Come fly with me
A world wide creative writing project
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Come fly with me
You are going to take part in a unique project …
In this project you will be concentrating on the writing
assessment focuses. These help you develop your writing
and move up to the next level. As you write, you should
think about the assessment focuses.
 WAF1 Writing imaginative and interesting text.
 WAF2 Writing texts that are appropriate to task, reader and purpose.
 WAF3 Writing texts that are organised effectively and with ideas
structured correctly.
 WAF4 Writing texts that use paragraphs and show cohesion (they
flow).
 WAF5 Writing sentences that are varied for clarity, purpose and effect.
 WAF6 Writing texts that are technically accurate.
 WAF7 Writing texts which show a range of vocabulary that is selected
appropriately.
 WAF8 Writing texts that use correct spellings.
There are different things that you can focus on to improve your writing.
You should aim high and think about what you can do to move up the
levels.
When you write, what do you do well? ____________________________
____________________________________________________________
In your writing what do you need to work on? Choose two things that
you could improve and target:
______________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________
 In each piece of work in this project there will be a different writing
assessment focus. Keep trying to use your targets to help you improve
and climb up the levels.
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WAF4 Writing texts that use paragraphs and show cohesion.
Apply for a place in the school with wings!
Sydney Magley is a successful business woman
and entrepreneur. Her company is involved in
aeronautics and computing and is known for its
innovative designs and experimental
technology. She made most of her fortune
providing schools with computers and
interactive whiteboards.
Last year Sydney made her third billion and she has decided to use her fortune
to help young people in the UK. After thinking about what would enhance
learning and help raise achievement, her company has invested in cutting-edge
aeronautical design and technology, creating a plane that has never been seen
before and is unique in every way.
There is nothing like it in the world.
Divided into sections with luxury seating at the front, the rest of the plane
features the latest ICT computer facilities, experimental learning technology, a
research lab, library, gym, a relaxation room, sleeping quarters and an
entertainment and gaming room. All of these facilities will be used to form a
‘school with wings’.
Can you imagine being part of this and having the chance to be on board? This
is an exciting educational experience that will give everyone involved the
chance to do and see new and exciting things and to make memories that will
last a lifetime.
So, what does this have to do with you?
Sydney Magley is formally inviting all interested young people to apply for a
chance to be part of the learning team. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity.
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Come fly with me
What is on offer?
 A six week experience flying from the UK to America,
then to New Zealand and Australia, Singapore and Hong
Kong and finally to Germany and then back to the UK.
 A chance to experience other cultures and other
countries, all in first class luxury.
 Six weeks’ accommodation onboard the luxury plane.
You will have lessons on board and in each of the countries you visit.
 Time for visits and sightseeing and free time to explore.
 All food, accommodation, flights, equipment and entry fees or charges
will be covered by the company. In addition, students will be given
£50 per week spending money. There are no extra costs or charges
whatsoever.
However, there are some important conditions that all
candidates must agree to:
 Students will be expected to work to the best of their ability while on
board. Work completed will be awarded with certificates.
 Students will be working with a variety of staff and must show respect
at all times.
 There will be 20 students on board and you must be ready to work
with others and try to get on with your learning team.
To apply …
Write a letter addressed to Ms. Magley explaining why you
should be chosen to be part of this project.
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All about you
Part of the letter will be focused on you and your character.
Everyone has different skills and different attributes that make up their
character. You will need to describe yourself and think ‘what can I offer
to the project?’
Thinking points:
 What will you bring to the project?
 How can you describe yourself and convince Magley Industries you are the best
possible choice?
 How will the project help you develop or mature?
At the bottom of the page is a list of words. Pick out some that describe you.
Before you choose a word, think how can I show that this word fits my character? If
you find this very difficult ask a friend what words they would choose to describe you.
For example: you might choose the word ‘lively’. You might write:
I chose this word to describe my character as I am always full of energy,
bright and cheerful. Being lively will help me cope with all the travelling
and the work that we will be doing. I know that I would be able to work
really well with others and make the most of the project, which is why
you should pick me!
Key words
Here are some ideas – you might be able to come up with other words that describe
you. Use a thesaurus if you think it will help you extend your writing.
accepting
active
bright
calm
caring
cheerful
cheery
clever
creative
fit
fun-loving
thoughtful
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helpful
jolly
merry
quick thinking
gentle
happy
imaginative
lively
friendly
generous
good-humoured
smiling
artistic
kind-hearted
moody
resourceful
sporty
positive
sensitive
strong willed
trustworthy
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smart
sympathetic
understanding
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WAF3 Writing texts that are organised effectively and with ideas structured correctly
The letter
This is it, your chance to win the experience of a lifetime! You must make sure that
your letter wins you a place on the project.
Helpful hints:
 Try to be persuasive, clear and convincing. Why should Sydney Magley choose
you above all the thousands of students who will be applying for this opportunity?
 Write formally and clearly. This will ensure that your letter is read and that you
are in with a chance of winning.
 Use the ideas that you have worked on about your character as a starting point.
Make sure that you explain how your character shows you are the best choice for
this project.
 Paragraph your ideas and think about the order of your writing. The chart below
may help you with your planning.
 Address the letter to Sydney Magley, she will make the final decision about who
goes.
What personal skills do
you have that you will
bring to the project?
What team work skills
do you have that would
help make things go
well?
How do you motivate
yourself and others?
What can you offer?
Why you?
What would you gain
from taking part?
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What do you find
difficult? How would you
respond to challenges or
difficulties?
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WAF1 Writing imaginative and interesting texts.
Dear diary
Tonight you are waiting for the phone call from Magley Industries telling
you if your application has been successful. You know if the phone call is
positive you will have the trip of the lifetime and an experience you
won’t want to forget! Start capturing it all now – write a short diary
extract describing your hopes and worries about your application.
 Choose some words to describe your mood as you wait for the call.
 Describe what is running through your mind as you wait.
 How are your family reacting to the pressure? Do they want you to win or would
they rather you stayed at home?
 What will it feel like to get through? In contrast, what would it feel like to not go
through?
 Where especially do you want to go? What are you looking forward to most about
the project?
 How slowly is the time going as you wait for the phone call? Try to describe the
slow agony of waiting and waiting to find out the news, good or bad.
 Do you think your letter is good enough to win you a place?
Fabulous news! You have been successful! Congratulations to you!
Your application has been successful and you have managed to secure a place on the
trip of a lifetime. This is an incredible achievement and an amazing opportunity.
After telling your family and calling all your friends, bouncing on the bed and
celebrating wildly take a moment to write another diary entry.
 What do you think and feel?
 Read over what you wrote earlier. How do those fears and hopes feel now?
 What is running through your mind as you sit writing?
 What will you tell everyone at school tomorrow?
 How did your parents/best friend/grandparents/siblings react when you told them
the news?
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WAF2 Writing texts that are appropriate to task, reader and purpose.
Trip itinerary
 The first leg of the trip will be from the UK to the USA where you
will visit New York, Washington, San Francisco and the Grand
Canyon.
 From the States you will head towards New Zealand and travel
across the country seeing both the north and south islands and
visiting Wellington, Auckland, Christchurch and Milford Sound.
 From New Zealand you will travel towards Australia. In Australia
the group will travel to Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane.
 From Australia you will visit Singapore.
 The group will then travel to Hong Kong before flying to Germany.
 In Germany you will spend time in Berlin, Dresden and Düsseldorf before flying
back home to the UK.
Research task
To prove your commitment to the project, Sydney Magley has asked that everyone
participating researches one of the destinations from the trip.
There are lots of places that you can get information from to help you to do this task.
You could use:
 encyclopaedias or travel guides
 the internet
 or you could also ask people who have been to any of these places what they
remember and what they enjoyed.
After researching the destination of your choice you
will need to organise your ideas into a fact file. This
will be used by all the students on the trip so you
need to think about the language you use and the
way that you present your ideas.
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Fact file
What to include:
 Name of the place and the country it is in, or name of the country.
 What language is spoken?
 What currency is used?
 What the special days are in that country.
 Customs, traditions and beliefs.
 Important facts about the place, history or important people who are from that
country/place.
 Typical things that you can buy in that place.
 Useful information about transport and things to do.
 Highlights that people must see or do, perhaps a top ten that you must experience.
 Any other details that you think may be useful.
Because you are writing for people of your own age you need to think about the
language that you use and how to make your fact file useful and entertaining.
You could …
 write up your fact file as a booklet or leaflet.
 present your ideas to your group in a spoken presentation and produce a handout
with the key points on.
 create text and select images for a web page.
Evaluation
Ask someone to read over your work or to listen to your presentation. Then ask them
these questions:
 What did they like about your work?
 What would they suggest that you try to improve?
 What was the most useful information?
 What was the least useful?
 Do they think that your fact file is helpful?
 What do they think you should target next time to improve?
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WAF5 Writing sentences that are varied for clarity, purpose and effect.
Lessons and learning
The whole world is your classroom on this project! Museums, significant places
and educational establishments are all ready and waiting for your visit. You
might have …
 a science lesson at the Smithsonian in Washington, the
biggest museum in the world where they have an actual
NASA rocket that has been into space.
 a geography lesson at the Grand Canyon, learning about
the way the landscape has been forged.
 an art lesson at the incredible Museum of Modern Art in
New York.
 a design technology lesson at Sydney Opera House.
 a P.E. lesson at the Olympic stadium in Berlin. It might
inspire you to be fit and healthy and you could learn some
new skills.
Everywhere you go you can learn something new and
amazing: a million miles away from your average classroom.
Writing task
 Your task is to imagine a lesson that you will have on this project and to
describe what you did and what you learnt.
 You can be as adventurous as possible. There is no limit to what you write
or to where your lesson takes place.
 You might need to look at the list of places that you will be visiting on the
project and think or find out about what is there before you begin writing.
 A good way to begin would be to think about the different lessons that you
have in school and how they could be transported to the places you visit.
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Writer’s tips
 You can write this as a description of the lesson from
the point of view of a student who took part in the
lesson. What did they remember? What have they
learnt?
For example: ‘Science will never be the same again.
Today we visited …’
 You could write about the lesson from the point of view
of the person who was working with the students. This could be a teacher,
curator, designer or inventor.
For example: ‘The Magley Industries project arrived today and I couldn’t believe
some of the things they’ve done so far. I hope that what they learnt today would
feature in their memories for a long time. There aren’t many students their age that
get the chance to …’
 Alternatively, you might be writing a report for the Magley Industries about the
project and how successful it is. Your report should be formal in structure and
language. You could include details of what happened in the lesson, where it took
place and what the students learnt. You might also include comments from the
students about what they liked or disliked.
For example: ‘Lessons have been varied and interesting, and students have been
very positive about the new ways of learning and the alternative curriculum we have
been following. Today’s lesson was in the most unusual place so far and created quite
a buzz.’
 As you write, try to use sentences that are varied for clarity, purpose and effect
(WF5). See if you can avoid starting every sentence with ‘I’ or ‘we’. Check that
you have used a range of sentence starters to make your writing more interesting.
This will help you move up the levels.
 Experiment with verbs at the start of sentences:
‘Doing an art lesson at the top of ………………….’
 Try out an adverb (word with an -ly ending) as a sentence opening:
Excitedly the students gathered…….. ‘
 Use a noun to begin:
‘Hong Kong, the place where the students would………………’
 Connectives are always impressive ways to begin sentences:
Despite the fact that the students were jet lagged they……’
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Come fly with me
WAF4 Writing texts that use paragraphs and show cohesion
Disaster!
A wild storm rages across the sky and the captain instructs
everyone on board to be seated. The seat belt flashes urgently
and the plane battles to stay on course. Outside the windows
lightening rolls across the sky, flashing white. Being so high up
the sight is amazing and terrifying at the same time.
The captain tries to fly the plane out of danger lower than the storm, but the journey
becomes a terrifying roller coaster and people’s hands grip their seats tightly.
Everyone feels a sense of dread and terror; faces are white with fear. How can this be
happening?
The crew know that this is a dire emergency and are braced to cope with an
emergency landing. But will the captain be able to control the plane to even make a
landing?
After the crash and the screams, there is silence.
Silence.
Silence.
Silence.
Silence.
The plane has landed. No one is badly hurt but there is a lot of damage. The lights
are out and people are in shock. The crew try to get everyone off the plane and out
by the emergency exits.
But where are you?
What will happen now with no technology or way to
communicate with the outside world?
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Writing task
Luckily, the pilot managed to land the plane on an island. Your
task is to describe it. You might be writing from the beach or
you might have explored a little further inland.
 Is it a tropical island? What is the temperature?
 Give as many details about what you can see and hear on
the island.
 Describe the geography, flora and fauna of the island.
 What are you all thinking and feeling after the crash?
 How are you coping and how are others managing? Remember that although no
one was physically hurt, people could be in shock and very scared.
 How long do you think you’ll be stranded for? Do you have a rescue plan?
Don’t forget to organise ideas in paragraphs.
WAF5 Writing sentences that are varied for clarity, purpose and effect
Survival
What do you think should be the priority for the group now you are stranded with little
hope of escape?
 Write down four things that you think should be done straight away. Think about
what everyone will need to help them survive and what you can do as a team.
 Now share your ideas with a partner. What have they chosen as the main
priorities? Do they have similar ideas to you or different ones? Discuss your
choices together and try to explain why you think they are the right priorities.
 As a pair, agree the three most important ideas. Make sure that you have reasons
for each choice. You may need to compromise if you can’t agree!
 Take your ideas and share with another pair. You could discuss everyone’s
choices and vote on the best idea.
 Finally choose the top two ideas that you should prioritise in your group of four.
Make sure you have reasons for your choices and that you are ready to share
them with the class.
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WAF8 Writing texts that use correct spellings
Message in a bottle
While other people make shelters, collect wood for a signal fire and search for food,
you have been asked to send a message asking for help.
There are some empty drinking bottles that have been salvaged from the plane and
someone’s found a scrap of paper and a nearly used up pen.
What will you write?
You must make sure that anyone who finds your letter knows that this is a real
emergency.
You only have a small scrap of paper so make sure your writing is concise and clear.
Think carefully about what you will include:
 Explain who you are.
 Give brief details about what happened and where you last took off from.
 Try to describe the island where you have crashed.
 Implore the finder to send rescue teams as soon as they can.
 Sign off with your name.
 You could add a P.S. if you want to reinforce your plea for help.
 Check the accuracy of your spelling. If your letter is correctly spelt and clearly
written your message is more likely to read and acted upon.
Remember: the group is relying on YOU!
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WAF6 Writing texts that are technically accurate
Disaster strikes in the skies
world. Losing contact In your article you will
with the plane would
need to explain:
have sent ripples of
 what the project was
panic across the globe.
 what the plane was like
 who was on board
A school with wings
Magley Industries
is feared lost on its
 what might have
would be sending out
journey around the
happened
search and rescue
world.
teams, trying to track
 what is being done to
down the location of
find the survivors
The plane crash and the plane and to find
the loss of the plane the survivors as quickly  details about Magley
Industries and Sydney
would be the biggest as they can.
Magley.
news story across the
 you might include
world.
Your task is to write
quotations from
the news story
parents, Magley
This educational
about the plane
Industries, and the
project was one of a crash for a national
schools of the students
kind and there was
paper.
involved.
nothing like it and no
plane like it in the
Writing an effective news article
 Who, where,
why, when,
what and how
are the key words
for writing any
newspaper story.
These will help
organise your
ideas and
structure your
paragraphs.
© www.teachit.co.uk 2009
to your story.
 The first paragraph
has to include the
 Make sure that you
most important
proofread your work
details so the reader
carefully for accuracy.
gets the key facts
straight away.
 Include a mix of
direct quotes and
reported comments,
this will add interest
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WAF7 Writing texts show a range of vocabulary that is selected appropriately
The island
It’s been seven days with no sign of rescue or escape.
The group has made shelters and managed to get some food
and a fire. You are all working together to make things go well.
Over the last couple of days there has been a chance to explore the island in teams
trying to cover every inch that can be reached safely. This has been an amazing
team-building experience but everyone is wondering when you will be rescued and
what will happen to them.
As you have travelled around the island you have noticed some strange things. At
night this strange feeling gets stronger and others in the group have agreed that they
too have felt a peculiar atmosphere building up.
There seemed to be some kind of tracks on the beach when you first arrived but the
island is deserted with no sign of anyone else around. Yet who knows for certain what
secrets this mysterious island is hiding?
Will you be the one who will discover the truth?
Your task is to write an imaginative story about the island and
your discovery of the secret.
What to write?
 It could be that you discover a hidden treasure map and
search out the treasure on the island. This could be an
amazing adventure that leads to fortune for you all!
 You might have washed up on a
pirates’ secret hideaway. They won’t be
happy to find a group of students and
teachers at their hideout, potentially exposing their secret. How
can you escape the pirates and their fury?
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 It could be that there is a race of tiny people, as in the Borrowers, The
Spiderwick Chronicles or Lilliputians from Gulliver's Travels. You
might find their home and describe how they live and what they
are like. Remember, no one else in the world will have seen
such amazing creatures so make sure that you write in detail
about the way they live and what they look like and do.
 You might discover a long-lost or mythical creature, like a dodo, unicorn or yeti on
the island … or perhaps something worse! How does the creature
behave? What does it look like? How does it feel to see something
that no one else alive has seen? Is the creature friendly or distinctly
dangerous?
 You might discover a castaway, like Kensuke or Michael from Kensuke’s Kingdom.
How long have they been on the island? How did they get there?
What happened to them? How have they survived?
 Or you could write your own totally amazing and original idea about
what you discover on the island!
Writer’s target
As you write you should focus on using the very best vocabulary that you can.
Be adventurous or daring or courageously experimental!
When you have written your story read it over and underline at least five words that
you could change or improve. Keep trying to extend the words that you use; make
friends with a thesaurus.
Here are some ideas for varied vocabulary to get you started
 Green: verdant, lush, fertile, abundant, flourishing, grassy,
emerald, jade.
 Deserted: isolated, uninhabited, forsaken, desolate, solitary.
 Scared: apprehensive, frightened, terrified, uneasy, tense, edgy, jumpy.
 Treasure: riches, wealth, fortune, cache, stockpile, plunder, loot, hoard.
 Tiny: minute, infinitesimal, minuscule, microscopic, diminutive, petite.
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WAF2 Writing texts that are appropriate to task, reader and purpose.
Extension activities
1. Design a persuasive advert that would be used to publicise the school
with wings. The advert should give some brief details of the project and
invite students to apply.
2. Write the letter that Magley Industries would send out to the successful applicants.
 The letter should begin by congratulating people on getting through the selection
process.
 It will need to explain what you need to take and what the trip will be about.
 It should be written formally and signed by Sydney Magley.
3. Email your family on the first night of the journey. You might write about what it is
like on board, some of the people you’ve met and what you are looking forward to.
You might also reassure your family that you will be OK and that they shouldn’t
worry about you.
4. Send a postcard from any one of the destinations on the trip. Write about what you
have been doing. Where have you been and what are you missing from home?
5. Describe any one of the other students on the trip. Who are they? Where are they
from? What are they like? What do they look like? What have you enjoyed doing
with this person?
6. Imagine you are a teacher on the project. What have you enjoyed doing? Write a
report to be sent to your school recording your experiences and what it has been
like. You could describe a project that you were teaching and working on with the
students or evaluate the educational value of the trip.
7. Use your fact file (or someone else’s) to write a diary about your time at any one of
the destinations. For example, you may have researched Sydney, Australia. You
could describe seeing the opera house, going on a ferry or perhaps
walking over the Sydney bridge. Imagine what you would like to
see or do if you had a chance to really go there.
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8. On the island you have to survive as best you can. Everyone would have to be
really inventive with what they can find. Invent something that you could have
made on the island that would improve your quality of life. You can use any
objects that you might find on the beach, washed up or salvaged from the plane.
Draw and label your invention making sure that you explain what it is and how it
works.
9. Write the newspaper story covering the return of the project. Tell readers how the
students and crew were dramatically rescued. Include quotations from parents,
students and Magley Industries.
10. Write the end of project report for Magley Industries. This will be a formal
document that includes details about:
 the aims of the project
 the main experiences on the trip
 what the students learnt and what they enjoyed
 anything that went wrong
 recommendations for the future. Should the project run again or be scrapped?
11. Draw a map of the island that the plane crashed on. Label your map with all the
different features that you discovered.
12. Write about your return in your diary. How do you feel? How have you changed?
Would you recommend the experience?
13. You have been invited onto a TV chat show. Role play the interview.
14. A magazine wants to interview you. Write up your real life true story!
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Your work
At the start of this project you set yourself a target for your
work. You were also concentrating on the writing assessment
focuses. This is your chance to look over the writing that you have done
during this project and evaluate your work.
WAF1 Writing imaginative and interesting texts
1. Which piece did you most enjoy writing? Why?
WAF2 Writing texts that are appropriate to task, reader and purpose
2. How did you show you were writing for a specific audience? Explain choices that you
made about language, organisation and layout.
WAF3 Writing texts that are organised effectively and with ideas structured
correctly
3. What planning did you do before writing? How did that help you organise your ideas?
WAF4 Writing texts that use paragraphs and show cohesion
4. Did you use paragraphs in your work? Can you spot any connectives in your writing?
What connectives did you use?
WAF5 Writing sentences that are varied for clarity, purpose and effect
5. Re-read two pieces of writing that you did during this project. Can you spot any
adverbs or connectives that you have used to open your sentences? If you can, well
done. If you can’t, set a target to vary your sentences in your next piece of work.
WAF6 Writing texts that are technically accurate
6. Which piece did you think was the most challenging? Why?
WAF7 Writing texts show a range of vocabulary that is selected appropriately
7. Did you use a thesaurus in this project? If you did use a thesaurus, well done – this is
working towards WAF7. If you didn’t, pick out three words that you could change and
improve with a thesaurus.
WAF8 Writing texts that use correct spellings
8. Did you use a dictionary in this project? If you made any spelling mistakes, look up
the word and try to learn the correct spelling. This will help you work towards the next
level.
 Overall, what is your best piece and why?
 Which piece do you think you could have improved?
 What will be your targets for next time you write?
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