Engage your Year 1 students in purposeful writing with our Year 1 Recount Writing Assessment: Letter. This task supports young learners in developing early personal writing skills by guiding them through the structure of a recount letter. Students practise sequencing events, adding descriptive details, and finishing with a closing comment, all while learning to write in a friendly and familiar format addressed to their teacher.

In this assessment, students write a recount letter describing what they did on the weekend. They use the planning template to record when, where, who, and what before drafting their letter on the writing template. With editable documents included, the resource can be tailored to suit individual student needs and class contexts. The combination of clear prompts, structured scaffolding, and visual support ensures accessibility for a wide range of learners.

Aligned to Year 1 Australian Curriculum outcomes, the task focuses on recount structure, simple sentence building, and technical accuracy in punctuation and spelling. A detailed rubric is provided to support assessment of key skills such as sentence fluency, vocabulary use, and structure. The letter format makes the task engaging and meaningful, giving students an authentic purpose for writing while building foundational literacy skills.

Key Learning Outcomes:

• ✅ Write a recount using a familiar letter format
• ✅ Sequence events using time connectives such as first, then, next, after that, and finally
• ✅ Add descriptive details to enhance meaning
• ✅ Apply foundational sentence-building skills with correct punctuation and spelling
• ✅ Demonstrate confidence in planning, drafting, and editing their writing

What’s Included:

• Black and white prompt strips for student use
• Colour prompt for whole-class display
• Planning templates (blank and lined versions)
• Writing templates with space for greeting, introduction, events, and closing
• Editable versions for differentiation
• Assessment rubric aligned with Year 1 Australian Curriculum outcomes

Materials Needed:

• Printed templates for each student
• Pencils, erasers, and colouring supplies
• Word banks of time connectives and descriptive words (optional)
• Rubric copies for teacher assessment

How to Use:

1. Distribute a prompt strip, planning template, and writing template to each student. Display the colour prompt on the board.
2. Students complete the planning template by recording details about their weekend recount.
3. Using the writing template, students draft their recount letter with a greeting, introduction, three sequenced events, and a closing comment with their name.
4. Encourage the use of time words and simple descriptive words to enrich writing.
5. Students reread, check punctuation and spelling, and make simple edits for clarity.
6. Assess student work using the rubric to track progress and achievement.

Ideas for Classroom Use:

• 💡 Begin with a class brainstorm of weekend activities to generate ideas
• 💡 Model writing a short recount letter together to demonstrate structure and time words
• 💡 Use during literacy rotations as an independent writing assessment task
• 💡 Celebrate writing by displaying finished letters on a bulletin board
• 💡 Encourage students to illustrate their recount to add a creative dimension

Top Teacher Tips:

• 💛 Provide scaffolds such as sentence starters and word banks for students who need extra support
• 💛 Use coloured pencils or highlighters to help students identify greetings, events, and closing sentences
• 💛 Differentiate by adjusting the number of events required or simplifying the templates

Our Year 1 Recount Writing Assessment: Letter is an engaging and effective way to build confidence in personal writing. With clear scaffolds, editable templates, and curriculum-aligned outcomes, this resource makes recount writing both fun and purposeful. It is ideal for early assessment, reporting preparation, or as a short and meaningful writing project.