Literacy Unit Summary Plan
Name: / Class: / Year Group/s: Foundation, One and Year Two / Non FictionInformation Book / Term: / Week Beginning:
Outcome
To produce an information book. / Objectives
In order that children make effective progress in core skills across the year, it is important that these Strands are planned for in every unit:
Strand 5 – Word Recognition: decoding (reading) and encoding (spelling) at KS1
Strand 6 – Word Structure and Spelling at KS2.
Strand 11 – Sentence Structure and Punctuation at both key stages.
These are in addition to the Objectives listed below.
Most children learn to: (The following list comprises only the strands, numbered 1 through 12, that are relevant to this particular unit.)
Foundation Stage: Show an understanding of the elements of stories, such as main character, sequence of events, and openings, and how information can be found in non-fiction texts to answer questions about where, who, why and how.
1. Speaking
§ Year 2 - Explain ideas and processes using imaginative and adventurous vocabulary and nonverbal gestures to support communication.
2. Listening and responding
§ Year 1 - Listen with sustained concentration, building new stores of words in different contexts.
§ Year 1 - Listen to tapes or video and express views about how a story or information has been presented.
§ Year 2 - Listen to others in class, ask relevant questions and follow instructions.
§ Year 2 - Listen to talk by an adult, remember some specific points and identify what they have learned.
3. Group discussion and interaction
§ Year 1 - Ask and answer questions, make relevant contributions, offer suggestions and take turns.
§ Year 2 - Listen to each other's views and preferences, agree the next steps to take and identify contributions by each group member.
4 Drama
§ Year 2 - Adopt appropriate roles in small or large groups and consider alternative courses of action.
7. Understanding and interpreting texts
§ Year 1 - Make predictions showing an understanding of ideas, events and characters.
§ Year 1 - Recognise the main elements that shape different texts.
§ Year 2 - Explain organisational features of texts, including alphabetical order, layout, diagrams, captions, hyperlinks and bullet points.
§ Year 2 - Explore how particular words are used, including words and expressions with similar meanings.
8. Engaging with and responding to texts
§ Year 1 - Select books for personal reading and give reasons for choices.
§ Year 2 - Engage with books through exploring and enacting interpretations.
9. Creating and shaping texts
§ Year 1 - Independently choose what to write about, plan and follow it through.
§ Year 1 - Convey information and ideas in simple non-narrative forms.
§ Year 1 - Find and use new and interesting words and phrases, including 'story language'.
§ Year 1 - Create short simple texts on paper and on screen that combine words with images (and sounds).
§ Year 2 - Draw on knowledge and experience of texts in deciding and planning what and how to write.
§ Year 2 - Make adventurous word and language choices appropriate to style and purpose of text.
§ Year 2 - Select from different presentational features to suit particular writing purposes on paper and on screen.
10. Text structure and organisation
§ Year 1 - Write chronological and non-chronological texts using simple structures.
§ Year 1 - Group written sentences together in chunks of meaning or subject.
§ Year 2 - Use planning to establish clear sections for writing.
12. Presentation
§ Year 1 - Write most letters, correctly formed and orientated using a comfortable and efficient pencil grip.
§ Year 1 - Write with spaces between words accurately.
Overview Four weeks or two x two weeks
This unit draws the following teaching sequences:
§ Foundation Stage: Overview of learning 14
§ Storybook leading to non-fiction
§ Year 1: Non-fiction unit 4
§ Information texts
§ Year 2: Non-fiction unit 4
§ Information texts
This unit uses the example of caterpillars and their life cycle, following the Foundation Stage overview of learning 14. It could, however, be linked to any aspect of the curriculum using alternative information texts as available or relevant to the children. By using alternative texts and contexts this unit could be repeated later in the year and/or used each year as part of a rolling programme. The example used here particularly lends itself to making links with science, for example, QCA 1B Growing plants, QCA 2B Plants and animals in the local environment, QCA 2C Variation.
Phase 1: Reading, exploration (5 days)
§ Ongoing activities to check children's knowledge of alphabetical order will need to be developed throughout this unit. Learn and practise through alphabet books, rhymes, songs and other related activities.
§ Close read the text to gain information, finding the meaning of unknown words by deducing from the text, asking someone, or referring to a dictionary or encyclopaedia.
§ Particularly with Year 2, investigate non-fiction books/ICT texts on similar themes to show that they can give different information and present similar information in different ways.
§ Starting with the pictures, children use non-fiction books and websites to find out about a creature of their choice and gather drawings. Where appropriate draw real creatures in their natural habitat. Encourage Years 1 and 2 to then make simple notes from a range of non-fiction texts (for example, key words and phrases, page/web references, headings) about the creature they have chosen, to use in subsequent writing. / Learning outcomes
Foundation Stage: Look, listen and note
§ Do children understand the elements of stories? For example: Mehmet refers to the 'beginning' and 'end' of a story. He says, 'I don't like that ending; I think he should've run away and been happy ever after.'
§ How do they use non-fiction books?
Year 1 learning outcomes
§ Children can ask simple questions.
§ Children can identify a contents page and an index in an information text. They can use these to find the right page to answer simple questions, for example where would I find out about caterpillars?
Year 2 learning outcomes
§ Children can ask a range of questions.
§ Children can identify a contents page/menus, index, glossary, chapter and subheadings in an information text. They can use these to find the right page to answer questions. They can speculate what a text might be about and evaluate its usefulness for the research in hand.
Phase 2: Analysis (1 day)
§ Revisit the information texts used earlier in the sequence in shared reading. Check briefly to see whether they have index, contents page, glossary, etc. Identify structural features that may appear on every page, for example heading, introductory sentences, photographs and captions. Discuss how good layout of pages helps you find information easily. Begin a simple checklist of what makes a good information text.
§ With Years 1 and 2 look at language features of information texts in more detail. Show children how the texts use formal, impersonal language.
§ Create a set of success criteria for an information text. / Learning outcomes
Year 1 and 2 learning outcomes
§ Children can say what the key structural features of an information text are.
§ Children can say whether a sentence is in an appropriate style for an information text.
Phase 3: Talk for writing and evaluation (4 days)
§ Using a picture from the previous week, model saying two or three sentences about the creature, for example caterpillars.
§ Introduce the idea of writing a new information book about their chosen creature. Identify who the audience for these books will be. Look at the information books used previously and the checklist prepared earlier, to remind children about layout and key features of information texts. Show a prepared layout with one or two features missing and ask children to check that everything is included.
§ Ask children to work in pairs to compose and write a sentence to form a caption for another picture, using whiteboards. Encourage them to rehearse the sentence first, counting words and checking as they write. Check and ask them to evaluate for appropriate style, capital letters and full stops.
§ Each child generates their own information book on the chosen creature. This may be a hyperlinked text with sound recordings used to share information as well as writing.
§ Publish their books and share with the intended audience. / Learning outcomes
Foundation Stage assessment opportunities
§ Observe children recreating familiar roles in play.
§ Observe children retelling stories and see if they are able to sequence, for example in a story board, and if they pick out main features, for example what happened in the beginning and who the main characters are.
§ Do children ask who, what, why, when questions when sharing non-fiction texts?
Year 1 learning outcomes
§ Children create an information text on a subject of interest incorporating key features.
§ Children can write sentences for an information text in an appropriate style.
§ This work could be repeated later, using different content and extending demand.
Year 2 learning outcomes
§ Children create an information text on a subject of interest incorporating key features.
§ Children can write sentences for an information text in an appropriate style.
§ Children draw on existing knowledge of information texts when writing non-narrative, maintaining purpose and tense.