Hamilton English blocks contain everything you need to teach your child English, including comprehension, grammar and writing in a variety of different text genres within fiction, non-fiction and poetry. We have written some guidance to help you find your way to the materials you need in the home context.
Hamilton's materials are organised around the National Curriculum for England, but they are fully flexible and can be reconfigured to teach to your own priorities.
We recommend that you make sure you cover fiction, non-fiction and poetry with your child, and that you look at a variety of different genres in each text type. Hamilton English blocks all start with stimulating exemplar texts that represent a wide number of different types of writing and a diverse range of subjects. You are sure to find lots of inspiring books, extracts and poems to study with your child. Keep an eye on our blogs and our newsletters as well, as we sometimes feature book recommendations with ideas about how they can be used to generate discussion and facilitate writing.
The flexibility allows you to pick and choose texts that will appeal to your child or stretch her/him (or both!), as you decide. You know your child's interests, strengths and areas where you can facilitate more development. Select the blocks and units that best suit your child's needs.
I love the way all the strands of English are taught in the context of a story or poem, etc. It a very practical way of learning any language. My daughter never enjoyed writing. However, through two years of Hamilton English she is now able to write stories and poems. She loves breaking the task down into smaller steps such as story maps, planning and building on that.
Home educating mother
Teaching Grammar
Look out for Hamilton's grammar slide presentations in the SPaG units in each block. You can work through these together with your children on a computer. They are fun and clear, and if you teach them in the context of the whole block, the grammar will also be contextualised. The comprehension units will contain the same grammatical constructions and the extended writing unit will give children the opportunity to use and consolidate them in their own way.
English in Science and Topics
Many children need to feel really engaged with a subject if they are going to attempt an extended piece of writing about it. Hamilton's English texts are selected with this in mind, but we also provide other contexts that can inspire children to write.
Hamilton's science blocks describe opportunities for extended writing where appropriate. The Year Overview highlights extended writing opportunities that arise from the science study. These are also captured in the list of objectives for the relevant session, usually Session 6.
History and geography both provide ample opportunities to cover objectives in the English curriculum, and many of Hamilton's cross-curricular topics include inspiring writing contexts. Look out for those blocks that specify English as one of the key subject areas included.