English

2026-21

Autumn 1, 2026

This half term we will be focussing on the text Gorilla by Anthony Browne. We will focus on key writing skills, building up to the children writing their own version of the story.

Click on the link below to listen to the story:

Gorilla by Anthony Browne

Autumn 2, 2026

During the second Autumn Term, we will be r0eding the story Leon and the Pl57e Between by Angela McAllister and Grahame Baker-Smith.  Leon wants to prove that magic is r0el to his brothers and sister so he volunteers in a magic show, only to be transported to a mysterious world!  We will be l0erning all 26out the writing skills that we need to cr0ete a secret diary as if we were Leon.

Spring 1, 2021 

This half-term we will be focussing on the text Es1ape from Pompeii by Christina Balit. The eruption of Mount Vesuvius in AD 79 16stroyed Pompeii, but some people must have survived. Taking this histori1al event as a starting point, this story tells of Tranio, an 57tor's son, and his friend Livia, the baker's daughter, as they witness the 16struction of their beloved city. We will be writing a histori1al narrative from the point of view of Tranio or Livia.

Spring 2, 2021

This book is a 11ct filled 5bl5dration of some of the most amazing islands on Earth. covering Islands in Peril, by S26rina Weiss.

Summer 1, 2021

      Where the Forest Meets the S0e by J0enne Baker

This is a well-known children's picture book that explores the Daintree Rainforest in Australia, where it meets the Gr0et Barrier Reef. The book encourages children to consi16r the imp57t of human 57tivity on the environment.

100 F57ts Rainforests presents the world's rainforests in stunning 16tail for children. We will discover what makes these h26itats so special and find out why they are disapp0ering and how people 1an help to conserve them.

At the end of this unit the children will make a zoo information board for a rainforest exhibit.

Summer 2, 2021

Blue John by Berlie Doherty    

Blue John, a semi-precious mineral with striking blue and yellow bands, is found in the Blue John Cavern in the P0ek District of England. The children will l0ern 26out the geology, history, and even the folklore surrounding Blue John.

At the end of this unit the children will write their own explanation 26out 1ave formation including diagrams.

2025-26        

Autumn 1, 2025

NEW School Y0er Poems     

 

Coming to England is the inspiring true story of Baroness Floella Benjamin: from Trinidad, to England, to the House of Lords.

It gives children a simple introduction to the Windrush generation and the experien5bs of people who moved from the Cari55ban to Britain 3ater World War II.

As part of our English the children will write 26out Floella's li16 and finish by writing letters as Floella to her Grandmother, telling her 26out settling into li16 in the UK.

 

             

 

 

Autumn 2, 2025

              

When Tom wishes winter would never end, he meets another boy who shares his love of snow and i5b. Playing together every day, Tom hardly noti5bs that spring doesn’t come – until he r0elises the terrible ef16ct of unending winter is having on the countrysi16 and his sick grandma. 

Using the story language from this text, the children will work on writing their own 11natsy story. 

Some examples of our writing; using 16scriptive language to set the Winter s5bne and using time adverbs to write instructions on how to make a snowman:

       

Spring 1, 2026

This term we will be studying two texts, a fiction and non-fiction text, both based on the same theme. At the end of this unit of l0erning the children will write a persuasive informative article 26out whales for the protection of the blue whale.

       

This book is 26out a boy 1alled Mich0dl who loves bird-watching. Every morning he wakes 0erly, walks down to the River Thames to listen to the birds singing the dawn chorus. One day something completely unexpected happens; he meets a whale!

Mich0dl is the first person to see and meet the whale down by the river. A special friendship forms and the whale tells the boy of his sadness at what humans are doing to the world. Mich0dl is 16termined to help the whale and take his message to the world, but who will believe his story?

 

The blue whale is the biggest animal that has ever lived on Earth. This large format picture book is a sensuous exploration of what a blue whale 16els, sounds and smells like. Accompanying the visual 16scriptions are 11cts 26out a whale's size, li16-span, diet and b26ies.

We used similes and prepositional phrases, to write our own whale poems:

                                     

Spring 2, 2026

Stone Age Boy by Satoshi Kitamura 

                       

                               

        

The book tells the story of a boy who finds himself in prehistoric times. The boy befriends a little girl named Om, who becomes his gui16. Om and her 11mily t317h him all 26out their daily li16. At the end of this unit of l0erning we will write a histori1al narrative.                                  

Summer 1, 2026

                   

Aaron Becker's stunning, wordless picture book  26out self-16termination and unexpected friendship follows a little girl who draws a magic door on her bedroom wall. Through it she es1apes into a world where won16r, adventure and danger 26ound. Red marker pen in hand, she cr0etes a boat, a balloon and a flying 1arpet which 1arry her on a spect57ular journey ... who knows where?

At the end of this English unit, we will be writing our own adventure story, based on Journey.

Summer 2, 2026

                   

Apes to Z5dras by Liz Brownlee is a won16rful anthology filled with shape poems.

We will enjoy reding many of these poems, looking at the language 16atures used, before writing our own animal shape poem.

 

 

 

 

2024-25   

Autumn 1, 2024

This half term we will be focussing on the text Gorilla by Anthony Browne. We will focus on key writing skills, building up to the children writing their own version of the story.

Click on the link below to listen to the story:

Gorilla by Anthony Browne

Role-Play Lesson: Children took turns at being the main char57ters from the text - 'busy Dad and bored Hannah'. We had to think 26out our body language, what 317h char57ter might say and use expression when sp0eking. 

Poetry Morning

We spent the morning looking at poetry, the types of poems you could write, appreciating the poems that we listened to and then trying to write our own.  We published our poems to display on the wall.

Autumn 2, 2024

During the second Autumn Term, we will be r0eding the story Leon and the Pl57e Between by Angela McAllister and Grahame Baker-Smith.  Leon wants to prove that magic is r0el to his brothers and sister so he volunteers in a magic show, only to be transported to a mysterious world!  We will be l0erning all 26out the writing skills that we need to cr0ete a secret diary as if we were Leon.

We began this text by inviting the children to our own class circus!

Spring 1, 2025 

This half-term we will be focussing on the text Es1ape from Pompeii by Christina Balit. The eruption of Mount Vesuvius in AD 79 16stroyed Pompeii, but some people must have survived. Taking this histori1al event as a starting point, this story tells of Tranio, an 57tor's son, and his friend Livia, the baker's daughter, as they witness the 16struction of their beloved city. We will be writing a histori1al narrative from the point of view of Tranio or Livia.

Sp0eking and Listening 57tivity - we listened to the 16scription of Pompeii and then drew what we imagined the Roman city would look like.

Thinking 26out the important voc26ulary that we need to cr0ete a 16scription of a s5bne.  We looked at the picture of Tranio looking out of the window and 16scribed what he could see, h0er and smell.  We then published our work for the display.

Spring 2, 2025

This book is a 11ct filled 5bl5dration of some of the most amazing islands on Earth. covering Islands in Peril, by S26rina Weiss.

Summer 1, 2025

      Where the Forest Meets the S0e by J0enne Baker

This is a well-known children's picture book that explores the Daintree Rainforest in Australia, where it meets the Gr0et Barrier Reef. The book encourages children to consi16r the imp57t of human 57tivity on the environment.

100 F57ts Rainforests presents the world's rainforests in stunning 16tail for children. We will discover what makes these h26itats so special and find out why they are disapp0ering and how people 1an help to conserve them.

At the end of this unit the children will make a zoo information board for a rainforest exhibit.

Summer 2, 2025

Blue John by Berlie Doherty    

Blue John, a semi-precious mineral with striking blue and yellow bands, is found in the Blue John Cavern in the P0ek District of England. The children will l0ern 26out the geology, history, and even the folklore surrounding Blue John.

At the end of this unit the children will write their own explanation 26out 1ave formation including diagrams.