Optional Lesson Plan

for 11-18 year-olds

PRE-LESSON PREPARATION
• Bookmark the ‘Grim Tales’ introductory video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=srWqniWjm1A
• Request from us or photocopy/download an entry form for each student. If you prefer paperless, log in or create an account at
www.youngwriters.co.uk/teachers to use the Online Writing Portal
• Download the PowerPoint presentation that complements this activity.
• Read through this lesson plan – each section has a guide on how long it should take but you can adapt this depending on the
needs of your students. You could do the planning activities in class and set the writing activity as homework.
• Put the 8 Inspiration Postcards around your classroom.
• All resources can be downloaded from www.youngwriters.co.uk/comp/grim

INTRODUCTION 5 MINS (SLIDES 1-5)

Explain to students that they will be writing a mini saga. Capture their attention by telling them their stories could be published in a book,
the top writer will win an iPad Mini and 4 runners-up will win £50 each. Watch the video that introduces the activity.

MAIN TEACHING ACTIVITY

Activity Name Slide Reference Activity Details

A mini saga is a story told in up to 100 words. There are three golden rules of mini saga
writing that students should stick to:
What Is A Mini • Be original! Students can be inspired by other stories, but add a twist or new perspective
Saga? Slide 6 to make it their own.
(5 minutes)
• Keep to the 100-word limit. It forces students to carefully consider word choice and plot.
• Remember that mini sagas must have a beginning, middle and end.

A traditional tale is a story that has been retold over many years in different forms.
They are short stories often based on myths or folklore.
Ask students for examples of fairy tales, legends or myths. What elements do they
What Is A have in common? E.g. Good character, villain, a problem, a moral, magical elements.
Traditional Students may also mention common themes like royalty, talking animals, fantasy
Slides 7-12 settings etc.
Tale?
(5 minutes) Pick one story to discuss in more detail. Ask students to identify the main elements of
the tale: characters, setting, plot.
What are the elements that make this a traditional/fairy tale? We’ve included an
example on slide 12.

Explain to students their story can be inspired by existing tales, but it must be original.
Older stories are in the public domain and therefore out of copyright. This means
characters and ideas can be used, but we still want new, fresh stories.
Note: Explain to students that some versions of fairy tales are copyrighted. E.g. Ogres,
princesses and donkeys are not under copyright, but Shrek, Princess Fiona and the plots
of the Shrek films are. The Snow Queen is not copyrighted, but Elsa, Anna and Olaf are
Originality copyrighted by Disney.
Slides 13-16
(10 minutes)
Copyright – A legal right that prevents a piece of work being copied or used without the
owner’s permission.
Public Domain – work where the copyright has expired and so is free to use.
Plagiarism – copying or using someone else’s work.
Download our ‘Public Domain Stories’ for a list of stories that can be used as inspiration.
P.T.O.
MAIN TEACHING ACTIVITY
Activity Name Slide Reference Activity Details

Ask students to get up and look round the classroom for the 8 inspiration postcards.
Each one contains a theme idea, a story prompt and a story starter. They should read
each one and decide if they will use one to inspire their mini saga. They do not have to
Story Slides use all parts of the card, they can use whichever part inspires them.
Inspiration 17-19
We encourage students to get up and move around because looking for the postcards
(10 minutes)
will create intrigue and engage them in the lesson. They will whisper ideas and it will
create excitement in the classroom which will transfer into their writing.

Once students have chosen a theme or prompt, ask them to create a mind map with ideas
for their story including characters, settings and events. There are more plot ideas on the
Student Planning Sheet, which they can use to further plan their story. They should think
about:
Planning A
Slides • Who is the main character?
Mini Saga
20-22 • Where and when is their story set?
(10 minutes)
• What problem does their character face?
• If they are inspired by an existing tale, how are they making it original?
• How does the story end?

Writing A Now it’s time to get writing! We suggest students write a draft of their story first. They can
Slides
Mini Saga then check the word count and edit down if necessary, and make any changes to improve
23-24 their story.
(15 minutes)

Ask your students to work in pairs to read their mini sagas to each other. Their partner
should provide feedback. Is it an original story? What do they like about it? What could
Plenary be improved? Alternatively you can use this time for self-assessment.
Slide 25
(10 minutes)
Provide your students with a few minutes to make any changes to their work and write/
type up their final draft.

Make sure students include their name on their entry!

Enter The Post, email or upload your students’ mini sagas. If you’re using the Online Writing Portal,
Slide 26
Competition click ‘Submit All Entries’.
We hope your students enjoyed writing for ‘Grim Tales’, we can’t wait to read their stories.

Young Writers, Remus House, Coltsfoot Drive, Peterborough, PE2 9BF

Tel: 01733 890066 Email: [email protected] Website: www.youngwriters.co.uk