This week we are going to learn how to write our own riddles.

Task 1

Look at some different riddles on the PowerPoint provided and see if you can spot any features that would help when we are writing our own riddles. We are going to work out how they are written, what their features are and then use this information to write our own riddles.

Hopefully your child will notice some of the features of riddles

Create a riddles checklist together

• describes one object
• clear clues within separate sentences
• sentences ordered as a list
• present tense verbs
• often begin with ‘I’ or ‘my’
• punctuation at the end of some lines
• Often end with ‘What am I?’

Read from a collection of riddles and work out the objects from the clues.

Task 2 Perform Riddles

Recap on what we know about riddles so far. Can your child remember the features of a good riddle from previous day? (Refer to checklist).

Have a box with an object of your choice inside such as a candle, mirror, flower, etc.  Or cover an object with a cloth.

Describe it to your child using phrases such as “I have…I am… People use me…My … do not let children see the object.

Ask for suggestions. What do they think the object may be? Can they solve the riddles?

Now its your child's turn. Can they verbalise their own animal riddles? Have a selection of animal pictures to support them with their choices and descriptions. Can you guess what animal it is?

Task 3 Plan a riddle

Today your child will start planning to write their own animal riddle.

Show an animal. Ask your child to describe what it looks like and how it might move and sound.

Research together any further details such as what it eats.

Explain that today they are going to choose an animal that they would like to write a riddle about. They will need to gather information about their chosen animal making sure that they know information that can help them to write a riddle.

We are going to focus on detailed descriptions using adjectives.

Show your child the riddle planning sheet-Model filling it out, with suggestions from your child.

Select the sheet that is most appropriate to support your child.

Task 4 Write a riddle

Today we are going to use our riddle planning sheet to start write our riddle. Recap on identified features needed to make a good riddle. Discuss different ways of starting sentence to make it more interesting for the listener

e.g. I am…

I have

I am bigger than

Sometimes I am ….

I am smaller than

What am I?

Support your child to write their own riddle.