Year 4
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 3 and 4, students experience learning in familiar contexts and a range of contexts that relate to study in other areas of the curriculum. They interact with peers and teachers from other classes and schools 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 and interpret spoken, written and multimodal texts in which the primary purpose is aesthetic, as well as texts designed to inform and persuade. These encompass traditional oral texts including Aboriginal stories, picture books, various types of print and digital texts, simple chapter books, rhyming verse, poetry, non-fiction, film, multimodal texts, dramatic performances and texts used by students as models for constructing their own work.
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 3 and 4 as independent readers describe complex sequences of events that extend over several pages and involve unusual happenings within a framework of familiar experiences. Informative texts include content of increasing complexity and technicality about topics of interest and topics being studied in other areas of the curriculum. These texts use complex language features, including varied sentence structures, some unfamiliar vocabulary, a significant number of high-frequency sight words and words that need to be decoded phonically, and a variety of punctuation conventions, as well as illustrations and diagrams that support and extend the printed text.
Students create a range of imaginative, informative and persuasive types of texts including narratives, procedures, performances, reports, reviews, poetry and expositions.
(source: www.australiancurriculum.edu.au)
Achievement Standard
Receptive modes (listening, reading and viewing)
By the end of Year 4, students understand that texts have different text structures depending on purpose and context. They explain how language features, images and vocabulary are used to engage the interest of audiences. They describe literal and implied meaning connecting ideas in different textsÂ
They fluently read texts that include varied sentence structures, unfamiliar vocabulary including multisyllabic words. They express preferences for particular types of texts, and respond to others' viewpoints. They listen for and share key points in discussions.
Productive modes (speaking, writing and creating)
Students use language features to create coherence and add detail to their texts. They understand how to express an opinion based on information in a text. They create texts that show understanding of how images and detail can be used to extend key ideas.
Students create structured texts to explain ideas for different audiences. They make presentations and contribute actively to class and group discussions, varying language according to context. They demonstrate understanding of grammar, select vocabulary from a range of resources and use accurate spelling and punctuation, re-reading and editing their work to improve meaning.
(source: www.australiancurriculum.edu.au)
- Plus Plan
Prefixes Mini Anchor Charts
Give your students a visual reminder of the meanings of 36 different prefixes with a printable set of miniature prefix anchor charts.
- Plus Plan
Im- and Non- Prefixes Worksheet
Consolidate students' understanding of im- and non- prefixes with a prefix worksheet.
- Plus Plan
Prefix Bingo
Match prefix words to their definition by identifying the meaning of the prefix and the root word with a fun game of BINGO.
- Free Plan
Narrative Writing Word Wall
Review terms related to narrative texts and narrative writing with a set of 33 narrative vocabulary word wall cards.
- Plus Plan
Angry Outbursts – Comprehension Worksheet
Explore emotional awareness and healthy calming strategies with this comic-style comprehension passage and accompanying questions.
- Plus Plan
Onomatopoeia Poems Poster and Templates
Use this onomatopoeia poem poster and accompanying template to teach your students how to write an onomatopoeia poem.
- Free Plan
Extreme Environments: Lands of Ice and Sand – Worksheet
A comprehension worksheet for an information report from the Year 4 magazine (Issue 3).
- Plus Plan
Colour by Parts of Speech - Nouns, Verbs, Adjectives and Prepositions - Owl
Consolidate parts of speech by colouring nouns, verbs, adjectives and prepositions on the owl.
- Plus Plan
NAPLAN-Style Assessment Rubric - Narrative Writing
A NAPLAN-style rubric designed to help teachers to assess students' narrative writing.
- Plus Plan
Using Words with Prefixes - Worksheet Pack
Practise using the prefixes Un-, Re-, Mis-, Pre-, Dis-, and In- with a pair of printable prefix worksheets.
- Plus Plan
Finding Word Meaning In Context - Word Detective Worksheet
A teaching resource to help teach your students how to find word meaning in context.
- Plus Plan
Reading Detectives Bookmarks
8 colourful reading detective bookmarks to use during guided reading sessions in the classroom.
- Plus Plan
Comprehension - Stop Polluting The Ocean
A comprehension activity using a persuasive text.
- Plus Plan
Homophones Bingo
Make learning about homophones and their definitions an engaging whole-class activity with this homophones bingo game.
- Plus Plan
5 Information Report Writing Prompts
Use this set of 5 writing prompts to assess your students’ informative writing skills.
- Plus Plan
NAPLAN-Style Assessment Rubric - Informative Writing
A NAPLAN-style rubric designed to help teachers to assess students' informative writing.
- Free Plan
Our Solar System Cloze Worksheet
Our Solar System cloze worksheet for your students to complete.
- Plus Plan
Recount Writing Scaffold
A one page scaffolding sheet which can be used to write a recount.
- Plus Plan
QAR Generic Question Cards
A set of 28 generic QAR question cards for students to use as a comprehension task after reading.
- Plus Plan
All About Me! - Simile Poem Template & Poster
Get to know your students and explore simile poems at the same time with this All About Me Simile Poem Template and Poster.
- Plus Plan
Peer Editing Checklist Pack
Encourage thorough peer reviews by providing your students with printable peer review checklists for informative, persuasive, and narrative writing.
- Plus Plan
Subjective Language Worksheet Pack
Teach subjective language with these five engaging worksheets designed to help students recognise and explore how personal opinions and emotions shape writing.
- Plus Plan
Cause and Effect Comprehension Worksheets
Use these cause and effect comprehension worksheets to give your students practice reading, sequencing and matching effects to their causes.
- Plus Plan
Topic Sentence Starter Examples Slideshow
Spark creativity with this topic sentence starter examples slideshow that provides your students with writing prompts across three writing genres.
- Plus Plan
Elements of Visual Literacy Worksheets
Teach the elements of visual literacy with this engaging worksheet pack designed to help primary students analyse images and deepen their critical thinking skills.
- Plus Plan
Visual Text Techniques Teaching Slides
Teach your students about visual text techniques with this engaging presentation, which features elements like layout, gaze, salience, angle and shot.
- Plus Plan
Author's Purpose Sentence Starter Flashcards
Assist students in identifying the author’s purpose with this set of Author’s Purpose Example Sentence Starter flashcards.
- Free Plan
Free Author’s Purpose Handout
Use this Author’s Purpose Handout in the form of a brochure to explore the different reasons authors write.
- Plus Plan
Author’s Purpose Sorting Activity
Use this author’s purpose sort to teach your students the difference between persuasive, informative and narrative writing.
- Plus Plan
Author’s Purpose Graphic Organiser Pack
Explore the purpose of an author's writing with these Author's Purpose Graphic Organisers.
- Plus Plan
Monitoring Comprehension Anchor Charts
Display these Monitoring Comprehension Anchor Charts to help students with sentence starters and ways to monitor their comprehension while reading.
- Plus Plan
Prepositional Phrase Worksheet Pack
Enhance your grammar lessons with this prepositional phrase worksheet pack, designed to help Year 4 students master prepositions and prepositional phrases.