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Year 3 - English

Exploring the characters and key themes in 'The Journey'

'The Journey': diary writing

Unit Summary

In this unit, pupils write a diary entry based on the picture book 'The Journey' by Francesca Sanna. Pupils use the book as a starting point from which they write a diary entry, focusing on using the first person perspective consistently and practising the skill of varying tense accurately.

Lesson Summary

You will learn to understand the key themes and the characters' emotions in 'The Journey'.

Key Notes

  • A theme is a big idea, topic or message that appears in a story.
  • Themes in a story are used to convey deeper meaning and messages to the reader.
  • 'The Journey' explores the following themes: war and conflict, resilience, hope and displacement.
  • The girl's emotions change throughout the narrative.
  • Expressing thoughts and emotions is a key part of writing a diary entry.

Vocabulary To Learn

  • theme: a big idea, topic or message that appears in a story
  • character: a person, being, thing or animal in a story
  • emotions: strong feelings that result from a person's circumstances, mood, or relationship with others
  • perspective: a person's point of view
  • empathy: the ability to understand other people's feelings and points of view

Common Mistakes To Avoid

  • Pupils might find it hard to understand the girl's comparison to the migrating birds at the end of the story.

3 Quick Questions (With Answers)

1. Explain this English learning goal in two key points.

A theme is a big idea, topic or message that appears in a story. Themes in a story are used to convey deeper meaning and messages to the reader.

2. Define this language term and use it in a sentence. 'theme'

a big idea, topic or message that appears in a story.

3. Correct this common English misunderstanding.

Mistake: Pupils might find it hard to understand the girl's comparison to the migrating birds at the end of the story. Correction: The girl is comparing the birds' journey to her family's journey. The birds are also migrating to another country, but the difference is that the birds didn't have any difficulty crossing borders. Explore this comparison with pupils in detail.

More Lessons In This Unit

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