We've based this Year 1 reading comprehension unit on an original non-fiction text by children’s author Margaret Bateson-Hill, titled A List to Show I Care. (You can also use it as a model text/WAGOLL for developing KS1 writing skills).
Inside the pack you’ll find illustrated and plain versions of the text for sharing and display. It's also available as a PowerPoint, with or without highlights. An annotated version of the text provides detailed prompts to support close reading and discussion.
This resource is a two-part teaching sequence, with fully resourced lesson slides and worksheets. Activities encourage model and choral reading, predictions, identifying text structure and linking to pupils’ real-life experiences.
Each part includes an Explicit Vocabulary Focus — exploring the words apologise and help through word building, sentence construction and spoken language tasks. The lessons also feature Big Questions to prompt deeper thinking, personal responses and group discussion.
Caring actions
The text itself is organised as a checklist with five themed sections (e.g. Helping at Home, Helping at School), each containing five caring actions. Children are invited to reflect on and tick off things they already do – promoting empathy, citizenship and social-emotional learning.
Additional resources include:
- Building Words activity cards
- Helping at School writing activity
- ‘Difficult easy’ question prompts
- A thank-you card writing task linked to the text
- Opportunities for role play and visualisation to reinforce comprehension
You can teach this unit on its own, or as part of a sequence of reading comprehension work covering fiction and poetry texts for the same year group, linked to the same theme.
It forms part of the Real Comprehension whole-school programme, which provides thematic fiction, non-fiction and poetry units to teach reading comprehension and promote deeper understanding in KS1 and KS2, from Year 1 to Year 6.
This Year 1 reading comprehension resource pack includes:
- Original text PDFs - plain (ink-saver); illustrated; annotated
- Original text PPTs - with and without highlights
- Resourced teaching sequence - part 1, with vocab PPT
- Resourced teaching sequence - part 2, with vocab PPT
- Revisit the text resources
- Full teaching notes