KS1 Letter to Santa Planning Pack

Overview
This sequence of lessons develops the children’s knowledge and understanding of letter writing. The sessions
begin by looking at formal and informal writing, before moving onto the children constructing their own letter
to Santa. The children will draft, edit and improve their work.
Learning Objectives
• To write about real events. Resources

• To write for different purposes. Formal and Informal

Christmas Letters
• To plan or say out loud what they are going to write about.
Formal and Informal Letters
• To write down ideas and/or key words, including new vocabulary. PowerPoint
• To evaluate their writing with a teacher or another pupil. Mixed Up Letter
• To check for errors in spelling, grammar and punctuation. Drafting a Letter to Santa

Lesson Overview

• To write for different purposes.

Lesson 1: Formal and
Informal Writing I can talk about the differences between formal and informal writing.

• To write for different purposes.

Lesson 2: Layout of a
Letter I can arrange a piece of work using the correct layout.

• To plan or say out loud what they are going to write about.

Lesson 3: Drafting a Letter • To write down ideas and/or key words, including new vocabulary.
I can plan and draft a letter to Santa.

• To evaluate their writing with a teacher or another pupil.

• To check for errors in spelling, grammar and punctuation.
Lesson 4: Editing a Letter
I can edit and improve my letter to Santa.

• To write about real events.

• To write for different purposes.
Lesson 5: Writing a Letter
I can write a letter to Santa using the appropriate layout.

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 KS1 Letter to Santa Planning Pack
Lesson 1 – Formal and Informal Writing
Learning Objective
• To write for different purposes.
Resources
Formal and Informal Christmas Letters
Formal and Informal Letters PowerPoint
Lesson Overview
Discuss formal and informal writing with the children, and what each of these words mean.
Look for clues – what are the key features of both types of writing?
Give the children copies of the Formal and Informal Christmas Letters. Look at them in groups or as a class.
Ask children to highlight the key features.
Discuss the key similarities and differences between informal and formal writing.
It might be a good idea at this point to use a flipchart/whiteboard to list formal and informal writing features
as a reference point, for the rest of the lessons in this sequence.

Lesson 2 – Layout of a Letter

Learning Objective
• To write for different purposes.
Resources
Mixed Up Letter
Lesson Overview
Look at the layout and presentation of a formal letter. Use examples from lesson 1 and discuss the key
features (address, date, how to start and finish the letter, formal language etc).
Using the Mixed Up Letter, see if the children can sort the letter into the correct layout. Give them prompts
and clues if needed, e.g. ‘How does this sentence begin? Do you think that would be at the beginning or end
of a letter?’
Discuss the children’s ideas and ask them to justify where they are putting the different sections.
Children can then create a word bank of formal language needed to write a letter.

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Lesson 3 – Drafting a Letter
Learning Objectives
• To plan or say out loud what they are going to write about.
• To write down ideas and/or key words, including new vocabulary.
Resources
Drafting a Letter to Santa
Lesson Overview
Discuss what could be included in a letter to Santa. Could you ask Santa any questions?
Discuss what a ‘draft’ is and why we might use one. Tell the children they will be drafting a letter to Santa
in this lesson.
Using the drafting template, ask the children to think of key words and phrases they could use in their letter.
They could use their word bank from lesson 2 to help them. Recap the types of formal language they could
use.
Children can begin to draft sentences for their letter, and to note down any further ideas.

Lesson 4 – Editing a Letter

Learning Objectives
• To evaluate their writing with a teacher or another pupil.
• To check for errors in spelling, grammar and punctuation.
Resources
Draft letter from lesson 3
Lesson Overview
Revisit the letter that the children began to draft in lesson 3, and allow children time to remind themselves
of what they wrote.
Get the children to discuss with a partner, ways in which their draft could be improved.
The children can then edit their letter and improve it further. Remind children of the features of a formal
letter (you might want to display your flipchart/list from lesson 1). Focus on the use of paragraphs, noun
phrases and formal letter language.

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Lesson 5 – Writing a Letter
Learning Objectives
• To write about real events.
• To write for different purposes.
Resources:
Draft letter from lesson 4.
Lesson Overview
Tell the children that today, they are going to write the final copy of their letter, using their best handwriting.
Focus on ascending/descending letters, position on the line etc.
You might want to have your flipchart/list of formal letter features displayed somewhere for children who
need extra support.
When their letter is finished, the children can then read their letter to a partner or the class. Children to
evaluate and provide positive feedback to one another.

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