Sharing Our Stories

Overview

In this final lesson of the unit Exploring Story Settings, children share their finished setting descriptions with a partner and small group. They practise listening, responding politely, and giving feedback using a simple template: what they liked and one kind improvement.

Learning intentions

• Students will read their setting descriptions aloud with clear voices and attention to the words they have written.
• Students will listen to a partner’s description and respond using a feedback template.
• Students will identify one thing that improved their setting description and one target for making it even better next time.
• Students will consider the impact of details about setting (time, place, and atmosphere) and include them confidently in their reading.

Success criteria

• I can read my setting description aloud so my listener can understand my words.
• I can say one thing I liked about my partner’s setting (using the template).
• I can give one suggestion to improve clarity or detail (using the template).
• I can update my own work with one next-step based on feedback.

Curriculum links

• Writing – composition: in narratives, describing settings, characters and atmosphere and integrating dialogue to convey character and advance the action.
• Key stage 1 reading – comprehension: being encouraged to link what they read or hear read to their own experiences and discussing the significance of events.
• Spoken language for communication: taking turns to speak and listen in discussions.

Lesson structure (30 minutes)

1. 0–3 min · Warm-up: Listener rules. Teacher displays a simple listening reminder (eyes watching, ears listening, quiet voice) and models how to respond. Students repeat the rules and give a quick “ready” signal when they are listening.

2. 3–10 min · Model feedback template. Teacher shows the feedback cards and reads one example aloud: “I liked … because …” and “Next time, you could …”. Students practise saying the stems with the teacher using a made-up short description (no writing yet).

3. 10–18 min · Group read-alouds (Round 1). Teacher groups the 6 students into two groups of three and gives each group a feedback sheet. Students take turns reading their final setting descriptions aloud while the other two listen and complete feedback for the speaker.

4. 18–23 min · Teacher check-ins and prompts. Teacher circulates, prompts deeper listening (“What detail helped you imagine the place?”), and supports children to make one clear suggestion. Students refine their feedback wording: liking a specific detail (e.g., weather, time of day, sounds) and suggesting a single improvement (e.g., “Add one more feeling word”).

5. 23–27 min · Update and practise (Round 2). Teacher gives 2 minutes for students to make a small change to their own writing or mark a next step in the margin. Students use their own feedback to practise reading again once, focusing on the improved part.

6. 27–30 min · Share-out and celebrate. Teacher asks one volunteer per group to share their “one thing I liked” and one “next step” for another writer. Students finish with a short confidence check: thumbs up for “I read clearly” and “I gave kind feedback”.

Resources

• Final setting description pages (each child’s completed writing)
• Feedback template cards/sheets with two stems:
• “I liked … because …”
• “Next time, you could …”
• Grouping labels (Group A / Group B) to keep roles steady
• Pencils and a small highlighter
• Timer for turn-taking (visible to students)
• Teacher model sentence strip(s) for feedback language

Assessment

• Teacher listens during read-alouds using a quick checklist: readable voice, pauses at the right places, understandable words.
• Teacher observes feedback quality: child names at least one specific detail they liked and offers one achievable suggestion.
• Exit check at the end: each student states (or indicates) one thing they will improve next time based on feedback.

Differentiation

• Support:
• Provide sentence starters on the feedback sheet and allow children to point to a detail in the writing (e.g., underline a describing word first).
• Offer a “read-aloud practice” time with a partner before the group share if needed.
• Challenge/Extension:
• Encourage an extra detail in suggestions (e.g., “Add a sound word” or “Try a feeling word to show atmosphere”).
• Ask high-confidence students to explain briefly why the suggestion would help the reader imagine the setting.
• SEN/EAL:
• Allow feedback to be recorded by the teacher or supported with picture cues (weather, time of day, sounds) if language is a barrier.
• Use a slower turn-taking pace and pre-teach key words from their settings (e.g., “foggy”, “bright”, “crashing”, “quiet”, “spooky”).