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Year 4 Model Text Resource Pack 21: ‘The Tropics’ (Poetry; Geography - climate zones, biomes and vegetation belts)

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Real Writing Year 4 - Unit 21
Model text: The Tropics, by Joshua Seigal
Curriculum links: Geography (climate zones, biomes and vegetation belts)

Writing unit overview

This two-week writing unit for Year 4 is built around an original model text by Joshua Seigal; an imaginative KS2 poem; describing The Tropics. The example text is available as a PDF in three versions (plain, illustrated and annotated); annotated and non-annotated PowerPoint presentations are also included.

Through a series of scaffolded activities, pupils will explore the poet’s use of pronouns, and their use of humour and informal vocabulary. They will also investigate vowel suffixes -al, -ic and -ity. In the final writing task, pupils are asked to create their own poem describing The Tropics, following the structure of the model text. This unit could be used within a geography topic about The tropics, rainforests, climate zones or biomes.

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 use further suffixes: vowel suffixes -al, -ic and -ity

Pupils will: decide which vowel suffix can be added to given root words; write sentences containing some words with suffixes taught

2. Grammar: To use pronouns for clarity and to avoid repetition

Pupils will: edit sentences, adding pronouns where needed; sort pronouns to show whether they are possessive or personal; use pronouns when writing a description of a rainforest

Additional skills to teach or revisit:

  • Apostrophes to show singular possession
  • Apostrophes for contracted words
  • Noun phrases
  • Present progressive verb form

Additional year 4 curriculum teaching points

  • Organising paragraphs (or stanzas) around a theme
  • Using adverbials
  • Discussing writing similar to which they are planning (poetry)

Year 4 vocabulary

Year 3/4 statutory spelling words: earth, uncertainty
Tier 2 words: frolic, luscious, mozzies, replete, swarm
Tier 3 words: equator, foliage, humidity, season, Tropic of Cancer, Tropic of Capricorn, tropics

What is a suffix?

A suffix is a group of letters that can be added to the end of a word. The suffix can change the word’s meaning. Examples of suffixes include -ing-ed, -er-est-ness-less-ful-ly-ment and -ous.

What is a pronoun?

Pronouns are words that can be used in a sentence to replace a noun or noun phrase. Examples of pronouns include Imemywetheyyours and ours.

What are the types of pronoun?

There are different types of pronouns that pupils in Key Stage 2 will become familiar with in Year 4.

Personal pronouns

Personal pronouns are used when referring to people or things already known. Personal pronouns are: I, meyouhesheit, weusthey or them.

Different pronouns are used when writing in the first, second or third person and can be singular or plural.
Possessive pronouns

  • have a new toy. It is the same one that you have.

Possessive pronouns indicate who owns the thing or things in the sentence. Possessive pronouns are: mineyourshishersitsours or theirs.

The toy is his.

Take care! The words hisheryouritsour and their can also be used as possessive determiners which show who owns something. My is also a possessive determiner.
In the sentence above, ‘his’ is used as a possessive determiner before a noun. Care must be taken to decide if these words are used as pronouns or determiners. To check, pronouns replace a noun, whereas determiners are used with a noun to create a noun phrase.

  • It is his toy.

What does ‘clarity’ mean?

This means to make something clear so that it is less confusing and more understandable. 

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