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Year 3 Narrative - Unit 4

Authors and letters
(3 weeks)

This is the final unit in a block of four narrative units in Year 3. It builds on children's experience and knowledge from the previous units. The teaching sequence is divided into three phases and there are regular opportunities for oral and written outcomes and assessment opportunities. The unit can be linked to other curriculum subjects and themes.

Phase 1

Read a selection of work by a particular author. Express personal responses and explore aspects of the author's style. Read a longer story as a serial. Demonstrate how to write a book review.

Groups find out about another author, reading and comparing responses, identifying aspects of style and selecting a favourite book to recommend in a written review. Groups report back to the class and children select new books to try based on other children's recommendations.

Phase 2

Analyse letters written for different purposes. Identify language features and conventions. Review different types of sentence structure.

Phase 3

Demonstrate how to write letters for a specific audience and purpose. Children plan and write their own letters (to authors, to another child to recommend a book, etc.). Use the conventions of letter writing including complete sentences and paragraph organisation. Present in a polished form so that letters can be sent.

Overview

  • Choose an author, and read a selection of their works.
  • Discuss responses as a class. Demonstrate how to write book reviews.
  • Children explore work by own favourite authors, discuss and express preferences.
  • Investigate letter writing and focus on planning and writing a letter to an author.

1998 Framework objectives covered:

Year 3, Term 3: T8 and T9 compare and contrast works by the same author; discuss preferences for authors and give reasons; T14 write reviews; T16 and T20 read examples of letters written for different purposes; write letters to authors about books and for a range of purposes; T23 organise letters into simple paragraphs; use IT to bring to a published form.