This is a comprehensive novel study resource bundle for the warm, funny and thoughtful Australian novel The Paperbark Tree Committee by Karys McEwen. The Paperbark Tree Committee explores family, friendship, identity, belonging and growing up through the experiences of Art, who is navigating a new school, changing relationships and a family life that doesn’t always look the way he wishes it did. The bundle includes a chapter-based student Comprehension Guide covering the entire novel, with questions targeting a broad range of comprehension and literary analysis skills, including literal and inferential comprehension, vocabulary in context, character and theme analysis, prediction, symbolism, author craft, text evidence, making connections and critical thinking. Questions move beyond simple recall to encourage students to interpret, analyse and evaluate the text, consider different perspectives and support their ideas with evidence. A comprehensive Answer Guide provides suggested responses throughout, including guidance for inferential, analytical and open-ended questions. This bundle has been designed to support teachers throughout the entire novel study and includes a chapter-based Teacher Guide. The guide can be used whether you have read the novel in advance or are teaching alongside your students. Each section includes: A clear chapter summary Key themes Character development Literary devices and author craft Discussion questions Cross-curricular links Quick teaching ideas Teacher notes Also included is a bank of extended Literacy Task Cards, designed to take students beyond comprehension questions and encourage deeper engagement with the novel through reading, writing, research, creativity, analysis and personal response. The cards can be printed and laminated for repeated classroom use or projected for students to complete independently. Students can further extend their learning through the Novel Study Choice Board, featuring 16 open-ended activities organised around four areas: Respond, Analyse, Create and Connect. These activities provide meaningful opportunities for student choice and independent learning while continuing to develop comprehension, critical thinking and text analysis. A range of ready-to-use student printables and activity templates is also included, making it easy to move from whole-class reading and discussion into independent or small-group literacy work. This is a substantial, completely no-prep novel study bundle, aligned with the Australian Curriculum v9 and designed to develop students’ skills across Language, Literature and Literacy. This resource is suitable for whole-class novel studies, guided reading groups, literature circles, independent reading programs, literacy centres and extension activities for Years 5–7 students. I have many other literature-based resources in my store, with a particular focus on Australian texts, so feel free to check them out.

This is a comprehensive novel study resource bundle for the compelling Australian novel Run by Sarah Armstrong. Run is a gripping Australian novel exploring family, belonging, survival and the meaning of home. When Cas runs away rather than reconnect with his estranged father, he becomes lost in the bush and encounters Viv and her unconventional family. His experiences force him to confront questions of trust, family and where he truly belongs. This book received an honourable mention in the 2026 CBCA Children’s Book Shortlist. The bundle includes a 48 -page, chapter-based student Comprehension Guide, with questions targeting a broad range of comprehension and literary analysis skills including literal and inferential understanding, vocabulary in context, character analysis, prediction, symbolism, author craft, making connections and critical thinking. A comprehensive Answer Guide provides suggested responses throughout, including guidance for inferential and open-ended questions. This bundle has been designed to support teachers throughout the entire novel study and includes a chapter-based Teacher Guide. The guide can be used whether you have read the novel in advance or are teaching alongside your students. Each section includes: A clear chapter summary Key themes Character development Literary devices and author craft Discussion questions Cross-curricular links Quick teaching ideas Teacher notes Also included is a bank of 10 extended Literacy Task Cards, designed to encourage students to explore the novel in greater depth through reading, writing, research, creativity and personal response. The cards can be printed and laminated for repeated classroom use or projected for students to complete independently. Students can also extend their learning through the Novel Study Choice Board, featuring 16 open-ended activities organised around four areas: Respond, Analyse, Create and Connect. A range of ready-to-use student printables and activity templates are also included. This is a huge, 150+ page bundle of resources, based on Australian curriculum outcomes, designed to be completely no-prep. This resource is suitable for whole-class novel studies, guided reading groups, literature circles, independent reading programs, literacy centres and extension activities for Years 5–7 students. I have many other literature-based resources in my store (most of them Australian), so feel free to check them out. All of my resources are 20% off for the first 48 hours, so be sure to hit the green “Follow Me” star to be notified whenever a new resource is released. Happy reading!

This is a comprehensive 120+ page resource bundle for the beautiful Australian novel Little Bones by Sandy Bigna. Little Bones is a heartfelt verse novel about friendship, grief, family and finding the courage to be yourself. It follows Bones, a quiet girl who feels like she doesn’t quite fit in, as she navigates changing friendships, bullying, loss and the uncertainty of growing up. Along the way, her connection with nature, birds and the changing moon helps her make sense of the world around her and the emotions within her. Through moments of heartbreak, hope and healing, Bones gradually discovers that being different is not something to hide, but a strength to embrace. This bundle has been designed to support teachers throughout the entire novel study and includes a 35-page chapter-by-chapter Teacher Guide. The guide can be used whether you have read the novel in advance or are teaching alongside your students. Each chapter includes: A clear chapter summary Key themes Important quotes and their significance Character development Literary devices and author craft Discussion questions Cultural sensitivity notes and teaching considerations Cross-curricular links Quick teaching ideas The bundle also includes two section-based comprehension guides for Stage 2 and Stage 3, with questions targeting a broad range of comprehension skills including literal and inferential understanding, prediction, summarising, author’s purpose, analysing character development, identifying themes, making connections and critical thinking. Comprehensive answer guides are included for every question. Stage-based comprehension questions allow for differentiation. There is a bank of ten Literature Circle task cards, designed to be printed and laminated for repeated classroom use. These activities promote student choice and independence, making them ideal for reading groups, guided reading or fast finishers. All associated printables are included. Also included is a Rich Discussion Questions guide, featuring one chapter of thought-provoking discussion prompts for every chapter of the novel. These can be used for whole-class discussions, literature circles, extension activities, fast finishers or higher-order thinking tasks, encouraging students to support their ideas with evidence from the text. This resource is suitable for whole-class novel studies, guided reading groups, literature circles, independent reading programs and extension activities for upper primary and lower secondary students. I have many other literature-based resources in my store (most of them Australian), so feel free to check them out. All of my resources are 20% off for the first 48 hours, so be sure to hit the green “Follow Me” star to be notified whenever a new resource is released. Happy reading!

This is a comprehensive 150+ page resource bundle for the powerful Australian novel Spirit of the Crocodile by Aaron Fa’Aoso and Michelle Scott Tucker. Spirit of the Crocodile is a moving and thought-provoking middle-grade novel set on Saibai Island in the Torres Strait. It follows twelve-year-old Ezra as he navigates friendship, family, culture and the challenges of growing up in a rapidly changing world. Rich in Torres Strait Islander perspectives, the novel explores identity, belonging, environmental change, courage and responsibility, while balancing humour, adventure and heartfelt moments. This bundle has been designed to support teachers throughout the entire novel study and includes a 46-page chapter-by-chapter Teacher Guide. The guide can be used whether you have read the novel in advance or are teaching alongside your students. Each chapter includes: A clear chapter summary Key themes Important quotes and their significance Character development Literary devices and author craft Discussion questions Cultural sensitivity notes and teaching considerations Cross-curricular links Quick teaching ideas The bundle also includes a chapter-by-chapter comprehension guide, with questions targeting a broad range of comprehension skills including literal and inferential understanding, prediction, summarising, author’s purpose, analysing character development, identifying themes, making connections and critical thinking. A comprehensive answer guide is included for every question. There is a bank of ten Literature Circle task cards, designed to be printed and laminated for repeated classroom use. These activities promote student choice and independence, making them ideal for reading groups, guided reading or fast finishers. All associated printables are included. Also included is a Rich Discussion Questions guide, featuring one chapter of thought-provoking discussion prompts for every chapter of the novel. These can be used for whole-class discussions, literature circles, extension activities, fast finishers or higher-order thinking tasks, encouraging students to support their ideas with evidence from the text. This resource is suitable for whole-class novel studies, guided reading groups, literature circles, independent reading programs and extension activities for upper primary and lower secondary students. I have many other literature-based resources in my store (most of them Australian), so feel free to check them out. All of my resources are 20% off for the first 48 hours, so be sure to hit the green “Follow Me” star to be notified whenever a new resource is released. Happy reading!

This is a 50±page novel study on the beautiful book “Aster’s Good, Right Things” by Kate Gordon. This book is featured on the CBCA shortlist for Younger Readers in 2021. Aster’s Good, Right Things tells the story of Aster - a clever, creative and thoughtful girl who is having a hard time believing that she is special. Aster’s mother left when she was young - a fact Aster believes is her fault. Aster feels as though she must do a good, right thing each day or something terrible will happen. Aster lives a lonely life, until she meets Xavier - a boy as wonderful, and as complicated, as she is. This resource consists of a chapter-based comprehension guide (divided into “chunks” of 3 chapters at a time). The questions cover a range of comprehension skills, from literal to inferential, plus author purpose, comparing and contrasting, summarising, predicting and much more. A comprehensive answer guide is also provided. Each section also has a creative response, designed to be high-interest, independent and engaging. These are often linked to the Creative and Practical Arts. This book would be suitable for a whole class read-aloud, or as a reading group text for Stages Two or Three. There is a bank of ten Literacy Circle tasks, designed to be printed and laminated for future use. These involve a high degree of student choice, so as to be independent. All associated printables are also included. I have many other literature-based resources in my store (most of them Australian) so feel free to check them out. Happy reading!

This is a HUGE, 500+ page supporting slideshow for the new NESA Stage Two English Unit (13) which explicitly teaches the concept of characterisation using the mentor text, “The Callers” by Kiah Thomas. This resource is a supporting slideshow which means it is linked to the Department of Education (NSW) unit of work which teaches Stage 2 students about characterisation. This unit of work is available for free on the NESA site (it is also included in this resource). All the corresponding lessons are included in the slideshow, meaning this is a complete no-prep resource, when used in conjunction with the lesson guide. Slides are full-colour, engaging and fun, whilst also encapsulating all the key concepts of the unit, so you don’t need to cross-reference or produce these yourself. NOTE: This unit is presented in two formats. One is as a series of PDFs. The other is a non-editable PowerPoint slideshow. This is due to many requests from my lovely customers who have asked for slideshows to be in PPT format. This means you can pick slides, add your own content, delete unneeded slides, or embed selected material into your daily slideshow. It also means that external links are embedded. Easy peasy!! Please be aware that the slides themselves are not editable. This unit of work focuses on imaginative text, but also includes MANY Component A elements: *similes personification adverbs, nouns, verbs Tier 2 vocabulary past, present, future tense subject-verb agreement temporal, conditional, causal conjunctions types of sentences …and much more! Assessment tasks are embedded throughout the unit, with assessment opportunities highlighted. The culmination of the unit is a formal writing task whereby students create a multimedia text which is then collated into a class book and shared with a broader community. Simply put, this resource is everything you need to teach the new English curriculum in your Stage 2 classroom! All the hard work and preparation is done for you, so you can…teach! This is a huge unit (all of the units are huge but this one is particularly huge!). It will take up a significant amount of storage space, so I recommend storage on Google Drive or similar. Corresponding page numbers to the syllabus document from the NSW Department of Education are given in a coloured star in the corner of each slide. Please note: this slideshow focuses on the complete learning pathway of Component B, with Component A embedded throughout as “mini -lessons” or concepts. There is not a stand-alone slideshow for Component A. I have lots of other Literacy resources in my store (based on Australian content) so feel free to check them out. Happy reading!

Protecting Our Planet: People, Places and Practices is a complete Stage 3 Geography unit designed for the new NSW HSIE syllabus (implementation 2027). It’s fully integrated with English, Mathematics, and Science, with key literature embedded throughout to make learning meaningful and engaging. With **5 weeks of ready-to-teach lessons **(15 lessons in total), all worksheets, assessments, rubrics, and a comprehensive teaching guide included, this resource gives you everything you need - no prep required. Every lesson follows a clear and consistent Four E’s structure (Engage, Explore, Empower, Explain), helping students inquire, investigate, learn explicitly, and then consolidate their understanding. Content is delivered through a series of daily slideshows. Slideshow is presented in Powerpoint format (non-editable). From global climate zones to Indigenous sustainability practices and World Heritage protection, students will develop the knowledge, skills, and vocabulary to become informed global citizens while meeting NSW Stage 3 outcomes. What’s Included: 15 fully planned lessons (5 weeks × 3 lessons per week) A comprehensive slideshow for every lesson, with all external links included - over 370 pages of slides. Comprehensive week-by-week teacher guide Worksheets, activities, assessments, and rubrics (ready to print or project) Differentiation and extension suggestions in every lesson Embedded literature links to deepen understanding Cross-curricular integration (Geography, English, Maths, Science) Clear Four E’s lesson structure (Engage, Explore, Empower, Explain) Tier 2 and Tier 3 vocabulary focus for academic language growth Explicit teaching of geographical concepts and tools Inquiry questions and success criteria in every lesson Flexible pacing - teach at your own pace, approx. 5 hours per week The primary outcome assessed is: HS3-GEO-01: Examines global citizenship and how people organise, protect and sustainably use the environment, using geographical information. Check out the attached preview for a more comprehensive breakdown of this resource. Week One of the slideshow is given as an example of the structure and content of the lessons. These resources are weeks of programming, learning and assessment - sorted!

This is a huge 125-page resource bundle based on the amazing Australian book The Callers by Kiah Thomas. In the enchanting world of Elipsom, where summoners possess the power to Call objects from other places, a young boy named Quin embarks on a journey that will change everything he knows about magic and himself. Quin has always dreamed of becoming a great summoner like his ancestors, but when his first Calling goes horribly wrong, he discovers a shocking secret: the objects they summon aren’t created from thin air—they’re stolen from other realms. This book was selected to be a mentor text to teach the Stage Two NESA Unit (13): Characterisation. The resources are designed both to provoke deep thinking about the text, but also to be completely independent. The only prep you need to do is printing or uploading to google classroom or a similar platform. This bundle of resources consists of: a chapter-by-chapter comprehension guide. The guide focuses on a range of skills , such as literal and inferential understanding, text-to-self connections, author purpose, cause and effect and much much more. All up, this is 70+ pages of independent comprehension work. The comprehension guide comes in the form of a workbook which can be printed and stapled for independent work. a comprehensive answer guide, perfect for assessment and feedback. a set of ten full-colour literacy centre task cards based on the text. These include a range of Creative and Practical Arts integrated tasks, as well as informative, imaginative and persuasive writing prompts. a 44-page vocabulary booster, highlighting words from the text. Students are required to analyse the words in content, find dictionary definitions and use these words in sentences of their own. There are two pages of vocabulary tasks for every chapter. This is weeks of learning, covering reading, writing and speaking and listening. This book would be suitable for a whole class read-aloud, or as a reading group text for Stage Two or Three students. I have many other literature-based resources in my store (most of them Australian) so feel free to check them out. Happy reading!

This is a 70+ page resource bundle based on the iconic Australian book “Wandi” by Favel Parrett. Wandi is a hybrid informative/imaginative text which tells the amazing story of Wandi, the alpine dingo who literally fell from the sky. He lives in a real-life dingo sanctuary and proved to everyone that alpine dingoes exist and need our protection. This book was selected to be a mentor text to teach the Stage Two NESA Unit (3): Argument and Authority. The resources are designed both to provoke deep thinking about the text, but also to be completely independent. The only prep you need to do is printing or uploading to google classroom or a similar platform. This bundle of resources consists of: a chapter-by-chapter comprehension guide. These guides have four pages of comprehension questions, focusing on a range of skills , such as literal and inferential understanding, text-to-self connections, author purpose, cause and effect and much much more. All up, this is 56 pages of independent comprehension work. a set of ten full-colour literacy centre task cards based on the text. These include a range of Creative and Practical Arts integrated tasks, as well as informative, imaginative and persuasive writing prompts. all associated printables linked to the task cards, which can be used for a range of literature. These are a set of high-interest, high-choice worksheets. a vocabulary booster which can be used in isolation or together with the other resources. This resource used words from the book, puts them in context and asks students to decode meaning using contextual clues, then apply the words in sentences of their own. When used in conjunction with the book, this is weeks of learning, covering reading, writing and speaking and listening. This book would be suitable for a whole class read-aloud, or as a reading group text for Stage Two students. I have many other literature-based resources in my store (most of them Australian) so feel free to check them out. Happy reading!

This is a 100+ page novel study on the uplifting book “Laughter is the Best Ending” by Maryam Master. This book is featured on the CBCA shortlist for Younger Readers in 2025. Laughter is the Best Ending by Maryam Master is a humorous and heartwarming middle-grade novel that follows 13-year-old Zee, a self-proclaimed loner who prefers Oscar Wilde and documentaries over socialising. When her parents send her to Camp Youth Fusion to make friends, Zee finds herself entangled in a mystery alongside an unlikely group of companions: influencer Tiffanee and super-nerd twins Jonah and Moses. Together, they navigate camp challenges, confront the enigmatic Old Bat Viv, and discover the value of friendship, self-acceptance, and the healing power of laughter. This resource consists of a chapter-based comprehension guide (divided into “chunks” of 3-5 chapters at a time). The questions cover a range of comprehension skills, from literal to inferential, plus author purpose, comparing and contrasting, summarising, predicting and much more. A comprehensive answer guide is also provided. Each section also has a creative response, designed to be high-interest, independent and engaging. These are often linked to the Creative and Practical Arts. This book would be suitable for a whole class read-aloud, or as a reading group text for Stages Two or Three. There is a bank of ten Literacy Circle tasks, designed to be printed and laminated for future use. These involve a high degree of student choice, so as to be independent. All associated printables are also included. There is also an associated vocabulary booster for each section of the text. I have many other literature-based resources in my store (most of them Australian) so feel free to check them out. Happy reading!

This is a HUGE 88-page complete English unit based on the amazing book “Belonging” by Jeannie Baker. This is a unit of work I created to support the teaching of the Stage Two History unit “Community and Remembrance”, which requires students to reflect upon the changes which have occurred in their local area over time. Belonging is a perfect text to support the teaching of this unit. I try to never have “my voice” in product listings but…this is quite simply one of my favourite units to teach! The book is a wordless text, which requires students to constantly access Visual Literacy skills, and I just love the writing unit associated with this text. It’s a high engagement, higher-order unit of work for Stage Two which they thoroughly enjoy! My “Book a Week” units have everything required to teach your English requirements over the course of a week - Speaking and Listening, Reading and Writing. This unit of work uses Belonging as a mentor text for students to create a hybrid (imaginative and informative) wordless text of their own. Students create a text in the style of Belonging, whereby they recount their life to date in a series of images (looking through a window, just like Tracy in the book), and then envisage their own futures and what they would like them to look like. Included in this unit of work is: all curriculum links, both ACARA and NESA. English curriculum links are included, as well as HASS/HSIE. a detailed lesson guide, outlining everything you need to teach the unit. This is a step-by-step daily lesson plan, with work samples, tips and suggestions and more. all learning intentions and success criteria. embedded oral language prompts, based on Belonging. a comprehensive shared reading supporting slideshow, containing lots of visual supports. This includes page-by-page comprehension questions (both literal and inferential). a full-colour background to the text, including a suburb case study on the real-life basis for the text (Leichhardt, NSW) and an overview of the "Reclaim the Streets movement which inspired the text a complete writing unit (which for my class took longer than one week, but is provided here in varying lengths), with all associated planning and publishing templates ten high-interest literature centre task cards, based on Belonging. These are designed to be engaging and fun with a high degree of student choice, so as to allow for independent work. Tasks incorporate areas such as research, designing, the Creative Arts and more. There are also imaginative, informative and persuasive written tasks based on Belonging. All associated printables to support the literature circle tasks. These can also be used in isolation as well. I have many other literature based resources in my store. Please feel free to check them out. Happy reading!

This is a 50-page, no prep, novel study for the beautiful, funny Australian book “Runt” by Craig Silvey. It contains comprehension questions (both literal and inferential) as well as creative responses, designed for independent student consolidation. It also contains a series of printable literature circle task cards as well as all associated resources. This book would be appropriate as a whole class read-aloud for either Stage 2 or 3, as well as small reading groups. The novel study can be used in both formats. I have organised the novel study into three-chapter “chunks”, as this is my suggested allocation for reading groups, meaning I give students three chapters to read independently at a time. Then, students work on the comprehension sheets independently and we discuss the answers in the following session. Each comprehension sheet has an associated creative response task, designed to be both high-interest and independent. All tasks contain a high degree of student choice. Comprehension skills targeted include: author purpose, recalling key facts, summarising, predicting, cause and effect, inferring, and many more. All answers are provided as well.

This is a 40+ page resource bundle based on the iconic Australian book “One Small Island” by Alison Lester. One Small Island is a hybrid informative/imaginative text which tells the amazing story of Macquarie Island, a unique and pristine place which was terribly affected by industry and hunting, and a communities dedication to returning it to its natural state. It ties in perfectly with themes of sustainability and ecological responsibility. This book was selected to be a mentor text to teach the Stage Three NESA Unit (3): Argument and Authority. The resources are designed both to provoke deep thinking about the text, but also to be completely independent. The only prep you need to do is printing or uploading to google classroom or a similar platform. This bundle of resources consists of: a section-by-section comprehension guide. The guide has three pages of comprehension questions, focusing on a range of skills , such as literal and inferential understanding, text-to-self connections, author purpose, cause and effect and much much more. All up, this is 19 pages of independent comprehension work. The comprehension guide comes in the form of a workbook which can be printed and stapled for independent work. a comprehensive answer guide, perfect for assessment and feedback. a set of ten full-colour literacy centre task cards based on the text. These include a range of Creative and Practical Arts integrated tasks, as well as informative, imaginative and persuasive writing prompts. all associated printables linked to the task cards, which can be used for a range of literature. These are a set of high-interest, high-choice worksheets. When used in conjunction with the book, this is weeks of learning, covering reading, writing and speaking and listening. This book would be suitable for a whole class read-aloud, or as a reading group text for Stage Three students. I have many other literature-based resources in my store (most of them Australian) so feel free to check them out. Happy reading!

This is a 57-page novel study on the beautiful book “August and Jones” by Pip Harry. This book is featured on the CBCA shortlist for Younger Readers in 2023. August and Jones is the story of a girl called Jones who – due to drought – has to leave her family farm and move to the country. Jones lost an eye to cancer when she was a baby, but that doesn’t stop her from being a daredevil. August is a quiet boy who loves to read, but is forced into playing footy and other “boys things” by his father. August is tasked with showing Jones around on the first day of school and they become friends. Soon, they develop a bucket list of things to see and do – but Jones’ vision is getting blurry. This affects her ability to complete the bucket list but is also a worrying sign that a tumour may be back. This resource consists of a chapter-based comprehension guide (divided into “chunks” of 3 chapters at a time). The questions cover a range of comprehension skills, from literal to inferential, plus author purpose, comparing and contrasting, summarising, predicting and much more. A comprehensive answer guide is also provided. Each section also has a creative response, designed to be high-interest, independent and engaging. These are often linked to the Creative and Practical Arts. This book would be suitable for a whole class read-aloud, or as a reading group text for Stages Two or Three. There is a bank of ten Literacy Circle tasks, designed to be printed and laminated for future use. These involve a high degree of student choice, so as to be independent. All associated printables are also included. I have many other literature-based resources in my store (most of them Australian) so feel free to check them out. Happy reading!

This is a HUGE bundle of resources designed to support the text “Bright New World” by Cindy Forde in your classroom. Bright New World is a beautifully told, creative text which switches between an imaginative text and an informative one. It shows the reader an imagined futuristic world where excellent environmental decisions have been made, whilst teaching students about the environmental risks we face in the present. This text is one of the recommended texts to support the teaching of genre in Stage Three classrooms, as part of the NESA unit “Bright New World” (Unit 2) in the new curriculum. This bundle of resources includes: A detailed student comprehension workbook, designed to be implemented independently. This workbook can be printed and bound, and students can work through the workbook at their own pace. Comprehension questions access a range of levels, from literal to inferential. The workbook is very detailed with 3-4 pages devoted to every chapter of the book (60+ pages). Embedded creative responses for further consolidation of the text. An answer guide for every section of the guide, perfect for assessment and feedback purposes. Ten full-colour Literature Circle task cards, also linked to the text. These have a Literacy focus, with informative, imaginative and persuasive writing prompts, as well as independent Creative and Visual Arts activities. These are all designed to be independent and are perfect for integration into your reading group time. They require no prep, other than printing worksheets. All associated printables, which can be used for a range of texts, both fiction and non-fiction. This resource is perfect for supporting your students in understanding hybrid texts, and for engaging them in making powerful, sustainable decisions. As a result, these resources also support Stage Two and Three learning in Science and Geography as well. I have many other literacy-based resources in my store (based on Australian content) so feel free to check them out. Happy reading!

This is a 80±page novel study on the Iconic Australian book “Tom Appleby: Convict Boy” by Jackie French. Tom Appleby: Convict Boy tells the story of Tom, an eight-year-old boy who finds himself on the harsh London streets after the death of his father. Tom is expected to work as a chimney sweep, but is swept into a life of petty crime and eventually sentenced to sail as a convict to a new life in Botany Bay. This is an excellent text to support the teaching of a history unit about the causes of the sailing of the First Fleet, and the impacts of colonisation on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. This resource consists of a chapter-by-chapter comprehension guide. The questions cover a range of comprehension skills, from literal to inferential, plus author purpose, comparing and contrasting, summarising, predicting and much more. A comprehensive answer guide is also provided. Each section also has a creative response, designed to be high-interest, independent and engaging. These are often linked to the Creative and Practical Arts. This book would be suitable for a whole class read-aloud, or as a reading group text for and extension Stage Two group or mainstream Stage Three. There is a bank of ten Literacy Circle tasks, designed to be printed and laminated for future use. These involve a high degree of student choice, so as to be independent. All associated printables are also included. Also included is a comprehensive slideshow and real-life background to the text, including information about 18th century London, workhouses, the life of children, the First Fleet and its causes. I have many other literature-based resources in my store (most of them Australian) so feel free to check them out. Happy reading!

This is a HUGE 77-page complete English unit based on the amazing book “Window” by Jeannie Baker. This is a unit of work I created to support the teaching of the Stage Two Geography unit “The Earth’s Environment”, which requires students to reflect upon Issues of sustainability in their local area. Window is a perfect text to support the teaching of this unit. My “Book a Week” units have everything required to teach your English requirements over the course of a week - Speaking and Listening, Reading and Writing. This unit of work uses Window as a mentor text for students to create a persuasive text on a topic of their choice. Students choose an issue of sustainability to research, and write a structured persuasive text on this topic. Included in this unit of work is: all curriculum links, both ACARA and NESA. English curriculum links are included, as well as HASS/HSIE. a detailed lesson guide, outlining everything you need to teach the unit. This is a step-by-step daily lesson plan, with work samples, tips and suggestions and more. all learning intentions and success criteria. embedded oral language prompts, based on Window. a comprehensive shared reading supporting slideshow, containing lots of visual supports. This includes page-by-page comprehension questions (both literal and inferential). a full-colour background to the text, including a suburb case study on the real-life basis for the text (Campbelltown, NSW) and reflection on urban development a complete persuasive writing unit, with all associated planning and publishing templates 12 persuasive writing prompts for “quick writes” on relevant sustainability issues ten high-interest literature centre task cards, based on Window. These are designed to be engaging and fun with a high degree of student choice, so as to allow for independent work. Tasks incorporate areas such as research, designing, the Creative Arts and more. There are also imaginative, informative and persuasive written tasks based on Window. All associated printables to support the literature circle tasks. These can also be used in isolation as well. I have many other literature based resources in my store. Please feel free to check them out. Happy reading!

This is a 34-page integrated reading/writing unit based on the brilliant book “Paradise Sands” by Levi Pinfold. This book has been shortlisted for “Picture Book of the Year” in 2023, by the Children’s Book Council of Australia. This hauntingly beautiful book tells the story of a family who are on a road trip to visit their mother when they are waylaid at the Paradise Sands hotel. The main character of the story is a young girl, who tries to persuade her brothers of the dangers of the hotel, but they do not listen. The family may find themselves trapped in the hotel forever. The rich illustrations lend themselves perfectly to a focus on visual literacy and the book is so open to interpretation and creative writing. The unit of work contains separate resources aimed at both Stages 2 and 3. Because of the open-ended nature of the tasks, the Stage 3 content would also be suitable for a Stage 4 classroom. Likewise, the Stages 2 and 3 work is also suitable for extension groups and/or support work. The bundle contains: differentiated reading comprehension booklets for Stages 2/3 with targeted comprehension questions. Areas of focus include: literal comprehension, inferential comprehension, visual literacy, analysing setting, cause and effect, making connections, comparing and contrasting and more. a suggested answer guide for both of the comprehension booklets. integrated writing tasks based on the book. There is a separate task for Stages 2 and 3. The Stage 3 task is also suited to Stage 4. Writing comes in the form of an open-ended writing stimulus presented in a booklet. I use stand-alone activities like this in my classroom as assessment tools, either at the beginning or the end of a unit of work. Both writing tasks are imaginative. a set of ten no-prep printable Literature Circle task cards. Tasks contain a high degree of student choice and are designed to be high-interest and engaging to allow for independent class work. All associated resources are included. a poetry analysis task for stages 3/4 based on the poem in Paradise Sands. all associated printables, which include researching, writing and Visual Arts tasks. work samples which may support teaching in your classroom. All of my resources are intentionally created to support the teaching of specific texts - none of my tasks are lower order “filler sheets” or generic reader responses. Students are required to think deeply about each individual book and its unique features. I have many other literature-based resources in my store (most of them based on Australia texts) so feel free to check them out. Happy reading!

This is a 64-page novel study on the beautiful book “How to Bee” by Kate Gordon. This book was voted Book of the Year for Younger Readers by the Children’s Book Council of Australia in 2018. How to Bee tells the story of Peony, a brave, loyal and clever girl who lives in a futuristic world without bees. Peony longs to be a “bee”, a human pollinator who encourages fruit and vegetables to be grown in place of real bees. Her mother, who has been living and working in the city, arrives one day, and forces Peony to come with her and her new husband-to-be to the urban wasteland that is the big city. Peony is a courageous, resourceful girl, but even these skills may not be enough to help her survive this dangerous new world. This resource consists of a chapter-based comprehension guide (divided into “chunks” of 3 chapters at a time). The questions cover a range of comprehension skills, from literal to inferential, plus author purpose, comparing and contrasting, summarising, predicting and much more. A comprehensive answer guide is also provided. Each section also has a creative response, designed to be high-interest, independent and engaging. These are often linked to the Creative and Practical Arts. This book would be suitable for a whole class read-aloud, or as a reading group text for Stages Two or Three. SOLD SEPARATELY in my store is a bank of ten Literacy Circle tasks, designed to be printed and laminated for future use. These involve a high degree of student choice, so as to be independent. I have many other literature-based resources in my store (most of them Australian) so feel free to check them out. Happy reading!

This is a 40+ page resource bundle based on the iconic Australian book “Spotlight” by Solli Raphael. Spotlight is a collection of poetry that offers a powerful and thought-provoking exploration of various themes and issues relevant to young readers. Through his dynamic and evocative verses, Solli Raphael invites readers to reflect on topics such as identity, self-discovery, social justice, and the power of individual and collective action. This book was selected to be a mentor text to teach the Stage Three NESA Unit (4): Imagery, Symbol, Connotation. The resources are designed both to provoke deep thinking about the text, but also to be completely independent. The only prep you need to do is printing or uploading to google classroom or a similar platform. This bundle of resources consists of: a section-by-section comprehension guide. The guide explicitly covers the first five chapters of the book, whereby Solli Raphael details his journey with poetry and activism. There are two pages of comprehension questions for each of these sections. ten pages of poetry analysis templates (each template is the same), which can be used in multiple ways. Students might select ten poems from the book to analyse, or the teacher can assign certain poems. The templates can be used for any poem, not just the poems in this text. full-colour informative poetry posters, covering all the poetry forms featured in Spotlight. Each poster includes a description of what makes each type of poetry unique (including history, where appropriate), a section of the specific features, an outline of structure (for structured poems) and an example. There are 15 posters, including haiku, quatrains, limericks, sonnets and more! These can also be used for any poetry unit for all ages. a set of ten full-colour literacy centre task cards based on the text. These include a range of Creative and Practical Arts integrated tasks, as well as informative, imaginative and persuasive writing prompts. When used in conjunction with the book, this is weeks of learning, covering reading, writing and speaking and listening. This book would be suitable for a whole class read-aloud, or as a reading group text for Stage Three or Stage Four students. I have many other literature-based resources in my store (most of them Australian) so feel free to check them out. Happy reading!

BY POPULAR DEMAND!! Now with PowerPoint and PDF versions!! Please read the description below for details. This is a HUGE, 420+ page supporting slideshow for the new NESA Stage Three English Unit (13) which explicitly teaches the concept of argument and authority using a range of media sources as mentor texts. This resource is a supporting slideshow which means it is linked to the Department of Education (NSW) unit of work which teaches Stage 3 students about argument and authority. This unit of work is available for free on the NESA site (it is also included in this resource). All the corresponding lessons are included in the slideshow, meaning this is a complete no-prep resource, when used in conjunction with the lesson guide. Slides are full-colour, engaging and fun, whilst also encapsulating all the key concepts of the unit, so you don’t need to cross-reference or produce these yourself. NOTE: This unit is presented in two formats. One is as a series of PDFs. The other is a non-editable PowerPoint slideshow. This is due to many requests from my lovely customers who have asked for slideshows to be in PPT format. This means you can pick slides, add your own content, delete unneeded slides, or embed selected material into your daily slideshow. It also means that external links are embedded. Easy peasy!! Please be aware that the slides themselves are not editable. This unit of work focuses on imaginative text, but also includes MANY Component A elements, including: gist statements subjective and objective language emotive language declarative, exclamatory and interrogative sentences modality adverbial clauses lexical cohesive devices non-finite verbs …and much more! Assessment tasks are embedded throughout the unit, with assessment opportunities highlighted. The culmination of the unit are two writing tasks whereby students are required to create a factual news article and a fake news article. Simply put, this resource is everything you need to teach the new English curriculum in your Stage 3 classroom! All the hard work and preparation is done for you, so you can…teach! This resource is part of a larger bundle (also available in my store), which includes comprehension booklets for shared and guided reading, as well as Literacy Circle task cards, printables and much more! This is a huge unit. It will take up a significant amount of storage space, so I recommend storage on Google Drive or similar. Corresponding page numbers to the syllabus document from the NSW Department of Education are given in the corner of each slide. Please note: this slideshow focuses on the complete learning pathway of Component B, with Component A embedded throughout as “mini -lessons” or concepts. There is not a stand-alone slideshow for Component A. I have lots of other Literacy resources in my store (based on Australian content) so feel free to check them out. Happy reading!