NZ Curriculum · Year 3 English · Primary

Year 3 English Lesson Plan & Curriculum Map

A full-year Year 3 English lesson plan for the New Zealand Curriculum (English learning area). 122 lessons across the school year from February to December, set out week by week for 1, 2, 3 or 4 lessons a week, covering characters, mood and literary devices; formality, audience and purpose; text structure, paragraphs, clauses and verbs; and apostrophes, oral presentations, handwriting and spelling.

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Year 3 English learning map

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1 day/week · steady pace2–3 days/week · guided practice

February · Characters, mood and literary devices

Year 3 English — February Lesson Plan

New Zealand Curriculum · English

Week	1 Day/Week	2 Day/Week	3 Day/Week	4 Day/Week
February 1st week (English)	Discussing Characters, Events & Settings in Literature 1. Reading a narrative text by a Māori, Pasifika or diverse New Zealand/world author and illustrator	Discussing Characters, Events & Settings in Literature 1. Reading a narrative text by a Māori, Pasifika or diverse New Zealand/world author and illustrator 2. Discussing the characters in the story	Discussing Characters, Events & Settings in Literature 1. Reading a narrative text by a Māori, Pasifika or diverse New Zealand/world author and illustrator 2. Discussing the characters in the story 3. Discussing the events and settings	Discussing Characters, Events & Settings in Literature 1. Reading a narrative text by a Māori, Pasifika or diverse New Zealand/world author and illustrator 2. Discussing the characters in the story 3. Discussing the events and settings 4. Comparing this text to another text on a similar topic
February 2nd week (English)	Discussing Characters, Events & Settings in Literature 1. Discussing the characters in the story	Discussing Characters, Events & Settings in Literature 1. Discussing the events and settings 2. Comparing this text to another text on a similar topic	Discussing Characters, Events & Settings in Literature 1. Comparing this text to another text on a similar topic Personal Connections & Preferences 1. Discussing connections between your own experiences and a character's experiences 2. Sharing your personal preference about a text and explaining why	Personal Connections & Preferences 1. Discussing connections between your own experiences and a character's experiences 2. Sharing your personal preference about a text and explaining why How Authors Portray Character & Mood 1. Discussing how an author's language portrays a character 2. Discussing how illustrations portray a character or setting
February 3rd week (English)	Discussing Characters, Events & Settings in Literature 1. Discussing the events and settings	Personal Connections & Preferences 1. Discussing connections between your own experiences and a character's experiences 2. Sharing your personal preference about a text and explaining why	How Authors Portray Character & Mood 1. Discussing how an author's language portrays a character 2. Discussing how illustrations portray a character or setting 3. Exploring how the setting and events influence the mood of the story	How Authors Portray Character & Mood 1. Exploring how the setting and events influence the mood of the story Literary Devices — Rhythm & Onomatopoeia 1. Identifying rhythm in a poem or story and discussing its effect 2. Identifying onomatopoeia and discussing its effect 3. Practice: finding an example of rhythm or onomatopoeia and explaining how it shapes your reaction
February 4th week (English)	Discussing Characters, Events & Settings in Literature 1. Comparing this text to another text on a similar topic	How Authors Portray Character & Mood 1. Discussing how an author's language portrays a character 2. Discussing how illustrations portray a character or setting	Literary Devices — Rhythm & Onomatopoeia 1. Identifying rhythm in a poem or story and discussing its effect 2. Identifying onomatopoeia and discussing its effect 3. Practice: finding an example of rhythm or onomatopoeia and explaining how it shapes your reaction	Interaction Skills in Conversations & Discussions 1. Using interaction skills to contribute to a conversation 2. Using interaction skills to contribute to a class discussion 3. Practice: sharing information and ideas in a small group discussion Comprehension Strategies for Literal & Inferred Meaning 1. Using comprehension strategies to build literal meaning

March · Characters, mood and literary devices

Year 3 English — March Lesson Plan

New Zealand Curriculum · English

Week	1 Day/Week	2 Day/Week	3 Day/Week	4 Day/Week
March 1st week (English)	Personal Connections & Preferences 1. Discussing connections between your own experiences and a character's experiences	How Authors Portray Character & Mood 1. Exploring how the setting and events influence the mood of the story Literary Devices — Rhythm & Onomatopoeia 1. Identifying rhythm in a poem or story and discussing its effect	Interaction Skills in Conversations & Discussions 1. Using interaction skills to contribute to a conversation 2. Using interaction skills to contribute to a class discussion 3. Practice: sharing information and ideas in a small group discussion	Comprehension Strategies for Literal & Inferred Meaning 1. Using comprehension strategies to build inferred meaning 2. Beginning to evaluate a text using your growing knowledge of context, structure and language features e-asTTle-Style Narrative Writing — Planning & Drafting 1. Understanding what makes a strong e-asTTle-style narrative (a clear beginning, problem and ending) 2. Planning a short narrative, adapting ideas, characters and settings from texts you've read
March 2nd week (English)	Personal Connections & Preferences 1. Sharing your personal preference about a text and explaining why	Literary Devices — Rhythm & Onomatopoeia 1. Identifying onomatopoeia and discussing its effect 2. Practice: finding an example of rhythm or onomatopoeia and explaining how it shapes your reaction	Comprehension Strategies for Literal & Inferred Meaning 1. Using comprehension strategies to build literal meaning 2. Using comprehension strategies to build inferred meaning 3. Beginning to evaluate a text using your growing knowledge of context, structure and language features	e-asTTle-Style Narrative Writing — Planning & Drafting 1. Drafting the narrative, using language features and literary devices from this term e-asTTle-Style Persuasive Writing — Planning & Drafting 1. Understanding the simple 3-part persuasive structure (introduction, body, conclusion) 2. Planning a persuasive text stating an opinion with reasons 3. Drafting the persuasive text
March 3rd week (English)	How Authors Portray Character & Mood 1. Discussing how an author's language portrays a character	Interaction Skills in Conversations & Discussions 1. Using interaction skills to contribute to a conversation 2. Using interaction skills to contribute to a class discussion	e-asTTle-Style Narrative Writing — Planning & Drafting 1. Understanding what makes a strong e-asTTle-style narrative (a clear beginning, problem and ending) 2. Planning a short narrative, adapting ideas, characters and settings from texts you've read 3. Drafting the narrative, using language features and literary devices from this term	Editing & Practising Under Timed Conditions 1. Editing both pieces for clarity and correct punctuation 2. Practising planning and writing a short piece under timed conditions, similar to an e-asTTle writing test Term 1 Assessment & Consolidation 1. Revision workshop — narrative elements, literary devices and comprehension strategies 2. Revision workshop — narrative and persuasive writing structure
March 4th week (English)	How Authors Portray Character & Mood 1. Discussing how illustrations portray a character or setting	Interaction Skills in Conversations & Discussions 1. Practice: sharing information and ideas in a small group discussion Comprehension Strategies for Literal & Inferred Meaning 1. Using comprehension strategies to build literal meaning	e-asTTle-Style Persuasive Writing — Planning & Drafting 1. Understanding the simple 3-part persuasive structure (introduction, body, conclusion) 2. Planning a persuasive text stating an opinion with reasons 3. Drafting the persuasive text	Term 1 Assessment & Consolidation 1. Term 1 assessment: e-asTTle-style practice writing test (narrative or persuasive prompt) 2. Feedback session Social Conventions & Formality 1. Understanding that cooperation depends on shared social conventions like turn-taking 2. Identifying how turn-taking language changes with the degree of formality

April · Characters, mood and literary devices

Year 3 English — April Lesson Plan

New Zealand Curriculum · English

Week	1 Day/Week	2 Day/Week	3 Day/Week	4 Day/Week
April 1st week (English)	How Authors Portray Character & Mood 1. Exploring how the setting and events influence the mood of the story	Comprehension Strategies for Literal & Inferred Meaning 1. Using comprehension strategies to build inferred meaning 2. Beginning to evaluate a text using your growing knowledge of context, structure and language features	Editing & Practising Under Timed Conditions 1. Editing both pieces for clarity and correct punctuation 2. Practising planning and writing a short piece under timed conditions, similar to an e-asTTle writing test Term 1 Assessment & Consolidation 1. Revision workshop — narrative elements, literary devices and comprehension strategies	Turn-Taking in Different Situations 1. Practice: using formal turn-taking language in a class discussion 2. Practice: using informal turn-taking language with a partner 3. Discussing why formality changes depending on who you're speaking to Modal Verbs — More & Less Forceful Language 1. Identifying modal verbs that make language more forceful (e.g. "must", "will")
April 2nd week (English)	Literary Devices — Rhythm & Onomatopoeia 1. Identifying rhythm in a poem or story and discussing its effect	e-asTTle-Style Narrative Writing — Planning & Drafting 1. Understanding what makes a strong e-asTTle-style narrative (a clear beginning, problem and ending) 2. Planning a short narrative, adapting ideas, characters and settings from texts you've read	Term 1 Assessment & Consolidation 1. Revision workshop — narrative and persuasive writing structure 2. Term 1 assessment: e-asTTle-style practice writing test (narrative or persuasive prompt) 3. Feedback session	Modal Verbs — More & Less Forceful Language 1. Identifying modal verbs that make language less forceful (e.g. "might", "could") 2. Practice: rewriting a sentence to make it more or less forceful using modal verbs Extending Topic-Specific Vocabulary 1. Identifying topic-specific and technical vocabulary in a text 2. Understanding that words can have different meanings in different contexts

The learning framework

Anatomy of a focused lesson

Each session moves from a clear focus to guided practice and a quick check for understanding.

10 minutes

Warm up

Start with a quick sounds, spelling or vocabulary game that links to the last lesson and gets your child talking.

25 minutes

Read, model and write

Read a short text together, model the skill of the week, then have your child practise it in their own reading or writing.

10 minutes

Share and check

Finish with a read-aloud, retell or short writing check that shows what is secure and what to come back to.

Student learning toolkit

Resources for Year 3 English

Reading lessons

Guided lessons on the texts, genres and language features in each unit.

Writing practice

Planning frames, models and short tasks matched to each week’s focus.

Speaking and listening

Discussion, presentation and oral language activities built up through the year.

Progress notes

A clear record of what your child has mastered and what comes next.

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