English Course
Years 5 and 6

The Australian curriculum achievement standards for Year 5 targeted in this course include:

By the end of Year 5, students listen to and create spoken and/or multimodal texts including literary texts. They use different text structures to organise, develop and link ideas. They use language features including topic-specific vocabulary and literary devices, and features of voice.

They read, view and comprehend texts created to influence and/or engage audiences. They explain how ideas are developed including through characters, settings and/or events, and how texts reflect contexts. They explain how characteristic text structures support the purpose of texts. They explain how language features including literary devices, and visual features contribute to the effect and meaning of a text.

They create literary texts for particular purposes and audiences, developing and expanding on ideas with supporting details from topics or texts. They use paragraphs to organise, develop and link ideas. They use language features including complex sentences, tenses, topic-specific vocabulary and literary devices, and/or multimodal features.

The Australian curriculum achievement standards for Year 6 targeted in this course include:

By the end of Year 6, students listen to and create spoken and/or multimodal texts including literary texts. For particular purposes and audiences, they share, develop, explain and elaborate on ideas from topics or texts. They use and vary text structures to organise, develop and link ideas. They use and vary language features including topic-specific vocabulary and literary devices, and features of voice.

They read, view and comprehend different texts created to influence and/or engage audiences. They identify similarities and differences in how ideas are presented and developed including through characters, settings and/or events, and how texts reflect contexts. They identify how texts have similar and different text structures to reflect purpose. They explain how language features including literary devices, and visual features influence audiences.

They create literary texts for particular purposes and audiences, developing relevant ideas from topics or texts. They use text structures and vary paragraphs to organise, develop and link ideas. They use and vary language features including sentence structures, topic-specific vocabulary and literary devices.

Words are the building blocks of literacy. Without the right words, students cannot think or articulate their ideas. Therefore the lesson sequence in Unit 1 is:

1. What is a literary device? Understand that literary devices in writing are like the special effects in movies. They are devices - things - that do something.
2. Access the TeacherTalk curriculum-aligned Glossary Of Literary Devices with definitions, examples, and simple English codes we call Eng-Codes®.
3. Learn to Eng-Code® a text with literary devices to make learning visible.
4. Extract language from a classroom text, create a topic-specific language journal, and develop vocabulary.
5. Transform published language to make it your own.

Students gather vocabulary from their classroom texts and learn how to use this language to excel in academic writing. These skills transfer to life beyond the classroom, preparing students to communicate with confidence in any situation.

In Unit 2, we apply the skills learned in Unit 1 to comprehend texts, to hear an author's message, and craft a narrative response that excels with the curriculum achievement standards.

The Australian curriculum is clear: a narrative is a story about a character who experiences a problem and resolves it in a way that makes a point and stimulates a response from the reader. In a narrative, the author's (or student's) message is heard at the end. Therefore, the teaching sequence in Unit 2 is:

1. What is a narrative? Let's unpack the curriculum definition.
2. Gather plot ideas from literature and life.
3. Plan a powerful narrative using our curriculum-aligned scaffold that focuses students on the resolution - because that's where writers make their point.
4. Cast colourful characters and portray them using literary devices.
5. Scout for symbolic settings and portray them using literary devices.
6. Draft, mark & edit for success using the TeacherTalk student-friendly marking guide.
7. Prepare for NAPLAN.

Each of these sub-modules includes a short sequence of lessons, tips to overcome common challenges, examples of successful student work, and plenty of practice, extension and analysis activities.

Beware! You may discover yourself cast as a hero ... or a villain ... in your child's next story. Enjoy!