Real Writing Year 4 - Unit 3
Model text: Visit Russia!, by Jo Franklin
Curriculum links: Geography (Europe - Russia)
Unit overview
This writing unit for Year 4 is built around an original model text by Jo Franklin; a report about Russia, persuading the reader to visit. The example text is available as a PDF in three versions (plain, illustrated and annotated); annotated and non-annotated PowerPoint presentations are also included.
In this two-week unit, pupils will explore the author’s use of expanded noun phrases to add description and explore the features of both report and persuasive writing. They will also investigate spelling rules when adding the suffixes -tion, -sion, -ssion and -cian. In their final writing task, pupils will write their own report describing an aspect of Russia, using elements of persuasion to encourage the reader to visit. This unit could be used within a geography topic on Russia or Europe.
Key curriculum skills
Two fully-resourced lessons are included for the following LKS2 English objectives, which can form part of the unit or be taught discretely:
1. Vocabulary: To investigate the suffixes: -tion, -sion, -ssion and -cian
Pupils will: match root words to the correct suffix; write sentences dictated by the teacher; write their own sentences using words with the suffixes taught
2. Grammar: To use expanded noun phrases
Pupils will: play a game to create expanded noun phrases; write a description of St Basil’s cathedral using expanded noun phrases
Revisited skills
- Using consistent tense
- Commas in a list
Additional year 4 curriculum teaching points
- Organising paragraphs around a theme
- Using headings
- Choosing appropriate nouns and pronouns
Year 4 words: featured vocabulary
Spelling words: centre, eighth, famous, heart, heritage, history, potatoes, promise
Tier 2 words: bustling, heritage, luxury, remote, straddle
Tier 3 words: continent, country, Federation, inhabit, landscape, nation, Russian