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

Planning the diary entries of an imagined Windrush passenger

I can plan the structure and content of an imagined Windrush passenger's diary entries before and after arriving in London.

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

Planning the diary entries of an imagined Windrush passenger

I can plan the structure and content of an imagined Windrush passenger's diary entries before and after arriving in London.

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. Writing is most successful when it is planned. We can plan to describe events and feelings for a diary entry.
  2. A diary entry is most often written retrospectively with no other intended reader than the writer themselves.
  3. A Windrush passenger's diary could contain entries from on the ship and after arriving in the UK.
  4. First person is used to write a diary entry and entries can use both past and present tense.
  5. We can plan to include a range of vocabulary to describe emotions.

Keywords

  • Past tense - tells the reader that action happened before now

  • Present tense - tells the reader that action is happening now

  • Events - things that happen to a person or character

  • Feelings - emotional reactions or ideas in response to events

Common misconception

Pupils may believe a diary entry can only use the past tense.

The diarist will also explain what they are doing and feeling in the present moment.


To help you plan your year 6 english lesson on: Planning the diary entries of an imagined Windrush passenger, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...

Managing the shifts in past and present tense can be a challenge; you may wish to provide an example of a diary entry that does this; in 'The Diary of Anne Frank', for example, Anne often describes her present feelings before going back to describe the events that led to them.
speech-bubble
Teacher tip
content-guidance

Content guidance

  • Depiction or discussion of discriminatory behaviour
  • Depiction or discussion of violence or suffering
supervision-level

Supervision

Adult supervision recommended

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.
For whom is a diary entry usually written?
any reader
family members and friends
Correct answer: only the writer themselves
Q2.
Which is the best definition of 'empathising'?
Correct answer: imagining ourselves in another person's position
telling someone about their experiences
wanting to be in another person's position
helping another person in a difficult position
Q3.
Which word has a similar meaning to 'hopeful'?
exhilarated
Correct answer: optimistic
apprehensive
deflated
Q4.
Which words below most often have negative meanings?
Correct answer: deflated
exhilarated
Correct answer: apprehensive
tenacious
Q5.
When in the story might Celia feel most tenacious?
when she first boards the ship
when she buys the ticket
Correct answer: when she sits in the shelter and decides to keep trying
when she leaves the ship at Tilbury
Q6.
In the story, what might Celia be 'yearning' for at the beginning?
Correct answer: a new life in the 'mother country'
Correct answer: the opportunity to travel
working in a new school
a better climate

Exit quiz

Download exit quiz

6 Questions

Q1.
True or false: a diary can only be written using the past tense.
Correct Answer: false
Q2.
In which tense is this sentence written? 'I couldn't believe that it was really happening!'
future
present
Correct answer: past
Q3.
In which tense is this sentence written? 'I'm writing this sitting on a bunk bed deep underground.'
future
Correct answer: present
past
Q4.
Which of these sentences give events, rather than thoughts and feelings?
Correct answer: Every door was slammed in our faces.
I was hurt and angry.
I felt more determined than ever to succeed.
Correct answer: The underground trains are rumbling above my head as I sit here.
Q5.
Which feeling best completes this action? 'As we sped through London, ...'
I felt completely exhilarated.
I felt determined to stay.
Correct answer: I was shocked by the devastation in the streets.
I couldn't believe the beauty of what I saw.
Q6.
Which of the following words describe Celia well?
Correct answer: tenacious
Correct answer: determined
easily defeated
helpless