Context: A lesson designed for use in a 12 Essential English classroom in Queensland, Australia as part of Unit 4: “Representations and popular culture texts.” During this unit students learned about Hero and Villain films and how filmmakers use cinematic techniques to portray them and create an intended message. Their assessment at the end of this unit was to write a 4-6 minute multimodal (speech) to be delivered live or pre-recorded reviewing one of the three films shown within the unit. About the PPT: A lesson designed to help prepare students to analyse and evaluate the films they view in class. The lesson begins with an explanation of visual features. There are mini activities where students have to describe things they see in still images or clips e.g. the costumes in the Incredibles film and Spider-Man (2002). Students then learn about non verbal communication including body language and facial expression – they are then shown 4 pictures to describe. They then view a clip from Spider-Man which they will discuss after viewing. This is followed by an introduction to soundtrack (music and sound effects). They watch the trailer for Aquaman and list the sound effects they heard and the types of musical instruments which were featured. They then view a scene from Spider-Man (2002) and do the same. Then students learn about 6 main shot sizes. They then have the opportunity to identify these using stills from Wonder Woman 1 and 2. The next technique is camera angles (eye level, high angle and low angle). This is followed by a checking for understanding activity. Students are then taught about camera movement (panning, tilting, tracking and zooming). They then view clips which exemplify some of these techniques. Next up are editing techniques (montage, transition, simultaneous time, slow motion). These are exemplified via short clips (hyperlinks included in case embedded video does not work). If time, there is also information about traditional language features including characterisation, figurative language and emotive language.

About the PPT: The lesson begins with an activity which asks the students to brainstorm some attitudes they associate with heroes. The slide includes a reminder of what an attitude is and some answers which pop up when you click. There is a viewing activity from YouTube about heroic archetypes which goes for 11 minutes which you can watch to gather further heroic traits from. This is followed by an explanation of what a nemesis is and some of their qualities. Next some common conventions of hero texts are explained. Joseph Conrad’s hero’s journey monomyth is explained. Some information about criticism of this monomyth is provided as well as information about the emergence of films which have female leads. Subsequently student are introduced to a music video report card which they will fill in as we watch the 3 films this term. Screen shots are included on the slides so I could explain the various parts. We quickly recap language features (especially cinematic devices) discussed in earlier lessons. More information is provided about music and sound effects (diegetic and non diegetic sound). Information about factors which influence the listener are explained and list of words for describing music care provided. Next the impacts of light and shadows are explained. The following are explained: high-key lighting, low-key lighting, backlighting and shadow. Next the following transitions are explained in more detail – fade, dissolve, wipe and cut. Themes are explained with a visual showing common themes. Lastly, students are introduced to the film they will watch in future lessons – Batman Forever. They watch the trailer, get some contextual information to add to their report card, are shown images of each of the characters and read a brief synopsis of the plot. About the Word Doc: A movie review retrieval chart for students to fill in during subsequent lessons. Context: A lesson designed for use in a 12 Essential English classroom in Queensland, Australia as part of Unit 4: “Representations and popular culture texts.” During this unit students learned about Hero and Villain films and how filmmakers use cinematic techniques to portray them and create an intended message. Their assessment at the end of this unit was to write a 4-6 minute multimodal (speech) to be delivered live or pre-recorded reviewing one of the three films shown within the unit.

A reading comprehension activity I made using the THREE LEVEL GUIDE structure The article is about the effects of social media on teens.

A booklet designed to be filled in by students while spoken presentations are taking place in class (to keep them occupied and quiet). It begins with a careers word search followed by a brainstorming activity about their dream job. This is followed by a scereenshot of a job advertisment which appeared on Facebook for a beauty salon. Students answer 6 questions about this advertisement. There is a vocabulary building activity and an activity for using better words than ‘nice’ (i.e. descriptive language). There is an activity about forming adverbs. There are some writing activities (based on working in a hotel). Finally, students must write a cover letter in response to a specific job advertisement.

A lesson designed for use in a 12 Essential English classroom in Queensland, Australia as part of Unit 3: “Language that influences.” During this unit students learned how to create and shape perspectives on community, local and global issues in texts. Their assessment at the end of this unit was to write a 4-6 minute persuasive multimodal (speech) to be delivered live or pre-recorded about an issue of their choice. A lesson plan – designed for a supervision teacher. A worksheet of viewing questions for while watching the documentary. Lines are provided for students to write their notes on. Tip: If you have a small printing budget, worksheet can be copied and pasted into Class Note book and distributed to students that way.

A lesson designed for use in a 12 Essential English classroom in Queensland, Australia as part of Unit 3: “Language that influences.” During this unit students learned how to create and shape perspectives on community, local and global issues in texts. Their assessment at the end of this unit was to write a 4-6 minute persuasive multimodal (speech) to be delivered live or pre-recorded about an issue of their choice. A PPT which structures the lesson. It began with 10 minutes of silent reading as a settling activity. This is followed by expectations for the viewing activity and a link to the clip on iView (You Can’t Ask That’s Alcohol Episode). Students have 9 questions which they need to listen out for as they view the episode (on PPT but also on a worksheet). After the viewing activity there are some answers which can be used to prompt a discussion. This is followed by information about where students can learn more about this topic if they choose to focus on it for their speech. After this, students are tasked with creating a PSA (public service announcement) poster about alcoholism. There are some prompts on the slide and some examples on the subsequent slides for before students get started. A worksheet with the viewing questions

A lesson designed for use in a 12 Essential English classroom in Queensland, Australia as part of Unit 3: “Language that influences.” During this unit students learned how to create and shape perspectives on community, local and global issues in texts. Their assessment at the end of this unit was to write a 4-6 minute persuasive multimodal (speech) to be delivered live or pre-recorded about an issue of their choice. A PPT which structures the lesson. It began with a think, pair, share activity to define mental health. This is followed by some online definitions from the WHO and Beyond Blue & a 2-minute viewing activity. Some information about the benefits of staying well are provided. Students are then to brainstorm some strategies they could use to maintain good mental health. There are some tips that I’ve saved over the years from various places (e.g. Headspace) which I have scanned and use as discussion prompts. Then there is some information about stress and some stress triggers and anxiety and some symptoms of anxiety. There is a visual infographic from Beyond Blue containing statistics about Australians impacted by anxiety or depression. This is followed by a viewing activity about Post Natal depression from ABC iView (an episode from Season 7 of “You Can’t Ask That”).

A lesson designed for use in a 12 Essential English classroom in Queensland, Australia as part of Unit 3: “Language that influences.” During this unit students learned how to create and shape perspectives on community, local and global issues in texts. Their assessment at the end of this unit was to write a 4-6 minute persuasive multimodal (speech) to be delivered live or pre-recorded about an issue of their choice. A PPT which structures the lesson. It begins with a cool down viewing activity – an emotive video from Green Peace which showcases the impacts on Orangutan’s. This is followed by some underlined notes for student to copy (a definition of palm oil). There are some pictures to aid visual learners. A brief history of the uses of palm oil through time is provided as well as information about the two types of palm oil (crude oil and kernel oil). The links to deforestation are then explained and images of endangered species are provided. Some other causes of deforestation are shown as well as information about air pollution and soil erosion. There are some short videos from Better Homes and Gardens from when Dr Harry visited organisations which assist with Orangutan conservation. There is also a short video from Behind the News (an Aussie kids TV program). Afterwards students need to read an article called “How the world got hooked on palm oil” and identify & label the persuasive language features within it. Afterwards, some information about suggested solutions are provided along with an explanation of why boycotting palm oil is not the answer. This is followed by a writing activity where students must write a body paragraph about the issue. There are some suggestions of what to include on the slide and some sentence starters. There is also a sample answer paragraph that I wrote to go through with students after they share their answers.

A PowerPoint taking students through the assessment task (a 4-6 minute multimodal presentation). It includes a list of possible issues under the following categories: environmental issues; human rights issues; mental health issues and cultural / heritage issues. The requirements for filming their speech are included. Information about devices available to film their speeches on are provided. information is also provided about the live presentations and the requirement to submit a recorded draft. The importance of not getting an N is explained. Following this, the criteria is explained (I have turned these into student friendly “I can” statements.) Following this there is an exemplar speech about “Youth Mental Health” to read as a class. Afterwards the various parts of a persuasive speech are explained [thesis > introductions > body paragraphs > conclusion]. Then students are shown the specific structure intended for their 4 body paragraphs. Then they have time to work on their planning booklet. A copy of the “I Can” Statements The planning booklet which students used (it contained research prompts and planning steps before they began writing)

A QCIA cover sheet recommending adjustments to be made and individual learning goals to be assessed A modified task sheet for students on a modified program (called QCIA students in QLD) A modified planning booklet for QCIA students. Many of them chose to make a poster about animal abuse rather than a PPT. A modified writing booklet for QCIA students.

A copy of the PowerPoint I used to go through the task requirements with the students (10 English, Australia). Students had to write a feature article which focused on the moral/ethical dilemmas in the text. A feature article checklist which was attached to the task sheet so provide feedback to students on missing elements (in response to their drafts) Two exemplar feature articles which can be used in handout lessons or when teaching the feature article genre. A planning document to assist students to draft their own feature article.

Item 1: Key points from each chapter plus quotes related to moral dilemmas. This is a useful resource for teachers to save you from re reading the novel each year. Item 2: A booklet to give students as they work through the novel. It includes key questions, some artistic activities (e.g. drawing a map from what they have read, creating a comic strip summary of a key chapter etc). Activities can be assigned for homework or completed in class. Item 3: A word document containing quotes showcasing moral dilemmas from the novel. Can be used as a poster in the classroom.

A lesson designed for use in a 12 Essential English classroom in Queensland, Australia as part of Unit 3: “Language that influences.” During this unit students learned how to create and shape perspectives on community, local and global issues in texts. Their assessment at the end of this unit was to write a 4-6 minute persuasive multimodal (speech) to be delivered live or pre-recorded. This PowerPoint introduced students to a First Nations topic - the potential for an Indigenous Voice to Parliament (which was a recommendation in the Uluru statement from the heart). It began with some context about the 2017 convention held at Uluru. It looks at the proposals made. Some information from the Reconciliation Australia website is provided re the need for a First Nations Voice and the need for a referendum to achieve this. The draft referendum question and the wording to be added to the constitution is included. Sourced from https://fromtheheart.com.au/ Information about what the constitution is and its establishment is provided. An ABC news clip from August 2022 when PM Anthony Albanese proposed the referendum is included. Some visuals of the Campaign Slogans are included as well as some quote from respected Indigenous Australians.

A lesson designed for use in a 12 Essential English classroom in Queensland, Australia as part of Unit 3: “Language that influences.” During this unit students learned how to create and shape perspectives on community, local and global issues in texts. Their assessment at the end of this unit was to write a 4-6 minute persuasive multimodal (speech) to be delivered live or pre-recorded about an issue of their choice. This PowerPoint introduced students to the unit and what the term ‘social issue’ means. Students had to brainstorm some issues and then these were sorted into local, national and international categories. Information was provided about the United Nations as the task for this year was that students would be delivering their speech at a UN youth conference in Brisbane. Following this, students were introduced to their first issue for the term: fast fashion. There was a viewing activity from the ABC. There were underlined notes for students to copy. Information was provided about how to spot a fast fashion brand. Some things to watch out for when purchasing clothes were also provided. There was an opinion piece (text) about fast fashion for students to read and take note of the language features used to position the reader. Finally, some information about fast fashion’s impact on the planet (pollution, water consumption, synthetic microfibres, carbon emissions) is included (via infographics, images and research from websites).

A lesson designed for use in a 12 Essential English classroom in Queensland, Australia as part of Unit 3: “Language that influences.” During this unit students learned how to create and shape perspectives on community, local and global issues in texts. Their assessment at the end of this unit was to write a 4-6 minute persuasive multimodal (speech) to be delivered live or pre-recorded about an issue of their choice. The lesson begins with a settling activity where students copy terms into their glossary (inform, describe, explain and persuade). This is followed by a Viewing Activity: How shopping Apps dominate fast fashion and appeal to young people. Students are given some tips for how to reduce their expenditure on new clothes (ideas came from a podcast I listened to.) There was a brainstorming activity (to see what students retained from previous lesson about fast fashion). Students had to draw a table in their books to complete as they watched a report made by the ABC program ‘Foreign Correspondent.’ They had to make a list of environmental impacts and social impacts (impacts on the people). Following this, students learned about 3 types of appeal that they can use in a persuasive speech. We then discussed why teenagers should care about the environment (linking this to values, attitudes and beliefs). Finally, we reviewed the P.E.R.S.U.A.D.E Acronym (which lists 8 different persuasive techniques which students can use in their assessment and in the writing activities in class this term). Then students had to write a TEEEL paragraph about ‘Fast Fashion’ which was both informative and persuasive (to consolidate their knowledge).

The PowerPoint which guides the lesson. There is a viewing activity from ABC iView about Juvenile detention and some research which I found online. At the end of this PPT are some slides taking students through our school’s oral assessment policy and rules for submitting pre-recorded speeches. A handout which contains two settling activities to use at the beginning of the lesson. Firstly, there is a jumbled-up paragraph about recycling. Students need to read this and number 1-6 the correct order. Secondly, there is a persuasive text about climate change. Students need to identify and label the persuasive language features in this stimulus text. A homework task [retrieval chart] where students are to research juvenile detention (in Australia). A lesson plan – designed for a supervision teacher.

Two PowerPoints for a 9 English Unit. The first PowerPoint includes a synopsis of the film and the film trailer is embedded. This is followed by a range of clips and viewing questions. It also includes information about how Indigenous Australians are portrayed in the film. Additionally, there is a section on exploring key quotes. Students have to pick out the slang and the beliefs of the protagonist which are indicated in the quote. The second PowerPoint is a paragraph writing lesson. It takes students through the various stereotypes in the film and includes some pre-writing (planning) steps. It reviews the PEEEL paragraph structure. It includes some scaffolding (suggested sentence starters) along with an example paragraph (which is colour coded to indicate which section it addresses). After this activity, there is information about modality and some examples of high and low modality words. There is also some information about linking words.

Part of a set of resources created for a year 10 English class in Australia (ACARA syllabus). The other resources are also available in my store – Aussie_Resources. A PowerPoint designed for use in a 70 minute lesson. The lesson begins with a brainstorming activity where students reflect on the news they have seen recently and make a list of people, issues and events. This is a good prompt for a discussion about topical stories. This is followed by a survey of what category of news e.g. sports, entertainment news, political news etc. It also talks about the frequency of accessing the news and the ways that they engage with the news. Once students are settled introduce the major focus of the lesson: How do journalists / media companies shape our beliefs about / attitudes towards different people? The lesson introduces a key term ‘target audience’ and how this determines what specific news organisations report. Pose the question: Is the news a trustworthy source of information? Introduce terms for students to add to glossary: bias, empowerment, disempowerment Learn some ways that bias is omission, exaggeration, selective statistics, evaluative language and biased language choices Look at some famous people who have been shown positively and negatively in the media (images juxtaposed side by side). Great for discussion Look at an article (about Britney Spears) and how it creates a certain representation of a her through language choices, who is quoted, the balance between facts and opinions, whose views are silenced (omitted) After discussing what they have learned, the lesson ends with a definition of ‘hard news’ and ‘soft news’ and a list of news stories for them to classify into these two categories.

Part of a set of resources created for a year 10 English class in Australia (ACARA syllabus). The other resources are also available in my store – Aussie_Resources. A PowerPoint designed for use in a 70 minute lesson. This unit teaches students to be media literate and prepares them to do a speech where they analyse 1 x print news item and 1 x audio visual news item. This lesson is dedicated to unpacking the assessment task and includes snippets from the task sheet. This is followed by information about how to structure their speech (a breakdown of the 4 body paragraphs). The C standard criteria is then displayed with a second column which explains this criteria in kid friendly terms. This is followed by information about the plan of attack for how to begin the task (starting with selecting a topic from a list of options decided by the teacher). There is information about the planning booklet which students will complete over a week before beginning to write their draft. There is also an example speech (B standard) which can be read to give students an idea of what their final product will look like. There is also information about PowerPoint do’s and don’ts and the PETAL paragraph structure that we will be using instead of TEEL for this assessment as it is specifically tailored to analysing tasks. The resources in this lesson can be broken down and used over a few lessons e.g. you could take body 1 and use this as a model in the lesson where they write body 1.

Part of a set of resources created for a year 10 English class in Australia (ACARA syllabus). The other resources are also available in my store – Aussie_Resources. A PowerPoint designed for use in a 70 minute lesson. This unit teaches students to be media literate and prepares them to do a speech where they analyse 1 x print news item and 1 x audio visual news item. This lesson focuses on the visual features and text structures of print-based news media texts. It begins with the requirements of news stories and some activities e.g. make a headline from a prompt, read a headline and make it more emotive. This is followed by information about how print based news media is structured (an intro to the inverted pyramid structure). A discussion of layout and reading paths follows. There are images of news stories with the features annotated (e.g. headline, byline, lead, images, captions, pull quotes, columns). Important terms like pull quote, foregrounding, bolded text, text enhancement etc. are explained and examples are provided. There is also an explanation of things to discuss when analysing pictures including colour and the mood evoked by it. There are also some checking for understanding activities which can be done as a class discussion / a written activity depending on the preference of the teacher.