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English / Year 9 / Literature / Examining literature

Curriculum content descriptions

analyse the effect of text structures, language features and literary devices such as extended metaphor, metonymy, allegory, symbolism and intertextual references (AC9E9LE05)

Elaborations
  • examining how different authors make use of devices such as imagery, and explaining the effect of these choices on audiences
  • identifying examples of literary devices in a range of poems and considering how they contribute to meaning and influence the emotional responses of the audience
General capabilities
  • Literacy Literacy
ScOT terms

Literary devices,  Text structure,  Literary criticism,  Language conventions

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Gothic Horror

This unit provides students with experiences of listening to, viewing and reading short Gothic Horror stories, including extracts and a poem from the pens of Edgar Allan Poe, Mary Shelley and Robert Browning. Students will explore how the authors manipulate language to create characters and develop ideas. After exploring ...

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Fox: Unit of work

This unit of work has been written to support the book Fox which is a picture book that explores the themes of betrayal, friendship, jealousy, loneliness, loyalty and wilderness. This unit provides practical teaching ideas, an assessment task and an essay by Robyn Sheahan-Bright.

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The Divine Wind: Unit of work

This unit of work has been written to support The Divine Wind novel which evokes an era of Australians caught up in the events of war and its effects. Its themes include coming of age, family, friendship, identity, love, multiculturalism, racism and war. This unit provides practical teaching ideas, an assessment task and ...

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Creating Fictional Characters

In this teaching activity, students will examine character as a significant element of fictional stories. They will learn methods of characterization, identify supporting details, and critique these methods in works of fiction.

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Character Building

In this teaching activity, students analyse popular characters and methods of characterization used by writers. They apply these methods to create a profile and illustration of an original character. They will then write a short script.

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Performing a Haiku: How can spoken word transform a poem?

In this lesson, students will reflect on small moments of peace or happiness to write an original haiku. Students will demonstrate spoken word to perform a haiku for an audience.

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Creation Myth Play Scripts

In this lesson, students will explore different cultures’ supernatural explanations for human existence. Templates such as a Cultural Creation Myth Comparison Organizer are provided. Students will make comparisons between creation myths then write an original creation myth play script to perform for an audience.

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The Poetics of Hip Hop

What is the relationship between Shakespearean sonnets and hip hop music? In this lesson, students will analyse the rhythm, form, diction, and sound of hip hop and Shakespearean sonnets. They will then compare characteristics between Shakespeare’s work and the work of hip hop artists to create an original poem or set of lyrics.

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The Making of Monsters

In this lesson, students will investigate monsters in film and across cultures. Students will analyse film scores and soundtracks that feature monsters. Students will create original conceptions of a monster to present in a multimedia presentation.

Video

Thinking about story themes

Noa and Francis are two young writers who've had their stories published. Listen as they talk about the main ideas they chose to explore in their stories. Find and watch the clips of Noa and Francis reading their pieces at the Melbourne Writers Festival (also found on Splash). How did they build their stories around the ...

Video

Prose vs poetry with David Malouf

Finding the right narrative form for a story can be tricky. Watch as David Malouf explains how his experience with poetry informed his prose writing. What are some of the things that writing poetry early in his career taught him?

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Interviews With 10 Australian Authors, Ch 4: Poetry with Robert Adamson

Australian poet Robert Adamson speaks to Tom Tilley about his extraordinary life, including his experience of being sent to a boys' home as a teenager, of his life-changing discovery of Bob Dylan, and of the spiritual connection he feels with the Hawkesbury River. The Golden Bird is a collection of his poems written throughout ...

Video

Macbeth: Realisation and regret

'Macbeth' is a play drenched in bloodshed and death. In this haunting soliloquy, delivered after Macbeth hears of his beloved wife's death, Macbeth seems to emerge from his bloodlust and reflect on what it has achieved. Join Bell Shakespeare's Ivan Donato as he infuses Macbeth's final soliloquy with pathos and regret.

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The Tempest: The island of grief

Caliban, the half-human antagonist of 'The Tempest', is often depicted as monstrous. Yet, modern readings of the play characterise him more sympathetically, particularly when viewed through a postcolonial lens. Join Bell Shakespeare's James Evans as he discusses with John Bell how Prospero's treatment of Caliban reflects ...

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The Tempest: Shakespeare's farewell?

'The Tempest' is believed by some to be Shakespeare's final play. With this in mind, could Prospero in some ways represent Shakespeare himself? If so, Prospero's epilogue at the end of the play takes on a new and poignant resonance. John Bell discusses the themes of giving up and letting go with Bell Shakespeare's James ...

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Romeo and Juliet: The language of true love

There are moments of extraordinary light and beauty amid the tragedy of 'Romeo and Juliet'. Join James Evans and actor Damien Strouthos from Bell Shakespeare as they discuss Act 2.2. Damien explains how Shakespeare's use of language reveals the intense passion, as well as frustration, experienced by Romeo and Juliet.

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First Tuesday Book Club: Savouring 'The Magic Pudding'

It's been nearly 100 years since Norman Lindsay's madcap tale of a bad-tempered pudding was published, yet it continues to remain popular with children and adults alike. Over the years it's been a puppet show, cartoon, play, film and even an opera. What are the reasons for its enduring popularity? Explore the real magic ...

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First Tuesday Book Club: The lost and the missing at Hanging Rock

Joan Lindsay's 'Picnic at Hanging Rock' is often considered a classic of Australian literature. But what makes it so well-regarded? And does everyone agree? Join in this panel discussion and explore why one person's literary masterpiece is another's turgid pot-boiler.

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Heywire: Fortissimo frogs frustrate family

How could words convey the nightly racket of hundreds of croaking frogs outside your bedroom window? Can you think of ways to engage readers' senses so that they 'experience' the frog chorus? A use of imagery is one of them. It's something we'll explore in this humorous story about the perils of frogs. Could you write or ...

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Heywire: Autobiography of a flood survivor

Imagine if the town or suburb you live in came under threat due to a natural disaster. How would you react? Shelby Garlick from Kerang, Victoria, was a finalist of the 2012 Heywire storytelling competition for young people. Listen to her inspiring story and explore the lessons she learnt as a result of working with her ...