Holiday Recount Writing

Overview

This 45-minute lesson engages Year 5 students in writing a recount text about a chosen holiday, supporting National Curriculum objectives in English. The plan incorporates collaborative, creative, and reflective activities to develop writing skills aligned with statutory requirements.

---

National Curriculum Links

English – Writing (Year 5):

• Pupils should be able to write for a range of purposes and audiences, using appropriate features.
• They should plan their writing by discussing and recording ideas, including note-taking and drafting.
• Use paragraphs to organise ideas, creating cohesion and coherence.
• Use a wide range of punctuation accurately, including commas, apostrophes, and expanded noun phrases.
• Develop a personal style through varied sentence structures and vocabulary.

Relevant Programmes of Study references:

• Composition: Plan writing to suit audience and purpose; use further organisational and presentational devices to structure text.
• Vocabulary, grammar, and punctuation: Use expanded noun phrases to add detail, and use commas appropriately in lists and clauses.
• Spelling: Apply spelling rules and patterns taught at KS2.

---

Learning Objectives

By the end of this lesson, all pupils will be able to:

• Identify key features of a recount text.
• Plan and write a clear, sequenced recount of a holiday experience.
• Use paragraphs effectively to organise their writing.
• Include descriptive language and expanded noun phrases to enhance detail.
• Use correct punctuation, including commas, with greater accuracy.

---

Resources

• Whiteboard and markers
• Projector or interactive whiteboard
• Sentence feature checklist (printed for students)
• Example recount text about a holiday (age-appropriate, displayed digitally or printed)
• Planning template (timeline or mind map style)
• Individual whiteboards and pens for quick formative assessment
• Writing books and pens/pencils

---

Lesson Structure

1. Starter – Engage and Explore (8 minutes)

• Activity: Display a short example of a holiday recount text on the board (about a weekend trip or holiday).
• Whole-class Discussion: Ask students to identify features of the recount (e.g., past tense verbs, chronological order, descriptive language).
• Interactive Quiz: On individual whiteboards, pupils write down one feature of a recount text when prompted. This quick formative check assesses prior knowledge.

2. Explicit Teaching – Features and Planning (10 minutes)

• Teacher Input: Model how to plan a holiday recount using the planning template. Highlight:
  • Chronological order (beginning, middle, end).
  • Using paragraphs to separate ideas (e.g., journey, activities, reflections).
  • Incorporating expanded noun phrases to add descriptive detail (e.g., ‘the golden sandy beach’, ‘the bustling marketplace’).
  • Correct use of past tense verbs and simple conjunctions to link ideas.
• Guided Questioning: Invite students to brainstorm their chosen holiday or a memorable trip. Encourage them to think of key moments to include.

3. Independent/Paired Planning (7 minutes)

• Pupils use planning template to outline their holiday recount in bullet points or short phrases, focusing on:
  • Who they went with
  • Where and when it happened
  • What activities they did
  • Personal feelings about the experience
• Teacher circulates to provide scaffolded support, prompting use of descriptive words and reminding about punctuation.

4. Writing Task – Draft Recount (15 minutes)

• Pupils write their recount based on their plan, focusing on:
  • Clear chronological structure with paragraphs
  • Using expanded noun phrases and descriptive language
  • Accurate punctuation (full stops, commas in lists and after fronted adverbials)
• Teacher facilitates writing by modelling a few sentences on the board and demonstrating editing strategies.

5. Plenary – Peer Review and Self-Assessment (5 minutes)

• Pupils swap their first paragraph with a partner for feedback using a simple checklist:
  • Have they used past tense?
  • Is there a clear opening?
  • Is there at least one descriptive phrase?
• Volunteers share their favourite phrase or sentence aloud.
• Teacher highlights strong examples and common improvements for next lesson.

---

Assessment Opportunities

• Monitoring pupils’ participation in discussion and whiteboard quiz to assess understanding of recount features.
• Reviewing planning templates to check ability to organise ideas logically and use descriptive language.
• Collecting written drafts to assess correct use of past tense, paragraphing, punctuation, and vocabulary.
• Peer feedback to develop evaluative skills and reinforce learning.

---

Differentiation

• Support: Sentence starters and word banks with holiday-related vocabulary for EAL or lower-attaining pupils.
• Challenge: Encourage higher-attaining pupils to use more complex sentence structures (e.g., subordinating conjunctions like ‘although’, ‘because’) and ambitious vocabulary.
• Use mixed-ability pairs for peer support during planning.

---

Reflection and Next Steps

This lesson scaffolds essential writing skills needed for recount texts, focusing on planning, organisation, detail, and punctuation aligned with Year 5 National Curriculum standards. Next lesson could focus on editing and publishing a final draft, incorporating more precise grammar and spelling features such as modal verbs or further punctuation marks.

---

End of Plan