Lesson video

Hello, everyone.

My name's Ms. Butt.

And today, I'm going to be teaching you some new vocabulary to use in your unit, "How to train Your Dragon".

Now, I know that your final outcome for this unit is writing a persuasive letter.

If we're writing persuasive letters, normally, we're trying to flatter our audience.

But we're also trying to make ourselves sound pretty good.

So, today, we're going to be learning some words that we can use to describe ourselves in our persuasive letters to make sure that we get selected for the job.

I hope you enjoy today's lesson.

Here's what we're going to do today.

First, I'm going to introduce the new words one at a time and we're going to be looking at illustrations to help us understand what they mean.

Then, we're going to look at word pairs and synonyms for each word.

And finally, we're going to have a go at applying these words in sentences that we could use in our writing or in our persuasive letter writing.

For this lesson, you will need something to write on, something to write with, and your brains.

Can you please pause the video to make sure you have those things and make sure that you are calm and focused and ready to learn.

Okay, let's get started.

So, here's some key vocabulary we're going to need to understand in order to do this lesson.

I'm going to say each word and I'd like you to repeat it back to me.

So, just to make sure that we're all engaged in the learning.

Synonym.

Word pair.

Adjective.

Noun.

Well done.

A synonym is a word that means exactly or nearly the same as another word, like the words "merry" and "happy".

They're synonyms of each other because they mean the same thing.

Word pairs are words that often appear together, like a "bright sun" or a "bright moon".

An adjective is a describing word.

And today, we're going to be learning three describing words.

Adjectives usually describe nouns.

And nouns are either a person, a place, or a thing.

So, let's start thinking about if we were going to apply to Gobber's dragon training school.

Hmm, what character traits do you think you would need to be accepted into his school? Can you pause the video and perhaps think of three different character traits you would need to be accepted on Gobber's dragon training? Okay, well done.

Well, I think if you were going to be accepted at Gobber's dragon training school, you would, first of all, need to be brave because the dragons in that arena look pretty ferocious.

So, you would definitely need to be brave.

I wonder if that's one of the ones that you came up with.

I think you would also need to be dedicated or committed because you would need to make sure that you turned up everyday on time.

I wonder what character traits you came up with.

So, let's have a look at our first "trying hard" words.

Now, we learned some "trying hard" words in our instructions because we all agreed that we would need to try hard when we were training our dragon.

But today we're going to be using these "trying hard" words in a different way because if we wanted to apply for a job or for a school, we need to prove that we are characters who would try hard.

So, that's the context that we're going to be using for these words today.

Here's the first image.

What's happening in this picture? Can you please be a detective and look closely at this image and see if you can describe what story it's telling and how you think this character is feeling.

How is this character trying hard? Pause the video and have a think now.

Well, I can see a a character who is on a running machine and they look extremely, well, they look tired.

They're sweating.

But they've got their eyes fixed on that hamburger that's dangling, they've used a fish rod to dangle it in front of them.

Almost like that's the reward.

So, "If I do enough running, then I can treat myself with that hamburger at the end." Let's find out what this word is.

Determined.

Determined.

This is an adjective that means driven or single-minded, working extra hard to get what you want.

This character is obviously determined to have that hamburger.

And therefore, is working really hard so that he deserves it.

If you were going to apply for a job or for a position in a school and you said that you were a determined character, that would be a really positive character trait because people want people in their schools or in their businesses to be determined, to be driven, or single-minded and to work very hard.

I'm going to read some words and as I read them, I would like you to see if you can spot the synonyms of "determined".

Remember, a synonym is a word that means exactly or nearly the same thing.

Effort, expression, purposeful, enemy, thief, opponent, voice, dead set on, and driven.

Here's the word in a sentence.

I am determined to prove to my father that I can be brave and slay dragons.

This is something that Hiccup might write in his letter to Gobber.

I am determined to prove to my father that I can be brave and slay dragons.

Now, I wonder if you can pause the video and spot the three synonyms of "determined".

Let's see how you got on.

The synonyms are "purposeful", "dead set on", and "driven".

That means all of the other words are word pairs that I'm going to read to you now.

So, you might have a determined or put in a determined effort.

Maybe, you will have a determined expression.

If you look quickly at his face on this cartoon, he has definitely got a determined expression.

Can you show me what a determined expression might look like? Oh, very determined.

Well done.

A determined enemy.

A determined thief.

A determined opponent.

And a determined voice.

So, when we learn new words, it's really important that we don't just read the words or hear them, but that we actually say them ourselves because that's the way that they stick in our memories.

So, I'd like you to pause the video now and read these words out loud, just like I did.

Off you go.

Excellent.

So, before we move can you just remind me what does this word "determined" mean? And perhaps you could use the image to help remind you.

Yes, well done.

It means driven or single-minded.

Let's take a look at our second illustration.

What's happening in this picture? What can you see? What do you notice? How do you think this character is feeling? How might you describe this character? Pause the video and have a think.

Okay, well I can see here that there is a character who is standing and he's got this stance with his posture, his hands on his hips.

He's looking up at this building that's got a dollar sign at the top of it.

And he looks like he's ready for business.

He's dressed very smartly.

He's carrying a briefcase and I wonder if he's standing in this pose because he feels very determined, perhaps to get a job at this office.

Hmm, let's find out what this word is.

Ambitious.

Ambitious.

"Ambitious" is an adjective and it means determined to achieve big things, like someone who has plans to rule the world.

Ah, so this character is obviously really ambitious because they want to achieve big things.

Perhaps, they're going to go for a job interview, but perhaps, they don't want to just stop there and get a job, perhaps, they want to go on to be the head of the whole company.

That's what somebody who is ambitious would do.

It's a really good thing to be ambitious because we should all try to achieve big things.

I'm going to read some words to you now and I'd like you to see if you can spot the synonyms. Banker, vision, attempt, determined, student, driven, project, aspiring, plan, spirit.

Here's the word in a sentence.

As an ambitious student, I have already completed an apprenticeship in carpentry.

That's something that Hiccup has done in the books and in the film.

And this would be really good evidence in your letter because you're proving that you're ambitious, but you're also giving evidence of something you've already done, which is a really good tip if you are every applying for a position.

I'd like you to pause the video now and see if you can spot the three synonyms of the word "ambitious".

So, the synonyms are "determined", "driven", and "aspiring".

And that means the rest of these words are word pairs, which I'll read to you now.

An ambitious banker.

An ambitious vision.

If you have a vision for something, it's what you imagine it to look like.

So, if you were sitting down and you were going to try to picture, if you were going to try to come up with an idea for a new business, you might have a vision of what that was going to look like, an image in your mind.

And if it was an ambitious vision, perhaps you might picture that it was going to be very successful.

An ambitious attempt.

So, for example, if you had just left school and you were only 18 and you applied for a job as prime minister, that would be quite an ambitious attempt.

An ambitious student.

An ambitious project.

Perhaps, if you had a project that you wanted to raise a million pounds, it would be ambitious.

An ambitious plan.

And an ambitious spirit.

Can you pause the video now and read these word pairs out loud, just like I did? Excellent, well done.

Before we move on, can you just tell me, what does "ambitious" mean? Well done, it means determined to achieve big things.

I hope that all of you are ambitious.

Here is our final image of the day.

So, what's happening in this picture? How would you describe these two characters? And what are they fighting over? Pause the video and have a think now.

Looks to me like these characters are fighting over a donut and I can kind of see why, in fact, even looking at that donut's giving me a bit of a rumbling tummy.

This dog, even though it's much smaller than the other character, looks absolutely determined to keep onto that donut with his teeth, like he won't let it go.

This word is "tenacious".

Tenacious.

It means determined or strong-willed, like refusing to let go of something.

It's also an adjective, so it's a describing word.

Now, if you were described as tenacious, so that means that you're determined and you're not going to let go of something, that also would be a positive character trait if you were applying for a job 'cause it means that you are not going to just give up, you're going to keep on trying.

Tenacious actually comes from the Latin word , which means to hold.

So, we quite often look at the history, which we call the etymology of words and find out where these words in our language came from.

And Latin, which is an ancient language, has this word , to hold.

And so, you can see how that word has affected our word, tenacious.

Because if you were determined or strong-willed and refused to let go of something, it's like you're holding onto it.

A bit like the dog holding onto this donut.

I'm going to read some words and I'd like you to see if you can spot the synonyms of the word "tenacious".

Grasp, hold, grip, determined, attitude, memory, strong-willed, perseverance, refusing to give up.

To help you, here's the word in a sentence.

My tenacious perseverance means I will never give up on my dreams. Can you pause the video and see if you can spot the synonyms for the word "tenacious"? And I think I might have shown you one there, so you may have already spotted one.

Let's see if you can spot the other two.

Off you go.

So, the synonyms are "determined", "strong-willed", and "refusing to give up".

Well done if you got those right.

So, the rest of the words are word pairs and I'm going to read those to you now.

A tenacious grasp.

If you grasp something, it's a bit like holding it.

Tenacious hold.

A tenacious grip.

A tenacious attitude.

Tenacious perseverance.

So, perseverance is never letting go.

And so, perseverance is carrying on, keep going and carrying on, no matter what.

And a tenacious memory.

Now, if you have a tenacious memory, again, it would mean that you would hold onto things in your mind.

So, if you have a tenacious memory, probably means you would have a very good memory.

So, I'd like you now to pause the video and read these word pairs out loud.

Excellent, well done.

So, now, we've learned all three words.

I'd like you to pause the video and see if you could remember what each word is.

Remember to use the illustrations to help you.

So, the first word was "determined".

The second word was "ambitious".

And the final word was "tenacious".

Now, I'd like you to imagine that you were describing what these words meant to a younger child.

When we put things in our own words, it helps us to remember them.

So, can you pause the video now and describe what each word means? Okay, excellent.

Let me remind you of the definitions.

"Determined" means keen or devoted.

"Ambitious" means determined to achieve big things.

And "tenacious" means determined or strong-willed.

Let's try to put these words in sentences.

I've tried to write sentences that will be useful for your letters.

I have a memory, which means I will never forget a thing you say in training.

Hmm, what was that word that means you hold onto things? Pause the video and have a think.

So, the answer is I have a tenacious memory.

This sentence has got a relative clause in it 'cause we've got that comma and then "which".

"I have a tenacious memory," that could be a full stop there, so that's the main clause.

And then, the relative clause after it is giving us relative information about the memory.

I have a tenacious memory, which means I will never forget a thing you say in training.

Obviously, that's really important that we listen in training and that then we remember all of those things.

So, having a tenacious memory would be a really good thing to include in your letters.

Because of who my father is, I have always been as I would like to follow in his footsteps and become chief of the clan.

Hmm, pause the video and have a think about which adjective fits in this sentence.

Hmm, there's a bit of a clue here, isn't there? Because if you wanted to be the chief of a clan, it means that you have got big ambitions.

So, this word would be "ambitious".

I have always been ambitious.

And finally, I am to prove to everyone that I am worthy of being the chief's son.

Pause the video and have a think about which adjective fits in this sentence.

Excellent.

I am determined to prove to everyone.

We know that at the start of "How to Train Your Dragon", everyone is very fed up with Hiccup always getting in the way and always getting things wrong.

So, he definitely would be determined to prove to everyone that he's worthy.

I'd like you now to have a go at writing a sentence using the word "determined".

You can use the word pairs, if you'd like, to help you.

I've also got a sentence scaffold here.

So, if you're finding it tricky to come up with a sentence, you could fill in the blanks in this one.

I am determined to prove to everyone that I because.

So, what could you say to finish off that sentence? Pause the video and have a go at writing your own sentence now.

Excellent, well done.

Now, I'd like you to write a sentence using the word "ambitious".

Again, you can use the word pairs to help you.

For example, you could talk about your ambitious vision and then you can build a sentence around that.

Perhaps, you might share with Gobber your ambitious vision to eventually train the dragons to become your pets.

And that might be a good idea to build a sentence around that.

So, pause the video now and have a go at writing this sentence.

Well done.

And finally, I would like you write a sentence using the word "tenacious".

Remember, if you are tenacious, you won't let go of something.

If you want, you can use the word pairs to help you.

For example, "My tenacious perseverance means that." Or "I have a tenacious attitude, which means." Can you pause the video now and have a go at writing a sentence using the word "tenacious"? Excellent, well done.

Now, after we've written some sentences, quite often we may have made some little mistakes.

I know that I do when I write.

So, can you just take a moment to pause the video again and just read your sentences back out loud to just make sure that you've got the correct punctuation, that your sentences make sense, and that you're not missing any words.

Well done.

Did you spot any mistakes? I usually spot a few mistakes, but the most important thing is that we just go back and check our work once we've finished.

Brilliant.

Well, that brings us to the end of our lesson.

You've worked so hard and you should feel really proud of yourselves.

You've learned three incredible new words.

I think most adults probably don't know what these words mean and anyone will be very impressed if you dropped these words into a conversation.

But also, if you include these in your persuasive letter writing.

Thank you for watching and I hope to see you all soon.

Bye.