As we prepare for the new school year, we’d like to highlight a fantastic resource to help you teach Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander stories…
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Every year we dive into the Reading Australia website analytics to figure out which books teachers have been loving. In the last twelve months, teachers have been reaching for the classics as well as exploring a few newer titles. How many of the books on this list do you use in your classrooms? The resource […]
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The aim of the Reading Australia initiative is to connect teachers with quality Australian literature. This month we’re highlighting one of the website’s features designed to make it easier for you to find titles and resources relevant to you and your students. Overview of the ‘search’ function You can make a simple search from the […]
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We are days away from finding out which author will become the 2018 winner of the Miles Franklin Literary Award! Since the Copyright Agency supports the Miles Franklin shortlist by providing each shortlisted author with a $5000 cash prize, naturally, all of our water-cooler chats are dominated by Miles Franklin speculation. The Reading Australia team are […]
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What is AustLit? AustLit is a fantastic resource that makes the lives of researchers, students of literature and especially teachers easier. It’s the first of its kind – no other country has attempted to compile such a comprehensive record of a nation’s creative writing and associated critical works. Simply, AustLit is an online database that […]
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Reading Australia is a few months away from turning five, so today we are looking back at which books have been the most popular since we first launched the Reading Australia initiative in 2013. Below you will find the top ten secondary and top ten primary titles; to view the full units of work, simply […]
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We already know what books teachers keep reaching for, but what do students love to read? This week we are stepping aside and letting Portia Simon, a Year 10 student from Sydney, give us her book recommendations! We were delighted to have Portia spend some of her work experience week with the Reading Australia team, […]
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Leanne Heanly is the Teaching and Learning Librarian at Trinity Grammar School. In early 2018 she organised a school-based campaign inspired by the Copyright Agency’s This Book Changed My Life campaign. 1. Why did you want to get your students involved in the This Book Changed My Life campaign? We wanted to start the conversation […]
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On 27 March, 2018, Wendy Bean presented at the CBCA NSW annual conference on the ways teachers can connect Geography and Literacy in their teaching. The theme of the conference was Connecting Geography and Literacy: finding the treasure in story. This is an edited version of Wendy’s presentation. The Australian Curriculum: Geography aims to ensure students develop: […]
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Being a pre-service or early career primary school teacher can be a daunting time. Your tasks go far beyond giving your students an enriching and inspiring education, an already complex and demanding challenge. Reading Australia creates resources that make teaching literacy easy for primary teachers. But there are other areas you might need support in: today […]
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Libby Gleeson, author of books such as Amy and Louis, Mahtab’s Story and The Great Bear, delivered the address at Reading Australia’s Third Birthday Party, published below. Catch Libby this July in Hobart at the AATE/ALEA Conference. As introduced, I am a writer. A writer largely of picture books and longer fiction for young people […]
Keep ReadingThese exercises are designed to illustrate a progression in learning, supporting the development of a student’s capacity to respond to both analytical and creative outcomes. A three-step trajectory is implied within the exercises relevant to creative writing – firstly, the generation of creative response; secondly, the development of skills; and finally, the integration of skills […]
Keep Reading1. IDENTIFY your point of response. 2. CLARIFY your response. 3. HOW will you respond? 4. WHICH techniques and conventions might you use? Is there A CHOICE OF TEXTS to respond to? If yes – pick one. What is it? image photograph artwork passage of writing a quote a statement a personal memory or reflection […]
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Below is an example of how to edit a creative writing assessment. Great for teachers, great for sharing with students to demonstrate the editing process. Download the printable PDF version here. This article was reproduced with permission from Westerly. To learn more about Westerly visit our partners’ page.
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By Dr. Catherine Noske, Editor, Westerly Magazine Essentials: Creative Progression Encouraging an instinctive creative response – A generative engagement with material, an understanding of the importance of creative effect. Developing creative skills – Confidence in language technique and the ability to craft language in ways distinct from other disciplines. Building practice, the capacity for flexibility […]
Keep ReadingBy Susan Hill Oral language and written language are different linguistic modes and both are important in their own right. This article briefly describes oral language from linguistic, social interactionist and cognitive development viewpoints as each view highlights different aspects of oral language. An example of a play based developed oral language program is provided […]
Keep ReadingBy Robyn English The ultimate aim of all teaching of literature should be to instil in children a love of stories and reading. Sadly, many students will claim that this love has been destroyed by the insistence of teachers that they ‘study’ the book. This activity is a strategy that can be used to generate and […]
Keep ReadingBy Robyn Ewing (University of Sydney) and Marguerite Maher (Notre Dame University) Controversies about the most effective ways to help children’s literacy learning have raged throughout our careers as literacy educators. This is partly because of misconceptions of what ‘literacy’ means. The Australian Curriculum (Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority, 2014) defines literacy as encompassing: […]
Keep ReadingBy Sue Heyson Welcome to the Dolphins Class (Transition/Year 1) at Warruwi School in the Northern Territory. We are buzzing with excitement in our class because the students love to read. But firstly, here is a little bit about our school and community contexts. Our school is on a remote island located in Western Arnhem […]
Keep ReadingReading has great benefits for children, but with the rise of educational games, apps and YouTube, fewer kids are reading in their spare time. Education writer Marianne Stenger suggests how you can encourage children to read more. A recent survey from the National Literacy Trust found that secondary school students, and boys in particular, are […]
Keep ReadingParents and carers can have a big impact on their children’s education. By providing learning opportunities and support at home you can help encourage learning from an early age, right through to high school. Here are some fantastic literacy tips and inspiring ways parents and carers can be more involved in children’s learning. 1. Make […]
Keep ReadingBy Georgina Barton Reflecting back on my teacher training in English there was limited information presented on how to interpret modes other than language, such as image and sound. I do recall one course or subject on media literacy where we would discuss fervently a range of advertising materials – our lecturer always saying that ‘sex’ […]
Keep ReadingBy Jenni Connor Belonging, Being and Becoming: The Early Years Learning Framework for Australia (EYLF) was distributed to early childhood education and care services in 2009. The EYLF is Australia’s first national curriculum statement for educators working with children from birth to age five. On December 8, 2010, the Australian Curriculum for Schools Phase 1 was […]
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BY PHIL PAGE I had never read Janette Turner Hospital before. In fact, I’d only vaguely heard of her. I might never have discovered her had her Collected Stories not been selected for the new website for lovers of literature, Reading Australia, and then brought back into print. And thank goodness for that! Reading her […]
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