Study skills · Ages 7–9 · 50 min
Algorithms without a computer
Children write a clear, ordered set of instructions (an algorithm) to complete a task, test it, and debug it when it goes wrong.
Lesson plans
Lesson plans for age 9
Lessons that suit children aged 9, each with fresh practice at three levels.
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School year
Science · Ages 7–9 · 55 min
Animal life cycles
Children sequence the life cycles of a butterfly, a frog and a bird, and explain how a young animal changes as it grows into an adult.
Science · Ages 7–9 · 55 min
Light sources and shadows
Children recognise that we need light to see, sort light sources from reflectors, and explain that a shadow forms when an opaque object blocks light and changes size as the object moves.
Geography · Ages 7–9 · 55 min
Map skills and compass directions
Children use the four compass points to give and follow directions on a grid map, and read simple map symbols with a key.
Science · Ages 7–9 · 55 min
Parts of a plant and what they do
Children name the roots, stem, leaves and flower of a flowering plant and explain the job each part does to help the plant survive, grow and make seeds.
Study skills · Ages 7–10 · 50 min
Staying safe online
Children know which information should stay private online, know that they should stop and tell a trusted adult whenever something online worries them, and practise what to say.
Geography · Ages 7–9 · 50 min
The seven continents and five oceans
Children name and locate the world's seven continents and five oceans on a world map and a globe, and say which continent they live on.
Science · Ages 8–10 · 55 min
Building and reading food chains
Children build food chains that start with a plant, use arrows to show the direction the energy goes, and identify producers, prey and predators.
Science · Ages 8–9 · 60 min
Building simple circuits
Children build a simple series circuit with a cell, wires and a bulb, explain why a circuit must be complete, and use a switch to open and close it.
Maths · Ages 8–9 · 50 min
Equivalent fractions
Children find equivalent fractions using a fraction wall and explain that multiplying the numerator and denominator by the same number keeps the fraction the same size.
Maths · Ages 8–9 · 50 min
Finding fractions of amounts
Children find unit and non-unit fractions of amounts by dividing by the denominator and multiplying by the numerator, and explain each step with a bar model.
English · Ages 8–9 · 55 min
Fronted adverbials
Children identify adverbials that tell when, where or how something happens, move them to the front of a sentence, and use a comma after a fronted adverbial.
Geography · Ages 8–11 · 60 min
How volcanoes work
Children label the main parts of a volcano, explain that magma rises from deep inside the Earth and erupts as lava, ash and gas, and locate some well-known volcanoes on a world map.
English · Ages 8–9 · 55 min
Organising writing into paragraphs
Children explain why writers start a new paragraph, spot paragraph changes caused by time, place, topic or a new speaker, and organise their own writing into paragraphs.
Science · Ages 8–10 · 55 min
Solids, liquids and gases
Children sort materials into solids, liquids and gases using their properties, and observe ice melting as an example of a change of state.
Science · Ages 8–9 · 55 min
Sound and vibrations
Children explain that sounds are made by vibrations, that sound travels through materials to our ears, and that pitch and volume can be changed.
English · Ages 8–10 · 55 min
Summarising a text
Children identify the main ideas across several paragraphs of a text and summarise them in their own words within a word limit, leaving out minor details.
Science · Ages 8–10 · 55 min
The water cycle
Children describe the water cycle using evaporation, condensation, precipitation and collection, and explain how the Sun's heat drives it.
English · Ages 8–9 · 60 min
Writing a persuasive letter
Children write a letter that persuades a real reader to agree to a request, giving clear reasons with evidence, using persuasive language and a polite letter layout.
Maths · Ages 9–10 · 50 min
Decimals and tenths
Children read and write tenths as fractions and decimals, place them on a number line and link them to place value and to hundredths.
English · Ages 9–11 · 60 min
Similes and metaphors
Children identify similes and metaphors in a text, explain the effect of a comparison on the reader, and write fresh comparisons of their own.
Science · Ages 9–10 · 55 min
The solar system
Children name the eight planets in order from the Sun, describe how the Earth and other planets orbit the Sun, and explain day and night as the Earth spinning.
