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    This assignment first introduces the rationale and local demographic info as it affects childrens

    schooling and a myriad of other factors related to it, then the choice of topic or lexical theme

    (Great Barrier Reef) is explained and how the chosen 5 texts, or more accurately, meaning-making

    extracts (or chains-of-signs, according toKress and Bezemer, 2009) help develop and consolidate

    the new knowledge. Research findings from the referenced below readings are used to substantiate

    the points made and outcomes aimed at; and finally, a detailed analysis of language features of one

    text, in this instance, aposterproduced by Marine Park Authority (Australian Government agency) is

    attached in the Appendix.

    The rationalefor changing the topic of this assignment and choosing a mainstream public primary

    school scenario, the Great Barrier Reef as HSIE section in Heritage Listed Sites of Year 3 HSIE

    moduleAustralia, You Are Standing In Itover a private ELICOS college and Australian Naval Fleet

    Review and upcoming events in Sydney topic is the longevity, the practicality and the variety of

    texts and tasks that can be worked on and saved, edited and polishedfor use in later years. I have

    a personal interest in this topic too: my son is in Year 2, will be studying this topic next year, we

    enjoyed our holiday in Port Douglas, been to the Great Barrier Reef and took part in all the offered

    activities. The photos taken, as Freebody (2008) explains, would provide the experience side to the

    topic and make it more interesting and relevant to students. This assignment material, edited after

    the markers feedback is received, can be offered to school as a unit of work or a collection of

    learning sequences to choose from should they decide to accept it for next years Year 3 HSIE

    module Australia, You Are Standing in It.

    Demographics.Over 80 per cent of children in our local school speak languages other than English at

    home, come from low income families and have very few opportunities outside the class to learn

    about Australia. Therefore, the role of the classroom teacher is to be an ESL teacher as well as the

    content teacher. The school employs 2 bilingual Teacher Aides who do not have TESOL training. To

    be able to read successfully, as Heath (1994) explains, children need to become (again) active in

    searching for meaning in books, able to decontextualise that meaning and knowledge, and link it to

    other aspects in their environment. (Heath, 1994, p.92) Table-top activities widely used in our local

    school are a very good way to decontextualise the meaning from books or other lesson materials,

    and consolidate that new knowledge under teachers guidance.Since these table-top activities are

    usually done in small groups, it is usually possible to group children not only according to their level

    of proficiency in English with tasks pitched to their i+1(Krashen as referenced and cited extensively

    in Lightbown & Spada, 2011), but also based on personal compatibility or interests of the children.

    Decontextualisation and understanding of the text comprehension and production dialectic or text-

    in-and-out-of-context is emphasised in another publication (Freebody, 2008). The author, in

    asserting that there must be a proactive approach to literacy and, namely, text construction, goes

    further by highlighting that interpreting and producing texts is a way of rendering experience more

    understandable, of transforming experience... (Freebody, 2008, p.117). This has important

    implications not only on the choice of resources, but more importantly, on the way these resources

    are presented to the learners. The chosen topic Great Barrier Reef with the obvious learning

    activities link to an excursion to the Sydney Aquarium and watching the movie Finding Nemo will

    reenergise and motivate the students, enable them to understand better what they (possibly) could

    not entirely understand from the printed texts, give them an opportunity to practice both the targetlanguage and informal social skills (often lacking) in English. According to Freebody, the experience

    http://books.google.com.au/books?id=AQbyjeOQdvIC&printsec=frontcover&dq=the+sage+handbook+of+writing+development+p.167&hl=en&sa=X&ei=LUOhUqTYMMvfkgWhmYHoCQ&ved=0CDAQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q&f=falsehttp://books.google.com.au/books?id=AQbyjeOQdvIC&printsec=frontcover&dq=the+sage+handbook+of+writing+development+p.167&hl=en&sa=X&ei=LUOhUqTYMMvfkgWhmYHoCQ&ved=0CDAQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q&f=falsehttp://books.google.com.au/books?id=AQbyjeOQdvIC&printsec=frontcover&dq=the+sage+handbook+of+writing+development+p.167&hl=en&sa=X&ei=LUOhUqTYMMvfkgWhmYHoCQ&ved=0CDAQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q&f=falsehttp://www.reefed.edu.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0003/41178/GBRMPA_Reef_Beat_Poster_3.pdfhttp://www.reefed.edu.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0003/41178/GBRMPA_Reef_Beat_Poster_3.pdfhttp://www.reefed.edu.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0003/41178/GBRMPA_Reef_Beat_Poster_3.pdfhttp://k6.boardofstudies.nsw.edu.au/wps/wcm/connect/38883454-0dd3-4ac0-bca6-f2dcee8bf3ab/k6hsie_stg2_unitsofwork.pdf?MOD=AJPEREShttp://k6.boardofstudies.nsw.edu.au/wps/wcm/connect/38883454-0dd3-4ac0-bca6-f2dcee8bf3ab/k6hsie_stg2_unitsofwork.pdf?MOD=AJPEREShttp://k6.boardofstudies.nsw.edu.au/wps/wcm/connect/38883454-0dd3-4ac0-bca6-f2dcee8bf3ab/k6hsie_stg2_unitsofwork.pdf?MOD=AJPEREShttp://k6.boardofstudies.nsw.edu.au/wps/wcm/connect/38883454-0dd3-4ac0-bca6-f2dcee8bf3ab/k6hsie_stg2_unitsofwork.pdf?MOD=AJPEREShttp://www.reefed.edu.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0003/41178/GBRMPA_Reef_Beat_Poster_3.pdfhttp://books.google.com.au/books?id=AQbyjeOQdvIC&printsec=frontcover&dq=the+sage+handbook+of+writing+development+p.167&hl=en&sa=X&ei=LUOhUqTYMMvfkgWhmYHoCQ&ved=0CDAQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q&f=false
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    side is very importantthe learning will be more actively informed (Freebody, 2008, p.117) and

    could be used as a momentum for higher level scaffolding.

    The role of personal experience, as well as of experiential learning is also mentioned in Donovan and

    Smolkin (2001) quoting Rutherford (1991): The learning of science begins with a childs personal

    experience of this world, ... questions, not answers,...with finding out, not being told; with

    butterflies and Tinkertoys, not books.(Donovan and Smolkin, 2001 p.415) This statement can be

    extended to other areas of learning, not only science. Discovery learning is very rewarding and

    motivating, however, learning from books can be made motivating, rewarding and interesting too.

    It is important to discuss the selection and, possibly, development of appropriate resources here. My

    generation (pre-world-wide-web) studied using textbooks and limited teacher-developed resources.

    Nowadays the availability of resources is significantly wider, however this does not always translate

    to better choices. For example, many ELICOS colleges in Sydney use graded Headway, Cutting

    Edge and other courses published in the UK or the USA; many websites designed for information or

    teaching purposes have the look and feel of commercial dont leave before you buy portals. One of

    the most difficult problems to overcome in resources research is to find material with content

    suitable for children rather than adults. Board of Studies NSW, the decision-making body of all public

    schools recommends a topic for Stage 2 (Year3) Information Report writing Singapore is a bustling,

    modern Asian city providing a high standard of living(Board of Studies NSW, K-6, p.224). This is a

    High School-level writing topic in view of Primary teachers I spoke to recently. In some staff rooms

    there are lists of websites withwww.schoolatoz.nsw.edu.au, www.factmonster.comand the like,

    which seem to be universal and a quick answer to almost anything, however not many teachers

    put in the necessary extra work of customising the worksheets or editing the downloaded texts let

    alone matching those (not only the title and the topic) against the curriculum and unit-of-work goals.

    Donovan and Smolkin (2001) studied 10 teachersselections of childrensbooks, and the underlying

    assumptions, as noted by the teachers on the feedback forms as to the use of the selected books to

    teach 2 modules of science Life Cycle and Properties of Matter at primary school level. Among

    the teachers most frequent comments were good graphics (drawings and photos which made the

    books visually appealing), content, readability, and whether or not the book had multiple uses and

    was suited to the particular age. The teachers also made a point that entertaining stories and texts

    that both entertain and inform would make more interesting and valuable lessons compared to

    lessons based on information reports with their unsuitability for reading aloud.

    The authors warn via a voice of 1 out of 10 teachers that learning science via stories may cause

    confusion about stance in texts (Donovan & Smolkin,2001, p437) and add missed opportunities

    and misinformation to their concerns. The researchers also make a striking discovery that none of

    the teachers addressed the issue of genre other than describing 2 books provided as fun stories.

    Only one teacher had selected a sizeable collection of genres, and even this teacher could not

    comment nor positively identify any genres other than nice ... presentation.

    There are several flaws in this research, it seems that some of the very general comments like nice

    to read are not a true reflection nor should these be seriously considered as relevant feedback,

    however, several important findings are made, and the main argument, proven successfully on this,

    however small, sample of primary school teachers is that teachers want to inform AND entertain.

    http://www.schoolatoz.nsw.edu.au/http://www.schoolatoz.nsw.edu.au/http://www.schoolatoz.nsw.edu.au/http://www.factmonster.com/http://www.factmonster.com/http://www.factmonster.com/http://www.schoolatoz.nsw.edu.au/
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    The surveyed teachers view purely informative texts as difficult to read, boring and something that

    should happen later at school.

    Genre is not the main consideration when selecting resources. This finding mirrors the experiences

    of my many colleagues and my own. Theme or module (unit of work etc) would dictate the choice of

    content and some materials, and those in turn can be adapted, reworded, transformed if necessary,

    or developed from scratch, which can be very time consuming, but when done properly, matched

    perfectly to the TLC dots. It is important, however, to develop the genre control skills in students

    for a myriad of reasons, the main one being a genres social purpose. If students know how to

    inform, instruct, argue and agree, they will recognise these social features in the texts they are given

    and will be able to identify the pattern structure, which in turn makes dexontextualisation easier.

    There is a lengthy (stating the obvious and irrelevant to the publications theme) discussion of what

    a caterpillar does NOT eat, the explanation how the writers poetry or aesthetical cocoon won

    over the scientifically correct chrysalis in A Very Hungry Caterpillar( Donovan & Smolkin, 2001 p.

    436). The researchers comment on the questionable suitability of the 2 chosen books to teach Life

    Cycle, however, they themselves make assumptions on the way those teachers would use the

    books with incongruent to the actual facts information. Were the teachers, the researchers or both

    Judging the book by its cover?

    It is regrettable that the study did not look a step further and show how the chosen books were

    actually used (if they were used) in the classrooms by the teachers, how the students responded,

    what learning outcomes were met, where there were gaps, confusion, etc. In the context of this

    study probably the only advantage of using stories other than affect (visual appeal) would be more

    effective vocabulary acquisition of list items (provided that the teacher edited the stories) compared

    to learning the vocabulary as list items from an Information Report (Lightbown & Spada, 2011)

    Most likely, the selected books were supplemented by other paper or medium-based resources

    (provided by the school or brought in). As technology use in classroom grows, so does the potential

    for producing and using high-tech materials such as CD-ROMs, presentations for screen projectors,

    class computers or material for interactive whiteboards, and, of course, numerous educational

    websites which give a different perspective on how a text, and learning material in general, are

    organised in an interactive medium. As Kress and Bezemer (2009) explain, without understanding

    the conventions or code of such resources it is difficult to read them or even see their value as it

    may be encoded in Signs requiring understanding of social semiotic production (Kress and

    Bezemer, 2009, pp171-172)

    What do the above publications mean for the selection of appropriate resources and techniques for

    teaching the chosen Unit of work? In addition to previously justified resources (The model text of

    Information Report Sharks(provided by NSW Board of Studies K-6 Syllabus, p.227), theposter

    (cause and effect explanation: how Climate Change affects the Great Barrier Reef(in which I would

    probably draw students attention to the 2 errors rather than ignore them in the text of the poster,

    to emphasise that it is human to make mistakes)). The compulsory set of resources would also

    include awebsitedevoted to the Great Barrier Reef, starting with its history, andtentativelyan

    excursion to the Sydney Aquarium and viewing the Disney movie Finding Nemo.A number of

    other resources produced with different tenor and register variables are referenced here and are

    http://k6.boardofstudies.nsw.edu.au/wps/wcm/connect/855fbeaf-0799-466f-b06e-fca03fcaf691/k6engmodules_syl.pdf?MOD=AJPEREShttp://k6.boardofstudies.nsw.edu.au/wps/wcm/connect/855fbeaf-0799-466f-b06e-fca03fcaf691/k6engmodules_syl.pdf?MOD=AJPEREShttp://www.reefed.edu.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0003/41178/GBRMPA_Reef_Beat_Poster_3.pdfhttp://www.reefed.edu.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0003/41178/GBRMPA_Reef_Beat_Poster_3.pdfhttp://www.reefed.edu.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0003/41178/GBRMPA_Reef_Beat_Poster_3.pdfhttp://www.greatbarrierreef.org/history.phphttp://www.greatbarrierreef.org/history.phphttp://www.greatbarrierreef.org/history.phphttp://www.greatbarrierreef.org/history.phphttp://www.reefed.edu.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0003/41178/GBRMPA_Reef_Beat_Poster_3.pdfhttp://k6.boardofstudies.nsw.edu.au/wps/wcm/connect/855fbeaf-0799-466f-b06e-fca03fcaf691/k6engmodules_syl.pdf?MOD=AJPERES
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    available for the teachers, who would make their own judgement as to the suitability and learning

    value for their students.

    I would not hesitate in recommending the Finding Nemo movie and would not, contrary to

    Donovan & Smolkin (2001) be deterred by inaccuracies (for example, Bruce, the Shark becomes the

    fishes friend and swears not to eat them) there is plenty of news coverage on shark attacks, the

    children of this age are unlikely to venture in deep enough waters to be exposed to real life threats

    from the sharks, and will be informed and alerted continuously at school and by media. In discussing

    the movie and doing the activities related to it I would draw the students attention to this fib as

    well. The benefits of the social aspects, experience, medium alteration to name a few, far outweigh

    the search of true factual information.

    TheYoutube activity(with some answers provided below the clips) and thechild-friendly website

    with characters telling the story of the Great Barrier Reef, engaging and easy, bullet-pointedReef

    facts websitewould be very useful resources for independent workto allow for students varying

    levels of English proficiency: some students may want to complete all three sets of activities in their

    entirety, some may only be able to understand a small part of each text. The colourful moving

    images provide visual stimulation and add to the excitement and students motivation to work on

    the topic. The teacher can choose to pair up a native speaker or a student with higher level of

    English with a lower English language ability buddy to work on these.

    I would also recommend and be happy to help design a set of re-usable models or stencils for

    table-top activities - to consolidate what the children learned from the texts, the websites, their

    excursion and the movie: create a scene activity for example, where a group of children make

    paper models of fish, coral, seaweed etc., and arrange these in their Sea and then tell another

    group about their scene, or create a cause-and-effect Effects on the Great Barrier Reef diagram

    similar to the one they would have made for Water Cycle in Year 2, or usingsticker books as a

    guide, draw their favourite part, and so on.

    In conclusion, I would like to add my own observations and beliefs from many years of teaching at

    almost all levels: neither resources (book selections) nor curriculum knowledge (syllabus) alone

    provide for excellence in teaching. It is the teachers skill and knowledge of the above, his or her

    attitudes, creativity and dedication, the desire to fulfil the students learning ambitions, ability to

    sense the shifts in class dynamics and act on those, and nonetheless importantly, linking those to

    flow seamlessly from one learning sequence to another to achieve the curriculum, students

    personal development and own satisfaction (very important in my experience) goals.

    https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1QuN-jwg7YyoN59h0lZTmiLrRnNdUEvI9Knvkz6TTaGo/viewformhttps://docs.google.com/forms/d/1QuN-jwg7YyoN59h0lZTmiLrRnNdUEvI9Knvkz6TTaGo/viewformhttps://docs.google.com/forms/d/1QuN-jwg7YyoN59h0lZTmiLrRnNdUEvI9Knvkz6TTaGo/viewformhttp://squidsquad.com.au/reef-bits.htmlhttp://squidsquad.com.au/reef-bits.htmlhttp://squidsquad.com.au/reef-bits.htmlhttp://www.greatbarrierreef.com.au/great-barrier-reef-facts/for-kids/http://www.greatbarrierreef.com.au/great-barrier-reef-facts/for-kids/http://www.greatbarrierreef.com.au/great-barrier-reef-facts/for-kids/http://www.greatbarrierreef.com.au/great-barrier-reef-facts/for-kids/http://bks5.books.google.com.au/books?id=-kGQPQAACAAJ&printsec=frontcover&img=1&zoom=1&imgtk=AFLRE73ZHSbz3PQRb3eX8dgZVbJVcVTjRVigetVegr8jHRyqfTBLaikvnwDloFkPJXPFSWMHyQlCXW5W3BjADc-lZx4t1N7RmzrgMqWDhAyUo7x97_uq86A_8FmzJ04Ct0LKqH3iBRh8http://bks5.books.google.com.au/books?id=-kGQPQAACAAJ&printsec=frontcover&img=1&zoom=1&imgtk=AFLRE73ZHSbz3PQRb3eX8dgZVbJVcVTjRVigetVegr8jHRyqfTBLaikvnwDloFkPJXPFSWMHyQlCXW5W3BjADc-lZx4t1N7RmzrgMqWDhAyUo7x97_uq86A_8FmzJ04Ct0LKqH3iBRh8http://bks5.books.google.com.au/books?id=-kGQPQAACAAJ&printsec=frontcover&img=1&zoom=1&imgtk=AFLRE73ZHSbz3PQRb3eX8dgZVbJVcVTjRVigetVegr8jHRyqfTBLaikvnwDloFkPJXPFSWMHyQlCXW5W3BjADc-lZx4t1N7RmzrgMqWDhAyUo7x97_uq86A_8FmzJ04Ct0LKqH3iBRh8http://bks5.books.google.com.au/books?id=-kGQPQAACAAJ&printsec=frontcover&img=1&zoom=1&imgtk=AFLRE73ZHSbz3PQRb3eX8dgZVbJVcVTjRVigetVegr8jHRyqfTBLaikvnwDloFkPJXPFSWMHyQlCXW5W3BjADc-lZx4t1N7RmzrgMqWDhAyUo7x97_uq86A_8FmzJ04Ct0LKqH3iBRh8http://www.greatbarrierreef.com.au/great-barrier-reef-facts/for-kids/http://www.greatbarrierreef.com.au/great-barrier-reef-facts/for-kids/http://squidsquad.com.au/reef-bits.htmlhttps://docs.google.com/forms/d/1QuN-jwg7YyoN59h0lZTmiLrRnNdUEvI9Knvkz6TTaGo/viewform
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    References

    Climate Change impacts on the Great Barrier Reefa poster produced by Australian Government,

    Marine Park Authority, available from

    http://www.reefed.edu.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0003/41178/GBRMPA_Reef_Beat_Poster_3.pdf

    viewed October 2013

    Donovan C. and Smolkin L., 2001.Genre and other factors influencing teachers book selections for

    science instruction.Reading Research Querterly, Vol 30, N 4 International Reading Association.

    Freebody P., 2008.Critical Literacy Education: On Living with Innocent Language Encyclopaedia

    of Language and Education, 2nd

    Ed, Vol. 2

    Gibbons P. 2006. Second Language Learning and Teaching. In: Bridging Discourses in the ESL

    Classroom. Continuum, London.

    Great Barrier Reef (for Kids)available from http://www.greatbarrierreef.com.au/great-barrier-

    reef-facts/for-kids/- viewed October 2013

    Heath S.B., 1994.What No Bedtime Story Means: Narrative Skills at Home and School. - Language

    and Literacy in Social Practice. Multilingual Matters

    History of the Great Barrier Reefavailable fromhttp://www.greatbarrierreef.org/history.php

    viewed October 2013

    Kress and Bezemer, 2009Writing in a Multimodal World of Representationfrom The SAGE

    Handbook of Writing DevelopmentSAGE Publications LTD, London, available via SAGE eLibrary.

    Lightbown P. and Spada N. 2011. How languages are learned, OUP, 3rd Ed.

    The Great Barrier Reef 2Youtube clip available fromhttps://docs.google.com/forms/d/1QuN-

    jwg7YyoN59h0lZTmiLrRnNdUEvI9Knvkz6TTaGo/viewformviewed October 2013

    Squid SquadReef Bitsavailable fromhttp://squidsquad.com.au/reef-bits.htmlviewed October

    2013

    http://www.reefed.edu.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0003/41178/GBRMPA_Reef_Beat_Poster_3.pdfhttp://www.reefed.edu.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0003/41178/GBRMPA_Reef_Beat_Poster_3.pdfhttp://www.greatbarrierreef.com.au/great-barrier-reef-facts/for-kids/http://www.greatbarrierreef.com.au/great-barrier-reef-facts/for-kids/http://www.greatbarrierreef.com.au/great-barrier-reef-facts/for-kids/http://www.greatbarrierreef.org/history.phphttp://www.greatbarrierreef.org/history.phphttp://www.greatbarrierreef.org/history.phphttps://docs.google.com/forms/d/1QuN-jwg7YyoN59h0lZTmiLrRnNdUEvI9Knvkz6TTaGo/viewformhttps://docs.google.com/forms/d/1QuN-jwg7YyoN59h0lZTmiLrRnNdUEvI9Knvkz6TTaGo/viewformhttps://docs.google.com/forms/d/1QuN-jwg7YyoN59h0lZTmiLrRnNdUEvI9Knvkz6TTaGo/viewformhttps://docs.google.com/forms/d/1QuN-jwg7YyoN59h0lZTmiLrRnNdUEvI9Knvkz6TTaGo/viewformhttp://squidsquad.com.au/reef-bits.htmlhttp://squidsquad.com.au/reef-bits.htmlhttp://squidsquad.com.au/reef-bits.htmlhttp://squidsquad.com.au/reef-bits.htmlhttps://docs.google.com/forms/d/1QuN-jwg7YyoN59h0lZTmiLrRnNdUEvI9Knvkz6TTaGo/viewformhttps://docs.google.com/forms/d/1QuN-jwg7YyoN59h0lZTmiLrRnNdUEvI9Knvkz6TTaGo/viewformhttp://www.greatbarrierreef.org/history.phphttp://www.greatbarrierreef.com.au/great-barrier-reef-facts/for-kids/http://www.greatbarrierreef.com.au/great-barrier-reef-facts/for-kids/http://www.reefed.edu.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0003/41178/GBRMPA_Reef_Beat_Poster_3.pdf
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    Appendix. Assumptions, Learning sequences and text analysis.

    As per Yr 3 HSIE guidelines, approximately 8 weeks are allocated toAustralia, you are standing in it

    and it is assumed that at least some of the planned outcomes are achieved prior to commencing the

    topic of Great Barrier Reef via work on Sydney Heritage Listed sites Hyde Park Barracks, The

    Sydney Harbour Bridge, Opera House the Blue Mountains and, possibly, some other prominent

    landmarks such as Uluru or The Great Ocean Road. It is assumed that students prior experiences

    with written genres allows them to differentiate between factual and fictional texts, and work on

    this unit should help understand the distinction.

    It is important that before commencing students are familiar with some geographic terminology (the

    concept of distance may still be challenging for many students however), as per the syllabus

    significant natural, heritage and built features in the local area, NSW and Australia, and their uses

    and management and care of features, sites, places and environments (K-6 Syllabusp. 81)

    A suitable warmer would be a re-cap of the kinds of heritage listed sites and their features(buildings, land areas (parks), land formations (e.g. Blue Mountains), that these can be specific

    (Opera House) or very vague (Tasmanian Wilderness), can include man-made or natural (dead or

    live) features, they can be even under water, like shipwreck sites. Then a show of hands to name

    some states in Australia and their location, possibly with some info about them. Then either in a

    playful put on your wings, we are flying to Queensland! or more seriousaka weather-forecast-

    zoom-in on North-East Queensland, hovering over the GBR... I personally always start building the

    field with elicitationstudents are proactive, sharing what they know, and with the right (and

    motivating) approach even the shy ones would hopefully participate. Students vocalise and teacher

    jots down ideas associated with pictures of scuba divers, coral and fish, floods and storms damage,

    sugar cane farms, estuaries with muddy waters near the ocean, etc. Building the field could also

    include fragments of TV news footage about QLD floods, and other visuals. To avoid marginalising

    and putting some students at a disadvantage, images of Nemo and friends should possibly be saved

    for laterthis will also bring the class discussion closerto the point in terms of vocabulary learning

    and forming a narrative.

    Reading and discussing a printed text (History of the Great Barrier Reef,for example) would be my

    next chosen activity, followed by a visit to the library to do some activities on the computer, then

    closing in on inhabitants of the Great Barrier Reef the Information Report Shark by Board Of

    Studies NSW, followed by (the next days work) work on understanding the causes and effects of

    Climate Change on the Great Barrier Reef poster.(analysed below the Shark Report)

    .

    Shark ReportText Structure

    General statement

    identifies andclassifies thesubject

    of the information

    report

    A shark is a type of fish that lives in the sea. It is one

    of the largest sea creatures. There are over 350

    species. A shark is shaped like a torpedo. It has

    rough skin like sandpaper. Instead of bones it has

    elastic cartilage which helps them to move easily. It

    can grow up to 8 metres.

    Language Features

    Use of present tense,

    typical of much scientificwriting

    Use of technical

    language, eg elastic,cartilage, plankton

    http://k6.boardofstudies.nsw.edu.au/wps/wcm/connect/38883454-0dd3-4ac0-bca6-f2dcee8bf3ab/k6hsie_stg2_unitsofwork.pdf?MOD=AJPEREShttp://k6.boardofstudies.nsw.edu.au/wps/wcm/connect/38883454-0dd3-4ac0-bca6-f2dcee8bf3ab/k6hsie_stg2_unitsofwork.pdf?MOD=AJPEREShttp://k6.boardofstudies.nsw.edu.au/wps/wcm/connect/38883454-0dd3-4ac0-bca6-f2dcee8bf3ab/k6hsie_stg2_unitsofwork.pdf?MOD=AJPEREShttp://k6.boardofstudies.nsw.edu.au/wps/wcm/connect/38883454-0dd3-4ac0-bca6-f2dcee8bf3ab/k6hsie_stg2_unitsofwork.pdf?MOD=AJPEREShttp://k6.boardofstudies.nsw.edu.au/wps/wcm/connect/38883454-0dd3-4ac0-bca6-f2dcee8bf3ab/k6hsie_stg2_unitsofwork.pdf?MOD=AJPEREShttp://k6.boardofstudies.nsw.edu.au/wps/wcm/connect/38883454-0dd3-4ac0-bca6-f2dcee8bf3ab/k6hsie_stg2_unitsofwork.pdf?MOD=AJPEREShttp://www.greatbarrierreef.org/history.phphttp://www.greatbarrierreef.org/history.phphttp://www.greatbarrierreef.org/history.phphttp://www.reefed.edu.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0003/41178/GBRMPA_Reef_Beat_Poster_3.pdfhttp://www.reefed.edu.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0003/41178/GBRMPA_Reef_Beat_Poster_3.pdfhttp://www.reefed.edu.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0003/41178/GBRMPA_Reef_Beat_Poster_3.pdfhttp://www.greatbarrierreef.org/history.phphttp://k6.boardofstudies.nsw.edu.au/wps/wcm/connect/38883454-0dd3-4ac0-bca6-f2dcee8bf3ab/k6hsie_stg2_unitsofwork.pdf?MOD=AJPEREShttp://k6.boardofstudies.nsw.edu.au/wps/wcm/connect/38883454-0dd3-4ac0-bca6-f2dcee8bf3ab/k6hsie_stg2_unitsofwork.pdf?MOD=AJPERES
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    Description

    appearance

    habitat

    behaviour

    breeding

    Sharks are found in all oceans around the world. The

    type of shark found will depend on the waters

    temperature. A shark has to keep moving when it is

    asleep because it will either sink or suffocate. It has

    to keep moving because it needs to breathe through

    its gills to keep alive.When sharks are hungry, they look for food.

    Different sharks eat different food.

    Harmless sharks eat plankton but harmful sharks eat

    meat.

    Sharks have up to forty two babies (which are called

    pups) at a time. When the pups are born, they leave

    straight away because the mother shark does not

    have teats. Some sharks have their pups in different

    ways, some lay eggs while others have them alive.

    When they are born they need to defend themselves

    because they have no one to help them.

    Use of word families tobuild information,

    eg shark, fish, sea,

    species, oceans, water,gills, plankton

    Use of shark asbeginning

    focus (theme) for organisinginformation in the clause. This

    pattern plays a part in the

    successful organisation of thetext.

    Use of noun groups to

    build descriptions, eg

    different sharks, harmlesssharks

    Use of relating verbs, egA shark is a type , it

    has rough

    The posters intended audience is older and more proficient in English than Yr 3 students at the local

    school, however, its visual appeal and valid (complementing images) can be made digestible by the

    students here by using it after the less demanding texts and spending time on more than the 2

    language features below. It is assumed that some work has been previously done on cause and

    effect explanations, like in Yr 2 Water Cycle and some units in Yr 3. Metaphors like Sea change

    probably need to be explicitly explained at this level, however, some children may be able to handle

    the polysemy well.

    Analysis of 2 features (nominalisationand cause and effector arrow verbs) on theexample of the poster:

    Climate Change - Impacts on the Great Barrier ReefThe real sea changeClimate changeis one of the greatest threats to coral reefs worldwide. More than 30 percent of coral reefs throughout the world have already been affected and scientists fear that60 per cent of reefs may lose many corals by 2030 due to increased coral bleaching.The Great Barrier Reef is one of the largest and healthiest reef systems in the world and cancope with stressbetter than most reefs, but it is not immune to climate change.

    Impacts on coral reefsthe ecosystem effectAlready, coral bleachingand other signs of coral stress are evident. But climate changeaffects more than corals. Seabirds, marine mammals, turtles, plankton, invertebrates,marine plants, fish and habitats such as wetlands and islandsare also under threat.Because plants, animals and habitats are integrally connected, the impactsof climatechange will have far reaching impactson every part of the coral reef ecosystem.

    affectto make a difference (often negative or bad) to cause an effect (physical oremotional)elevateto raise, make higherintensifyto make smth more intense (or stronger, faster, larger etc)can floodto cover with water, to submerse due to a floodimpact (on)similar to affect above to cause a change

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    lead toto take smth to a new (changed) state, form etcmake smth+verb/ adjectiveto create conditions for a new (changed) state, actionreduceto make smaller, here: to prevent something from happeningmagnify

    Rising sea levelIncreased sea levels elevatethe risk of coastal flooding from storm surges and intensifycoastal erosion. Rising seawater can floodimportant bird and turtle nesting sites, wetlandareas, mangroves and coastal towns.

    Changing ocean circulationOcean currents transport oxygen, nutrients and an array of marine life. These oceanconveyor belts connect reefs to each other and connect the coastline to the Great BarrierReef. Changes in ocean circulation impactfood webs and influence the productivityof theecosystem.

    Altering rainfall, drought and run-off patternsRain patterns are changing. Some places are drier while others receive more rain. Intenserain leadsto increased erosion and floodwaters that carry sediments, nutrients andpesticides to the Reef impactingon the plants and animals that live there.

    Ocean acidificationHigher levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere are absorbed by the oceans, affectingthechemistry of the ocean and makingit more acidic.This reducesthe growth rateand strength of corals and affectsthe limestone foundationsof the Reef.

    Increasing frequency of intense stormsMore intense storms will magnifyphysical impactson coastal areas, mangroves,seagrass beds, shallow reef habitats, islands and coral cays in the Great Barrier Reef.

    Increasing sea temperatureIncreases in sea temperature resultsin more frequent mass coral bleachingand a

    decrease in the overall growthof the Reef. Temperature increases will impact othermarine animals such as fish, turtles and seabirds.

    Nominalisation:

    Climate change Long-term (longlasting) change in climate because of higheratmospheric temperature

    coral bleaching When coral loses colour and turns whitealso because of temperatr

    coral stress Unhealthy state in coral caused by typhoons, floods, crown-of-thornsstarfish, higher temperatures and other factors

    (physical) impacts How something causes or makes changes in something else

    erosion Surface soil washed away by water

    productivity How well a system or group can work together to a common goalgrowth rate How fast something grows

    overall growth How everything in the (Reef) environment grows

    To conclude the work on the unit and to highlight the importance of preservation and maintaining

    balance in nature avideo reportabout the new crown-of-thorns-starfish outbreak. I would

    suggest this as Information and some discussion only.

    http://au.news.yahoo.com/qld/a/19714478/fears-crown-of-thorns-starfish-plague-will-wreak-havoc-on-great-barrier-reef/http://au.news.yahoo.com/qld/a/19714478/fears-crown-of-thorns-starfish-plague-will-wreak-havoc-on-great-barrier-reef/http://au.news.yahoo.com/qld/a/19714478/fears-crown-of-thorns-starfish-plague-will-wreak-havoc-on-great-barrier-reef/http://au.news.yahoo.com/qld/a/19714478/fears-crown-of-thorns-starfish-plague-will-wreak-havoc-on-great-barrier-reef/