This resource booklet contains a wide range of age-appropriate, engaging, and meaningful comprehension activities for use throughout the reading of Benjamin Zephaniah’s ‘Refugee Boy.’ Teachers have found them particularly useful in comprehension or guided reading sessions. They are perfect for aiding the progress of children towards meeting the KS3 expectations within the new National Curriculum framework. Children have found these resources extremely engaging, and for teachers there is explicit information within each task regarding which comprehension strands the task is designed to demonstrate. They also relate to key extracts, characters, and themes from the story, ensuring that children gain a deep understanding of the text. Activities within the booklet include: ‘Context: Eritrean-Ethiopian War’ - to enable students to demonstrate that they can: ‘Know the purpose, audience and context of the writing and drawing on this knowledge to support comprehension.’ ‘Zephaniah’s Description’ - to enable students to demonstrate that they can: ‘Know how language, including figurative language, vocabulary choice, grammar, text structure and organisational features, present meaning.’ ‘Mr and Mrs Fitzgerald Character Profile’ - to enable students to demonstrate that they can: ‘Study setting, plot, and characterisation, and the effects of these.’ ‘Vocabulary Inspector’ - to enable students to demonstrate that they can: ‘Learn new vocabulary, relating it explicitly to known vocabulary and understanding it with the help of context and dictionaries.’ Plus many, many more activities (the booklet is 23 pages in length!) I’ve also added it as a PDF in case the formatting differs on your computer. All images are licensed for commercial use, and are cited on a separate document (included).

This clear, detailed and visually-appealing resource offers a complete reference point for KS2 children when writing villanelles. The organiser is also perfect for teachers, parents and English subject leaders - aiding their planning and supporting of children’s knowledge development for this poetic form. The organiser has a particular focus on the content, language and structural features required to write effective villanelles. It contains distinct sections covering: -Overview: Villanelles; -Content: What to include, the five senses, communicating a message, content features, subject matter; -Language: Word choices, word types, rhyme, alliteration, similes, metaphors, alliteration and onomatopoeia, punctuation checklist etc. -Structure: Poem length, line lengths, line breaks, stanzas; -Key Vocabulary. The resource was originally designed for KS2 children. It is designed to be printed onto A3 (however can also be printed in A4) and is provided as both a PDF and a Word version (so that you can edit if you want to).

This whole class reading session aims to develop children’s fluency and comprehension skills, through reading an informative and age-appropriate non-fiction text. The text is a news article about the world population surpassing 8 billion people in late 2022. It examines population growth in the past and discusses predictions for the world population later in the 21st Century. The reading is followed by a series of activities aiming to develop children’s retrieval, explanation, inference, prediction and summarising skills. It also contains a vocabulary check immediately after the extract is read to clarify any unfamiliar/ difficult language. The tasks are comprised of quick-check questions, solo thinking, pair/ group discussions and deeper thinking activities. The age-appropriate reading text is produced by News for Kids - it has been downloaded and reformatted as a PDF and Word document, and the link for the source is also provided on the first slide of the PowerPoint presentation. The session is best suited for children in KS2 (particularly years 5-6), although with minor adaptations it could feasibly be used with slightly younger and older year groups.

This whole class reading session aims to develop children’s fluency and comprehension skills, through reading an informative and age-appropriate non-fiction text. The text is a news article about the birthday of the world’s oldest land animal: Jonathan the tortoise. The reading is followed by a series of activities aiming to develop children’s retrieval, explanation, inference, prediction and summarising skills. It also contains a vocabulary check immediately after the extract is read to clarify any unfamiliar/ difficult language. The tasks are comprised of quick-check questions, solo thinking, pair/ group discussions and deeper thinking activities. The age-appropriate reading text is produced by Kids News - it has been downloaded as a PDF and is included in the resource pack, and the link for the source is also provided on the first slide of the PowerPoint presentation. The session is best suited for children in KS2 (particularly years 3-4), although with minor adaptations it could feasibly be used with slightly younger and older year groups.

This whole class reading session aims to develop children’s fluency and comprehension skills, whilst developing their understanding of news and information texts. In this session, they read, comprehend and analyse an uplifting BBC News article focusing on the success of a revolutionary cancer treatment for a young girl from Leicester. The reading is followed by a series of activities aiming to develop children’s retrieval, explanation, inference, prediction and summarising skills. It also contains a vocabulary check immediately after the extract is read to clarify any unfamiliar/ difficult language. The tasks are comprised of quick-check questions, solo thinking, pair/ group discussions and deeper thinking activities. The age-appropriate reading text has been downloaded and reformatted into Word/PDF for ease of formatting/printing, however the source URL link and is also provided on the first slide of the PowerPoint presentation. The session is best suited for children in upper KS2 or lower KS3.

This whole class reading session aims to develop children’s fluency and comprehension skills, whilst developing their understanding of news and information texts. In this session, they read, comprehend and analyse an uplifting BBC News article based on the random acts of kindness of British teenager Sebbie Hall. The reading is followed by a series of activities aiming to develop children’s retrieval, explanation, inference, prediction and summarising skills. It also contains a vocabulary check immediately after the extract is read to clarify any unfamiliar/ difficult language. The tasks are comprised of quick-check questions, solo thinking, pair/ group discussions and deeper thinking activities. The age-appropriate reading text has been downloaded and reformatted into Word/PDF for ease of formatting/printing, however the source URL link and is also provided on the first slide of the PowerPoint presentation. The session is best suited for children in KS2 (particularly years 3-4), although with minor adaptations to the questions it could feasibly be used with slightly older year groups.

This whole class reading session aims to develop children’s fluency and comprehension skills, whilst enabling them to gain a deeper understanding of climate change, through reading an informative and age-appropriate non-fiction text. The reading is followed by a series of activities aiming to develop children’s retrieval, explanation, inference, prediction and summarising skills. It also contains a vocabulary check immediately after the extract is read to clarify any unfamiliar/ difficult language. The tasks are comprised of quick-check questions, solo thinking, pair/ group discussions and deeper thinking activities. The age-appropriate reading text is produced by NASA kids - it has been downloaded as a PDF and is included in the resource pack, and the link for the source is also provided on the first slide of the PowerPoint presentation. The session is best suited for children in KS2 (particularly years 3-4), although with minor adaptations it could feasibly be used with slightly younger and older year groups.

This whole class reading session aims to develop children’s fluency and comprehension skills, whilst enabling them to gain a deeper understanding of the Russia-Ukraine War, through reading an informative and age-appropriate non-fiction text. The reading is followed by a series of activities aiming to develop children’s retrieval, explanation, inference, prediction and summarising skills. It also contains a vocabulary check immediately after the extract is read to clarify any unfamiliar/ difficult language. The tasks are comprised of quick-check questions, solo thinking, pair/ group discussions and deeper thinking activities. The text has been heavily adapted from a from a web article (cited) to ensure that it is clear and age-appropriate. It is provided in both PDF and Word, so that you can make any additional alterations should you wish to. The session is best suited for children in upper KS2 or lower KS3, although with minor adaptations it could feasibly be used with slightly younger and older year groups.

This whole class reading session aims to develop children’s fluency and comprehension skills, whilst enabling them to gain a deeper understanding of Machu Picchu, through reading an age-appropriate ‘National Geographic Kids’ non-fiction text about its history and important features. The reading is followed by a series of activities aiming to develop children’s retrieval, explanation, inference, prediction and summarising skills. It also contains a vocabulary check immediately after the extract is read to clarify any unfamiliar/ difficult language. The tasks are comprised of quick-check questions, solo thinking, pair/ group discussions and deeper thinking activities. The text has been adapted from a web source to ensure that it is clear and age-appropriate. It is provided in both PDF and Word, so that you can make any additional alterations should you wish to. The session is best suited for children in years 3-4, although with minor adaptations it could feasibly be used with slightly younger and older year groups.

This whole class reading session aims to develop children’s comprehension skills through a reading of Xu Zhi Mo’s beautiful poem ‘On Leaving Cambridge.’ The resource pack includes the poem, background information and all of the activities for the session, which the class are guided through via a comprehensive PowerPoint presentation. This is followed by a series of activities aiming to develop children’s retrieval, explanation, inference, prediction and summarising skills. It also contains a vocabulary check immediately after the extract is read to clarify any unfamiliar/ difficult language. The tasks are comprised of quick-check questions, solo thinking, pair/ group discussions and deeper thinking activities. The session is best suited for children in lower KS2, although with minor adaptations it could feasibly be used with slightly younger and older year groups.

This whole class reading session aims to develop children’s fluency and comprehension skills, whilst enabling them to gain a deeper understanding of Audley End House, through reading a short, age-appropriate non-fiction text about its construction, history and important features. The reading is followed by a series of activities aiming to develop children’s retrieval, explanation, inference, prediction and summarising skills. It also contains a vocabulary check immediately after the extract is read to clarify any unfamiliar/ difficult language. The tasks are comprised of quick-check questions, solo thinking, pair/ group discussions and deeper thinking activities. The text has been adapted from a web source to ensure that it is clear and age-appropriate. It is provided in both PDF and Word, so that you can make any additional alterations should you wish to. The session is best suited for children in years 3-4, although with minor adaptations it could feasibly be used with slightly younger and older year groups.

This whole class reading session aims to develop children’s fluency and comprehension skills through reading the opening to Anne Fine’s ‘The Diary of a Killer Cat.’ The reading is followed by a series of activities aiming to develop children’s retrieval, explanation, inference, prediction and summarising skills. It also contains a vocabulary check immediately after the extract is read to clarify any unfamiliar/ difficult language. The tasks are comprised of quick-check questions, solo thinking, pair/ group discussions and deeper thinking activities. The extract needed is provided as a PDF. The session is best suited for children in years 2-3, although with minor adaptations it could feasibly be used with slightly younger and older year groups.

These whole class reading sessions aim to develop children’s fluency and comprehension skills, whilst enabling them to gain a deeper understanding of the country of China, through reading a comprehensive age-appropriate non-fiction text about the east Asian nation. The reading is followed by a series of activities aiming to develop children’s retrieval, explanation, inference, prediction and summarising skills. It also contains a vocabulary check immediately after the extract is read to clarify any unfamiliar/ difficult language. The tasks are comprised of quick-check questions, solo thinking, pair/ group discussions and deeper thinking activities. The text is well-presented, clear and informative and is freely available on Epic (the link to the text is hyperlinked into the first slide of both PowerPoint presentations). The session is best suited for children in years 4-6 although with suitable adaptations it could feasibly be used with slightly younger and older year groups.

This whole class reading session aims to develop children’s comprehension skills through a reading of the opening section of David Owen’s ‘Alex Neptune: Dragon Thief.’ The resource pack includes the extract needed. Reading is followed by a series of activities aiming to develop children’s retrieval, explanation, inference, prediction and summarising skills. A vocabulary check helps to secure children’s understanding of any new or unfamiliar language. The tasks are comprised of quick-check questions, solo thinking, pair/ group discussions and deeper thinking activities. The session is best suited for children in years 5-6, although with minor adaptations it could feasibly be used with slightly younger and older year groups.

This whole class reading session aims to develop children’s comprehension skills through a reading of the opening section of Jacqui Wines’ ‘You Can Save the Planet.’ The resource pack includes the extract needed. This is followed by a series of activities aiming to develop children’s retrieval, explanation, inference, prediction and summarising skills. A vocabulary check helps to secure children’s understanding of any new or unfamiliar language. The tasks are comprised of quick-check questions, solo thinking, pair/ group discussions and deeper thinking activities. The session is best suited for children in years 4-6, although with minor adaptations it could feasibly be used with slightly younger and older year groups.

This whole class reading session aims to develop children’s fluency and comprehension skills through reading the opening to Sandi Toksvig’s ‘The Troublesome Tooth Fairy.’ The reading is followed by a series of activities aiming to develop children’s retrieval, explanation, inference, prediction and summarising skills. It also contains a vocabulary check immediately after the extract is read to clarify any unfamiliar/ difficult language. The tasks are comprised of quick-check questions, solo thinking, pair/ group discussions and deeper thinking activities. The extract needed is provided as a PDF. The session is best suited for children in years 2-3, although with minor adaptations it could feasibly be used with slightly younger and older year groups.

This whole class reading session aims to develop children’s fluency and comprehension skills, whilst enabling them to gain a deeper understanding of the life of Jamie Oliver, through reading a short, age-appropriate non-fiction text about his life and achievements. The reading is followed by a series of activities aiming to develop children’s retrieval, explanation, inference, prediction and summarising skills. It also contains a vocabulary check immediately after the extract is read to clarify any unfamiliar/ difficult language. The tasks are comprised of quick-check questions, solo thinking, pair/ group discussions and deeper thinking activities. The text has been adapted from a web source to ensure that it is clear and age-appropriate. It is provided in both PDF and Word, so that you can make any additional alterations should you wish to. The session is best suited for children in years 2-4, although with minor adaptations it could feasibly be used with slightly younger and older year groups.

This whole class reading session aims to develop children’s fluency and comprehension skills, whilst enabling them to gain a deeper understanding of life cycles, through reading a short, age-appropriate ‘Life Cycle of a Butterfly’ non-fiction text. The reading is followed by a series of activities aiming to develop children’s retrieval, explanation, inference, prediction and summarising skills. It also contains a vocabulary check immediately after the extract is read to clarify any unfamiliar/ difficult language. The tasks are comprised of quick-check questions, solo thinking, pair/ group discussions and deeper thinking activities. The text is freely available on Epic - the hyperlink is provided on the first slide. The session is best suited for children in years 1-3, although with minor adaptations it could feasibly be used with slightly younger and older year groups.