Date: 11.26.

09
Theme/Text Type: World War II Diary Entry
Learning Objective: I can write a diary entry
Teaching Objectives:
Session One warm-up activities:
I can spell key words.
Session Two main writing activity:
I can write a letter in role as an evacuee.
Wrap Up Activity
I can evaluate against success criteria.
Prior Knowledge/Links with Literacy or Creative Curriculum Unit:
CC WWII.
Literacy We have been researching WWII and writing about it in different non-fiction text
types.
Homework write a diary entry in role as someone the evacuees moved in with.
Homework club write a letter in role as an evacuee.
Visitor Mrs Parker has been in & discussed evacuation based on students' own questions.
Session
1 Warm-up & text analysis activities:

9:45 Quick fire spellings on whiteboards: Spelling Bank P18 Obj 10 To use their
knowledge of prefixes to generate new words from root words, e.g. lead/mislead,
sense/nonsense, and to understand how they give clues to meaning, e.g. extend,
export, explode; mislead, mistake, misplace

9:55 Ask students to focus on openers. Look at big writing pyramids & give students 1 min
to list as many openers on their whiteboards as they can. Share in pairs. Take some
examples & write on board.

10:05 Explain that today students will be writing a diary from the point of view of a WWII
evacuee. Paired talk. What do we know about evacuees? Why were the children were
sent to the countryside. How would they feel if they needed to go away leaving their
families behind? What would they take with them?

10:10 Watch evacuee PowerPoint to review knowledge about evacuation. students make
notes on writing frame.

10:15 Evacuees letters -

http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/ww2children/letters/letters_intro.shtml
http://timewitnesses.org/evacuees/list.html
Discuss Qs on writing frame & students add to their notes. Write key words on board.

EXT: Read Goodnight, Mister Tom p1-7 & discuss the characters and their feelings
or show the DVD until the bit when Tom goes out leaving Willie all by himself. Thats
the time when Willie will be writing a letter to his mum about his journey to the
village and his new family, Mr Tom. Ask students if this is the way they imagined Mr
Tom and Willie. Show the thought bubbles for different children and what they might
be thinking and how they might be feeling when they were on the train.

Drama. Each group prepare acting out of the scene when the billeting officer
 distributes the children into different houses. Give the students roles of the billeting
officer, 2 children and 2 families. As a group students need to decide what each
student would say in the scene. Watch each group and discuss what students said.
Explore how each character feels.

http://www.twmuseums.org.uk/funandgames/playgame.php?game=evacuation
http://www.lgfl.net/lgfl/accounts/holnet/upload/learningzone/londonatwar/
childrenthewar/index.html

Session Main Writing Activity:

2
Read the letter from Willie to his mother. Ask students about the features of the
11:00
letter? What do they think they need to write about? How are they going to
start their letter?
Agree success criteria for writing a letter
11:05
Model using notes to write a letter
11:15
Students write a letter home from an evacuee.
1&2 students focus on describing events and feelings in past tense. Write in
paragraphs.
3&4 focus on describing events in past tense.
5 describe key items / events.

Move around room supporting where necessary. Remind students of success criteria.
11:40
Stop students, They read their work to the person next to them & give each other
feedback about how to up-level it.

Ensure they understand how long they have left so will complete in time.
students continue with their work & up-level based on feedback given.

11:55 Wrap Up:

Review success criteria. students draw a face next to their LO to show how well they
think they have met it.

Students read a favorite sentence & others give feedback.

 Name: ___________________________________ Date: ______________________________

LO: I can write a letter in role as an evacuee

Why they were evacuated & feelings

Suitcase

Journey

Who they live with

What they have been doing

School
 Letter Success Criteria

Address

Date
Does the letter start with Dear or another type of
greeting?

Do you talk about the things you have taken and why?

Does the letter describe your journey?

Who are you living with?

What have you been doing?

What is your school like?

Does the letter say how you were feeling?

Are there clear paragraphs?

Does it keep the reader interested -using well chosen

words?

Has the letter been signed off correctly eg. Yours

sincerely, yours faithfully etc.
Name:_________________________________________ Date: ____________________________
Previous Targets / Next Steps:

LO: I can write a letter in role as an evacuee

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December 5, 1940
Dear Mum,

How are you? I hope you are OK.

We got to the village two days ago. Sorry I didnt write sooner but I couldnt find any paper
to write on. When we got here there was an old lady who took us around to all the houses
in the village to sort out where we would live. She was nice and remembered that you
wanted me to live in a house near a church. There werent many houses that had much
room and all the other kids were chosen before me. I was really scared because I thought
no one would want me.

Finally the old lady took me to a dark house next to a graveyard. Who would want to live
near a real graveyard? I didnt think anyone was home but then I saw a faint gas lamp light
in the window. I was so scared when the door creaked open that I couldnt look up. I saw
a dirty pair of leather shoes and heard an old, gravely voice ask what we wanted. It was
an old man and he sounded really grumpy, but the lady explained who I was and he said
hed take me.

I was terrified when she left, I didnt know what to do, but the old man took me inside and
told me his name was Tom. He is huge with lots of white hair and wrinkles, and he smells
a bit like burnt wood and dirt. He kept talking to me but all I could think of was that I must
be good so I just answered politely each time. He gave me a piece of hot bacon and sweet
tea for my dinner. I couldnt believe my eyes! Bacon? When did I have bacon last time? I
cant remember! I was very scared of huge Tom, and I ate a rash of bacon very slowly. He
even thought I wasnt hungry. Anyway, I must go now.

I promised you I would behave and I will do my best.

I miss you,
Love, Willie