Our new class reader for this half term is, The Promise.

Today we questioned the text, made predictions, and read the book together in small groups. We discussed what genre we thought the book would be and whether we thought it would be based on a true story or complete fiction.

Extension: Listen to a read aloud of the book below.

On a mean street in a mean city, a thief tries to snatch an old woman’s bag. But she finds she can’t have it without promising something in return – to “plant them all”. When it turns out the bag is full of acorns, the young thief embarks on a journey that changes her own life and the lives of others for generations to come. Inspired by the belief that a relationship with nature is essential to every human being, and that now, more than ever, we need to renew that relationship, The Promise is the story of a magical discovery that will touch the heart and imagination of every reader, young and old. With poignant simplicity, honesty and lyricism, Nicola Davies evokes a powerful vision of a world where people and nature live in harmony. And Laura Carlin’s delicate illustrations capture a young girl’s journey from a harsh, urban reality to the beauty and vitality of a changed world.

Many of our Robins entered the Young Writers This is me poetry competition.  We are pleased to say that fourteen Robins have been chosen for their work to be published in This is Me 2022- The Power of Poetry.

They have each received a certificate, sticker, and bookmark to mark their achievement.

Robins have completed their double-page spreads all about Volcanoes to demonstrate their understanding of the features of an explanation text. The content also helped us review our knowledge on Volcanoes.

Robins showing great concentration to complete the work.

Look at our wonderful work below.

Extension: Click here to find out more about explanation texts

In our English lesson, we recapped the features of a letter. We imagined ourselves as scientist that have completed research on Volcanoes and are writing a letter back to head office to report on our findings.

We worked together as a class to draft write the opening of the letter.

Can you spot the sentence you shared?

We look forward to completing the letter in our next lesson.

This afternoon, the Robins in year 4 participated in a workshop with the award winning author Sophie Anderson.

Today is the launch of her fourth book ‘The Thief Who Sang Songs.’

Sophie introduced herself and her new book, along with the inspiration for the story.

She showed us the map of the world the book is set in – Morovia.

Then, our task was to design our own world based on the same map shape.

Sophie answered some of our questions.

How did you become an author?

At first Sophie was a Geologist, then she was a science teacher. At 30, she became a mum and started thinking about her grandmother’s stories. Initially she wrote the stories for her children and then began to write the stories, it took 10 years of writing and researching before being published at age 40.

What is the process of writing?

Sophie said, some writers plan their writing, she likes to write a loose plan. Then she works on trial and error, working on a first draft, which may not be great but it is a start. She adds in chapters, work on characters and progresses onto writing a third draft. In the fourth draft, she checks spellings and punctuation. This whole process might take up to 2 years.

Which is your favourite book you have written?

Sophie said she loves all of her books for different reasons. The first book (The House with Chicken Legs) has the theme of grief, it helped Sophie work through some grief. Her second book (The Girl Who Speaks Bear) is mystical, she loves her third book (The Castle of Tangled Magic) as it is magical and about castles and her fourth book (The Thief Who Sings Songs) is about being kind.

What is your favourite genre and how much do you read?

Sophie said she reads about 50 pages a day but when she’s writing, she does struggle to read. So then she tends to read non-fiction and nature books. When she’s not writing she likes reading fantasy and nature.

Do your children enjoy your books?

Sophie has 4 children, the two younger children are too young for her books, but her two older children like reading her books and drawing characters and maps for Sophie’s books.

Have you inspired your children to write?

They all like to write, they are naturally creative and natural story tellers – like all children.

How are your books linked together?

Sophie said, my books are not a series and you don’t have to read them in any order but they are links between them all, either in the people they met, places they visits or the themes.

Are you working on a fifth book?

Sophie said she is currently on a first draft, so it might take 2 years to write. She is playing with ideas and shaping a story after having a break after writing her most recent book.

Are you books movies?

No deal, yet! Watch this space. There is a play adaptation of The House With Chicken Legs in Manchester at the moment.

Sophie’s website is Books – Sophie Anderson (sophieandersonauthor.com)

Today in English we explored our new class reader.  We questioned the text and made a prediction.

We then read the text and reviewed the vocabulary. Can you remember learning about Volcanoes last term?

Finally we all got to explore more of the book.

What facts can you remember?