It's simple really: English grammar can be a very dry subject, but this need not be the case. For a few years now, I have been developing a games-based approach to teaching important grammar concepts. It is amazing how the introduction of dice takes the learning into a new place - the element of chance making it seem less like work and more like play. Because I test my games extensively in the classroom, I get a feel for what works. Dump your boring worksheets and start dicing with grammar.
It's simple really: English grammar can be a very dry subject, but this need not be the case. For a few years now, I have been developing a games-based approach to teaching important grammar concepts. It is amazing how the introduction of dice takes the learning into a new place - the element of chance making it seem less like work and more like play. Because I test my games extensively in the classroom, I get a feel for what works. Dump your boring worksheets and start dicing with grammar.
I or Me? These two pronouns are used regularly in English spoken language and writing, but often incorrectly! In KS2 children are expected to make an 'appropriate choice of pronoun or noun within and across sentences to aid cohesion and avoid repetition'. This resource provides a lesson plan outlining the rules regarding when to use 'I' and 'me' correctly (focussing on using I or me with another name) through a Powerpoint presentation with working examples and a board game. It also teaches the children a 'trick' to use to self-check that they have chosen the correct pronoun. There are 'support' and 'challenge' versions of the game and the grids are complete with no cutting out required, saving you plenty of time! The game is a fun way to consolidate the learning and includes a simple lesson plan, the game, the powerpoint presentation and the game boards, all of which can be edited and adpated to suit your pupils. I or Me? is best suited to Years 4-6 for use with children who speak english as their first language or for older children for whom english is an additional language.
Seven poetry lessons for upper KS2 with a focus on performance, creative writing and book making. All plans and resources included - everything you need is here. All work is produced using Word and Powerpoint, so edit as you wish. Most of all… enjoy. This is a fun unit! Please use the contents within the zip folder, and not the PNG files, which are previews of the unit.
Overview of unit
Session 1 Explore tricky vocabulary
I can explore the meaning of words
Session 2 Read, discuss, perform
I can bring a poem to life using my voice
**Session 3 Explore, map, recite **
I can visualise a poem and recite it from memory
Session 4 Comprehension
I can explain the meaning of words in context
I can find information in poetry
I can justify inferences with evidence
Session 5 Create poetry
I can write a free verse poem using a familiar theme and structure
Session 6 Peer edit for impact + perform
I can choose verbs and nouns phrases to create imagery
I can perform my own composition fluently
Session 7 present your poem as a book
Optional session: fold and cut A3 paper to create a 3-D concertina book showcasing your poem
This is a fully resourced, 3 week writing unit celebrating the work of black authors and exploring the themes of ‘A house like no other’ from the ‘Happy Here’ collection. By the final session, children will have written and edited their own ‘overcoming fear’ story. Absolutely everything you need is here. All slides and and resources have been created using PowerPoint and Word.
Unit overview - 15 sessions including:
Session 1: introduce the theme of the unit
LO: I can listen to a poem and discuss it
Session 2: pre-teach new vocabulary and make predictions
LO: I can explore the meaning of words
**Session 3: notice new vocabulary and make new predictions **
LO: I can ask questions and predict what might happen
Session 4: What impact does the text have on the reader?
Reading comprehension skills – summarising/impact of language choices
LO: I can summarise the main ideas drawn from a short text
Session 5: 'The argument’
Write dialogue about a child trying to avoid something that has been paid for
LO: I can add adverbial phrases to speech sentences
Session 6: ‘The Incident’
Look at the incident in first person. Create a diary recount and make use of modal verbs to convey self-doubt and uncertainty.
LO: I can use modal verbs to show possibility and uncertainty
Session 7: ‘The object’
Descriptive writing – imagine you could wear something that would magically take away all your worries and fears.
LO: I can use ellipses to create drama and suspense
Session 8: ‘Hot spot!’
What would it be like in for Izzy in this uncomfortable situation? Create multi-clause sentences.
LO: I can use a range of conjunctions (if, but, while, when)
Session 9: ‘The show’
Using dashes to add ‘chatty asides’ into sentences.
LO: I can use dashes to interrupt a sentence or to extend a sentence
Session 10: planning a narrative in which a character overcomes their fear
Children use two resources: one provides prompts; the other is for recording ideas.
LO: I can plan a short story for a Year 5 audience
And five more amazing sessions!
This is a five session writing workshop designed to support Y6 writers achieve their age related expectation. It could easily be adapted by other KS2 classes for use as news report unit.
During the project, children pick events from the story of Theseus and retell them in a journalistic style. They explore topic sentences, direct speech, reported speech, passive voice and many other skills. All resources are included.
I ran this as a one-day writing workshop for writers who were a little off track.
It could easily be adapted for use in any KS2 setting - everything is fully editable.
I had some great outcomes - I’m sure you will too.
I can use the relative pronouns ‘who’, ‘which’, ‘where’, ‘when’, ‘whose’ and ‘that’ to write relative clauses.
Specific relative pronouns are used when referring to different nouns. The fun dice game ‘Meet the relatives’ encourages children to think about which relative pronoun is most suitable for the noun in the sentence. The aim of the game is to be the first player to write an embedded relative clause using each of the relative pronouns on the game card.
There are three versions of the game, to ensure that all learners are included and appropriately challenged.
Enjoy meeting the relatives!
A one week unit for Y5 or Y6 exploring the weird and wonderful poem ‘Civil War on The Moon’, by the amazing Ted Hughes. Once the children have unpicked the tricky vocabulary (using the presentation attached), they will love this poem about two armies fighting for domination of the moon. My classes are always very keen to create new armies for a poem of their own.
I use it during our space topic. I have included teacher notes about the parts children find a little tricky and a breakdown of each verse.
I hope you have fun with this!
This lively whole class game involves stealing words and wearing blindfolds - it causes a real buzz of excitement around creating complex sentences. It is one of my most involved games, but very easy to get the hang of. You’ll need a full lesson to play it.
A fun whole class grammar game promoting the use of subordinating conjunctions in complex sentences.
My class loved it - I hope yours will too.
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.
6 editable posters, pupil questionnaire, pupil response sheet, spreadsheet for data
This resource is designed to support learning about growth mindsets in primary schools. It includes 6 growth mindset posters. These are saved as jpegs and as a powerpoint, so that you can edit them to meet your own needs.
It also includes a pupil questionnaire made up of 11 questions in a powerpoint, so that you can assess the impacts of raising awareness of mindsets in your school. Use it before you start any work on mindsets, and then again at the end of the year. There is a pupil response sheet too, to make data analysis easy. I used this across Year 5, as a sample group, but I think it could be used across the primary age range.
I have now added a simple spreadsheet. This will help you analyse your data giving a percentage for each response and generating a simple bar graph for each question. I dropped the graphs into a powerpoint to share with staff, governors and of course pupils. It’s a useful ‘before and after’ activity to show any impact/identify where you need to do more work.
Create stunning descriptive sentences about WW2 settings. During this sentence building activity, young writers describe damaged homes, a pier and a pavilion. You could quickly edit the images and the word banks to match landmarks in your local area. We went on to use the sentences we created in stories set during WW2. Enjoy!
This one works a treat!
***This game and 39 others are included in ‘40 Grammar Dice Games’ available from my TES shop***
’More Grammar Dice Games’ is also now available
Fronted adverbials should now be taught from Year 3 upwards and this is a useful way in - it will also stretch talented KS2 writers.
This dice-based activity encourages children to add a wide variety of fronted adverbials to a main clause.
The game is differentiated into three different versions. In its simplest version, less confident writers can pick appropriate adverbs to open sentences. In the most challenging version writers must elaborate and include more than one adverbial before the main clause. This can produce some stunning sentence work.
My class have been able to apply this skill in their own writing and I’m sure yours will too.
There is a presentation to provide your class (or any less confident teachers) with the knowledge needed to use the activity creatively.
NEW! I have added a new game ‘Warrior Swords!’ to develop the skill of varying the length of fronted adverbials. It is more challenging than the other 3 versions attached.
I hope you find the games as useful as I have.
***This game and 39 others are included in ‘40 Grammar Dice Games’ available from my TES shop***
’More Grammar Dice Games’ is also now available
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.
This is a one week (5 lesson) poetry unit inspired by a Simon Armitage poem. The unit is based on my popular free resource ‘First day back poetry’. I have spent some time developing that activity into five fully resources lessons. I hope your class enjoy it as much as mine did! Everything you need is here. All resources are fully editable (PowerPoint and Word). If you buy this unit, please please open the zip folder, containing lesson-by-lesson sub folders within. The PNG files are just to preview the unit.
Lesson 1 Reading fluency, vocabulary and comprehension
• I can read poem showing understanding through pace, tone and volume
• I can discuss a poem and discover its meaning
Activity 1 Model expressive reading of a line and then a verse.
Activity 2 Partner reading.
Activity 3 Discuss the poem and try some comprehension questions
Lesson 2 Exploring vocabulary
• I can explore the meaning of words (in context)
Activity 1 Reusing and defining
Activity 2 Sketchnoting
Lesson 3 Capturing ideas for poems of our own
• I can compose lines for a free verse poem using my own life experiences
Activity 1 Connect
Activity 2 Enjoy listening to poetry
Activity 3 Partner talk
Independent task Can you make the ordinary sound amazing?
Lesson 4 Arrange and edit for poetic techniques
• I can edit my poem for poetic techniques
Activity 1 Warm up
Activity 2 Listen
Activity 3 Arrange
Activity 4 Edit for poetic technique
Activity 5 Peer assess
Lesson 5 Present and perform!
• I can prepare a poem to be presented to an audience
Activity 1 Read your poem
Activity 2 Think of title for your poem
Activity 3 Prepare your poem to be read aloud
Activity 4 In groups of four, read your poems to each other
This resource is six activities linked to the text. They are ready for children to pick up and use independently.
Defining and reusing tricky words from the text
Picking out the key features of a fable from the text (and from ‘The Promise’)
Adding fronted adverbials to sentences from the text
Grouping synonyms to create a word bank for fable writing
I can plan a fable of my own
I can write a fable of my own
This is a one day greater depth writing workshop aimed at upper KS2. There are 13 resources attached and a detailed plan of the day. Children have a complete piece of writing by the end of the workshop. Here is a brief summary of the day:
Part 1 Get to know the model
Reading as reader: How did the story make you feel?
Reading as writer: How did the author do that?
Drama (pairs) – bring the text off the page
Part 2 Know your animal!
Part 3 Know your mysterious object!
Part 4 Quick plan
Part 5 Parentheses activity
Part 6 Extended writing time
Success criteria for extended writing
I can organise my story creatively and keep the reader in suspense (withholding vital information and using flashbacks)
I can create suspense using modal verbs and rhetorical questions
I can interrupt my sentences using ‘dramatic dashes’ (parentheses)
I can use technical language appropriately in my creative writing (precise language around my animal’s physical features, habitat, behaviour and offspring)
I can use figurative language
Adverbs are one of the trickier word classes, so let's start off with the basics and learn in a playful way.
From Year 3 onwards, children are expected to understand the term 'adverb' and use adverbs in sentences. From Year 4 onwards, children are expected to be able to open sentences with adverbs.
In this fully resourced lesson (including lots of engaging activities), complete with lesson plan, presentation and a lively dice game, children will learn to understand the term 'adverb' as well as exploring some of the functions of adverbs. They will also have plenty of opportunities to use adverbs in sentences orally - though if desired, they could record their learning as well.
There is also more challenging task for your talented writers and I have included the game cards so that you can edit them to match your class text.
This lesson would also be an ideal revision tool for the Year 6 Grammar Test.
From Year 2 onwards children are expected to understand and compose statements, commands and questions as part of their understanding of grammar and punctuation.
Bring this dry subject matter to life by playing 'Mission Control'. Why should a fun games-based approach only be used in mathematics?
This resource has everything you need:
full lesson plan with differentiation;
PowerPoint to support direct teaching;
fully resourced game.
Just add 1-6 die and you are ready for blast off. 10...9...8...7...
If you are reading Goodnight Mr. Tom here are three very short drama activities for children to try in pairs. They could be used just to help children engage with the story.
I asked children to use these three short pieces of drama to support them in writing a diary entry and they produced some wonderful writing.
If you like this creative and active approach to teaching, you will love my pack of 40 grammar games - available to buy in my TES shop.
Hope they are of use to someone out there in teacherland.
If you use it, please review it! *2200 downloads…2 reviews
This is the blushometer activity from the seal resources, Year 5, but in handy word format - all on one side.
Give these out to pairs and for them to score embarrassing situations before sharing ideas with the class.
Brilliant for circle time or PSHE.
I have edited the National Curriculum into a word document that just shows the grammar content to be introduced in each year group (and the glossary). I find this useful for staff training purposes - hope you find it useful too.