Varjak Audience Purpose

Overview

In this lesson, you will build on earlier narrative work from Adventures with Varjak Paw by analysing how writers shape meaning for an audience and a clear purpose. You will then plan and rewrite a short scene to show the impact of audience and purpose on word choice and structure.

Learning intentions

• WALT: identify the audience for and purpose of narrative writing based on Varjak’s story.
• WALT: use examples to explain how changes in audience/purpose affect tone and language.
• WALT: apply audience and purpose to revise a short scene from a narrative.

Success criteria

• I can name the intended audience for a provided narrative extract.
• I can state the purpose of the extract (e.g., entertain, warn, persuade, inform).
• I can explain how the writer’s language choices fit the audience/purpose.
• I can rewrite a scene for a different audience, keeping the key events while adjusting tone and wording.

Curriculum links

• Writing – composition: plan their writing by identifying the audience for and purpose of the writing, selecting the appropriate form and using other similar writing as models for their own.
• Use of passive to affect presentation of information in a sentence (as a tool when varying formality).
• Layout devices to structure text (e.g., sub-headings or bullet points when preparing sections like “Plan” or “Rewrite outcomes”).
• Vocabulary that suits formal speech and writing vs informal speech (use more formal alternatives when required).

Lesson structure (60 minutes)

1. 0–5 min · Retrieval starter. Teacher writes: “Audience + Purpose = ____.” Students quickly list two possible audiences and purposes for stories they’ve read.

• Students share one idea with a partner, then add to a class list.

2. 5–15 min · Model analysis. Teacher shows two short versions of the same imagined Varjak scene: Version A for younger readers (warm, simple) and Version B for older readers or a mystery club (more precise, slightly more formal).

• Students highlight evidence and annotate: “Audience:” and “Purpose:” then circle words that give clues about tone.

3. 15–25 min · Direct teaching: how to adjust writing. Teacher leads a mini-comparison: discuss how writers change word choice (e.g., “find out” vs “discover”), sentence style (short for immediacy; more varied for tension), and optional grammar formality (e.g., passive for distance).

• Students complete a quick table: “What changes?” → “Why does it fit the audience/purpose?”

4. 25–35 min · Guided practice (scene plan). Teacher gives a single scene prompt (one moment from Varjak’s journey) and the class agrees on an audience/purpose for this first rewrite: e.g., “inform and encourage” for a school newsletter or “entertain with suspense” for a story club.

• Students fill a planning sheet: Audience, Purpose, Tone (2–3 adjectives), 3 vocabulary choices, and 3 sentence starters.

5. 35–50 min · Independent rewrite. Students rewrite the scene in their own words, aiming to meet their chosen audience/purpose. Teacher circulates, checking for clear links between choices and intent.

• Students draft, then do a 3-minute language check: underline one word choice and explain why it suits the audience/purpose.

6. 50–57 min · Share and feedback. In groups of 3, students read their rewrite aloud.

• Listeners use a feedback prompt: “Your audience/purpose sounds like … because …” and “One improvement would be …”

7. 57–60 min · Exit ticket. Students answer: “What is your intended audience and purpose? Give one example of a sentence/word that proves it.”

• Teacher collects for next-lesson targeting.

Resources

• Two short parallel scene extracts (Version A and Version B) printed on paper or displayed
• Scene prompt card (Varjak moment) for students
• Planning sheet: Audience/Purpose/Tone/Vocabulary/Sentence starters
• Highlighters or coloured pens for annotation
• Class chart with “Audience” and “Purpose” examples
• Teacher timer and group feedback prompt slips

Assessment

• Formative: teacher listens during extract analysis for accurate identification of audience/purpose and evidence use.
• Formative: during drafting, teacher checks that students’ vocabulary and tone match their stated audience/purpose.
• Exit ticket: written confirmation of audience/purpose with one proof sentence/word.

Differentiation

• Support: sentence starters for each audience/purpose (e.g., “For younger readers, I will…”, “To make it suspenseful, I will use…”); provide a bank of formal/informal word pairs.
• Support: use a checklist for drafting (events kept, tone adjusted, purpose stated through language choices).
• Scaffold for EAL/SEN: offer vocabulary alternatives and allow “oral rehearsal” before writing; provide a partially filled planning table.
• Challenge: require a different formality level and include at least one deliberately chosen grammatical structure (e.g., passive for a more formal, distant viewpoint) and one layout device in the plan (e.g., headings “Plan” and “Rewrite”).

Extension

• Advanced learners: rewrite the same scene a second time for a contrasting audience (e.g., “a newspaper reader” vs “a children’s story fan”), then write a brief justification (3 bullet points) explaining the key changes in tone, vocabulary, and sentence structures.