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English lesson plan · 10th grade (Year 11 in England) · 45 minutes

Why did the author include this detail?

Reading Comprehension

CCSS RI.9-10.5CCSS RL.9-10.5England: SAT Reading and Writing (Text Structure and Purpose)England: GCSE English Language Paper 1 Q3

Objective and success criteria

Students will: Why did the author include this detail?.

  • I can answer questions on today's skill on my own, without help.
  • I can explain each step and say why it works.
  • I can check my answer and spot a mistake.

Before and after

Needs first: Structural features in fiction (GCSE); Author's purpose

Leads to: Main idea of a short academic text (SAT)

Materials: A short text or extract (one copy each), Highlighters, Question cards, Mini whiteboards, A short model text on the board, Printed student sheet (below).

Warm-up · 5 min

  • Quick retrieval from earlier learning (Structural features in fiction (GCSE); Author's purpose). Students answer on mini whiteboards.
  • Show answers together and note who needs support in the main task.
  1. Which structural feature matches this description? The text ends where it began, often echoing the opening image or words. (withholding information / one-sentence paragraph / cyclical structure / change in pace) → cyclical structurePrompt: Think about what the writer is doing with the WHOLE text, not individual words.
  2. 1. Fill the pot with water. 2. Bring it to the boil. 3. Add the pasta and stir. 4. Cook for ten minutes. What is the author's main purpose? (to tell a story about a chef / to describe Italy / to explain how to cook pasta / to persuade you to eat pasta) → to explain how to cook pastaPrompt: Is the writer mainly trying to inform, persuade, entertain or explain?
  3. Which structural feature does this description of an extract show? After a long description of the busy party, the writer places a single line on its own: 'Then the lights went out.' (zooming in / shift in focus / cyclical structure / one-sentence paragraph) → one-sentence paragraphPrompt: Does the focus narrow, move elsewhere, return to the start, isolate a line, hold something back, or change speed?

Hook · 5 min

  • Read the first lines of a short text aloud and ask what students predict will happen and why.
  • Share the objective: Why did the author include this detail?. Read the success criteria together.

I do: model it · 10 min

  • Work through the example out loud, saying why you do each step, not just what you do.
  • Example: Many people assume that deserts are lifeless. In fact, a single square metre of desert soil can contain thousands of tiny organisms. What is the function of the first sentence?
  • Step 1: Every detail has a job: to contrast, illustrate, emphasise, prove or set up what follows.
  • Step 2: 'In fact' signals that the writer is challenging the assumption.
  • Step 3: So the answer is: it presents a common belief that the writer then corrects
  • Answer: it presents a common belief that the writer then corrects
  • Pause after each step and ask a student to say what comes next.

We do: guided practice · 10 min

  • Do these together. Students try each step on whiteboards before you reveal it.
  • Use the hints as prompts rather than giving the answer.
  1. Is the proposed answer correct? Many people assume that deserts are lifeless. In fact, a single square metre of desert soil can contain thousands of tiny organisms. What is the function of the first sentence? → it summarises the text (yes, it is correct / no, it is not correct) → no, it is not correctPrompt: Ask: what would be lost if this detail were removed?
  2. The new bridge was hailed as a triumph of engineering. Within a week, however, it had begun to sway alarmingly in the wind, and engineers closed it for repairs. Why does the writer mention that the bridge was 'hailed as a triumph'? (to prove the bridge was safe / to praise the engineers' repairs / to contrast early praise with the problems that followed / to describe how the bridge was built) → to contrast early praise with the problems that followedPrompt: Ask: what would be lost if this detail were removed?

You do: independent practice · 10 min

  • Students work on the student sheet. Circulate and check the first two answers of every student early.
  • Students who finish: write a question of their own for a partner, with the answer.

The 8 questions are on the student sheet below, with answers in the key.

Exit ticket · 5 min

  • Two questions on their own. Sort answers into got it / nearly / not yet to plan the next lesson.
  1. Is the proposed answer correct? Mara's grandmother kept every letter she had ever received in a biscuit tin. When the tin was finally opened, it held sixty years of a friendship carried on across two continents. Why does the writer mention the biscuit tin? → to show that something ordinary held something precious (yes, it is correct / no, it is not correct) → yes, it is correctPrompt: Ask: what would be lost if this detail were removed?
  2. Scientists studying the Arctic fox noticed something odd: one fox had walked more than 3,500 kilometres in 76 days, from Norway to Canada. What is the main purpose of the specific figures? (to compare Norway and Canada / to explain why foxes migrate / to make the fox's journey vivid and impressive / to show the scientists made errors) → to make the fox's journey vivid and impressivePrompt: Ask: what would be lost if this detail were removed?

Watch out for

  • Answering from memory or opinion instead of evidence in the text.
  • Copying a long quote without explaining what it shows.

Support and stretch

Support

  • Review first: Structural features in fiction (GCSE).
  • Use concrete materials: a short text or extract (one copy each).
  • Give the first step of each question, or a partly worked example to finish.
  • Pair with a confident partner for the guided practice.

Stretch

  • Move on to: Main idea of a short academic text (SAT).
  • Explain a common mistake in writing and how to fix it.
  • Write a word problem that uses today's skill, then solve a partner's.

Homework and more practice

Free online practice with hints and printable worksheets for this skill: eurekami.com/english/grade-10.

Free lesson plan from eurekami.com/lesson-plan-builder

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Why did the author include this detail?

Name

Date

Score/ 8

Beavers Come Home

Four hundred years after they were hunted to extinction in Britain, beavers are back. Small populations now live wild in parts of Scotland and England, and several other European countries have reintroduced them too. Ecologists describe beavers as "ecosystem engineers". By building dams, they create ponds and wetlands that slow the flow of water, trap sediment and provide homes for insects, amphibians and birds. In one Devon study, the amount of water flowing downstream during heavy rain was noticeably lower below beaver dams than above them, suggesting that dams can help reduce flooding. Not everyone is delighted. Some farmers report flooded fields and felled trees, and they worry about the cost. Their concerns are real, and schemes in some areas now compensate landowners or move beavers whose dams cause serious damage. Supporters argue that the benefits outweigh the costs. Wetlands created by beavers can store water during droughts, improve water quality and attract visitors. Yet researchers caution that results vary from river to river, and long-term data are still limited. What is clear is that the return of beavers forces us to ask a broader question: how much room are we willing to make for wild animals in a crowded country?

  1. Question 1

    Read "Beavers Come Home". Why does the writer include the sentence 'Yet researchers caution that results vary from river to river'?

    • A. to prove that beavers are harmful
    • B. to show that the evidence is not yet conclusive
    • C. to praise the farmers
    • D. to introduce a new animal

  1. Question 2

    The match was tied with ten seconds left. In the stands, an elderly man who had not missed a home game in fifty years stood up for the first time all season. Why does the writer include the detail about the elderly man?

    • A. to explain the rules of the game
    • B. to show how tense and important the moment was
    • C. to introduce the main character
    • D. to describe the stadium's seating

  2. Question 3

    Is the proposed answer correct? Scientists studying the Arctic fox noticed something odd: one fox had walked more than 3,500 kilometres in 76 days, from Norway to Canada. What is the main purpose of the specific figures? → to make the fox's journey vivid and impressive

    • A. yes, it is correct
    • B. no, it is not correct

  3. Question 4

    Scientists studying the Arctic fox noticed something odd: one fox had walked more than 3,500 kilometres in 76 days, from Norway to Canada. What is the main purpose of the specific figures?

    • A. to make the fox's journey vivid and impressive
    • B. to explain why foxes migrate
    • C. to compare Norway and Canada
    • D. to show the scientists made errors

  4. Question 5

    Is the proposed answer correct? The new bridge was hailed as a triumph of engineering. Within a week, however, it had begun to sway alarmingly in the wind, and engineers closed it for repairs. Why does the writer mention that the bridge was 'hailed as a triumph'? → to prove the bridge was safe

    • A. yes, it is correct
    • B. no, it is not correct

  5. Question 6

    Many people assume that deserts are lifeless. In fact, a single square metre of desert soil can contain thousands of tiny organisms. What is the function of the first sentence?

    • A. it gives the main evidence
    • B. it describes a specific desert
    • C. it presents a common belief that the writer then corrects
    • D. it summarises the text

  6. Question 7

    Is the proposed answer correct? Mara's grandmother kept every letter she had ever received in a biscuit tin. When the tin was finally opened, it held sixty years of a friendship carried on across two continents. Why does the writer mention the biscuit tin? → to suggest the letters were unimportant

    • A. yes, it is correct
    • B. no, it is not correct

  7. Question 8

    Is the proposed answer correct? The new bridge was hailed as a triumph of engineering. Within a week, however, it had begun to sway alarmingly in the wind, and engineers closed it for repairs. Why does the writer mention that the bridge was 'hailed as a triumph'? → to praise the engineers' repairs

    • A. yes, it is correct
    • B. no, it is not correct

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Answer key: Why did the author include this detail?

  1. 1. B. to show that the evidence is not yet conclusive

  2. 2. B. to show how tense and important the moment was

  3. 3. A. yes, it is correct

  4. 4. A. to make the fox's journey vivid and impressive

  5. 5. B. no, it is not correct

  6. 6. C. it presents a common belief that the writer then corrects

  7. 7. B. no, it is not correct

  8. 8. B. no, it is not correct