Assessment focus I can use colons to explain and add detail (description: detail) I can use colon sentences in non-fiction writing Colons can be used for various purposes (before lists, introducing quotes), but this activity focuses on the use of the colon to separate two main clauses. By playing this dice game, children get plenty of opportunities to practise this skill, whilst finding out about some very creepy creatures. There is also a version of the activity for learners that need a lot of support, and an explanation of what to do with your high attaining writers. Enjoy!

I have recently produced a far more in depth ‘Theseus’ unit with masses of carefully produced, differentiated resources and detailed planning. It is available here: https://www.tes.com/teaching-resource/theseus-and-the-minotaur-3-weeks-of-detailed-planning-fully-resourced-and-differentainted-11914692 Here are lots of older Theseus resources, including a model text, comprehension work, story boards, fronted adverbials activity, planning frames etc.

Five straightforward worksheets that require children to think about the meaning of prefixes, and select correct prefixes. A time-saver. Prefixes covered: dis, re, mis, over, in, il, im, ir, Suffixes covered: ence, ance

This is a fun and engaging whole class activity about organisation within a paragraph. Using a non-fiction context (information about space) pupils go to a paragraph party. They have to work out who is hosting the party (the topic sentence), who is the uninvited guest (information that doesn't belong) and various other activities. In short, it's a lively and memorable way of exploring non-fiction paragraphs.

THIS IS THE BEST WAY TO MAKE PARAGRAPHING A FUN AND CONCRETE EXPERIENCE. This is a fun and engaging whole class activity about organisation within a paragraph. Using a non-fiction context (information about football) pupils go to a paragraph party. They have to work out who is hosting the party (the topic sentence), who is the uninvited guest (information that doesn’t belong) and various other activities. In short, it’s a lively and memorable way of exploring non-fiction paragraphs.

I can spell ‘ie’ and ‘ei’ words Lots of children (and adults) get mixed-up when spelling 'ie' and 'ei' words. Is the rule 'i before e except after c' actually helpful? This dice game encourages children to explore the rule and decide for themselves. Here are some words that keep to the rule: field, shield, brief, chief, belief, believe, unbelievable, relief, relieved, piece, achieve receive, conceit, deceive, deceit, conceive, misconceive, perceive, perceivable, ceiling, receipt Here are some that don't: neighbour, weigh, counterfeit, foreign, kaleidoscope, their, caffeine, leisure, protein, seize, weird ancient, deficient, glacier, proficient, society, science, sufficient, species Play the game ‘Follow the rule/break the rule’, classifying words into two groups. After the game, the class could consider if this rule may work best: “i before e except after c, but only if it rhymes with a bee!”

I can identify unstressed vowels I can spell words with unstressed vowels Children (and adults!) often spell words with unstressed vowels incorrectly (how about these: diffrent, intresting, seprate, evryone…). This dice game encourages learners to engage with this tricky group of words. Players identify and sort unstressed vowel words into groups. They record them on a game sheet. No marking - peer assessment built in (answers are on the reverse of cards). There is a competitive element to add some fun, but it could just as easily be played collaboratively. I have included ideas on how to quickly differentiate the game, to include all learners. There is also a quick warm sorting activity. My class enjoyed it. I hope yours do too. All you need is 1-6 dice. The rest is all here.

Two dice games for KS2: ‘Point or show quantity’ pupils explore the two basic functions of determiners. ‘Introduce the noun’ pupils add determiners to noun phrases and sort determiners into groups. Both games have a competitive element but are tightly focused on the following objectives: I know that determiners have two jobs: ‘pointing’ or ‘showing quantity’ I can use determiners accurately in sentences I can use a wide variety of determiners to introduce nouns I can sort determiners into groups Determiners can get a little confusing for primary school aged children when you get beyond simple ‘a’ or ‘an’ activities. How far you go with your class is best judged by you (of course!). Through the presentation (which you may wish to simplify, depending on how far you wish to go with determiners) and engaging dice games, children will use lots of talk, and really engage with this tricky-to-define but important group of words.

A version of battle ships which could be used to teach any spelling pattern you like. tried and tested in class. This version is for plurals, but you could quickly edit the game to be played with any 10 words. I hope your class like it as much as mine.

This resource is 15 fully resourced sessions exploring the Anglo-Saxon legend Beowulf. Everything you need - models, PowerPoint slides, activities - is included in the ZIP file. The previews you can see show snippets of the first five sessions. It has been created for Year 5, but could be used in other KS2 classes. The unit draws on many versions of Beowulf. The model text harnesses the rich language used in Beowulf: dragonslayer by Rosemary Sutcliff. Each session has been carefully sequenced. The unit begins with immersion into the story through images and drama. There are also reading fluency and comprehension activities. Children in engage in short burst writing activities to learn and apply new skills. They also explore the key features of legends through a tool kit. Towards the end of the unit, children pick from a wide range of hot tasks, choosing the one that excites them most. Finally, children create their own legends, making use of planning grids and storyboards. This unit is ready to go. Creative teachers (and children!) will enjoy getting stuck-in to this one. Please also check out my other units, including ‘Theseus and the Minotaur’. with every lesson creatively planned in detail and many sessions resourced for SEN, EXP and GDS. https://www.tes.com/teaching-resource/theseus-and-the-minotaur-3-weeks-of-detailed-planning-fully-resourced-and-differentiated-11914692

This is a 3 week English unit on myth writing. If you buy this, just use the zip folder - the other resources are just there to preview. I have used this myth many times and developed it each time. It always gets fantastic writing from children, regardless of their attainment. The model text follows the pattern of a ‘warning story’, and it is flexible enough allow young writers to create their own unique myths. I have adapted it for use in Y4, 5 and 6. I am sure it would work in other year groups too. Within the zip you will find: detailed and creative planning to a high standard; a very short version of the traditional story the Asrai, to be used as a model text; a tool kit (or set of success criteria); planning sheets (differentiated); peer assessment sheets (differentiated); some of my dice grammar games that can be used during the unit; writing prompts; comprehension questions. I am sure you could quickly adapt this for use in your own class - it is ready to be used! I hope your class enjoy writing some incredible myths, using the simple pattern of ‘The Asrai’.

This is a whole lesson about the spelling patterns able and ible. It includes 2 short quizzes, making up new words and a fun writing activity that encourages children to apply their understanding, using a tried and tested word bank and a fun (persuasive) context. Great for spelling and sentence work.

Assessment focus I can compose simple and compound sentences. Explanation This is two versions of the same game. By rolling dice and flipping cards, children construct their own simple and compound sentences. The second version has lots of silent letters words as this was a spelling focus in my class. It is an effective way of making sure that children are secure with these basic - yet important - sentence structures.

*In this resource I have argued against space travel and computer games as I thought it was likely that most of my class would like to take the opposing view for their own writing, later on. A fully planned and resourced lesson, complete with differentiated activities and a model text. First, children learn the opening paragraph to the model text ‘Computer games are harmful to children’. This should be quick and easy to learn – add a few actions if you wish. Use the PowerPoint or a text map to support. Then, take a quick look at how the text has been changed to the subject of space travel. What has changed? What has stayed the same? Briefly explore the idea that, in persuasive writing, if you can write one opening paragraph, you can write hundreds. It is simply: • Introduce the subject of the debate • Introduce which side you are on • State that you have many strong arguments Next, move on to looking at the how the first argument is structured. Again, it follows a pattern: • Topic sentence – to introduce the key idea of this particular paragraph • Facts and opinions • A rhetorical question On a flip chart or screen, show how you can use this simple structure to write a paragraph against exploring space on the subject of safety. There is an example of how you could do this on slide 8. Now the children should be ready to try this structure themselves. During independent time they use the same structure to create their own persuasive paragraphs about space travel. After this they can organise persuasive paragraphs about anything they choose. I have had great success with this approach and so have my colleagues. I hope you find it useful too.

A simple presentation about active and passive sentences, with some key questions. It leads into a board game that could be used for independent work, in pairs. The game could be recorded in written sentences or simply to used to orally practise active and passive.

Assessment focus I can use a wide variety of sentences and conjunctions in my writing Explanation Some of us are great at writing long descriptive sentences, whilst others are superb at short and shocking ones. We don’t always remember to use a wide variety of sentence types throughout our writing. It is far more enjoyable to read a story packed with questions, exclamations, complex sentences and speech sentences than a story that sticks to one or two of these. Have you ever wanted to write a story without doing any planning or preparation? Well, now’s your chance!

You are buying four resources here. They could be used in this order: 1. A scavenger hunt activity - active start to the lesson Cut up the word bank provided and stick the cards around the room, or simply leave the word bank out on tables. Children need to hunt for words that match plural rules. Finally, children apply the rule and change the singular noun into its plural form. 2. Extension tasks (in orange) for those that finish quickly. 3. A PowerPoint that goes over the rules from the scavenger hunt. Clear up any misconceptions before moving on to the next activity... 4. A fun dice game for exploring 6 of the most common rules for changing singular nouns into plural nouns. The first one to fill their solar system with plural nouns wins! It has a space theme ('Plural Planets'), but I have included an editable version of the gameboard so that you can easily change the theme to match your class topic. Enjoy! *I have added a' Vikings' themed gameboard to show how the game can be adapted to different writing topics.

There are two useful resources here: 1. A carefully planned lesson about dashes, exploring how different types of extra information can be added to a sentence. This includes a detailed lesson plan and 3 activities (the final one is a team game, with clear differentiation). All resources are included. The lesson covers these Year 5/Year 6 objectives: I understand the terms dash and parenthesis/parentheses I can explain some uses for dashes I can use dashes creatively for lots of different purposes This is perfect for a demonstration lesson or an observed session. There is minimal ‘teacher talk’ and lots of active pupil engagement. 2. I have also included a further punctuation game: ‘Punctuation show-offs’. I can use brackets, dashes (parentheses) and semi-colons in my sentences. Would you like the writers in your class to be ‘punctuation show-offs’? Me too. I created this dice activity to encourage children to add extra information to sentences using parentheses (brackets and dashes) and also to separate closely related main clauses using semi-colons. I have also provided teacher and - more importantly - child friendly explanations and examples of all concepts. Children may incidentally find out about Usain Bolt, Picasso, Stephen Hawking and a 1000kg bowl of cereal. Have I caught your interest yet? This whole activity has a ‘show-off’ theme and it’s fun. After playing this, you can remind your class to be ‘punctuation show-offs’ in their own writing. Finally, I have added a ‘Victorian’ version of the same game, to show how it can be adapted to different themes.