Year 6
The English curriculum is built around the three interrelated strands of language, literature and literacy. Teaching and learning programs should balance and integrate all three strands. Together, the strands focus on developing students' knowledge, understanding and skills in listening, reading, viewing, speaking, writing and creating. Learning in English builds on concepts, skills and processes developed in earlier years, and teachers will revisit and strengthen these as needed.
In Years 5 and 6, students communicate with peers and teachers from other classes and schools, community members, and individuals and groups, in a range of face-to-face and online/virtual environments.
Students engage with a variety of texts for enjoyment. They listen to, read, view, interpret and evaluate spoken, written and multimodal texts in which the primary purpose is aesthetic, as well as texts designed to inform and persuade. These include various types of media texts including newspapers, film and digital texts, junior and early adolescent novels, poetry, non-fiction and dramatic performances. Students develop their understanding of how texts, including media texts, are influenced by context, purpose and audience.
The range of literary texts for Foundation to Year 10 comprises Australian literature, including the oral narrative traditions of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples, as well as the contemporary literature of these two cultural groups, and classic and contemporary world literature, including texts from and about Asia.
Literary texts that support and extend students in Years 5 and 6 as independent readers describe complex sequences, a range of non-stereotypical characters and elaborated events including flashbacks and shifts in time. These texts explore themes of interpersonal relationships and ethical dilemmas within real-world and fantasy settings. Informative texts supply technical and content information about a wide range of topics of interest as well as topics being studied in other areas of the curriculum. Text structures include chapters, headings and subheadings, tables of contents, indexes and glossaries. Language features include complex sentences, unfamiliar technical vocabulary, figurative language, and information presented in various types of graphics.
Students create a range of imaginative, informative and persuasive types of texts such as narratives, procedures, performances, reports, reviews, explanations and discussions.
(source: www.australiancurriculum.edu.au)
Achievement Standard
Receptive modes (listening, reading and viewing)
By the end of Year 6, students understand how the use of text structures can achieve particular effects. They analyse and explain how language features, images and vocabulary are used by different authors to represent ideas, characters and events.
Students compare and analyse information in different and complex texts, explaining literal and implied meaning. They select and use evidence from a text to explain their response to it. They listen to discussions, clarifying content and challenging others' ideas.
Productive modes (speaking, writing and creating)
Students understand how language features and language patterns can be used for emphasis. They show how specific details can be used to support a point of view. They explain how their choices of language features and images are used.
Students create detailed texts elaborating on key ideas for a range of purposes and audiences. They make presentations and contribute actively to class and group discussions, using a variety of strategies for effect. They demonstrate an understanding of grammar, and make considered vocabulary choices to enhance cohesion and structure in their writing. They use accurate spelling and punctuation for clarity and make and explain editorial choices based on criteria.
(source: www.australiancurriculum.edu.au)
- Plus Plan
Recalling Facts - Comprehension Task
A task to use when teaching your students reading comprehension strategies.
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Plan Your Own Adventure - Writing Template
Students use a template to help them plan stories with alternative pathways for their friends to read.
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What are Bushfires? Cloze Worksheet
A cloze worksheet about bushfires.
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Reflective Thinking Poster and Cards
A poster and cards to promote reflective thinking.
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Adjective Clause Digital Quiz
Teach your students about the adjective clause with this interactive digital quiz that helps them identify how these descriptive clauses add detail to sentences.
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Visual Comprehension Slide Deck
Bring visual comprehension to life in your classroom with this engaging slide deck designed to spark critical thinking and boost student engagement.
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When to Use Formal and Informal Language Teaching Slides
Teach your students when to use formal and informal language with this engaging set of teaching slides designed to help students confidently distinguish between language styles in real-world contexts.
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Social Context in Literature Graphic Organiser
Support students to explore social context in literature with this two-page graphic organiser that helps them explore societal norms in a piece of literature.
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Bias in Writing Worksheet Pack
Teach bias in writing with ease using this engaging worksheet pack designed to help upper primary students recognise and analyse bias across different texts.
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Opinion Writing Worksheets — 'Life on the Road'
Contemplate life on the open road with these opinion writing worksheets that help students construct a piece of writing backed by their personal reasons and opinions.
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Migrant Life Writing Prompts
Spark thoughtful classroom discussions and meaningful writing about migrant life with these engaging writing prompts for upper primary students.
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Digital Comma Activities - Interactive Slide Deck
Engage your upper primary school students with Digital Comma Activities to help them practise using different comma rules.
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Monitoring Comprehension Symbols Worksheet
A 2 page worksheet focusing on the reading comprehension strategy of monitoring.
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Reading Comprehension Symbols Poster Pack
Use these Reading Comprehension Symbols posters to help students keep track of their comprehension during reading.
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Click or Clunk Strategy Poster and Desk Mat
Explore the click and clunk reading strategy with your students using this poster and desk mat set.
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Making Prediction Sentence Starter Flashcards
Use these Making Prediction Sentence Starter Flashcards to guide students in making accurate predictions using prompts.
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Three Levels of Reading Posters
Teach your students to read beyond the lines, between the lines and on the lines with a set of printable 3 Levels of Reading posters.
- Free Plan
Super Stamina Reading Posters
Highlight strategies students can use to read for longer periods of time with this printable poster set for a school library or classroom.
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Halloween Printables - Read and Draw Worksheet
Practise comprehension skills with an exciting Halloween reading comprehension worksheet for year 4.
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The History of Halloween – Comprehension Worksheet
Learn about the history of Halloween with a printable reading comprehension passage and questions.
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Suffix Saga - Vocabulary Game
Practise building and using words with common suffixes with a fun vocabulary game!
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Roots Graphic Organiser Template
Use this graphic organiser to explore roots and their origins.
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Roots Window Graphic Organiser
Organise ideas about roots and their origins with this graphic organiser.
- Free Plan
Peer Politics: Moving On (Comic) – Worksheet
A comprehension worksheet for a comic from the Year 6 magazine (Issue 3).
- Free Plan
Letter to the Editor (Sugary Snacks Ban) – Worksheet
A comprehension worksheet for a letter to the editor from the Year 5 magazine (Issue 3).
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Healthy Mind, Healthy Body: The Value of Vegetables – Worksheet
A comprehension worksheet for a comic from the Year 5 magazine (Issue 2).
- Free Plan
The Secret Society of Vegetable Venerators – Worksheet
A comprehension worksheet for a narrative from the Year 5 magazine (Issue 2).
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Land Rights Jumbled Words
A Land Rights jumbled words printable worksheet for your students to complete in your classroom.
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NAIDOC Week 2020 Student Printable
A printable student information sheet to provide context for NAIDOC Week 2020.
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Year 6 Magazine – “What’s Buzzing?” (Issue 2) Task Cards
A set of five literacy rotation task cards to be used in conjunction with Issue 2 of Teach Starter’s Year 6 magazine.
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Human Histories: Amazing Achievements - Read and Respond Worksheet
A comprehension activity related to a biographical text.
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Invitation Text Type Poster With Annotations
A poster about invitations, including an annotated example.