Year 4 English

Chapters to explore

Morphology studies meaningful word parts. Roots, prefixes and suffixes help link related words. A word may have several meanings, so use context and check a reference when needed. Avoid assuming that a familiar-looking word always means the same thing.

Try it: Explore a word family and use three related words correctly in sentences.

Compare how two texts present a character, event or topic. Support similarities and differences with details. An inference should connect evidence with reasoning. Avoid claiming certainty where the text leaves something open.

Try it: Compare two short passages and support one similarity and one difference.

Cohesion helps sentences and paragraphs work together. Pronouns can avoid repetition if their references are clear. Adverbials can show time, place or contrast. Organisation should guide the reader through the topic or events.

Try it: Revise a paragraph to improve links without making pronoun references confusing.

Expanded noun phrases add useful detail about a noun. Fronted adverbials can set time, place or manner before the main clause and are commonly followed by a comma. Punctuation helps the reader interpret the sentence.

Try it: Write three sentences with different fronted adverbials and check their punctuation.

A simile compares using like or as. A metaphor describes something as something else to suggest a resemblance. Imagery appeals to the senses. Performance choices such as pace and emphasis can change how language is experienced.

Try it: Write a short poem using one deliberate image and explain its effect.

A summary selects main ideas and leaves out less important detail. Editing checks accuracy and clarity. Revising can improve structure or content. A shorter version should preserve the original meaning rather than introduce new claims.

Try it: Summarise a short text, then compare your version with the original.

A reading response states an idea and supports it with relevant details. Explain how the evidence fits the idea rather than listing quotations. Distinguish a character’s statement from the narrator’s account and from your own interpretation.

Try it: Write a short claim-evidence-explanation response.

An adverbial gives information such as when, where or how. A fronted adverbial comes before the main clause and is commonly followed by a comma in these examples. Choose details that help the reader follow the event.

Try it: Write three sentences with useful opening adverbials.

A summary selects main ideas and leaves out less important detail. Use your own wording while preserving meaning. Do not add opinions as though they were in the source. Check that the shorter version still answers the intended question.

Try it: Summarise a short factual passage in two sentences.

Learning together

Each chapter brings together teaching, an example, practice and a practical discovery. Use the material with discussion and suitable offline activities. Choose a comfortable starting point and revisit explanations as needed.