Real Writing Year 4, Unit 2
How to Build a Roman Road by Ross Montgomery
Curriculum links: History (the Romans in Britain)
Unit overview
This writing unit for Year 4 is built around an original model text by Ross Montgomery - an instruction text explaining how to build a Roman road. The example text is available as a PDF in three versions (plain, illustrated and annotated); annotated and non-annotated PowerPoint presentations are also included.
In this two-week unit,pupils will read a set of instructions for building a Roman road. They will have an opportunity to learn technical vocabulary related to construction; they will look at synonyms to build a richer vocabulary, and investigate using adverbials, conjunctions and prepositions to express time, place and cause. Finally, they will write their own set of instructions for building a Roman road.
Key curriculum skills
Two fully resourced lesson plans are included for Year 4 English objectives:
Vocabulary: To build a varied and rich vocabulary - synonyms
Pupils will: revisit synonyms and how we can use a thesaurus to find them; understand the importance of choosing the right synonym for clarity; identify synonyms; find synonyms with a thesaurus and use them in sentences.
Grammar: To use adverbials, conjunctions and prepositions to express time, place and cause
Pupils will: revisit word classes; understand that conjunctions, adverbs and prepositions can all help us to express time, place and cause in our writing; complete sentence starters; sort words according to class; compose sentences starting with adverbials, conjunctions and prepositions.
Revisited skills
- using adjectives and prepositions
- using consistent tense
- using a range of conjunctions
Additional year 4 curriculum teaching points
- using fronted adverbials
- using organisational devices
- creating expanded noun phrases using adjectives and prepositional phrases
Year 4 words: featured vocabulary
Tier two words: chariot, direct, durable, plough
Tier three words: concrete, construct, foundation, surface
Year 3 spellings: build, enough straight, material, weigh