STA 2018 KS1 Expected Standard
Accurately spell selected common exception words and high-frequency words: said, some, something, then and can’t.
Year 2 · targeted lesson · 6 pieces
Published exemplification — the same live marking as the product, on government or exam-board material, not a pupil’s book. STA KS1 English writing exemplification. Contains material developed by the Standards and Testing Agency for 2018 national curriculum assessments and licenced under Open Government Licence v3.0.
Targeted lesson
Created 27 August 2026
Priority gap
Accurately spell selected common exception words and high-frequency words: said, some, something, then and can’t.
1.Lesson focus
Group
Year 2 writer
Year group
Year 2
Writing context
Short writing across instructions and description, building on the writer’s clear organisation and purposeful ideas.
Priority gap
Accurately spell selected common exception words and high-frequency words: said, some, something, then and can’t.
Evidence from the writing
“‘cant’ and ‘any thing’”
“‘Some thing’ and ‘Said’”
“‘Than’ for ‘Then’”
Existing strengths
- You organise instructions clearly using words such as ‘First’, ‘Next’ and ‘Now’.
- You use imaginative, specific description, including phrases such as ‘rings of fire’ and ‘the center of the sun’.
- You have noticed and corrected some spellings in your writing.
Likely misconception
You may write a word how it sounds, or split a word that is usually written as one word. You may also choose than when you mean then.
2.Learning goal
Today we are learning to check and spell five useful words correctly: said, some, something, then and can’t.
Why it matters
These are useful words for giving instructions and adding description, so spelling them accurately helps your reader understand your ideas straight away.
3.Success criteria
- I can spot the correct spelling of said, some, something, then and can’t.
- I can use a word bank to spell these words correctly in a sentence.
- I can write and check these words correctly in my own short piece of writing.
4.Activate and diagnose
Read this together
“First get some paper. Than write some thing you want to Said.”
Diagnostic questions
- Circle the words that do not look quite right. Which words would you check?
- Which word means ‘next’: than or then?
- Is ‘something’ one word or two words?
- Which spelling is correct: said or Said?
5.Explicit teaching
The feature
Selected common exception and high-frequency words that need to be remembered rather than sounded out alone.
When it's used
Use them whenever they are needed in a sentence, especially when explaining what happened, adding an amount, joining ideas or giving the next instruction.
How it works
Read the word, say it, notice the tricky part, cover it, write it, then uncover and check it. Keep something as one word: some + thing. Choose then for time or the next step; than is used when comparing, for example ‘bigger than’. Remember said has ‘ai’, even though it sounds like ‘sed’. In can’t, the apostrophe shows missing letters in cannot.
Common mistake
Writing ‘Some thing’ as two words, using than when the meaning is ‘next’, or spelling said as it sounds.
Remember
Say it, spot it, cover it, write it, check it.
6.Teacher model
Before
Next Said what you need. Than choose some thing to make.
Think aloud
“I can hear three useful words that need checking. ‘Said’ is a word I remember with ai. I mean the next step, so I need then, not than. ‘Something’ is one word: some + thing. I will use my routine: say it, spot it, cover it, write it, check it.”
After
Next, said what you need. Then choose something to make.
What changed
The checked words are now spelled correctly: said, then and something.
7.Guided practice
Work on this together
“Complete and check these instruction sentences together: ‘First, get ___ shiny paper. ___ choose ___. Write what you want to say. You ___ write, “I ___ make a fire dragon.”’”
Prompts to use
- Which word means an amount: some or sum?
- Which word tells us the next step: then or than?
- Should we write some thing as one word or two?
- Use the word bank, then cover each completed word and write it again. Does it match when you check?
- Read the completed instructions aloud. Do the chosen words make sense?
8.Independent application
Task
Write two short instructions for making or drawing a fire dragon. Include at least three of these words: said, some, something, then, can’t. Use the word bank first, then cover it and check each word after writing.
Transfer into their own writing
In your next description, story or set of instructions, pause when you use one of these words. Use: say it, spot it, cover it, write it, check it.
9.Review and check
Review questions
- Which word do we use when we mean ‘next’: then or than?
- How many words is something?
- What is the checking routine?
- Which letters are tricky in said?
Exit check
Without looking at the word bank, write this sentence: ‘Then I said something.’ Check each target word by looking back at the word bank.
Judging the outcome
Secure
Completes the exit check accurately and independently.
Developing
Applies the skill with prompting or with partial accuracy.
Not yet secure
Cannot yet apply the skill without direct support.
10.Next step
If secure
Add two further useful words from the child’s current writing to a personal ‘check it’ list and use the same routine in a longer independent piece.
If developing
Keep the five-word word bank visible and rehearse reading, covering, writing and checking each word before the next writing task.
If not yet secure
Reduce the set to said, then and something. Practise each through oral rehearsal, magnetic or written letter building, and immediate checking.
Future review
At the start of the next instructions or description lesson, dictate one sentence containing then, said and something, then ask the writer to self-check against their word bank.
Mark your own piece of writing
Photograph a handwritten piece and get the same report — free to start, no card required.