Planning Juliet's diary entries
Lesson details
Learning outcome
I can plan the structure and content of Juliet's imagined diary entries after meeting Romeo.
Key learning points
- Writing is most successful when its content is planned.
- A diary entry is most often written retrospectively, but it may contain both present and past tense sections.
- Juliet's diary is written as two entries - one on her return from the ball and one after the balcony scene.
- A diary entry should include both descriptions of the event(s) and details about the emotions that a character feels.
- We can use rich vocabulary and show-not-tell to describe events and emotions.
Keywords
Past tense - used to tell the reader that action happened before now
Present tense - tells the reader that action is happening now
Events - things that happen to a person or a character
Emotions - strong feelings experienced by a character in response to their experiences
Common misconception
Pupils may struggle with the idea of jumping between past and present tense.
Explain that this is a common way of writing a diary: the person writing begins by saying how they feel right now before going back to explain the events that led up to them feeling this way.
Teacher tip
Encourage diverse responses by modelling alternative thoughts and emotions Juliet could feel; it's not necessary for every pupil's diary to show the same or similar responses.
Licence
Lesson video
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Prior knowledge starter quiz
6 Questions
Q1.Put these events from 'Romeo and Juliet' in order.
Q2.Which word below means 'capturing all your attention'?
Q3.Which of these groups of words might you find in a thesaurus next to the word 'handsome'?
Q4.Which synonyms for 'man' are most appropriate for a diary entry written by Juliet, describing Romeo?
Q5.Which of these words describe positive emotions?
Q6.Why might Juliet feel 'yearning' when she writes her diary after the ball?
Assessment exit quiz
6 Questions
Q1.Put these sections of our diary plan for Juliet in order.
Q2.When Juliet first writes in her diary after the ball, which events will she cover?
Q3.When Juliet is first writing in her diary, what might she be feeling?
Q4.When Juliet writes in her diary the second time, after the balcony scene, what is she likely to be feeling?
Q5.Which of the following are common features of a diary entry?
Q6.Which of these examples uses 'show-not-tell' to indicate Juliet's emotions?
To help you plan your 6 English lesson on: Planning Juliet's diary entries, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your 6 English lesson on: Planning Juliet's diary entries, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs.
The starter quiz will activate and check your pupils' prior knowledge, with versions available both with and without answers in PDF format.
We use learning cycles to break down learning into key concepts or ideas linked to the learning outcome. Each learning cycle features explanations with checks for understanding and practice tasks with feedback. All of this is found in our slide decks, ready for you to download and edit. The practice tasks are also available as printable worksheets and some lessons have additional materials with extra material you might need for teaching the lesson.
The assessment exit quiz will test your pupils' understanding of the key learning points.
Our video is a tool for planning, showing how other teachers might teach the lesson, offering helpful tips, modelled explanations and inspiration for your own delivery in the classroom. Plus, you can set it as homework or revision for pupils and keep their learning on track by sharing an online pupil version of this lesson.
Explore more key stage 2 English lessons from the Shakespeare's 'Romeo and Juliet': diary and narrative writing unit, dive into the full primary English curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.