Year 4 'Into the Forest': diary writing worksheet

“Retelling the Into the Forest plot” is free to print, with no account. It is the first sheet in the Year 4 English unit “'Into the Forest': diary writing”, for children aged 8 to 9, and takes about 25 minutes.

Print it on A4. The child's pages come first; the answers, and what each wrong answer tells you, are on the grown-up page that follows. Weeks 20 to 21 of the year, 8 sheets in the unit.

Free sample · answers on the last page

Retelling the Into the Forest plot

Name: ____________ · Date: ____________
Year 4 · English · about 25 minutes
Answers are on the grown-up page

Today I can retell the plot of a story in order and name fairy tale characters from clues.

A Look back3 min

1.
Which word means very frightened?
terrifiedcontentcalm
2.
The chain shows a day. Which event comes first? Write it in the empty box.
3.
Which season is missing from the cycle?
autumnwinterspring

B Watch me, then you4 min

Ruby went to the park on Saturday. Read what she did, then look at the picture. The events are in order.

Watch me

First, Ruby got dressed.

Next, she went to the park.

Last, she had her tea.

Now you

1.
Ali goes to the library. Number these four steps 1 to 4 in the boxes.
1. Ali read the book in bed
2. Ali walked to the library
3. Ali took the book home
4. Ali chose a book from the shelf

C Your turn8 min

Answer each question. Look for the clue in the words. Then put the whole story in order.

A narrow path through tall dark trees with a lantern on a post

1.
Which fairy tale has a boy who trades a cow for beans?
Jack and the BeanstalkCinderellaThe Three Little Pigs
2.
Which fairy tale has a girl with golden hair who visits a house in the woods?
Goldilocks and the Three BearsHansel and GretelLittle Red Riding Hood
3.
Which fairy tale has two children lost in a wood?
Hansel and GretelRapunzelGoldilocks and the Three Bears
4.
Number these six events 1 to 6 in the order they happen in the story.
1. At last he and his dad walk home together
2. The boy hears a loud noise and wakes in the night
3. In the forest he meets fairy tale characters and feels followed
4. Mum tells him to take the long way and stay out of the forest
5. At Grandma's house he feels scared, then finds his dad there
6. He does not listen and goes into the forest to reach Grandma

Say it out loud: What clue in each question told you which tale it is?

D Spot the mistake3 min

A dark forest at night with tall trees and a faint moon

Kit says: “Into the Forest is a true story about a real boy in England.”

1.
What kind of story is it really? Write one thing that shows this.

E Think deeper4 min

1.
Tell the story in three events. Which event could you leave out when you summarise, and why?

How did it feel?

I can do it Nearly Not yet

For the grown-up

Retelling the Into the Forest plot · 2 minutes to read

Answers, and what a wrong one tells you

A

1. terrified your child may have picked a calm feeling. Point to the storm end of the scale and ask which word fits it.

2. Look for: wake up or get up, the first event of the day

3. autumn

B

1. 1 Ali walked to the library · 2 Ali chose a book from the shelf · 3 Ali took the book home · 4 Ali read the book in bed your child may have put the last step first. Ask: what must happen before Ali can read the book?

C

1. Jack and the Beanstalk your child may have picked a tale they know well. Ask: which tale has a cow, magic beans and a giant?

2. Goldilocks and the Three Bears your child may have chosen the tale with children in the woods. Ask: which tale has the golden hair clue?

3. Hansel and Gretel your child may have chosen Goldilocks because it is also in the forest. Ask: who is lost, and who is the girl with golden hair?

4. 1 The boy hears a loud noise and wakes in the night · 2 Mum tells him to take the long way and stay out of the forest · 3 He does not listen and goes into the forest to reach Grandma · 4 In the forest he meets fairy tale characters and feels followed · 5 At Grandma's house he feels scared, then finds his dad there · 6 At last he and his dad walk home together your child may have put the walk home first. Ask: where is the boy when he finds his dad, and what happens just before that?

D

1. Look for: narrative fiction or made-up story, with invented characters or events your child may have thought it was true because the boy seems real. Ask: did this really happen, or did the author invent it?

E

1. Look for: Names one event that does not change the main plot and gives a reason.

Words to use

Say“Tell me the story in your own words, starting with the first thing that happened.”

Instead of“Read the whole book again and make them remember every word.”

After the sheet

Tell a short story about your breakfast using three events. Mix up the order, then let your child put them right.

Tick what your child got right in StudyDen. Anything missed comes back in a later Look back box, so there's no need to redo the sheet.

The rest of this unit

7 more sheets come with a StudyDen plan, in teaching order:

Reading a diary like a writer(with a plan)
Making feelings sound bigger(with a plan)
Opening a diary entry(with a plan)
Planning a diary paragraph(with a plan)
Commas in diary sentences(with a plan)
Ending in the Present(with a plan)
Ending the diary(with a plan)

Every Year 4 English worksheet

The worksheets plan opens a printable sheet for every lesson in Years 1 to 6, each with its answers on a separate page for you. It costs £6.99 a month or £59 a year for the whole family, with no free trial.

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