Year 4/5 English (6.7.20)

1. Monday – Making comparison

In the last page of the story, one of the ancient men led Peter through a Chinese garden.

What do you notice about the difference between this illustration compared to the rest of

the images throughout the book so far?

Chinese gardens are a significant part of Chinese culture and history. The first Chinese

gardens date back to thousands of years ago and many of them still remain across the world

today. Chinese gardens have some specific features which make them look quite different to

what you might see when you look out of your bedroom window. They do not blend in to their

natural surroundings, but instead are specially designed and filled with unique buildings,

plants, flowers and even animals. They are used to symbolise Chinese beliefs, to provoke

emotions and energy, to show wealth and the importance of ancient emperors.

Spend some time in your own garden (or a garden of a family member/friend) and make notes

about what you can see.

Look for any key features that you notice or have seen before and consider…

• What plants can you see? How are they arranged?

• Are there any buildings and what are they used for?

• Is there a water feature or pond? Why do you think this is?

• Are there any animals in the garden?

• How does it make you feel?

You might want to draw a sketch of your garden and label it as well.

My garden

Now spend some time researching Chinese gardens and use the same questions to make some

observations. Note down any new or interesting words, key features and important details.

Chinese garden

2. Tuesday – Planning a poem

Now that you have discovered more about the features of Chinese gardens, try writing a

poem to describe the beautiful botanical location from the story.

Not all poems have to rhyme but it’s a nice way to add a pattern and rhythm to your writing.

It helps you to think more carefully about your word choices and can make your vocabulary

more exciting.

Firstly of all, write down any rhyming words that you can think of about gardening, Chinese

gardens and the story so far.

Example – shoots , roots ground , sound weeds , seeds

, ,

, ,

, ,

For this poem you are going to try and use the rhyming pattern ABCB. This means that lines

2 and 4 rhyme but lines 1 and 3 do not.

Example –

In the Chinese garden winding branches blow gently in the breeze,

As shades of sapphire flicker all around.

Waterfalls flow into the crystal pools

And emerald moss rolls like a carpet across the ground.

Verse 1: Begin to describe the setting

Challenge - can you add a simile?

Verse 2: Describe the animals/creatures

Challenge - can you use onomatopoeia?

Verse 3: Describe what Peter is doing there

Challenge – add a WOW’ly’

Verse 4: Your Choice

3. Wednesday – Writing your poem

Using your plan, write the final version of your poem in your neatest handwriting.

You can use the template on the next page, or design your own, to create a Chinese

patterned boarder around your writing.

Checklist:

Feature Example ✓

Rhyming pattern

ABCB

… around … sound

Adjectives to

describe and add

detail

Sapphire, crystal

pool, emerald moss…

Clear verses // Leave a line between

verse 1, 2 3 & 4

Simile …emerald moss rolls

like a carpet across

the ground.

Onomatopoeia

(words associated

with sounds)

Bang, swoosh, clap

Adverbs

WOW’ly’

Gently, swiftly,

calmly

4. Thursday – Writing a character description

Does the ancient child look how you imagined he would? What is different about his

appearance? How does he feel about living forever?

Task - Write a character description using vocabulary to emphasis emotions and features of

the ancient child.

What do we need to include to describe a character effectively?

• What do they look like? (Describe their appearance)

• What are they thinking/how do they feel? (Describe their emotions)

• Where they are? (Describe the setting)

• What makes them unique? (Do they have any special features?)

• What they are doing (Describe their actions)

Must: Use a range of interesting adjectives to describe.

Should: Use different sentence openers.

Could: Use a range of punctuation for effect.

Example – Perched upon the edge of a twisted wooden chair, the ancient child sat like a

ghostly statue. Cobwebs clung from his creased blazer with clouds of dust gathering in his

lap. His eyes were glazed and shone like glass in the sunlight; they were empty yet full of

sorrow. Although he looked as though he’d been sat on that rickety seat for hundreds of

years, his grey skin still had a youthful texture. He had no lines around his eyes, no folds

across his cheeks and no wrinkles beneath his string like hair. Even the toys around him

expressed an emptiness that mirrored the child. A teddy bear, worn and dusty, slumped

against his side in an unconscious dream. Strangely, it had a bandage wrapped around its

fluffy arm and was attached to a medical drip. The books towered up beneath the chair

creating stairs with more hidden doors and windows. Secret stories lay beyond their pages

and shone out through flickering candle light. When he glimpsed down at Peter, his

expression changed from boredom to shock. Suddenly, he spoke and his whispering breath

fell softly through the air.