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RSRT Y3 L1 Pick and Mix Poetry

Literacy Counts

Created on March 6, 2026

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Transcript

Ready Steady Read Together

Pick and Mix Poetry: Poetry Lesson 1

What do you think you know?

What?
Who?
Why?
Where?
How?
When?

Book Talk: Let's explore this illustration.

Explore

What do you know and think?

Smiling is infectious, you catch it like the flu.

How might this extract link to the illustration?

Explore

From: Pick and Mix Poetry by Julia Donaldson © 2024. Licensed under CLA. Do not copy or share.

Today's Question(s)

A) Which words or phrases does the poet use to compare a smile to an illness?

B) Why is this an effective comparison?

Explore

Let me read today's text

Follow as I read

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A Smile

by Jez Alborough

Smiling is infectious, you catch it like the flu. When someone smiled at me today I started smiling too. I passed around the corner and someone saw my grin. When he smiled, I realised I’d passed it on to him.

I thought about my smile and then I realised its worth. A single smile like mine could travel right around the earth. If you feel a smile begin Don’t leave it undetected. Let’s start an epidemic quick And get the world infected.

From: Pick and Mix Poetry by Julia Donaldson © 2024. Licensed under CLA. Do not copy or share.

Vocabulary

Explore

Hover for definitions!

infectious

worth

realised

undetected

epidemic

infected

Explore

From: Pick and Mix Poetry by Julia Donaldson © 2024. Licensed under CLA. Do not copy or share.

I will model the first.

Find the word or phrase Read the sentence Talk about it to a partner

infectious

Explore

Find Read Talk

A Smile

by Jez Alborough

Smiling is infectious, you catch it like the flu. When someone smiled at me today I started smiling too.

Reveal Vocabulary

From: Pick and Mix Poetry by Julia Donaldson © 2024. Licensed under CLA. Do not copy or share.

infectious

Your turn

realised

Find the word or phrase Read the sentence Talk about it to a partner

worth

undetected

epidemic

infected

Use your text

Explore

Vocabulary Check & Re-read

Explore

Reveal Vocabulary

A Smile

by Jez Alborough

Smiling is infectious, you catch it like the flu. When someone smiled at me today I started smiling too. I passed around the corner and someone saw my grin. When he smiled, I realised I’d passed it on to him.

I thought about my smile and then I realised its worth. A single smile like mine could travel right around the earth. If you feel a smile begin Don’t leave it undetected. Let’s start an epidemic quick And get the world infected.

Explore

From: Pick and Mix Poetry by Julia Donaldson © 2024. Licensed under CLA. Do not copy or share.

Fluency

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Let me use my reader's voice...

Smiling is infectious, you catch it like the flu. When someone smiled at me today I started smiling too. I passed around the corner and someone saw my grin. When he smiled, I realised I’d passed it on to him.

What did you notice?

Volume

Pace

Smoothness

Phrasing

Expression

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From: Pick and Mix Poetry by Julia Donaldson © 2024. Licensed under CLA. Do not copy or share.

My Turn
Your Turn

Echo Read

Smiling is infectious, you catch it like the flu.

When someone smiled at me today I started smiling too.

I passed around the corner and someone saw my grin.

When he smiled, I realised I’d passed it on to him.

Explore

From: Pick and Mix Poetry by Julia Donaldson © 2024. Licensed under CLA. Do not copy or share.

Sound like a reader!
Stand up!

Choral Read

Smiling is infectious, you catch it like the flu. When someone smiled at me today I started smiling too. I passed around the corner and someone saw my grin. When he smiled, I realised I’d passed it on to him.

Explore

From: Pick and Mix Poetry by Julia Donaldson © 2024. Licensed under CLA. Do not copy or share.

Strategy Focus

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Strategy: Read Between the Lines

A) Which words or phrases does the poet use to compare a smile to an illness?

Be a detective and look for clues!

Teach

Let me show you

Reveal Text Marks

Smiling is infectious, you catch it like the flu. When someone smiled at me today I started smiling too.

A) Which words or phrases does the poet use to compare a smile to an illness?

Reveal Explainer

The word ‘infectious’ is usually used to describe germs or diseases that can spread easily from one person to another. By using this word, the poet suggests that smiles can spread between people in the same way an illness spreads.

Teach

From: Pick and Mix Poetry by Julia Donaldson © 2024. Licensed under CLA. Do not copy or share.

Strategy Stop

What else could you use to answer today's question(s)?

Teach

Your Turn

A) Which words or phrases does the poet use to compare a smile to an illness?

B) Why is this an effective comparison?

Pairedreading first
Find the answers
Text mark

Explore

Acceptable Answers

Text Mark Evidence you catch it like the flu

A) Which words or phrases does the poet use to compare a smile to an illness?

Text Mark Evidence I’d passed it on to him

Text Mark Evidence let’s start an epidemic quick

Click on the evidence to reveal acceptable answers

Text Mark Evidence and get the world infected

Practise & Apply

Acceptable Answers

Text Mark Evidence - smiling is infectious - you catch it like the flu - when someone smiled at me today I started smiling too - someone saw my grin…when he smiled, I realised I’d passed it on to him

smiles can spread quickly to others, just like germs

B) Why is this an effective comparison?

Text Mark Evidence - a single smile like mine could travel right around the earth - get the world infected

a smile may seem small but can have a big effect

Text Mark Evidence if you feel a smile begin don’t leave it undetected

it suggests you should act at the first sign of a smile, like noticing symptoms of an illness

Click on the evidence to reveal acceptable answers

Text Mark Evidence let’s start an epidemic quick

both happiness and illness can spread quickly

Text Mark Evidence and get the world infected

happiness can spread everywhere

Quiz Time

Start

Picture Me

Which image is the best match for ‘undetected’?

Find Me

Find the word which means‘noticed or became aware of’:

I passed around the corner and someone saw my grin. When he smiled, I realised I’d passed it on to him.

Discuss then check

realised

Which One's Right?

I thought about my smile and then I realised its worth. Which word is closest in meaning to ‘worth’?

A) power

B) value

C) kindness

D) shine

True or False?

The poet suggests smiling is as unpleasant as getting the flu.

True
False

Feedback: Who did what well?

FindRead Talk

EchoRead

ChoralRead

ReadingStrategy

Answers & Text Marks

Other...

To be a book lover, you could...

set reading goals.

Reveal

Challenge yourself to read a specific number of books or pages.

Copyright Notice

This document has been supplied under a CLA Licence with specific terms of use. It is protected by copyright and, save as may be permitted by law, it may not be further copied, stored, re-copied electronically or otherwise shared, even for internal purposes, without the prior further permission of the Rightsholder. Extracts sourced from: Pick and Mix Poetry by Julia Donaldson © 2024 Schools must purchase the original text for full content.