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Year 4 - English

Writing a section of a narrative based on 'The Borrowers' (part 2)

'The Borrowers': narrative writing and reading

Unit Summary

In this unit, pupils explore 'The Borrowers' through reading and writing activities. They sequence key events, analyse the setting and characters and write a descriptive setting piece. Pupils also plan, write, and edit sections of the build-up, developing their narrative writing skills.

Lesson Summary

You will learn to write a section of the build-up of 'The Borrowers'.

Key Notes

  • In this section of the build-up, the suspense heightens when Arrietty encounters the eye of a human "bean".
  • The use of precise and ambitious vocabulary, including 'show and tell' language supports the building of suspense.
  • Rhetorical questions can be used to convey a character's inner thoughts.
  • A fronted adverbial of time, place or manner indicates when, where or how action in the rest of a sentence takes place.
  • Using a range of sentence types supports text flow.

Vocabulary To Learn

  • atmosphere: the tone or mood created in a text
  • suspense: when you are feeling anxious or excited about what may happen
  • rhetorical question: a question asked to the reader that does not expect an answer
  • fronted adverbial: a sentence starter followed by a comma

Common Mistakes To Avoid

  • Children may accidentally develop rhetorical questions in present tense or first person when imagining what Arrietty is thinking. E.g. instead of "Was she safe?" they might write "Am I safe?"

3 Quick Questions (With Answers)

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

In this section of the build-up, the suspense heightens when Arrietty encounters the eye of a human "bean". The use of precise and ambitious vocabulary, including 'show and tell' language supports the building of suspense.

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

the tone or mood created in a text.

3. Correct this common English misunderstanding.

Mistake: Children may accidentally develop rhetorical questions in present tense or first person when imagining what Arrietty is thinking. E.g. instead of "Was she safe?" they might write "Am I safe?". Correction: Gather ideas from students about what Arriety might have been thinking and model turning these into third person and past tense. Provide examples in a shared bank for children to refer to while writing.

More Lessons In This Unit

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