Teach this Year 6 Real Writing unit with confidence, knowing that pupils will engage with an original model text written by published children’s author Jon Mayhew.
The narrative, The Wrath of Vulcan, follows a classic defeating-the-monster structure and plunges pupils into the chaos of Pompeii as Mount Vesuvius erupts.
You'll receive the model text in three formats (plain, illustrated and annotated), plus annotated and non-annotated PowerPoint versions. The unit follows a carefully mapped framework and provides two to three weeks of detailed, ready-to-teach planning.
What pupils will learn
Guide pupils to analyse how effective writers use dialogue to advance action and shape narrative pace. They'll explore how characters respond to danger, how conversations shift as tension builds and how authors reveal viewpoints through speech.
You'll also teach pupils how synonyms refine meaning and how antonyms create contrast. These vocabulary skills strengthen the descriptive passages they'll later craft in their own stories.
The geography curriculum links sit naturally within the unit. Pupils will investigate volcanoes, examine images of the eruption and consider how real-life knowledge strengthens fictional writing.
You'll revisit essential Year 6 writing skills throughout the sequence, including punctuating direct speech, using the past perfect form, creating relative clauses, selecting expanded noun phrases and applying hyphens to avoid ambiguity.
Key teaching activities
Start with a hook that immerses pupils in eyewitness experiences of Pompeii. Use images and video clips to ignite discussion. Read the model text together and explore the events from multiple viewpoints through role play. Reinforce vocabulary understanding by analysing Tier 2 and Tier 3 words in context and completing matching and inference tasks.
Guide pupils as they unpick the defeating-the-monster structure and annotate the text accordingly. You'll provide opportunities for short writes, such as describing a volcanic setting using expanded noun phrases or retelling a moment from a different character’s viewpoint.
In the final phase, pupils will plan and write their own narrative about escaping an eruption, set either in ancient times or the present day.
Resources included
- Model text (three versions)
- PowerPoint slides (annotated and non-annotated)
- Vocabulary cards and matching activities
- Story structure posters
- Character cards
- Teaching slides and activity sheets
- Margin planner for narrative planning
- Images of Pompeii and volcanoes
Vocabulary used in the unit
Tier 2 words: drift, engulf, grove, laden, lair, panic, patron, shiver, wisp
Tier 3 words: explosion, lava, sulphurous, volcano
Common exception words: soldier
Pupil outcomes
By the end of the unit, pupils will write a structured, engaging narrative that demonstrates control over dialogue, precise vocabulary choices and well-crafted descriptive detail.
They'll show secure understanding of the defeating-the-monster story pattern and apply Year 6 grammar skills consistently. Most importantly, they'll produce confident, imaginative stories that reflect a strong grasp of both English and geography concepts.