This text elements exemplar ‘A Bundle of Sticks’ shows students how to identify the story’s central idea and supporting details. It is aimed at introducing students to the principles of deconstructing texts in order to gain a deeper understanding of their purpose.
This questioning and predicting worksheet ‘A Costume Party’ supports students to predict the outcome of a narrative text. It is aimed at encouraging students to write about what will happen next based on the clues provided in the story, and provides questions to help them map out their ideas. It also asks students questions to …More
This analysing text worksheet ‘A Daring Feat’ supports students to use various strategies to understand a narrative about magic tricks. It is aimed at encouraging students to recall specific details from the text as well as draw conclusions about the text as a whole in order to answer questions about it. Answer sheet provided with …More
The paired texts, ‘A Dollar a Day’ and ‘In Shape’ tell about two men who ride their bicycles to work. In the first story, Mr Davis struggles all the way; in the second story, Mr Kelly flies along in great style. They provide opportunities for students to practise vocabulary and comprehension skills. Answer sheet provided …More
This Writing Task worksheet, ‘A Fishing Adventure’, features instructions for students to write a story about a real or imaginary holiday involving fish. It encourages students to plan their writing and to check it for errors. Prompts suggest that the student could describe a fishing trip, a deep-sea adventure, a fish rescue mission, or another …More
This analysing text worksheet ‘A Long Way from Home’ supports students to use various strategies to understand a narrative text about homing pigeons. It is aimed at encouraging students to deconstruct the text in order to gain a deeper understanding of its purpose, to recall specific details from the text, to look critically at words …More
This analysing text worksheet ‘A Marine Menace’ supports students to use various strategies to understand a narrative about jellyfish. It is aimed at encouraging students to deconstruct the text in order to gain a deeper understanding of its purpose, to recall specific details from the text and to look critically at words in order to …More
This analysing text worksheet ‘A Series of Atypical Events’ supports students to use various strategies to understand a narrative text about a party and skiing accident. It is aimed at encouraging students to deconstruct the text in order to gain a deeper understanding of its purpose, to recall specific details from the text, to look …More
This Writing Task worksheet, ‘A Star Myth’, features instructions for students to invent a myth about a group of stars. It encourages students to plan their writing and to check it for errors. Prompts suggest that the story could describe the origin and the current influence of the star group, and could feature people or …More
This understanding text exemplar ‘A Story About Moses’ Birthday’ supports students to use various strategies to find the implicit and explicit meaning of a narrative text. It encourages students to ask questions to find the directly stated meaning of the story, then to find the deeper, not-directly stated meaning of the story.
This Writing Task worksheet, ‘A Strange Land’, features instructions for students to write a story about living in a strange place. It encourages students to plan their writing and to check it for errors. Prompts suggest that the place could be another country or even another planet and advise students to describe three confusing, annoying, …More
This analysing text worksheet ‘A Survivor’ supports students to use various strategies to understand a narrative about an injured dog. It is aimed at encouraging students to deconstruct the text in order to gain a deeper understanding of its purpose, to recall specific details from the text and to look critically at words in order …More
This analysing text worksheet ‘Accidents Happen’ supports students to use various strategies to understand a narrative text about a disastrous night out. It is aimed at encouraging students to deconstruct the text in order to gain a deeper understanding of its purpose, to recall specific details from the text, to examine how the text, as …More
This analysing text worksheet ‘An Environmental Quandary’ supports students to use various strategies to understand a narrative text about a woman’s aversion to mice. It is aimed at encouraging students to deconstruct the text in order to gain a deeper understanding of its purpose, to recall specific details from the text, to look critically at …More
This analysing text worksheet ‘An Uneasy Move’ supports students to use various strategies to understand a narrative text about moving overseas. It is aimed at encouraging students to deconstruct the text in order to gain a deeper understanding of its purpose, to recall specific details from the text, to look critically at words in order …More
This analysing text worksheet ‘Betsy’s Birthday Pony’ supports students to use various strategies to understand a narrative text about a girl who wants a pony. It is aimed at encouraging students to recall specific details from the text and to look critically at words in order to ascertain their particular meaning in context, as well …More
This story, ‘Breakfast’ tells what happens when children surprise their father on his birthday. It provides opportunities for students to practise vocabulary and comprehension skills. Answer sheet provided with file download.
This poem, ‘Bugs’, by Ron Brown, describes the characteristics of bugs. It uses rhyming and rhythm to engage students in learning about bugs.
This understanding text worksheet, ‘Call Him Lucky’ supports students to use various strategies to understand a narrative about an unwanted dog. It is aimed at encouraging students to deconstruct the text in order to gain a deeper understanding of its purpose, to recall specific details from the text and to look critically at words in …More
This content area reading learning activity, ‘Comic Strip,’ provides students with the chance to use new vocabulary words in context. It is aimed at reinforcing vocabulary acquisition through a fun and engaging activity.
The story, ‘Damper’ is told through letters between two friends, one at camp and the other at home helping his father at work. The story includes a recipe for a bread cooked over a campfire, and some discussion of fishing. They provide opportunities for students to practise vocabulary and comprehension skills. Answer sheet provided with …More
This analysing text exemplar ‘Danica’s Hero’ shows students how to identify the genre of a text, as well as its implicit and explicit meaning. It is aimed at encouraging students to identify details from the beginning, middle and end of the sample text, identifying whether the story is an example of narrative or informational text …More
This facts and opinions exemplar ‘Debate Team’ shows students how to locate the facts and opinions in an example text. It is aimed at introducing students to forming and explaining their opinions, and shows how the author decided her position on a topic, then used facts to support her opinion.
This author’s purpose exemplar ‘Dena’s New Puppy’ supports students to identify the author’s purpose for writing a text. It encourages students to look critically at the text in order to ascertain whether the author wrote it to persuade, teach or entertain the reader.
This analysing text exemplar ‘Emily Meets Jacob’ shows students how to identify the structure and genre of a narrative text. It is aimed at encouraging students to identify details from the beginning, middle and end of the text as well as identifying whether the story is an example of narrative or everyday text.
This graphic organiser, ‘Exploring Fables’ supports the teaching of reading and writing by giving students a template for identifying characters and purposes in fables.
This graphic organiser, ‘Exploring Myths’ supports the teaching of reading and writing by giving students a template for identifying problems and solutions in myths.
This quick reference chart ‘Extrapolation of Information’ guides students in finding the implicit and explicit meaning of a fable. It introduces students to the principles of layered storytelling and uses a practical example to explain how to identify the directly stated meaning, as well as the not-directly stated meaning, which is often the underlying theme …More
This finding meaning in text exemplar ‘Extrapolation of Information’ shows students how to find the implicit and explicit meaning of a narrative text. It introduces students to the principles of layered storytelling and uses a practical example to explain how to identify the directly stated meaning, as well as the not-directly stated meaning, which is …More
This finding meaning in text exemplar ‘Extrapolation of Information’ shows students how to find the implicit and explicit meaning of a narrative text. It introduces students to the principles of layered storytelling and uses a practical example to explain how to identify the directly stated meaning, as well as the not-directly stated meaning, which is …More
This analysing text worksheet ‘Friends Aren’t Always Fair’ supports students to use various strategies to understand a narrative about a girl who is being teased. It is aimed at encouraging students to recall specific details from the text, to look critically at words in order to ascertain their particular meaning in context, to examine how …More
This Reading Comprehension worksheet, ‘From Thirteen to Fourteen’, features the fictional journal of a young seaman in 1772. It encourages students to use a variety of strategies to interpret the text and includes questions about drawing a conclusion, making a judgment, fact/opinion, cause and effect, emotion/mood, vocabulary, and comparison/contrast. Answer sheet provided with file download.
This analysing text worksheet ‘Great Minds Think Alike’ supports students to use various strategies to understand a narrative text about two best friends. It is aimed at encouraging students to deconstruct the text in order to gain a deeper understanding of its purpose, to recall specific details from the text and to look critically at …More
This story, ‘All About Animal Families: How the Kangaroo Got Her Pouch’, tells a legend of how the kangaroo got her pouch. It includes colourful and engaging photographs.
This analysing text worksheet ‘Impressionists’ supports students to use various strategies to understand a narrative text about an excursion to an art gallery. It provides a practical example for students of how to deconstruct a text in order to gain a deeper understanding of its purpose, then put this together with what they already know …More
This analysing text exemplar ‘Jack in the Department Store’ shows students how to identify the explicit and implicit meaning in a narrative text. It encourages students to ask questions to find the directly stated meaning of the story, then to find the deeper, not-directly stated meaning of the story.
This Writing Task worksheet, ‘Journey to a New World’, features instructions for students to describe a journey to an imaginary land or world. It encourages students to plan their writing and to check it for errors. Prompts suggest explaining the reasons for the trip, giving names to the land and its features, using lively words, …More
The paired stories, ‘Knock, Knock’ and ‘I Thought I’d Lost You’ are about the efforts of two young people to win a talent contest. In each story, the performer is supported by a faithful and encouraging friend. They provide opportunities for students to practise vocabulary and comprehension skills. Answer sheet provided with file download.
This analysing text worksheet ‘Laura’s Quest for Wide-open Spaces’ supports students to use various strategies to understand a narrative text about saving land from development. It is aimed at encouraging students to deconstruct the text in order to gain a deeper understanding of its purpose, to recall specific details from the text, to look critically …More
This analysing text worksheet ‘Letter to the Editor about Extreme Sports’ supports students to use various strategies to understand opposing newspaper editorials. It is aimed at encouraging students to deconstruct the text in order to gain a deeper understanding of its purpose, to recall specific details from the text, to look critically at words in …More
This analysing text worksheet ‘Looking Down’ supports students to use various strategies to understand a narrative text about a family hike. It is aimed at encouraging students to deconstruct the text in order to gain a deeper understanding of its purpose, to recall specific details from the text, to look critically at words in order …More
This analysing text worksheet ‘Magic Show Memo’ supports students to use various strategies to understand a narrative about a magic show. It is aimed at encouraging students to recall specific details from the text and encourages them to look critically at words in order to ascertain their particular meaning in context, as well as make …More
The story, ‘Marbles’ is about two friends who have agreed to host a fundraiser. When one friend has to attend a golf try-out , he writes instructions for some marble games that his friend can use to entertain people. It provides opportunities for students to practise vocabulary and comprehension skills. Answer sheet provided with file …More
This editing and revising learning activity, ‘Myths’ encourages students to recognise capitalisation and spelling errors, correct tense, punctuation and sentence structure. Answer sheet provided with file download.
This Writing Traits activity, ‘Narrative Voice: Retelling a Story’ encourages students to retell a story with characters and setting, and with a beginning, a middle, and an end.
The paired texts, ‘New Plans’ and ‘The Quest’ describe what happens when a camper goes missing. The first story tells how Kira sets about finding Katie; the second story describes Audrey’s search for Katie. They provide opportunities for students to practise vocabulary and comprehension skills. Answer sheet provided with file download.
This predicting outcomes exemplar ‘Not Just a Day at the Beach’ asks students questions about a narrative text to help them predict the outcome. It is aimed at encouraging students to ask questions and use their personal experience, along with clues provided in the story to guess what will happen next and consider how they …More
This story, ‘Paul’s Idea’ tells of a boy who keeps getting punctures in his bike tyre tubes, but who can’t afford to replace them. It provides opportunities for students to practise vocabulary and comprehension skills. Answer sheet provided with file download.
This story, ‘Pet Day’ describes the lead-up to a day when students bring pets to school and listen to a vet. It provides opportunities for students to practise vocabulary and comprehension skills. Answer sheet provided with file download.
This content area reading learning activity, ‘Picture Books,’ helps students practice inferencing. It is aimed at helping students build meaning using the pictures in wordless books.
This understanding text exemplar ‘Predicting Outcomes’ asks students questions about a narrative text to help them predict the outcome. It encourages students to use their personal experience and clues from tone and expression to guess the meaning of sentences with little or no context and uses an example text to illustrate this approach.
This predicting text exemplar ‘Questioning and Predicting’ shows students how to predict the outcome of a narrative text. It is aimed at encouraging students to guess what will happen next based on the clues provided in the story.
This analysing text worksheet ‘Rabbit Run’ helps students to use comprehension strategies to understand a fable about a young rabbit. It is aimed at encouraging students to deconstruct the text in order to gain a deeper understanding of its purpose, to recall specific details from the text and to look critically at words in order …More
The humorous story, ‘Running Away’ tells of the misadventures that foil a boy’s plan to run away from home with his friend. It provides opportunities for students to practise vocabulary and comprehension skills. Answer sheet provided with file download.
This analysing text worksheet ‘Save the Manatee’ supports students to use various strategies to understand opposing letters to the editor about manatee conservation. It is aimed at encouraging students to deconstruct the text in order to gain a deeper understanding of its purpose, to recall specific details from the text, to look critically at words …More
This predicting outcomes exemplar ‘Sentences from a Famous Story’ asks students questions about a narrative text with no context to help them predict the outcome. It encourages students to use their personal experience and clues from tone and expression to guess the meaning of sentences with little or no context and uses an example text …More
This analysing text worksheet ‘So Many Things Worth Keeping’ supports students to use various strategies to understand a narrative text about a family holiday. It is aimed at encouraging students to deconstruct the text in order to gain a deeper understanding of its purpose, to recall specific details from the text, to look critically at …More
This analysing text worksheet ‘State Challenge Olympics Coming Soon?’ supports students to use various strategies to understand opposing letters to the editor about hosting these games. It is aimed at encouraging students to deconstruct the text in order to gain a deeper understanding of its purpose, to recall specific details from the text, to look …More
This analysing text worksheet ‘Staying Cool’ supports students to use various strategies to understand a narrative text about a very hot day. It is aimed at encouraging students to deconstruct the text in order to gain a deeper understanding of its purpose, to recall specific details from the text, to examine how a text is …More
This content area reading learning activity, ‘Story Maps,’ helps students retell the important characters and events from fiction stories. It is aimed at enhancing students’ comprehension of the text by having them create a visual representation of the story.
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