The Extraordinary Gardener Lesson Sequence

Bring your English lessons to life with this engaging, creative and fully planned 15‑lesson unit based on The Extraordinary Gardener by Sam Boughton. Perfect for KS1, this comprehensive planning sequence develops key writing skills through imaginative and purposeful activities.

Designed to support busy teachers, this resource provides clear progression, purposeful outcomes and built-in differentiation, helping all learners succeed.

What’s Included:

• Full 15 lesson English unit plan with clear learning objectives
• Detailed lesson outlines, activities and assessment opportunities
• Key vocabulary focus (e.g. extraordinary, nature, imagination, growth)
• Scaffolded tasks for LA, MA and HA learners
• Writing outcomes including:
  • Setting descriptions
  • Similes and descriptive language
  • Sentence construction (verbs & adverbs)
  • Past tense writing
  • Instruction writing
• Opportunities for speaking, listening and collaborative learning

Learning Focus:

This unit supports pupils to:

• Explore ambitious vocabulary and make predictions
• Develop descriptive writing using adjectives and expanded noun phrases
• Understand and apply similes, verbs and adverbs
• Sequence events using time connectives
• Compare settings
• Plan and write clear instructional texts

Perfect For:

• KS1 English (Year 1 / Year 2)
• Whole-class teaching or guided groups
• Literacy units based on quality texts
• Cross-curricular links (nature, PSHE, creativity)
• Intervention and structured writing support

Why Teachers Love This Resource:

• Ready-to-teach – reduces planning time
• Clear progression across a full sequence
• Highly engaging, book-led learning
• Supports all abilities with differentiation built in
• Encourages creativity and imagination

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