Cohesion in Writing

Overview

In this lesson 9 of 20, students practise making their writing clearer by linking ideas across sentences and paragraphs. They will strengthen cohesion using cohesive devices such as repetition, grammatical connections (especially adverbials), and pronouns, then revise a short draft to improve flow.

Learning intentions

• WALT use cohesive devices to link ideas across sentences and paragraphs.
• WALT choose connectives and pronouns that clearly refer to earlier parts of the text.
• WALT revise a draft to improve cohesion, clarity, and overall flow.
• WALT use grammatical connections, including adverbials, to show contrast or consequence.

Success criteria

• I can use pronouns (he, she, they, it) or noun phrases to avoid repeating the same name every time.
• I can use connectives/adverbials to show contrast and consequence (for example, on the other hand, as a consequence).
• I can revise my writing so sentences “fit together” and the reader can follow the events smoothly.
• I can make sure my paragraph begins and ends with a clear link to what came before/next.

Curriculum links

• Linking ideas across paragraphs using a wider range of cohesive devices: repetition of a word or phrase, grammatical connections (for example, adverbials such as on the other hand, in contrast, or as a consequence), and ellipsis.
• Cohesion in a text: clarity about how parts fit together.
• Cohesive devices as words that show how different parts of a text fit together.
• Year 6 punctuation focus is supported through clearer clause boundaries when revising (e.g., ensuring sentences make grammatical sense).

Lesson structure (60 minutes)

1. 0–5 min · Starter: Cohesion detective. Teacher displays two short paragraph extracts from earlier unit writing (one “choppy”, one “cohesive”). Students identify where the meaning is hardest to follow and why (missing links, unclear pronouns, no contrast/consequence signals).

2. 5–12 min · Mini-teach: Connectives + pronouns. Teacher models a rewrite of 3–4 sentences, showing how replacing repeated nouns with pronouns can still stay clear, and how adverbials can show “as a consequence” or “on the other hand”. Students generate a quick list: pronouns/noun phrases that match Varjak Paw and a second character.

3. 12–20 min · Guided practice: Sentence surgery. Teacher gives a paragraph with blanks where cohesion is missing (e.g., “Varjak looked up. ___ he saw…”, “He tried again. ___, it worked.”). Students choose suitable pronouns and connectives from a class bank, then read the paragraph aloud for fluency.

4. 20–35 min · Draft revision: Make it cohesive. Students use their own short draft from the unit (or today’s planning notes) and apply a “cohesion checklist”:

• I have at least 2 clear cohesive devices in my paragraph (connectives/adverbials).
• Pronouns/noun phrases refer clearly to the right characters.
• There is a clear link between sentences (contrast or consequence where appropriate). Teacher conferences in quick rounds, focusing on one issue per student (often pronoun clarity or weak sentence links).

5. 35–45 min · Peer review: Read for flow. In pairs, students swap drafts and use a simple review sheet: circle where the reader might get confused and underline where a pronoun could be made clearer. Each pair writes one “glow” (effective cohesion) and one “grow” (one specific improvement).

6. 45–55 min · Whole-class share: One improvement. Teacher invites 3–4 students to read one revised sentence (or two) and explains which cohesion change they made (e.g., “I replaced the repeated noun with ‘he’ but kept it clear by adding ‘Varjak’ in the first sentence.”). Class listens for clarity and flow.

7. 55–60 min · Exit ticket: cohesion decision. Students complete:

• “In my draft, I improved cohesion by using ______.”
• “One pronoun I used was ______ and it clearly refers to ______.”

Resources

• Student drafts from Lesson 8 (paper or digital) with space to revise
• Cohesion checklist (pronouns + connectives/adverbials)
• Sentence-surgery handout with blanks and a connective/adverbial bank
• Peer review sheet (glow/grow + confusion points)
• Pronoun matching cards (character → pronoun options)
• Timer for timed writing/review stages

Assessment

• Teacher checks during drafting conferences using the cohesion checklist (formative).
• Pair review identifies confusion points and confirms pronoun reference clarity.
• Exit ticket assesses whether students can name the cohesion strategy they applied and justify pronoun reference.

Differentiation

• Provide cohesion starters (sentence stems such as “On the other hand…”, “As a consequence…”, “Meanwhile…”, “After that…”, “He noticed that…”), with colour coding for contrast vs consequence.
• Support students who need it with a “pronoun matching” mini-grid: character → pronouns → a reminder to reintroduce the noun phrase when unclear.
• Challenge students by requiring at least one instance where they revise for both cohesion and concision (remove repetition without losing clarity).
• EAL/SEN support: offer a reduced connective bank (3–5 options), sentence frames, and allow oral rehearsal before writing; provide exemplars with highlighted pronouns and adverbials.

Extension (optional, for advanced learners)

• Students create a cohesive narrative linking multiple events from the unit: revise their draft so that each paragraph includes (1) a clear event link (time/consequence), (2) at least one contrasting viewpoint or obstacle (“on the other hand/in contrast/as a consequence”), and (3) consistent pronoun tracking throughout.