KS1 / KS2 English: How to write a discussion text
Video summary
Newsround presenter Leah Boleto explains how discursive writing requires an understanding of the difference between facts and opinions, and how to use connecting phrases and statistics.
Leah outlines how to research in different ways to find supporting evidence, such as statistics, which will justify your arguments.
She also demonstrates how to summarise information and write a closing statement.
This short film is from the BBC series, The Facts About Non-Fiction.
Teacher Notes
Ask pupils as a group to come up with arguments ‘for’ and ‘against’ wearing a school uniform.
They can then watch this short film and check if they predicted the same reasons as Leah.
Set them the challenge of writing their own discussion piece on a topic using all the techniques outlined by Leah.
You could also use the detailed explanation of writing in the 1st, 2nd and 3rd person as part of a grammar lesson about pronouns.
This short film will be relevant for teaching English at KS1 and KS2 in England, Wales and Northern Ireland and 1st and 2nd Level in Scotland.
