This half term in English has been full of magic, imagination, and creativity! We began by exploring determiners and thinking carefully about how the audience might feel at the start of a story. Using our five senses, we imagined and described those emotions, which led to the creation of a fantastic class list poem. The children then had the chance to write their own poems, producing some wonderfully original ideas—see below some of these!

Next, we turned our attention to the world of the circus. We explored a range of circus acts and used creative language to describe their performances, considering how the performers might be feeling. The children particularly enjoyed writing the next page of our story, introducing their own circus acts. Their imaginations truly shone through!

We have now completed Leon and the Place Between, and what a magical journey it’s been! The children began by predicting whether Leon would volunteer to be the magician’s helper and took part in a lively 'Conscience Alley' debate, sharing persuasive arguments. They really enjoyed exploring the beautiful pages from the book, often pausing to take in the incredible illustrations and hidden details. We also spent a lot of time focusing on the author's style, choice of words, and the way the language helped to create a sense of wonder and suspense. The children stepped into character to write responses describing the magical adventure, before creating detailed story maps to retell the tale.

As we brought the unit to a close, the children invented their own magical characters, applying everything they’ve learned about descriptive language. They then used these ideas to innovate Leon and the Place Between, adapting the story with their own imaginative twists. The progress in their writing has been clear to see—they’ve taken real care in crafting engaging, original narratives.