Reading Project Overview

Take Cover

Reading project overview

Lesson / Topic / Order / Framework + NC ref. /

Learning objective

/ Success criteria / HW option / Duration
1 / Close reading (opening chapter) / Can be done at any point after reading Chapter 1. / 5.3
2.2 g + j / To analyse the opening chapter of a book and discuss its effectiveness. / Know how to analyse the first chapter of a book. Thought about how a first chapter hooks the reader into reading on. Read a short piece aloud and explained why it will encourage people to read on. / 1 lesson
2 / Research for lesson 3 / Do early on if research is to be set as HW. / 5.1
2.2e / To formulate some questions and research the factual background of a reading book. / Decided on a task. Started planning research by
either selecting five words for a glossary or writing three questions for a factsheet or writing five questions about an author. Started research notes. / Yes / 1 or 2 lessons
3 / Glossary, author profile or factsheet / Will follow lesson 2, but not necessarily immediately / 6.1
2.2e / To produce a piece of factual, informative writing. / Sorted 10 statements into fact and opinion.
Used lesson 2 research notes to write either a glossary or a social/cultural/historical factsheet or a factual profile of the author. / 1 lesson
4 / Blurbs / Can be done at any point. / 5.2 + 7.2
2.2g + 2.3d / To analyse the content and style of a blurb and to write your own. / Discussed why we have blurbs on the back of books. Analysed the blurb of a book.
Written a blurb using some of the methods studied. / 1 lesson
5 / Creative work –display / Best done when they’ve read on a bit. / 5.2
2.2a / To respond in a creative way to the key ideas, events and characters in a reading book. / Produced a piece for a class display which demonstrates understanding of some of the book’s main ideas, characters, events or themes. / Yes / 1 or 2 lessons
6 / Review / Post reading
and after PR3 / 7.1
2.3k / To plan and draft a well-structured book review that is suited to the needs of the reader. / Understood the purpose of a book review and how this influences the content. Planned and drafted a book review. / Optional / 1 lesson
7–9 / Class magazine / After PR3, 5 and 6 / 7.1, 7.2
2.3b / To work cooperatively to contribute to a class magazine, to select, revise and redraft a key piece of work and to create new themed content. / Redrafted a piece of work for inclusion in the magazine and helped the group to create some new material to interest and entertain teenagers. / Yes / Up to 3 lessons

Take CoverReading project 1

Teacher sheet

1Hooks for books

Teacher input required / Low/minimal
Framework substrand / 5.3 reading and engaging with a wide and varied range of texts
National Curriculum ref. / 2.2g understand how audiences and readers choose and respond to texts
2.2j understand how texts are crafted to shape meaning and produce effects

Learning objective

To analyse the opening chapter of a book and discuss its effectiveness.

Resources required

Student instructions, student resource sheet (for more able students),paper andBlu-Tack for displaying sentences. Students need a reading book of which they have already read the first chapter.

Lesson guidance

Starter – pairs evaluating and comparing different opening sentences (a and b on student instructions). (10 mins)

Development – in fours, complete Task 1. (If possible, help students display the sentences after Task 1 and then save them for use in later ‘magazine’ lessons.) Task 2 is individual analysis of own book’s Chapter 1. (30 mins)

Plenary – shared reading of extracts from the novels. (15 mins)

Differentiation

Differentiation is by resource (students will have their own reading book), outcome and task (more able students should complete the detailed analysis of style on the student resource sheet).

Student instructions

1Hooks for books

Learning objective

To analyse the first chapter of a book and understand how different techniques are used to interest the reader.

Success criteria

By the end of the lesson I will:

know how to analyse the first chapter of my book and will have thought about how it hooks the reader into reading on
I will have read a short piece aloud and explained why I think it encourages people to read on.

Warm up

a)With a partner, read these opening sentences from popular children’s books. For each one, discuss how the author has tried to hook the reader into reading on.

(There might be a mystery, an interesting character, a surprise or shock, a joke, something impossible, an interesting description, a strong emotion…)

b)Copy the first sentence of your own reading book on a piece of A4 paper. How has it tried to hook you?

Your main task!

Get into a group of four. Take it in turns to read out your opening sentences and briefly explain how each one tries to hook the reader. Once you have all shared your sentences, discuss which one you think is the strongest or best hook. Display it so that the other groups can see it.

Now you are ready to analyse the rest of your Chapter 1 to see how effective it is. Complete the chart:

Exploring an opening chapter
Title, author
Main character (s)
Other characters
Main events
Main hook(what you want to find out about)
Setting(where?)
Voice(first person = I
third person = he/she)
Verb tense
Style (powerful or interesting images, amount of dialogue, kind of vocabulary, length of sentences orparagraphs)
Thestudent resource sheet will help you here.

Round it off with this

Get into a small group (three or four). Choose a paragraph or two from the opening chapter of your book which you think will interest a reader and make them want to carry on reading the book. You are going to read it aloud (with expression!) to your group and explain what it is about this section that you think makes it effective. You will have five minutes’ preparation time and then you will take it in turns to present your extracts to your group.

Extra challenge

Analyse the style in more detail using the additional student resource sheet.

Student resource sheet

Analysing the style of Chapter 1 of ______(title)

Does it contain some of the following features? Why? How does it affect the reader?

Feature / Evidence, example or a comment
Six interesting adjectives
A very short paragraph for emphasis
At least one interesting character
A complex sentence
A very short sentence for impact
Dialogue
A simile
A metaphor
A shocking or surprising incident
Three unusual words
Six interesting verbs
A cliff-hanger ending

Of course, different novels use different methods to encourage you to read on! What else do you notice about the chapter you have read that helps to hook you in? Write any other points on the back of this sheet.

Take CoverReading project 2

Teacher sheet

2Fact or fiction? (N.B. two lessons may be needed)

Teacher input required / Low/minimal
Links to other lessons / Followed by PR3
Framework substrand / 5.1 developing and adapting active reading skills and strategies
National Curriculum ref. / 2.2e assess the usefulness of texts, sift the relevant from the irrelevant and distinguish between fact and opinion

Learning objective

To formulate some questions and research the factual background of your reading book.

Resources required

Access to the internet/library, student instructions and student resource sheet, author profile template (optional). Students will need to have a current reading book.

Outline lesson guidance

Students should decide on a research task, using the information on the student instructions and their knowledge of their own book. Discuss appropriateness of choice with friend.
(10 mins)

Students formulate their questions or select their glossary terms, according to whichever task they have selected. (Allow 10–15 mins)

Students research and make notes. This work could be continued for homework or extended into the next lesson. If access to the internet/library is not possible, or if a second lesson is used and students finish their research task, plan for a period of private reading.Students can also be asked to write a Top 10 list related to their private reading (top 10… favourite characters / books about magic / films based on books / award winners…) which can be used for the later magazine project (private reading lessons 7 through to 9).

Notes for SEN students

Encourage students to do the author profile; a model template is provided to guide research and drafting. In the lesson they may be able to fill in some details gleaned from the back cover or frontispiece of their books.

Extension activities / notes for gifted and talented students

The social/cultural/historical factsheet is most challenging.

Student instructions

2Fact or fiction?

Learning objective

To undertake a research task on my reading book.

Success criteria

By the end of the lesson I will have:

decided which task I want to do
started planning my research by either selecting five words for my glossary or writing three questions for my factsheet or writing five questions about my author
started my research notes.

Warm up (10 minutes)

Read the choice of tasks and the guidance on what is involved below and on the next page. Discuss with a friend which tasks suit your books. Choose one!

Task 1: A glossary

What is it? / Should I do this? / What should I find out?
This is like a mini-dictionary. It is a list of unfamiliar words and an explanation or definition of each one. Its aim is to help other readers of the book to understand the story more easily. / This task is suitable if you have a non-fiction book that uses technical language that wouldn’t be understood by everybody. You could also do this task if your book is set in another country, culture or time and it includes words that would be unfamiliar to many people (e.g. words in another language, old-fashioned words, words for clothes, food, objects etc. that are specific to that culture). / Firstly, go through your book and make a list of any words that are specific to the culture, subject or time that are important to understanding the story. (Examples might be technical words from a non-fiction book, names of places or people from history or unfamiliar objects … anything that might make readers wonder ‘what’s that?’.) Use dictionaries, encyclopaedias or the internet to find out what they mean.

Task 2: Profile of the author

What is it? / Should I do this? / What should I find out?
This is background information about the author, such as biographical details, facts about their career, other books they have written, what influences them… and so on. / This task is suitable for any reasonably well-known author of a fiction book. / You have to decide on what you want to include. Biographical details, career, other books they have written, influences etc. You have a lot of freedom but a template is available for guidance if you want it.

Task 3: Fact sheet on social, cultural or historical background

What is it? / Should I do this? / What should I find out?
This is like a mini encyclopaedia. Its aim is to inform readers about the time or place your book is set, so that they can understand the story more easily. / This would be a good task if your book is set in another time, place or culture. / This is a tricky task because it is the most open-ended one. If you are not careful, you could end up writing pages and pages on, for example, the history of the First World War. Narrow your research by looking through your book and forming some relevant and specific questions that a reader might ask as they read it. You can then research just these aspects.

Your main task!

Before you start your research, spend 10 minutes making a plan for what you need to find out. This might include questions, a template you want to fill in, a list of terms or topics that you need to explain. Good research has a direction!

Now start your research. Make notes: don’t just copy out or print off huge chunks of stuff. This will save you time and help your final draft to be in your own words rather than copied. Copying without acknowledging your sources is called plagiarism (it is stealing other people’s work and pretending that it is your own). Not only is this cheating, it is actually illegal!

Keep a list of all the sources of information that you have actually taken information from. This will enable you to add a bibliography – which is what proper researchers do.

for books, list the author (surname and initial), title, and publisher and publication date in brackets
e.g. Morpurgo M,Private Peaceful, (HarperCollins, 2003)

for encyclopaedias, use the editor’s name instead of the author and include the volume number after the title

for websites, record theURL (the www address) of the actual page, and the date you accessed the page

e.g. Children of World War Two — (accessed 1 July 2009)

for a CD-ROM, set out the author, publication date, title and publisher just like for a book, but after the title, write ‘CD-ROM’.

Student resource sheet

Personal information

Name
Date of birth
Place of birth
Now lives in …
Family and children

Early life

Schooling
Other jobs before or besides writing

Writing career

How they first became interested in writing
Where their ideas come from
How and where they do their writing
First book
List of other books
Awards and prizes
Books made into films

General

Hobbies and interests
What he/she enjoys reading
What influences them
Favourite book or character

This is for guidance – you don’t have to stick to it if some information is not relevant or you have extra facts you would like to include.

Take CoverReading project 3

Teacher sheet

3Fact from fiction

Teacher input required / Low/minimal
Framework substrand / 6.1 relating texts to the social, historical and cultural contexts in which they were written
National Curriculum ref. / 2.2e assess the usefulness of texts, sift the relevant from the irrelevant and distinguish between fact and opinion

Learning objective

To produce a piece of factual, informative writing.

Resources required

Student instructions, students’ research notes from lesson 2, enough ‘success stickers’ (gold stars or something similar) for one per student.

Lesson guidance

Starter – students sort statements into fact and opinion. If possible, get students to self-mark or use the Teachit interactive version, [Media and non-fiction basics] ‘Fact or opinion – which is it?’ (Answers: OFOOFOOFOO). (5–10 mins)

Development – using their research notes, students draft one of the following: a glossary, a factsheet or an author profile. (40 mins)

Plenary – students swap and read, checking for any statements of opinion and highlighting them for later redrafting. Award gold star/reward sticker to any draft that is fully factual. If possible, mediate any queries, particularly around statements of fact that contain opinion words e.g. ‘Roald Dahl has been called the best children’s writer of the 20th century’.

(5–10 mins)

Notes for SEN students

Encourage them to do the author profile, using the template (at least as a starting point).

Extension activities / notes for gifted and talented students

Add a bibliography – see lesson 2 student instructions (Main task 2) for guidance.

Student instructions

3Fact from fiction

Learning objective

To produce a piece of factual, informative writing.

Success criteria

By the end of the lesson I will have:

sorted 10 statements into fact and opinion.
used my research notes to write either:

a glossary or

a social/cultural/historical factsheet or

a factual profile of the author.

Warm up

Decide if these 10 statements are statements of fact or opinion. Tick the relevant box.

Statement of … / Fact / Opinion
EastEnders teaches you essential things about life.
The FA Cup is a prize in a football competition.
Your English teacher is very talented.
Teaching is the most important job in the world.
Harry Potter was the creation of J.K. Rowling.
In the 1966 World Cup, England was lucky to beat Germany.
Schooldays are the best days of your life.
Smoking is illegal in enclosed public places.
Computer games are bad for your health.
Apples are better than caffeine for waking you up in the morning.

Your main task!

Draft your piece of factual writing (suggested length: one page). You should already have chosen from:

A glossary / Write your explanation in language that is suitable for other readers of the book. Make sure that if there is more than one meaning of a word, you include the meaning that fits how the word is used in this book.
A profile of your book’s author / Write your explanation in language that is suitable for other readers of the book. Use your own words rather than copying from the original. You can choose how you set it out, but give some thought to presenting it in a way that makes it clear and easy to read.
A fact sheet on the social, cultural or historical background of your book / Write your explanation in language that is suitable for other readers of the book. Take care with presentation – set it out in a way that makes it easy for people to use. For example, subheadings, bold text …

Round it off with this

Swap your work with a partner.

Read through your partner’s work to check that it is factual. Help them to improve it by highlighting or underlining any sentences you think are a matter of opinion so that your partner can go back over this part of their work and redraft them to make them more factual.

If they have stuck to ‘just the facts’, reward them with a success sticker!

Extra challenge

At the end of your work, add a bibliography. This is a list of any books, websites or other sources from which you got information that you used in your work. Organise it in alphabetical order by author/editor surname, or if there is no author, by title.