Bring the magic of fairy tales into your classroom with this engaging Year 1 writing unit from our Real Writing collection. Based on Jack and the Beanstalk, an original retelling by published children’s author Lucy Strange, this two-to-three-week unit introduces pupils to the features of fairy tales and portal stories, where characters visit magical worlds.
Pupils will create story maps to retell the story and write their own version, changing parts of the magical world that Jack discovers. This unit links naturally to topics on plants, growth and the life cycle, providing cross-curricular opportunities.
Key skills and curriculum links
This unit supports Year 1 English objectives:
- Add the prefix un- to words and understand how it changes meaning
- Combine words to make simple sentences
- Use exclamation marks to punctuate sentences
Pupils will also practise:
- Saying aloud what they are going to write about
- Composing sentences orally before writing
- Using adjectives to describe characters and settings
- Leaving spaces between words
- Sequencing sentences to form short narratives
- Reading aloud their own writing
Activities and teaching sequence
Lessons begin with a hook using a fairy tale poster and real beans to engage pupils in discussion about the story. Pupils will read Jack and the Beanstalk and identify the good and evil characters, as well as magical events.
They will sequence the story using retelling cards and act it out individually, in groups or as a class.
Pupils will explore Tier 2 vocabulary (beanstalk, brave, climbed, giant, harp, hen, market, treasure) and revisit common exception words (once, a, was, he, she, his, no, there, our, to, said, full, my, be). They will draw a story map of Jack’s journey and orally rehearse their retelling.
For their own writing, pupils will generate ideas for a new magical world Jack might find, draw and label it, then write sentences using adjectives and exclamation marks.
Teachers will support less confident pupils and provide challenges for more confident writers to extend vocabulary and story sequencing. Pupils will then check their work by rereading and, where possible, self-assessing with the writer’s checklist.
Resources included
- Model text PDFs (plain, illustrated, annotated)
- Annotated and non-annotated PowerPoint slides
- Story maps and sequencing cards
- Vocabulary and common exception word cards
- Writing sheets and prompts
- Magical World ideas sheet
- Writer’s craft instruction sheets
These resources will help you deliver lessons confidently while engaging pupils in structured, creative writing.
Outcomes
By the end of the unit, pupils will:
- Retell Jack and the Beanstalk confidently through speech and writing
- Use exclamation marks, adjectives and the prefix un- accurately
- Apply Tier 2 vocabulary and common exception words in context
- Write their own fairy tale version, demonstrating creativity and understanding of story structure
This unit provides a clear, practical framework to develop literacy skills while inspiring pupils to explore magical worlds through writing.