English / Year 8 / Literacy / Interpreting, analysing, evaluating

Curriculum content descriptions

Explore and explain the ways authors combine different modes and media in creating texts, and the impact of these choices on the viewer/listener (ACELY1735)

Elaborations
  • comparing representations of different social groups in texts drawn from different modes and media, for example comparing contemporary representations of homeless people with romantic representations of the swagman and the impact of these representations on the audience
General capabilities
  • Literacy Literacy
  • Critical and creative thinking Critical and creative thinking
  • Personal and social capability Personal and social capability
ScOT terms

Multimodal texts

Text

Science Fiction: Radio Dramas

This resource for students is one in a series of three on science fiction. The introduction contains links to old radio dramas as great examples of story telling. Students are then asked to produce their own two minute science fiction radio drama. A link is provided to Celtx, an application which allows you to write the ...

Text

Shaun Tan's The Lost Thing

This is a very rich resource for students from the Australian Centre for the Moving Image (ACMI), which gives them an insight into the art of Shaun Tan through a focus on both the book and the film of The Lost Thing. The content focuses on aspects of storytelling, including themes, techniques, forms and language, visual, ...

Video

Sculpting ideas into stories with Andy Griffiths

Watch this clip to learn how Andy Griffiths turns his ideas into stories. In particular, listen to the way Andy describes how his collaboration with illustrator Terry Denton works. Now team up with a friend or family member and take on the roles of author and illustrator. What ideas can you come up with by working together? ...

Video

BTN: Internet privacy

Imagine if 60,000 people turned up to your birthday party! How would you convince your parents that it wasn't your fault? A good way would be to use evidence to make your argument credible, or believable. Watch how this clip, a news story about Facebook and internet privacy, carefully selects sources of information to make ...

Online

Be on the Safe Side Year 7-8 English

This is a unit of work that uses visual and multimodal texts to promote how to be a safe, active and responsible citizen on and around the rail network. Learning opportunities include identification, comparison, deconstruction and creation of visual and multimodal texts. The resource includes: teacher notes, three learning ...

Interactive

Syllabus bites: Visual literacy

A resource with information, study guides and resources on visual literacy to support the English K-10 Australian Curriculum in English. It provides a series of activities, guidelines and tasks about visual texts from a variety of sources. Contains writing scaffolds, templates and proformas for responding and composing ...

Interactive

Creating a picture book

This resource focuses on how to create a picture book, including information, links and activities. This resource supports the Australian Curriculum in English K–10.

Interactive

Composing a graphic novel

This resource examines how authors and illustrators design and develop graphic novels. Student can use the resources to design, develop and publish their own graphic novel. Contains a list of print and digital resources needed to teach the unit. This resource supports the Australian Curriculum in English K–10.

Interactive

Visual humour

This resource focuses on how humour is created in images, films and multimodal texts. It includes activities and reading strategies to support the analysis and understanding of the processes of visual humour in texts. This resource supports the Australian Curriculum in English K–10.

Interactive

Creating cartoons

The resource focuses on discussing, analysing and explaining a variety of cartoons in a variety of print and digital texts. It will enhance visual literacy skills in a range of media texts. Students have the opportunity to create cartoons to share with others. This resource supports the Australian Curriculum in English K–10.

Video

Dorothea Mackellar's 'My country' as a song

Do you know a poem with the line 'I love a sunburnt country'? The poem is 'My country' by Dorothea Mackellar. Find out what inspired Mackellar to write this famous poem and how she felt about teenager Christine Roberts basing a song on it. This is a black-and-white clip from a 1967 current affairs program This Day Tonight.

Interactive

Secondary English: collaboration

These seven learning activities, which focus on 'collaboration' using a variety of tools (software) and devices (hardware), illustrate the ways in which content, pedagogy and technology can be successfully and effectively integrated in order to promote learning. In the activities, teachers provide students with opportunities ...

Interactive

Secondary English: presentation

These seven learning activities, which focus on 'presentation' using a variety of tools (software) and devices (hardware), illustrate the ways in which content, pedagogy and technology can be successfully and effectively integrated in order to promote learning. In the activities, teachers present students with models of ...

Interactive

Lights, camera, action: camera

Explore how cameras are used to tell a story in films. Learn words used to describe camera shots, movements and angles. See how combinations of camera shots can hide or reveal things, set a mood and influence audience feelings. Look at ways to create feelings such as excitement, humour or fear. For example, filming from ...

Online

Waste not want not: How are our lifestyles shaping and changing the planet?

This is a unit of inquiry made up of 12 learning sequences for year 8 in the English for the Australian Curriculum resource. Each learning sequence contains a series of resources, suggested activities to carry out with students and a post-activity reflection. Students will explore how the concept of rubbish, garbage or ...

Interactive

Syllabus bites – responding to literature

A web page with information, teacher guides and resources on responding to texts. This resource supports the NSW English K-10 syllabus.

Interactive

Syllabus bites: Exploring Asia-related texts

This resource has information, links and study guides on Asia-related texts to support the Australian Curriculum in English for Year 7, 8, 9, 10.

Interactive

Riddle of the black panther: evidence in favour

Build a TV report for a current affairs program. Tell the story that there is a black panther roaming around a town terrorising the people. Make the viewers feel sorry for people in the town. Examine photos, sounds, witness reports and video clips. Choose footage to fit your storyline. Edit and arrange the evidence. Choose ...

Interactive

Rainforest: read a brochure

Read a six-page brochure about the climate of a temperate rainforest in Victoria. Look at maps of Australia showing patterns of temperature and rainfall. Find out what clothing to bring and how to get to the rainforest from the airport. As you go, look up the meaning of tricky words.