Real Writing Year 1 - Unit 25
Model text: Through the Window, by Joshua Seigal
Curriculum links: Geography, science
Writing unit overview
This writing unit for Year 1 is built around an original text by Joshua Seigal - a shape poem describing the weather. 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 learn how adjectives can be used to describe, including examples that use alliteration, and they will use onomatopoeia to describe sounds. Pupils will also learn how to add the suffix -ing to words where no change is needed to the root word. At the end of the unit, pupils will write their own shape poem about the weather using the skills that they have been taught.
Key curriculum skills
Three fully-resourced lessons are included for the following Year 1 English objectives, which can form part of the unit or be taught discretely:
1. Vocabulary: to add the suffix -ing to words where no change is needed to the root word
Pupils will: learn how the suffix -ing can be added when no change is needed to the root word.
2. Grammar: to compose simple sentences that use adjectives
Pupils will: learn how adjectives can be used to describe nouns. They will collect words that could be used to describe the weather, and will be introduced to alliteration. Pupils will orally compose sentences that contain adjectives before writing them.
3. Grammar: to say out loud what they will write about – using onomatopoeia
Pupils will: explore onomatopoeia, listing sounds that they associate with different weathers.
Additional teaching points to teach or revisit:
- saying out loud what they are going to write about
- using exclamation marks
- rereading what they have written to check that it makes sense
- reading aloud their own writing
Year 1 vocabulary
Year 1 common exception words: love go to the they my
Tier 2 words: window pane
Tier 3 words: clouds, fog, hailstones, lightning, rain, sunshine, thunder
What is a suffix?
A suffix is a group of letters that can be added to the end of a word. The suffix can change the word’s meaning.
Examples of suffixes include -ing, -ed, -er and -est.
What are adjectives?
Adjectives are words that modify a noun and usually come before the noun in a sentence. They add description or specification.
The bright sun is high in the blue sky.
The adjectives ‘bright’ and ‘blue’ describe the sun and sky.
We need plain flour for the recipe.
The adjective ‘plain’ is specifying which flour we need.
What is alliteration?
Alliteration occurs when different words that start with the same sound are used together
- Plump pillow
- Heavy hammer
- Tasty toffee
- Slippery slide
What is onomatopoeia?
A word that is formed from the sound that is made.
- smash
- crash
- click
- boom
- cough
- gargle
- buzz