Real Writing Year 3 - Unit 10
Model text: The First Scientist
Curriculum Links: Science (light), History (early Islamic society)
Writing unit overview
This writing unit for Year 3 is built around an original model text by Ross Montgomery; a biographical recount, describing the life of the influential scientist, Ibn al-Haytham. 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 have an opportunity to learn technical vocabulary related to the science of optics. It will culminate in them writing their own version of a biography of Ibn al-Haytham. This unit has cross-curricular links to science, specifically the topic of light, as well as history work on early Islamic society.
Key curriculum skills
Two fully-resourced lessons are included for the following Year 3 English objectives, which can form part of the unit or taught discretely:
1. To explore word families based on common words
Pupils will: Recap the meaning of ‘optic’ and explain that it is a root, just like ‘bio’ and ‘graph’. Sort words into word families. Look at the given phrases, suggest a definition for each and put them in a sentence to show how they might be used. Combine different members of the word families shown to form other noun phrases, complete with definitions.
2. To use the present perfect tense
Pupils will: sort sentences into those which use perfect present and those which do not. Reply to an imagined email from their parents explaining what chores their ‘sister’ has done so far, using the present perfect tense; write sentences and challenge a partner to identify whether or not they are written in the present perfect.
Additional skills to teach or revisit
- subordination
- the correct use of past and present tense
- commas for lists and the use of apostrophes for singular possession
Additional Y3 teaching points:
- extending sentences with a wider range of conjunctions
- the use of conjunctions
- adverbials and prepositions to express time, place and cause
- the use of paragraphs around a theme
- the inclusion of organisational features such as headings and subheadings
Year 3 vocabulary
Year 3/4 statutory spelling words: experiment, important, straight, famous, different, often, appear, actually, opposite, thought
Tier 2 words: modern, logical
Tier 3 words: optics, optical, light, ray, theory, vision
What is a word family?
Word families are groups of words that are related to each other in a combination of having the same root word (with prefixes, suffixes or other words added to make compound words like superman), grammar and meaning. Words that change when written in the past and present tense (for example understand and understood) are also part of the same word family. A word root is a basic word with no prefix or suffix added. The words play, playful, playing and replay are all part of the same word family as they all have the same word root (play) and are related in meaning.
What is the present perfect tense?
The present perfect tense is used to show how events or actions are related in time or cause. It shows that things happened in the past but are still happening, or are still relevant and important now. It is also referred to as the present perfect verb form.
The present perfect tense uses the words has/have + the past tense verb.
- She has walked to school.
The present perfect tense can be used instead of the simple past tense.