Diary Feature Discovery

Year 2 – English (45 minutes)

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Unit: Diary Writing Adventures | Lesson 1: Exploring Diary Features

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National Curriculum Links

• English – Writing: Year 2
  • Pupils should be taught to:
    • Learn how to use expanded noun phrases to describe and specify (NC Appendix 2).
    • Write about real events, sequencing sentences to form short narratives.
    • Use past tense and past progressive forms consistently and correctly.
    • Use adverbs to express time, place, and cause.
    • Develop positive attitudes towards and stamina for writing by writing for different purposes.
  • Spoken Language: Participate in discussions, listen and respond appropriately (Year 2 Spoken Language programme of study).

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Learning Objectives (WALT - We Are Learning To):

• WALT identify and colour code the key features of a diary entry using a model text (WAGOLL).
• WALT recognise and explain diary conventions such as addressing the diary ("Dear Diary") and use of past tense verbs.
• WALT spot adverbs and expanded noun phrases and explain their purpose in writing.

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Success Criteria:

• I can find and highlight “Dear Diary” in the text.
• I can spot verbs written in the past tense and explain why they are used.
• I can identify adverbs and expanded noun phrases and explain how they add detail.
• I can work with my group to colour code different diary features correctly.

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Resources:

• A printed model diary entry on large poster paper – WAGOLL (What A Good One Looks Like) – handwritten or typed with clear colour-coded legend left blank for students.
• Coloured highlighters/pens (four colours – e.g., purple, green, orange, blue).
• Feature prompt cards: “Dear Diary”, “Past Tense Verbs”, “Adverbs”, “Expanded Noun Phrases”.
• Interactive whiteboard or projector to display the text digitally.
• Individual mini whiteboards and pens.

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Lesson Structure

1. Hook & Introduction (10 minutes)

• Engage: Begin with a brief storytelling session – teacher reads a short excerpt of a diary entry aloud with expression, e.g., “Dear Diary, Today was an exciting day...”
• Ask: “What do you notice about how the writer talks to their diary?” (Prompt identification of “Dear Diary” as a greeting.)
• Introduce WALT and Success Criteria visually on board.
• Display the WAGOLL diary entry. Explain that today we explore the features that make diaries special.

2. Guided Collaborative Activity (20 minutes)

• Group Work: Arrange students into 6 groups (4-5 students per group). Give each group a copy of the WAGOLL diary.
• Introduce the four features to find and colour code:
  • Dear Diary (purple)
  • Past tense verbs (green)
  • Adverbs (orange)
  • Expanded noun phrases (blue)
• Use feature prompt cards as visual clues for each group.
• Each group will collaboratively highlight relevant features on their copy.
• Teacher circulates, supports discussion, asking leading questions:
  • “Why do you think the writer uses this past tense verb?”
  • “Can you describe what this expanded noun phrase tells us?”
  • “How does this adverb help us understand when or how something happened?”

3. Class Sharing & Discussion (10 minutes)

• Groups share their colour-coded findings, displaying their papers.
• Discuss any differences or surprises found between groups.
• Consolidate understanding of each feature and its diary writing purpose.
• Highlight examples from the text orally and encourage pupils to explain in their own words.

4. Individual Check & Mini-Assessment (5 minutes)

• Distribute mini whiteboards and pens.
• Quick quiz: Teacher calls out sentences or words, students write “Dear Diary” for greeting, circle past tense verbs, underline adverbs or expanded noun phrases.
• Teacher monitors and gives immediate feedback.

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Differentiation Strategies

• For less confident learners: Provide a simplified version of the diary text with some features already highlighted. Small group support by the teacher or teaching assistant during activity. Use sentence stems to explain features, e.g., “An adverb tells us...”
• For EAL learners: Use picture prompts related to expanded noun phrases (e.g., “a tall, green tree”), and explain adverbs through actions (e.g., walking slowly). Use bilingual key word cards if appropriate.
• For advanced learners: Challenge pupils to find additional diary features such as feelings expressed (e.g., “I felt happy”), punctuation features (exclamation marks, question marks), or to suggest their own expanded noun phrases to improve the text.

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Extension Activities

• Write a short diary entry as homework or in the next lesson using the features identified. Encourage advanced learners to include at least two adverbs and two expanded noun phrases.
• Create a “Diary Feature Detective” worksheet for them to find features in a different, short diary excerpt independently.

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Cross-Curricular Link

• PSHE: Reflect on emotions and feelings expressed in diary writing as a way to understand self-expression.

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Reflection & Evaluation (Post-Lesson Notes)

• Note which feature students found most challenging to identify.
• Assess engagement levels during group discussions.
• Collect mini whiteboards to check understanding for future grouping and support.

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This lesson plan provides a solid starting point for the Diary Writing Adventures unit. It aligns strongly with the Year 2 English National Curriculum requirements around writing purpose, grammar features, and developing writing stamina through narrative forms. The use of collaborative colour coding and a WAGOLL model visually supports learning, making abstract grammar features tangible and memorable.