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Year 3 - English

Planning the first paragraph of a diary entry based on '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 write a plan for the first paragraph of a diary entry.

Key Notes

  • Oral rehearsal of a recount ensures we have a clear understanding of the chronology of events.
  • When rehearsing and planning for a diary entry, we do so in the first person from the character's perspective.
  • An effective plan for a diary entry contains key events in chronological order and thoughts/feelings.
  • A plan is written in note format using bullet points to capture the most important information.
  • This paragraph will recount the events from the journey in chronological order, starting from when the family left home.

Vocabulary To Learn

  • oral recount: speaking aloud to retell events that have already happened
  • first person perspective: the point of view where the speaker or writer is the 'I' character providing a personal account of events or experiences
  • plan: a framework that writers create before they write a section or whole text

Common Mistakes To Avoid

  • Pupils may find it difficult to identify which key information should be included in the notes.

3 Quick Questions (With Answers)

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

Oral rehearsal of a recount ensures we have a clear understanding of the chronology of events. When rehearsing and planning for a diary entry, we do so in the first person from the character's perspective.

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

speaking aloud to retell events that have already happened.

3. Correct this common English misunderstanding.

Mistake: Pupils may find it difficult to identify which key information should be included in the notes. Correction: Re-read the corresponding pages from the text to highlight which part we are using for our diary entry. Model making notes and identifying which events, thoughts and feelings are the most important.

More Lessons In This Unit

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