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English / Year 5 / Literature / Engaging with and responding to literature

Curriculum content descriptions

present an opinion on a literary text using specific terms about literary devices, text structures and language features, and reflect on the viewpoints of others (AC9E5LE02)

Elaborations
  • posing and discussing questions, such as “Should characters have behaved as they did?” and “How did the author support or challenge your belief about the characters?”, and beginning to make judgements about the dilemmas characters face
  • identifying language features such as use of dialogue and rich descriptive language, and presenting an opinion about their effect on readers
General capabilities
  • Literacy Literacy
ScOT terms

Literary devices,  Narratives,  Attitudes,  Text structure,  Language conventions

Text

Seahorse: Unit of work

This unit of work has been written to support the book Seahorse. The book Seahorse is an adventure about family, traditions and being truly appreciative for the luck and opportunities that come along the way. This unit includes practical ideas for using this book in your classroom.

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Alison Lester – writing your own books

This twelve video resource contains video of author and illustrator Alison Lester guiding students to create, first a collaborative whole class book and second, an individual book using digital technologies. In each video Lester discusses aspects of her creative processes and the books she has written. Her books are aimed ...

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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.

Video

David Malouf on short story writing

Some writers can write a short story in one sitting, whereas for others – like David Malouf – it can sometimes take a bit longer to figure out where a story is going. Watch as David explains that although writing is about an "enthusiastic rush", it is also about patience.  Have you ever written a story that you didn't know ...

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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 ...

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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, ...

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Focus on Japan: Cross Curriculum Connections in Primary Schools

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

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Focus on China: Cross Curriculum Connections in Primary Schools

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

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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 ...

Downloadable

TrackSAFE Education Primary School Resources: Year 5 and Year 6 English

This webpage includes a unit of work focuses on the influences that impact on safe behaviours in and around tracks, platforms and trains. Guided activities build students' rail safety vocabulary including grammar and word building. Modelled writing activities support students to shape a research-based inquiry investigating ...

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Researching produce in your local region

This is a teacher resource containing a series of inquiry teaching sequences relating to local food and fibre production. It contains material to assist planning, implementing and assessing a research task about the places in the local region that grow and manufacture produce. This resource includes links to online videos, ...

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Crafting persuasive arguments

Develop persuasive arguments for a primary debate using the PEEL model.

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Discovering definitions

Learn how to define the topic in a primary school debate.

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Painting pictures with words

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

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Deep diving into definitions

Explore definitions in debating from the negative team's perspective.

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Fun with flowers

Students discover the creative and scientific art of botanical illustration and respond to the drawing through poetry and music.

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Marvellous mechanisms

Students develop skills in how to use mechanisms in a debate.

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Roles and rules of debating

Students explore debating rules and the role of each speaker.

Video

A sustainable vineyard - with sheep!

Find out about the sustainable and organic practices that have been put in place at a vineyard. View this clip created by young reporters from Willunga Primary School, South Australia. The clip was developed as part of the ABC Splash Live 'Making the news!' project, which featured local sustainability stories by students ...

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!