Crafting Catchy Leads

Overview

Lesson Title: Writing the Lead
Unit: Reporting with Zaps! (Lesson 6 of 15)
Age Group: Year 1 (Ages 5-6)
Curriculum Area: English – Writing & Spoken Language
Level: Key Stage 1 – National Curriculum in England

Learning Objectives

By the end of this 45-minute lesson, pupils will be able to:

• Understand what a ‘lead’ is in a newspaper article.
• Identify the key information in a story (who, what, when, where).
• Write a simple lead sentence for their class newspaper article based on A Case of the Zaps.
• Use capital letters, finger spaces, and full stops with increasing accuracy.

Success Criteria

• I can say who, what, when, and where the event happened.
• I can write a sentence that clearly tells the main point of the story.
• I use capital letters and full stops correctly.
• I check that my sentence makes sense when I read it aloud.

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Resources

• Big Book: A Case of the Zaps by Alex Boniello
• Mini-whiteboards and pens
• “ZAP! News Reporter” badges for role play
• “Lead Sentence Builder” worksheets
• Magnetic question words (Who, What, When, Where, Why)
• Sentence starters prompt cards
• Lead writing checklist cards
• Timer or soft chime
• Images/poster of a newspaper front page

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Prior Knowledge

Students have already:

• Read and discussed the story A Case of the Zaps.
• Identified key characters and events in previous lessons.
• Practised orally re-telling the story using sequence cards.
• Learned basic punctuation and sentence structure.

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Lesson Structure

1. Warm-Up Activity – Newsroom Role Play (5 mins)

Objective: Get students into the mindset of being a journalist.

• As the children enter, greet them with a pretend “Newsroom LIVE” scenario.
• Hand each child a “ZAP! News Reporter” badge.
• Have dramatic news music (played softly on a device) as you introduce yourself as “Editor Jenkins”.
• Invite the little reporters to gather at the carpet for their briefing.

"Good morning reporters! Today our big task is to write a cracking lead to break the story of the Zaps. Remember, our readers need to know what happened right away!"

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2. Teaching Input – What Is a Lead? (10 mins)

Objective: Introduce and model the concept of a newspaper lead.

• Show a large poster of a newspaper front page.
• Highlight the top sentence under the headline — "the lead".
• Explain that the lead gives readers the most important information first.
• Use magnetic question words (Who, What, When, Where) to build a lead together as a class.

👉 Example from A Case of the Zaps:

"Yesterday, in a busy playground, Pi the robot got the Zaps while playing football."

• Say the sentence slowly. Have pupils repeat it in their best “newsreading” voices.
• Model writing the lead on the board, verbalising your thought process:
  • “I need a capital letter. Finger space. What word tells me when? 'Yesterday'... that’s a time word!”

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3. Guided Group Practice – Lead Builders (10 mins)

Objective: Enable children to practise constructing a lead together.

• Hand out “Lead Sentence Builder” worksheets with sentence sorting strips.
• In mixed-ability pairs, students read and order the strips to make a complete lead sentence.
• Example strips:
  • “Pi the robot” | “played football” | “got the Zaps” | “at school yesterday”
• Challenge: Can they change the sentence to make a new version using their own words?
• Use a timer for 5 minutes, then ask a few pairs to share their leads aloud.

🗣 Prompt: “Does it make sense? Did they say who and what happened?”

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4. Independent Writing – My Own Lead (15 mins)

Objective: Pupils write their own lead sentence independently.

• Ask pupils to write one clear sentence that summarises the most important part of the Zaps story.
• Give them:
  • “ZAP! Reporter” writing paper
  • Lead Writing Checklist (includes: Did I say who? What? When? Where? Did I use a capital letter and full stop?)
• While students write, circulate to support and provide mini spelling prompts.

🎯 Differentiation:

• Support: Pre-cut sentence beginnings with gaps (e.g. “Yesterday, Pi…”).
• Challenge: Invite early finishers to write a second version with more exciting vocabulary.

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5. Sharing & Reflecting (5 mins)

Objective: Reinforce what makes a strong lead.

• Gather students in the Newsroom Circle.
• Invite volunteers to read out their lead sentences using the mighty “Newsreader Mic” (a decorated cardboard tube).
• Peer Feedback Prompt: “What part did you like? Did they tell us the most important bit?”

📣 Celebrate everyone being brave journalists – award star stickers for complete, clear, or “crackingly catchy” leads.

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Assessment for Learning (AfL)

• Listen to group discussions for understanding of key details.
• Collect written leads at the end and assess against the checklist.
• Quick thumbs-up/down to self-assess: “Did you use who, what, when, where in your lead?”

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Cross-Curricular Links

• Spoken Language (Drama/Role Play)
• ICT/Digital Literacy: In future lessons, pupils will type up and digitally publish their articles.

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Extensions / Home Learning

At Home: Ask families to read a child-friendly news story together. Can your child spot the lead sentence?

In Class: Create a class display titled "Our Leads Make Headlines!" featuring students’ lead sentences in bold lettering.

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Teacher Reflection Prompt

• Which aspects of the role play helped bring the writing purpose to life?
• Did the sentence-building support provide enough scaffolding for lower writers?
• What unexpected vocabulary or ideas surfaced from the imaginative minds of the children?

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National Curriculum Coverage

Year 1 English – Purposeful Writing

Pupils should be taught to:
– Write sentences by:
  ● Saying out loud what they are going to write about
  ● Composing a sentence orally before writing it
  ● Sequencing sentences to form short narratives
  ● Re-reading what they have written to check that it makes sense
– Use capital letters, full stops, question marks, and exclamation marks
– Begin to use some features of standard English

Speaking & Listening

Pupils should be taught to:
– Use spoken language to develop understanding through imagining and exploring ideas
– Speak audibly and fluently with an increasing command of Standard English
– Participate in discussions, performances, and role play

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Notes for TA Support

• Sit with emerging writers during independent writing time.
• Prompt with “Tell me who it’s about… when did it happen?” to help form sentences.
• Help children self-check using their checklist card.

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Let the newsroom buzz begin!