Writing

Competent writers are less panicked by the need to follow specific rules, are more confident about understanding the purpose of a writing task and the tools and strategies they can use to undertake it and achieve the communicative goal. They still benefit from scaffolds and models but should be encouraged to develop their own strategies for planning and organising their ideas.

Proficient writers have developed an understanding of what are the most important features of their writing in terms of achieving their goals, they are able to confidently plan for a purpose and understand the tools they can use for achieving this purpose. They benefit from exploring their own methods of expression as well as experimenting and playing with style and language choices to find their own 'voice'.

Expert writers no longer rely on rules and may push against them. They have developed a deep understanding of the purpose of their writing and the communicative goals connected to this purpose. They will be able to select from a range of writing tools to help them respond to the goals they have identified and achieve the purpose of their writing.

We want to develop confident writers who understand the purpose of their writing, are able to generate ideas for this purpose, and can use a range of tools or devices to help them produce and organise a written text. We also want them to know how they can edit and improve their writing.

Instructions for creating mini-books.

These mini-books can be used to create 'micro stories', to summarise a text students have read, or to record textual evidence according to a theme, topic, character etc. 

You can provide students with specific instructions about what to include on each page, or give them choice about how they are going to organise their thinking.

You can You can download or make an editable copy of this resource HERE.

Using Textual Evidence

This resource is about empowering students to trust their interpretation of texts, by helping them understand that if they are able to use textual evidence to support their ideas, their ideas are valid.

 It also encourages them to think about how they can use themes to help them look for, and write about the messages communicated in a  novel or other text.

You can download or make an editable copy of this resource HERE.

Understanding Narrative Sequencing

This resource helps define sequencing, and warms up students sequential thinking skills through some ordering activities. They then use visual stimulus to consider events before, during and after the climax or high point in a narrative. They can then use their responses to the stimulus to write a more detailed narrative piece.

You can download or make an editable copy of this resource HERE.

Using visual texts to inspire your own stories

This resource is a low stakes ideas generation activity. It can be done individually of collaboratively in groups. It provides them with a series of visual prompts and encourages students to generate ideas about possible events, you can add layers by getting them to also create dialogue between characters, or use the images to create a word splash by listing words that come to mind as they look at the images - give them space for play, silliness and the absurd.

You can download or make an editable copy of this resource HERE.

Writing a Narrative - NAPLAN support

This resource provides some Year 9 NAPLAN Writing Task Tips for writing a narrative.

Students need to recognise that the stimulus material has been provided by VCAA for 'inspiration' and that they are expected to make connection to it. Students often write wonderful things, but they are not linking to the stimulus material.

You can download or make an editable copy of this resource HERE.

Persuasive Writing Tips

This resource provides tips for writing a persuasive piece.

You can download or make an editable copy of this resource HERE.

Plan and write a short persuasive text

This resource is a 'quick write' strategy. It is designed to be a low stakes writing activity that encourages students to regularly engage with the ways of thinking that help them to plan and write a persuasive piece. You may need to give them prompts, topics or issues to help guide their response.

You can download or make an editable copy of this resource HERE.

Interpreting Texts - Schema, Symbols & Ideas

This resource is designed to provoke thinking about how our prior knowledge and experiences influence the way we read texts. It is also designed to empower students to recognise that we will all have different, though equally valid interpretations of the texts we read.

You can download or make an editable copy of this resource HERE.

Exploring Values & Social Concerns in texts

This resource is designed to provoke thinking about how characters, ideas and concerns in texts can be modified over time to reflect the social context in which they were created. Students explore the characterisation of Dr Frankenstein and his Monster over different social contexts and eras - they do not need to have read the text - CAUTION this resource includes horror themes which may not be appropriate for all student cohorts.

You can download or make an editable copy of this resource HERE.

Ekphrasic poetry and writing uses a visual text as a stimulus for creating a response. Some people describe it as using art to inspire your own riffs and ideas about the stories and ideas in the artwork we explore as stimulus material.

The process of analysing art and using it to inspire poetry and other forms of written and spoken narratives, or songs helps give students a starting point for their own creative ideas. The exploration of the artwork is also a collaborative exercise and helps generate a range of ideas that everyone can draw from for their own writing.

Provided below is a sequence of learning resources to support planning for learning activities that help scaffold students understanding of the tools used by poets and writers to create their work.

Once they have explored examples of these tools in others creative work, they analyse artwork as stiumuls to create their own poems.

It is important to give students structured space to draft and edit their poems, and to challenge them to recognise the power of refining their initial ideas. It's also great to showcase student work as a visual display with a spoken performance of their poems.

Introducing students to ekphrastic poetry, to help them understand what it is and to analyse a classic example of this type of poetic writing style.

The provided artwork is a visualisation of the Greek Myth of Icarus.

Read the poem aloud. Pay attention to the grammar - the poet has designed the poem to make the reader breathless, much like Icarus, who is drowning in the bottom right of the artwork.

The slides include some learning activities that will require students to make notes about what they see in a provided artwork.

A collection of objects also need to be brought to the lesson to help students make connections to the artwork in weird and wonderful ways!

You can download or make an editable copy of this resource HERE.

Figurative Language 

Introducing students to some figurative language strategies that can be used in poetry and writing.

Accompanying learning activities could aim to get students collaboratively creating examples of each figurative language strategy, or exploring examples from short texts or poems.

The POETRY FOUNDATION is a great resource for finding poems, articles about poems and poetry, podcasts, videos etc.

You can download or make an editable copy of this resource HERE.

Form in Poetry

This resource introduces students to poetic form and structure. The idea is to give them general rules to follow, but to also encourage them to break these rules if they have a purpose - create space for personal style and expression.

Accompanying learning activities could include the analysis of some short poems to identify their form using the 'what to look for' tips on slide 12.

You can download or make an editable copy of this resource HERE.

This resource introduces students to the process they will use to analyse artworks to create inspiration for their own poems.

The images included in this example presentation have been selected to support an exploration of the horror genre and themes of otherness. Create your own selection of artworks around a theme or genre to help students focus their thinking.

The NGV has made much of their collection available online.

Provide students with a copy of this analysis worksheet, for each artwork, they should add as many ideas as they can to their worksheet. They then choose an artwork they want to use and begin drafting their poem.

Narratives in Artwork

This is a short 1 - 2 lesson sequence using art as stimuli for an ekphrastic poem.

Students explore background information, consider the stories in the painting and use their analysis of the artwork to write a short poem.

You can download or make an editable copy of this resource HERE.

Writing Ekphrastic Narratives

An alternative approach is to provide students with artworks or images that depict strong characters. They then analyse that character, what they look like, how they are feeling, their relationship to other character in and outside of the artwork, etc. They use their analysis to write a short narrative from the perspective of the character they have analysed. Challenge students to make as many connections to the content and ideas in the artwork as they can.

General tips for essay writing

Students new to essay writing often need clear 'rules'. However, more highly rewarded essay responses demonstrate an original academic voice. This is achieved when students understand the purpose of the essay and each of its sections and are encouraged to bring their own style to the way they write and organise their ideas.

You can download or make an editable copy of this resource HERE

Senior essay writing for Global Politics

This resource is an example of how the general advice resource can be modified to include subject specific requirements for essay writing with a focus on senior exams.

Sentence Stems that are useful to help students express ideas. Academic Vocabulary for formal writing. Subject specific vocabulary - Writing like a Political Analysist. 

You can download or make an editable copy of this resource HERE.

The Purpose of Passage Analysis in Literature

This is a resource that helps to orientate students thinking through an understanding of the purpose of a passage analysis. They are supported to understand the ways of thinking and knowledge that will help them develop an analysis of a passage and a text.

You can download or make an editable copy of this resource HERE.