This Year 3 writing unit from our Real Writing collection is built around an original model text by award-winning children’s author Ross Montgomery.
Pupils will read The Mystery Rucksack, an exciting story about a hiking adventure with a mysterious rucksack, and use it as a model to explore narrative writing.
The text is available as a PDF in three versions – plain, illustrated and annotated – and comes with annotated and non-annotated PowerPoint presentations to support teaching and learning.
Curriculum links and objectives
Over this two-week unit, pupils will explore vocabulary connected with orienteering, analyse the structure of the story using a five-part story model and write their own mystery rucksack or hiking adventure story.
The unit maps directly to Year 3 writing objectives and provides opportunities to teach or revisit key skills, including:
- Understanding the meanings of words and identifying word classes (nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs)
- Extending sentences using a range of conjunctions, including subordinating conjunctions such as when, because, if, and although
- Using expanded noun phrases for description and specification
- Applying commas for lists
- Developing settings, characters and plot
- Using and punctuating direct speech
- Organising paragraphs around a theme, scene or period of time
This unit also links naturally to geography and fieldwork lessons through its orienteering context.
Resources
The unit includes:
- Two fully resourced lessons with teacher notes, teaching slides and activity sheets
- Story margin planner and writer’s craft instruction sheet
- Writing skills checklist to guide proofreading and editing
- Vocabulary match activities and word cards for tiered vocabulary learning
Vocabulary
Y3/4 statutory spelling words: accidentally, possessions, weight, group, reminder, surprise
Tier 2 words: symbol, exhausting, rucksack
Tier 3 words: compass, grid references, key, map
Key teaching activities
Set the class a small-scale orienteering challenge around the school grounds using compasses and trundle wheels. Pupils follow a course with a variety of routes to the same finishing point, activating prior knowledge and interest.
Read The Mystery Rucksack to the class, discussing its narrative features, past and present verb forms, and examples of previously taught writing skills such as commas for lists and conjunctions. Pupils can highlight examples of noun phrases, prepositional phrases, descriptive language and direct speech in the text.
Introduce new vocabulary using word cards and context clues. Pupils can sort words into groups by word class and practise writing sentences using the words in different contexts.
Pupils will explore descriptive techniques by analysing and improving examples of setting description from the model text, then write a paragraph describing terrain for their own story.
Examine the five-part story structure using a story mountain poster, helping pupils understand the opening, build-up, problem, climax, and resolution. Pupils will apply this structure to plan their own mystery rucksack or hiking adventure story using the story margin planner.
During writing sessions, pupils will use the writing skills checklist to guide their work, incorporating tier 3 vocabulary where possible. They'll draft, proofread, and edit their stories, focusing on grammar, punctuation, vocabulary and paragraph organisation.
Outcomes
By the end of the unit, pupils will:
- Write a structured narrative using a five-part story model
- Extend sentences using a range of conjunctions
- Develop settings, characters and plot with descriptive language
- Use expanded noun phrases, prepositional phrases and direct speech effectively
- Apply tier 2, tier 3 and statutory spelling words accurately
- Organise writing into coherent paragraphs
- Proofread and edit their work for grammar, punctuation and vocabulary