Skip to content
Oak National Academy
Oak National Academy
Teachers
Pupils
icon-background-square
New
New
Year 6

Turning points in 'Coming To England'

I can explore how a turning point in a narrative affects a character’s emotions.

Download all resources
arrow-right
Share activities with pupils
arrow-right
icon-background-square
New
New
Year 6

Turning points in 'Coming To England'

I can explore how a turning point in a narrative affects a character’s emotions.

Download all resources
arrow-right
Share activities with pupils
arrow-right
warning

These resources will be removed by end of Summer Term 2025.

Switch to our new teaching resources now - designed by teachers and leading subject experts, and tested in classrooms.
View new resources
arrow-right

Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. Turning points in a text mark the change in direction for a character; this effects the plot.
  2. Significant moments in the text can be both positive or negative.
  3. Turning points can evoke a range of emotions in characters.

Keywords

  • Prediction - A prediction is an educated guess, based on evidence in the text or prior knowledge.

  • Turning point - A turning point in a narrative is a pivotal moment that significantly alters the course of the story or a character's journey.

  • Emotions graph - An emotions graph is a reading task where readers plot a character's feelings and emotions as they change throughout a narrative.

Common misconception

Pupils may think that turning points in a narrative only have negative consequences.

Note other examples of turning points in recently read narratives that have a range of positive and negative consequences. Pupils may wish to share examples from their own texts.


To help you plan your year 6 english lesson on: Turning points in 'Coming To England', download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...

Adults could note down key emotions during the reading of the chapter to support pupils in annotating their emotions graph. Before the following lesson, read Chapters 11-14. Children can read independently or have this read to them.
speech-bubble
Teacher tip
equipment-required

Equipment

You need a copy of the 2021 Macmillan Children’s Book edition of ‘Coming to England’ written by Floella Benjamin, illustrated by Joelle Avelino, for this lesson.

copyright

Licence

This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2025), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

Lesson video

Skip lesson video

Loading...

Starter quiz

Download starter quiz

6 Questions

Q1.
True or False? Joelle Avelino is the author of 'Coming to England'.
Correct Answer: False, false
Q2.
Which perspective is 'Coming to England' written in?
Correct answer: First Person (e.g. 'I skipped')
Second Person (e.g. 'You skip')
Third Person (e.g. 'Floella skipped')
Q3.
What is a suitable definition of a prediction?
special qualities that make a character in a story unique and interesting
the way that a text can be presented
Correct answer: making a guess of what might happen referring to what we already know
Q4.
Which of the following are examples of personification?
Correct answer: The stars danced across the night sky.
The river flowed gently beside the meadow.
The clock ticked steadily on the wall.
Correct answer: The wind whispered secrets through the rustling leaves.
Q5.
Match the word to its definition.
Correct Answer:clambered,climbed with difficulty
tick

climbed with difficulty

Correct Answer:distorted,twisted or deformed
tick

twisted or deformed

Correct Answer:dominated,controlled or influenced
tick

controlled or influenced

Q6.
Match the word to its definition.
Correct Answer:palatial,palace-like and luxurious
tick

palace-like and luxurious

Correct Answer:majestic,grand and impressive
tick

grand and impressive

Correct Answer:marvel,to look at in amazement
tick

to look at in amazement

Exit quiz

Download exit quiz

6 Questions

Q1.
Match the following keywords to their definitions.
Correct Answer:prediction,an educated guess, based on evidence in the text or prior knowledge
tick

an educated guess, based on evidence in the text or prior knowledge

Correct Answer:turning point,a pivotal moment that significantly alters the course of the story
tick

a pivotal moment that significantly alters the course of the story

Correct Answer:emotions graph,where readers plot a character's feelings as they change over time
tick

where readers plot a character's feelings as they change over time

Q2.
True or False? At the start of Chapter 10, Floella is upset.
Correct Answer: False, false
Q3.
Which station does Floella describe as 'majestic' on page 72?
London St. Pancras
Victoria
Correct answer: London Waterloo
Chiswick
Q4.
Floella ends the chapter feeling ... ?
happy
ecstatic
Correct answer: disappointed
Q5.
In terms of reading, tension is...
...to use clues from within the text to draw conclusions.
Correct answer: ...the emotional anticipation, uncertainty and suspense that engages readers.
..a question that you have about a text; it does not always have to be answered.
Q6.
Place the following events from the chapter into chronological order.
1 - Floella meets her mother at Southampton Docks.
2 - Floella travels by train to London Waterloo.
3 - Floella arrives at Turnham Green Station, the nearest stop to their new home.
4 - Floella sees 1 Mayfield Avenue for the first time.
5 - Floella begins to cry.