English / Foundation / Literature / Literature and context

• TLF-IDM020946

Have you ever started out with an idea for a story and later realised you wanted to change it? You're not the only one! In fact, changing your mind is all part of the process of writing. Listen as author Tony Wilson explains how the idea for his book 'The Cow Tripped over the Moon' changed over time. What was his initial ...

• TLF-IDA004160

This unit of work has been written to support the story 'Banjo and Ruby Red'. The story is a funny and touching story of antagonism and love. Explore themes of country life, compassion, friendship, opposites and responsibility. This unit provides practical teaching ideas, assessment tasks and suggestions about how students ...

• TLF-IDA004159

This unit of work has been written to support the story 'Bamboozled'. Themes include those of curiosity, family, imagination, mystery, questioning and relationships. This unit provides practical teaching ideas, assessment tasks and suggestions about how students might respond creatively to the text.

• TLF-IDA003708

This unit of work has been written to support the book Steve Goes to Carnival. The book celebrates the festivals and culture of Rio de Janeiro as seen through the adventures of Steve the gorilla. This unit includes practical ideas for using this book in your classroom.

• TLF-IDA003711

This unit of work has been written to support the book The Emu Who Ran Through the Sky. The book is part of a series of books about the Bush Mob, a group of animals who work together to solve problems. These stories emphasise the value of respect for First Nations culture and country, as well as the importance of courage, ...

• TLF-IDA003719

This unit of work has been written to support the book The Sweetest Egg of All. The book is part of a series of books about the Bush Mob, a group of animals who work together to solve problems. These stories emphasise respect, friendship, action, honesty, problem-solving and teamwork. The book provides opportunities to ...

• TLF-IDA003728

This unit of work has been written to support the book The Toast Tree. The book is about the special bond between grandparents and their grandchildren. It explores themes relevant to discussions about Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures. It emphasises the importance of storytelling and respect for nature, and ...

• TLF-IDM017875

This is a digital big book about how a young girl makes and sells pancakes as part of a class fundraising event to help a family whose house has burnt down, and how she learns the importance of helping people in need. Developed as part of the MoneySmart Teacher Package, the story is suitable for children from Foundation ...

• TLF-IDM021421

This animation of a contemporary story created by primary school children from the Pompuraaw community in Far North Queensland. The story is told in English language and a transcript of the story is provided

• TLF-IDS7023

This teacher resource is about the Books in Homes Primary Programme, in which students in low socioeconomic status schools with limited access to books at home are provided with nine books of their choice per year. There are ten sections: Summary; Target student group; Method; Measures; Results; Lessons learned; Next steps; ...

• TLF-IDL9497

Explore the title and picture on the cover of 'Flutter-by friends!' Then make a prediction about the storyline. Listen to the story and follow as each word is underlined. Find out if your prediction matches the storyline. Put the jumbled events of the story in the right order.

• TLF-IDL8184

Design a talking cat to present at show and tell. Create your cat by selecting from a range of elements such as mood, size and colour. Choose a voice and background picture for your cat. Decide on a name that suits your talking cat. Select a note about your cat. Watch the animation. Change your design as many times as you ...

• TLF-IDS7082

This teacher resource describes the successful language strategy developed by Mahogany Rise Primary School in Victoria. The strategy was introduced in the first year of schooling in response to more than 90 per cent of the children having language delays or impairments. The resource is organised in nine sections: Summary, ...

• TLF-IDS4962

These seven learning activities, which focus on 'representations' 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 expose students to a wide range ...

• TLF-IDM015785

Watch and listen to Buzz, Belle and Bop perform the traditional nursery rhyme 'Incy Wincy Spider' in this animated music video. Use the rhyme, sung with a rock beat by Teddy Rock, to discuss, order and retell events.

• TLF-IDM020277

Watch this clip to hear Andy Griffiths explain why it's good to have villains in stories. How can the "big bad wolf" character help to move the story along? Think about some of the stories you've read lately. Which characters were the "big bad wolf" characters and what did they add to the stories? 

• TLF-IDM025069

In this series of lessons, students explore the concepts of good and bad behaviours and the consequences of outcomes of those behaviours. The resource focuses on the range of public transport available in the students' locality. Students share experiences of public transport and consider behaviours that would improve travel ...

• TLF-IDM020040

Watch and listen as local Parnkalla (Barngarla) boys Darnell and Kaiden Richards take you to their special place: Shelly Beach in Port Lincoln, South Australia. Learn some local Parnkalla words as the boys share a story about what connects their family and community to this beach.

• TLF-IDM019890

Listen as Anne Gela tells the story of "Gubuluk". Anne is a Mualgal woman from the St Paul community of Moa Island, which is in the inner-west Torres Strait group of islands. Can you find Moa Island on a map? Anne speaks Big Thap Creole/Yumplatok.

• TLF-IDM015622

Watch and listen as Buzz, Belle and Bop perform 'Hey diddle diddle' in this animated music video. Then try to create your own sentences that include pairs of words that sound the same at the end (rhyme).

• TLF-IDM015433

Sing along with Buzz, Belle and Bop as they perform 'Twinkle, twinkle little star' in this animated music video. Then have some fun exploring rhyme and description as you create your own verse for this classic nursery rhyme.

• TLF-IDM020956

Tony Wilson says that listening to rhyming books is like listening to music. How are they similar? Read a rhyming book out loud or ask someone to read one to you, and see if you can hear the rhythm. Can you clap along to it? Think about rhythm when you write your next story. Can you write something that has a beat?

• TLF-IDM010588

This is a simple printable worksheet for students to complete once they have finished the interactive resource 'Travelling pronouns'. It consists of four sentences, each of which contains at least one pronoun choice to make. Students make their choices by colouring in their preferred option. This resource is one of a series ...

• TLF-IDM025707

Clark is a shark with zing, bang, and boom. Clark zooms into school, crashes through the classroom, and is rowdy at recess. Clark loves life – but when his enthusiasm is too much for his friends, Clark’s teacher, Mrs. Inkydink, helps him figure out a way to tone it down. Clark the Shark celebrates boisterous enthusiasm ...

• TLF-IDM025711

Sophie's no ordinary house spider. She's an artist; and every web she spins is more wondrous than the one before. But don't mention that to the guests at Beekman's Boardinghouse, because they don't like spiders. This series of videos features illustrated stories read aloud by well-known US based actors supported by the ...

• TLF-IDL7862

Help a dragon remember what happened in his dream. View four pictures from a recount. Place the pictures in the correct order. Choose sentences to match what is happening in the pictures. Add temporal connectives such as 'to begin with', 'after that' and 'last of all' to show the order of events. Watch an animation of the ...

• TLF-IDL8288

It’s time to give away a bike that you have outgrown. Create a notice to find someone to give your bike to. Include a statement, photo and important details such as contact address and phone number. Select places to put up the notice. Consider the replies to your notice when deciding who to give the bike to. Look for the ...

• TLF-IDL8287

Honey the dog needs someone to walk her in the mornings. Create a notice to find someone to walk Honey. Include a statement, photo and important details such as contact address and phone number. Select places to put up the notice. Consider the replies to your notice when deciding who is to walk Honey. Look for the dog-walker ...

• TLF-IDM025710

There are two sides to every story. In Part One, a little girl finds a strange beast in the woods and takes it home as a pet. She feeds it, shows it off to her friends and gives it a hat. But that night it escapes. Then, in Part Two, the beast tells the story of being kidnapped by the girl, who force-fed it squirrel food, ...

• TLF-IDM020010

Listen to author and artist Aunty Gloria Whalan, as she tells the story of Guulaangga, the Green Tree Frog. Gloria is an elder of the Morwell community, though she grew up in Lithgow, NSW. Her people are the Wiradjuri, from around the Blue Mountains in NSW. This story is inspired by Gloria's experiences growing up on a ...

• TLF-IDM020663

How can drawings of characters give readers clues about who they are? What are some of the clues Leigh Hobbs gives us about Old Tom's character through his drawings of him? Do you have a character in your head that you've been thinking about for a while? As you draw or write about your character, remember what Leigh says ...

• TLF-IDL8186

Design a talking dinosaur to present at show and tell. Create your dinosaur by selecting from a range of elements such as mood, size and colour. Choose a voice and background picture for your dinosaur. Decide on a name that suits your talking dinosaur. Add a note about your dinosaur. Watch the animation. You can change ...

• TLF-IDM025085

This unit of work focuses on developing student understanding of the importance of being track safe and the key message 'Stop, Look, Listen, Think'. It builds students' familiarity with the vocabulary and key concepts related to rail safety and provides differentiated activities for writers at different stages of development ...

• TLF-IDA002727

This informative digital text about Australian animals is for teachers to read aloud to students. The text has s a question and answer puzzle format and it provides clues and information about the appearance, habitat and behaviours of the crocodile, platypus, cassowary and quoll. The resource includes a teaching sequence ...

• TLF-IDA002748

This persuasive digital text is a poster advertising a community clean up day. The resource includes a teaching sequence related to the Big Six components of literacy development (oral language, phonological awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary and comprehension) with student activities, graphic organisers and worksheets, ...

• TLF-IDA002747

This persuasive digital text is an illustrated jingle that persuades readers to brush their teeth. The resource includes a teaching sequence related to the Big Six components of literacy development (oral language, phonological awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary and comprehension) with student activities, graphic organisers ...

• TLF-IDA002743

This imaginative digital text is an illustrated rhyming poem for teachers to read aloud to students. It is about a girl who visits different and amazing places. The resource includes a teaching sequence related to the Big Six components of literacy development (oral language, phonological awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary ...

• TLF-IDA002746

This imaginative digital text is an illustrated narrative for teachers to read aloud to students. It is about Monkey, and how she learns an important message about friendship. The resource includes a teaching sequence related to the Big Six components of literacy development (oral language, phonological awareness, phonics, ...

• TLF-IDA002744

This imaginative digital text is an innovation on the traditional tale of Little Red Riding Hood. It is an audio text with matching illustrations. The resource includes a teaching sequence related to the Big Six components of literacy development (oral language, phonological awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary and comprehension) ...

• TLF-IDA002729

This persuasive digital text is for teachers to read aloud to students. This digital book uses persuasive language and images to highlight the benefits of being active. The resource includes a teaching sequence related to the Big Six components of literacy development (oral language, phonological awareness, phonics, fluency, ...

• TLF-IDM021440

These resources provide support for Early Years (K-2) educators with ideas and options for including Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander knowledge, understanding and skills in their teaching and learning programs. A filter is provided to guide teachers to resources which relate to specific learning areas and/or year ...

• TLF-IDM016280

A web page resource with information, teacher guides and activities on types of sentences to support the Australian Curriculum in English K–10. It has detailed activities, links to resources and quizzes.

• TLF-IDM025437

This inquiry-based unit of work was created, trialled and peer reviewed as part of a professional learning program in inquiry-based learning for school teachers. The professional learning courses were part of a pilot partnership between the NSW Government’s Sydney Metro transport agency and Western Sydney University.