Bring a children’s author into your classroom and inspire pupils to write stories centred on a magical object and an epic journey.
In this episode of Author In Your Classroom, author Joan Haig (Tiger Skin Rug) explores how objects can become the heart of a story. She shares how careful description, small details and sensory language can bring an ordinary object to life and transport readers to new places.
This teaching sequence supports pupils to develop richer description and more purposeful storytelling. By focusing on a single magical object, children learn how authors use detail, viewpoint and imagery to shape an engaging narrative, rather than simply recounting events.
Short extracts from the podcast are suggested throughout the unit to introduce each stage of learning. These are optional, but highly motivating. They help pupils understand how real writers develop ideas and encourage them to see themselves as authors too.
Resource pack contents
This free classroom pack supports a complete narrative writing unit and includes:
- A ready-to-use PowerPoint
- Tiger Skin Rug text extract
- Planning sheets for objects, description and plot
- Working wall images and author quotes
- Themed writing paper
Teaching overview
Across four sessions, pupils will:
- Choose a magical object: Generate ideas inspired by real objects, exploring how something small or ordinary could become magical within a story.
- Describe the object in detail: Study an extract from Tiger Skin Rug to explore how authors use precise nouns, expanded noun phrases, similes and sensory language to bring objects to life.
- Plan an adventure: Plot a journey shaped by the magical object, considering setting, purpose and key events, and deciding what details to reveal at each stage.
- Write and improve the story: Write a first-person narrative focused on the magical object, then edit and redraft to improve description, clarity and impact.
The unit also includes guidance for editing, redrafting and using a working wall to support vocabulary, ideas and examples of effective description.
How to listen
Search for Author In Your Classroom wherever you get your podcasts. A free resources pack is available with every episode.
Subscribe to hear more children’s authors share practical insights that help pupils write with confidence, purpose and flair.
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