We recently added some new DocsPlus planning and writing frame resources to LearningGrids in our History subject area.

We know resources that help students organise ideas and structure writing are not just needed in the subject of English. Literacy – the ability to read, write, speak and listen to communicate and make sense of the world – is a strand that runs through all curriculum areas and topics. 

Writing frames and planners are equally important in subjects such as Science, Geography, and History. They can help students record the findings of a scientific investigation or geography fieldwork study or structure a historical analysis.

Additionally, we wanted to offer teachers planners and frames that work across a range of different topics. Our new resources are designed with exactly this in mind. They are content-free and provide a framework only, so they can be easily adapted to suit your focus topic.

So, whether you’re looking for timelines to plot key events and their impact, exploring the importance and contribution of a world civilisation, or structuring an analysis of a historical source, these new History resources on LearningGrids provide a supportive toolkit for helping students develop ideas, arguments, and explanations in History.

This blog post will cover:

• The importance of planners and frames in supporting students’ thinking and writing
  
  
• The subject-specific importance of resources like these in History
  
  
• An overview of the range of DocsPlus resources in the Historical Enquiry category on LearningGrids
  
  
• A closer look at some of the resources and how these might be used within a specific context

DocsPlus writing frames and planners

Writing frames can offer vital support for all learners, including:

• Helping them build familiarity with form and language that is relevant to a particular curriculum context. This means students can understand the process of writing and gradually build up their own use of language to write independently in future tasks.
  
  
• Supporting working memory. Writing frames give learners a structure that allows them to focus on their analysis. 
  
  
• Increasing the opportunity for students to succeed in writing, which in turn gives them the confidence to put their own ideas into words.
  

Why planners and writing frames matter in History

Writing frames and planners can be really useful in History because they scaffold the process of transforming historical knowledge into structured, analytical writing.

They provide support for organising ideas into ‘making a case’ so that students think about elements such as causation, argument, and analysis. Essentially, they help students progress from simple description or listing of historical facts to thinking and writing like a historian.

Planning is such an important part of the writing process. The more time spent planning, the better students can focus on shaping their writing. Using tools like WorkSpace to help gather and organise thoughts before writing provides a fantastic starting point. Once students have collated and organised their ideas, writing frames provide a framework and structure for writing.

Planning structures and writing frameworks can significantly reduce the cognitive load on working memory. This allows students to focus on constructing what they want to say, rather than managing the structural demands of writing.

Additionally:

• The structures prompt students to select relevant information that demonstrates their understanding – rather than just writing everything they know.
  
  
• Writing frames introduce students to subject-specific language and styles, such as writing a balanced essay or analysing a source.
  
  
• The planners and frames break tasks into small, manageable steps – providing sentence starters, paragraph structures, or keywords.
  
  
• For students who struggle with literacy or anxiety about the blank page, frames provide a way in for engaging in subject-specific writing tasks that would otherwise be daunting.

DocsPlus resources in Historical Enquiry

There is a range of writing frames and planners available on LearningGrids. Some are standalone resources, such as the Key Events WorkSpace or the PEEL Sentence Starters Wordbar.

Others work as a set of linked WorkSpaces and Wordbars. For example, the Cause & Consequence Planner (WorkSpace) is linked with the Cause and Consequence writing frame and words set (Wordbars).

The Historical Enquiry DocsPlus resources include:

Using the resources within a specific context

Let’s take a look at how some of the resources might be used within a specific History topic.

Civilisation Profile – Mughal Empire

As part of a study into the Mughal Empire of India, we can use the Civilisation Profile Planner to organise ideas about key components such as the geography, religion, and social structure.

Once complete, we can then use the Civilisation Profile Words to start crafting the writing under each of the key paragraph headings. Additionally, students might send their planner (as a diagram or as text) to the Document as a starting point for their writing.

Source Analysis – Treaty of Versailles political cartoon

We often get students to analyse political posters or cartoons as part of their learning in History.

For example, students could be asked to examine a political cartoon while studying World War One. The Source Analysis Planner is a great tool for this type of deep dive. It directs students to think about its content, message, context, origin, purpose, and impact on audiences. This helps them compartmentalise their analysis before writing a cohesive historical essay.

As before, they can send their completed planner to the Document as a diagram or text as a starting point for the writing. They can also use the Source Analysis Frame with paragraph headings and sentence stems to support a structured piece of written analysis about the source. Students can also use the Source Analysis Words with key vocabulary to guide and support their analytical writing.

Hopefully, this has given you an insight into how you can use the new frames and planners with your class.

You can find a similar selection of topic-adaptable frames and planners for Science and Geography. There are also general, less subject-specific resources (such as discussion/explanation frames and planners) in the English section.

If you have any questions about these or any of our LearningGrids resources, please email our Customer Experience team via training@cricksoft.com or book a free customer care meeting to explore them in more detail.