Traction Man is Here - Learning Sequence

The Traction Man unit is a comprehensive learning sequence spanning six weeks, designed to immerse Year 2 children in a variety of literacy activities centred around the Traction Man books. In the first week, the journey begins with a letter to Santa, delving into the narrative by exploring a potential accident and recording thoughts. Children then examine illustrations to infer details about the characters, and this visual exploration continues throughout the unit. Vocabulary is developed through 'word detective' activities, and a thank you letter to Santa is crafted, encouraging gratitude and reflection. As the story unfolds, children catalogue Traction Man's adventures in a grid, interact with household objects featured in the story, and write instructional texts, enriching their understanding of adverbs.

As the weeks progress, the learning sequence delves deeper into the book's elements, such as character development, narrative structure, and language features. Children discuss the concept of a hero and use a synonym wheel to expand their descriptive vocabulary. Grammatical elements like apostrophes, capital letters, verbs, and commas are explored in context, enhancing the children's writing skills. The creative aspect of the unit involves designing an outfit for Traction Man, incorporating nouns and adjectives, and planning a new adventure using a comic strip format. The unit also ties in cross-curricular links with science, as children investigate the materials used for Traction Man's outfits and their properties. The unit culminates in a research project on materials and their uses, where children build sentences using conjunctions to explain their choices, and evaluate and proofread their work, fostering critical thinking and attention to detail.