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Year 5 - English

Researching deforestation in the Amazon rainforest

The Amazon Rainforest: essay writing

Unit Summary

In this unit, pupils write their first formal essay of the primary curriculum. In it, pupils write about deforestation in the Amazon Rainforest with facts derived from research presented in clear paragraphs. The essay question given calls for pupils to write their essay as a single line of argument.

Lesson Summary

You will learn to make notes about deforestation in the Amazon rainforest and its links to climate change to answer an essay question.

Key Notes

  • Before we write an essay, we need to research the subject, making notes that include subject-specific vocabulary.
  • The Amazon rainforest is a vast and special habitat with huge biodiversity.
  • The Amazon rainforest is being subject to deforestation driven by agriculture.
  • This deforestation contributes to climate change because trees are carbon stores.

Vocabulary To Learn

  • deforestation: the process of removing forested areas, usually to create farmland
  • subject-specific vocabulary: vocabulary that relates to a particular subject
  • climate change: a long-term change to global temperatures and weather
  • greenhouse effect: the natural process where greenhouse gases trap the sun's heat in the atmosphere, warming the Earth

Common Mistakes To Avoid

  • Pupils may think that deforestation is unique to the Amazon, or that it is purely done for destructive reasons.

3 Quick Questions (With Answers)

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

Before we write an essay, we need to research the subject, making notes that include subject-specific vocabulary. The Amazon rainforest is a vast and special habitat with huge biodiversity.

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

the process of removing forested areas, usually to create farmland.

3. Correct this common English misunderstanding.

Mistake: Pupils may think that deforestation is unique to the Amazon, or that it is purely done for destructive reasons. Correction: Emphasise that many countries (including the UK) have been heavily deforested over history; usually, this has been a result of increasing agricultural production.

More Lessons In This Unit

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