Unique resources created by an experienced Secondary English and History teacher. These are academically rigorous resources that target children between 13 and 18 years of age.
Unique resources created by an experienced Secondary English and History teacher. These are academically rigorous resources that target children between 13 and 18 years of age.
Two word documents of sentence starters to help students to write their essay about identity theft / financial fraud.
Sentence starters for QCIA students on a modified program (organised for each paragraph of the essay - cloze passages)
Sentence starters grouped by cognitive verb (helping to build student assessment literacy - they need to work out which sentence starter option works best for their needs)
Two exemplar essays which can be deconstructed with the class to discuss their pro’s and con’s
Part of a set of resources created for a senior Social & Community studies class in Australia (QCAA syllabus). The other resources are also available in my store - lrigb4. Designed for use in 70 minute lessons.
Part of a set of resources created for a senior Social & Community studies class in Australia (QCAA syllabus). The other resources are also available in my store - lrigb4. Designed for use in 70 minute lessons.
An explicit scaffolding lesson to help students to begin writing their essay about identity theft / financial fraud. I always encourage students to write their body paragraphs before writing their introduction but make sure they have a clear idea of what their thesis statement (overall argument) will be so they can link to this in their body paragraphs.
This is for a low literacy class so it assumes they are mostly unfamiliar with the genre. It explains what a thesis statement is and has prompts for how to write one.It provides specific advice about criteria 2.3 (which requires students to make a decision and justify it) as this decision / recommendation will naturally influence their thesis.
It specifically unpacks the term ‘recommend’ and provides some sentence starters for recommending. There is a gradual release slide where there is an I do, we do and you do for making recommendations about an unrelated topic. This is followed by a brain break video about catfishing a teen using social media. After students make a decision for their assessment topic and draft their thesis, this is followed by a review of TEEL paragraph structure. Finally, time is provided for them to begin writing body paragraph 1 (utilising teacher prompts on the slides).
This is a draft feedback checklist created to aid the teacher to provide consistent feedback to students about their assessment in a timely manner. It has comments for the various parts of the assessment - the inquiry booklet and the essay. It also includes some proofreading and editing steps.
This style of feedback is not indicated on the actual draft itself, but as a separate document, which means that the learner has to locate the issues in their draft for correction. A lifesaver for busy teachers!
You can reduce the number of points or use this document as a template to modify to suit your own tasks.
A PowerPoint which defines realism and how this genre emerged. It also features 3 tips for character development. This is followed by a crime writing activity with a visual stimulus (which can be used to gauge students' creative writing skills prior to handing out their actual assessment).
This is part of a series of resources developed for a year 8 English class in Australia. The first resource is a list of context-specific spelling words for the first six weeks of the term (24 words per week).
The second is a PowerPoint introducing the unit and key terms. It specifies the difference between a theme and an issue, gives examples of specific social issues and it has a viewing activity to help students understand a particular social issue (poverty). Finally, it includes some images and creative writing prompts to get students thinking and writing themselves.
5 resources for a crime fiction unit for Senior English students. The first is an explanation of the cozy fiction subgenre and its codes and conventions. It includes an explanation of 'Murder on the Orient Express.' A list of more recent TV examples e.g. Rosemary and Thyme. It also includes a trailer of Identity which utilses many of the genre features but places them in a modern setting.
Resource 2: Spelling list for the term - 24 words per week.
Resource 3: Homework for this lesson.
Resource 4: homework for the following lesson (after beginning watching Identity).
Resource 5: retrieval chart for while watching identity.
PowerPoint: This lesson includes a definition of setting and tips for descriptive writing. There is Students will learn how to develop setting in their story by reading extracts from a very famous crime story called ‘Memento Mori’ to see how the author developed setting and character simultaneously. There is a lot to be learned from this text as it is an unusual story told in a nonlinear fashion. There are two distinct voices used – one is in second person, the other is in third person. As the protagonist only has a 10-second memory span, the third person voice often re-establishes the setting (but pointing out different things each time). This serves to develop the character and create suspense. Extracts from the text are also discussed in terms of how the author establishes the time of day and atmosphere along with the setting…
Two resources:
1) A PowerPoint which explains the assessment task, reviews the narrative structure for short stories. It includes structural do’s and don’ts, tips for developing their setting, an explanation of different types of narrator they could use & tips for making their narrative original / imaginative.
2) An exemplar short story for this task.
A concept which can be used to understand Macbeth. It is connected to the idea of the ‘divine right of kings’ and the class structures of the time (feudalism). The PowerPoint includes a definition of this concept and visual representations. Students then apply this to the play and have to draw their own chain of being. It looks at characters who maintain / disrupt this chain and how they do so. It also looks at the imagery and techniques used to show a disruption to the chain of being.
3 Resources:
1) Report Writing PowerPoint explaining the assessment task: (They had to create a written informative report that analyses how language, communication and technology influence our personal lives and has changed society.) The PowerPoint explains what a report is, goes through planning steps, how to search more effectively using a BOOLEAN search and a structure for the report.
2) A word doc template for students to fill their report into.
3) An example PowerPoint looking at the evolution of the Radio
A PowerPoint analysing the poem 'Men of the open spaces' with four questions that students have to write paragraphs responding to. There are example answers included. This is followed by the words for The Man From Ironbark and Waltzing Matilda and other post-reading questions.
Resource 1: A handout explaining the PEEL paragraph structure with an annotated example paragraph, a list of important vocab words including synonyms for said, a list of linking words and an explanation of what verbs like compare, contrast etc. mean
Resource 2: A PowerPoint designed to guide students to writing a paragraph about Crocodile Dundee (after viewing excerpts of the film in previous lessons). It includes a list of Australian stereotypes evident in the film, an explanation of PEEL, sentence starter prompts and an example answer. Subsequently, it includes information about other writing devices including high modality language (with activities to help students identify modality in example sentences). It also touches on linking words (conjunctions).
One PowerPoint taken from a year 10 English unit taught in an Australian school. This PowerPoint is comprehensive and could be used over a few lessons. Within the unit Students compare and contrast the social, moral and ethical themes in the novel 'The Hunger Games.' Students are being prepared to evaluate how text structures and language features can be used to influence audience response.
This presentation focuses on two moral issues within the text: Inequality and murder. It begins with a definition of inequality and listing the various types of inequality. This is followed by a YouTube video (a vox pop about Inequality in America) to clarify student's understandings of these issues. Subsequently, students are introduced to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and some of the important articles within this document. Students watch a clip from the second film and must identify which of those rights are being violated in the text. Information is provided contrasting life in District 12 with life in The Capitol. Extracts are provided for students to analyse to see how Collins constructs this inequality through her use of language devices. Different examples of inequality within the novel are provided. Reflection questions are provided at the end of this section for students to demonstrate what they have learned.
In the murder section students are introduced to the terms murder and manslaughter and the differences between these crimes. Discussion questions are provided to get students to share their views on this issue. The PowerPoint then looks into the Christian perspective on murder focusing on scripture including one of the ten commandments. Following this the focus turns to killing within The Hunger Games and the various characters attitudes towards this. Film clips, quotes or summaries of each time Katniss kills in the games are provided.
5 resources which are useful for teachers who want to prepare their students for NAPLAN.
1) Is a unit outline for a four-week skills focus
2) Minimum standards for NAPLAN year 9 (copied and pasted from the internet)
3) NAPLAN tests teaching ideas (copied and pasted from the internet)
4) A list of things to teach prior to NAPLAN that I compiled
5) A spelling list (24 words per week) of words that have appeared in past NAPLAN tests
A PowerPoint to guide students as they read the World War One poem ‘Aftermath.’ It includes information about the author’s background and encourages students to speculate about how that influenced him to write Aftermath. As they read the poem there are little discussion-prompting questions and annotations down the side. Afterwards, students will suggest an intended reading and explore how the language features contributed to this message. Finally, students will review what they have learned about WW1 as next lesson they will move onto a new time period.
The handout with the typed questions from the PPT.
6 resources used to scaffold a short story assessment task for a year 12 authority English class in Queensland Australia.
the task sheet explaining task requirements and the marking rubric.
A PowerPoint further explaining the task. It also reviews the major elements of a narrative including: plot (aka the structure), setting, characterisation, language devices and the types of narrator.
a worksheet of planning steps the students should use prior to writing to ensure they have addressed all elements of the task.
4 & 5) two example assessments to go through with students to further exemplify the genre conventions they should be using.
A peer review activity for students to complete prior to submitting their draft.
Do you have students who don't know the various parts of speech e.g. nouns, verbs and adjectives? Do you want a resource that looks at explains verbs and tense to your students? If so, this may be the resource for you.
This worksheet can be used as a one on one tutoring resource. Alternatively, you can take activities from here to use as fast finishers or homework activities. You could even put this into a PowerPoint for a NAPLAN preparation lesson.
This worksheet includes explanations and examples. It also features a lot of activities to test students understanding of what they have learned.
Three resources made for a year 10 English class in Australia.
Resource 1: Spelling list (24 words per week, 6 weeks worth of words).
Resource 2: blank glossary table for students to add their definitions and example sentences into.
Resource 3: A PowerPoint introducing students to the text they will be studying (the first novel in the trilogy). The presentation includes a brief synopsis of the novel and what inspired the author to write the novel. Reviewing expectations for reading the novel and the homework students will be completing. It outlines what students need to know to successfully complete their two assessment items for this unit.
Do you fear teaching students about poetry because of how you learned about poets in school? Are you new to teaching poetry and want some ideas of where to start? If so this could be the resource for you. This lesson is the first of many created to teach learners to appreciate poems, analyse poems and write poems of their own. Each of these worksheets has been made after consulting numerous texts about best practice pedagogy and each includes links to other resources you may find helpful (see reference list).
This worksheet can be used as a one on one tutoring resource. Alternatively, you can take activities from here to use in a PowerPoint lesson, as fast finishers or homework activities. It includes a definition of poetry, some of the reasons people write poems and the effects poetry can have on the reader.
It goes back to the basics of grammar looking at how poets use adjectives, nouns, verbs and prepositions to convey meaning. Example poems are provided for students to identify these devices in.
Other poems are provided along with comprehension questions to help students see the importance of reading to glean meaning. There is also a section on tone which provides students with a list of words to describe the tones of various texts and activities to check for student understanding.
Finally, it includes a vocabulary building and spelling activity for fast finishers.
Do you have students whose writing lacks cohesion because they just can't seem to connect their ideas together? The first half of this resource explains conjunctions and has a table of the different kids which could be printed as a poster for the classroom or given to the students as a handout to consult when drafting their work.
Do you have students who don't know the various parts of speech e.g. adverbs? Are you approaching NAPLAN and want a way to save yourself some time while still having a quality resource to use in your classroom? If so, this may be the resource for you.
This worksheet can be used as a one on one tutoring resource. Alternatively, you can take activities from here to use as fast finishers or homework activities. You could even put this into a PowerPoint for a NAPLAN preparation lesson.
This worksheet includes explanations and examples. It also features a lot of activities to test students understanding of what they have learned. It also includes an extended reading activity (of a news article) at the bottom which challenges students to find all the conjunctions and adverbs in the text and explain the effect these vocabulary choices have on the reader.