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Non-fiction
English Year 3 Autumn Instructions and Explanations
Game Shows and Quizzes
Using game shows and quizzes children identify the differences between instructions and explanations. Add information about time, place and cause to write clear instructions.
We recommend that you start with the core unit, the heart of this English block of study. This introduces key textual material and sets the tone for any further units you wish to teach. These can be selected on the basis of the needs of your class – look at the green icons to identify the unit’s particular focus: SPAG, Composition or Comprehension. Whichever units you choose, we suggest teaching them in order, as there is a built-in progression indicated by the numbering.
‘UNIT PLAN’ gives you a text version of all parts of the unit to use in your school planning documentation. ‘DOWNLOAD ALL FILES’ gives you that unit plan plus all of the associated documents.
Unit 1 Core: Introduction to the features of instructions and explanations
(suggested as 4 days)
Objectives
Spoken language
-- Listen and respond appropriately.
-- Maintain attention and participate actively in collaborative conversations.
-- Use spoken language to develop understanding through hypothesising.
-- Participate in discussions.
-- Ask relevant questions to extend knowledge.
Comprehension
-- Read texts structured in different/ for a range of purposes.
-- Check that text makes sense, discussing their understanding/checking meaning of words in context.
-- Ask questions to improve understanding.
-- Identify how language, structure and presentation contribute to meaning
Composition
-- Discuss and record ideas.
-- Use simple organisational devices in writing non-narrative.
-- Compose and rehearse sentences orally, progressively building a varied vocabulary.
-- Assess the effectiveness of their own and others’ writing and suggest improvements.
Teaching and Activities
Day 1 Teaching
Watch and discuss the game show Countdown, noting the format and creating a simple flow chart. Highlight that instructions are needed to understand a game. Discuss features of instructions and model instructions for Countdown.
Activity
Children follow the instructions for Countdown and play the game. They each take a turn at following the instructions and choosing the cards. Some children then have a go at following the instructions for the numbers round.
Day 2 Teaching
Watch and discuss the game show Pointless, noting the format and creating a simple flow chart. Recap features of instructional writing, emphasising the importance of ‘bossy’ verbs.
Activity
Children write simple instructions for Pointless, based on the flowchart created in the teaching. They use ‘bossy’ verbs and time connectives.
Day 3 Teaching
Look at the explanation of How Countdown Works, and contrast to the Countdown instructions from Day 1. Look at the verbs and note that it is written in the third person. Explore first/third person sentences, then compare the features of explanation and instruction texts.
Activity
Children read How Countdown Works as well as the instructions for Countdown. They sort the given features and create a Venn Diagram showing the key similarities and differences between explanation and instruction texts.
Day 4 Teaching
Discuss the key features of Pointless and Countdown and display the explanations of each. Recap on the key features of explanations, then model writing a sentence that compares the two shows, noting words that help compare.
Activity
Children read the two game show explanations. They compare the shows and decide which they think is better and why. Children write their opinion in the form of a TV review that compares the gameshows.
Unit 2 SPAG: Conjunctions, adverbs and prepositions used to add information about time and cause
(suggested as 3 days)
Objectives
Spoken language
-- Listen and respond appropriately to adults and their peers.
-- Ask relevant questions to improve understanding .
-- Maintain attention and participate actively in collaborative conversations, staying on topic and responding to comments.
-- Participate in discussions.
Comprehension
-- Listen to and discuss a wide range of non-fiction.
-- Check that the text makes sense to them as they read.
-- Ask questions to improve understanding of a text.
-- Retrieve information from non-fiction texts.
Composition
-- Discuss writing similar to that which they are planning to write in order to understand and learn from its structure.
-- Compose and rehearse sentences orally.
-- In non-narrative material, use simple organisational devices, e.g. time connectives.
Grammar
-- Use conjunctions, adverbs and prepositions to express time and cause.
-- Understand and use the grammar terminology in Appx 2 accurately and appropriately.
You Will Need
Texts
Included in resources.
Teaching and Activities
Day 1 Teaching
Play Sentence Scramble, deciding if sentences are instructional or ‘other’. Revise features of instructions. Read the instructions for the card game, Umsh, and compare to the list of features.
Activity
Children carefully read the Umsh instructions and play the game in groups of 4-8.
Day 2 Teaching
Use Time, Place and Cause PPT to explore conjunctions, prepositions and adverbs. Look at the instructions for Dobble™ and ask children if these are good instructions.
Identify and highlight the conjunctions, prepositions, and adverbs, noting that they help make the instructions clear and effective.
Activity
Children read through the email from Alice to Dexter that outlines the game of Dobble that Alice has enjoyed playing. In pairs, they identify conjunctions, prepositions and adverbs.
Day 3 Teaching
Play a class game of Hangman before recapping conjunctions, prepositions and adverbs. Then explore how we use them to add information about time, place and cause or manner. Start shared writing instructions for Hangman, modelling how to use time adverbs, conjunctions and prepositions.
Activity
Children work in pairs to discuss and continue writing the instructions for Hangman.
They use prepositions, conjunctions and adverbs in their instructions, using different coloured pencils/pens to identify them.
SPaG: Grammar and Punctuation
PowerPoint: Expressing time, place and cause
Children revise the use of conjunctions to add clauses, the use of prepositions to add phrases and the use of adverbs to modify verbs. All of these help us add information about when, where, why/how.
Unit 3 Comprehension: comparing and analysing explanations and instructions
(suggested as 4 days)
Objectives
Spoken language
-- Maintain attention and participate actively in collaborative conversations, staying on topic and responding to comments.
-- Participate in discussions.
-- Listen and respond appropriately to adults and peers.
-- Use spoken language to develop understanding through speculating, hypothesising and exploring ideas.
Comprehension
-- Listen to and discuss a wide range of non-fiction.
-- Retrieve information from non-fiction texts.
-- Check that the text makes sense to them as they read, discuss their understanding and explain meaning of words in context.
-- Ask questions to improve understanding of a text.
-- Identify main ideas drawn from more than one paragraph.
Composition
-- Compose and rehearse sentences orally.
-- In non-narrative material, use simple organisational devices, e.g. numbered bullet points and headings/sub-headings.
-- Discuss writing similar to that which they are planning to write in order to understand and learn from its structure and vocabulary.
-- Discuss and record ideas.
Transcription
-- Use the diagonal and horizontal strokes that are needed to join letters.
-- Increase the legibility, consistency and quality of handwriting.
You Will Need
Texts
Instructions and explanations included in resources.
Teaching and Activities
Day 1 Teaching
Watch a clip and discuss the show Who Wants to be a Millionaire? Look at the flow chart and read the recount then shared write the first one or two instructions together for the show.
Activity
Children use the recount and the flow chart to write a set of instructions for all or part of Who Wants to be a Millionaire?
Day 2 Teaching
Look at the Features of Explanation Texts together and compare with the Features of Instructional Texts. Shared read the explanation of Who Wants to be a Millionaire? and compare to the features of explanations, identifying aspects that reflect these.
Activity
Children use the second explanation about why Who Wants to be a Millionaire? is so popular. They analyse the explanation using the Features of Explanation Texts, then answer a comprehension question on it.
Day 3 Teaching
Read through the instructions for the class version of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? Recap Features of Instructional Texts and ask children to remind you how they differ from explanations.
Activity
Prepare and play a class game of Who Wants to be a Millionaire? using the questions provided. Once completed, children discuss, in small groups, how the game went and suggest possible improvements.
Day 4 Teaching
Recap on the plenary discussion from Day 3. Create a chart that lists the successes and failings, including notes, suggesting why. Shared plan an explanation, using the chart to help organise ideas.
Activity
Children draft a short explanation for why the class version of Who Wants to be a Millionaire? worked or didn’t. They copy out their explanation in neat and accurate, joined handwriting.
Unit 4 SPAG: Using paragraphs to group related material
(suggested as 3 days)
Objectives
Spoken language
-- Maintain attention and participate actively in collaborative conversations, staying on topic and responding to comment.
-- Participate in discussions.
Comprehension
-- Listen to and discuss a wide range of non-fiction.
-- Check that the text makes sense to them as they read.
-- Ask questions to improve their understanding.
-- Retrieve information from non-fiction texts.
Grammar
-- Know that paragraphs are a way to group related material.
-- Learn grammar for Y3 in Appendix 2.
Composition
-- Discuss writing similar to that which they are planning to write to learn about its structure.
-- Compose and rehearse sentences orally.
-- Organise paragraphs around a theme.
You Will Need
Texts
Included in resources.
Teaching and Activities
Day 1 Teaching
Introduce The Chase and watch a clip. Discuss how the game appears to be played, drawing a flow chart on your flip chart to record suggestions. Explain that children are going to follow instructions today for a class version of this game.
Activity
Working in teams, children read the instructions for The Chase. Then start a class game using the Record Sheet and the Questions PPT.
Day 2 Teaching
Look through the Paragraphs PPT with the class then ask children to come up with their own definition of a paragraph and share. Read the Explanation of the Class Version of The Chase noting that is hasn’t been organised into paragraphs.
Activity
Children re-read the Explanation of the Class Version of The Chase. Remind them that it has no paragraphs. Challenge children to cut up the explanation and arrange it in paragraphs. They then stick these in their book.
Day 3 Teaching
Play a short Hogwarts’ house sorting quiz online. Sort a couple of children into houses, then display the Explanation Prompts as you model write the beginning of a short explanation about the quiz. Activity
Children continue to write a short explanation of the Hogwarts sorting game. They write 3 or 4 separate paragraphs, each of which can be quite short.
SPaG: Grammar and Punctuation
PowerPoint: Paragraphs
This short presentation reminds children how we can use paragraphs to help us with both reading and comprehension and also in our own writing.
Unit 5 Composition: Writing explanations using key features
(suggested as 4 days)
Objectives
Spoken language
-- Articulate and justify answers, arguments and opinions.
-- Give well-structured explanations.
-- Maintain attention and participate actively in collaborative conversations.
-- Participate in discussions.
Comprehension
-- Listen to and discuss a wide range of non-fiction.
-- Check that the text makes sense to them as they read.
-- Identify how language, structure, and presentation contribute to meaning.
Composition
-- Discuss and record ideas.
-- Organise paragraphs around a theme.
-- Use simple organisational devices (headings and sub-headings).
-- Assess the effectiveness of their own and others’ writing and suggest improvements.
Grammar
-- Use conjunctions, adverbs and prepositions to express time.
You Will Need
Texts
Explanation of Pointless, included in resources
Websites
You Tube The dog ate my homework from CBBC
Teaching and Activities
Day 1 Teaching
Recap on the concept of quiz shows. Children share other quizzes they are familiar with, explaining how they work and why they think they are successful. Create a class chart that records details for each quiz discussed.
Activity
Children use the class chart to guide a discussion on which quiz they prefer and why. They also need to identify which quiz they dislike and why.
Day 2 Teaching
Recap features of explanations texts, then read the explanation of Pointless, highlighting the key features. Ask children to explain how this differs to instructional writing.
Activity
Children reread the Explanation of Pointless and use the Analysis Questions to explore the key features of the text.
Day 3 Teaching
Children talk to their learning partner about a favourite game, explaining how it works and why they like it. Share a good example and make some brief notes in the form of a model plan. Re-emphasise the key features of an explanation text.
Activity
Children draft a very brief plan for an explanation of how their chosen game works.
They use the Features of an Explanation Text, the Time Connectives resource and the Planning Template to organise their notes.
Day 4 Teaching
Look at your example plan from Day 3 and cross reference it with the Features of an Explanation Text. Recap on the use of paragraphs in writing then shared write the first couple of sections of your explanation, emphasising key features.
Activity
Children write their explanation in full using paragraphs and key features of explanation texts. They read aloud their explanations with their learning partner and share constructive feedback.