SSIF Project Rich Text Strand

for upper KS2 teachers

Day TwoWellshurst

9am – 3.30pm

Day Two Outcomes

• Engage with research into reading communities

• Explore reading strategies in detail

• Strengthen the use of rich texts to improve

engagement, reading development, vocabulary,

grammar and writing

• Explore classroom use of non-fiction texts to improve

writing

• Share ideas & quality texts with colleagues and begin

to embed strategies into your own planning

Gap Task Follow-up

Refer to your reading of the takeaway article Teachers

as readers: building communities of readers

In groups, create a summary of what the reading

culture in our classrooms could/does/will look like.

Include THREE KEY POINTS and THREE POSSIBLE

ACTIONS (to be given to Literacy Leads).

search for particular information

make a picture in your head

glance through to get the gist

ask questions

put yourself in a character's shoes

notice clues and think about what they might mean

guess what might happen next

skim

scan

visualise

empathise

predict

question

infer and deduce

find links, patterns and connections

read backwards and forwards

evaluate

analyse

interpretexamine and explore with evidence

draw together knowledge from different

areas to produce a new idea

assess and make judgements

synthesise

explain meaning as you see itsummarise

briefly convey the main points

contextualise

reference

select relevant quotations to support a view

apply prior knowledge

Strengthening Guided and

Independent Reading

21 Steps

2016-18 KS2

English reading

domain mark

allocation

2016 10 15 1 18 3 1 2 0

2017 10 14 2 22 0 1 1 0

2018 10 13 3 22 0 0 0 2

What is a rich text? A more challenging read than any reader in the class would access independently

Bears and rewards re-reading

Demonstrates the writerly choices that children will be making

Offers a range of grammatical, structural and language features worth exploring with the target

class

Can be complemented by other texts (poetry, non-fiction) to create a full reading experience

Enjoyable by teacher

Meets the needs of the class – chosen to engage and enthuse your specific class at that moment.

Delivers reading for pleasure.

Reflects ‘big issues’ and prompts discussion of a range of social, cultural and historical

questions

Provides multiple opportunities for writing in a range of genres

May link to the learning journey or topic (but don’t make the book a slave to the topic)

May offer engagement with the author – in person or via social media

The Teacher’s Reading of the Text

Stage 1 – orientation and engagement

Identify possible pre-reading activities:

to tune learners in, create context,

develop engagement, ownership and

curiosity.

Think about the advantages of spending

several lessons / days before looking at

the text.

What can you see?

What can you infer?

What questions would you like to ask?

What do you predict will happen?

Clues…

Text Crunch…

curious dove imagination Collecting words:

emerged battered vanished

grand emporium sparkled

wonders jostled mysterious

intricate enchanted spectacle

The Teacher’s Reading of the Text

Stage 2 – planning for effective reading

Be alert to opportunities for reading skills to be applied.

For example:

Would this be a good passage to apply empathising?

Does this section require strong visualising skills?

How would reading this part be enhanced by pattern-spotting?

What summarising opportunities could be exploited?

Is this an extract that supports inference development?

Daniel’s shoulders sagged. He closed his eyes and breathed deeply. The air was infused with the jumbled perfume of furniture polish and dust, and something like melting chocolate. Then he opened his eyes, and for the first time became fully aware of his surroundings.

The shop was a cave of wonders. Everywhere he looked, Daniel saw something he wanted to pick up, to hold, to have as his own. Silver and gold and crystal gleamed and sparkled in the light of a spitting fire. Intricate wooden clocks and mirrors of varying size and splendour covered the walls. Tiny fish flashed like bars of copper in a glass tank. There were porcelain dolls and wooden soldiers; rusted swords; stuffed animals; columns of books as high as the ceiling; jewels that seemed to glow with a silvery light. A stuffed polar bear sat in one corner, eyeing the shop like a watchman. Even particles of dust, caught in abar of sunlight, seemed to glow like stars.

The Teacher’s Reading of the Text

Stage 3 – getting ready to embed grammar

Notice the writer’s choice of grammatical features. For example, be aware of:

noun phrases in descriptive passages

adverbials in scene-setting passages

multi-clause sentences in action sequences

simple sentences to build tension or for emphasis

modal verbs in persuasive texts or internal monologue

Daniel’s shoulders sagged. He closed his eyes and breathed deeply. The air was infused with the jumbled perfume of furniture polish and dust, and something like melting chocolate. Then he opened his eyes, and for the first time became fully aware of his surroundings.

The shop was a cave of wonders. Everywhere he looked, Daniel saw something he wanted to pick up, to hold, to have as his own. Silver and gold and crystal gleamed and sparkled in the light of a spitting fire. Intricate wooden clocks and mirrors of varying size and splendour covered the walls. Tiny fish flashed like bars of copper in a glass tank. There were porcelain dolls and wooden soldiers; rusted swords; stuffed animals; columns of books as high as the ceiling; jewels that seemed to glow with a silvery light. A stuffed polar bear sat in one corner, eyeing the shop like a watchman. Even particles of dust, caught in abar of sunlight, seemed to glow like stars.

Select writing challenges that build on what pupils have

done before

Ensure writing tasks are authentic and purposeful

Exploit what learners have gained from the reader

experience with the rich text

Maximise writing by zooming in during reading and

considering the whole text

Vary writing across a range of purposes and genres

The Teacher’s Reading of the Text

Stage 4 – planning writing outcomes

Daniel’s shoulders sagged. He closed his eyes and breathed deeply. The air was infused with the jumbled perfume of furniture polish and dust, and something like melting chocolate. Then he opened his eyes, and for the first time became fully aware of his surroundings.

The shop was a cave of wonders. Everywhere he looked, Daniel saw something he wanted to pick up, to hold, to have as his own. Silver and gold and crystal gleamed and sparkled in the light of a spitting fire. Intricate wooden clocks and mirrors of varying size and splendour covered the walls. Tiny fish flashed like bars of copper in a glass tank. There were porcelain dolls and wooden soldiers; rusted swords; stuffed animals; columns of books as high as the ceiling; jewels that seemed to glow with a silvery light. A stuffed polar bear sat in one corner, eyeing the shop like a watchman. Even particles of dust, caught in abar of sunlight, seemed to glow like stars.

The Teacher’s Reading of the Text

Stage 5 – designing the learning

From the menu of activities generated by stages 1-4, select

those that match the reading and writing needs of your class.

The key elements of formative assessment:•A learning culture, where pupils have self-belief and know how to learn and teachers have high expectations and belief that all pupils can succeed•Pupil involvement at the planning stage•Pupils knowing learning objectives and co-constructing success criteria•Discussion about what excellence looks like•Effective questioning•Talk partners and classroom discussion•Effective self, peer and teacher feedbackShirley Clarkewww.shirleyclarke-education.org/what-is-formative-assessment/

1. Choose appropriate text. Conduct a ‘teacher’s reading’ of the text to find out

what opportunities it offers.

2. Select reading and writing and GPS objectives relevant to pupils’ needs.

3. Plan text introduction / immersion / engagement / pre-reading and

vocabulary activities

4. Modelling and scaffolding of reading to understand writer’s choices linked to

purpose, including GPS

5. Independent reading (application of reading skill, including GPS)

6. Demonstrate writing skills linked to purpose including GPS through

modelling and scaffolded approaches

7. Independent writing for purpose (application of writing skill, including GPS)

8. Evaluate writing against purpose including GPS: effect on reader?

9. Next steps

Suggested Teaching Sequence for a reading – writing model

Using learning objectives to make

a grammar sandwich

Reading: We are learning how Roald Dahl uses

noun phrases to describe character to help

the reader visualise

Grammar: We are learning the elements of a

noun phrase

Writing: We are learning to use noun phrases

to create a character in writing to entertain

We are learning about how writers use

noun phrases to describe characters

so that we can use noun phrases to

create vivid characters for our readers

Ensuring learning has purpose.

So what? So that…

We are learning to… so that…

We are asking questions about a text so that we can suggest what the clues in the text mean

We are learning about how writers use nouns to create visual picture so that we can make visual pictures in our narrative writing

We are investigating how a writer creates a busy atmosphere so that we can write descriptions of a busy place in our writing to entertain

We are learning to identify how a writer persuades readers so that we can use persuasive techniques in campaign writing

We are reading lots of books by the same author so that we can analyse what is similar and what is different and write our own story in that style.

NOT… We are learning to use commas to separate clausesso that we can prove that we can use commas to separate clauses…

Exploring Reading Evidence

How wide is our range of reading evidence?

Do we define ‘reading’ too narrowly?

Are we assessing children’s responses to a range of fiction and non-fiction, poetry, film and plays?

Do we have sufficient evidence to make a judgement?

‘Teachers should avoid excessive evidence gathering. The frameworks make clear that … teachers may consider a single example of a pupil’s work to provide evidence for multiple statements. A teacher will, of course, see multiple statements evidenced across a collection of work.’

(p10, 2018 Teacher Assessment Guidance: key stage 1 and 2)

Reading Evidence

LunchThere was a jug of creamy milk for the children and a great big lump of deep yellow butter in the middle of the table from which everyone took as much as he wanted to go with his potatoes, and all the children thought - and I agree with them - that there's nothing to beat good freshwater fish if you eat it when it has been alive half an hour ago and come out of the pan half a minute ago. And when they had finished the fish, Mrs Beaver brought unexpectedly out of the oven a great and gloriously sticky marmalade roll, steaming hot, and at the same time moved the kettle onto the fire, so that when they had finished the marmalade roll the tea was made and ready to be poured out.

The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe

C. S. Lewis

Reptiles

• What makes a reptile different from a mammal or amphibian?

• What does cold-blooded mean? Does this help the reptile?

• If snakes haven’t got very good eye sight, how do they hunt?

• Dinosaurs were reptiles! What’s the biggest reptile on the planet now?

CONNECTYou make connections between this text, your life or other texts you have read.

MONITOR & CLARIFYYou monitor your understanding of a piece and use key strategies to clarify anything you don’t understand.

You think of questions you would like to ask about a text to improve your understanding

You summarise the main points or events of a piece of writing.

SUMMARISEQUESTION

Reading non-fiction

1. Sentence/section at a time

2. Stop and clarify

3. Ask questions

4. Summarise

5. Re-read?

6. Summarise

LO: I can answer retrieval questions in a non-fiction text.

TASK 1: SKIM & SCAN

Your first task is to skim and scan the pages to find the following words or phrases. You have

5 minutes. Highlight them as you find each one. GO!

biomes camouflage Charles Darwin migrate

waxy leaves 35 gallons fog-basking beetle predators

Emperor penguins oxygen chemical in their blood stems

habitat Antarctic toothfish

breed DID YOU KNOW?

swimming mammals offspring Desert honey ants

In your book write:

SKIMMING AND SCANNING SCORE _____ / 20 in 5minutes.

TASK 2: VOCABULARY

Which words did you know and not know?

Keep the Glossary open in front of you as we read the non-fiction pages properly now. Each

time we get to a word in bold, we will look at the definitions and write some down.

TASK 3: Retrieval Questions

Answer the following questions in your book.

Pages 6/7

1.) When habitats are grouped together, what are they known as?

2.) Name two continents with huge areas of desert plants

3.) What do plants use to make their own food?

4.) Name 5 things plants and animals need to survive.

5.) What was Charles Darwin the first person to do?

True False

Reptiles have dry, scaly skin. All reptiles live in warm places.Crocodiles are the only reptiles that live in the water. All reptiles lay eggs. The shells of turtles and tortoises can protect them from bad weather.

Questions 1-9 are about page 297 - 299

Using information from the text, put a tick in the correct box to show whether each statement is true or false.

Year 6 Reptiles Spring 1

Key Features of Reptiles

Lay eggs Some give birth

to live young

Scaly skin Cold-blooded

Groups of Reptiles

Key Features Habitats Examples (not to scale)

Turtles and

Tortoises

• Evolved at the same

times as the dinosaurs

• Strong shells provide

protection but weigh

them down

• Tortoises live on

land

• Turtles spend most

of their time in

water.

Tuataras • Primitive lizard-like

reptiles

• Flourished 200 million

years ago

• Only two species now

survive

• Can now only be

found on a few

small islands in New

Zealand.

Crocodilians • The most powerful

reptiles

• Includes: crocodiles,

alligators, gharials and

caimans

• Large, armoured

predators

• Hunted dinosaurs

• Adapted for hunting

in shallow waters

• Found in Africa,

Asia, North America

and South America.

Lizards • Biggest group of reptiles

• Range in size

• Most have four legs and a

tail but some are legless

• Most eat smaller animals,

a few, are plant-eaters.

• Prefer warm

climates but can be

found on all

continents except

Antarctica.

Snakes • Evolved from lizards

• specialized jaw

arrangement for

swallowing prey whole

• Some snakes are

venomous

• Prefer warm

climates but can be

found on all

continents except

Antarctica.

Key Vocabulary

species A group of living things consisting of similar

individuals capable of exchanging genes or

interbreeding.

vertebrates Animals with a backbone (spine).

cold-blooded Because reptiles are cold blooded they rely on the

Sun for energy, not food. As a result of this, reptiles

can survive on far less food than mammals.

basking Because they are cold-blooded, reptiles have to

spend hours in the Sun to warm up. This is known as

basking.

prehistoric The period of history before written records.

adaptations The process by which animals and plants change so

that they better suit their environment.

camouflage A way of hiding something so that it looks like its

surroundings.

streamlined The ability to move through water or air with little

resistance.

ambush A surprise attack by people lying in wait in a

concealed position.

Classification of Animals (vertebrates)

Reptiles Amphibians Fish Mammals Birds

Writing Reports

Sentence Types:

Use subordinating conjunctions in the middle of sentences,

Badgers can dig well because they have sharp claws

Use subordinating conjunctions to join clauses, including as

openers,

Because they are cold-blooded, komodo dragons only need to eat once

a month.

Use expanded noun phrases which inform,

with fierce claws and elongated teeth

Use relative clauses to add further detail

Snakes, which have poor eye-sight in the day, can hunt at night.

Use commas to separate items in a list,

The reptile family includes crocodiles, snakes, lizards, tortoises and

turtles.

Text Features:

Paragraphs used

to group related

ideas

Subheadings to

label content

Non-Fiction GPSAdverbials Conjunctions Punctuation

• meanwhile

• at first

• after

• furthermore

• despite

• as a result

• consequently

• due to

• when

• before

• after

• while

• because

• if

• although

• as

• Use brackets or dashes to explain technical vocabulary

• Use semi-colons to punctuate complex lists, including

when using bullet points

• Use colons to introduce lists or sections

• Use brackets or dashes to mark relative clauses

• Secure use of commas to mark clauses, including opening

subordinating clauses

• Begin to use colons & semi-colons to mark clause

Conjunctions - because, so,

Adverbs - therefore, consequently, as a result,

Phrase - which means

Snakes are cold-blooded so they do not have to eat as often as mammals.

Because snakes are cold-blooded, they do not have to eat as often as mammals.

Snakes are cold-blooded; consequently, they do not have to eat as often as mammals.

• Snakes are cold-blooded.

• They do not have to eat as often as mammals.

Explanation sentences

Conjunctions - but, although, unless, except, if,

yet, even though, Adverb - however

Some snakes do not have very good eyesight; however, they are excellent hunters.

Some snakes do not have very good eyesight but they are excellent hunters.

Although snakes do not have very good eyesight, they are excellent hunters.

Changing direction

• Some snakes do not have very good eyesight.

• They are excellent hunters.

Artful Synonyms - Crocodiles

These reptiles…

These superb hunters...

AgreeBuild on

Challenge

ABC

Pack 1

colossal

coarse

gestation

grind

wades

Pack 2

vertebrate

born

milk

bristly

chambered

Pack 3

pillar-like

vibrations

memory

toenails

savannah

Pack 4

tusks

ivory

huge ears

10 tonnes

threatened

Coarse

Means a rough texture!

GestationMeans how

long it takes for a baby to grow

inside its mother.

Grinds

Means crushing something into

tiny peices

Wades

Means walk through water

with effort

Vertebrates

Means an animal with a

backbone

Bristly

Means hard hairs

Chambered

Means areas/rooms –

related to spaces in the

heart

Pillar-Like

Means tall structures to help hold up old buildings

Savannah

Means a grassland

habitat such as in large areas of

Africa.

Workshop planning and takeaway task

1. Choose a selection of complementary texts (poetry, non-fiction, other fiction extracts) to support learning that will be driven by the core rich text

2. Identify cross-curricular opportunities as appropriate

3. Complete a teacher’s reading (stages 1 – 4) of the core rich text

4. To the next session: bring your full menu of teaching ideas for the rich text

Evaluation

References & further reading

Shirley Clarke website

https://www.shirleyclarke-education.org/what-is-formative-assessment/

EEF Evidence Summary on Reading Comprehension Strategies: https://educationendowmentfoundation.org.uk/pdf/generate/?u=https://educationendowmentfoundation.org.uk/pdf/toolkit/?id=160&t=Teaching%20and%20Learning%20Toolkit&e=160&s

EEF Improving Literacy in KS2 – guidance report: https://educationendowmentfoundation.org.uk/public/files/Publications/Campaigns/Literacy/KS2_Literacy_Guidance_2017.pdf

Information on guided oral reading

http://www.readingrockets.org/article/what-guided-oral-reading

2016 teacher assessment exemplification: end of key stage 2 Reading: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/515362/STA-Ex2016-KS2-ER-ES.pdf

2018 teacher assessment guidance: key stage 2: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/657903/2018_KS2_teacher_assessment_guidance_for_schools_and_local_authorities.pdf