Use the hook of amazing Attenborough wildlife clips to engage children in grammar with this possessive apostrophe KS2 lesson…
This possessive apostrophe KS2 lesson for Year 5, based on a David Attenborough clip about orangutans, will help children to develop an understanding of possessive apostrophes in plural and singular nouns.
We’ve taken it from the Natural Curriculum, a website developed in partnership with the Educational Recording Agency. This features fun free animal-themed grammar lessons for Y4-6 centred around captivating clips from the BBC’s natural history archives.
Use the resources in the classroom, or direct pupils to the easy-to-navigate website if they’re working from home.
The activities outlined in this lesson can be broken down into grammar starters and spread out over consecutive days or taught together as an hour-long session.
Learning objectives
- Use the possessive apostrophe in sentences that contain both singular and plural nouns
- Use high-level vocabulary when writing sentences about orangutans
- Enhance pupils’ interest in and improve their knowledge and understanding of the natural world
Possessive apostrophe KS2 lesson
Introduce the following grammar objective to the children: “We are learning how to write sentences that contain possessive opportunities.”
Next, read the clip description. The facts about orangutans and details about the clip should excite the children about what is to follow and focus their attention on Sir David’s fabulous narration.
Watch the four-minute clip on the website as a class. It shows a mother orangutan teaching her youngster the ways of the Borneo rainforest.
Once it’s finished, compile a class list of words and phrases to describe the appearance and behaviour of the furry primates.
A focus on the word level early on will help children construct descriptive sentences as they move through the lesson sequence.
David Millington teaches at Cotham Gardens Primary in Bristol. He is the creator and principal author of the Natural Curriculum. Follow the Natural Curriculum on Twitter at @natural_curric. Browse our apostrophes for contraction resources.
