Lesson video

Hello, my name is Ms. Johnson and I'm going to be teaching you English today.

In today's lesson, we're going to plan the first section of a non-chronological report on Portia spiders.

If you have not watched the previous lessons, you need to stop this video and go back and start from lesson one.

If you have, then let's get started.

We're going to start today's lesson by generating vocabulary for the Portia spider.

Then we're going to look at the layout of our report we're going to look in detail at how we're going to set our report out, and then we're going to start planning our non-chronological report.

We're only going to focus on the opening section and the first subsection today.

And then we'll be developing our word by now we have ongoing.

In the lesson today, you will need an exercise book or paper, a pen or a pencil, and your brain.

You need to be thinking throughout this I want this to be your report today.

So don't just do as I have done, I want you to bring your own ideas to the report that you plan to do.

This is your report on a Portia spider not mine, so you do need to be thinking throughout the lesson.

We're going to start the lesson by generating some vocabulary that we're going to use in our non-chronological report.

So you have seen this word bank before can you now pause the video, and can you tell me what these words mean see how many you can remember.

Pause the video and press play when you're ready to resume.

Well done.

So the first word we have is agile.

Say it after me, agile.

And that means you can move really quickly.

The next word that we have is minuscule.

Say it after me, minuscule.

And that means really, really tiny this is a tiny, tiny spider even though it looks quite big in the picture.

The next one is camouflage.

Say it after me, camouflage.

And this means that it blends in with its environment so you cannot spot it and this is a really useful adaptation.

Then we have venomous say it, venomous.

This means it's poisonous so the Portia spider has two venomous fangs.

Species.

This is a group of organisms that are grouped together because of their similarities.

Piercings say it again, piercing.

Again this relates to the fangs, they've got two piercing fangs that means really sharp.

They can Pierce through the skin of their prey.

Unique.

Unique is, means really a special or a rare animal it's a very rare species.

Bulging.

Say it after me, bulging.

We use this to describe the eyes of the Portia spider they're bulging, they're like bursting almost you might talk about bulging pocket.

And finally we have adaptation say it, adaption.

And that's how an animal has changed overtime to suit their environment better.

I wonder how many of those you got correct show me on your fingers.

Fantastic, well done.

Hopefully you're starting to remember these words now, and you're confident using them in your own writing and in your own vocabulary.

Also to recap our previous lesson and to make sure we haven't lost all this hard work that we've already done.

I would like you to write an expanded noun phrase about the Portia spider.

You could write about the eyes of the Portia spider, you could write it about the fangs of the Portia spider, you could write about the legs of a Portia spider, or you can just write it generally about this species how would you describe them as a species? Remember an expanded noun phrase is an adjective comma adjective noun.

So two adjectives describing a noun.

We call it a noun phrase because we've expanded the noun.

And this is used in our writing to add extra detail and it's really useful when we're writing non-chronological reports and using factual information.

It helps us distinguish the species.

So pause the video and have a go at writing an expanded noun phrase now.

Well done, let me show you what I have, I chose to do one on the species generally and I need to teach you a new word now.

So a unique minuscule arachnid.

Arachnid is another word for spiders it groups them as a species arachnid.

Say it, arachnid.

Well done.

So the unique minuscule so unique, we know special comma miniscule is tiny arachnid.

I've changed my nouns all to keep my writing interesting.

Sometimes it's important to say Portia spider if I do that throughout the whole report, then my read is going to get really bored.

So often try and change the noun as well and refer to the Portia spider differently.

The last thing you have to remember about expanding noun phrases when we're using them, is we want two different types of adjectives.

I wouldn't have said the minute minuscule arachnid, why not? Shout out.

Yeah, because that would have been two adjectives that mean tiny and that wouldn't make much sense.

So it's better if I use different adjectives so unique means special and miniscule means small.

And that's really good because now, I'm adding two different pieces of information into my expanded noun phrase.

So just remember that, today, when I hopped through all our lesson whenever we're planning, I want you to be using your expanded noun phrases, okay? Really important.

Even though this is a planning lesson, so we're not writing full sentences I still want you to be using excellent vocabulary throughout your work today.

So remember that expanded noun phrases.

We're going to start today now.

Before we get into the planning of our report, it's important that I show you the layout.

So the end of this unit, we will have written a whole report and our report will be focusing on the layout for a non-chronological report.

Before we do that, it's always important that we remember why we're writing to what's our purpose, who are we writing for, what language would be using, and so then how all of that affects our layout.

So can you pause the video here, and can you tell what the purpose audience, language and layout is of our non-chronological report on Portia spiders.

Pause the video and shut them out and press play when you've done that.

Well done.

So the purpose is the reason the text is written.

And for us, it's just to inform the reader about Portia spiders.

The audience is a type of people that read a text for our non-chronological report, that is people that are interested in Portia spiders.

To anybody who wants to find out more information about Portia spiders should read Adam chronological report.

Then language is the vocabulary chosen.

So for a non-chronological report, we use formal language.

Because we're writing for a formal reason.

And that means we write, we pick words, perhaps you wouldn't say when we're speaking to somebody and we use subject specific words such as species or adaptation as brought in our writing.

And finally we look at the layout so this is how a text is organised or structured.

And for a non-chronological report, this is important.

Because we have to signpost to the reader throughout telling them where the information is that they might want to find.

For instance, you might not want to know about the diet of a Portia spider, you might only be interested in the appearance of a Portia spider.

So you would need a subheading to help you to know where to look without having to read the whole report through.

And that is really important to remember, we are assessing out our work to help the reader.

And so we're going to set all our work like this.

We're going to have an opening to our non-chronological report this is important because it hooks the reader in, it engages the reader in the report but it also tells them, what this specific report is going to be about.

Then we will have our first sub-section and our first sub-section is going to be all about the appearance of the Portia spider.

So there all the information that's going to go in here is always going to be focused on what a Portia spider looks like.

Then we're going to be focusing on this sub-section diet and hunting.

So what do they eat and how did they catch it? And then finally, we're going to have our closing.

Our closing summarises the detailed report that we've previously written.

So our sub-sections add factual information in detail, whereas the closing will summarise that.

And sometimes it makes a final statement on the species as well.

But today we are just focusing on planning the opening and our first sub-section, the appearance of the Portia spider.

So all those fantastic factual, you know, what the Portia spider eats or how it catches its prey.

I want you to just to stall away for a few days, because we're going to first start on writing an opening and a sub-section on appearance.

Why do we break up? We break up because non-crush group reports are quite tricky to write sometimes and so it's easier if we do it in manageable chunks.

So we're going to have a go now at planning our reports I'm going to start with the opening.

The opening, the purpose of it, that word again, the purpose so the reason it's been written, the reason we have it in the layout of the report is to hook the reader in.

By that I mean, I want them to carry on reading.

I don't want them to read the opening and then get really bored and not want to read the rest of my report.

It's really important that we hook the reader in and so that we make our report quite interesting.

And then I'm going to tell the reader what the report is going to be about.

Again, this is important so that my reader carries on and they know, this report is suitable for them.

So I have to plan how I'm going to do that now, by planning.

I mean we put things into note form.

So these are just our ideas I don't want you to write full sentences today for you.

I only want you to write note form.

So we're going to take our previous information sheet on a Portia spider and we're going to turn it into a more formal plan.

So you should have a sheet that looks like this and if you haven't yet, then you really should pause this video, go back and watch the video that tells you all about a Portia spider otherwise this test is going to be really hard for you.

And so these are all the facts I have all ready about Portia spider, but I can't just write them all down on a page by any order because otherwise it would make no sense.

So now I have to start thinking about where all they might go.

So if I'm thinking about my opening, I need a fact that's going to read, engage, and hook my reader in.

So I wonder what factor do you think is the best facts about Portia spiders, which is your favourite? Which might you want to save for later as well when you're talking about diet and hunting, or when talking about parents.

So pause the video and think about which facts I should include, and you should include in your opening and press play when you're ready to resume.

Well done.

So the fact needs to be quite a general fact.

I'm going to go with, one that always sticks in my mind, but I thought we could have any of these ones.

So you could tell me it has three superpowers, just like in the BBC, the hunt show that we watched it talked about them having three super powers.

And I really liked that from that short clip that we watched from BBC Earth.

I really liked that because it's stuck in my head that it has three super powers.

It doesn't really have super powers, but the narrator was kind of suggesting it's actually a remarkable species.

I also liked the fact that it can jump 50 times its own body length.

'Cause I find that amazing, can you imagine jumping 50 times your own body length? So we're quite tools so I can't even imagine jumping two times my body length that length 50 times.

So I love that fact.

I think it really makes his species stand out and then there's a genuine information in there.

It's just a minuscule arachnid, it's a smooth spider.

And that's also quite general it tells me what the report's going to be about as well so maybe I want to use that fact.

So now I have to start thinking about how I'm going to structure my opening.

Always remembering that I need to hook the reader in and tell the reader what the report is going to be about.

So I'm going to start with a question.

Have you ever heard of, and that's a really nice way to engage the reader.

Now I need to finish that question I haven't quite done that just yet.

Then I need to say what type of animal is here I'd like you to use your expanded noun phrase, your genuine expanded noun phrase that perhaps you've wrote at the beginning of the lesson.

And then finally, what will I be focusing on in this report? This is where you tell the reader what the two sub-sections are that we're going to be looking at today.

What information about a Portia spider could they read from reading your report? So pause the video now and have a go at just filling this in.

Well done.

So to help you, you could just write opening at the top and then you could just put some three bullet points down you don't necessarily need to copy my factor, the question type of animal so you should copy the information that goes with it, that's fine.

So let's have a look at what I said.

I said, have you ever heard of a spider eating spider? So that was the engaging fact that I chose.

Can you shout out your question in three, two, one.

Oh, so many different facts that we've chosen that's brilliant.

Then we've got type of animal.

I say it's a unique minuscule arachnid.

Now you've heard the expanded noun phrase already today, because I used at the beginning of the lesson and that's really useful.

Everything we do in our lesson, we should be trying to be re-use.

Don't make work really hard for yourself if you've already written a fantastic expanded noun phrase, make sure you use it somewhere today.

And then, I'm going to tell the reader what the report would be about.

So this report is going to be about the appearance, diet and hunting skills of the Portia spider.

Really easy, I know already where the report is going to be about.

Now, when I come to write my opening in the next few lessons.

When I come to write my opening, I will use this plan and I will pull all the information together to help me.

Okay, so I've hooked the reader in because I've got my interesting question and I've told the reader what the report is going to be about.

Now, we're going to stop thinking about our first sub-section on appearance.

So this is what the species looks like.

The purpose of a sub-section, this is like the main section of your report the purpose is to inform the reader.

So give them information and this is where they need their facts.

This is where we want to show them more information.

This is the detailed facts about the Portia spider's appearance.

But, where I could easily go wrong here.

it's I could start telling you all the facts I know about Portia spider, because I'm desperate to tell you because I know so many now.

But that doesn't work in a non-chronological report I have to always remember, this section I'm only allowed to write about the appearance I cannot write about anything else about the Portia spider.

And that's really important because if I forget that, then what happens is my report loses its sense.

And I don't have that neat layout that I see in nonfiction books when I read them.

So you have to be a bit careful here.

So, when we start to plan our main section, we're focusing on the appearance to help us with that.

Can you think which facts here focus on the appearance, and so which facts should I now choose to use in my writing? So pause the video here and have a go at spotting the fact facts you think I could use now.

Fantastic, well done.

Let's tech together now.

But I thought I could use these ones, I said they could use the fact it's got eight eyes 'cause that's what it looks like, two venomous fangs I'm going to definitely talk about that one.

I might want to talk about his eight legs.

I could talk about his three superpowers, sort of.

I'm not sure that's going to to be that useful though right now.

And I could talk about the fact that its legs allows it to jump 50 times its own body length as well.

Now I'm going to try not to repeat myself too much either in my reports, I have to be careful with the ones that I choose.

Perhaps it also wants to talk about the camouflage of the spiders skin, I've missed that one but I think I might talk by the camouflage as well, because that's a really good one to use.

Okay.

The way this sub-section works, we're going to talk about the first feature, for instance, the eyes, and then we're going to expand.

So why is it important? And it's important that we expand our ideas, otherwise our report becomes just a list.

So why do they have them? How do they use them? In this part you might have to mention the fact that they catch their prey using them.

And that's okay, even though it seems similar to hunting skills.

But in hunting skills we're going to talk about how it pounces and upsails onto his prey.

So a bit crossover is okay and it's hard not to do that.

What I'd like you to do now is just to pick the first feature of the body that you're going to focus on, and jot it down and pause the video and then press play when you've done that.

Fantastic, so I have chosen the eyes.

Now, when I wrote about the eyes I have used an expanded noun phrase, have you done the same? Pause the video now and make sure you've got expanded noun phrase for your first feature of the body.

Well done.

So I have said, they have eight extraordinary bulging eyes.

And so you can see that I've got my expanded noun phrase here.

I have got my two pinks, so my pinks are my adjectives.

I like extraordinary, it means kind of rare and different.

And also quite skilled.

We know they have good eyesight, and I say it's got bulging eyes because that tells about the shape of them.

So I've told you about almost the skin of the eye and the shape of the eye so two different adjectives there.

Now I'm going to pause the video and I'm going to think about how they use these eyes.

What do they do with them? How do they use these? If you can't quite remember the exact fact, it's okay to have a fact that is close to it, okay? So if you're not quite sure of the wording in the video, don't worry.

You can elaborate a little bit and add a bit of your own ideas to it, okay? Just the general idea is absolutely fine.

So why are the eyes important? Pause the video now and add detail.

Fantastic.

So I said the eyes are important because they help the Portia to map their world in 3-D.

And this helped them to be able to distinguish their prey, and spot their prey amongst all the cluttered debris of all the trees in the rainforest and jungles that they're in.

So I said, this helps them to map their world in 3-D.

And this is why it's such an important adaptation that they have.

Well done.

So that's our first feature done.

Now we're going to look at another feature, so don't do the eyes anymore.

What other part of the body do you want to focus on? Pause the video write to the MP about it and press play when you're ready to resume.

Brilliant.

So we see what I've gone for? Maybe you've gone for the same one, ready? I did the fangs because I think they're so important.

Don't worry if you haven't done them though as long as you've got a feature, it's fine.

I've gone for the two venomous piercing fangs and I've used that vocabulary for my word, but venomous means poisonous, and piercing meaning sharp.

It goes through the skin.

And now I'm going to think about why they're important I've already knew the answer to my question there.

So pause the video now and tell me why the feature that you've chosen is important.

Brilliant.

Let's see what I've said.

I said, they use the fangs to attack and kill their prey.

So that's really important.

If you haven't chosen the things and now you want to, you can now write down what I've done about the fangs I don't mind you copying and magpieing my work, because we're not actually just yet writing our report.

So as long as you've got all the information for the next few lessons, that's the most important thing.

And you've had a go, so that's great.

But now if you like what I've written, pick some of my vocabulary out and use it.

And so, they use them to attack and kill their prey and that's why they're so important.

In my report I might add even more detail to that, but I have to be careful here because I don't want to talk about how they catch their prey.

Because that's going to come in the what section? The hunting section.

Now we're going to do our final feature where maybe that's where you've worked so, so hard.

We've nearly planned our whole first section of our report almost ready to get writing soon.

So pick your last feature.

What else do you want to talk about? I think I might think about their fur and the skin that they have.

So pause the video now, pick your third feature.

Well done.

Hope you did an EMP when you did that.

I said the camouflage furry coats like their skin.

Now I thought camouflage was a great way to try and get into my non-chronological report it's subject specific, and it means that they are adapted and they blend in with their environment.

So why is it important? It's important, why? Can you pause the video and tell me why your feature is important? Great, so my feature is important because it disguises them amongst the debris.

So that's all the dead bark and all the dead trees of the jungle, so they can catch the unsuspecting prey.

Unsuspecting means they're not aware of it.

So it catches the debris, disguises them sort of hides them.

So that's another word to synonym really, for camouflage, disguises.

So as I said before, if you like my idea, you can pause the video now and you can copy it into your own plan.

I say we're going to do today is review our word bank.

So we've learned a few new words today.

We've learned, arachnid.

Say it arachnid, which is like another word for spider.

We've read extraordinary, say it extraordinary which means a remarkable or interesting.

We've learned prey, say it prey.

And that's the animal that the Portia spider eats.

And we've learnt debris, say it debris.

And that's like the dead leaves in the jungle or the rain forest.

Well done.

So today we have generated some vocabulary.

We did an EMP, then we let out the layout of our report.

Then we plan the opening and the first section, and then we reviewed our word bank at the end.

So congratulations.

You've completed today's lesson, you've worked so hard.

We've now planned the opening and the first section of our non-chronological report so we're ready to get writing.

I hope you've enjoyed today's lesson, and I hope you enjoy the rest of your lessons today and take care.