Exploring and engaging with themes in 'How to Train Your Dragon’
I can identify and reflect on the key themes in 'How to Train Your Dragon'.
Exploring and engaging with themes in 'How to Train Your Dragon’
I can identify and reflect on the key themes in 'How to Train Your Dragon'.
These resources will be removed by end of Summer Term 2025.
Lesson details
Key learning points
- Hiccup’s character goes on a transformation throughout the text; he begins the text as an unlikely hero
- Hiccup’s characterisation does not remain fixed; by the end of the text he demonstrates many heroic qualities
- A theme is a big idea, topic or message that recurs within a story
- Themes can leave us with ideas and questions that we reflect on after reading the text
Keywords
Theme - A theme is a big idea, topic or message that recurs within a story.
Convey - To convey means to communicate a message to the reader directly or indirectly.
Hero - A hero is a protagonist with noble qualities, often saving or helping others.
Common misconception
Pupils may find it challenging to think of two distinct similarities and differences.
Pupils could mind map character traits of Toothless and compare these to character studies of Hiccup.
To help you plan your year 5 english lesson on: Exploring and engaging with themes in 'How to Train Your Dragon’, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your year 5 english lesson on: Exploring and engaging with themes in 'How to Train Your Dragon’, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs.
The starter quiz will activate and check your pupils' prior knowledge, with versions available both with and without answers in PDF format.
We use learning cycles to break down learning into key concepts or ideas linked to the learning outcome. Each learning cycle features explanations with checks for understanding and practice tasks with feedback. All of this is found in our slide decks, ready for you to download and edit. The practice tasks are also available as printable worksheets and some lessons have additional materials with extra material you might need for teaching the lesson.
The assessment exit quiz will test your pupils' understanding of the key learning points.
Our video is a tool for planning, showing how other teachers might teach the lesson, offering helpful tips, modelled explanations and inspiration for your own delivery in the classroom. Plus, you can set it as homework or revision for pupils and keep their learning on track by sharing an online pupil version of this lesson.
Explore more key stage 2 english lessons from the 'How To Train Your Dragon': reading unit, dive into the full secondary english curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.
Equipment
You need a copy of the 2017 Hodder Children’s Books edition of ‘How to Train Your Dragon’ written and illustrated by Cressida Cowell, for this lesson.
Licence
Lesson video
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Starter quiz
6 Questions
Exit quiz
6 Questions
a big idea, topic or message that recurs within a story
to communicate a message to the reader directly or indirectly
a protagonist with noble qualities, often saving or helping others
Fishlegs
Snotlout
Hiccup