Building comprehension of 'The Moon Dragons' through rich discussions
Lesson details
Learning outcome
I can infer meaning from 'The Moon Dragons'.
Key learning points
- Alina’s motivations for finding the moon dragon was different to everyone else’s and she valued them more than gold.
- Asking questions and having rich discussions builds our understanding and allows us to hear different perspectives.
- Searching for clues within a text can help us infer greater meaning.
- We can retrieve evidence from the text to help us justify our inferences.
- A character's actions, experiences and words can be analysed to infer greater meaning.
Keywords
Inference - drawing conclusions from clues within the text
Discussion - the process of talking about something to exchange ideas
Retrieve - to find information within the text
Common misconception
Children may develop simple questions where the answer can be retrieved from the text rather than involving inference to uncover.
Model the difference between a retrieval and an inference question. E.g. For page 13, a retrieval question could be 'How did the King speak to Alina?' whereas an inference question could be 'What did the King think about Alina's declaration?'
Teacher tip
Model searching for clues within the relevant pages to answer the questions in cycle 2, task B. Ensure children have access to a copy of the relevant pages for the task.
Equipment
You will need a copy of the 2015 Andersen Press Ltd. edition of ‘The Moon Dragons’ written by Dyan Sheldon and illustrated by Gary Blythe for this lesson.
Licence
Lesson video
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Prior knowledge starter quiz
6 Questions
Q1.What does building comprehension of a text mean?
Q2.What does retrieving key information mean?
Q3.What does inference mean?
Q4.Who are the main characters in the story of 'The Moon Dragons'?
Q5.What does the King offer as a reward for finding the moon dragons?
Q6.What did Alina do when she found the dragons?
Assessment exit quiz
6 Questions
Q1.How does asking questions about a text support comprehension?
Q2.Match the comprehension strategy to how we use it.
skimming and scanning to find information from the text
talking to others about the meaning of what we have read
using clues from the text to draw further conclusions
Q3.How can we infer a character's emotions or intentions?
Q4.True or false? It is reasonable to infer that the King had good intentions for the moon dragons.
Q5.Why did Alina feel connected to the moon dragons?
Q6.Which of the following can we infer from Alina's decision to protect the moon dragons?
To help you plan your 3 English lesson on: Building comprehension of 'The Moon Dragons' through rich discussions, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your 3 English lesson on: Building comprehension of 'The Moon Dragons' through rich discussions, 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 'The Moon Dragons': reading unit, dive into the full primary English curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.