Writing Basics

Lesson Overview

Lesson Title: The Building Blocks of Writing
Unit: Writing with Confidence (Lesson 2 of 4)
Year Level: Year 3
NZ Curriculum Area: English – Writing
Curriculum Level: Level 1-2
Lesson Duration: 45 minutes
Class Size: 8 students

Lesson Objectives

By the end of this lesson, students will:

• Understand the importance of finger spaces and capital letters in writing.
• Write simple sentences using their brainstormed ideas from the previous lesson.
• Revise and edit their writing for basic conventions.

This lesson aligns with the New Zealand Curriculum Key Competencies by encouraging students to:

• Think critically about their writing choices.
• Use language, symbols, and texts to communicate ideas clearly.
• Self-manage their writing by reviewing and editing.

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Lesson Structure

1. Warm-Up Activity (10 minutes) – 'Sentence Detective'

Objective: Reinforce prior learning and engage students in identifying correct sentence structure.

• Write three short sentences on the board, one with no capital letters, one with missing finger spaces, and one perfectly written.
• Example:
  1. "thisisasentencewithnofingerspaces"
  2. "i like the beach it is fun"
  3. "I like the beach. It is fun."
• Ask: Which sentence is easiest to read? Why?
• Have students come up and fix the incorrect sentences with whiteboard markers.

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2. Mini Lesson (10 minutes) – 'Big-Little Rule & Finger Walk'

Objective: Teach the role of capital letters and spacing in making writing clear.

• Introduce the 'Big-Little Rule': "Big letters start sentences and names, little letters for everything else!"
• Demonstrate with the 'Finger Walk' technique:
  • Show how to use a finger between words when writing on paper for proper spacing.
  • Have students practice 'writing' spaced-out sentences in the air with their fingers.

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3. Guided Practice (15 minutes) – Writing Challenge

Objective: Apply correct sentence structure in independent writing.

• Provide students with simple picture prompts (e.g., a cat, a beach, a family BBQ).
• Students create one sentence per picture, focusing on finger spaces and using capital letters at the start.
• Example sentence: "The cat is black and fluffy."
• Peer Checking: In pairs, students check each other's work using a simple Writing Checklist:
  ✔ Does your sentence start with a capital letter?
  ✔ Did you use finger spaces?
  ✔ Can your partner read your sentence easily?

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4. Reflection & Sharing (10 minutes) – The ‘Golden Sentence’

Objective: Build confidence by celebrating great writing.

• Each student selects their favourite sentence to share with the group.
• Teacher gives quick verbal feedback focusing on their use of finger spaces and capital letters.
• End with a class round of applause for their fantastic writing!

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Assessment & Next Steps

• Formative Assessment: Teacher will observe sentence structure in student writing during the guided practice and give feedback.
• Next Lesson: Students will build on these skills by learning about punctuation marks, like full stops and question marks.

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Resources Needed

✅ Whiteboard & markers
✅ Printed picture prompts
✅ Writing paper & pencils
✅ Simple Writing Checklist for students

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End Goal: By the end of this unit, students will feel confident in structuring their sentences correctly, setting a strong foundation for expressive and accurate writing! 🎉