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.
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 (although with drafting time it may take a few lessons depending on the needs and abilities of students).
This lesson begins with an explanation of what students need to put into their introduction to their multimodal. There is an example that can be read and discussed to see where they are fulfilling criteria 1.1 and 1.2. The next slide contains some sentence starters to get them started. After writing their introduction there are some proofreading and editing steps.
This is followed by an explanation of the purpose of a conclusion in a multimodal and the key things the marker would expect to see. There are also some sentence starters to prompt students. After completing the editing steps which follow, I outline some things students need to work on to be ready to present on time (e.g. palm cards). This is followed by a recommended structure for the PowerPoint.
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.
This lesson is designed to teach students visual analysis skills required for their assessment. Students have to identify at least two of these for each of the stimulus pieces provided. There are images provided for each of the terms which provide useful discussion starters. The techniques include: body language / facial expressions, framing, the rule of thirds, lines (straight and curved), colour, layout and size. This is followed by a range of images which students can practice analysing. Depending on the amount of time and their needs / abilities this can be done verbally or in written paragraph form. I do, we do, you do’s can also be analysed.
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.
The first lesson to introduce students to the ‘Science and Technology’ unit. It begins with a pre-unit survey to identify what students already know and to prompt class discussions. It features an infographic about identity crime within Australia which has some interesting statistics to unpack. Afterwards, students take notes about the key terms (science and technology) before exploring some of the advances with using technology to access healthcare. This includes some news stories from the beginning of 2020 when COVID 19 necessitated swift upgrades in this field. It is a good lesson for engaging students in the topic and getting them to think about the impact of technology on people’s lives. It also includes some videos of cool technology innovations if you get through all the lesson content.
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 - Aussie_Resources. Designed for use in 70 minute lessons. This unit allows students to demonstrate planning, evaluation and inquiry by investigating the role technology, in particular the internet and social media, plays in their own life. They will explore the advantages and challenges associated with changing technology and how they can be safe when using it. Students will evaluate and analyse how science and technology has advanced the way we interact and improve our way of living. Students will learn how science and technology can help out society in the 21st Century. They will also learn the effects that science and technology have on society.
Two resources: A PowerPoint and Worksheet. The worksheet is designed to step students through the lesson. It includes copies of the sources on the PPT slide and questions for them to answer. It also includes space for them to copy the notes that have been underlined in the PPT presentation.
The PPT begins with answers to the homework analysis activity – analysing a visual source about the revolution. This is followed by information about two key revolutionaries: Vladimir Lenin and Leon Trotsky. There is a YouTube viewing activity about how these two men rose to power. Students have a graphic organiser to fill in as they watch. ‘Leninism’ is explained followed by information about the return of the Bolshevik revolutionaries from exile. Information about why this is a turning point is provided. After this ‘The July Days’ is explained as well as lessons that Trotsky took away from this. Information about the rising political support for the Bolshevik party is provided. Subsequently, information about how the provisional government was overthrown is included. A timeline of the October revolution is provided followed by some checking for understanding activities. The homework task is then explained. (I usually tell students to take a photo of the homework instructions). Additional videos are linked for if you need to kill time.
Designed to meet the requirements of the senior Modern History syllabus (implemented in QLD in 2019), this unit falls under the category of ‘Ideas in the Modern World.’
Two resources: A PowerPoint and Worksheet. The worksheet is designed to step students through the lesson. It includes copies of the sources on the PPT slide and questions for them to answer. It also includes space for them to copy their notes. 4 pages.
The PPT begins with an explanation of ‘The Lena Goldfields Massacre’ (4th April 1912) and its impacts. There is information about how WW1 gave the Tsar a temporary reprieve from discontent (due to initial rates of public support for the war). Information about Lenin’s view of the war and his wish for a social revolution is provided. Information about why the Russian army suffered so many defeats (ammunition supplies, internal organisation etc) are provided and used to explain how this war was so damaging for Nicholas II’s reputation. There is also information about Rasputin’s political and social impacts. This lesson ends with an informative YouTube video about The Russian October Revolution 1917.
Designed to meet the requirements of the senior Modern History syllabus (implemented in QLD in 2019), this unit falls under the category of ‘Ideas in the Modern World.’
Part of a set of resources created for a senior Modern History class in Australia (QCAA syllabus). The assessment to be completed in this unit is a ‘Independent Source Investigation’ where students must develop their own key research question, write a rationale, locate sources, analyse and evaluate those sources and write a critical summary of evidence.
This is a scaffolding booklet which takes students through the planning and writing phases of their assessment.
It begins with prompts to select an individual / group to focus on. It provides tips for writing a key inquiry question and an example for a different topic from the QCAA exemplar for IA2.
Then, to assist the students to write 3-5 sub questions, there is information about each historical concept (which they could choose to use as a frame for their questions). There is a template for reflecting on the worth of their key and sub questions.
After this students can create a tentative thesis statement / hypothesis. There is information to help students to do this. (Eventually this will be incorporated into their rationale section of their assessment).
There are a series of tables where students can store the information / sources they found. There is a column for analysis and a column for evaluation where students can make dot points to gather their ideas ready to be turned into a succinct response in their assessment.
This is followed by writing tips for the rationale and critical summary of evidence, referencing tips and a self-review checklist for students to use to check their work prior to submitting a draft.
There is also a peer review form for students to use to receive feedback from a ‘critical friend.’
A revision sheet for students to use in lessons prior to their exam. It gives them an opportunity to practice the types of questions they will encounter in their exam. For each question there are numbers in brackets which indicate to students which criteria is being assessed in this question.
It begins with questions about what the cognitive verbs ‘decide, justify and explain’ mean. This is followed by questions asking studetns to define key terms and provide examples e.g. Australia’s Sex Discrimination Act, cisgender, sexual harrassment etc. Following this, a list of scenarios are provided and students must circle which are examples of gender discrimination. Next students must brainstorm some stereotypes about the following groups which are perpetuated in the media: mothers, single women, fathers and single men. After this they explain the impact of these stereotypes (in a short response question). They view an advertisement (men’s underwear) and answer 3 questions about this. They receive a profile of a person and answer 3 questions about this. These are followed by a question about what it means to be feminine and masculine. After this they read a small case study involving discrimination and have to identify and explain the viewpoints in this scenario. Following this they must answer some short response questions about this scenario. The final question is an extended response where students must engage with a range of visual and written sources and use these as evidence within their response.
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 - Aussie_Resources. Designed for use in 70 minute lessons. The end of term assessment for this unit was a 90 minute short response examination.
Resource 1: A copy of the seen sources for the practice exam which were provided to students a week prior to the practice examination (to mimic the real assessment conditions).
Resource 2: A copy of the practice exam which can be sat over two lessons to provide the full 90 minutes plus planning time. This is a short response exam with responses ranging between 50-250 words per question. This exam is split into two parts.
Part A includes a section where students must define key terms and provide examples. There is a section where they must explain gender stereotypes about men and women and provide examples. Then, students are provided with a picture of a person and some information about them which they use to respond to questions about what traits they have, what assumptions people might make about the person’s sexuality and whether it is fair to make assumptions about people based on their appearance. Following this, there are 2 scenarios of workplace discrimination which students must read. They choose one to complete a graphic organiser table (identifying the various viewpoints in the scenario). This is followed by an extended response question about this scenario.
In Part B: Students are provided with another practice question where they see an image of a person and read information about their occupation and interests/hobbies before responding to questions about them. Following this, students read a news article entitled ‘What media teach kids about gender can have lasting effects, report says.’ They must write a 100 word response to a question about this article. The next source for the exam is a men’s gillette razor advertisement. Students must explain the effect the advertisement could have on female and male audiences. The same style question is posed again for a Burger King advertisement which uses sex appeal to sell the product. After this, students must explain Australia’s Sex Discrimination Act (1984) and the types of discrimination it prohibits. Finally, the examination concludes with an extended response question where students must decide if the representations of gender in the media have a negative or positive impact on people and justify their answer with evidence from at least 2 sources.
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 - Aussie_Resources.
A PowerPoint used to teach students about the Hundred Flowers Campaign. It includes notes from textbooks and online sources, viewing activities (propaganda posters, images and videos from YouTube) & different historian’s interpretations of this event. The homework task is for students to research the Anti-Rightist campaign and create a poster to display on our learning wall.
Resources designed for the new senior Modern History syllabus (implemented in QLD in 2019). The end of term assessment for this unit was an Independent Source Investigation.
The content would also be useful more broadly for students in other states and countries with an interest in the China (1931-1976). The other resources are also available in my store – Aussie_Resources.
A PowerPoint used to teach chapters 11-15 of Phillip Gwynne’s 1998 novel Deadly Unna?
We would read one chapter at a time (or listen to the audio book on CD) and then students would answer the chapter questions.
This PowerPoint contains a summary for each chapter and then slides with answers to the chapter questions. The PPT also includes links to ClickView where parts of the film Australian Rules have been snipped which illustrate events from that particular chapter (I did not show the film in its entirety as it has some parts where it differs from the novel).
This PPT also includes the questions for chapters 16-17 (no answers).
Resources designed for 10 English in Queensland, Australia. It is part of a novel study unit which culminates in a 90-minute examination (500 to 800-word essay). Students had 1 week notice of the question and could bring 100 words of notes in with them.
Within this unit students explored how an author’s use of language features, images and vocabulary contributed to the representation of themes in the novel. They also gained a deeper understanding of key literary techniques, including (but not limited to) characterisation, plot, and setting.
A PowerPoint used to teach chapters 22-28 of Phillip Gwynne’s 1998 novel Deadly Unna?
We would read one chapter at a time (or listen to the audio book on CD) and then students would answer the chapter questions.
This PowerPoint contains a summary for each chapter and then slides with answers to the chapter questions. It also includes a homework / fast finishers activity where students need to find evidence for 2 themes in the novel.
Resources designed for 10 English in Queensland, Australia. It is part of a novel study unit which culminates in a 90-minute examination (500 to 800-word essay). Students had 1 week notice of the question and could bring 100 words of notes in with them.
Within this unit students explored how an author’s use of language features, images and vocabulary contributed to the representation of themes in the novel. They also gained a deeper understanding of key literary techniques, including (but not limited to) characterisation, plot, and setting.
A PowerPoint used to teach chapters 29-35 of Phillip Gwynne’s 1998 novel Deadly Unna?
We would read one chapter at a time (or listen to the audio book on CD) and then students would answer the chapter questions.
This PowerPoint contains a summary for each chapter and then slides with answers to the chapter questions. The PPT also includes links to ClickView where parts of the film Australian Rules have been snipped which illustrate events from that particular chapter (I did not show the film in its entirety as it has some parts where it differs from the novel).
Resources designed for 10 English in Queensland, Australia. It is part of a novel study unit which culminates in a 90-minute examination (500 to 800-word essay). Students had 1 week notice of the question and could bring 100 words of notes in with them.
Within this unit students explored how an author’s use of language features, images and vocabulary contributed to the representation of themes in the novel. They also gained a deeper understanding of key literary techniques, including (but not limited to) characterisation, plot, and setting.
A lesson to inform students about what criteria I am looking for in their upcoming essay exam. The task conditions are explained e.g. what students can bring in with them to their exam. An explanation of analytical essays is provided. It includes an explanation of the cognitive verbs: Explain and Analyse. There is also information about what language features they need to use in their essay (e.g. evaluative language, high modality language, specialised language, third person, embedded clauses, synonyms and linking words). Some important punctuation rules are summarised. Some sample questions are available for discussion. The Criteria for the task is unpacked (in student friendly terms).
Resources designed for 10 English in Queensland, Australia. It is part of a novel study unit which culminates in a 90-minute examination (500 to 800-word essay). Students had 1 week notice of the question and could bring 100 words of notes in with them.
Within this unit students explored how an author’s use of language features, images and vocabulary contributed to the representation of themes in the novel. They also gained a deeper understanding of key literary techniques, including (but not limited to) characterisation, plot, and setting.
This lesson teaches students about the genre conventions of an essay. It begins with a warm up proofreading activity (an extract from p 10 of the novel). This is followed by an explanation of the term ‘Analyse’ with a QCAA poster. Following this there is information about how an essay is structured. The CAT acronym is used to explain the structure of an introduction. There is a table breaking down the structure of a body paragraph (extended TEEEL) and some tips about what should go in their paragraphs (Language features and text structures). Finally, the RAG structure is used for breaking down the elements of a good conclusion. Following this, there is a practice question which I teach with think alouds and co-construction.
Resources designed for 10 English in Queensland, Australia. It is part of a novel study unit which culminates in a 90-minute examination (500 to 800-word essay). Students had 1 week notice of the question and could bring 100 words of notes in with them.
Within this unit students explored how an author’s use of language features, images and vocabulary contributed to the representation of themes in the novel. They also gained a deeper understanding of key literary techniques, including (but not limited to) characterisation, plot, and setting.
In order to create convincing crime fiction, students need to be able to analyse the portrayal of crime, criminals and the criminal justice system in various modern and canonical texts. This powerpoint goes through some theories of crime and includes some clips from crime films (e.g. Kindergarten Cop, A Time to Kill etc.) that help students understand these. The powerpoint covers info such as the Role of the law in society, the image of the criminal and how these can reflect their theories of human nature, beliefs about the causes of crime and information about how crime is dealt with by society.
This lesson is designed as part of an Australian year 9 English unit. The first assessment for this unit is a persuasive essay. This PowerPoint first explains the assessment and the criteria students will be marked against. Subsequently, it goes through essay genre conventions (defining terms like thesis statement, explaining what should go in an intro, body and conclusion, explaining how texts should be referenced in text and in a bibliography). This PowerPoint also includes example paragraphs from a range of texts which show Australian stereotypes including The Simpsons Australia episode, Crocodile Dundee and men of the open spaces.
Handout - planning steps to be completed prior to writing
Handout - scaffolding for essay which tells students what they must write for each paragraph.
Three resources designed for a year 9 theology unit where students interview lay people from various churches in their hometown to develop an understanding of the role of the laity within each church. According to the curriculum they must "examine ways in which believers live their Christian vocation, and distinguish between their participation in the priestly, prophetic and kingly work of Jesus Christ."
!) Task sheet for their summative assessment item (an ethnographic study.) An ethnographic study is a method of investigation that studies the culture of a society using research as well as field reporting techniques like interviewing. Their findings will be presented in a report format.
2) A booklet to guide students through their ethnographic study (including developing appropriate questions, researching Jesus' values and actions, researching each church prior to the interviews etc.) It also includes a retrieval chart for students to record the answers to their interview questions into & an explanation of how students should set out their report and what should be in it.
3) A report template for the students to write their final report into.
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.
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.
A PowerPoint which goes through some of the key terms that students were to find for their Inquiry booklet. This is helpful to run before they write their essay as it allows those who have misunderstood key terms to go back and amend theirs.
Key terms which are defined are: scam, fraud, identity theft and financial fraud. There is a ‘brain break’ clip (from the comedy film ‘Identity Thief’) followed by a series of slides about particular types of identity theft. I have underlined key parts that students should write down. These notes are useful for students to refer to as they look for case studies to include in their essay as they can provide helpful search terms.
Students are reminded about the cognitive verb ‘explain’ and how this relates to criteria 1.2 and 1.3 in this subject. They are given some general sentence starters that can be used when explaining and an example question which we talk through as a class (think alouds) and consider how we would answer it. There is information about the difference between a task that asks you to ‘describe’ and one that asks you to ‘explain.’ I then use the film Shrek as an example with the screen split into two and a series of dot points which exemplify description vs explanation. Afterwards, there is an example paragraph about the evolution of the radio (which contains spelling errors and does not follow TEEL). Students are to mark it using the ‘I Can’ checklist and discuss how it could be improved.
To link this to our assessment, we discuss how students will need to explain the case studies they have found about people who have been victims of identity theft. There is a graphic organiser which students can use as they read their case studies to ensure they have enough information to be useful in their essay.
There is a time filler activity at the back of the slide in case the lesson progresses more quickly than expected. It contains some helpful tips from the University of Queensland about how to protect your identity.
NB: This resource also includes a handout given to students in the lesson and an article which students can use to practice filling in the graphic organiser.