affects the reading of a

poem• reviewing sentence structure and grammar• writing dialogue and nonsense poemsActivity Sheet 27: NLS references T7, S1 & 3

41 WrestlingPoetry: free verse (monologue)

42 Salt and PepperPoetry: rhyming conversation

43 Can You Sing?Poetry: contemporary free verse

• understanding how paragraphs are used• writing an alternative ending for a story• investigating the grammar of statements, questions and orders/commandsActivity Sheet 23: NLS references T2, W3 & 4

• investigating the moral issues in stories• writing critically about an issue or a dilemma raised in a story• exploring punctuation• investigating compound words

• investigating moral issues in stories• reading stories from other cultures• writing stories from story plans• extending words using prefixes and suffixes

• investigating moral and cultural issues in stories• understanding how paragraphs are used• writing an alternative ending for a story• investigating words with common letter strings but different pronunciationsActivity Sheet 24: NLS references T1, W10

44



45

46

47

48

49

50

51

52

53

The Story of Small FryNon-Fiction Text Chart

Egyptian GeniusNon-Fiction from Other Subject Areas

Egyptian Genius

Nature’s Shapes and PatternsNon-Fiction from Other Subject Areas

Nature’s Shapes and Patterns

Mathematics from Many CulturesNon-Fiction Big BookSee also Lesson Plans 13 and 35 forfurther work with this book

Extinction is ForeverNon-Fiction Big Book

Extinction is Forever

Extinction is Forever

• exploring and evaluating the main issues of a text• summarising• investigating pluralisation• exploring suffixes and prefixes

• investigating, evaluating and designing advertisements• investigating verb endings• investigating words with common letter strings but different pronunciations

• summarising• investigating pluralisation• investigating the grammar of different sentence types• distinguishing between the two uses of the apostropheActivity Sheet 29: NLS references T20, S3, W8

• investigating and writing arguments• investigating connectives used in an argument• exploring compound words

• summarising by re-wording and by identifying the key ideas in a diagram• investigating punctuation• extending words by adding parts• investigating the two forms of its and it’sActivity Sheet 30: NLS references S1, W6

• investigating, evaluating and designing advertisements• summarising the key ideas in a paragraph• exploring the use of “-ive” and “-tion” to extend wordsActivity Sheet 31: NLS references T20, S1, W8

• investigating arguments• presenting a point of view in a letter• investigating the grammar of different sentence types• exploring prefixes and suffixes

• summarising by re-wording the key points in a text• presenting a point of view• investigating pluralisation• exploring compound words

• investigating and writing arguments• summarising the key ideas from a paragraph/chapter• investigating verb endings• investigating words with common letter strings but different pronunciationsActivity Sheet 32: NLS references S2, W11


• Display the cover and the title page. Invite the children to talk aboutother traditional stories they may have read (you could remind themof Rumpelstiltskin and The Fisherman and His Wife). Discuss typicalfeatures of traditional stories, including aspects of story structure,such as introduction, build-up and conflict, and resolution.

• Read up to the end of page 10. Invite the children to comment onthe events that have happened so far and how they fit into thestructure of a traditional story (the characters are introduced, thesetting is described, the complication is established). Remind themthat this is a traditional story from Africa and discuss any evidenceof this; for example, the man and the woman picking coconuts, andthe different animals, such as the monkey and the rhinoceros.

• Re-read page 4 and ask the children to describe the main idea/eventin each paragraph; for example, the second paragraph describes thewife stepping on the snake, causing it to climb the tree and encounter themonkey. Read and discuss the rest of the book together. Invite themto pinpoint more examples of one thing building on another, and toexplain when and how this “chain” of problems is broken.

• As a shared writing activity, work with the children to write analternative ending to the story. You could suggest that perhaps thefly has an opportunity to speak, or the Great Spirit fails to convincethe Bushfowl that the rhinoceros did not mean to break her eggs, orwhat a less patient and diplomatic Great Spirit might do in the samesituation. Discuss the consequences of their chosen ending on thecharacters and events. Scribe for the children. Read the text together,inviting them to evaluate its effectiveness. They could also suggest anew moral for the story if appropriate.

Word and Sentence Level Work• Write Get out of my tree! on the board. Discuss the idea that this is an

order, or command. Challenge the children to change the commandinto a question; for example, Can you get out of my tree? Discuss thechanges (addition of words and question mark). Then write GreatSpirit asked the snake, “What have you to say for yourself?” on the boardand challenge the children to change this into an order; forexample, Great Spirit demanded, “Explain yourself!” Discuss thechanges that were made. Find other examples of questions in thebook for the children to change into commands.

• Write fearful on the board. Challenge the children to find words inthe story that could have the suffix “-ful” added to them (thank,wake, mouth and fright). Then ask them to suggest other words withthe “-ful” suffix, such as careful, cheerful, harmful, spoonful, thoughtful,beautiful, and so on. Discuss how these words are used.

• Write It is a dangerous thing to drop knives (page 20) on the board.Ask the children which words in this sentence could be contractedusing an apostrophe (it is/it’s). Discuss when its is used without anapostrophe (possessive) and ask the children to suggest examples,such as The car was driven until its engine exploded.

Why Flies Buzz

BackgroundWhy Flies Buzz is a traditional storyfrom Africa. In this lesson (see alsoLesson Plan 37), the children areprovided with the opportunity to writean alternative ending, and thenexamine the impact this has on thecharacters and the reader’s view ofthe story.

YEAR TERM

4 3


(page 93)• re-write the first sentence, for

example, On a bright sunnyday…, A long time ago…

• write dialogue between themonkey and the snake based onthe illustration on page 5

• write a persuasive letter from theGreat Spirit to the bushfowl askingher to wake the sun in themorning

• write a story, using the sequenceof events of Why Flies Buzz as amodel, to explain why anotheranimal makes a particular sound;for example, why dogs bark

• write what the fly might have saidif he/she had had a chance toprotest.

NLS ReferencesT2 reading stories from other

cultures; focusing on differencesin place and customs

T3 understanding how paragraphsare used to collect, order andbuild up ideas

T12 writing an alternative ending fora known story and discussinghow this would change thereader’s view of the charactersand events in the original story

S3 understanding how the grammarof a sentence alters when astatement is made into aquestion and when a questionbecomes an order

W8 extending words by adding thesuffix “-ful”

W10 distinguishing the two forms ofits (possessive) and it’s(contraction)

Activity Sheet 23: T2, W3 & 4

Fiction Big Book



• Display the cover and ask the children what they can tell you aboutWhy Flies Buzz; for example, that it is a traditional story from Africa,it is set in the bush, and it explains why flies make a buzzing sound.Scribe the children’s responses. Then read the book, pausing at theend of each page to discuss the content and developing the structureof the story (introduction, build-up of one accident leading toanother, conflict or major dilemma, and resolution).

• Ask the children to describe the dilemmas faced by the bushfowl andthe Great Spirit. Discuss how the Great Spirit solved the problem andwhether they agree with the way he did it. For example, what mighthave happened if he had just ordered the bushfowl to wake the sun,without examining the reason for her refusal, or if he had foundanother bushfowl to wake the sun? Discuss the idea of a moral, andask the children if they think there is a moral to this story, such asExplain yourself when you are given the chance, or Take responsibility for your actions.

• As a shared writing activity, work with the children to write anexplanation from the point of view of the Great Spirit, stating whyhe chose his particular approach to the problem. The explanationwould need to examine the dilemma faced by the Great Spirit andidentify his reasons for solving it the way he did. Before you begin,work with the children to compile a list of the key events from thestory that could be used by the Great Spirit to justify his choice. Thenwork with them to “join” these points together to form a convincingargument. As you scribe, encourage children to use adverbs andconjunctions that help them sequence the events and sum up themain points in the argument; for example, if, then, finally and so.Read the text together, inviting them to make improvements.

Word and Sentence Level Work• Write head on the board. Ask the children to suggest as many words

as they can that have the “ea” letter string; for example, bead, dead,heard, dread, feat. Then work with them to sort the words accordingto pronunciation; for example, words that have the long /e/ sound:bead, lead; feat, meat, and so on.

• Write bushfowl on the board and ask the children to identify the twowords that make up this compound word. Challenge them to thinkof other compound words; for example, lawnmower, shoelace,candlestick, and so on. Discuss how identifying the two words incompound words can help with spelling. Then challenge thechildren to suggest other words with the root word head; forexample, headband, headless, beheaded, heading, headed, headache,and so on. Ask them to identify which of these words are compound words.

• Write the second paragraph from page 4 on the board, omitting thepunctuation. Challenge the children to punctuate the text. Discusstheir suggestions, including the tasks of the different punctuationmarks, such as the dash to indicate a break or pause in a sentence.Compare this text with the text in the book. Discuss any differences.

Why Flies Buzz

BackgroundThis is the second lesson on thistraditional story from Africa (see alsoLesson Plan 36). The book is perfectfor examining moral issues in storiesand exploring the process of problemsolving and how different charactersface dilemmas.

YEAR TERM

4 3

Independent WorkChildren could:• make signs to warn animals to be

careful when they are passing abushfowl’s nest

• write a review of the book• write a newspaper article,

describing the events of the storyand including an attention-grabbing headline

• write a character portrait of one ofthe characters; for example, theGreat Spirit, the bushfowl or thefly

• write the story as a playscript• write the sequence of events as

numbered points• find other traditional African

stories and present them to theclass

• work in groups of eight to readthe story, with each child readinga different part.

NLS ReferencesT1 identifying the moral issues in

stories, e.g. the dilemmas facedby characters, the moral of thestory; discussing how charactersdeal with them

T8 writing critically about an issueor dilemma raised in a story;explaining the problem,alternative courses of action andevaluating the writer’s solution

S2 identifying common punctuationmarks

W3 building words from other wordswith similar patterns

W6 spelling words with commonletter strings but differentpronunciations

W11 investigating compound words

Fiction Big Book



• Display the cover of the book. Ask the children what it tells themabout the story (a traditional story about a frog and a snake). Askthem to suggest reasons why a frog and a snake couldn’t be friends.Read up to page 7. Invite them to make predictions about whatmight happen. Will the story have a happy ending? Why/Why not?

• Read up to the end of page 13. Re-read the second paragraph onpage 13 and discuss the irony of Snake’s statement. Ask the childrento describe the relationship between Frog and Snake, encouragingthem to refer directly to the text; for example, Snake says “It’s beenfun” (page 12) and Frog says “You’re my very best friend” (page 13).However, Snake also feels his own natural instinct to squeeze thingseven more tightly (page 13). Discuss why Snake loosens his hug anddoes not hurt Frog (he sees Frog as a friend and not a Niporbite).

• Read the rest of the story. Ask the children to identify the maindilemma for Frog and Snake; for example, they had such a greattime playing together, but are told that they are not meant to befriends, and that Snake should eat Frog. Discuss how they deal withthis and ask the children to describe the resolution. Also discuss howwell this story fits with their ideas about “typical” traditional stories.

• Ask the children to suggest other animals that couldn’t be friends forthe same reason Frog and Snake can’t, such as a chicken and a fox,a spider and a fly, or a cat and a mouse. As a shared writingactivity, work with them to plan a short story about two animals,based on Why Frog and Snake Can’t Be Friends. Before you start,establish a planning method; for example, points to indicate whatwill be in each chapter or paragraph. Discuss what will happen atthe beginning (introduce the characters, describe the setting), middle(establish the conflict), and end (resolution). Scribe the story plan inthe agreed format. Read the plan together.

Word and Sentence Level Work• Ask the children to find two nouns in the story that are used to name

a “young” person (child and baby). Challenge them to suggest othernouns like these; for example, infant, kitten, puppy, chick, kid. Thenask them to suggest adjectives that describe something “young”, suchas little, tiny, small. Then ask them to add endings to these adjectivesto form comparatives and superlatives, such as small/smaller/smallest,and so on. Use the word immature to discuss the use of more(comparative) and most (superlative) in comparisons. Write theprefix “mini-” on the board and ask them what it means (small) andto suggest words that contain “mini” or that use it as a prefix; forexample, minibus, miniskirt; miniature, minimal, minimum, minimise.

• Challenge the children to think of all the words that can be madeusing happy with the addition of prefixes and suffixes; for example,happiness, happier, happiest, unhappy, unhappiness, and so on. Discussthe need to change the “y” to “i” in some of the happy words. Extendthe activity to friend; for example, friendly, friendliness, unfriendly, andso on. Challenge them to find other words in the text that could beextended with the use of suffixes and prefixes.

Why Frog and Snake Can’t Be Friends

BackgroundWhy Frog and Snake Can’t Be Friendsis a traditional story from Nigeria. Inthis lesson (see also Lesson Plan 39)the children identify the moral issuesin the story and why it is described asa traditional story. They will alsoenjoy choosing and writing aboutwhat other animals could be used totell a story with the same “message”.

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4 3

Independent WorkChildren could:• write a personal recount of the

day of fun from the point of viewof either Snake or Frog

• draw a Clawsangnaws or aNiporbite

• draw a scene from the book andadd speech and/or thoughtbubbles for Frog and Snake

• use the story plan from SharedWriting to write a story

• write a story about a futuremeeting between an adult Frogand Snake

• find out the names of the babiesor young of a variety of animalsand present their findings to theclass.

NLS ReferencesT1 identifying moral issues in

stories, e.g. the dilemmas facedby characters, and discussinghow characters deal with them;locating evidence in the text

T2 reading stories from othercultures

T13 writing stories from story plansS1 understanding how words can

be changedW8 practising extending and

compounding words throughadding parts

W12 understanding how diminutivesare formed, e.g. prefixes, nounsand adjectives

Fiction Big Book



• Discuss what the children remember about Why Frog and Snake Can’tBe Friends. Scribe their responses. Then display each page, askingthem to comment on the design, illustrations and colours. What dothey like/dislike about the book? Invite them to suggest reasons forsome of the elements; for example, the curved lines used to separatethe text and illustrations on pages 2 and 7 resemble a snake.

• Tell the children that the book is adapted from a Nigerian story. Askthem if they can find any evidence in the book that might indicate itis from another culture; for example, the jungle setting, unusualwords such as Clawsangnaws and Niporbite, and so on. Ask them tosuggest what animals might be used if the story had been set inEngland, or a different country. Discuss the children’s responses.

• Discuss the ending of the story. Is it a happy ending? Why or whynot? Ask the children if they think there is a moral or a message tothis story; for example, ignorance is bliss, or choose your friendscarefully. Discuss whether they agree with the decision Frog andSnake make in the end.

• As a shared writing activity, work with the children to write analternative ending to the story; for example, perhaps Frog andSnake ignore their mothers’ warnings and continue to play witheach other, or Frog might decide to play with Snake (page 23). Askthe children at which point they would like to start the alternativeending. Before you start writing, plan the story together, inviting thechildren to suggest what information needs to be included (such asnew characters, a new setting), what happens at the end, and so on.Then scribe the new ending on chart paper, inviting the children toguide you with organising the text into paragraphs, and with thepunctuation of any dialogue. Read through the text, discussingwhether this ending has altered their view of the characters and/orthe story.

Word and Sentence Level Work• Write the verb like (from page 5) on the board. Ask the children

what suffix could be added to make like an adjective (“-able”). Askthem to suggest other words that “-able” could be added to; forexample, obtain, teach, watch. Then write admiration (page 7) on theboard and ask them what the root word is (admire). Ask them tosuggest other words that “-tion” could be added to, such ascommunicate, suffocate, locate, dedicate. Discuss what happens to the“e” at the end of these words when the suffix is added.

• Use mound and counted (page 10) to challenge the children tosuggest words that have the “ou” letter string, and then to sort theminto groups of words with the same sound; for example, pound,hound, fountain, mountain; plough; four, pour, and so on.

• Challenge the children to change the question Will you keep awayfrom him now? into an order (You keep away from him!). Thenchallenge them to change Let’s play into a question (Would you like toplay?). Discuss the addition or deletion of words, the changes inpunctuation, and the change in tone.


BackgroundThis is the second lesson plan on thistraditional story from Nigeria (seealso Lesson Plan 38). Children willenjoy looking at the story in moredetail and writing an alternativeending.

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(page 94)• write descriptions of the

illustrations using as manydescriptive and expressiveadjectives as possible

• suggest adverbs that addexpression and feeling to theverbs that introduce and concludedialogue; for example, on page 7:“Let’s play,” said Frog excitedly.

• write a concrete poem or anacrostic about a frog or a snake

• write a persuasive text about whyFrog and Snake should be friends

• write the story from the point ofview of one of the mothers

• write the story that Frog or Snakewould tell their children abouttheir experience of playingtogether, and why they neverplayed together again.

NLS ReferencesT1 identifying moral and cultural

issues in storiesT3 understanding how paragraphs

are usedT12 writing an alternative ending for

a story and discussing how thischanges the reader’s view of thecharacters and events in theoriginal story

S3 understanding how the grammarof a sentence alters when astatement becomes a question,and a question becomes anorder


W8 extending words through addingparts (“-able”, “tion”)


Fiction Big Book



• Tell the children the title of the book this chart is taken from and askthem to predict why the boy is called Peter Pumpkin-Eater.

• Discuss the use and organisation of paragraphs in a fiction ornarrative text; for example, paragraphs usually contain one mainidea; are organised sequentially; build upon one another; are oftenindented, and make reading the text easier. Then read both sides ofthe chart together and discuss the number and length of theparagraphs.

• Discuss Peter’s dilemma. Ask the children to suggest things Petercould do to help the cactuses; for example, he could read a book onhow to grow cactuses, or he could get advice from a cactus expert ora gardener. Scribe their suggestions on the board. If the childrenread the novel, they could compare these suggestions with Peter’scourse of action in the story.

• Re-read the chart, pausing at the end of each paragraph. As ashared writing activity, work with the children to summarise theauthor’s intent and the main idea in each paragraph of the chart.For example, Paragraph 1 Author’s intent: to set the scene, Main idea:Peter’s interest grows; Paragraph 2 Author’s intent: to describe Peter,Main idea: Peter wants first prize; Paragraph 3 Author’s intent: topresent a problem, Main idea: Peter can’t seem to grow things. Scribe thesummaries on chart paper. Read through these summaries,discussing the planning that has obviously gone into the writing ofthis text. Discuss how summarising the intent and the main ideabefore writing can be a useful device to help sequence ideas andplan writing.

Word and Sentence Level Work• Re-read the first sentence on side two of the chart. Then write the

following sentences on the board: A carnivorous plant would have lovedto cultivate Peter and It would have been lovely for Peter to cultivate acarnivorous plant. Discuss how changing the word order and addingwords has changed the meaning. Select other sentences from thechart for the children to re-write by changing the word order and/oradding words. Ask them to comment on any change of meaningand any words they added to retain meaning.

• Ask the children to highlight the punctuation marks on side one ofthe chart. Ask them to explain the function of each. Discuss theauthor’s choice of punctuation marks. Work with the children toidentify the punctuation that could be altered, without changing themeaning; for example, the dashes in the second paragraph could bereplaced by commas; the hyphen in city-slicker could be removed tomake two words. Then ask them to locate the punctuation marks onthe second side of the chart. Draw their attention to the colon anddiscuss its function in preceding a list.

• Ask the children to locate words containing an apostrophe on thechart. Ask them to indicate which apostrophes indicate contractionsand which mark possession. You could list the words in two columnswith the headings “Contractions” (wasn’t, didn’t, he’d, weren’t); and“Possession” (Pumpkin-Eater’s, Peter’s).

Peter the Pumpkin-Eater

BackgroundThis chart presents Chapter 1 of thenovel Peter the Pumpkin-Eater byJanine Scott (Literacy Links Plus Stage8). The chart pages describe Peter’sinitial interest in growing cactuses,while the book tells us how, and why,his interest moves on to giantpumpkins.

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4 3


• explain some of the figures ofspeech that appear on the chart;for example, a green finger, city-slicker, concrete jungle, and list orcreate others that could be used intheir own writing

• write imaginatively about howPeter might have got his nickname,Peter the Pumpkin-Eater

• find out more about carnivorousplants and present their findings tothe class

• write what happens next in thestory; for example, they could writeabout what would happen if Peter’scactuses suddenly grew to beenormous and took over his house

• present an argument either for oragainst the idea of talking andplaying music to plants in order tohelp them grow.

NLS ReferencesT3 understanding how paragraphs

or chapters are used to collect,order, and build up ideas

S2 identifying common punctuationmarks, and responding to themappropriately when reading

W10 distinguishing between the twouses of the apostrophe

Fiction Text Chart



• Display the poem and read it to the children. Invite theirspontaneous comments about the poem and about their ownexperiences of seeing or taking part in the sort of behaviourdescribed in the poem; that is, wrestling in a friendly way. Theymight also have seen animals “play-fighting” and could suggestreasons for this: do they think that it is a type of practice for realfighting or just for fun? Do the same reasons apply to children?

• Ask the children what makes Wrestling a poem. You might like tosuggest that the poet has created a rhythm in the words she haschosen, and ask them how the rhythm has been created; forexample, with repetitions and an unusual number of connectives.

• Invite the children to comment on the level of language used in thepoem and say whether they think the words and style would suit achild of four, or a child of ten, or an age in-between these. Ask them to give reasons for their answers. Alsoask them whether, based only on the words of the poem, they wouldassume the speaker to be a boy or a girl.

• Ask the children what “unspoken rules” might apply to the type offighting and wrestling described in the first part of the poem. Whatwords in the poem might suggest such rules? (…but not very hard.)Also ask the children whether they would have a play-fight withsomeone they didn’t like. Why/why not? Invite the children tosuggest a set of rules for play-fighting. Scribe the rules on the board;for example, Opponents must not really dislike each other. Attempts tocause injury are strictly forbidden…

Word and Sentence Level Work• Refer to the word sunny in the poem. Ask the children what part of

speech this word is (an adjective). Discuss how we would change theword if we wanted to say that one day or time was “more sunny”than another (sunnier, as in Which day was sunnier: Monday orTuesday? or The morning was sunnier than the afternoon). Also guidechildren to explain how the superlative sunniest is used; that is,when three or more days or times are involved in the comparison, asin Monday was the sunniest day we’ve had in weeks or Usually theafternoon is the sunniest part of the day. Brainstorm with the childrenseveral groups of positive, comparative and superlative adjectives,including some examples that involve a change of word or the useof more/most; for instance: funny, funnier, funniest; good, better, best;playful, more playful, most playful. List the adjective groups on theboard. Also discuss typical ways in which the different forms ofadjective are used; for example, the comparative is often followed bythan, the superlative is often followed by of (as in It was the best gameof the season… the hottest day of the week… and so on).

• Discuss the tense of the poem, guiding the children to see that it is inthe present tense. Work with them to change sections of the poeminto past tense. Scribe the text on the board or on chart paper aschildren agree on what words need to be changed or added. Invitecomparison of the past-tense and present-tense versions.

Wrestling

BackgroundWrestling (Kathleen Fraser) tells ofthe games children play, and of theunspoken rules that govern them. Itprovides an interesting comparisonwith an earlier poem in thiscollection, Samuel (Bobbi Katz),which also is spoken in the slightlypuzzled but determined voice of achild dealing in a fundamentallyoptimistic way with the ups anddowns of life.

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4 3


(page 95)• re-read the poem in the small

book• write a short story about a

particular wrestling matchbetween the two children in thepoem; suggest that they write inthe third person, taking the role ofa narrator who can tell us not onlywho the children are and whatthey look like, but what each isthinking and feeling before, duringand after the match

• write about their own experiencesof a “play” wrestling match, or areal argument with a friend

• script a conversation between thechildren in the poem (giving themnames) and a friendly adult who isconcerned about their “fighting”;the children’s aim could be to helpthe adult understand that this kindof “play” is part of their friendshipand to persuade him or her thatthey know how to prevent a realfight developing.

NLS ReferencesT1 identifying social issuesT6 describing how a poet does or

does not use rhymeT11 exploring the issues of a story by

writing a storyS1 understanding how words can

be changedW8 extending words and

investigating the links betweenmeaning and spelling

Activity Sheet 25: S3 & 4, W3 & 5




• Display the poem and read it to the children. Briefly discuss theirimpressions of the poem, and clarify any unfamiliar vocabulary. Then re-read it together. Invite the children to re-read the poem inparts, with some children saying Salt’s words, the others readingPepper’s reply, and you reading the few linking words.

• Introduce and discuss the word temperament. Then ask the childrento describe Salt’s temperament, according to Pepper. They could startwith an adjective to stand in place of takes life easy (easy-going), andsuggest other adjectives that might relate to easy-going; for example,relaxed, unexcitable, calm. Then ask, Which lines in the poem show thatPepper thinks of his own temperament very differently? For example,they could talk about the suggestion of a hot temper or trouble-making tendencies in “…if I let fly, people cry”. Encourage them totalk about the literal meaning of “I make life sneezy” (spilled peppermight lead to sneezes). Also discuss what sort of person might makelife “sneezy” in a metaphorical sense; for example, someone whomakes it impossible for you to feel relaxed.

• Remind the children that, as this poem shows, imaginative writingmakes it possible to give a voice to anything. Invite them to imagineother contrasting foodstuffs; for example, sugar and vinegar, or ice-cream and a very spicy curry. Discuss what these foods might sayto each other and how they might say it.

• Work with the children to compose a new version of the poem usingindirect speech and the past tense. This could begin: Salt askedPepper/ Why they were always separate;/ He in his cellar… Scribe thenew text for the children as they agree on each line. Discuss how thechanges affect the impact of the text.

Word and Sentence Level Work• Challenge the children to take the word kind and think of all the

words that can be made using it with the addition of prefixes andsuffixes. Discuss and list the children’s suggestions; for example,kindness, unkind, unkindness, kinder, kindest, unkinder, kindly, kindliness,unkindly, unkindliness, and so on. Extend the activity to life, anotherword from the poem, discussing the need to change “f” to “v”, as inlives, living, livelihood, and so on.

• Use the word kinder as a starting point for discussing positive,comparative and superlative forms of adjectives. Ask children tosuggest sentences to show how kind, kinder and kindest are used. Forexample: Helen is kind. She is a kinder person than her sister. She is thekindest person I know. Also discuss some adjectives that follow adifferent spelling pattern or do not use “-er”,”-est”, such as easy,easier, easiest and easy-going, more easy-going, most easy-going.

• Ask the children to find a word in the poem that can be used asboth an adjective and a verb, with different pronunciation butwithout any change of spelling (separate). Ask them how they cantell that it is used as an adjective in the poem. Invite them tocompose a sentence using the verb separate; for example, It’s best ifwe separate the salt and the pepper.

Salt and Pepper

BackgroundSalt and Pepper provides an exampleof light-hearted rhyming poetry in theform of direct speech. David McCordgives a salt-cellar and a pepper-mill avoice and listens in on theirconversation. As children discuss thediffering characteristics of salt andpepper, encourage them to considerwhether the poem is about more thanjust salt and pepper. For example,perhaps the poet is suggesting thatpeople with very differenttemperaments won’t always get alongeasily or have the same needs andreactions.

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4



book• write a conversation in direct

speech between two othercontrasting foods or objects; suchas a chocolate bar and a lemon,or a hiking boot and a slipper

• script an argument involvingvarious food items on a dinnertable, with each one insisting thatits taste is the best of all

• write about ingredients describinghow they think they should beused; for example, Good morning,this is A Cup of Sugar speaking.Now, I don’t mind mixing withFlour, but don’t put me anywherenear Mustard please!

• work in pairs to write an interviewwith Pepper and/or Salt, askingabout some of the mostextraordinary experiences theyhave had.

NLS ReferencesT1 identifying social issues and

locating the evidence in the textT11 exploring issues by writing a

storyS1 understanding how words can

be changedS2 identifying common punctuation

marksW7 collecting words with common

rootsActivity Sheet 26: T4, S3, W3

3




• Display the poem and read it to the children. Re-read it together. Children could also read the poem in parts; some of the childrencould be the boy, reading everything except the words spoken by theman, and the other children could read the man’s speech. Anenjoyable follow-up would be for children to act out theconversation without any of the attributions.

• Discuss the “joke” of the poem: the way a simple answer to a simplequestion is put off for as long as possible, so that when it comes it isalmost a surprise. Children might also comment on the way the boygives his replies in the form of questions; invite them to talk abouthaving done or seen the same thing themselves.

• Ask the children to explain the task of the attributions (or the wordsthat tell us who is talking) in the poem. The point that mightemerge is that they help us make sense. As a way of testing thisidea, ask the children to read Can You Sing? without the attributions,except for the first one; for example, A man said to me, “Can yousing?” “Sing?” “Yes.” “Who?” “You.” “Me?”, and so on. Ask why thismight be confusing. Children might suggest that using charactervoices would be a way of helping to avoid confusion.

• Suggest to the children that they could think of Can You Sing? as ajoke duet. Invite them to play with this musical idea by replacingthe single-word responses with, in order, Doh, Ray, Me, Fah, Soh, Lah,Te, Doh; for example, A man said to me,/ “Can you sing?”/ I said,“Doh?”/ He said, “Ray.”/ I said, “Me?”… (The last line could remain:… said, “Oh.”) This could be the basis of a shared writing activity.Invite the children to “sing” the result.

Word and Sentence Level Work• Ask the children which word is most often repeated in the poem

(said). Invite them to “test” whether it would be difficult or easy tofind another saying verb (such as exclaimed, asked, demanded orwhispered) that could be substituted for said throughout the poem.They are likely to find that using a mixture of two substitute words,such as asked and replied, would be easier than trying to find asingle replacement for said, because the alternative words have morespecific meanings.

• Invite the children to think of adverbs to describe the way the twocharacters speak. For example, I said suspiciously, “Sing?” Encouragethem to change the adverb with each new attribution, and to makethe adverbs consistent with the characters they develop. Forexample, if suspiciously is used at the start, the character shouldcontinue to be suspicious – so warily could be used.

• Ask the children how we would punctuate the following, if wewanted to put an attribution after well: Yes, as a matter of fact I cansing very well, but I don’t intend to sing for you. (“Yes, as a matter of factI can sing very well,” I said, “but I don’t intend to sing for you.”)Continue with other direct speech, including some questions; forexample, children could punctuate the following with an attributionafter now: are you asking me to sing for you now well I’m afraid I won’t.

Can You Sing?

BackgroundThis poem is a delightful piece ofnonsense based on the old game ofMe, Sir?, in which a conversation iscarried out with hardly any advanceon the question that initiated it. The children will enjoy the joke of thepoem, and the dialogue formatprovides an ideal springboard foractivities that will reinforce their skillsin writing direct speech.

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4 3



book• write a poem using Can You Sing?

as a model, based on other one-word or two-word questions andresponses, using words that beginwith the same sound as what,why, well, when, which, won’t,will; for example, “Where,” hesaid, “is Wendy?”/ “What?” Isaid./ “Wendy,” he said./ I said,“Wendy?”/ He said, “Wendy.”/“Wendy?” I said. “Why?”

• re-write the poem in indirectspeech; for example, A man askedme if I could sing. I asked him ifhe’d asked me if I could sing andhe said that he had. Alternatively,the children could re-write thepoem using direct speech butexpanding the responses; forexample, I said, “Sing? Did yousay sing?”/ He said, “Yes. Youheard me correctly…”

• work in groups of three to readthe poem, with one child as theman, one as the other speaker,and the third reading theattributions; they could try to readas rapidly as possible withoutoverlapping.

NLS ReferencesT7 recognising some simple forms

of poetry and their usesT14 writing poemsS2 identifying common punctuation

marksS3 understanding sentence

grammarActivity Sheet 27: T7, S3 & 1




• Before displaying the poems, ask the children what skipping chantsor other play rhymes they know; for example, counting rhymes suchas One, two, buckle my shoe. Three, four, knock at the door…

• Read Skipping Rhyme to the children. Discuss the actions with thechildren, aiming to reach agreement about what each involves; forexample, stay alive could involve the pace of the game increasingrapidly for a few seconds; bang the gate could mean landing loudlyon both feet without losing rhythm.

• Discuss the purpose of the rhyme with the children. In what waysdoes the rhyme add to the enjoyment of the game? You might like toremind the children of other activities in which a chant plays a part,such as hauling ropes on a sailing ship, accompanied by seashanties. Children could also discuss sporting events where thespectators develop various chants to encourage their team, or otherexamples such as people dancing while singing along with a song.

• Invite children to describe the rhyming pattern of the poem and togive examples of exact and “imperfect” rhymes, as in two/shoecompared to one/tongue or twist/this. For each imperfect rhyme, askthe children what sound the two words do have in common; that is,the vowel sound is the same, and there is a similarity between thefinal sounds, although not an exact match.

• Read The Swings in the Park to the children. Draw attention to thehaiku format (three lines, with 5/7/5 syllables), and ask the childrenhow they can tell that the child who wrote the poem took care tofollow this pattern. They might comment on they at the beginning ofline 2; the pronoun is not needed but provides an effective rhythmand a “perfect” syllable count. Ask the children if they agree withthe thought and image that this haiku conveys. Why/why not?

• Invite children to comment on the repeated /l/ sound in lonelylooking and how effective this is. For a shared writing activity youcould work with them to compose alliterative phrases that couldrelate to play, scribing suggestions under the headings Cheerful andLess cheerful. For example: Cheerful – jump joyfully, dance with delight…Less cheerful – look longingly (at children playing when you have notbeen asked to join in), despair at dropping the ball, slip while skipping…

Word and Sentence Level Work• Tell the children that touch has an unusual spelling pattern for the

/uch/ sound. Ask them to test this statement by suggesting otherwords that rhyme with touch. Encourage them to guide you withspelling as you list their suggestions, grouping the words by spellingpattern; for example, much, such, clutch, hutch.

• Remind the children that the names of some of the numbers inSkipping Rhyme are homophones. Write on the board the example ofone (won); then ask children to find and guide you in spelling theothers: two (to, too), four (for), eight (ate). Invite the children tosuggest sentences using as many of the words as possible; forexample, We thought that eight pizzas, two huge bowls of salad and fourapple pies would be too much food for one meal – but we ate it all!

Skipping Rhyme and The Swings in the Park

BackgroundExploring a traditional skipping rhymewill remind children that poetry is notonly found in books. Like manychildren’s chants, Skipping Rhymebases its rhymes and its energeticrhythm on numbers and counting,and is clearly designed to accompanyaction. If a convenient location and along skipping rope are available, havechildren perform the game while therest of the class chants the rhyme.The Swings in the Park, a carefullyconstructed haiku by a child of 9,offers a more meditative view of play.

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4 3

Independent Work• complete Activity Sheet 28


book• write their own skipping rhymes,

or rhymes for any other sort ofactivity

• write a rhyme for an activity thatwe would normally not expect tobe accompanied by a chant, suchas cooking, washing clothes,ironing, fixing a motor car, sewinga garment

• write a haiku about skipping, anda rhyme about playing on swingsin a park

• research other game-rhymes andstreet-rhymes, including counting-out rhymes, and the short chantstraditionally used in variousgames; for example, Coming,ready or not!

• try continuing Skipping Rhyme upto twenty.

NLS ReferencesT5 counting the syllables in each

line of poetryT6 describing how a poet does or

does not use rhymeT7 recognising simple forms of

poetry and their usesT14 writing poemsW3 spelling using phonemes and

visual skillsActivity Sheet 28: T4, W3 & 5




• Read side one of the chart. Allow time for general discussion. Ask thechildren what type of text this is (non-fiction) and what featuresthey would expect to find; for example, an opening statement aboutthe topic, a number of paragraphs each dealing with one main idea,and so on.

• Read side two of the chart. Work with the children to compose asentence that summarises the information presented in the firstparagraph; for example, Seals gather at rookeries to mate. Scribe forthem and discuss how the details are left out. If possible, organisethe children to work in small groups to compose sentences thatsummarise each paragraph on side one. Discuss and compare thesentences, and then use them to compose a definitive sentence thatcaptures the essence of each paragraph.

• Re-read the final paragraph on side two. Discuss how this is asummary about caring for seal pups. Discuss how this type ofsummary can be useful when the reader only requires the essentialinformation of a text. Point out the use of words such as never and ifand discuss the use of the imperative form of verbs. Then challengethe children to further summarise this summary by highlighting themain points and deleting the supporting arguments. Scribe thepoints on chart paper. Read them together.

• Write the following questions on the board to help the childrenrevise and evaluate what they have learnt from the chart: What haveyou learnt about seal pups? What are some of the problems for seal pups?What would you do if you found a seal pup? Work with the children towrite short, concise answers to these questions. Scribe for them,encouraging them to help you find the relevant information on thechart. Read the text together, discussing the features of the text thathelped them answer the questions.

Word and Sentence Level Work• Review previous work on suffixes. Discuss how some words can

change into different parts of speech when a suffix is added. Ask thechildren to find words on side one that contain suffixes; for example,usually, frighten, permanently and protection. Ask them to identify theroot word and what part of speech each word is. Then challengethem to use each word in a sentence. Scribe their sentences. As afollow-up, ask them to find words on side two to which suffixescould be added, such as, time, swim, eat, and so on. Challenge themto add the appropriate suffixes to each word. List the new words andask the children to use each in a sentence. Scribe their sentences.

• Write baby on the board and ask the children what the plural forthis word is (babies). Challenge them to suggest other words endingin “y” that have the suffix “-ies” when they are made plural; forexample, lady/ladies, sky/skies, fly/flies, and so on. Then write theword die on the board and ask them what happens when the “-ing”suffix is added (the “ie” letter string is replaced with “y”, as in dying).Challenge them to suggest other words where the “ie” endingchanges to a “y” when “-ing” is added, such as lie/lying.

The Story of Small Fry

BackgroundThis chart features selected text frompages 22–29 of the novel The Story ofSmall Fry by Marcia Vaughan(Literacy Links Plus Stage 8). The firstsection of this book presents a fictionstory of an orphan seal pup. Thesecond section is a non-fiction reporton real-life seals and the people whohelp them in times of trouble.

YEAR TERM

4 3


• re-write the text from the seal’spoint of view

• write an imaginative story aboutfinding a seal pup and becoming itsfriend

• investigate the word rookery andprepare a report that describes allthe sorts of animals that formrookeries, and why they do this

• give possible reasons for thewarning given in the lastparagraph, Never pick up a loneseal pup without getting advice!

• investigate and report on any othermammals that are closely relatedto seals and have adapted to life in,and near, the sea

• draw pictures of a seal resting on arock or swimming in the sea.

NLS ReferencesT11 exploring the main issues of a

textT16 evaluating issues in a textT20 summarising a sentence or

paragraph and rewording themin a limited number of words

S1 understanding that some wordscan be changed in particularways and others cannot, e.g.pluralisation

W8 revising prefixes and suffixes

Non-Fiction Text Chart



• Ask the children what they already know about ancient Egypt.Scribe and discuss their responses. Display the cover of the book anddiscuss the images. Then display some of the posters and ask themwhether they are non-fiction or fiction and to give their reasons why.Also discuss the different ways in which information is presented; forexample, timeline, map, captions, and so on.

• Read the posters Massive Monuments, Number Pictures, Ancient Art,Tomb Paintings and Fun and Games (these posters cover aspects ofEgypt that the children might already know about). Ask the childrento suggest how the information on each poster relates tomathematics; for example, Number Pictures looks at hieroglyphs thatrepresent numbers. Ask them if they think, from reading theseposters, that ancient Egypt was an important civilisation, and toexplain why. Encourage them to refer to specific points which showthat ancient Egypt made significant contributions to mathematicaland other kinds of knowledge.

• As a shared writing activity, work with the children to create anadvertisement to attract visitors to ancient Egypt. Before you write,ask them to think about the typical characteristics of advertisements;for example, a slogan or catchy line, persuasive language,photographs and/or illustrations, and so on. You could show themexamples of real holiday advertisements. Discuss which elementsthey could use. Then work with them to compile a list of key pointsto include, such as what there is to see and do in Egypt, its location,and so on. Scribe their ideas. Discuss the need for theiradvertisement to be clear and easy to read. Create the advertisementon chart paper. Provide an opportunity for them to evaluate andimprove its effectiveness.

Word and Sentence Level Work• Ask the children what word is used to describe things or people that

come from Egypt (Egyptian) and what part of speech it is (adjective).Ask them to suggest the adjectives for Britain (British), France (French)and Australia (Australian). Then challenge them to suggest theadjectives for civilisation (civilised), fame (famous), value (valuable). Askthem to find other examples of noun-adjective connections on theposters. They could then use the adjectives in sentences to qualify anoun, such as Valuable items were stolen from the tomb.

• Read the main paragraph and the first caption on Number Pictures.Ask the children to find all the verbs and describe their tense (past).Scribe them on the board. Then challenge them to change this textinto first-person present tense (as if they were writing from the pointof view of someone of the time). Discuss the different patterns ofverb endings, including the regular “-ed” ending(represent/represented) and the irregular (write/wrote).

• Use the words death, creating, great, features (from the Tomb Paintingsposter) to look at the way one letter string (“ea”) can representdifferent sounds and pronunciation. Challenge the children to thinkof other examples for each pattern; for example, death, weather,bread; great, steak, break; feature, teacher, and so on.

Egyptian Genius

BackgroundEgyptian Genius is a non-fiction bookwith a set of posters of key spreadsfrom the book. Reading about theancient Egyptian civilisation is afascinating way to examine thedifferent ways information ispresented in non-fiction texts.Children will enjoy creating anadvertisement to persuade people tovisit Egypt and can use it to evaluatethe impact and appeal ofadvertisements, and the methodsused to persuade readers to buyproducts. (See also Lesson Plan 47.)

YEAR TERM

4 3

Independent WorkChildren could:• use the work from the Shared

Writing activity as the basis fordesigning a holiday brochure forancient Egypt

• imagine they were a child whohad gone back in time to ancientEgypt and write a letter homeabout all their experiences

• write a description of the mainpicture on the MassiveMonuments poster

• write a description of either theman’s or the woman’s outfit onpage 33 and say how it is differentto the clothes they wear

• write a persuasive piece on thetopic Ancient Egypt was anamazing civilisation.

NLS ReferencesT19 to evaluate advertisements for

their impact, appeal andhonesty, focusing on howinformation about the product ispresented

T25 to design an advertisementS1 understanding how some words

can be changed in particularways and others cannot, e.g.verb endings


W8 extending words through addingparts

For detailed maths investigations building on Egyptian Genius, see Kingscourt’s Maths Links Plus programme.




• Display the book. Discuss the previous lesson, reviewing key ideasfrom the posters and the features of layout the posters include.Display the children’s advertisements for visiting Egypt and discusstheir impact and effectiveness.

• Ask the children if the Egyptians were good mathematicians. Discusstheir responses. Display the posters It’s About Time, From Time to Time,Number Pictures, Tools of the Trade, Pyramid Patterns, Hand Drawn andMeasuring Up. Read through and discuss the posters with thechildren. Ask them to summarise the key ideas; for example, It’sAbout Time is about ways in which the Egyptians told the time. Thenask them to find evidence on these posters that support the idea thatthe Egyptians were good mathematicians. List points in note formon chart paper.

• Read the Number Pictures poster and discuss the use of hieroglyphs torepresent numbers. Invite some children to write some numbers inhieroglyphs on the board while the others work out what they are.Then challenge them to summarise the first paragraph by rewordingit; for example, Ancient Egyptians used hieroglyphs to write numbers.

• Read the poster King Khufu’s Pyramid. As a shared writing activityfocusing on the use of its and it’s, work with the children to writeabout a trip to see this pyramid. As a model or a beginning, writeI’ve just been to see King Khufu’s Pyramid. It’s amazing. Its sides facedirectly north, east, south and west. Work with them to continue thetext with sentences that include its/it’s and to guide you on the useof the apostrophe. Read the text together.

Word and Sentence Level Work• Write Egypt on the board and ask the children what part of speech it

is (proper noun) and how they know this. Ask them if it can bemade plural (no, it can only refer to one thing). Then ask them ifEgyptian (used as a proper noun rather than an adjective) can bemade plural (yes). To focus more generally on pluralisation, play a“plural game” with the children, where one child says a plural word,such as camels, and the next child gives the singular form, and so onaround the room. Pause to discuss the different ways words arepluralised; for example, adding “s” and “ies”, and so on.

• To extend the work on pluralisation, ask children to write someplural nouns relating to ancient Egypt on pieces of paper and putthem into a “lucky dip”; for example, Egyptians, pyramids, deserts,temples, and so on. Then a child could pull out two or three words ata time and challenge another child to put the nouns into sentences.Encourage the children to use statements, questions and directspeech, and to compare the word order in each.

• Write hieroglyphics and pharaoh on the board and ask the children toidentify the letters that make the /f/ sound (“ph”). Then challengethem to think of other ways of spelling the /f/ phoneme (“f”, “ff”,“gh”) and ask them to suggest examples of each; for example, fright,for, trifle; puff, stuff, piffle; tough, laugh, laughter, and so on.

Egyptian Genius

BackgroundIn this second lesson plan onEgyptian Genius (see also LessonPlan 46) children continue to look atthe different ways information ispresented in non-fiction texts. Theyuse the interesting information in theposters to summarise the key pointsand to make notes.

YEAR TERM

4 3


(page 99)• draw a picture about their lives on

paper, using the Egyptian gridmethod described on the TombPaintings poster

• research further one subject fromthe posters that interested themand present this information on awall chart

• create a timeline for their ownlives; for example, it could showwhen they started school, whenthey moved house, when abrother/sister was born, whenthey went on holidays, and so on

• write a personal recount from thepoint of view of one of theworkers in the illustration on theMassive Monuments poster.

NLS ReferencesT20 summarising a sentence or

paragraph by identifying themost important elements andrewording them

S1 understanding how some wordscan be changed in particularways and others cannot, e.g.pluralisation

S3 understanding how the grammarof a sentence alters when thesentence type is altered

W1 spelling words throughidentifying phonemes

W10 distinguishing between the twoforms: its (possessive) and it’s(contracted)


For detailed maths investigations building on Egyptian Genius, see Kingscourt’s Maths Links Plus programme.

Posters and Book(Maths in Context)Non-fiction from other subject areas.



• Ask the children what the word pattern means and to suggest wherepatterns are found; for example, on shells, clothes, stained-glasswindows, and so on. Encourage them to think of less obviouspatterns, such as cycles in nature and time. Also discuss themeaning of shape and ask them to name some different shapes.

• Display the cover of the book. Ask the children what sort of book itis, and why. Flip through some of the pages and ask them to identifysome typical features of non-fiction texts. Scribe their suggestions.Display the contents page and ask them what it tells them about thecontent of the book. Challenge them to suggest some examples ofshapes and patterns for each entry in the contents; for example,Animal patterns: the fur on a cheetah and a zebra, and so on.

• Read pages 2–15, pausing at the end of each double-page spread todiscuss the content. Ask the children whether the content of eachdouble-page spread relates to shapes or patterns, or both. Ask themto summarise some sentences or paragraphs by identifying the mostimportant elements and rewording them; for example, Spines arelines with sharp, pointed ends which protect their owners (page 5) couldbe re-written as Sharp spines protect their owners.

• Ask the children to choose one animal from the book that has aparticularly appealing shape/pattern; for example, they could choosethe peacock on pages 8–9 because of its amazing plumage. Then, asa shared writing activity, work with them to write a letter to thejudges of a competition for “The animal with the most amazingpattern/shape”, to persuade them that their animal should win. Beforeyou begin writing, brainstorm a list of descriptive words and phrasesthat focus on the pattern/shape of the animal; for example, exquisitecolour, complex patterns, detailed, bright, colourful, symmetrical, and soon. Write these on the board. Also work out the best way to order thepoints that need to be covered in the letter. Scribe the letter,encouraging the children to use adverbs, adverbial phrases andconjunctions to connect their argument, such as then, so, finally, if,and so on. Read the letter together.

Word and Sentence Level Work• Display pages 2–15 (you may need to read the captions to the

children) and ask the children to locate compound words; forexample, anteaters (page 6), sometimes (page 7), beehive, honeycomb(page 7), spiderwebs (page 10), and so on. Write the words on theboard and ask the children to identify the two words in each case.

• Challenge the children to suggest as many words as possible thathave shape as the root word; for example, shaped, shapely,shapeliness, shaping, shapes, shapeless, and so on. Discuss the changesto shape when suffixes are added. Repeat for wide and also discussthe comparative and superlative forms (wider, widest). Ask them tosuggest other words that describe something and to use them insentences in their comparative and superlative forms; for example,Eliza has long hair, but her sister Alice’s hair is longer. However, theirother sister Penny has the longest hair of all.


BackgroundIn this lesson plan on Nature’sShapes and Patterns (see also LessonPlan 49), children identify typicalfeatures of non-fiction and summariseselected sections. They also write apersuasive letter, and examine thelanguage and structure of persuasivewriting.Children will also benefit fromreading the four additionalinformation books (small books) fromthe Nature’s Shapes and Patternsmodule: Visual Patterns, Patterns ofLife, Rhythms and Patterns, Peopleand Patterns.

YEAR TERM

4 3

Independent WorkChildren could:• write descriptions of the Viceroy

and the Monarch butterflies,including the differences andsimilarities between them

• identify different shapes andpatterns in the classroom, anddraw one of them; for example, anaerial view of all the desks

• write a description of the girl inthe photograph on page 15describing where she is and whatshe did before and after thepicture was taken

• write about and draw at least onemore example for each page ofthe book; for example, a tabby catcould be featured on AnimalPatterns.

• read the Nature’s Shapes andPatterns small books.

NLS ReferencesT17 investigating how arguments are

presentedT20 summarising a sentence or

paragraphT23 presenting a point of view in

writing in the form of a letterS1 understanding that some words

can be changed in particularways and others cannot

S4 using connectives to structure anargument



For detailed science investigations building on the Big Book, see the Nature’s Shapes and Patterns module of Kingscourt’s Science Alive programme.Literacy Links Plus 65


• Display the book and ask the children what they already knowabout it; for example, it is a non-fiction book about the shapes andpatterns that occur in nature. Discuss any aspects of the book theyremember, such as particular photographs.

• Read pages 16–23, pausing at the end of each spread to discuss thecontent. Ask the children to identify the specific shapes/patterns thatare being referred to on each spread. Write these on the board.Discuss the role of the illustrations/photographs to explain ordemonstrate particular concepts; for example, the photographs onpages 8–9 show different animals with a variety of patterns, and theillustrations on page 17 explain night and day, and the seasons.

• Re-read pages 22–23. Ask the children to suggest more patterns orshapes that people have created. Scribe them on the board. Then askthem to indicate which ones imitate the shapes and patterns innature; for example, hang-gliders and planes have “wings” like abutterfly or bird, leopard-skin material imitates the fur of a leopard.Also ask them to think of things people have created that havepatterns and shapes that are the “opposite” to nature, such asbrightly coloured skiing clothes in contrast to the white fur ofanimals, like the polar bear, that live in the snow.

• Re-read pages 20–21. Discuss the dog and butterfly life cycles. Askthe children to compare them and suggest similarities anddifferences between them. As a shared writing activity, work withthem to present the information in one of the life cycle diagramsusing text rather than photographs; for example, An adult butterflylays an egg. The egg is white and very small. Then the egg hatches intolarvae… Before you write, determine what information is needed andthe most effective way to present it. Encourage the children to useappropriate descriptive language, along with connectives that helpto support the structure and sequence of the text. Scribe for thechildren. Read the text together, inviting them to makeimprovements if possible.

Word and Sentence Level Work• Write the first paragraph from page 10 on chart paper, omitting the

punctuation. Ask the children to punctuate the text. Scribe theirsuggestions. Then compare this text with the text in the book.Discuss the function of each punctuation mark. Highlight animals’ inthis paragraph and ask them what the task of the apostrophe is(possession) and why it comes after the “s” (animals is plural). Askthem to suggest other sentences using the possessive apostrophe inplural words. Then write A tabby cat has patterns on its fur. Ask themif there should be an apostrophe in this sentence (no). Emphasisethat the possessive its does not have an apostrophe. Discuss when it’sis used (for contractions of it is and it has).

• Work with the children to compile a list of adjectives from the bookthat describe the different shapes and patterns; for example,interesting, beautiful, compact, sharp, pointed, bright, red, and so on.Then challenge the children to identify the words in the list that canbecome adverbs with the addition of “-ly”, such as interestingly,beautifully, brightly, and so on. Scribe them on the board.


BackgroundIn this second lesson on Nature’sShapes and Patterns (see also LessonPlan 48) children examine theeffectiveness of photographs andillustrations to convey informationand explain processes.

YEAR TERM

4 3


(page 100)• create a life cycle diagram for

another animal, such as a frog• write a description of the trees in

each season on page 16.Encourage them to think of theirsenses and what it would feel liketo be there.

• create a life cycle diagram of oneof their adult family members orfriends using photos of him/her atdifferent stages of his/her life

• add more shape and patternadjectives to the list started inWord and Sentence Level Work

• find and research other animalsthat have amazing patterns or thatcan change their patterns to suittheir environment

• write a dialogue between two ofthe animals in the book, with eachone claiming to have the morebeautiful shape/pattern

• read the Nature’s Shapes andPatterns small books.


paragraph by identifying themost important elements andrewording them

T24 summarising in writing the keyideas from a diagram

S1 understanding that some wordscan be changed in particularways and others cannot

S2 identifying common punctuationmarks

W8 extending words through addingparts, e.g. “-ly”

W10 distinguishing between the twoforms of its and it’s

Activity Sheet 30: S1, W6


For detailed science investigations building on the Big Book, see the Nature’s Shapes and Patterns module of Kingscourt’s Science Alive programme. Literacy Links Plus66


• Display the cover of the book. Ask the children what they rememberabout it. You could display pages 12–13 to remind them of theinstructions they looked at in Term 1, and pages 10–11 for theexplanation they used as a model for Shared Writing in Term 2.Briefly discuss the features of the instructions and explanations,including the layout, language, use of diagrams, and so on.

• Display the cover again and ask the children how they coulddescribe the background. Encourage them to use the word pattern.Discuss its meaning and ask them to suggest some examples ofpatterns (remind them of Nature’s Shapes and Patterns from theprevious two lessons). Then display pages 2–3 and read the heading.Ask them if they know the meaning of design. Then read the textand discuss how designs are different from patterns. Ask them tosuggest other designs they have seen.

• Display pages 9–10. Ask the children what patterns and designs theycan see in the tiles and rug in the photographs. Read and discuss thetext. Ask them to describe in detail the shapes and the colours onthe quilt, and the overall pattern that these shapes create. Challengethem to suggest definitions for design and pattern.

• As a shared writing activity, work with the children to write the textfor an advertisement designed to sell the dish with the design onpage 2 and the rug on page 9; for example, Your last chance topurchase these spectacular items! This amazing small dish is an objectof beauty with an intricate and detailed design. The one complex designcovers the entire dish… The pattern on this rug is made up of smallinterlocking diamond shapes in colours that are bright and vibrant…Before you write, help the children to summarise the relevant ideasfrom the text. Scribe the advertisement text as the children agree oneach sentence. Encourage them to use persuasive language,including an attention-grabbing heading and descriptive words thatmake the items sound especially desirable. Read the text together.

Word and Sentence Level Work• Write creative on the board and ask the children to identify the root

word (create) and what part of speech each word is (verb andadjective). Ask them to suggest other verbs that could have the “-ive” suffix added to create an adjective; for example,decorate/decorative, act/active, describe/descriptive, and so on. Discussthe changes that are made to the words when “-ive” is added. Thenask them which of these words could have the “-tion” suffix added,such as creation, decoration, action, description, and what part ofspeech these words are (nouns). Then challenge them to use thethree forms of each word; for example, Tim is a very creative cook. Hecreates very interesting creations from vegetables.

• Using the word tessellate, challenge the children to think of as manywords as they can that use “ss”; for example, toss, loss, possible, andso on. Then ask them to group the words based on where the “ss”appears (middle or end). Also discuss any conventions or patterns inthe use of “ss”; for example, it always follows a vowel.


BackgroundThis is the third lesson onMathematics from Many Cultures(see also Lesson Plan 13 forinvestigation of instructional texts andLesson Plan 35 for investigation ofexplanatory texts). This lesson reviewskey ideas and also explores thefeatures of persuasive texts.

YEAR TERM

4 3


(page 101)• add descriptive words to the

photograph captions• compile a glossary for key words

in the book and design atessellating border to decorate the page

• choose some shapes; for example,octagon and triangle, and create apattern that could be used on apatchwork quilt

• find designs in the classroom or athome and copy them on paper

• create a design using the letters intheir names

• research a profession that dealswith an area of design, such asfashion design, graphic design,furniture design, industrial design,and present their findings to theclass.

NLS ReferencesT19 evaluating advertisements for

their impact and appeal,focusing on how informationabout the product is presented

T24 summarising in writing the keyideas from a paragraph

S1 understanding how some wordscan be changed in particularways and others cannot

W5 exploring the occurrence of “ss”within words

W8 extending words by adding“-ive” and “-tion”


For detailed maths investigations building on Mathematics from Many Cultures, see Kingscourt’s Maths Links Plus programme.




• Discuss the meaning of extinction and forever with the children. Askthem if they know of any animals that are extinct or endangered.Discuss and scribe their responses. Display the front and back covers.Ask the children what type of book it is (non-fiction). Then ask themto name as many of the animals as they can and what they noticeabout the photos (they gradually fade). Why is this significant?

• Read pages 2–5. Pause at the end of each page to discuss the contentwith the children. Ask them to comment on the different ways inwhich information is presented in the book. For example, the text onpages 2–3 is arguing humans are responsible for the increased rate inthe extinction of animals; this argument is supported by two graphs(explanatory texts) that show the number of extinctions over aperiod of time in relation to human population growth. Discuss theeffectiveness of these methods and their impact on the reader. Thechildren could also highlight specific aspects of the text, such as thechronological sequence of information, and the use of statistics.

• As a shared writing activity, work with the children to write a letter toa local newspaper about the frightening extinction rate of animalsand why it is important that people start to take action. Before youbegin, help the children to identify the information from pages 2–5that could be used; for example, statistics extracted from the graphs,facts such as In the period since people arrived in North America, at least82 animal species have been exterminated, and so on. Discuss the mosteffective methods of getting the intended message across, such aslinking points in a way that “builds up” the argument/point of view.Also discuss the importance of using appropriate language andvocabulary. For example, keeping the information clear and easy tounderstand and using connectives to help structure the argument.Scribe for the children. Read the letter together, inviting them toevaluate its persuasive impact and suggest possible improvements.

Word and Sentence Level Work• Ask the children what suffix has been added to extinct to make

extinction. Challenge them to find either words ending in the suffix “-ion” or words that could have it added; for example, destruction,evolution, exception (page 2), exterminate/extermination (page 3), and soon. Then ask the children to suggest the words that are built from thesame root word as destruction, such as destructive, indestructible, andso on. Discuss the different prefixes and suffixes used.

• Work with the children to change the main headings into questions(excluding page 18); for example, How Do People Cause Extinction?(page 6), Can Everyone Help? (page 26). Scribe the questions on chartpaper. Discuss changes in the order of words, such as transposition ofCan and Everyone, addition/deletion of words, such as addition of Do,and changes to punctuation. Then challenge them to change theheadings on pages 22 and 26 into orders and discuss word order,verb tense, punctuation and addition/deletion of words; for example,Take Action!, Everyone Must Help!

Extinction Is Forever

BackgroundExtinction Is Forever explores theextinction of animals and thedestruction of our environment.Children will learn about the historyof and the reasons for the extinctionof particular species. They will alsolearn about what is being done tohelp and how their individualcontributions can make a difference.In this lesson (see also Lesson Plans52 and 53) children explore thefeatures of an argument and write apersuasive letter using informationfrom the book.

YEAR TERM

4 3

Independent WorkChildren could:• come up with alternative titles for

the book, such as Here One Minute- Gone the Next, No Return

• present the information in thegraphs on pages 2-3 in pie charts

• write an EXTINCT acrostic• research one endangered animal

and write a newspaper article topersuade people to take action toprevent its extinction

• write a description of a worldwithout animals, including theproblems this would cause.

NLS ReferencesT16 evaluating examples of

argumentsT17 investigating how arguments are

presentedT23 presenting a point of view in

writing, e.g. in a letterT24 summarising the key ideas from

paragraphsS3 understanding how the grammar

of a sentence alters when thesentence type is altered

W8 extending words through addingprefixes and suffixes

W9 recognising and spelling thesuffixes “-ible”, “-ive” and “-tion”




• Display the book. Ask the children what they remember about it.Conduct a general discussion on animal extinction and howhumans have contributed to the increasing rate of extinction. Writeextinction on the board and ask the children to suggest other wordsthat start with “ex”, such as except, external, excuse.

• Write these headings for two columns on the board: How do peoplecause extinction? and Animals made extinct. Read pages 6–17, pausingat the end of each double-page spread to discuss the information.Ask the children to identify the different ways in which people causeextinction and to give examples of animals that have been madeextinct. Write these under the headings on the board; for example,Deforestation/Ivory-billed woodpecker.

• Discuss the different ways in which information in the book ispresented, such as the food pyramid on pages 6–7. Also discuss thephotographs and how they support the author’s point of view; forexample, the children might comment on the beauty andvulnerability of the panda on pages 6–7, compared to the ugliness ofthe images on pages 10 and 11.

• As a shared writing activity, work with the children to compile a listof “rules” that could help lessen the devastating effect that humanscan have on animals. (Remind the children that they can beidealistic!) Relate each rule to a “human cause” of animal extinctionindicated by the sub-headings (Deforestation on page 6, IntroducedAnimals on page 8, and so on, up to page 17). Before you beginwriting, help the children to summarise the most important points;for example, Damming Rivers: hydroelectricity causes flooding; destroysanimals’ habitats. Encourage the children to keep the rules as conciseas possible; for example, 1. Stop cutting down native forests. Work withthe children to sequence the points in the most effective way topresent their point of view. Read the rules together.

Word and Sentence Level Work• Ask the children what the singular form of people is (person).

Challenge them to suggest other words that have irregular pluralforms; for example, goose/geese, man/men, thief/thieves, and so on.Ask the children what the plural form of the noun species is (species)and ask them to suggest other nouns where the plural and singularform of a word are the same; such as sheep, fish, and so on.

• Challenge the children to suggest words built from danger; forexample, dangerous, dangerously, endanger, endangered. Thenchallenge the children to think of as many words as possible thatuse “en” as a suffix or a prefix, such as enable, enact, entrap, enclose;fasten, harden, lengthen, strengthen, and so on.

• Ask the children to identify the two words in the compound wordwildlife. Then challenge them to find other compound words in thebook; for example, cannot (page 8), railroad (page 14), fishermen(page 15), and so on.


BackgroundIn this second lesson on Extinction IsForever (see also Lesson Plans 51 and 53) children discuss the ways of presenting information in anargument and write a set of “rules”outlining how we can help reduce theextinction rate.

YEAR TERM

4 3

Independent WorkChildren could:• make up some morals or mottos

about the extinction of animals; forexample, Destroy too much ofsomething and you will bedestroyed; Live and let live

• write a letter from the point of viewof one of the endangered animalsin the book, pleading for humansto take more care so that his/herspecies can stay alive

• design a poster to present the rulesthey wrote in Shared Writing; theycould include pictures of animalsfrom magazines

• research anti-fur organisations thatexist and write a summary of thereasons they are against using furto make clothes.


paragraph by identifying themost important elements andrewording them in a limitednumber of words

T21 assembling and sequencingpoints to present a point of view

T24 summarising key ideasS1 understanding that some words

can be changed in particularways and others cannot, e.g.pluralisation

W7 collecting words with commonroots

W8 extending words through addingprefixes and suffixes





• Discuss and list the main points about extinction that the childrenrecall from the previous two lessons on this book. Ask them ifreading the book has made them realise what a serious issue theextinction of animals is. Discuss their reasons.

• Read pages 18–32, pausing at the end of each double-page spread todiscuss the content and define any unknown words. Discuss themeaning of conservation (defined on page 18). Re-read pages 20–21and discuss how each objective in the World Conservation Strategywould help prevent further extinction of animals. Ask the children ifthey have ever heard of any of the conservation organisationsmentioned on page 21. If so, what do they know about them?

• Point out the question What can be done? on page 22 and discusshow the “answer” is ordered into five numbered points. Ask thechildren if they think this is an effective way of expressing a point ofview. Why/Why not? Also discuss the way sub-headings have beenused on pages 26–32 to list ways in which people can help. Askthem why the author would have done this rather than just usingone main heading. Also discuss the use of the statistics on page 26.Ask the children what point the author is trying to make by usingthese statistics and whether it is an effective method.

• Re-read page 25. Discuss the role of zoos and children’s experiencesof them. Discuss what the children think is good and bad about zoosand why. Scribe their ideas on the board. Then, as a shared writingactivity, work with them to compose five points “for” and five points“against” zoos; for example, For: Allows endangered species to breed.Against: Removes animals from their natural environment. Scribe thetext for the children. Encourage them to think about effective waysof wording each point, including careful selection of vocabulary.Read the text together.

Word and Sentence Level Work• Challenge the children to suggest words that have conserve as the

root word; for example, conservation, conserved, conserving,conservative, conservationist, conservator, conservatory, and so on.Discuss how the different meanings of the words relate to themeaning of conserve (such as conservative: wanting to preserve existingconditions). Ask them which suffixes can be added to preserve; forexample, preservation, preserved, preserving, preservative, and so on.Discuss the meanings of these words.

• Write sea, streams, oceans, learn, creatures (from pages 28–30) on theboard. Ask the children to group these words by the pronunciationof “ea”; for example, the long /e/ sound in sea, streams, creatures.Challenge them to suggest and find more words from the text thatinclude “ea” and to put them in the relevant sound group.

• Write the word undersized. Challenge the children to suggest otherwords that start with under; for example, underneath, underground,underwear, undercover, underarm, underlying, undermine, and so on.Ask them to identify which of these are compound words.


YEAR TERM

4 3


(page 102)• write a list of all the things they

currently do in their everyday livesto help animals and theenvironment. They could alsowrite a list of things they could dobased on what they have read.

• write to a conservationorganisation, such as the WorldWildlife Fund, asking for furtherinformation on what they can doto help conserve the environment

• compile a glossary for this book,including words such as extinction,environment, conservation,wildlife, endangered, and so on.

• design a poster with the messagethat every individual can make adifference in reducing rates ofextinction

• visit their local zoo and find outabout the breeding programmesthat zoos have for endangeredanimals.

NLS ReferencesT17 investigating how arguments are

presented, e.g. ordering ofpoints, how statistics can beused to support arguments

T23 presenting a point of view inwriting

T24 summarising in writing the keyideas from a paragraph/chapter

S1 understanding that some wordscan be changed in particularways and others cannot, e.g.verb endings


W11 investigating compound wordsActivity Sheet 32: S2, W11


BackgroundIn this third lesson on Extinction IsForever (see also Lesson Plans 51 and 52) children continue theirexamination of the features ofarguments and texts that present apoint of view. They also write twosides of an argument.


Rumpelstiltskin

Name ____________________________ Date __________

©Kingscourt: Literacy Links PlusActivity Sheet 1 (NLS: T24, S3) Use with Lesson Plan 2 (Yr 4). 71

• Design a “Wanted” poster about Rumpelstiltskin. OR• Write a newspaper report about some events from

Rumpelstiltskin. Include a headline.

Write

on!

1. Imagine that you are Rumpelstiltskin. Write about:

• what you are like: ______________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________

• how and why you tried to trick the queen: ___________________________

_______________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________

2. Choose the best verb for each space. Write your own sentences using the remaining verbs and direct speech.

laughed shrieked begged pleaded asked

boasted ordered

• The King ____________ the girl to spin straw into gold.• The shepherd ____________ about his daughter.• “Please don’t take my baby,” she ____________.• The Queen wept and ____________.

• “You’ll never guess!” ____________ the little man.

• _____________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________

• _____________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________

1. a) Use these words, and some of your own choice, to describe the characters.

vain handsome clever tall good-looking

intelligent rascally fun-loving funny

• Tiger was ______________, ______________, and ___________________.

• Peacock was ______________, ______________, and ________________.

• Anansi was ______________, ______________, and _________________.

• Selina was ______________, ______________, and _________________.

b) Which character from the play do you like most? Why?

_______________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________

2. Re-write each list in alphabetical order.

riding _________ creatures __________ beautiful __________ready _________ call __________ being __________really _________ clever __________ better __________rotten _________ cleared __________ because __________rascally _________ carry __________ before __________

3. Unscramble these animals’ names.protar ____________ pacocek ____________myonke ____________ tergi ____________serdip ____________ eplethan ____________musoe ____________ hopiptapomus ____________

Name ____________________________ Date __________

Activity Sheet 2 (NLS: T11 & 25,W3 & 12) Use with Lesson Plan 5 (Yr 4).72

Anansi and Old Tiger Riding-Horse

• Write instructions about how to avoid beingtricked by Anansi. OR

• Write a character sketch of Anansi.

Write

on!

©Kingscourt: Literacy Links Plus

parrot

1. Write the animals’ replies to the questions in the box.

What do you like most about the way you look? Why?

• a pig’s reply: _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

• a cricket’s reply: __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

• a mouse’s reply: __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

• a lion’s reply: _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

2. a) Complete the chart.

impressive impressively finalelegant brave

commonly happycheerful aggressively

b) Write a sentence including one adjective and one adverb from the chart.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Name ____________________________ Date __________

©Kingscourt: Literacy Links PlusActivity Sheet 3 (NLS: T11, S4,W5) Use with Lesson Plan 6 (Yr 4). 73

Summer Song and Ode to the Pig: His Tail

Write a character profile of the pig fromOde to the Pig: His Tail.

Write

on!

Adjective -ly adverb Adjective -ly adverb

1. Explain what the following phrases mean.He clasps the crag with crooked hands;

Close to the sun in lonely lands,

Ringed with the azure world, he stands.

• crooked hands ________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________

• lonely lands __________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________

• azure world __________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________

2. a) Complete the chart with past-tense verbs.

clasps clasped watches

stands falls

crawls flies

b) Write two sentences (in past tense) about an eagle.

• ____________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________

• ____________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________

3. Suggest a more “powerful” or appropriate verb to replace each underlinedverb in the following sentences.

• The eagle flew through the sky. ___________________

• The eagle eats its prey. ___________________

• The frightened rabbit went into its burrow. ___________________

Name ____________________________ Date __________

©Kingscourt: Literacy Links PlusActivity Sheet 4 (NLS: T1, S2 & 3,W7) Use with Lesson Plan 7 (Yr 4).74

The Eagle

Write a poem or story about a creature stalking or hunting its prey.

Write

on!

Present tense Past tense Present tense Past tense

1. Write a paragraph in which a pigeon explains why he/she enjoysliving in the city.______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

2. Select words to fill the spaces. Use the remainingwords in sentences of your own about pigeons.

often rarely sometimesmost occasionally seldom

City pigeons ______________ visit the countryside. They ______________ travel

far from home. Pigeons can ______________ be seen in parks and on

rooftops, and ______________ they even wander into buildings.

• ____________________________________________________________

• ____________________________________________________________

3. Write other “-ly” adverbs that could fit these sentences.

• The pigeon looked around____________.

____________.

____________.

• I sat ____________ and fed the pigeons.

____________

____________

Name ____________________________ Date __________


Pigeons

• Write a conversation between a city pigeon anda bird that lives in the country. OR

• Write a diary entry for a city pigeon.

Write

on!

cautiously

quietly

1. What does “gently” mean? Is there really anything “gentle” about the way acrocodile smiles?_________________________________

_________________________________

_________________________________

_____________________________________________

______________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________

2. Add verbs. Underline the adverbs.

• When a crocodile is ____________ quietly in the water, it can be

hard to see.

• With a snap, the crocodile quickly ____________ its jaws.

• The foolish fish ____________ into the crocodile’s mouth calmly, and

the crocodile cheerfully ____________ them.

3. Use letters from CROCODILE to form other words.

__ __ __ __ (not hot)

__ __ __ __ (open this to go inside)

__ __ __ (put on a jar)

__ __ __ __ __ (shouted out)

__ __ __ __ (told an untruth)

__ __ (true ___ false)

__ __ __ __ (a boy’s name)

__ __ __ __ (the centre of an apple)

Name ____________________________ Date __________

©Kingscourt: Literacy Links PlusActivity Sheet 6 (NLS: S2 & 4,W3 & 11) Use with Lesson Plan 9 (Yr 4).76

The Crocodile

What would you do if you met a crocodile?Write about it.

Write

on!

Foolish fishswim happily into my

gently smiling jaws. Yum!

1. Imagine that a lion is explaining why he likes being a lion. Write threereasons that he might include.• __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

• __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

• __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

2. Re-write each group of words in alphabetical order.

a) lions living loud lioness lively lounge

__________________________________________________________

b) fierce flick flea from flash free

__________________________________________________________

c) savage sharp saving shout shallow sword

__________________________________________________________

3. a) Complete the chart of verbs.

chases chased will chaseroared

crieswill bite

b) Use two of the past-tense verbs in a sentence about a lion.__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Name ____________________________ Date __________


Lion

Write a list of facts about lionsand a list of opinions about lions.

Write

on!

Present tense Past tense Future tense

1. Sometimes I think

I should have left him

Near the pond in the woods…

Name ____________________________ Date __________

©Kingscourt: Literacy Links PlusActivity Sheet 8 (NLS: T1, S2) Use with Lesson Plan 11 (Yr 4).78

Samuel

What does this section of the poem tell you about the child’s feelings?

______________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________

2. Use four of these verbs/verb groups in sentences about the poem.Label each sentence “past-tense”, “present tense” or “future tense”.

regretted is sorry will avoid

are will be careful learnt

• ____________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________

• ____________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________

• ____________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________

• ____________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________

Write about caring for a real petor an imaginary pet.

Write

on!

©Kingscourt: Literacy Links Plus 79

Name ____________________________ Date __________

Poem title: _______________________________________

1. How much does the title tell you about the poem? Why do you think the poet chose this title?________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

2. Who do you imagine is speaking in the poem?What does the poem tell you about this person or thing?________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

3. Weird or wonderful words from the poem:

Wordor phrase

Does the poem helpme with the meaning?

If so, how?

What I thinkthe word means

Dictionarymeaning

Activity Sheet 9 Use with any appropriate poem (Yr 4).

©Kingscourt: Literacy Links PlusActivity Sheet 10 (NLS: T22) Use with Lesson Plan 15 (Yr 4).80

All About Forces

How To Make a Paper Spinner

You will need:

• paper (9 x 25 cm)• scissors

• Design and test smaller/bigger paper spinners. Write about your findings. OR

• Use the words spin and roll to start a list of “movement”verbs. List as many movement verbs as you can.

Write

on!

1. 2. 3.

4. 5. 6.

Fold the paper in half, thenin half again, to form twocreases. Open out thepaper.

Cut in 10 cm from one endalong the long fold. Cut in3 cm from both sidesalong the short fold.

Fold in the side pieces tomake the tail.

Roll up the bottom ofthe tail.

Make the propeller byfolding the top pieces.

Drop your paper spinnerfrom a high place.

©Kingscourt: Literacy Links PlusActivity Sheet 11 (NLS: T22) Use with Lesson Plan 17 (Yr 4). 81

Fantastic Flight

How To Make a Paper Glider

You will need:

• a piece of heavy paper (at least 23 cm x 25 cm)• scissors, ruler, tape and a coin.

STEP 1

Fold the paper in half.STEP 2

Double all the measurements of this glider outline. Use a grid to help youif you wish. Draw the larger outline on your paper, with the bottom of theglider on the folded edge.

STEP 3

Cut out your glider.Don’t cut along the fold.

STEP 4

Fold the wings and tail as shown below.Then attach a coin to the nose.

Write about your paper glider’s “test flights”.How well/how far does it fly? What can you do to make it

fly as well as possible?

Write

on!

1. Select the best words to fill the spaces.

airship wetter they windy fastermove

want strong their jet balloons hate wobble

If you ____________ fast air travel, then don’t choose to travel in an

____________. Airships are big ____________. They use ____________ own

power to move forward, so they are ____________ than hot-air balloons.

However, ____________ are still slow, and might not ____________ at all

when flying into a ____________ wind.

2. Complete these sentences.

a) Airships fly ____________.

b) The Hindenberg, a famous airship,was ________________.

c) A blimp will be ____________ cameras overnext weekend’s main sporting event.

Which sentence is in the past tense? _______________Which sentence is in the future tense? _______________

3. Add ship to each word.

air______, friend______, hard______, town______

Use two of the words in sentences.• __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________• __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Name ____________________________ Date __________

©Kingscourt: Literacy Links PlusActivity Sheet 12 (NLS: S2,W9) Use with Lesson Plan 17 (Yr 4).82

Fantastic Flight

Airships

slow slowly slowest

destroying destroys destroyed

carry carried carrying

Write about all the places in the world that you wouldlike to fly over in a balloon.

Write

on!

1. Punctuate this passage. Change small letters to capitals where necessary.

if we did not have the sun which provides warmth and light plants

could not live on our planet if there were no plants there would be

no food for animals or people


shine shone riseworship tellknow seebelieve take

b) Use one of these verb groups to write a sentence about the sun in future tense.

will shine shall see will rise

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

3. Complete these sentences.• People used to believe that the sun _____________________________________________________________________________________________• We need the sun because _____________________________________________________________________________________________________• The sun helps _______________________________________________________________________________________________________________• I think the sun ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Name ____________________________ Date __________


The Sun

• Write your own story based on one of the myths/legendsmentioned in The Sun. OR

• Research solar power and write a report about it.

Write

on!

Verb Past-tense Verb Past-tense

1. a) Number these points from 1 to 6 to match the order of the story.The fish granted the wife’s wish for a nice cottage.

The fisherman’s wife would often sigh,“How I wish we were rich.”

Following his wife’s orders, the fisherman asked the fishto grant wishes.

The fisherman said that he had caught anenchanted, talking fish.

Even when the wife had a castle, she kept demandingmore and more.

The fish did not like the wife’s greed, and tookall her riches away.

b) Write what point number 7 would be.____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

2. Write a definition of “enchanted”. Also use “enchanted” in a sentencethat helps to show its meaning.Definition: ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Sentence: ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________


greedy greediest

larger

frightened more frightenedmost selfish

b) Use one of the superlative adjectives in a sentence about the story.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Name ____________________________ Date __________



Superlative formComparative formAdjective

1. a) What does this section of the poem tell you about a football game?

It’s a thrill, it’s a chill,

It’s a cheer and then a sigh;

It’s that deep, breathless hush

When the ball soars high.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________b) What do these words mean in the poem?• chill: _______________________________________________________• soars: ______________________________________________________

2. Do you think that “Fun is King” in sport? Why/why not?________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

3. Complete these charts.

Name ____________________________ Date __________

©Kingscourt: Literacy Links PlusActivity Sheet 15 (NLS: T2) Use with Lesson Plan 24 (Yr 4). 85

A Football Game

Write about the sport that you most enjoy watchingand/or playing.

Write

on!

Apostrophes in contractions

it’s

aren’t

there’s

Full words

it is

that is

Possessiveapostrophe

the children’sball

Possessivephrase

the ball owned by the childrenthe hat of onemanthe seeds of theorangethe smiles of twobabies


grey gulls stone walls bare treesred dawn skypurple plumsgreen

b) Use adjectives (apart from colour words) to complete these phrases:

• __________________ __________________ gulls

• __________________ __________________ plums

• __________________ __________________ cities

• __________________ __________________ garbage

2. Describe what you might see, and how you might feel, in the followingsituations. Include some adjectives and underline them.

• Looking down from the top of a high city building:

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

• Being on a crowded bus or train:

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________• Being at a party:

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Name ____________________________ Date __________

©Kingscourt: Literacy Links PlusActivity Sheet 16 (NLS: T10, S1 & 2) Use with Lesson Plan 25 (Yr 4).86

The City Dump and City

greedy squawking

List good points and bad points about:a) living in the city; b) living in the country.

Write

on!

Could describe:Color

1. Write the correct word in each space. Use the remaining words in twosentences of your own about transport.

because when and although but if

• Pedalling up hills is hard work ____________ I love freewheeling downhill.• ____________ I speed along on my skateboard, I feel like a

human automobile.• ____________ our car is old ____________ has a few scratches,

it still runs as smoothly as can be.• __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________• __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

2. a) Complete the puzzle with rhyming words that end in -ate, -ait or -eat.

1. “Slow down and _ _ _ _ for me!”

2. _ _ _ _ _board.

3. Fill up with air.

4. Opposite of “early”.

5. A word that can mean

“very large” or “excellent”.

b) Write words that rhyme with “wheel”.• “-eel” spelling pattern: _______________________________________________________________________________________________________• “-eal” spelling pattern: _______________________________________________________________________________________________________

Name ____________________________ Date __________

©Kingscourt: Literacy Links PlusActivity Sheet 17 (NLS: S4,W3 & 6) Use with Lesson Plan 26 (Yr 4). 87

On the Skateboard,Freewheeling on a Bike and

Portrait of a Motor Car

Write about similarities and differences betweena bicycle and a skateboard.

Write

on!

3 4

2

1

5

1. a) Slowly, silently, now the moon

Walks the night in her silver shoon

This way, and that, she peers, and sees

Silver fruit upon silver trees;

What is this part of the poem describing? (“shoon” means “shoes”.)Describe the scene in your own words.________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

b) Write three more nouns or noun phrases that “silver” could describe.

• silver light of the moon • silver __________________

• silver __________________ • silver __________________


the beauty of the moon the moon’s beautythe glow of the starsthe silver fruit on the trees

b) Write a sentence about night-time. Include a possessive apostrophe.____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

3. Re-write these sentences, using more interesting words and expressions.The moon looks nice in the dark sky.The moonlight on the trees looks good.

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Name ____________________________ Date __________

©Kingscourt: Literacy Links PlusActivity Sheet 18 (NLS: T4, S2 & 4,W13) Use with Lesson Plan 27 (Yr 4).88

Silver

Using possessive apostrophePhrase

1. Describe the night sky using at least three of the following phrases.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

2. a) Use the underlined words to complete the puzzle.

How thin and sharp

and ghostly white

Is the slim curved crook

of the moon tonight!

b) What does the word “crook” mean in Winter Moon?____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________c) List words that rhyme with “white”.

• “-ite” spelling: ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________• “-ight” spelling: _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Name ____________________________ Date __________

©Kingscourt: Literacy Links PlusActivity Sheet 19 (NLS: T13,W3) Use with Lesson Plan 28 (Yr 4). 89

Winter Moon and Summer Full Moon

is like athe same as

look like

is areminds me of

I think of as big as

Use the word “white” to begin a list of adjectives thatcould describe the moon.

Write

on!

1. Write the correct words in the spaces.

Many ____________ make their ____________ under the ground. For example,

____________ live in underground ____________ or warrens, which provide

____________ places for them to raise their young. A ____________ colony is

ruled by a male rabbit, ____________ a buck. The burrows where he and

other rabbits live within the ____________ are built by ____________ rabbits.

2. Complete the chart of male/female animal “pairs”.

Female Male Female Male

doe buck cowfox

goosedrake

3. a) What sort of “mine” would you read about in Under the Ground?______________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________

b) Write a sentence in which the word “mine” has a different meaning.______________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________

Name ____________________________ Date __________

©Kingscourt: Literacy Links PlusActivity Sheet 20 (NLS: T23,W10) Use with Lesson Plan 30 (Yr 4).90

Under the Ground

rabbitscolony

called rabbit safe

homes

house

another colonies

creature femaleanimals

known

gander lionfilly

hen vixenbull

duck

rooster

coltlioness

Research and write a report on one animal thatlives underground.

Write

on!

1. List some things that you would write about in a report on Leaves.____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

2. Complete the chart.

• trunk (of a tree)• evergreen• deciduous• buoyant• fragile• inactive

3. Re-order these words to make sensible sentences.• plant seeds carried are by wind the and birds by______________________________________________________________

• food are factories leaves the of plants______________________________________________________________

• plants all not helpful are______________________________________________________________

• taking enjoy in people parks walks______________________________________________________________• and all flowers of parts are leaves, petals, stems______________________________________________________________

Name ____________________________ Date __________



Write about your favourite tree or flower; explain whyit is special.

Write

on!

Definition in no more than six wordsWord

1. a) Punctuate this passage.

Our planets surface features many different landscapes including forests

mountain ranges deserts and plains However most of Earths surface is

covered by water which is in oceans seas lakes rivers and also in snow

and ice

b) Write two sentences of your own about nature. Begin the secondsentence with “However,”.

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

2. Add an apostrophe in each phrase. Then write your own examples in the last row of the chart.

a plants colours plants coloursa leafs shape leaves shapes

3. For each heading from Nature’s Mathematical Marvels, list the key points you found (or expect) in that section.

Name ____________________________ Date __________

©Kingscourt: Literacy Links PlusActivity Sheet 22 (NLS: T15, S4,W3) Use with Lesson Plan 34 (Yr 4).92


Describe something that you think deserves the title:A Natural Marvel.

Write

on!

Plural possessivesSingular possessives

Hottest, Coldest!

Terrific Trees!

Small and Scary

1. a) Number the points from 1 to 5 to match the order of the story.

When the man’s wife jumped to avoid the knife, she stood on

the snake’s tail.

The bushfowl grieved silently, so the sun did not rise and the

sky remained dark.

The fly buzzed in the man’s ear and he dropped his knife.

The rhinoceros crashed through the bush and broke the

bushfowl’s eggs.

The snake frightened the monkey, who threw the mango that hit

the rhinoceros on the head.

b) Write what point number 6 would be:____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

2. How important is it for the story to have a “bush” setting? Give reasonsfor your answer.__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

3. a) Write words in which the letters “-ush” have

• the same sound as in bush: ___________________________________________________________________________________________________• the same sound as in brush: __________________________________________________________________________________________________

b) Write words in which the letters “ow” have

• the same sound as in throw : __________________________________________________________________________________________________• the same sound as in down: ___________________________________________________________________________________________________

Name ____________________________ Date __________

©Kingscourt: Literacy Links PlusActivity Sheet 23 (NLS: T2,W3 & 4) Use with Lesson Plan 36 (Yr 4). 93

Why Flies Buzz

Write a letter to the bushfowl from another character.Write

on!

1. a) Imagine that you are Snake. Explain how you learnt to do the “Frog Hop”.

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________b) Imagine that you are Frog. Describe what happened when you arrived

home doing the “Snake Slither”.__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

2. Do you think that Frog and Snake were right to stop playing together?Why/why not?__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

3. a) Add apostrophes where they are needed in this passage.

When Frog and Snake first met, they didnt know that they werent

meant to be friends. Once they realised that theyd made their parents

angry, they kept apart from each other. “Its a pity that we cant be

friends after all,” they said.

b) List the words that needed apostrophes. How did you know where toput each apostrophe?

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Name ____________________________ Date __________

©Kingscourt: Literacy Links PlusActivity Sheet 24 (NLS: T1,W10) Use with Lesson Plan 39 (Yr 4).94


Write a new version of the story using different animals,such as a cat and a mouse.

Write

on!

1. Present tense: I like wrestling with Herbie becausehe’s my best friend.

Write three other sentences about the character in Wrestling.

• A sentence in present tense : __________________________________________________________________________________________________• A sentence in past tense : ____________________________________________________________________________________________________• A sentence in future tense : ___________________________________________________________________________________________________

2. Imagine that you are Herbie. Write how he might complete these sentences.

• When I have a pretend fight with my friend, _______________________________________________________________________________________• Although we sometimes really get angry, ________________________________________________________________________________________• __________________________________________________________________________________________, because it makes our sisters scream.

3. List words that:a) rhyme with “fight”• “-ight” spelling: _______________________________________________• “-ite” spelling: ________________________________________________

b) rhyme with “cry”• “-y” spelling: _________________________________________________• “-igh” spelling: ________________________________________________• “-ie” spelling: _________________________________________________• other spellings: _______________________________________________

Name ____________________________ Date __________

©Kingscourt: Literacy Links PlusActivity Sheet 25 (NLS: S3 & 4,W3 & 5) Use with Lesson Plan 41 (Yr 4). 95

Wrestling

Write a true or imaginary story about settling an argumentwith a friend.

Write

on!

1. Write Q next to each question and S next to each statement.Then change the questions to statements and the statements to questions.

• Why are salt and pepper always separate?

______________________________________________________________

• Pepper makes me sneeze.

______________________________________________________________

• There are many ways of adding flavour to food.

______________________________________________________________

• Is too much salt bad for you?

______________________________________________________________

2. Complete this crossword.

Name ____________________________ Date __________

©Kingscourt: Literacy Links PlusActivity Sheet 26 (NLS: T4, S3,W3) Use with Lesson Plan 42 (Yr 4).96

Salt and Pepper

ACROSS

1. ______ and pepper

5. bread and ______

6. socks and ______

8. ______ and fork

9. apple pie and ______

11. toast and h______

DOWN

1. happy or ______

2. chair and ______

3. ______ and ball

4. ______ and paper

6. cup and ______

7. ______ and dry

10. ______ and woman

1 2 3

4

5

6 7

8

9 10

11

• Write a conversation between a brush and comb;a knife and fork; or a sock and shoe. OR

• Write a poem or story featuring delicious food.

Write

on!

1. a) Write words that can be used instead of “said”._____________ _____________ _____________ __________________________ _____________ _____________ __________________________ _____________ _____________ _____________

b) Use two of these words in a sentence.__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

2. a) Label each of the following as a statement, a negative statement,a question or a command.

• Sing! ______________________• You can’t sing. ______________________• Can you sing? ______________________• You can sing. ______________________• I don’t sing very often. ______________________• Turn the music down! ______________________

b) Re-write this statement as a question and as a command.Statement: You can play the piano.

Question: _____________________________________________________Command: _____________________________________________________

3. Using direct speech, write a conversation between two people who aretalking about music.“Do you have a favourite song?” asked ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Name ____________________________ Date __________

©Kingscourt: Literacy Links PlusActivity Sheet 27 (NLS: T7, S3 & 1) Use with Lesson Plan 43 (Yr 4). 97

Can You Sing?

Write about your favourite singer(s) and song(s).Write

on!

shouted

replied

1. Write words to make alliterative phrases.• cheerful children • shiny ____________

• lonely looking • wonderful ____________

• peaceful ____________ • ____________ ____________

• ____________ river • ____________ ____________

2. a) Imagine a “lonely looking” playground. Describe it.________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

b) Imagine being a lonely swing in a park. What would you say to children going past?

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

3. a) Write other endings to rhyme with “three” and “four”.Number three ________________ Number four ________________

________________ ________________________________ ________________________________ ________________________________ ________________

b) List all the words you can think of that rhyme with “eight”.____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________

How many different spelling patterns did you find? ____________________Circle one example of each pattern in your list.

Name ____________________________ Date __________

©Kingscourt: Literacy Links PlusActivity Sheet 28 (NLS: T4,W3 & 5) Use with Lesson Plan 44 (Yr 4).98

Skipping Rhyme and The Swings in the Park

scratch your knee

go to sea

touch the floor

Write your own number rhyme for the numbersone to ten or one to twenty.

Write

on!

p

r

1. The Nile River was a vital part of life in ancient Egypt. Many people

lived close to it, and it provided a means of transport. The Nile River

also supplied the water and fertile soil that

made successful farming possible.

a) Summarise the paragraph in no more than 20 words.__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________b) Write a question about the paragraph.______________________________________________________________


• construct• instruct• destruct

b) Use three of the new words in sentences about Egypt.• __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________• __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________• __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

3. List as many words as you can think of that start with “soft g”, as in “genius”.____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Name ____________________________ Date __________


Egyptian Genius

Write about what you would most like to seeon a tour of Egypt.

Write

on!

Add endings –ion, –ive, –ivelyWord

1. a) Complete this chart of words that could be used to describe andcompare patterns.

bright brighter brightestmore interesting

most beautifulcomplex

prettier

b) Write a sentence about nature using the comparative and thesuperlative form of an adjective.

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

2. Describe a pattern that you might see on an animal. Explain what purposethe pattern might have.__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Now write about a pattern or shape that a plant might have.__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

3. List as many words as you can think of that include the vowel combination“ea”. How many different pronunciations did you find?__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Name ____________________________ Date __________



create, year

Describe some examples of patterns that people create.Write

on!

Superlative formComparative formAdjective

Name ____________________________ Date __________



person4 people number clever

animal multiply add

Write about some situations, outside school,in which you use numbers.

Write

on!

1. a) Write the correct words to complete the passage.

People ______________ history have used numbers to ______________

important information, such as the ______________ of animals they owned,

the number of bushels of wheat ______________ in a season, or the

number of ______________ captured ______________ battle.

b) Complete the chart.

harvested harvesting, unharvested, harvests, harvester

ownership,

captive,

useful,

c) Select two verbs from the chart and use them in sentences aboutpeople of the past. Underline the verbs in your sentences.

• __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

• __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

2. Which of these words are nouns? Tick each noun and write its plural form.• _________________ • _________________ • _________________

• _________________ • _________________ • _________________

record number

people in

harvested

throughout

any

Built from same root word (at least 4 per word)Words from

passage

1. Punctuate this passage. Change small letters to capitals where necessary.

Many kinds of wildlife have been affected badly by human activities even

though the people involved may not have meant to do harm. For example

when early voyagers first arrived on the island of hawaii rats from the

ships soon found their way to shore too. until this time it had been safe

for birds on the island to lay their eggs on the ground but the rats ate

the eggs and soon the bird population began to decline

2. Use some of the words to make more compound words for the chart.

3. Use each of these verb groups in a sentence about the environment. Label each sentence past tense, present tense or future tense.

will protect damaged are working

• __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

• __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

• __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Name ____________________________ Date __________



wild life wildlife

What extinct animal would you most like to see? Why?Write

on!

woodsea some

one

in

side

save

everyboard

over

pecker

thing

Word Word Compound word


IndexA __________________________adjectival phrases 47, 49adjectives 15–16, 17, 19, 21–2, 24,

35–7, 39, 43, 45–50, 55, 58–9, 63,66see also comparatives; superlatives

adventure (genre) 45adverbial phrases 14, 24, 31, 65adverbs 14–15, 17, 19, 21, 23–4,

28–9, 31, 36–7, 48, 54, 56, 60,65–6

advertisements 63, 67Alice in Wonderland 22All About Forces 27–8alliteration 20, 49, 61All the World’s a Stage! 25alphabetical order 30, 32Anansi and the Old Tiger Riding-Horse

17–18antonyms 23, 31, 49apostrophes 35, 38, 41–2, 47–8, 53,

57, 64, 66argumentative writing 68–70

B __________________________Bad Luck of King Fred, The 38Because of Walter 37

C __________________________Can You Sing? 60captions 26, 29, 31, 44–5, 65, 67chapter books, extracts from

fiction 16, 37–8, 57non-fiction 25

characters 15, 20, 23, 35, 53characteristics 14, 16–18, 37dilemmas faced by 54–5setting influence 37

City 40City Dump, The 40clauses 39, 44comparatives 16, 46, 48, 50, 55,

58–9, 65compound words 37, 54–5, 65,

69–70concrete poems 23, 56connectives/conjunctions 39, 54,

65–6, 68contents, table of 27, 44, 50, 65contractions 41, 47–8, 53, 57, 64Crocodile, The 22curriculum links

mathematics 26, 48–50, 63–7science 24, 26–32, 43, 46–7, 62, 66

D __________________________definitions 27, 50

oral 30, 67written 32, 44, 50

descriptive language 35, 38–9,41–3, 46–7, 49, 65–6

dialogue 14, 18, 21, 32, 35, 54, 60dictionaries 17, 45diminutives 55direct speech 59–60dramatic conventions 17–18

E___________________________Eagle, The 20Egyptian Genius 63–4explanatory texts 44–6, 48–50expressive language 35–9, 41–3, 49Extinction Is Forever 68–70

F___________________________fact and opinion 30–1Fantastic Flight 29–30fantasy 35–7fiction texts

features 35, 57reading 14–15, 35–8, 53–6writing see writingsee also chapter books; traditional

talesfigurative language 40–1, 43figures of speech see similesFisherman and His Wife, The 35–6Football Game, A 39Freewheeling on a Bike 41

G __________________________games 26, 61glossary 25, 45, 50, 67, 70graphs 48, 68

H __________________________haiku 61homophones 25–6, 28, 30–1, 61

I ___________________________illustrations/photographs 27, 32,

45, 48, 66–9indexes 27, 44, 46, 50indirect speech 59–60informational texts 27–8, 32, 44,

46, 48instructional texts 25–6, 28, 30irregular verbs 14, 24, 26, 28–9, 32,

63

L___________________________legends 31letter strings 15, 18, 21, 24, 29, 38,

43, 45–6, 56, 63, 67, 70letters, writing 35, 45, 65, 68–9Lion 23

M__________________________Mathematics from Many Cultures 26,

50, 67metaphor 20, 41, 43morals in stories 35, 54–6

N __________________________narrative 31, 57

chronology in 14narrative order 18Nature’s Mathematical Marvels 48–9Nature’s Shapes and Patterns 65–6newspaper articles 17, 27, 29–30, 54non-fiction texts

features 25–9, 31–2, 62–3, 65–6,68

from other subject areas seecurriculum links

reading 25–7, 29–32, 44–50, 63,65–6, 68–70

see also chapter books;explanatory texts;informational texts;instructional texts; reports

note-making 38, 44–6, 64nouns 19, 27, 39, 42

conversion to adjectives 36–7, 42,47, 49, 67

see also pluralisationnoun–adjective connections 63

O __________________________Ode to the Pig: His Tail 19onomatopoeia 23onsets 25On the Skateboard 41opening sentences 25, 27, 29

P __________________________paragraphs 44, 53, 56–7personal pronouns 20personification 31persuasive text 63, 67–8Peter the Pumpkin-Eater 57phonemes 20, 61, 64phrases 22, 23Pigeons 21plays

adapted from narrative 15conventions 17, 18converting to narrative 18

Literacy Links Plus

preparing and performing 15, 17props 25reading 15, 17–18, 25writing 15, 25

pluralisation 22, 62, 64, 69poetic styles 60–1

concrete/shape poems 23, 56haiku 61

poetrycomparing 19–22emotion in 19, 24, 39–40features 19, 20, 23figurative language 40–1, 43punctuation 40reading 19–22, 39–42, 58–60responding to 23–4, 59syllables in 61writing 19, 20, 23, 36, 39–40, 42,

59–61point of view 14, 17, 19, 20, 30,

36–7, 46, 55–6, 62, 65, 68–70Portrait of a Motor Car 41possession (apostrophe) 35, 38, 42,

47–8, 53, 57, 64, 66prefixes 23, 41, 46, 55, 59, 62, 68–9pronouns 22, 25

first-person 20third-person 20

punctuation 22, 23, 25, 27, 29,39–40, 44, 53–4, 56–7, 59–60, 66,68

R __________________________readers’ theatre 15reports 20, 26–7

features 30research 20–2, 24, 30, 43, 45, 48–9,

61, 66–9rhyme 19, 20, 36, 39–40, 42, 59, 61rhyming words 21rhythm 19, 39, 58, 61rimes 25root words 17, 30–1, 37, 44, 54, 56,

59, 62, 65, 67–70Rumpelstiltskin 14–15

S___________________________Salt and Pepper 59Samuel 24sentence level work see Word and

Sentence Level Work in everylesson plan

sentences, re-ordering 45, 50, 57Silver 42similes 19, 20, 43, 57Skipping Rhyme 61spelling and pronunciation 38, 54,

56, 59, 63, 70spelling patterns 15, 18, 24, 32, 42,

45, 50, 59, 61, 67, 69consonants 38, 48

spelling rules and conventions 43,

47–8, 56, 59, 62, 67see also pluralisation

spelling strategies 38using analogies 21, 24–5, 29, 39,

45–6story endings 16, 53, 56Story of Small Fry, The 62story plans 18, 55story predictions 16, 37, 55story settings 40suffixes 14, 16, 19, 31, 36–7, 42, 45,

47–9, 53, 55–6, 59, 62, 65, 68–70summarising text 45, 47, 57, 62,

64–70Summer Full Moon 43Summer Song 19Sun, The 31–2superlatives 16, 46, 48, 50, 55,

58–9, 65Swings in the Park, The 61syllabic patterns 43synonyms 16, 40, 45

T __________________________technical words 46text level work see Shared Reading

and Writing sections of everylesson plan

traditional tales 14–15, 35–6, 53–6

U __________________________Under the Ground 44–5

V __________________________verb endings 16–17, 28–9, 63, 70verb forms, imperative 26, 28verbs 15, 18, 22, 27, 37

conversion to adjectives 36–7, 42,47, 49, 56, 67

conversion to nouns 14double consonants in 17, 43in dialogue 15in poems 58irregular 14, 24, 26, 28–9, 32, 63

verb tenses 14, 18, 20, 22future tense 16past tense 17, 18, 24, 26, 28–9, 32,

58–9, 64present tense 16, 18, 26–7, 50, 58,

63

W__________________________Why Flies Buzz 53–4Why Frog and Snake Can’t Be Friends

55–6Winter Moon 43Wish Fish, The 16Wonderful World of Plants, The 46–7word building 27, 32, 48, 54word endings 25word level work see Word and

Sentence Level Work in everylesson plan

word order 25, 35, 42, 45, 50, 57,64, 68

words implying gender 35, 38, 44Wrestling 58writing

adventure stories 45advertisements 63, 67argumentative 68book reviews 54character sketches 14, 16, 20, 22,

54checking own for grammatical

sense 25, 30checklists 25descriptive/expressive language

39, 42–3, 46, 49, 65dialogue 14, 21, 32, 54direct speech 59–60drama reviews 18explanatory text 45–6, 50fantasy 28, 35–7for a particular audience 32, 50glossary entries 25imaginative 57, 59, 62informational textsinstructional texts 26, 28, 30legends 31letters 35, 45, 65, 69letter to the editor 68newspaper report 17, 27, 29–30,

54note-making 38, 44–6, 64paragraphs 44, 46personal recounts 30, 35–6, 58, 64persuasive 63, 67–8plays 15, 18, 25, 54poetry 19, 20, 23, 36, 39–40, 42,

56, 59–61point of view 14, 17, 19, 20, 30,

36–7, 46, 54, 56, 62, 65, 68–9recounts 30reports 20, 26–7science fiction 28scripts based on known stories 19,

21, 24, 36, 42, 53–8short stories 58skipping rhymes 61stories from story plans 55–6story endings 16, 53, 56summaries 45, 47, 57, 62, 64–70

104

Literacy Links Plus teacher resource materialfor Key Stage 2

This series of Teachers’ Guides provides Literacy Hour lesson plansbuilt around Kingcourt’s extensive range of fiction and non-fiction BigBooks and posters.

Additional Teacher Resource Material, as shown below, is available to support Kingscourt’s comprehensive range of fiction andnon-fiction for guided and independent reading.

Teachers’ guides for guided reading titles.

Teachers’ guides for thematically linked chapter books.

Lesson Plans and Activity Journals for Wildcats (high-interest, low-reading level fiction and non-fiction for directed group activities).

Documents

Tbc Literacy Hour