This KS2 resource pack helps pupils in Years 3 and 4 explore the story of Rama and Sita, an important tale often remembered during Diwali, the Hindu festival of lights.
We've designed the resources to support both Religious Education lessons on Hinduism and English lessons on retelling familiar stories. Pupils will examine the characters and settings and collect descriptive words and phrases. They'll use these to add detail when retelling the story in their own words.
The pack is suitable for use as part of a series of lessons on Diwali or Hinduism, or as a stand-alone resource to develop narrative writing skills in English.
What’s inside this Rama and Sita story pack?
- Diwali: The Story of Rama and Sita (text) – can be used for shared reading or individual reading.
- Character and setting image cards (PDF) – to support discussion and description.
- Storyboard planning sheet – helps pupils structure their retellings.
- Themed writing paper – to encourage creative, detailed writing.
- Teacher notes – provide guidance on teaching the story, leading discussions and supporting writing tasks.
What will pupils do?
Using this resource, pupils will:
- Read or listen to the story of Rama and Sita and discuss the main events.
- Examine character and setting cards to explore physical traits, personalities and story roles.
- Collect descriptive words and phrases for characters and settings, which can then be used to write detailed paragraphs.
- Plan their retellings using the storyboard sheet, incorporating descriptive language and narrative structure.
- Write their own versions of the story, including suggested vocabulary, noun phrases, fronted adverbials and paragraphs.
- Proofread their work for spelling and grammar.
- Take part in creative activities such as making their own diya lamps using salt dough, clay or other materials to represent the lamps used during Diwali.
These activities develop pupils’ reading comprehension, narrative writing skills, creativity and understanding of Hindu traditions.
National Curriculum links
Writing
- Years 3–4: creating settings, characters and plot in narratives.
Religious Education
- Supports study of Hinduism and key celebrations (please refer to your local authority’s agreed syllabus).
Browse more Diwali activities for primary school.