English
Subject Co-ordinator: A. Monnelly
New this year, we are trialling Reading Journals with all pupils, as recommended by the New Primary Framework. Each week, the pupils have to respond in some way to what they have read at home and record their thoughts in a journal. Pupils have a variety of response choices for both fiction and non-fiction books. The Reading Journals help teaching staff assess pupils’ understanding of what they have read.
Year 5
It’s a Dog’s Life
Pupils in year 5 have been learning how to write playscripts this week.
In readiness for this we performed our own play for the whole school in our class assembly. The theme was suffering, and the assembly looked at the work of the RSPCA and how they help suffering animals. Following this they performed a short play about how animals in our homes have to be looked after and played with.
The experience of reading a script has helped with our work this week on altering the poem The Highwayman into a play.
We hope to be performing some of our plays to the rest of the class next week.
In Year 5 English lessons we have been looking at poetry by Valerie Bloom and Pie Corbett. We used Pie Corbett’s poem, “Animal Riddle,” and decided to write some of our own in the same style. Click on link to open each piece of work.
Chris Gardner | Eden Patterson
Jason Rogerson | Romney Gwynn and Matilda Cornall
Competition Success!
Year 5 pupils recently entered a selection of poems into a Young Writers Competition open to schools all over the UK as well as overseas.
Two pupils, Angus Atkin and Catherine Hamilton, were lucky enough to receive Certificates of Distinction for their contributions. The two poems are also due to be included in the publication, “Little Laureates 2008 Northern England”, a book which represents the best of the pupils’ work from the region.
Well done, Angus and Catherine!
Click on link to open the two entries.
Angus Atkin | Catherine Hamilton
Year 6
Year 7
Harry Potter
Year 7 have been studying the characters and scenes of Harry Potter during their English work.
They have combined their English skills with their ICT capabilities to produce “SHAPE POEMS” based on Harry Potter’s shopping expedition prior to his journey to Hogwarts School. Click on link to open each piece of work.
Gabriel & Charlie | George & William
Grace & Ally | Iain & Jordan | Joe & Adam
Year 8
Figurative Writing - A Shadowy Forest
Year 8 pupils studied the use of figurative language in texts, looking at: imagery, similes, metaphors, personification, alliteration and the use of exciting vocabulary.
They were then asked to write a description of a forest using figurative language to engage the interest of the reader.
A Shadowy Forest - please click on the links below to view some examples of the work.
Callum | Emily | Nadine | Stuart
Pupils studied a variety of ballads, comtemporary and traditional, before writing ballads of their own. Click on link to open each piece of work.
Megan Dawson, A Dog in the Snow
Sarah Finnie, Animal Abuse
Shannon Keen, Concentration Camps
Year 5, 6, 7 & 8 Pupils visited Grace Darling Museum in Bamburgh, to act out a play written by author, Ann Cockburn.
Ann had previously visited school and worked with the pupils to produce their own playscripts.
Ann Cockburn and the cast of ‘Grace Darling’
Grace Darling
Survivors of the shipwreck
Tourists visit hoping to catch a glimpse of Grace after her heroic rescue
Grace, Mr Darling, Mrs Darling & Will, Grace’s brother
The Duke of Northumberland tries to help out
