English Plan – Reception Spring A – Topic: Dinosaurs Non-fiction: Information Texts ~ Weeks 1 - 2

Week 1 / Monday / Tuesday / Wednesday / Thursday / Friday
On the rug / Beforehand prepare a large, coloured egg (painted papier-mâché balloon).
Tell chn the egg suddenly turned up in the classroom. Lead chn in discussion about it. What could be inside? What kind of animal could it belong to? (large egg = large animal) Compare egg to a real egg – thin shell, breaks easily, fragile. What happens if you squeeze or drop a real egg? To prevent egg from getting hurt or broken suggest that chn write some notices. Discuss ideas – Please take care of this egg, Handle/hold with care, Fragile, Precious, This is not a toy! Keep me warm, thank you. Suggest some not so good ideas to make chn think – Shake me, Please kick me. Discuss a safe place to put the egg. / Tell chn you have been doing some research & you think this could be a dinosaur egg. Dinosaurs lived millions of years ago so this is an amazing find. What can chn do to help egg hatch? What dinosaur do chn think it could be? Write ‘Dinosaur’ on f/c. Tell chn this means ‘Terrible Lizard’. That’s what dinosaurs were – lizards of many different shapes & sizes. Ask chn to share any dinosaur names they know. Do they have a favourite? Ask chn to help write/spell the dinosaur names on f/c. Break the word into chunks listening for the different sounds. / Reveal to chn that overnight the egg hatched! Introduce a toy dinosaur & give it a name. Do chn recognise/know which dinosaur it is? Identify & write dinosaur’s name on f/c, sounding it out as you write. Play Build-a-Dinosaur (see resources). Place 4 cards together on rug to make a dinosaur name (Steg-o-saur-us). Read each card with chn before combining the syllables. Using word cards chn invent new dinosaur names. Mix up cards & separate into 4/5 piles. (blue, red, green, purple, orange) Ask chn to take one card from each pile & put them together in colour order. Read the new dinosaur name together. Continue until all the cards have been used. Read all the new dinosaur names together. Which is our favourite? / Play Dinosaur Pelmonism (see resources). Place cards face down on rug. Chn take turns to match pairs of dinosaurs. When game is over, display cards. What dinosaurs are they? How can we find out? (books/internet) Divide chn into small groups & give each 2 cards & a selection of info books. They look through to match their picture cards with a dinosaur in the book. Bring chn back together & ask chn to identify dinosaurs. Do other groups with the same dinosaur agree? Ask chn to spell out the dinosaur name. Read these together. / Show chn dinosaur names pre-written on f/c. Can chn read them? How did they work it out? (Sounding out /1st letter(s)/guessed!) Underline in different colours how chn can break down the long words to help read and spell it. Divide chn into 4/5s. Give each group a dinosaur to say and break down into 4/5 parts – each child saying a different part to say dinosaur name. Chn share their dinosaur with the class.
Guided task with teacher / Easy
Visit website on pbskids. Use field guide to research class dinosaur. Ask chn to recall a fact they learned. / Medium Visit same website as Easy. Use field guide with chn to research 3 facts about their favourite dinosaur. Write 2 facts into a sentence. First sentence should include the dinosaur name. (T-Rex is a meat eater. It is very fierce.). / Hard Provide chn with information books/websites to research their favourite dinosaur. Describe this to a friend. Ask chn questions to extend descriptions (How many horns? Where is the horn?). Chn write sentences about one feature of their dinosaur.
Guided task with Teaching Assistant / Mixed-ability groups of 3/4 chn. Play Dinosaur Trumps (see resources) with diff groups thro the week. Divide cards evenly between chn in group. Chn hold cards in a pile face up. One child selects a category & reads a dinosaur score from their card, e.g. Length 45 metres. Chn compare that score with their dinosaur’s score in the same category. Highest score takes the top card from each player, placing these below their other cards. The winner of each round starts the next one – choosing a different category, e.g. Killer rating 8. Chn compare scores from their new top card. Continue playing until one child has collected them all. When the game is finished, ask chn to choose a card from the pack. They should read out the scores in each category to the group & finish with ‘I am Lipleurodon’. Read information/facts rather than the scores.
Daily Code-Breakers session
Associated play contexts / ICT: Use paint program to create own ‘egg notices’. Make the font big & colourful. Decorate with appropriate pictures. Print and display around egg. / Play Code Breaker (see resource). Provide chn with secret code to work out dinosaur name. / Sand Tray: Hide small fossils, rocks or plastic dinosaurs. Chn use brushes to gently sweep away sand to reveal hidden treasures! / Role-play: Make dinosaur shadow puppets on black card (templates on resource). Set up a white sheet & lamp to create puppet theatre. / Modelling: Make a dinosaur footprint in play-dough or plasticine. Experiment with different tools to make marks.
Relevant stories or poems to read / Read Harry and the Bucketful of Dinosaurs by Ian Whybrow & Adrian Reynolds. / Sing ‘Tricerotops’. For the words & tune visit the KidsMusicTown website. / Read How do Dinosaurs Get Well Soon? by Jane Yolen & Mark Teague. / Read interesting facts from an info book on dinosaurs. Discuss how to use the index pages to make it quicker. / Read Harry and the Dinosaurs go to School by Ian Whybrow & Adrian Reynolds.

Every day there is a period of 5-10 minutes quiet reading when children share books and teacher reads individually.

Week 2 / Monday / Tuesday / Wednesday / Thursday / Friday
You will need to set up a class site on Weebly for this week’s work and familiarise yourself with how to create webpages https://education.weebly.com/ .
On the rug / Enlarge picture of dinosaur (see resources). Cut along lines, spread puzzle pieces around the circle. Ask chn to choose a piece of puzzle & tell class what they see (leg, horn, neck, tail, body, frill). Repeat with all puzzle pieces then complete the picture. Stick pieces on f/c. Chn read the dinosaur name. Tell chn that we have identified the body parts of the dinosaur & now we are going to label it. What is a label? A word or a sentence? Draw a line from the head & write head at the line end. Discuss how the line points directly to the area that is being labelled. Ask chn to label rest of dinosaur – drawing the lines & writing the word/s. / Refer back to large labelled dinosaur from Mon’s session. Go to http://www.nhm.ac.uk/discover/dino-directory/index.html to research this dinosaur. Listen to all info provided. Recap this with chn as you go and also at end. Can chn tell you a FACT about this dinosaur? Diet, appearance, habits, etc. Tell chn we will write a short caption for our dinosaur. Show a caption in a book as an example. Using chn’s suggestions, model writing a short caption using a capital letter & full stop. / Show chn Weebly https://education.weebly.com/ . Tell chn that we shall create a class website all about dinosaurs. Chn will work in pairs to create their own webpage on their favourite dinosaur. Chn will be making links to other pages on the site and will be able to view work done by other chn. Model how to access the site, add a page title, pictures and text. The chn will be using work already done on dinosaurs to help them paste in a caption and label their pictures on their webpages. (NB Work can be scanned in for pasting on a page.) / Write Tyrannosaurus rex on f/c. Underline ran. What does this say? What other parts can chn see? (no, saur, us) Write Stegosaurus on f/c. Chn work in pairs to copy the dinosaur name from f/c. Ask chn to sound out & underline the words they find (go, saur, us). Repeat with Diplodocus (dip, us, do, plod). / Enlarge simple text on dinosaurs (see resources). Ask chn to follow text as you read. Can chn identify the dinosaurs in the story? (Dorothy/ Diplodocus, Timothy/T. rex) How did they know this? What did chn learn? Show chn the same text but with words missing (see resources). Read the text together, asking chn to suggest appropriate words. Re-read sentences to make sure the inserted word makes sense.
Guided task with teacher / Chn are best working in pairs on a computer to create their webpage. Chn use whiteboards to write three descriptive words about their favourite dinosaur. Model how chn can write these words into a short caption (sharp teeth – It has sharp teeth.). Ask chn to find their webpage (name) (you have set this up). Copy caption from whiteboard onto webpage. They add a title (name of dinosaur). Chn select a dinosaur picture, add labels & type a short caption using key words. Underline the key word/s (dinosaur feature/s) in sentence. Chn support each other in the process of creating their own webpage. NB some chn will produce more text/fewer pictures!
Guided task with Teaching Assistant / Easy Chn draw a picture of their favourite dinosaur. Ask chn to point to a feature and draw an imaginary line to the space where they will write the label. Support chn to write one label and their dinosaur’s name. / Medium Discuss features of different dinosaurs (claws/feet/tail/ teeth/horn). How would chn describe these features (sharp teeth, long claws)? Chn draw their favourite dinosaur & label two parts of its body. Write a short sentence using one dinosaur feature (My dinosaur has teeth. OR My dinosaur has sharp teeth.). / Hard Chn draw their favourite dinosaur & label three features. Chn include these features in short sentences (Teeth – The T. Rex has sharp teeth to …). Encourage chn to include the dinosaur name in their first sentence.
Daily Code-Breakers session
Associated play contexts / Cutting and sticking: Make paper plate dinosaurs. Follow instructions to make their own Stegosaurus (see resources). / ICT: Use a paint program to create a dinosaur scene (trees dead/alive, plants, grass, rivers, volcanoes, rocks, hills, mountains). Print out to add dinosaurs. / Cards: Play Trumps. Divide the cards evenly. Take turns to call out scores. / Role play: Use dinosaur masks made in topic session (Wk 1). Act out a day in the life of a dinosaur. / Drawing: Draw dinosaurs or use stencils. Add these to dinosaur scene created in ICT. Be creative & make dinosaurs stand out.
Relevant stories or poems to read / Read The Dance of the Dinosaurs by Colin & Jacqui Hawkins. / Read some dinosaur facts to chn. Tell chn if they think the answer is True they show thumbs up sign, if they think it is false, they show thumbs down sign. Tell them if they were right and start again for each new question. Q: All dinosaurs eat meat? T/F? / Read Saturday Night at the Dinosaur Stomp by Carol Diggory-Shields. / Read poem The Dinosaur Den by Adam Guillain (see resources). / Play hangman. Draw spaces for each letter of a dinosaur name. Ask chn for letters, inserting correct ones until chn guess & complete the word.

Every day there is a period of 5-10 minutes quiet reading when children share books and teacher reads individually.

Topic Suggestions

Weeks / PSED
Personal, Social and Emotional Development / PD
Physical Development / CLL
Communication & Language / Literacy / M
Mathematics / UW
Understanding the World / EAD
Expressive Arts and Design /
Week 1 / Show chn the dinosaur egg & pass it around reminding chn how careful they have to be – look what they are doing, only pass it on to someone who is ready, use both hands. Explain to chn that when they were a baby they were just as fragile as this egg and although they have grown they still need to be looked after. Discuss who looks after them (mum, dad, family, friends, ourselves). What do they/we do to look after each other? Listen to grown ups, follow rules, listen to their bodies, know when they feel sick, or fear danger. / Stealing eggs from a dinosaur nest!
Play this exciting game where groups of chn work as a team to ‘steal’ eggs from a dinosaur nest (see resources for instructions). Encourage team work & make sure that chn realise that if they do not obey the rules, e.g. only one child from each team running to steal an egg at any one time, then you will confiscate eggs and return them to nest! / Week 1 in English
Speaking and listening – Mon - Listen with attention and discuss how to look after a dinosaur egg.
Reading –
Thurs – Find information in non-fiction texts and the internet.
Fri – Hear & say sounds in dinosaur names in order.
Writing –
Tues – Attempt to write dinosaur names sounding words out to help.
Wed – Using dinosaur names experiment with sounds and words. / Counting to ten
Enlarge & display a copy of Dinosaurs to Ten (see resources) & read it to chn. Using large plastic model dinosaurs, choose a child to stick a dinosaur to the f/c or stand a model dinosaur where it can be seen. Start poem again & get the chn to add dinosaurs each time one appears in the rhyme. Practise counting to ten along row of dinosaurs. Visit http://pbskids.org/dinosaurtrain/games/fieldguide.html
and play How big are you? (measures/length). / Dinosaur facts
What dinosaurs are there? Discuss different types – Flying, 2-legged, 4-legged, meat eating, vegetarian, etc.
Were there any dinosaurs that lived in the water? Look in some information books and use the contents or index pages to check. What facts can they find out about the class pet dinosaur? Chn use the books to help them explore their own particular interests about dinosaurs. Encourage chn to use the contents or index pages to make their research quicker! / Dinosaur mask