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English / Year 4 / Language / Text structure and organisation

Curriculum content descriptions

identify how texts across the curriculum have different language features and are typically organised into characteristic stages depending on purposes (AC9E4LA03)

Elaborations
  • identifying the typical stages and language features of texts such as narratives, factual recounts, imaginative recounts, biographies, information reports, explanations, book talks, poetry and arguments for a particular purpose
  • understanding how and why text structure is important in texts such as sequential and causal explanations, and comparative and part-whole information reports
  • recognising that poems have different purposes that influence the organisation into characteristic stages; for example, poems that tell stories, poems that describe and poems that reflect on aspects of life
  • recognising the difference between a text’s form such as a poster, email or list and its organisation into stages depending on its social purpose
General capabilities
  • Literacy Literacy
ScOT terms

Text purpose,  Text structure,  Texts,  Language conventions

Text

Interpretations of Dreaming stories in text

Students learn about the Rainbow Serpent and begin to compare different representations. By creating their own character portraits they also begin to see how they can create their own representation of different well-known stories.

Text

Art in Advertising

In this teaching activity, students will explore how visual artwork supports key messages in advertising and the concept of a “call to action”. They will apply elements and principles of design to create original advertisements for an audience.

Downloadable

TrackSAFE Education Primary School Resources: Year 3 and Year 4 English

This webpage includes a unit of work focuses on behaviour in and around tracks and rail infrastructure. Activities build subject-specific vocabulary and understanding of procedural text structures. Guided writing activities support students to develop a series of track safe procedures while a slogan writing activity focuses ...

Interactive

Syllabus bites: Active and passive voice

A web page with information, teacher guides and activities on writing sentences using the active and passive voice. This resource supports the BOS NSW Syllabus for the Australian Curriculum in English K–10.

Interactive

Syllabus bites: types of sentences

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.

Text

Focus on Japan: Cross Curriculum Connections in Primary Schools

Ideas and resources that connect the learning of Japanese language with other learning areas.

Text

Focus on China: Cross Curriculum Connections in Primary Schools

Ideas and resources that connect the learning of Chinese language with other learning areas.

Text

Teaching Reading and Viewing - Comprehension Strategies and activities for Years 1-9

This resource developed by the Queensland Curriculum and Assessment Authority provides teachers with a collection of strategies and activities for developing students’ comprehension. It is a companion document to the series of guides on teaching reading and viewing. The strategies are listed alphabetically in the table ...

Video

Opinion Writing for Kids

This is a series of eight short videos for students on opinion writing. The series covers what is opinion writing; choosing a topic; making a plan; writing a draft: introduction, reasons and examples, conclusion; revising and editing.

Interactive

Painting pictures with words

Learn about the art of performance poetry and compose your own slam poem.

Video

How to Build Stories, Ch 2: Creating characters for your story

Great characters help us fall in love with stories. Characters need to keep readers excited, but they also need to think and feel in ways we can all understand, and they need to remind us of people in our own lives. Follow these fantastic tips to create interesting, relatable characters!

Video

Planning and writing

How do you write? Do you get an idea and jump right in and start writing, or do you plan and think about your idea before you start? Everyone has their own writing style that works for them. Watch Lili Wilkinson talk about how she writes, and the importance of editing and being flexible with your original plan.

Video

What's With Poetry?, Ch 3: Rhythm and metre

Have you ever had a song or a jingle that got stuck in your head? This can happen because of the rhythm in the song or the jingle. Rhythm helps us to remember a song, jingle or poem by reminding us of other songs, jingles or poems with the same rhythm. Once you get a rhythm stuck in your head it can be very difficult to ...

Video

Restoring a native creek habitat

Discover how a primary school is working with local environmental groups to clean up the local creek and promote the return of native animals. View this clip called 'A fishy story!', created by young reporters from Willunga Primary School, South Australia. The clip was developed as part of the ABC Splash Live 'Making the ...

Video

Andy Griffiths' tips for writing funny stories

Watch this video and learn how to write funny stories with tips from Andy Griffiths! What does he say is a good starting point? Why don't you try writing a story about a time something embarrassing happened to you? What does Andy say is the key to getting readers to enjoy your story and have a laugh?

Video

A school's history of sustainability

Discover the history of sustainability at a local primary school as two generations of past students reflect on their time at the school. View this clip called 'The past of our present', created by young reporters from North Fitzroy Primary School, Victoria. The clip was developed as part of the ABC Splash Live 'Making ...

Video

Describing household chores

There are several different types of verbs. In this video, most of the verbs are transitive verbs, which means they are action verbs with direct objects that receive the action. Identify the transitive verbs and the direct objects in the examples provided in the video.

Video

Changing ideas and discovering themes in stories

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 ...

Video

What inspires you to write

If you love to write, have you wondered why? Reflect on some reasons why you (or anyone else) might love writing, then watch Lili Wilkinson describe why she loves to write. How important is curiosity to her? How is that curiosity linked to empathy and why is that important to being a good writer?

Video

Interviews With 10 Australian Authors, Ch 9: Leigh Hobbs as Old Tom

Leigh Hobbs writes and draws the pictures in the Old Tom stories. He describes Old Tom as being ‘sneaky' and ‘sly' and ‘naughty'. What words would you use to describe Old Tom? In the video, Leigh talks about what he was like when he was a child. In what ways are Old Tom and Leigh the same?