Teacher notes for this lesson. Two sides of A4, not for pupils.Mild sheetMedium sheetSpicy sheetAnswers
Teacher notes · not for pupils Spelling sequence

Un-Does It

The prefix un-

Lesson 4 of 17
Year 1 45 min

Objective

Add the prefix un- to adjectives and verbs to reverse their meaning, leaving the root word unchanged, and choose between un- and re- by meaning.

Board title: Adding un to words  ·  Say it: “Today we're putting un at the front of a word to make it mean the opposite, and keeping every letter of the word inside.”

Curriculum

  • Y1: prefix un- added to verbs and adjectives to change the meaning to the negative
  • Y1: words with the prefix un- are spelt by adding it, the root word does not change
  • Y3: prefix re- (met early here as a contrast only; taught properly later)
  • Terminology: prefix · root word (say "the front bit" and "the word inside" to them)

Success criteria

  • say what un does to the word after it
  • add un without changing the root word
  • read the clue before I choose the front bit
  • choose between un and re and say why

Key vocabulary

un · re · not · the opposite · again · root word · prefix

Run of the lesson

5 min
Starter: say lock, then unlock. Say fill, then refill. Ask what the front bit did each time. Take answers on re, say 'hold that thought', and do not resolve it, the tension is the point.
10 min
Model with the café: write happy, then add un in front, and say it plainly, the root word does not flinch, nothing added, nothing taken away. Same with unkind and untidy. Cover the un with your hand and take it away, the meaning flips. Then reheat as a taster only, re is met here so they must read the clue, not so they master it.
9 min
Root & Branch on the whiteboard, Mild. The Mild set was rebuilt to mix un- and re-, so it cannot be won by tapping un every round. Read the meaning clue aloud before every vote, ask 'not, or again?' out loud each time, or the mixing does nothing.
5 min
The four vote pairs: a child says WHY before each reveal (answers: a-right, b-left, c-left, d-right). The two errors to name aloud are doubling at the join, unnkind, and the root losing a letter, refil.
13 min
Worksheet, independent. Circulate on Task 3 with one routine: write the root word on its own, check it, then put the front bit on, and cover the front bit with a finger to check the root still reads. In Task 2, unlocked is already right, so catch anyone 'fixing' it.
3 min
Plenary: two children read a Task 3 sentence and the class calls not or again. Then the class quiz: Polpetta's soup has gone cold and he says I will uncook it. What does un really mean, and which front bit does he need?
On screenSPAGhetti → Root & Branch → Mild. One screen only; no pupil devices needed. Read the bank first: the Mild set was rebuilt to mix un- and re-, so it cannot be won by tapping un- every round, the child has to read the meaning clue. Read that clue aloud before the class votes, or the mixing does nothing.
SPAGhetti · Spelling sequence · Lesson 4 of 17  ·  Teacher notes 1 of 2
Teacher notes · not for pupils Un-Does It · side 2

On the day

If the tech failsSkip the game entirely. Task 1 is the same content on paper, read the four pairs aloud and vote with thumbs. Add the clue by hand: say "NOT tidy" or "fill it AGAIN" before each pair.
If they're on devicesLesson code UNDOA (on the worksheet footer) opens the right game, locks the café until 10 items are done, then unlocks it as the reward.

Misconceptions to watch for

un- goes on anything. unbig, unsad, unfast, unrun. The rule is real but the list is not open, English chose these words, we did not. Praise the thinking, then supply the word we actually use: small, happy, slow.

un- and re- swapped. uncook for reheat, redo for undo. This is meaning, not spelling, and no spelling rule will catch it. Ask "not, or again?" out loud every single time, including in the game.

Doubling at the join. unnhappy, unnkind, unnecessary hypercorrected the wrong way. Write un, then write the whole root word. Cover the un with a finger and check the root still reads correctly.

The root loses a letter. unhapy, unapy, refil. Adding a prefix takes nothing away. Ask them to write the root word on its own first, check it, then put the front bit on.

The three sheets

Same four tasks on every sheet, in the same order, with the same look. Only the demand changes. Print the one each child needs; nobody does two.

Mild

Same four tasks as every other sheet, same order, same look, the demand is lower, not the dignity. Shorter passage in Task 2, and in Task 3 a word bank or words to tick, with printed sentence starters. Give it to anyone who needs a way in, and expect them to move up.

Medium

The core sheet. Give this to most of the class. No word bank; in Task 3 pupils choose from a few close options, then use one in a sentence of their own.

Spicy

Same four tasks, more demand, a longer passage with a subtler error, and Task 3 asks for two things at once. Not extra work; harder work. Nobody should be doing Spicy and the Medium sheet.

Adaptive teaching

  • Support: two cards, un and re, on the desk. They hold one up before they write.
  • SEN: gentle mode on; read Task 2 aloud before they edit.
  • Stretch: Task 3 extension, one sentence containing an un word and a re word.
  • EAL: the meaning is the hurdle, not the spelling. Act lock / unlock with a real door before you write anything.

Play it

Lesson code UNDOA at playspaghetti.com. The code is printed on the bottom of every pupil sheet with a QR, and Class Quiz in your dashboard opens the plenary quiz for this lesson pre-picked.

SPAGhetti · Spelling sequence · Lesson 4 of 17  ·  Teacher notes, not for pupils 2 of 2  ·  Ludora