Verb Groups Boost

I want the plan to reduce the chalk and talk time. my students are all EALD around LEAP level 5 to 7. they are 13 to 15 years old. they can often be distracted.

the lesson is to focus on verbs and verb groups, specifically around improving the below:

Verbs and verb groups Tense • a range of tenses appropriately most of the time using combinations of simple and elaborated tenses. Verbs • more specialised precise choices of action doing verbs (travelled, settled in) • more specialised thinking/ feeling/ perceiving and sensing verbs (decided, wanted, hadn’t noticed) • 1-2 causing verbs with varying accuracy (these results caused..., not effected...) • saying verbs begin to create more effective description of imply emotion to the reader (growled, replied) Verb groups • multi-word verb groups including details of timing/ duration (he was about to start playing, she wasn’t going to give up)

it does not have to touch on all of the listed.

Overview

Today students practise action, thinking/feeling, and saying verbs, then build accurate verb groups with tense and timing details. They will rewrite a short review-style description to sound more precise and “written-like”.

Learning intentions

Students will be able to:

identify and sort verbs (action, thinking/feeling, saying, causing) in a short text
choose an appropriate tense for verbs in a description (most of the time)
expand verbs into verb groups, including timing/duration (e.g. “was about to…”, “hadn’t…noticed”)
improve a sentence by replacing simple verbs with more precise verb choices

Success criteria

I can select precise action verbs and thinking/feeling verbs to improve meaning.
I can use a suitable tense for each verb most of the time (simple and elaborated combinations).
I can build multi-word verb groups that include timing/duration details.
I can check my revised sentences for verb tense and accuracy.

Curriculum links

Using verbs and verb groups to create meaning and clarity in texts.
Using language features to develop ideas in writing (cohesion and sentence accuracy).
Drafting and revising writing to improve effectiveness for an audience (review-style description and evaluation).

Lesson structure (45 minutes)

(0–5 mins) WALT + quick engagement

Show a 3-sentence review paragraph with verbs underlined but “blanked” (e.g. “The hero ____ in silence.”).
Students choose from a word bank on mini-cards (action/thinking/saying/causing verbs). Fast verbal response, not lengthy discussion.

(5–12 mins) Verb hunt (low talk, high movement)

In pairs, students find 10 verbs in a short teacher-provided text excerpt (on paper or shared screen).
They sort them into 3 groups using a simple frame: Action / Thinking-feeling / Saying-causing.
Teacher circulates with a checklist; students write only the verb word (not a whole sentence yet).

(12–22 mins) Tense and verb-group upgrade

Teacher models 2 “before/after” rewrites using a sentence strip:
Before: “She gave up.”
After: “She wasn’t going to give up.”
Students then complete 6 sentence upgrades on their own:
Add timing/duration words to build verb groups (about to, wasn’t going to, had been, after, until, for a moment).
Choose the best tense from two options provided.
Aim: accuracy “most of the time”, not perfection.

(22–32 mins) Precision verb replacement relay

Put a short description from the class review on the board with 4 simple verbs highlighted.
Students do a “relay” round: each student adds one upgraded sentence to a blank line (read aloud once).
Teacher accepts quick answers, then asks one targeted question: “Does this verb match the tense?” or “What feeling does this verb suggest?”

(32–40 mins) Independent revision: write like a reviewer

Students revise their own paragraph (8–10 sentences) or a single paragraph from a provided template.
Requirements (from today’s focus only):
Replace at least 2 simple verbs with more precise verbs.
Use at least 2 elaborated verb groups with timing/duration.
Ensure tense consistency for events described.

(40–45 mins) Exit ticket: verb-check

Students underline every verb in one final sentence and label the tense they used (e.g. past simple, past continuous, past perfect).
One sentence should also include a verb group with timing/duration.

Resources

Short teacher text excerpt with verbs underlined (EALD-friendly vocabulary).
Verb word-bank cards and sorting sheet (Action / Thinking-feeling / Saying-causing).
Sentence-strip examples: “was about to…”, “wasn’t going to…”, “hadn’t noticed…”, “decided…”, “growled…”, “caused…”.
Two-option tense cards for students to choose from.
Sentence upgrade worksheet (6 items).
Revision template for a review-style description (simple introduction optional, focus is description).
Highlighters or sticky notes for verb marking.
Checklist for teacher: verb precision + tense + verb-group requirement.

Assessment

Formative: teacher checklist during verb hunt and relay (correct sorting and tense awareness).
Formative: independent upgrade items (accuracy of tense + correct verb-group construction).
Summative-in-mini-form: exit ticket verb underlining and tense labelling in one sentence.

Differentiation

Support (EALD LEAP 5–7): provide a completed example to model; offer two tense choices; use sentence starters and a smaller verb bank; allow oral rehearsal before writing.
Support (SEN/dyslexia): use larger font, colour-coding for verb groups (timing/duration in one colour); provide audio reading of the excerpt by the teacher or recorded audio.
Challenge (advanced learners): require one additional showing verb mood/emotion (e.g. growled/replied) and one complex verb group with “until/as soon as/after” (timing).
Language scaffold: sentence frames for verb groups:
“She was about to ______ when…”
“He hadn’t ______ before…”
“They decided to ______ because…”

Dyslexia-friendly reading options

Teacher reads the excerpt aloud once, then students reread with a finger track.
Provide a version with shortened lines and extra spacing.
Offer audio recording of the passage and the sentence upgrade directions.

Teaching Instructions