A Whole School Writing Root for Here We Are

Main Outcome(s):

Non-narrative poem, poster, leaflets, letters of advice, note-booklets, journal articles 

Length:

10+ sessions, 2 weeks

Overview and Outcomes:

This is a two-week Whole School Writing Root for Here We Are: Notes for Living on Planet Earth by Oliver Jeffers. Focusing on themes of family, love, conservation, health and belonging, this non-fiction text dedicated to the author’s child Harland, is a guide to life, of sorts. Children arrive to class to discover a mysterious box marked ‘A Brain of Curiosity’ with the shape of a brain on the outside and the idea of filling one’s head with thoughts, ideas and dreams is explored. As the text is shared, children go on to explore the Earth’s beauty and use literary language to write some non-narrative poetry. Ideas around how to look after ourselves and each other are generated and after identifying and discussing the text’s themes, the children go on to plan then write an own version of ‘Notes for living on planet Earth...in the form of a leaflet. 

This resource has been designed to be used by an entire school to foster a shared learning experience around one text and to engender written outcomes – some with the same audiences and purposes, some not – that are ‘at pitch’ for each phase/stage but that will also aid revision, catch-up and extension where (and in whichever form) needed. We have planned for activities at different stages through the sequence: grouped simply into key-stages EYFS, KS1 and KS2; or by grouping Reception with Year 1, Year 2 with Year 3 and then Year 4 to Year 6. Where grouping is by Key Stage, there are opportunities for differentiation within to ensure that the pitch of sessions is appropriate. The resource is intended to form the basis upon which schools and teachers can create and shape a sequence of learning that will work well within their context. The sessions could be added to with art activities and through further learning in PSHE, Science, Geography and History.

Synopsis of Text:

The exquisite and thought-provoking book from the multi award-winning, internationally best-selling picture book creator of Lost and Found, Oliver Jeffers.

Well, hello.
And welcome to this Planet.
We call it Earth.

Our world can be a bewildering place, especially if you’ve only just got here. Your head will be filled with questions, so let’s explore what makes our planet and how we live on it. From land and sky, to people and time, these notes can be your guide and start you on your journey. And you’ll figure lots of things out for yourself. Just remember to leave notes for everyone else… Some things about our planet are pretty complicated, but things can be simple, too: you’ve just got to be kind.

Here We Are is the utterly heartfelt new book from Oliver Jeffers. We’re glad you found it.

Links:

Earth, planets, conservation, belonging