The Promise - Learning Objectives

In Year 4's Summer Term 1, students delve into a unit focused on two core texts: "The Promise" by Nicola Davies and "The Dancing Bear" by Charles Causley. This literary exploration is linked with Science and Geography topics, where students identify and group living things and discuss environmental issues. The unit's written outcomes encourage creativity and environmental awareness, with students crafting list poems, persuasive flyers promoting tree planting, and rewriting descriptive story openings post-planting. The possible application of these skills extends to recounting various experiences or encounters.

The curriculum objectives are multifaceted, encompassing spoken language, reading, writing composition, and grammar and vocabulary. Students are expected to articulate opinions clearly, using Standard English, and to perform their own compositions. Reading objectives focus on analyzing the use of language in setting the scene, creating atmosphere, and conveying themes in both fiction and poetry. Students will also develop research skills through skimming, scanning, and summarizing texts. Writing objectives include drawing on model texts for structure and vocabulary, understanding paragraphing, and planning narratives with coherent beginnings and endings. Grammar objectives aim to enhance descriptive writing through expanded noun phrases and fronted adverbials, while also emphasizing the correct use of pronouns and apostrophes for possession. This comprehensive approach aims to foster a deeper understanding of language and its effects on readers.