English / Year 8 / Literature / Responding to literature

Curriculum content descriptions

Recognise and explain differing viewpoints about the world, cultures, individual people and concerns represented in texts (ACELT1807)

Elaborations
  • analysing arguments for and against a particular issue in current community debates and justifying a personal stance
General capabilities
  • Literacy Literacy
  • Intercultural understanding Intercultural understanding
  • Personal and social capability Personal and social capability
ScOT terms

Attitudes

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.

Audio

Radio National: Teaching Aboriginal languages in schools

Would you like to learn another language? This audio recording features a number of Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal Australians discussing both the teaching of Aboriginal languages in schools and the benefits that this teaching offers all Australians.

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.

Video

Dust Echoes, Ep 8: The Be

The stories we tell reveal a lot about our culture and what we value. Explore the story of the Be man, which comes from Dalabon country in the Northern Territory. This animated story is about two brothers who investigate a mysterious visitor to their home.

Video

David Malouf on violence in literature

Do you think we live in a violent world? Do you agree with David Malouf when he says that violence is everywhere? Should stories reflect what is happening in the world? How do you feel about violence as a theme in literature?

Video

Tom Keneally and 1960s Australia

Have you heard of the 1967 Referendum, Vincent Lingiari or the Freedom Ride? The late 1960s was a period of great social upheaval with many young Australians unhappy with the treatement of Indigenous Australians and with Australia's involvement in the Vietnam War. How effective is Thomas Keneally's parallel between the ...

Video

Representing diversity with Sally Rippin

How important do you think it is for writers to represent a diversity of experiences and perspectives in their books? What does Sally Rippin say about the world she represents in her stories? Who are the characters she writes and illustrates?

Video

Heywire: When mining comes to town

Imagine living in your own little piece of paradise, only to have a mining company move in and start changing it in ways you don't like. On the other hand, imagine the benefits that a mining company would bring to struggling businesses in the area! There are always different perspectives on any issue. As you listen to this ...

Video

Heywire: To disconnect or not to disconnect?

How often are you ever truly alone? Today's technology can mean that we're in constant contact with friends and family. In this Heywire audio story, Dayna Duncan shares a time when she both needed to be connected and to balance her use of social media with other priorities in her life.<br /><br /> Could you write or record ...

Audio

Radio National: The Awabakal language of the Newcastle area

The Awabakal language, once common in the area now known as Newcastle, was almost 'lost'. It is being brought back to life using old texts and translations left by an early missionary. In this audio clip, listen to a discussion about the importance of reconstructing the Awabakal language and the challenges this poses.

Text

Us Mob Walawurru: Unit of work

This unit of work has been written to support the book Us Mob Walawurru. The book is set in the 1960s in an Aboriginal community in Central Australia and follows the life of a young Luritja girl. It explores the cultural challenges faced by both the community members and non-Indigenous people. The story touches on various ...

Text

Respectful Civil Discourse: Post-Referendum (Years 7 and 8)

This set of resources about civil discourse education uses the Uluru Statement from the Heart and other resources as the basis for students in Years 7 and 8 to discuss the types of debates that occurred during the 2023 referendum for constitutional recognition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. The focus is ...

Text

Crazy Fun Park

This resource supports the film series Crazy Fun Park. The series focuses on Chester and Mapplethorpe who are inseparable until Mapplethorpe dies in a tragic accident at Crazy Fun Park — an abandoned theme park on the edge of their small town. The major themes include grief, friendship, and adolescence. Find film clips ...

Text

From page to game: Multimodal narratives

This unit focuses on visual literacy and comprehending sequential art narratives such as online games. Multimodal texts, which would commonly be classified as popular culture, will be examined in such a way that their literary value will be revealed and appreciated. The driving question for this unit is How can we transform ...

Text

Representation in advertising

In this learning sequence students learn about the concept of representation, and that representations are purposefully constructed in genres such as advertising. They explore the codes and conventions of online representations and the ways that gender, age and ethnicities might be represented in the media. Students are ...

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English Stage 4 – syllabus requirements planner

This sample syllabus requirements planner is aligned to the New South Wales English K–10 Syllabus (NESA 2022). This planner identifies key requirements for planning and implementing the Stage 4 (Years 7 and 8) English syllabus. It may be useful to teachers from other states and territories for comparative purposes in planning ...

Text

Film study – Finding Nemo

Using the film Finding Nemo as the starting point, students will describe the director’s approach to characterisation, and evaluate the ways in which characters, setting and the narrative arc work together in this film text.

Text

Knowing the rules to break the rules

This resource provides opportunities to explore poetry by looking at the connections between forms and conventions over different time periods. Students will develop an understanding of the ways writers use and experiment with the forms and features of poetry to express ideas and position readers. They will explore how ...

Text

Sample scope and sequence – Year 8

This sample scope and sequence for Year 8 is aligned to the New South Wales English K–10 Syllabus (NESA 2022). It may be useful to teachers from other states and territories for comparative purposes.

Text

Cartooning Political and Social Issues

In this lesson, students will examine the role of cartoons play in presenting viewpoints about political or social issues. Students gather and organize information about a current or past issue and analyze the different sides. They plan, design, and illustrate a political cartoon that presents a position on a political ...