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Report Writing Unit

The National Literacy Strategy

2

Year 6 Planning Exemplification 2002–2003:

Report Writing Unit

Contents

Framework objectives 3

Unit plan 4

Features of a report text 5

Resources A–D 6

Detailed lesson plans and transcripts 14

Supplementary resources E–H 21


3


Report Writing Unit

Text

13. to secure understanding of the features of non-chronological reports:

• introductions to orientate reader;

• use of generalisations to categorise;

• language to describe and differentiate;

• impersonal language;

• mostly present tense;

17. to write non-chronological reports linked to other subjects;

Sentence

2. to revise earlier work on verbs and to understand the terms active and passive; being able

to transform a sentence from active to passive, and vice versa;

3. to note and discuss how changes from active to passive affect the word order and sense of

a sentence;

Word

1. to identify mis-spelt words in own writing; to keep individual lists (e.g. spelling logs); to learn

to spell them;

2. to use known spellings as a basis for spelling other words with similar patterns or related

meanings;

3. to use independent spelling strategies, including:

• building up spellings by syllabic parts, using known prefixes, suffixes and common

letter strings;

• applying knowledge of spelling rules and exceptions;

• building words from other known words, and from awareness of the meaning or

derivations of words;

• using dictionaries and IT spell-checks;

• using visual skills, e.g. recognising common letter strings and checking critical features

(i.e. does it look right, shape, length, etc.);

4. to revise and extend work on spelling patterns for unstressed vowels in polysyllabic words

from Year 5 Term 3;

Outcomes

Two written reports and reading and writing test practice paper

Framework objectives


4


Report Writing Unit

•U

nit 4

5 fr

om G

ram

mar

for W

ritin

g.•

Sha

red

read

ing:

read

and

dis

cuss

con

tent

of r

epor

t tex

t (e.

g.

Sam

ple

Tex

t A);

anal

yse

and

ann

otat

e fo

r org

anis

atio

n of

cont

ent a

nd c

reat

e re

por

t ske

leto

n-fr

ame.

Sha

red

writ

ing

(dem

onst

ratio

n) –

fast

pla

nnin

g. Im

por

t con

tent

from

ano

ther

cur

ricul

um a

rea

and

org

anis

e it

into

rep

ort

skel

eton

-fra

me.

Sha

red

read

ing:

ana

lyse

and

ann

otat

e te

xt (e

.g. S

amp

le T

ext A

)

for l

angu

age

feat

ures

and

cre

ate

chec

klis

t for

rep

ort w

ritin

g.

Sha

red

writ

ing

(teac

her a

s sc

ribe)

– re

ferr

ing

to s

kele

ton-

fram

e.

Writ

e in

trod

uctio

n an

d s

ome

par

agra

phs

of t

he te

xt u

sing

chec

klis

t.

Sha

red

read

ing

and

writ

ing:

revi

sion

(dem

onst

ratio

n an

d te

ache

r

as s

crib

e): r

evis

e th

e op

enin

g p

arag

rap

h an

d tw

o fu

rthe

r

par

agra

phs

of t

he te

xt.

Uni

t 45

from

Gra

mm

ar fo

r Writ

ing.

Sha

red

read

ing:

ana

lyse

rep

ort t

ext (

e.g.

Sam

ple

Tex

t C) a

t bot

h

orga

nisa

tiona

l and

sen

tenc

e/w

ord

leve

l.

Sha

red

writ

ing

(sup

por

ted

com

pos

ition

) – im

por

t con

tent

from

anot

her c

urric

ulum

are

a, q

uick

pla

n an

d w

rite

som

e p

arag

rap

hs

of te

xt.

Sha

red

read

ing:

do

par

t of a

pra

ctic

e re

adin

g te

st p

aper

on

a

rep

ort t

ext,

all

toge

ther

.

Sha

red

writ

ing:

do

a p

ract

ice

writ

ing

test

pap

er a

ll to

geth

er

invo

lvin

g a

rep

ort t

ext.

Rea

din

g

Writ

ing

Rea

din

g

Writ

ing

Rea

din

g

Writ

ing

Rea

din

g

Writ

ing

In p

airs

, ana

lyse

and

ann

otat

e ot

her r

epor

t tex

ts (e

.g.

Sam

ple

Tex

t B) f

or o

rgan

isat

ion

of c

onte

nt, a

nd c

reat

e

rep

ort s

kele

ton-

fram

e.

In p

airs

, fas

t pla

nnin

g p

ract

ice.

Usi

ng c

hild

ren’

s

exis

ting

know

led

ge o

f an

agre

ed s

ubje

ct, m

ake

brie

f

note

s of

con

tent

in re

por

t ske

leto

n-fr

ame.

In p

airs

, ana

lyse

and

ann

otat

e an

othe

r tex

t (e.

g.

Sam

ple

Tex

t B) f

or la

ngua

ge fe

atur

es a

nd a

dd

to

chec

klis

t for

rep

ort w

ritin

g.

In p

airs

and

refe

rrin

g to

ske

leto

n-fr

ame,

writ

e

rem

aini

ng a

nd c

losi

ng p

arag

rap

hs o

f the

text

, usi

ng

chec

klis

t.

Rev

ise

the

rem

aini

ng a

nd c

oncl

udin

g p

arag

rap

hs o

f

the

text

.

In p

airs

, inv

estig

ate

the

spel

ling

of u

nstr

esse

d v

owel

s

(Sp

ellin

g b

ank,

pag

e 69

).

Ind

ivid

ually

, ana

lyse

ano

ther

rep

ort t

ext (

e.g.

Sam

ple

Text

D) a

t bot

h or

gani

satio

nal a

nd s

ente

nce/

wor

d

leve

l.

Ind

ivid

ually

, writ

e re

mai

ning

par

agra

phs

of t

ext.

Chi

ldre

n ex

pla

in th

e or

gani

satio

n of

thei

r

text

(s) a

nd g

ener

alis

e fo

r rep

orts

as

a

text

typ

e.

Chi

ldre

n ex

pla

in th

e re

ason

ing

beh

ind

thei

r pla

nnin

g.

Chi

ldre

n co

ntrib

ute

thei

r ad

diti

onal

poi

nts

for t

he c

heck

list o

r exp

lain

how

the

exis

ting

chec

klis

t wor

ks fo

r Sam

ple

Text

B.

Chi

ldre

n ex

pla

in th

e re

ason

ing

beh

ind

thei

r writ

ing

in re

latio

n to

the

chec

klis

t.

Chi

ldre

n ex

pla

in w

here

and

why

they

have

mad

e re

visi

ons.

Rec

ap o

n th

e p

rinci

ple

s b

ehin

d th

e

sent

ence

wor

k.

Chi

ldre

n ex

pla

in th

eir a

naly

ses.

Chi

ldre

n ex

pla

in th

e re

ason

ing

beh

ind

thei

r writ

ing.

Fini

sh te

st p

aper

.

Fini

sh te

st p

aper

.

Ana

lyse

Mon

day

Ap

ply

Tues

day

Ana

lyse

Wed

nesd

ay

Ap

ply

Thur

sday

Ana

lyse

and

ap

ply

Frid

ay

Ana

lyse

and

ap

ply

Mon

day

Ana

lyse

Tues

day

Ap

ply

Wed

nesd

ay

Ana

lyse

Thur

sday

Ap

ply

Frid

ay

Sha

red

text

and

sen

tenc

e le

vel

Gui

ded

In

dep

end

ent w

ork

Ple

nary

Inte

nsiv

e tw

o-w

eek

pla

n fo

r Yea

r 6 T

erm

1 U

nit 7

: Rep

ort w

ritin

g

Ind

ivid

ually

, do

par

t of a

pra

ctic

e re

adin

g te

st p

aper

(rep

ort t

ext).

Ind

ivid

ually

, do

a p

ract

ice

writ

ing

test

pap

er (r

epor

t tex

t).


5

Purpose

To describe the way things are

Generic text structure

• an opening, general classification, e.g. Sparrows are birds

• more technical classification (optional), e.g. Their Latin name is ...

• a number of paragraphs about different aspects of the subject – these could be arranged in

any order

• a description of their phenomenon, including some or all of its:

– qualities, e.g. Birds have feathers

– parts and their function, e.g. The beak is ...

– habits/behaviours or uses, e.g. They nest in ...

• conclusion – an ending comment

Sentence/word level features

• focus on generic participant, e.g. sparrows in general, not Sam the sparrow

• use of present tense

• use of some passive constructions

• use of the impersonal voice (third person)

• use of words which generalise

• use of technical vocabulary relevant to the subject

• use of descriptive but factual language

Writer’s knowledge

• plan under paragraph headings in note form

• use a range of resources to gather information

• select facts from a range of sources to interest the

reader, e.g. books, CD-ROM, interviews

• possible use of a question in the title to intrigue the

reader, e.g. Yetis – do they exist?

• be clear, so that you do not muddle the reader

• open by explaining very clearly what you are writing about – take an

angle to draw the reader in

• use tables, pictures, diagrams to add more information

• possibly end by relating the subject to the reader, e.g. Many people like whales …

• reports are factual but you could add comments or use questions to engage the reader

• re-read as if you knew nothing about the subject to check that you have put the information

across successfully

Features of a report text


Report Writing Unit

Paragraph

Introductionand conclusion

Paragraph

Paragraph

Paragraph

Paragraph

Skeleton-frame forplanning a report

Sample Text A


6


Report Writing Unit

Cheetahs

Cheetahs are members of the cat family and are the world’s fastest land animals.

They inhabit open grasslands and scrub in Africa, southern Asia and the

Middle East.

Cheetahs are often mistaken for leopards and have many similar features.

Their distinguishing marks are the long, teardrop-shaped lines on each side

of the nose from the corner of the eyes to the mouth.

The animals have muscular and powerful bodies which are aerodynamically

perfect for short, fast runs. Their bendy backs keep the body flexible as they

sprint. They can accelerate from standing to 40 mph in three strides and to a

full speed of 70 mph within seconds. Cheetahs’ feet are like running shoes

and have grips and spikes to dig into the ground. The grips are special ridges

on the animals’ footpads and the claws act as spikes. These claws stay out

all the time. This is different from other cats, whose claws tuck away in

special sheaths in their paws.

Cheetahs are carnivores and eat gazelle and small antelope. A long tail helps

the cheetah keep its balance as it swerves after its prey, using large eyes that

point forward to judge distances accurately. Once the cheetah has pounced,

the victim is gripped by the throat to stop it breathing. However, the cheetah

has weak jaws and small teeth and cannot always protect its kills or its young,

especially if tired out after a run.

Female cheetahs give birth to an average of three young that they rear by

themselves. Once fully grown, the animals usually live alone, though males

sometimes form small groups. Most cheetahs live about twelve years.

Cheetahs are now an endangered species and many conservationists are trying

to help protect the habitats of these interesting creatures.


7

Pre

sent

ten

se

Wor

ds w

hich

gen

eral

ise

Tec

hnical

voc

abul

ary

Tec

hnical

voc

abul

ary

Tec

hnical

voc

abul

ary

Pre

sent

ten

seTec

hnical

voc

abul

ary

Tec

hnical

voc

abul

ary

Pas

sive

con

stru

ctio

n: t

his

help

s th

e re

ader

see

the

att

ack

from

the

victi

m's

poi

nt o

f vi

ew

Impe

rson

al v

oice

: th

ird

pers

onD

escr

ipti

ve b

ut f

actu

al la

ngua

ge

Des

crip

tive

but

fac

tual

lang

uage

Des

crip

tive

but

fac

tual

lang

uage

Spe

lling

: un

stre

ssed

vow

el

Spe

lling

: un

stre

ssed

vow

el

Spe

lling

: un

stre

ssed

vow

el

Pas

sive

con

stru

ctio

n

Spe

lling

: un

stre

ssed

vow

el

Pre

sent

ten

se

Des

crip

tive

but

fact

ual l

angu

age

Titl

e

Text

leve

lS

ente

nce

/ w

ord

leve

l

Intr

od

uctio

n C

lass

ifica

tion

Par

agra

ph

2 H

abita

t

Par

agra

ph

3 Id

entif

icat

ion

Par

agra

ph

4 S

pee

d

Par

agra

ph

5 D

iet

and

hun

ting

pre

y

Par

agra

ph

6 Li

fe c

ycle

Co

nclu

sio

n C

onse

rvat

ion

Chee

tahs

Chee

tahs

are

mem

ber

s of

the

cat fa

mil

y a

nd a

re the

worl

d’s

fas

test

lan

d a

nim

als.

They

inhab

it o

pen

gra

ssla

nds

and s

crub i

n A

fric

a, s

outh

ern A

sia

and t

he

Mid

dle

Eas

t.

Chee

tahs

are

oft

en m

ista

ken

for

leopar

ds

and h

ave

man

y s

imil

ar f

eatu

res.

Thei

r dis

tinguis

hin

g m

arks

are

the

long, te

ardro

p-s

hap

ed l

ines

on e

ach s

ide

of

the

nose

fro

m t

he

corn

er o

f th

e ey

es t

o t

he

mouth

.

The

anim

als

hav

e m

usc

ula

r an

d p

ow

erfu

l bodie

s w

hic

h a

re a

erodynam

ical

ly

per

fect

for

short

, fa

st r

uns.

Thei

r ben

dy b

acks

kee

p t

he

body f

lexib

le a

s th

ey

spri

nt.

They

can

acc

eler

ate

from

sta

ndin

g t

o 4

0 m

ph i

n t

hre

e st

rides

and t

o a

full

spee

d o

f 70 m

ph w

ithin

sec

onds.

Chee

tahs’

fee

t ar

e li

ke

runnin

g s

hoes

and h

ave

gri

ps

and s

pik

es t

o d

ig i

nto

the

gro

und. T

he

gri

ps

are

spec

ial

ridges

on t

he

anim

als’

footp

ads

and t

he

claw

s ac

t as

spik

es. T

hes

e cl

aws

stay

out

all

the

tim

e. T

his

is

dif

fere

nt

from

oth

er c

ats,

whose

cla

ws

tuck

aw

ay i

n

spec

ial

shea

ths

in t

hei

r paw

s.

Chee

tahs

are

carn

ivore

s an

d e

at g

azel

le a

nd s

mal

l an

telo

pe.

A l

ong t

ail

hel

ps

the

chee

tah k

eep i

ts b

alan

ce a

s it

sw

erves

aft

er i

ts p

rey,

usi

ng l

arge

eyes

that

poin

t fo

rwar

d t

o j

udge

dis

tance

s ac

cura

tely

. O

nce

the

chee

tah h

as p

ounce

d,

the

vic

tim

is

gri

pped

by t

he

thro

at t

o s

top i

t bre

athin

g. H

ow

ever

, th

e ch

eeta

h

has

wea

k j

aws

and s

mal

l te

eth a

nd c

annot

alw

ays

pro

tect

its

kil

ls o

r it

s young,

espec

iall

y i

f ti

red o

ut

afte

r a

run.

Fem

ale

chee

tahs

giv

e bir

th t

o a

n a

ver

age

of

thre

e young t

hat

they

rea

r by

them

selv

es. O

nce

full

y g

row

n, th

e an

imal

s usu

ally

liv

e al

one,

though m

ales

som

etim

es f

orm

sm

all

gro

ups.

Most

chee

tahs

live

about

twel

ve

yea

rs.

Chee

tahs

are

now

an e

ndan

ger

ed s

pec

ies

and m

any c

onse

rvat

ionis

ts a

re t

ryin

g

to h

elp p

rote

ct t

he

hab

itat

s of

thes

e in

tere

stin

g c

reat

ure

s.

Annotated Text A


Report Writing Unit


8

The British barn owl

The barn owl is one of the most popular birds in Britain but is now extremely rare.

The bird favours open habitats such as grassland, hedgerows, the edges of fields or

woodlands, stubble fields, drainage ditches and farmyards.

The barn owl is a carnivore and hunts for its favourite diet of small mammals and

birds. It usually flies slowly back and forth, about three metres above the ground,

using its large eyes and sensitive hearing to spot likely prey. If suitable perches,

such as fence posts, are available, the bird may save energy by hunting from these.

Once it has swooped silently down, a hooked beak tears into the victim. Food is

often swallowed whole and the indigestible parts, such as the bones and fur,

are regurgitated in the form of pellets.

When seen in flight, the general impression is of a large white bird. However, the

upper parts are a beautiful golden buff colour, delicately marked in varying shades

of buff and grey. It is only the face, breast and undersides that are mostly white.

After choosing a suitable hole in a tree or a ledge in an old building, the female

barn owl lays between four and seven eggs in April each year. The owlets are fully

developed after ten weeks and leave the nest after about fourteen weeks, by which

time they must be able to survive alone. As many as one in four young barn owls

die within a year for a variety of reasons.

The number of barn owls in Britain is decreasing. There are now fewer habitats

where they can find mice, voles and other prey. In some areas, owls have been

affected by chemicals and cannot lay proper eggs. This means that they cannot

breed and increase their numbers. In addition, many birds have been killed

accidentally as they fly across major roads and motorways.

The barn owl is one of nature’s most graceful hunters. Many organisations in

Britain, such as the Barn Owl Trust in the South West, are working towards their

conservation.

Sample Text B


Report Writing Unit


9

Wor

ds w

hich

gen

eral

ise

Impe

rson

al v

oice

: th

ird

pers

on

Des

crip

tive

but

fac

tual

lang

uage

All

of t

his

para

grap

h is

de

scri

ptiv

e, b

ut f

actu

al

Pas

sive

con

stru

ctio

n

Pas

sive

con

stru

ctio

n

Pre

sent

tens

e

Pre

sent

ten

se

Pre

sent

ten

se

Pre

sent

ten

se

Pre

sent

ten

se

Wor

ds w

hich

gen

eral

ise

Tec

hnical

voc

abul

ary

Tec

hnical

vo

cabu

lary

Tec

hnical

voc

abul

ary

Tec

hnical

voc

abul

ary

Tec

hnical

voc

abul

ary

Des

crip

tive

but

fac

tual

lang

uage

Wor

ds w

hich

gen

eral

ise

Wor

ds w

hich

gen

eral

ise

Wor

ds w

hich

gen

eral

ise

Des

crip

tive

but

fac

tual

lang

uage

Tec

hnical

voc

abul

ary

Tec

hnical

voc

abul

ary

Titl

e

Text

leve

lS

ente

nce

/ w

ord

leve

l

Intr

od

uctio

n C

lass

ifica

tion

Par

agra

ph

2 H

abita

t

Par

agra

ph

3 D

iet

and

hun

ting

pre

y

Par

agra

ph

4 A

pp

eara

nce

Par

agra

ph

5 N

estin

g an

d b

abie

s

Par

agra

ph

6 P

rob

lem

s

Co

nclu

sio

n C

onse

rvat

ion

Th

e B

riti

sh b

arn

ow

l

The

bar

n o

wl

is o

ne

of

the

most

popula

r bir

ds

in B

rita

in b

ut

is n

ow

extr

emel

y r

are.

The

bir

d f

avours

open

hab

itat

s su

ch a

s gra

ssla

nd, hed

ger

ow

s, t

he

edges

of

fiel

ds

or

woodla

nds,

stu

bble

fie

lds,

dra

inag

e dit

ches

and f

arm

yar

ds.

The

bar

n o

wl

is a

car

niv

ore

and h

unts

for

its

favouri

te d

iet

of

smal

l m

amm

als

and

bir

ds.

It

usu

ally

fli

es s

low

ly b

ack a

nd f

ort

h, ab

out

thre

e m

etre

s ab

ove

the

gro

und,

usi

ng i

ts l

arge

eyes

and s

ensi

tive

hea

ring t

o s

pot

likel

y p

rey.

If

suit

able

per

ches

,

such

as

fence

post

s, a

re a

vai

lable

, th

e bir

d m

ay s

ave

ener

gy b

y h

unti

ng f

rom

thes

e.

Once

it

has

sw

ooped

sil

entl

y d

ow

n, a

hooked

bea

k t

ears

into

the

vic

tim

. F

ood i

s

oft

en s

wal

low

ed w

hole

and t

he

indig

esti

ble

par

ts, su

ch a

s th

e bones

and f

ur,

are

regurg

itat

ed i

n t

he

form

of

pel

lets

.

When

see

n i

n f

light,

the

gen

eral

im

pre

ssio

n i

s of

a la

rge

whit

e bir

d. H

ow

ever

, th

e

upper

par

ts a

re a

bea

uti

ful

gold

en b

uff

colo

ur,

del

icat

ely m

arked

in v

aryin

g s

had

es

of

buff

and g

rey.

It

is o

nly

the

face

, bre

ast

and u

nder

sides

that

are

most

ly w

hit

e.

Aft

er c

hoosi

ng a

suit

able

hole

in a

tre

e or

a le

dge

in a

n o

ld b

uil

din

g, th

e fe

mal

e

bar

n o

wl

lays

bet

wee

n f

our

and s

even

eggs

in A

pri

l ea

ch y

ear.

The

ow

lets

are

full

y

dev

eloped

aft

er t

en w

eeks

and l

eave

the

nes

t af

ter

about

fourt

een w

eeks,

by w

hic

h

tim

e th

ey m

ust

be

able

to s

urv

ive

alone.

As

man

y a

s one

in f

our

young b

arn o

wls

die

wit

hin

a y

ear

for

a var

iety

of

reas

ons.

The

num

ber

of

bar

n o

wls

in B

rita

in i

s dec

reas

ing. T

her

e ar

e now

few

er h

abit

ats

wher

e th

ey c

an f

ind m

ice,

vole

s an

d o

ther

pre

y. I

n s

om

e ar

eas,

ow

ls h

ave

bee

n

affe

cted

by c

hem

ical

s an

d c

annot

lay p

roper

eggs.

This

mea

ns

that

they

can

not

bre

ed a

nd i

ncr

ease

thei

r num

ber

s. I

n a

ddit

ion, m

any b

irds

hav

e bee

n k

ille

d

acci

den

tall

y a

s th

ey f

ly a

cross

maj

or

road

s an

d m

oto

rway

s.

The

bar

n o

wl

is o

ne

of

nat

ure

’s m

ost

gra

cefu

l hunte

rs. M

any o

rgan

isat

ions

in

Bri

tain

, su

ch a

s th

e B

arn O

wl

Tru

st i

n t

he

South

Wes

t, a

re w

ork

ing t

ow

ards

thei

r

conse

rvat

ion.

Annotated Text B


Report Writing Unit


10

B.M.X.

The B.M.X. (Bicycle Motor Cross) is a bike designed and built for specific

purposes.

The bike is generally made of steel so that it is strong and will not bend

under the enormous stress that it is subjected to when being ridden. Some

bikes, designed especially for B.M.X. racing, are made of aluminium

because it is lighter.

The main difference between B.M.X. and other bikes is the undersized

frame which allows maximum manoeuvrability. The wheels are also

small, with wide tyres. Most have a gyro system of bearings and pulleys

that allows the large, curved handlebars to spin 360 degrees. This enables

the rider to perform dare-devil stunts and tricks. The saddle is low and

not padded for comfort because the bike is often ridden by standing on

the pedals or on strong, steel stunt pegs that are found on either side of

the front and back wheels.

There are now centres in the country where B.M.X. riders take part in

competitions. There is even an event called the ‘X Games’ which is the

Olympics of the extreme sports world. Many young riders challenge

themselves to imitate the daring and complicated exercises performed

by the professionals.

Some bikers ride up and down slopes that look like larger versions of

skateboard ramps, executing difficult jumps and spins at both ends.

Others perform their tricks on flat ground, balancing on small areas of the

bike itself. Specially designed B.M.X. bikes, with large, chunky tyres to

provide more definite grip, race ten abreast over dirt tracks. There are now

a number of separate areas where the bikes can be ridden safely away

from cars and pedestrians.

B.M.X. bikes provide riders with the opportunity to use their skill and

imagination to carry out gymnastic and artistic stunts.

Sample Text C


Report Writing Unit


11

Wor

ds w

hich

gen

eral

ise

Wor

ds w

hich

gen

eral

ise

Wor

ds w

hich

gen

eral

ise

Wor

ds w

hich

gen

eral

ise

Tec

hnical

voc

abul

ary

Tec

hnical

voc

abul

ary

Tec

hnical

voc

abul

ary

Tec

hnical

voc

abul

ary

Des

crip

tive

but

fac

tual

lang

uage

Des

crip

tive

but

fac

tual

lang

uage

Spe

lling

: un

stre

ssed

vow

el

Spe

lling

: un

stre

ssed

vow

el

Pas

sive

con

stru

ctio

n

Pas

sive

con

stru

ctio

n

Pre

sent

ten

se

Pre

sent

ten

seN

on-fini

te v

erb

Non

-fini

te v

erb

Pre

sent

ten

se

Pre

sent

ten

se

Spe

lling

: un

stre

ssed

vow

el

Titl

e

Text

leve

lS

ente

nce

/ w

ord

leve

l

Intr

od

uctio

n C

lass

ifica

tion

Par

agra

ph

2 M

ater

ials

Par

agra

ph

3 P

arts

of t

he b

ike

Par

agra

ph

4 C

omp

etiti

on

Par

agra

ph

4 D

iffer

ent

activ

ities

Co

nclu

sio

n E

nd c

omm

ent

B.M

.X.

The

B.M

.X. (B

icycl

e M

oto

r C

ross

) is

a b

ike

des

ign

ed a

nd b

uil

t fo

r sp

ecif

ic

purp

ose

s.

The

bik

e is

gen

eral

ly m

ade

of

stee

l so

that

it

is s

tro

ng a

nd w

ill

not

ben

d

under

the

enorm

ous

stre

ss t

hat

it

is s

ubje

cted

to w

hen

bei

ng r

idden

. S

om

e

bik

es, des

igned

esp

ecia

lly f

or

B.M

.X. ra

cing, ar

e m

ade

of

alum

iniu

m

bec

ause

it

is l

ighte

r.

The

mai

n d

iffe

rence

bet

wee

n B

.M.X

. an

d o

ther

bik

es i

s th

e under

size

d

fram

e w

hic

h a

llow

s m

axim

um

man

oeu

vra

bil

ity.

The

whee

ls a

re a

lso

smal

l, w

ith w

ide

tyre

s. M

ost

hav

e a

gyro

syst

em o

f bea

rings

and p

ull

eys

that

all

ow

s th

e la

rge,

curv

ed h

andle

bar

s to

spin

360 d

egre

es. T

his

enab

les

the

rider

to p

erfo

rm d

are-

dev

il s

tunts

and t

rick

s. T

he

saddle

is

low

and

not

pad

ded

for

com

fort

bec

ause

the

bik

e is

oft

en r

idden

by s

tandin

g o

n

the

ped

als

or

on s

trong, st

eel

stunt

peg

s th

at a

re f

ou

nd o

n e

ither

sid

e of

the

front

and b

ack w

hee

ls.

Ther

e ar

e now

cen

tres

in t

he

countr

y w

her

e B

.M.X

. ri

der

s ta

ke

par

t in

com

pet

itio

ns.

Ther

e is

even

an e

ven

t ca

lled

the

‘X G

ames

’ w

hic

h i

s th

e

Oly

mpic

s of

the

extr

eme

sport

s w

orl

d. M

any y

oung r

ider

s ch

alle

nge

them

selv

es t

o i

mit

ate

the

dar

ing a

nd c

om

pli

cate

d e

xer

cise

s per

form

ed

by t

he

pro

fess

ional

s.

Som

e bik

ers

ride

up a

nd d

ow

n s

lopes

that

look l

ike

larg

er v

ersi

ons

of

skat

eboar

d r

amps,

exec

uti

ng d

iffi

cult

jum

ps

and s

pin

s at

both

ends.

Oth

ers

per

form

thei

r tr

icks

on f

lat

gro

und, bal

anci

ng o

n s

mal

l ar

eas

of

the

bik

e it

self

. S

pec

iall

y d

esig

ned

B.M

.X. bik

es, w

ith l

arge,

chunky t

yre

s to

pro

vid

e m

ore

def

init

e gri

p, ra

ce t

en a

bre

ast

over

dir

t tr

acks.

Ther

e ar

e now

a num

ber

of

separ

ate

area

s w

her

e th

e bik

es c

an b

e ri

dden

saf

ely a

way

fro

m

cars

and p

edes

tria

ns.

B.M

.X. bik

es p

rovid

e ri

der

s w

ith t

he

opport

unit

y t

o u

se t

hei

r sk

ill

and

imag

inat

ion t

o c

arry

out

gym

nas

tic

and a

rtis

tic

stunts

.

Annotated Text C


Report Writing Unit

Hot deserts

A desert is a region that has less than 250 mm of rain a year. Rainfall often falls in

violent downpours rather than evenly throughout the year.

More than one seventh of the land on earth is desert. Deserts are found all over the

world: in Africa, Australia, Asia, North America and South America. The world’s

largest desert, the Sahara, stretches across North Africa from the Red Sea in the

east to the Atlantic Ocean in the west.

Only a quarter of deserts are made of sand. Some are covered in pebbles or bare

rocks. In other areas, shallow lakes have formed after rain. Once these have dried in

the sun, a flat layer of salt crystals is deposited.

There is a huge range of temperature in the desert due to the fact that there are no

clouds. Temperatures have been known to soar as high as 59 degrees Celsius in

Libya and Death Valley, California, though 40 degrees is more usual. An egg could

be fried on the blistering, hot rocks under the desert sun. During the night, the

temperature falls rapidly to below freezing in some places.

Desert plants have to find ingenious ways of adapting to the harsh conditions in a

desert. Long roots probe deep underground for precious water. Leaves have thick

waterproof skins to avoid evaporation. Some plants, like cacti, store water in their

thick stems.

Animals find desert conditions difficult. Some never drink but instead obtain

necessary moisture from plants and other food. Many are nocturnal and rest in

burrows or under rocks during the heat of the day. The gerbil, a popular British pet,

originates in the sandy deserts of Mongolia and northern China.

Underground rivers and streams flow deep beneath deserts, bringing water from

mountains hundreds of miles away. When these rivers reach the surface, an oasis is

formed. Towns and villages are found nearby and people can grow a variety of

plants in the fertile land.

A desert has an inhospitable climate but people, animals and plants have all learned

to adapt and make the most of its resources.


12

Sample Text D


Report Writing Unit


13

Spe

lling

: un

stre

ssed

vow

el

Wor

ds w

hich

gen

eral

ise

Pas

sive

con

stru

ctio

n

Pre

sent

ten

seTec

hnical

voc

abul

ary

Des

crip

tive

but

fac

tual

lang

uage

Tec

hnical

voc

abul

ary

Pre

sent

ten

se

Pre

sent

ten

se

Pas

sive

con

stru

ctio

n

Pas

sive

con

stru

ctio

n

Wor

ds w

hich

gen

eral

ise

Wor

ds w

hich

gen

eral

ise

Tec

hnical

voc

abul

ary

Tec

hnical

voca

bula

ry

Tec

hnical

voc

abul

ary

Tec

hnical

voc

abul

ary

Tec

hnical

voc

abul

ary

Tec

hnical

vo

cabu

lary

Tec

hnical

voc

abul

ary

Des

crip

tive

but

fac

tual

lang

uage

Des

crip

tive

bu

t fa

ctua

l la

ngua

ge

Spe

lling

: un

stre

ssed

vo

wel

Pas

sive

con

stru

ctio

n

Pas

sive

con

stru

ctio

n

Pre

sent

ten

se

Spe

lling

: un

stre

ssed

vow

el

Titl

e

Text

leve

lS

ente

nce

/ w

ord

leve

l

Intr

od

uctio

n C

lass

ifica

tion

Par

agra

ph

2 Lo

catio

n

Par

agra

ph

3 C

omp

ositi

on

Par

agra

ph

4 Te

mp

erat

ure

Par

agra

ph

5 P

lant

s

Par

agra

ph

6 A

nim

als

Par

agra

ph

7 O

ases

: vill

ages

Co

nclu

sio

n E

nd c

omm

ent

Spe

lling

: un

stre

ssed

vow

elH

ot d

eser

ts

A d

eser

t is

a re

gion

that

has

less

than

250

mm

of

rain

a y

ear.

Rai

nfal

l oft

en f

alls

in

viol

ent d

ownp

ours

rat

her

than

eve

nly

thro

ugho

ut th

e ye

ar.

Mor

e th

an o

ne s

even

th o

f th

e la

nd o

n ea

rth

is d

eser

t. D

eser

ts a

re f

ound

all

over

the

wor

ld: i

n A

fric

a, A

ustr

alia

, Asi

a, N

orth

Am

eric

a an

d So

uth

Am

eric

a. T

he w

orld

’s

larg

est d

eser

t, th

e Sa

hara

, str

etch

es a

cros

s N

orth

Afr

ica

from

the

Red

Sea

in th

e ea

st

to th

e A

tlant

ic O

cean

in th

e w

est.

Onl

y a

quar

ter

of d

eser

ts a

re m

ade

of s

and.

Som

e ar

e co

vere

d in

peb

bles

or

bare

rock

s. I

n ot

her

area

s, s

hallo

w la

kes

have

for

med

aft

er r

ain.

Onc

e th

ese

have

dri

ed in

the

sun,

a f

lat l

ayer

of

salt

crys

tals

is d

epos

ited.

The

re is

a h

uge

rang

e of

tem

pera

ture

in th

e de

sert

due

to th

e fa

ct th

at th

ere

are

no

clou

ds. T

empe

ratu

res

have

bee

n kn

own

to s

oar

as h

igh

as 5

9 de

gree

s C

elsi

us in

Lib

ya a

nd D

eath

Val

ley,

Cal

ifor

nia,

thou

gh 4

0 de

gree

s is

mor

e us

ual.

An

egg

coul

d

be f

ried

on

the

blis

teri

ng, h

ot r

ocks

und

er th

e de

sert

sun

. Dur

ing

the

nigh

t, th

e

tem

pera

ture

fal

ls r

apid

ly to

bel

ow f

reez

ing

in s

ome

plac

es.

Des

ert p

lant

s ha

ve to

fin

d in

geni

ous

way

s of

ada

ptin

g to

the

hars

h co

nditi

ons

in a

dese

rt. L

ong

root

s pr

obe

deep

und

ergr

ound

for

pre

ciou

s w

ater

. Lea

ves

have

thic

k

wat

erpr

oof

skin

s to

avo

id e

vapo

ratio

n. S

ome

plan

ts, l

ike

cact

i, st

ore

wat

er in

thei

r

thic

k st

ems.

Ani

mal

s fi

nd d

eser

t con

ditio

ns d

iffi

cult.

Som

e ne

ver

drin

k bu

t ins

tead

obt

ain

nece

ssar

y m

oist

ure

from

pla

nts

and

othe

r fo

od. M

any

are

noct

urna

l and

res

t in

burr

ows

or u

nder

roc

ks d

urin

g th

e he

at o

f th

e da

y. T

he g

erbi

l, a

popu

lar

Bri

tish

pet,

orig

inat

es in

the

sand

y de

sert

s of

Mon

golia

and

nor

ther

n C

hina

.

Und

ergr

ound

riv

ers

and

stre

ams

flow

dee

p be

neat

h de

sert

s, b

ring

ing

wat

er f

rom

mou

ntai

ns h

undr

eds

of m

iles

away

. Whe

n th

ese

rive

rs r

each

the

surf

ace,

an

oasi

s is

form

ed. T

owns

and

vill

ages

are

fou

nd n

earb

y an

d pe

ople

can

gro

w a

var

iety

of

plan

ts in

the

fert

ile la

nd.

A d

eser

t has

an

inho

spita

ble

clim

ate

but p

eopl

e, a

nim

als

and

plan

ts h

ave

all l

earn

ed

to a

dapt

and

mak

e th

e m

ost o

f its

res

ourc

es.

Annotated Text D


Report Writing Unit


14

Detailed lesson plans for Days 1 and 2Day 1: shared reading and analysis

Day 2: shared planning for writing

Context

The class had been studying various aspects of rivers in their geography lessons and the

teacher introduced this as the context for writing a report.

Day 1 – Shared reading and analysis

1. Introduce a sentence level activity on active and passive verbs in readiness for writing

reports (taken/adapted from Grammar for Writing). Introduce this as an oral game for about

10 minutes so that the whole class can feel confident. Then allow five minutes on white

boards to write some sentences. This can be paired work; each child writes a simple

sentence and the partner changes it to passive. Explain to the children that you will be using

passives later in the week.

2. Tell the children that they are going to look again at a type of writing they explored last year –

a report. Put up the OHT of ‘Cheetahs’ (Sample Text A) and read through. Discuss the

content for a couple of minutes.

3. Ask the children for the purpose of report writing (to give information).

4. Read the text again and annotate with the purpose of each paragraph.

5. Refer the children back to the skeleton-frame which they used to write a recount and ask

them what they think a report skeleton-frame should look like. Ensure that they are clear that

the paragraphs are non-chronological. Draw a report skeleton-frame diagram on the board

and name the paragraphs.

Independent work

1. Children work in pairs and annotate the report on the barn owl (Sample Text B) in the same

way as you have done with them on cheetahs.

2. Other reports from books or from the Internet should be available so that more able children

can check that these satisfy the criteria for organising report writing.

3. Five minutes before the end of independent time, ask the children to get into groups (three

pairs to a group) to compare ideas and appoint a spokesperson to feed back to the class in

the plenary.

Plenary

1. As the children feed back, write their ideas onto a skeleton diagram for the barn owl report.

2. The children should then look back at the one they did with you on cheetahs. Do both reports

follow the same format in terms of purpose and organisation?


Report Writing Unit


15


Report Writing Unit

Day 2 – Application: shared planning for writing

1. Remind the children of some work they have been doing in another subject. The facts that

they are going to use should be easily accessible during the lesson. For example, they

might create a ‘wall of facts’, written on strips of paper.

2. Draw an appropriate number of boxes on the board for the themes the children are likely to

come up with. If the board is small, use a number of pieces of card and fasten them around

the room.

3. Choose children to come out quickly and move the facts from the wall to an appropriate

place in the boxes. Ask them what they will be doing in this exercise. They should realise

that they will be planning what to put into their paragraphs. The children can then give an

overall purpose to each paragraph. It will take a little time but this is necessary to model

the process that a writer must go through. It should be clear from the boxes that each

paragraph will contain a number of related pieces of information. Write the overall theme

above the facts that the children have placed.

4. Discuss what should go in the introduction. Make a note.

5. Produce another report skeleton-frame – like the ones used yesterday. Transfer the themes

to the circles and make a note about the introduction in the centre.

6. Discuss a possible ending comment and note down the idea under the diagram.

Independent/guided work

Children should work in pairs and use large sheets of sugar paper on which you have drawn a

report skeleton-frame. Ask the children to plan the paragraphs for a report on their own

school. The overall purpose/theme of each paragraph should be written in the circle.

Plenary

1. Look at the children’s work on the sheets.

2. Ask children to comment first on good examples of report planning.

3. Next work together on any improvements – e.g. look at content that might be better

grouped together, or split up. Share ideas about the content of the introduction and

conclusion. Give advice on the type of information that makes a good introduction or

conclusion.


16

Transcripts of lessons for Days 1 and 2(taught by Year 6 teacher, Pat. Children’s responses and contributions omitted)

Day 1 – Shared reading and analysisNote: the texts for the shared and independent reading are on pages 10–13.

We’re going to start with a game today. It’s going to help you understand the difference betweenactive and passive verbs. I’m not going to tell what the difference is now. I think you’re going to beable to tell me in a minute – so I challenge you! Let’s see – I’m going to give you a sentence and thensay it another way – in what we call the passive voice. Listen carefully. ‘I handed the book to Sam.’[Mimed.] Now listen. I’ll say it in the passive. ‘Sam was handed the book by me.’ The same thinghappened, didn’t it, but the way I said it was different. I’ll try another. ‘Goldilocks cleaned thecottage in the wood.’ We call that the active voice. I could also say: ‘The cottage in the wood wascleaned by Goldilocks.’ That would be the passive voice. [ Wrote ‘active’ and ‘passive’ on the board.]Now I’ll say one for Naomi and she can turn my sentence around. ‘Naomi opened the classroomdoor.’ . . . . . . . . Well done. Who’d like a go? OK, let’s go round the room. One of you make up asentence and then another change it to the passive voice . . . . . . . . I’ll listen in. Now that one isinteresting. Chloe, you said ‘My Mum walked into town.’ It didn’t work did it? Do you know why?. . . . . . . . Brilliant! You’ve got it, though I think we can do better than say ‘it hasn’t got a “thing” toturn round’. The sentence Chloe made up didn’t have a direct object so we couldn’t turn it round andmake it passive. You’re doing so well that I think you can use your boards for a couple of minutesand write some sentences in pairs and try writing the passive . . . . . . . . Now, who’s going to acceptmy challenge? Who would like to try to tell us what we mean if the sentence is in the passive . . . . . . .Yes, you’re right. In the passive, the subject of the sentence is having the action done to it – thecat was being chased by the dog. When we write in the active voice, the subject is doing the action– the dog was chasing the cat. I’m going to type up what we have just said because I think we shouldadd it to our grammar board – then you can always refer to it. We’re going to meet the passive voiceagain on Wednesday.

Do you remember how we read a recount text – a biography – earlier this term – and you helped meanalyse how it was organised and written? You wrote some really good biographies yourselves afterthat. Well, today we are going to continue to study a text type you did last year – a report – and weare going to go through the same sort of process. [Switched on OHP – cheetahs text.] I’m going toread through the report. Follow carefully . . . . . . . . Did anyone know anything about cheetahsbefore? . . . . . . . . That’s fascinating, Abdi, you visited the wildlife park when you were living inAfrica, in Somalia? . . . . . . . . I see here from the conclusion that the cheetah is an endangeredspecies. Latika? . . . . . . . . Garth? . . . . . . . . Paula? . . . . . . . . You’re right, there isn’t any solidinformation about why cheetahs are endangered. So what do you think the purpose of this piece ofwriting is? . . . . . . . . Exactly. Anyone who wants basic information would find my report useful,especially as I have organised it carefully to help them. Let’s read each paragraph again. [Readintroduction.] This is very short but it has a special purpose. What is that? . . . . . . . . Yes, it is theintroduction. But can you tell me more? What is the introduction doing? . . . . . . . . It is saying what acheetah is – we call this classifying or defining the subject. It might say something about why thesubject is very well known. It is very general and doesn’t have any detail. All that will come later. SoI’ll write a note beside it: general remark – definition; no detail. [Wrote] Let’s move on. Ahmed,


Report Writing Unit


17

could you read the second paragraph? . . . . . . . . What is that about? . . . . . . . . Yes, and how do youknow? . . . . . . . . Good, so I’ll write ‘habitat’ next to this paragraph. Now what is the subject orpurpose of the third paragraph? Read it to yourselves. There’s a tricky word there – rememberwhat you have to do with long words like that . . . . . . . . Yes, Paula, read around each vowel – let’smake it shorter by covering the ‘-ing’ at the end – OK, have a go . . . . . . . . nearly there, that last bitis hard to work out – ‘dis – ting – uish’ . . . . . . . . yes, ‘distinguishing marks’. Find the words that tellyou the purpose of this paragraph . . . . . . . . Now we’ll do the next three paragraphs in pairs. Thishalf of the class can do paragraph 4 and this half can do paragraphs 5 and 6. Read it through,decide on the function of each paragraph – what is the main theme of the paragraph? Does it havesubsections? Tell your partner what you think and when you have agreed, put a note down on yourwhite boards. I want evidence to back up what you say . . . . . . . . That’s probably long enough. Let’sstart on paragraph 4. Who can tell us the theme of this paragraph – what is it telling us? . . . . . . . . I’llwrite your suggestions up. Powerful bodies. Feet, running. They are all included. Why do yousuggest powerful bodies, Mark? . . . . . . . . Yes, it is in the opening sentence, but does the paragraphgo on to tell you about the different parts of the body? . . . . . . . . No, only the bendy back and feet. . . . . . . . Yes, well done Yemi, both are mentioned in the context of running. [Took feedback ofparagraphs 5 and 6 in the same way.] Now we come to the conclusion. What is the purpose? . . . . . . . .It makes a kind of ending comment. It doesn’t repeat anything but it does make an interestingcomment about conservation. The conclusion makes a statement about the animal beingendangered.

Do you remember the diagram we used to help us write the recount? There is a rather differentdiagram for this one. I’ll show you. [Held up report skeleton-frame on a large piece of card.] I’mgoing to transfer the notes we made about the purpose of each paragraph to this diagram. I’m goingto write the note we made for the introduction in the middle. Chloe, be ready with the next one. . . . . . . . . Thank you. What did we say for paragraph 3, James? . . . . . . . . Next, Sam . . . . . . . . Yes, wedecided on speed, didn’t we? Paragraph 5, David, and you be ready afterwards, Rebecca, forparagraph 6 . . . . . . . . [ Wrote on card as children replied.] What do you think this diagram tells usabout the organisation of the paragraphs? . . . . . . . . a good idea. Let’s test it. Would it alter thereport if the paragraph on appearance came in a different place? . . . . . . . . What about the others? . . . . . . . . So it doesn’t matter. After the introduction, a report has a number of paragraphs whichcould be written in any order. We call this ‘non-chronological’. [ Wrote this on the board.]

You’re going to work in pairs now – the same pairs as last week. You will find a report about the barnowl on your tables. I want you to work together and write down the purpose of each paragraph –just like we did on the board. You will also see that I have put some books on your tables. I’vemarked the pages containing reports. Some of you will have time to read some of these and decideif they have the same format as the report on cheetahs. A few minutes before the end ofindependent time, I will ask you to form groups to pool your information . . . . . . . .


Report Writing Unit


18

PlenaryI’ve put a new report skeleton-frame on the board. Let’s see whether you all agree about how Ishould fill it in. Please could the five spokespeople stand up. Rajid, what did your group say aboutthe first paragraph of the barn owl report? . . . . . . . . Do the rest of you agree? . . . . . . . . Yes, you allseem to agree there – the introduction classifies the barn owl as a bird and then goes on to give areason for telling us about them – they are rare. Paula’s turn to go first on the next paragraph – theothers chip in if you disagree or want to add more . . . . . . . . Good, that was straightforward. Whatdo you notice about this paragraph and the second paragraph on the cheetah report? . . . . . . . . Bothhabitat – but we’ve said that the whole point of non-chronological reports is that the paragraphscould come in any order. Any explanations? .......... Yes, I’m sure you’re right; the habitat is probablythe first thing most people want to know. [Continued to write theme of each paragraph on thereport skeleton-frame.] . . . . . . . . Now that we’ve done this, do you think that this report has thesame format as the cheetah report? What do both introductions do? . . . . . . . . What about theparagraphs that follow? . . . . . . . . Do the conclusions have anything in common? . . . . . . . . That’s agood point. The cheetah being endangered isn’t mentioned till the conclusion, whereas the barn owlbeing rare was mentioned in the introduction and then reasons were given in one of the paragraphsand proposed action in the conclusion . . . . . . . . So you think that report isn’t as well planned as theone on barn owls? . . . . . . . . What do the rest of you think about the other reports I put out for youto read? . . . . . . . . So who can summarise for me what we have learned yesterday and today aboutthe organisation of report writing? . . . . . . . . Well done – tomorrow, we are going to use some factsfrom our geography lessons on rivers and organise them into a report.

Day 2 – Shared planning for writingOver the last few weeks, we have been investigating various aspects of the River Thames. We’veused the Internet, watched a video and done some fieldwork up the road. You all contributed to our‘wall of facts’ last lesson. [Pointed to display on strips of coloured paper.] We are going to use thefacts that we’ve collected in geography to write a report. We can’t start the writing today becausewe haven’t yet analysed the kind of language we need to use. Do you remember that we had to dothat before you could write your biographies? However, you learned enough yesterday to get goingon the first stage of any writing – planning. If we always plan carefully in advance, our writing ismuch more likely to have a clear organisation and so it helps the reader make sense of it. Remindme. What is the purpose of a report? . . . . . . . . So we have to organise these facts about the RiverThames into the report skeleton-frame we worked on yesterday. That way our reader will be givenclear information. What do you think we need to do first? . . . . . . . . Can we do that, though? Are yousure what you want to put in an introduction yet? Have another think . . . . . . . . I agree. We have tosort the facts into paragraphs. I’ve divided the board into four boxes and pinned up a couple ofpieces of card over there in case we need more paragraphs. I’ve taken all the facts off the wall –here you are, one each – careful with the Blu-Tack. I want you to group the pieces of papertogether and stick them up on the board so that we end up with a number of facts in each box that


Report Writing Unit


19

are related to each other in some way. You may find yourself unsure about some. You may thinkthat certain facts can go in more than one box. We can discuss that. David, could you read yoursout and place it in any box on the board . . . . . . . . Marcia, read yours and decide whether it is thesame or a separate paragraph from David’s . . . . . . . . OK, Abdul and then Paula . . . . . . . . Now thesefour have identified three different paragraphs, so the rest of you will be getting a good ideawhether there is a paragraph on the board which your fact will fit in, or whether you need tocreate a new one. Let’s have three more people reading theirs out: James, Sam, Nazeem . . . . . . . .Now the others from this table can come out and find the most appropriate box for their facts. . . . . . . . There seems to be some disagreement about that last fact. Marcia, could you read all thepieces of paper out in this box and see if we can find agreement . . . . . . . . What are they all about?. . . . . . . . Yes. They are facts about what Thames Water is doing to safeguard the environment.Some of you went on the web site and took down that information. Now – back to the fact that Ceriput up. Why are some of you objecting to it? . . . . . . . . I see. But isn’t that to do with theenvironment? . . . . . . . . What do the rest of you think? That table wants to see it in the box below.What is that about? . . . . . . . . Yes, lots of facts about our local study of the tributary. Is Ceri’s facta general point about the whole river or is it saying something about a particular part? . . . . . . . . Iagree. Which part? . . . . . . . . OK, let’s move it over here . . . . . . . . This is going well. All thisdiscussion is really going to help your planning in future. It doesn’t matter what you write – youalways have to plan it. Let’s finish off the last few now . . . . . . . .

So we have five paragraphs and a couple of bits of paper which don’t really fit anywhere – oneabout the tidal part of the Thames, another about Thames Water and how it manages theenvironment, a local tributary, flooding in 2000 and industries on the river. Let’s write thoseheadings quickly onto the report skeleton-frame . . . . . . . . Now what about the introduction? Whatdo we do in an introduction? . . . . . . . . Yes, we define or classify, but I think we have to say morethan the fact that it is a river! Let’s go back to these two facts we couldn’t fit in. Could you readthe first one, please, James . . . . . . . . Right, so that tells us the length – 210 miles. What does theother one say? . . . . . . . . Those link, don’t they? The source is in Gloucestershire and the mouth is? . . . . . . . . Correct. So those two facts give us an overview of the river that the report will be aboutand provide a good introduction. Does it matter what order we write these paragraphs in? . . . . . . . .Correct. So what kind of report is it? . . . . . . . . Well remembered. A non-chronological report. Now,there is still something missing . . . . . . . . That’s right, we haven’t planned the conclusion yet. Whatis the purpose of the conclusion? . . . . . . . . That’s hard, isn’t it? What kind of ending comment couldyou make? . . . . . . . . That’s quite a nice idea. You want to make a remark about people enjoying theriver. Yes, we could. I’ll note it down under the plan and we will see how we feel about that once thereport is written.

Now it is time for you to have a go at planning on your own. You are going to quickly plan a reportabout our school. You all know lots about it! You are going to work in pairs again but this time you’lluse the large pieces of sugar paper that are on the tables. I have already drawn a report skeleton-


Report Writing Unit


20

frame for you but you can add more circles if you need them. What do you think you and yourpartner will put in the centre circle? . . . . . . . . Correct – your introduction – a word or two. Whatabout the circles, Ben? . . . . . . . . Yes, just simply – don’t write more than a word or two to show thetheme. You can indicate some of the facts to go in each paragraph by putting spider’s legs ontoeach circle like this. Again, condense your fact into a word or two. You can see why we needed a bigbit of paper, can’t you! If you can think of an idea for the theme of the conclusion you can note itunder the diagram. We shall discuss them in the plenary . . .

PlenaryLet’s look at the work that Majid and Sam have done. I want you to tell me if they have organisedcorrectly for a non-chronological report? . . . . . . . . Yes, they have a note for the introduction andseparate points in each circle. You managed to plan quite a lot of detail in the time you had. Welldone, boys. Ben, read out the notes inside the circles . . . . . . . . What do you think? Are all thosethemes different or could any be combined? . . . . . . . . Why do you think the Year 6 trip needs aseparate paragraph, Abdul? . . . . . . . . Yes, I see. The boys might think about that. It’s a good point.Can these paragraphs be written in any order? . . . . . . . . Good. So it’s a non-chronological report. Yousucceeded. Let’s read their note about the introduction. ‘Say where school is in country’ – doesanyone know one word we could use for that . . . . . . . . not quite. I’ll give you a clue, we’ve used it ingeography . . . . . . . . Right! Location. You can show your theme in one word. I’d like to see whatanother group thought about the introduction. ‘Size and number of teachers’ – that is verydifferent. It does contain detail but the detail itself helps to classify the school. There isn’t aright answer to what should go in the first paragraph so long as you remember what we saidyesterday – it makes a general remark that introduces the subject. Now we’ll see what these twothought should be in the conclusion – ‘children like it – happy.’ That’s a nice summing up. Did anyonehave another idea? . . . . . . . . Why do you say homework? . . . . . . . . Oh I see, because you do it afterschool so it should come last. What do the rest of you think? . . . . . . . . You explained that clearly,Julie. Homework is an example of one of the things about our school that you could write about in areport. Therefore, it goes in one of the paragraphs but it doesn’t matter in what order. Theconclusion should be more general and make a closing comment. I rather like the idea that you wantto say that children like it and they are happy. You have done really well today. Tomorrow we aregoing to return to the cheetah text and analyse the way it is written so that you can eventuallywrite your reports.


Report Writing Unit


21

Supplementary Resources

Sample Text E


Report Writing Unit

In-line skates

‘In-line skates’, or ‘rollerblades’, is the name given to thenew generation of rollerskates developed since the 1980s.

They are based on a reworking of the original design for ‘dry land’ skates which were invented in the early1700s. These in turn were adapted from the ice skatesthat had long been used in Holland to travel on frozencanals in winter.

In-line skates are made from thermoplastic resin that islight, yet strong and durable, and the wheels are ‘in-line’as opposed to the four-wheeled parallel design used inroller skates for the previous 150 years. In-line skatesincorporate a boot to protect and support the ankle,which fastens with buckles or Velcro strips. Most modernin-line skates feature a braking mechanism activated bythe skater straightening one leg.

Skating can be dangerous as it requires a hard surfaceand high speeds can be reached quite quickly. Skatersshould wear a helmet, protective knee and elbow padsand wrist guards in order to avoid risking broken bones.

(continued)


22


Annotated Text E


Report Writing Unit

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23


Sample Text E (continued)


Report Writing Unit

They should confine their skating to safe areas and safespeeds, as they can easily injure other pedestrians ifthey crash into them.

Skating can be an effective method of keeping fit that is within the reach of many people. Once the initialequipment has been bought, there are no costly club,entrance or match fees. It can be enjoyed in mostweathers and by people of all ages.

As well as being a popular sport and fitness activity,skating is an environmentally friendly way to travel,especially in towns and cities. By being twice as fast aswalking, it can double the distance people are preparedto travel to work or school without using a bus or a car,and it does not cause traffic congestion or air pollution.

If more commuters were prepared to skate to work eachday, the roads would be less crowded and the air wouldbe cleaner.


24


Annotated Text E (continued)


Report Writing Unit

Text

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25


Sample Text F


Report Writing Unit

Bananas

Bananas are found in tropical regions of the worldwhere the climate provides plentiful rain and manyhours of sunshine for most of the year. This enablesbananas to be grown and picked all year round. Themajority of the bananas eaten in the UK are importedfrom the Windward Islands in the Caribbean.

Banana plants grow from a small root to a height of aboutthree metres. They produce suckers, one of which isallowed to grow to its full size and bears the fruit. Thesefruit start by growing downwards before they grow uptowards the sun in large bunches. A fully grown bunchcan weigh up to thirty-five kilos, the bananas at thebottom being smaller than those nearer the top. As thebunches develop the plants must be supported bystakes to prevent them from breaking or toppling over.

Bananas are very easily damaged and consequentlygreat care must be taken when they are harvested.They are picked by hand before they are fully ripe, asthey continue to ripen after harvesting. These greenbananas are carefully transported to a packing stationwhere they are washed, treated and labelled so theirorigin can be traced.

(continued)


26

Ban

anas

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year

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ar r

ound

.The

maj

ority

of

the

bana

nas

eate

n in

the

UK

are

impo

rted

from

the

Win

dwar

d Is

land

s in

the

Car

ibbe

an.

Ban

ana

plan

ts g

row

from

a s

mal

l roo

t to

a he

ight

of

abou

tth

ree

met

res.

The

y pr

oduc

e su

cker

s,on

e of

whi

ch is

allo

wed

to g

row

to it

s fu

ll si

ze a

nd b

ears

the

frui

t.T

hese

frui

t sta

rt b

y g

row

ing

dow

nwar

ds b

efor

e th

ey g

row

up

tow

ards

the

sun

in la

rge

bunc

hes.

A fu

lly g

row

n bu

nch

can

wei

gh u

p to

thir

ty-f

ive

kilo

s,th

e ba

nana

s a

t the

botto

m b

eing

sm

alle

r th

an th

ose

near

er th

e to

p.A

s th

ebu

nche

s de

velo

p th

e pl

ants

mus

t be

supp

orte

d by

stak

es to

pre

vent

them

from

bre

akin

g or

topp

ling

over

.

Ban

anas

are

ver

y ea

sily

dam

aged

and

con

sequ

ently

gre

at c

are

mus

t be

take

n w

hen

they

are

har

vest

ed.

The

y ar

e pi

cked

by

hand

bef

ore

they

are

fully

rip

e,as

they

con

tinue

to r

ipen

afte

r ha

rves

ting.

The

se g

reen

bana

nas

are

care

fully

tran

spor

ted

to a

pac

king

sta

tion

whe

re th

ey a

re w

ashe

d,tr

eate

d an

d la

belle

d so

thei

ror

igin

can

be

trac

ed.

(con

tinue

d)

Text

str

uct

ure

an

d o

rgan

isat

ion

Sen

ten

ce s

tru

ctu

re a

nd

pu

nct

uat

ion

Pas

sive

voi

ce t

o gi

ve d

ista

nce

betw

een

auth

or a

nd r

eade

r

Cla

ssificat

ion

Sp

ellin

gb

anan

as–

first

and

last

‘a’u

nstr

esse

d vo

wel

Des

crip

tive

,fac

tual

Gen

eral

isin

g

Pre

sent

ten

se t

hrou

ghou

t

Thi

rd p

erso

n

Tec

hnical

voc

abul

ary

Pas

sive

voi

ceP

icke

rs a

nd h

andl

ers

not

iden

tified

Cul

tiva

tion

Har

vest

ing


Annotated Text F


Report Writing Unit


27

For the ten-day sea voyage from the Caribbean to theUK, refrigerated ships are used in which the temperaturecan be carefully controlled to prevent the bananas from spoiling.

Once unloaded at their destination, the green bananasare placed in special ripening centres for up to five daysbefore being delivered to shops.

Bananas are easily peeled and digested, and containimportant trace minerals as well as all the benefits offresh fruit. They provide a quick, convenient yet healthyenergy boost and are consequently popular withathletes and tennis players.

In fact, bananas are the UK’s favourite fruit – we eatmore of them each year than any other fruit.


Sample Text F (continued)


Report Writing Unit


28


Annotated Text F (continued)


Report Writing Unit

Text

str

uct

ure

an

d o

rgan

isat

ion

Sen

ten

ce s

tru

ctu

re a

nd

pu

nct

uat

ion

For

the

ten-

day

sea

voya

ge fr

om th

e C

arib

bean

to th

eU

K,r

efrig

era

ted

ship

s ar

e us

ed in

whi

ch th

e te

mpe

ratu

reca

n be

car

eful

ly c

ontr

olle

d to

pre

vent

the

bana

nas

from

spo

iling

.

Onc

e un

load

ed a

t the

ir de

stin

atio

n,th

e g

reen

ban

anas

are

plac

ed in

spe

cial

rip

enin

g ce

ntre

s fo

r up

to fi

ve d

ays

befo

re b

eing

del

iver

ed to

sho

ps.

Ban

anas

are

eas

ily p

eele

d an

d di

gest

ed,a

nd c

onta

inim

port

ant t

race

min

eral

s as

wel

l as

all t

he b

enef

its o

ffr

esh

frui

t.T

hey

prov

ide

a qu

ick,

conv

enie

nt y

et h

ealth

yen

ergy

boo

st a

nd a

re c

onse

quen

tly p

opul

ar w

itha

thle

tes

and

tenn

is p

laye

rs.

In fa

ct,b

anan

as a

re th

e U

K’s

favo

urite

frui

t – w

e ea

tm

ore

ofth

em e

ach

year

than

any

oth

er fr

uit.

Co

mp

osi

tio

n a

nd

eff

ect

Writ

ten

in th

e pr

esen

t ten

se,t

hird

per

son,

this

is a

fact

ual,

form

ally

pre

sent

ed r

epor

t.T

he p

enul

tima

te

para

gra

ph d

escr

ibes

why

we

have

ban

anas

in o

ur

diet

whi

ch in

vite

s a

dire

ct c

onne

ctio

n w

ith th

e

read

er in

the

final

par

agra

ph –

usi

ng th

e fir

st

pers

on p

lura

l.

Tec

hnical

voc

abul

ary

Tra

nspo

rt

Sp

ellin

gsp

ecia

l– ‘c

ial’

/sh/

sou

nd p

lus

unst

ress

ed v

owel

Com

plex

sen

tenc

e co

mbi

nes

chro

nolo

gica

l inf

orm

atio

nec

onom

ical

ly

Des

crip

tive

,fac

tual

Rip

enin

g

Diet

End

com

men

t


29

Guinea pigs

Guinea pigs, also known as cavies, originate from SouthAmerica and can still be found there in the wild.

They belong to the rodent group of mammals and haveno visible tail, four toes on each front foot and three oneach back foot.

They live in large family groups in areas of long grass,using burrows abandoned by other creatures as they donot burrow themselves. Guinea pigs are herbivores,eating only grasses, vegetables and fruit.

The females give birth in the open and unlike someother rodents, the young are born with their eyes openand their fur fully grown. Guinea pigs have manypredators in the wild, so they tend to be shy animals andare easily frightened by sudden movement or noise. Incaptivity, Guinea pigs can live up to eight or ten years.

It is thought that the name ‘Guinea pig’ derives from thefact that they make squealing noises like a pig, and thatwhen they were first introduced into this country in the1600s, they were sold by British sailors for a guinea, anold English coin.

(continued)


Sample Text G


Report Writing Unit


30


Annotated Text G


Report Writing Unit

Gui

nea

pigs

Gui

nea

pigs

,als

o kn

own

as c

avie

s,or

igin

ate

from

Sou

thA

mer

ica

and

can

still

be

foun

d th

ere

in th

e w

ild.

The

y be

long

to th

e ro

dent

gro

up o

fm

amm

als

and

have

no v

isib

le ta

il,fo

ur to

es o

n ea

ch fr

ont f

oot a

nd th

ree

onea

ch b

ack

foot

.

The

y liv

e in

larg

e fa

mily

gro

ups

in a

reas

of

long

gra

ss,

usin

g bu

rrow

s ab

ando

ned

by o

ther

cre

atu

res

as th

ey d

ono

t bur

row

them

selv

es.G

uine

a pi

gs a

re h

erbi

vore

s,ea

ting

only

gra

sses

,veg

etab

les

and

frui

t.

The

fem

ales

giv

e bi

rth

in th

e op

en a

nd u

nlik

e so

me

othe

r ro

dent

s,th

e yo

ung

are

born

with

thei

r ey

es o

pen

and

thei

r fu

r fu

lly g

row

n.G

uine

a pi

gs h

ave

man

ypr

eda

tors

in th

e w

ild,s

o th

ey te

nd to

be

shy

anim

als

and

are

easi

ly fr

ight

ened

by

sudd

en m

ovem

ent o

r no

ise.

Inca

ptiv

ity,G

uine

a pi

gs c

an li

ve u

p to

eig

ht o

r te

n ye

ars.

It is

thou

ght t

hat t

he n

ame

‘Gui

nea

pig’

deriv

es fr

om th

efa

ct th

at t

hey

mak

e sq

ueal

ing

nois

es li

ke a

pig

,and

tha

tw

hen

they

wer

e fir

st in

trod

uced

into

this

cou

ntry

in th

e16

00s,

they

wer

e so

ld b

y B

ritis

h sa

ilors

for

a gu

inea

,an

old

Eng

lish

coin

.(c

ontin

ued)

Text

str

uct

ure

an

d o

rgan

isat

ion

Sen

ten

ce s

tru

ctu

re a

nd

pu

nct

uat

ion

Tec

hnical

voc

abul

ary

Cla

ssificat

ion

Sp

ellin

gro

den

t– ‘e

nt’–

uns

tres

sed

vow

el

sud

den

– e n

– u

nstr

esse

d vo

wel

intr

oduc

ed–

‘c’;

intr

o –

pref

ix ‘o

’uns

tres

sed

vow

el

Pas

sive

con

stru

ctio

n(fo

und

by a

nyon

e,who

is ir

releva

nt)

Pre

sent

ten

se t

hrou

ghou

t

Des

crip

tive

,fac

tual

Tec

hnical

voc

abul

ary

Tec

hnical

voc

abul

ary

Com

plex

sen

tenc

e to

sho

w s

ensa

tion

Gen

eral

ise

Tec

hnical

voc

abul

ary

Des

crip

tive

,fac

tual

Iden

tifica

tion

Hab

itat

Life-

cycle

Der

ivat

ion

of n

ame


31

There are now more than twenty-five different types of petGuinea pig that have been developed by breeders.The most common are the short-haired, whose fur isshort, smooth and shiny; the long-haired, whose silkyhair reaches the ground; and the rough-haired, whosehair swirls round in rosette patterns all over its bodyand head. Each variety can be either one colour orseveral colours.

Guinea pigs make suitable pets for children as they donot require enormous amounts of care and attention,can live inside or outside, and are not nocturnal likehamsters. They become used to handling andgrooming, and seldom bite. It must be rememberedthat Guinea pigs are sociable and should be kept inpairs or groups, though they will also live happily withpet rabbits.


Sample Text G (continued)


Report Writing Unit


32


Annotated Text G (continued)


Report Writing Unit

Text

str

uct

ure

an

d o

rgan

isat

ion

Sen

ten

ce s

tru

ctu

re a

nd

pu

nct

uat

ion

Sp

ellin

gd

iffer

ent–

‘ent

’uns

tres

sed

vow

el

pat

ter n

s–

‘er’,

‘tt’u

nstr

esse

d vo

wel

seve

ral

–3-

sylla

ble

wor

d –

unpr

onou

nced

vow

el ‘e

’and

unst

ress

ed v

owel

‘a’

The

re a

re n

ow m

ore

than

twen

ty-fi

ve d

iffer

ent t

ypes

of

pet

Gui

nea

pig

tha

t hav

e be

en d

evel

oped

by

bree

ders

.T

he m

ost c

omm

on a

re th

e sh

ort-

haire

d,w

hose

fur

issh

ort,

smoo

th a

nd s

hiny

;the

long

-hai

red,

who

se s

ilky

hair

reac

hes

the

gro

und;

and

the

roug

h-ha

ired,

who

seha

ir sw

irls

rou

nd in

ros

ette

pa

ttern

s al

l ove

r its

bod

yan

d he

ad.E

ach

varie

ty c

an b

e ei

ther

one

col

our

orse

vera

l col

ours

.

Gui

nea

pigs

mak

e su

itabl

e pe

ts fo

r ch

ildre

n as

they

do

not r

equi

re e

norm

ous

amou

nts

ofca

re a

nd a

ttent

ion,

can

live

insi

de o

r ou

tsid

e,an

d ar

e no

t noc

turn

al li

keha

mst

ers.

The

y be

com

e us

ed to

han

dlin

g an

dg

room

ing,

and

seld

om b

ite.I

t mus

t be

rem

embe

red

tha

t Gui

nea

pigs

are

soc

iabl

e an

d sh

ould

be

kept

inpa

irs o

r g

roup

s,th

ough

they

will

als

o liv

e ha

ppily

with

pet r

abbi

ts.

Co

mp

osi

tio

n a

nd

eff

ect

Pur

pose

of

text

is to

info

rm.T

he la

st p

arag

raph

(th

e

conc

lusi

on)

info

rms

pote

ntia

l ow

ners

;the

aut

hor

has

a pa

rtic

ular

aud

ienc

e in

min

d in

this

par

agra

ph

and

lang

uage

cha

nges

slig

htly

,e.g

.‘it

mus

t be

rem

embe

red’

.Pas

sive

voi

ce u

sed

to a

dd

auth

orita

tive

tone

.

Lev

el o

f ge

nera

lity

Dev

elop

men

t of

var

ieti

esD

escr

ipti

ve,f

actu

al

Tec

hnical

voc

abul

ary

Pas

sive

ten

sene

eded

to

refe

r to

any

one who

keep

s gu

inea

pig

s

Con

clus

ion:

Gui

nea

pigs

as

pets

Lev

el o

f ge

nera

lity


33

The London Marathon

Each spring sees the return of the Marathon, a race ofover 26 miles on the streets of London.

Marathon races have featured as track events in theOlympic Games for many years. The original‘Marathon’ was run by a Greek who covered thisdistance to deliver news of the Battle of Marathon in490 BC.

In the late 1970s, several cities in the United Statesbegan to host Marathon races as more and moreordinary people took up running for fitness andpleasure. Chris Brasher, a former British runningchampion, took part in the 1979 New York CityMarathon and was inspired to stage a similar event inLondon. He was able to find sponsors and organisedthe first London Marathon in March 1981.

Since that race, more than half a million people fromall over the world have completed a London Marathon.In 2002, there were 32 899 finishers, a mixture of eliteathletes, serious club runners and fun runners, manyof whom competed for the first time.

(continued)


Sample Text H


Report Writing Unit


34


Annotated Text H


Report Writing Unit

The

Lon

don

Mar

ath

on

Eac

h sp

ring

sees

the

retu

rn o

fth

e M

ara

thon

,a ra

ce o

fov

er 2

6 m

iles

on th

e st

reet

s of

Lond

on.

Mar

ath

on ra

ces

have

fea

ture

d as

trac

k ev

ents

in th

eO

lym

pic

Gam

es fo

r m

any

year

s.T

he o

rigin

al‘M

ara

thon

’was

run

by

a G

reek

who

cov

ered

this

dist

ance

to d

eliv

er n

ews

ofth

e B

attl

e of

Mar

ath

on in

490

BC

.

In th

e la

te 1

970s

,sev

eral

citi

es in

the

Uni

ted

Sta

tes

bega

n to

hos

t Mar

ath

on ra

ces

as m

ore

and

mor

eor

dina

ry p

eopl

e to

ok u

p ru

nnin

g fo

r fit

ness

and

plea

sure

.Chr

is B

rash

er,a

form

er B

ritis

h ru

nnin

gch

ampi

on,t

ook

part

in th

e 19

79 N

ew Y

ork

City

Mar

ath

on a

nd w

as in

spire

d to

sta

ge a

sim

ilar

even

t in

Lond

on.H

e w

as a

ble

to fi

nd s

pons

ors

and

orga

nise

dth

e fir

st L

ondo

n M

ara

thon

in M

arch

198

1.

Sin

ce th

at r

ace,

mor

e th

an h

alf

a m

illio

n pe

ople

from

all o

ver

the

wor

ld h

ave

com

plet

ed a

Lon

don

Mar

ath

on.

In 2

002,

ther

e w

ere

32 8

99 fi

nish

ers,

a m

ixtu

re o

fel

itea

thle

tes,

serio

us c

lub

runn

ers

and

fun

runn

ers,

man

yof

who

m c

ompe

ted

for

the

first

tim

e.

(con

tinue

d)

Text

str

uct

ure

an

d o

rgan

isat

ion

Sen

ten

ce s

tru

ctu

re a

nd

pu

nct

uat

ion

Ope

ns in

the

pre

sent

ten

se

Cla

ssificat

ion

Sp

ellin

gw

orld

– w

ord,

wor

k,w

orm

,wor

st

athl

ete

– ‘e

te’

com

pet

ep

leas

ure

– ‘e

a’,‘

sure

’

unst

ress

ed v

owel

Des

crip

tive

fac

tual

Con

tinu

es in

pas

t te

nse as

hist

ory

of M

arat

hon

is t

old

App

roxi

mat

ions

,pre

cise

det

ail

not

know

n/or

con

side

red

impo

rtan

t

Tec

hnical

voc

abul

ary

Tec

hnical

voc

abul

ary

Gen

eral

app

roxi

mat

ion

Pre

cise

det

ail f

rom

a m

ore

rece

nt eve

nt

Tec

hnical

voc

abul

ary

Der

ivat

ion

of n

ame

His

tory

of th

e m

oder

n M

arat

hon

Num

ber

of r

unne

rs


35

The race has developed into a major charityfundraising event, collecting over £181 million in 21years through sponsorship. Numerous charities havebenefited, from the large, well-known nationalorganisations to the small, local ones.

Every year, thousands of spectators line the roads tocheer the runners and wheelchair users on. The routepasses several of London’s best-known landmarksincluding the Cutty Sark in Greenwich, Docklands,Tower Bridge and The Mall. Hundreds of thousandsmore around the world follow the televised race.

The London Marathon is now firmly established asone of the top sporting and fun events of the year inthe UK.


Sample Text H (continued)


Report Writing Unit


36


Annotated Text H (continued)


Report Writing Unit

Text

str

uct

ure

an

d o

rgan

isat

ion

Sen

ten

ce s

tru

ctu

re a

nd

pu

nct

uat

ion

The

race

has

dev

elop

ed in

to a

maj

or c

harit

yfu

ndra

isin

g ev

ent,

colle

ctin

g ov

er £

181

mill

ion

in 2

1ye

ars

thro

ugh

spon

sors

hip.

Num

erou

s ch

ariti

es h

ave

bene

fited

,fro

m th

e la

rge,

wel

l-kno

wn

natio

nal

orga

nisa

tions

to th

e sm

all,

loca

l one

s.

Eve

ry y

ear,

thou

sand

s of

spec

tato

rs li

ne th

e ro

ads

toch

eer

the

runn

ers

and

whe

elch

air

user

s on

.The

rou

tepa

sses

sev

eral

of

Lond

on’s

bes

t-kn

own

land

mar

ksin

clud

ing

the

Cut

ty S

ark

in G

reen

wic

h,D

ockl

ands

,To

wer

Brid

ge a

nd T

he M

all.

Hun

dred

s of

thou

sand

sm

ore

arou

nd th

e w

orld

follo

w th

e te

levi

sed

race

.

The

Lon

don

Mar

ath

on is

now

firm

ly e

stab

lishe

d as

one

ofth

e to

p sp

ortin

g an

d fu

n ev

ents

of

the

year

inth

e U

K.

Co

mp

osi

tio

n a

nd

eff

ect

Str

ikes

bal

ance

bet

wee

n de

tail

and

gene

ral

sta

tem

ents

for a

read

er w

ho n

eeds

a s

umm

ary

repo

rt.

Des

crip

tion

,fac

tual

Mon

ey r

aise

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report writing unit - dera.ioe.ac.uk · individually, analyse another report text (e.g. sample text...

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