Download The useful plough KS2 Lesson Plan

Song 9: The useful plough
Title page for song/KS2 subject areas:
There are seven suggested subject areas for this song:

ECL
[Link] Understanding English, communication and languages;
Writing poetry

M
[Link] Mathematical understanding;
Angles, direction and coordinates

S/T
[Link] Scientific and Technological understanding;
Rocks and soils

ICT
[Link] Information and Communications Technology;
Research project – rural Britain

H/G/S [Link] Historical, geographical and social understanding;
Farming

P/D/H/W [Link]Understanding physical development, health and well being;
Environment and well being

A
[Link] Understanding the arts;
Landscapes
Understanding English, communication and languages
There are plenty of rhyming lyrics in ‘The useful plough’ and children love to pick out the rhyming words
and enjoy the rhythm of the rhyming couplets.
This is a good opportunity for children to speak audibly and clearly, and to evaluate their speech and
reflect on how it varies. Work in pairs and listening partners can identify features of language used and
respond to others appropriately, taking into account what they say. To develop understanding and
appreciation of rhyming poetry, pupils should be taught to identify the use and effect of specialist
vocabulary.
Children can then write poems with rhyming couplets. Pupils should be taught to choose appropriate form
and content to suit a particular purpose, broaden their vocabulary and use it in inventive ways, use
language and style that are appropriate to the reader and use and adapt the features of a form of writing,
drawing on their reading. Remember to:

Plan – note and develop initial ideas

Draft – develop ideas from the plan into structured written text

Revise – change and improve the draft

Proofread – check the draft for spelling and punctuation errors, omissions and repetitions

Present – prepare a neat, correct and clear final copy

Read, discuss and evaluate their own and others’ writing. Perform poems.
Mathematical understanding
A visit to a farm could be the inspiration for a great deal of ‘real live’ mathematics. The farm machinery
could be drawn and angles measured. A map of the farm could be drawn and direction indicated.
Coordinates could be written on the map. The children could work in teams to devise problems for other
groups. This could be a competition and involve some orienteering.
Pupils should be taught to: Make connections in mathematics and appreciate the need to use numerical
skills and knowledge when solving problems. They should be taught to recognise right angles,
perpendicular and parallel lines; know that angles are measured in degrees and that one whole turn is 360
degrees and angles at a point total 360 degrees, then recognise that angles at a point on a straight line total
180 degrees; know that the sum of the angles of a triangle is 180 degrees.
http://www.tes.co.uk/teaching-resource/The-Farm-A-living-classroom-for-KS2-Maths-6067181
There are other websites which give ideas for Maths on the farm. Have a look…
Scientific and Technological understanding
Rocks and soils are key to the type of farming that will take place in any particular area. Pupils should be
taught to describe and group rocks and soils on the basis of their characteristics, including appearance,
texture and permeability.
Characteristics of rocks
• Some rocks are harder than others. For example, granite is a very hard rock, while chalk is a very soft
rock and wears away easily
• Some rocks, such as sandstone or chalk, let water soak through them. They are called permeable rocks
• Other rocks, such as marble and slate, do not let water soak through them. They are called impermeable
rocks
Uses of rocks
• Because slate is a hard, impermeable rock, which splits easily into thin sheets, it is ideal for making
roofing tiles
• Marble has an attractive texture and colour, and can be easily cut and polished. Because of this, it is often
used to create statues
• Chalk is a rock that is formed from the skeletons of tiny sea animals. It wears away very easily which is
why it is ideal for making sticks of chalk to write on blackboards
• Granite is a coarse-grained rock that is hard and impermeable. It is often used to make steps and roads as
it is a rock that doesn’t wear away easily
Soils
• Soils are a mixture of tiny particles of rock, dead plants and animals, air and water
• Different plants grow better in different types of soil
• Sandy soil is pale in colour with lots of small air gaps. Water drains through sandy soil easily so it
usually feels quite dry
• Clay soil is an orange or blue-ish sticky soil with very few air gaps. Water does not drain through it
easily. When it rains, puddles stay on top of clay soil for a long time
• Chalky soil is a light brown soil through which water drains quickly
• Peat is different from other soils because it doesn’t contain any rock particles. It is made from very old
decayed plants and is dark, crumbly and rich in nutrients.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/scienceclips/ages/7_8/rocks_soils.shtml
Back in the classroom the children can design and make a ‘useful plough’!
http://www.historyforkids.org/learn/economy/plow.htm
Historical, Geographical and Social understanding
This is linked to the farm visit.
http://www.historyforkids.org/learn/economy/plow.htm
Understand how farms operate and differ according to location. Decide the period of history to which the
words of the song are referring and discover how the British farming landscape has changed. Link to ‘“Eeoh!”’ which also has a farming theme.
Information and Communication Technology
Use digital photography to capture images from the farm and rural landscapes. Use the internet to research
farming types above.
Understanding physical development, health and well being
This calls for a dramatic debate! The words of ‘The useful plough’ indicate farming to be an idyllic life. Is
it? Split the class into two teams - one for the notion that a farmer’s life is idyllic and one and one against.
From the English National Curriculum:
Group discussion and interaction
To talk effectively as members of a group, pupils should be taught to:
a. make contributions relevant to the topic and take turns in discussion
b. vary contributions to suit the activity and purpose, including exploratory and tentative comments where
ideas are being collected together, and reasoned, evaluative comments as discussion moves to conclusions
or actions
c. qualify or justify what they think after listening to others' questions or accounts
d. deal politely with opposing points of view and enable discussion to move on
e. take up and sustain different roles, adapting them to suit the situation, including chair, scribe and
spokesperson
f. use different ways to help the group move forward, including summarising the main points, reviewing
what has been said, clarifying, drawing others in, reaching agreement, considering alternatives and
anticipating consequences.
http://www.educationworld.com/a_lesson/lesson/lesson304.shtml
Understanding the Arts
From the 18th century onwards British landscapes typify English art, inspired largely from the love of the
countryside.
Look at the work of Constable and Palmer.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Constable
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samuel_Palmer
Using watercolour, encourage the children to paint a British farming landscape.