C Curriculum Explorer
English·Grammar & Punctuation·procedural

Cohesion within paragraphs

Use cohesive devices within a paragraph — including pronouns, adverbials (then, after that, firstly), and synonyms — to link sentences and build a coherent flow of ideas

Suggested ages 9–11

Open direct link

Learning journey

Your child is mastering advanced grammar and punctuation — using complex sentence structures with relative clauses, understanding how to change word meanings with prefixes and suffixes, and creating cohesive, well-connected writing.

Evidence of understanding

  • Replace repeated nouns with pronouns or synonyms to maintain cohesion without ambiguity, e.g. 'The explorer found a cave. She examined it carefully'
  • Use adverbials of sequence (firstly, then, next, finally) and cause (therefore, as a result, consequently) to connect ideas within a paragraph
  • Identify where cohesion breaks down in a paragraph and insert appropriate linking devices to improve the flow

Assessment prompt

When Cohesion within paragraphs writes a paragraph, do the sentences flow together smoothly — using words like "however", "after this", or "in contrast" to link ideas, rather than every sentence starting with "And then"?

Standards alignment

Eng.App2.Y5.Text.1GB · uk-nc-2013

Cohesion within a paragraph

The national curriculum in England: Key stages 1 and 2 framework document · Key Stage 2

Eng.UKS2.Write.Comp.2dGB · uk-nc-2013

Build cohesion

The national curriculum in England: Key stages 1 and 2 framework document · Key Stage 2