Primary Comprehension: Book F - Ages 10-11 by Teacher Superstore

Published by R.I.C. Publications速 www.ricgroup.com.au RIC-6258 4.5/342

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PRIMARY COMPREHENSION Foreword

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Contents

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Primary comprehension is a series of seven books designed to provide opportunities for students to read texts in a variety of genres, to answer questions at literal, inferential and applied levels and to practise a variety of selected comprehension strategies. Titles in this series include: • Primary Comprehension Book A • Primary Comprehension Book B • Primary Comprehension Book C • Primary Comprehension Book D • Primary Comprehension Book E • Primary Comprehension Book F • Primary Comprehension Book G

Teachers notes ......................................................... iv – ix How to use this book ........................................... iv – v Outcome links ............................................................ v Types of questions ..................................................... vi Comprehension strategies ...................................vi – vii Genre deﬁnitions ................................................viii – ix

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Water world (fantasy) ..................................................... 2–5 The rocket builder (autobiography) ................................. 6–9 The golden fish (folktale) ............................................ 10–13 Princess Bella and the frog prince (fairytale) .............. 14–17 Petrified wood (horror) ................................................18–21 Braille (explanation) ....................................................22–25 Lone survivor! (journal) ...............................................26–29 Sir Donald Bradman (biography) .................................30–33 A sonnet and an elegy (poetry) ................................... 34–37 Mercury and the workmen (fable) .............................. 38–41 The creation of New Zealand (legend) ........................ 42–45 The mystery of the cave (mystery) ............................. 46–49 First mission (adventure) ............................................ 50–53 Junk food vegetables (persuasive writing) .................. 54–57 The tree house (science fiction) ................................. 58–61 Childhood obesity (report) .......................................... 62–65 Beach hotel (review) .................................................. 66–69 Bus timetable (informational text) .............................. 70–73 Pay attention (humour) ............................................... 74–77 The expert (play) ........................................................ 78–81

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TEACHERS NOTES

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Twenty different texts from a variety of genres are given. These include humour, fantasy, a diary, a myth/legend, folktale, mystery, adventure, horror/supernatural, fairytale, play, fable, science ﬁction, poetry and informational texts/nonﬁction such as a journal, a timetable, letter, report, biography, journalistic writing and autobiography. Three levels of questions are used to indicate the reader’s comprehension of each text. One or more particular comprehension strategies has been chosen for practice with each text. Each text is given over pages. Each group of four pages consists of: ~ a teachers page ~ student page – 1 (which always includes the text and sometimes literal questions) ~ student page – 2 (which gives literal, inferential and applied questions) ~ student page – 3 (which concentrates on the chosen comprehension strategy/ strategies)

Teachers page

and to the three © R. I . C.Publ i c arefer t i o n slevels of questioning and any particular strategies used. •f orr evi ew pur posesonl y• Indicators state the expected outcome(s),

The title of the text is given.

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The particular genre is given.

Worksheet information details any background information required by the teacher about the genre or subject of the text or speciﬁc details regarding the use of the worksheets.

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Answers are always given for literal questions and for inferential questions where appropriate. Answers for applied questions are best checked by the teacher following, or in conjunction with, class discussion.

Extension activities suggest titles of books or authors who write in the same genre, as well as other literacy activities relating to the text.

Primary comprehension

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TEACHERS NOTES Student page – 1

Student page – 2 The title of the text is given.

The title of the text is given.

r o e t s Bo r e p ok u S Literal, inferential and applied questions are presented in a speciﬁed order.

The text is presented.

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The particular text genre is given.

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given.

Activities to practise and investigate particular comprehension strategies are provided.

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Outcome links WA R4.1, R4.2, R4.3, R4.4

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3.3, 3.7, 3.11

RS3.5, RS3.6, RS3.7, RS3.8

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Vic ENRE0401, ENRE0402, ENRE0403, ENRE0404

Primary comprehension

QLD Refer to curriculum documents on http:/www.qsa.qld.edu.au

TEACHERS NOTES Types of questions

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Comprehension strategies

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Students are given three types of questions to assess their comprehension of a particular text in each genre: • Literal questions are those which can be found directly in the text. These come ﬁrst in the questions and are grouped. • Inferential questions follow the literal questions. Inferential questions are implied in the text and require the reader to think a bit more deeply about what has just been read. • Applied questions require the reader to think even further about the text and incorporate his/her personal experiences and knowledge to answer. Answers for literal questions are always given and may be found on the teachers page. Answers for inferential questions are given where appropriate. Applied questions are best checked by the teacher following, or in conjunction with, class discussion.

Several speciﬁc comprehension strategies have been selected for practice in this book. Although speciﬁc examples have been selected, often other strategies, such as scanning, are used in conjunction with those indicated, even though they may not be stated. Rarely does a reader use a single strategy to comprehend a text.

Strategy deﬁnitions

Prediction involves the student using illustrations, text orn background knowledge © R . I . C . P u b l i c a t i o s to help them construct meaning. Students might predict what texts could be about, could happen or how characters could act or react. Prediction may occur before, •f orwhat r e vafter i e wp os es onl y• during and reading, and u canr bep adjusted during reading.

Predicting

Pages 2–5, 6–9, 10–13, 14–17, 18–21, 26–29, 58–61 and 74–77 use the strategy of predicting.

Comparing

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Sensory imaging

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Making connections Students comprehend texts by linking their prior knowledge and the new information given in the text. Students may make connections between the text and themselves, between the new text and other texts previously read, and between the text and the world. Pages 2–5, 6–9, 10–13, 14–17, 18–21, 22–25, 26–29, 30–33, 34–37, 38–41, 42–45, 46–49 and 58–61 use the strategy of making connections.

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This strategy is closely linked to the strategy of making connections. Students make comparisons by thinking more speciﬁcally about the similarities and differences between the connections being made. Pages 2–5, 6–9, 10–13, 26–29, 30–33, 34–37 and 66–69 use the strategy of comparing.

Sensory imaging involves students utilising all ﬁve senses to create mental images of passages in the text. Students use visual, auditory, olfactory, kinaesthetic or emotional images as well as their personal experiences to create these images. The images may help them to make predictions, form conclusions, interpret information and remember details. Pages 38–41, 42–45, 46–49 and 50–53 use the strategy of sensory imaging.

Primary comprehension

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TEACHERS NOTES Strategy deﬁnitions The strategy of determining importance is particularly helpful when students are trying to comprehend informational texts. It involves students determining the important theme or main idea of particular paragraphs or passages. As students become effective readers, they will constantly ask themselves what is most important in a phrase, sentence, paragraph, chapter or whole text. To determine importance, students will need to use a variety of information, such as the purpose for reading, their knowledge of the topic, background experiences and beliefs, and understanding of the text format. Pages 22–25, 54–57, 58–61 and 62–65 use the strategy of determining importance.

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Skimming

Scanning

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Determining importance

Skimming is the strategy of looking quickly through texts to gain a general impression or overview of the content. Readers often use this strategy to quickly assess whether a text, or part of it, will meet their purpose. Because this book deals predominantly with comprehension after reading, skimming has not been included as one of the major strategies. Scanning is the strategy of quickly locating speciﬁc details such as dates, places or names, or those parts of the text which support a particular point of view. Scanning is often used but not speciﬁcally mentioned when used in conjunction with other strategies Pages 10–13, 26–29, 30–33, 34–37, 50–53, 66–69 and 70–73 use the strategy of scanning.

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Synthesising is the strategy which enables students to collate a range of information from a variety of sources in order to comprehend text. Students recall information, order details and piece information together to make sense of the text. Synthesising helps students to continually monitor their understanding of the text. Synthesising involves connecting, comparing, determining importance, posing questions and creating images. Pages 14–17, 54–57 and 70–73 use the strategy of synthesising.

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Synthesising

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Paraphrasing/Summarising Summarising involves the processes of recording key ideas, main points or the most important information from a text. Summarising or paraphrasing reduces a larger piece of text to the most important details. Pages 62–65, 66–69, 74–77 and 78–81 use the strategy of summarising/paraphrasing.

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Primary comprehension

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TEACHERS NOTES Genre deﬁnitions The following deﬁnitions have been chosen to specify the genres chosen to be included in Primary comprehension.

Fiction and poetry These stories include backgrounds or plots based upon possible technology or inventions, experimental medicine, life in the future, environments drastically changed, alien races, space travel, gene engineering, dimensional portals or changed scientiﬁc principles. Science ﬁction encourages readers to suspend some of their disbelief and examine alternate possibilities.

Horror/Supernatural

Stories of this type aim to make the reader feel fear, disgust or horror. A number of horror stories have become classics. These include Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, Dracula by Bram Stoker and Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson.

Mystery stories

Stories of this kind focus on suspense and the solving of a mystery. Plots of mysteries often revolve around a crime, such as murder, theft or kidnapping. The hero must solve the mystery, overcoming unusual events, threats, assaults and often unknown forces or enemies. Stories about detectives, police, private investigators, amateur sleuths, spies, thrillers and courtroom dramas usually fall into this genre.

Fables

A fable is a short story which states a moral. Fables often use talking animals or animated objects as the main characters. The interaction of the animals or animated objects reveals general truths about human nature.

Fairytales

These tales are usually about elves, dragons, hobgoblins, sprites or magical beings and are often set in the distant past. Fairytales usually begin with the phrase ‘Once upon a time ...’ and end with the words ‘ ... and they lived happily ever after’. Charms, disguises and talking animals may also appear in fairytales.

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Science ﬁction

© R. I . C.Publ i cat i ons fantasy may be any text or w story which removed reality. Stories may bel set in • •Anonexistent f or r e v i e pisu r pfrom os es o n y worlds such as an elf kingdom, on another planet or in alternate versions of the

Fantasy

known world. The characters may not be human (dragons, trolls etc.) or may be humans who interact with non-human characters.

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Plays

Stories which have been passed from one generation to the next by word of mouth rather than being written down are folktales. Folktales may include sayings, superstitions, social rituals, legends or lore about the weather, animals or plants.

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Folktales

Plays are speciﬁc pieces of drama, usually enacted on a stage by a number of actors dressed in make-up and appropriate costumes.

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Adventure stories

Exciting events and actions feature in these stories. Character development, themes or symbolism are not as important as the actions or events in an adventure story.

Humour

Humour involves characters or events which promote laughter, pleasure or humour in the reader.

Poetry

This is a genre which utilises rhythmic patterns of language. The patterns include meter (high and low stressed syllables), syllabiﬁcation (the number of syllables in each line), rhyme, alliteration, or a combination of these. Poems often use ﬁgurative language.

Myths

These are stories which explain a belief, practice or natural phenomenon and usually involve gods, demons or supernatural beings. A myth does not necessarily have a basis in fact or a natural explanation.

Legends

Legends are told as though the events were actual historical events. Legends may or may not be based on an elaborated version of an historical event. Legends are usually about human beings, although gods may intervene in some way throughout the story.

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Primary comprehension

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TEACHERS NOTES Genre deﬁnitions Nonﬁction Persuasive writing Written to persuade others to a particular point of view, expositions begin with a statement of the writer’s position on an issue. This is followed by arguments with supporting details such as evidence and examples. Rhetorical questions are included in expositions to encourage the reader to agree with the writer’s point of view.

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These are writings that explain how or why something happens or has happened. They should include cause and effects and a summarising paragraph.

Reports

Reports are written documents describing the ﬁndings of an individual or group. They may take the form of a newspaper report, sports or police report, a report about an animal, person or object.

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Explanations

Biographies

An account of a person’s life written by another person is a biography. The biography may be about the life of a celebrity or an historical ﬁgure.

Autobiography

An autobiography is a piece of writing in which a writer uses his/her own life as the basis for a biography.

Journals

A journal is a continued series of texts written by a person about his/her life experiences and events. Journals may include descriptions of daily events as well as thoughts and emotions.

review is a concise summary or critical evaluation of a text, event, object or ©Aphenomenon. R . I . C Pmay ub cat i ons A. review givel ai perspective, argument or purpose. It offers critical assessment of content, effectiveness, noteworthy features and often ends with a suggestion ofw audience appreciation. •f orr e vi e p ur posesonl y•

Reviews

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Other informational texts such as timetables are excellent sources to teach and assess comprehension skills. Others may include diagrams, graphs, advertisements, maps, plans, tables, charts, lists, posters and programs.

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Primary comprehension

WATER WORLD

Teacher information

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Genre:

Fantasy •

Analyses and extracts information from a fantasy narrative to answer literal, inferential and applied questions. Predicts the actions of characters based on background knowledge and information provided in the text. Compares and makes connections within the text and between the text and himself/herself.

• •

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Indicators:

Worksheet information:

Students may be better able to understand the tasks presented on page 5 if they have opportunities to discuss the problems and possible solutions in small groups.

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2. 3. Page 5

(a) (i) True (ii) False (v) False (vi) False Teacher check Teacher check Teacher check

Extension:

(iv) False

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(iii) True

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Brainstorm to list factors that may have contributed to such a major environmental disaster. Compile a list of characters from fantasy books and ﬁlms. Identify any of their non-human characteristics and classify them as ‘good’ or ‘evil’. Discuss the effectiveness of leaving ‘what happens next’ to the reader’s imagination.

Primary comprehension

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WATER WORLD – 1 Read the fantasy.

ebastian looked up towards the surface of the water in amazement. It was like no creature he had ever seen before. Forgetting the constant task of ﬁnding more food to take back to the dome, he circled it cautiously. He breathed slowly through his gills, the legacy of being born a ‘swimmer’ whose ancestors had for generations ventured out from the dome to harvest underwater vegetation and the sea creatures on which their community depended.

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After the land was inundated, his people had moved into a dome they had constructed in preparation for the inevitable disaster, caused by the melting polar ice. He had visited the surface often but it was a bleak, empty world of sky and waves. The beautiful, dry world of the past he had learnt about in old films and books fascinated him and, unlike most of his friends, he believed that it could, after all these years, have risen again from the oceans covering the Earth. He would love to venture further afield in search of land but there were only a few ‘swimmers’ and the community depended on them. On closer inspection, he found that the creature, about the size of a small whale, had the strangest skin and didn’t acknowledge or respond to him in any way. He pushed himself up above the surface but dived back immediately in confusion. The creature was carrying three beings who looked like people but with darker skin and lots of hair. As his mind raced, he remembered hearing about how before the great flood, some people had constructed huge, floating, supposedly self-sufficient facilities on which whole communities had planned to live.

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food. There was no way that they could survive being taken down to the dome and he was curious to know more about them, so he decided to provide the immediate help they needed. Michael, Melissa and Brad certainly added interest and entertainment to Sebastian’s life as he made daily visits with supplies and watched their rapid return to health.They were a constant source of amazement to his community, especially the other ‘swimmers’, but they would not stay long as they were very anxious to resume their desperate search for land. Returning to their ﬂoating community, which was unable to survive for more than a few months, was no longer an option.

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A large black bird which had been circling the boat for some time landed on the stern and seemed to be staring at them with its enormous blue eyes; it was unlike any of the seabirds they occasionally saw diving for fish. The bird seemed to be holding something in its beak. It flew over and dropped it at Melissa’s feet. A tiny creature lay very still, hardly breathing on the deck. Melissa picked it up by the tail, identifying it as a kind of mouse similar to some she had seen in old story books. They stared in wonder as the bird squawked at them and slowly ever so slowly started to fly towards the west …. R.I.C. Publications®

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Primary comprehension

WATER WORLD – 2 Answer the questions using the fantasy on page 3.  Literal (a) Circle ‘true’ or ‘false’. (i) Sebastian could breathe underwater.

True False

(iii) People knew about the ﬂood before it happened.

True False

(iv) Sebastian was chosen to be a ‘swimmer’.

True False

(vi) Michael picked up the mouse.

True False

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 Inferential

(a) Why was Sebastian so surprised to meet Melissa, Michael and Brad?

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(v) Melissa, Michael and Brad were ﬂoating on a whale.

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(ii) Everyone who lived in the dome could breathe underwater.

(b) How did most of the community living in the dome know about the visitors?

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Applied

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(a) Where do you think the mouse could have come from?

(b) Explain why you think this.

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(d) (i) What do you think Melissa, Michael and Brad will do now?

(ii) Will Sebastian go back to stay in the dome? Explain why you think this.

Primary comprehension

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WATER WORLD – 3 

If, like Melissa, Michael and Brad’s ancestors, you had to plan to live for generations on a huge ﬂoating structure, what would be some of the major difﬁculties you would need to overcome and how could they be managed?

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Compare the problems confronting Sebastian’s ancestors.

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Possible solution

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Problem

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Which of the two solutions for surviving a ﬂood do you prefer? Explain why you think this.

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Primary comprehension

THE

ROCKET BUILDER

Teacher information

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Genre:

Autobiography •

Analyses and extracts information from an autobiography to answer literal, inferential and applied questions. Makes predictions about the responses of a number of characters in a text. Makes comparisons between the text and himself/herself.

• •

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Indicators:

Worksheet information:

The character, Jake Gilligan, is ﬁctional. However, the autobiography was based on a real person—Homer Hickam. Homer grew up in Coalwood, USA, and started to build rockets as a boy with his friends. He went on to become an engineer for NASA.

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2. 3. Page 9

(a) (i) True (ii) False (v) True (vi) False Teacher check Teacher check Teacher check

False

(iv) True

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Extension:

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Students use a search engine such as ‘google’ to ﬁnd out about the life of a person who interests them. Students write a proﬁle about the person they have researched. Watch the movie October sky and make comparisons between the character Homer Hickam and the autobiography of Jake Gilligan.

Primary comprehension

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THE ROCKET BUILDER – 1 Read the chapter from the autobiography of NASA scientist, Jake Gilligan.

Chapter Three October 1957 I had been waiting outside of Finley’s Electronics for over an hour— determined to get a good position. With my nose pressed against the glass, I watched the launch of Sputnik on seven different televisions. She looked so beautiful when all of the engines were ﬁred up, launching her into the sky and the Earth’s orbit.

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I was so excited after the launch, that I rode straight over and collected Dave and Gerry. We rode to the Fairﬁeld Library and borrowed the only two books we found about rockets. We passed them around the table, looking at the photographs and diagrams in amazement.

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Before I had even realised what I was saying, I had announced to the gang that we were going to build a rocket. Of course, the boys were sceptical, saying that our fathers would think it was a waste of time and the kids at school would call us nerds. The boys were right but, as I said to them, none of us was ever going to get noticed in this town by being big football stars, so why don’t we try to build a rocket instead? We decided that Gerry’s basement would be the perfect location to build a rocket so we took the books down there. Luckily, Gerry’s dad was playing golf so we didn’t have to explain our plans. We could all imagine what our fathers would say ... ‘You are just wasting your time building rockets. Do you actually think you will leave Fairﬁeld and become a rocket scientist? I don’t think so. Go outside and play football instead.’

That week, we spoke toP Miss Warner, the science teacher, and told her about our project. © R . I . C . u b l i c a t i o n s She was very excited and gave us a leaﬂet about the state science competition that was being held inw December. Wer now had a deadline! Whenever we could get away, we •f or r e v i e p u p o s e s o n l y • would meet in Gerry’s basement and discuss and design our rocket. We started to collect materials and tools and soon after, we were sawing or sanding away. I would also ride over to my Uncle Stan’s mechanic shop whenever we needed parts welded together.

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By the third of December we were finished! We walked up to the hills behind the town looking for a launch site, and found a flat area that was perfect. We also discovered a wide bit of discarded steel that we could use for protection in case our rocket decided to fly sideways instead of up!

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Gerry, Dave and I chose a long fuse for our ﬁrst rocket. I lit it and we ran behind the steel, peering out over the top. Our ﬁrst launch. We counted down together ... ‘10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 … Blast off!’

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Primary comprehension

THE ROCKET BUILDER – 2 Use the text on page 7 to answer these questions.  Inferential

 Literal (a) Decide if the statements are true or false. (i) According to the text, Jake Gilligan became a rocket scientist at NASA.

True False

(a) In 1957, Jake Gilligan watched the launch of Sputnik on a television through a shop window. Why do you think he didn’t watch it at home?

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(ii) Sputnik was launched into the Earth’s Orbit in October, 1967.

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True False

(b) Why do you think the Fairﬁeld Library only had two books about rockets at this time?

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(iii) The Fairﬁeld Library had many books about building rockets.

True False

(iv) The boys wanted to be noticed so they built a rocket.

True False

(v) Jake believed his dad would tell him to play football instead of building rockets.

(vi) Miss Warner was the boy’s English teacher.

True False Applied

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(i) they were in Gerry’s basement, building their rocket.

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(d) List words or phrases to describe how you think the boys were feeling when:

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(a) Even though the boys knew their fathers would be unhappy about them wasting their time building a rocket, they went ahead and built one. Why do you think this is?

(ii) they were crouched behind the steel as the fuse burnt down to ignite their rocket.

(b) Do you think the kids at school thought Dave, Gerry and Jake were nerds for building a rocket?

Primary comprehension

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THE ROCKET BUILDER – 3 Use the text on page 7 to answer these questions. The launch was a success! The boys ran back to town and told everyone who would listen about their rocket.

 Predict what each person would say about the boys and their rocket.

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Miss Warner:

Journalist for the Fairﬁeld Times newspaper:

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Jake’s father:

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

udge at the state science competition:

(a) The text shows just one chapter of Jake Gilligan’s autobiography. With a partner, discuss what you think the other chapters in the autobiography would be about. Write three questions that you would like answered about Jake Gilligan’s life. List them below. •

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(b) Circle one question above. Discuss with a partner what you think the answer might be. Write the answer you agreed upon below.

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It is the year 2050 and you are writing your own autobiography. How will your life story be similar to or different from Jake Gilligan’s autobiography? Make notes below.

Similar

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Different

Primary comprehension

THE

GOLDEN FISH

Teacher information

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Genre:

Folktale

Indicators:

• • •

Analyses and extracts information from a folktale to answer literal, inferential and applied questions. Predicts the conversation of two characters based on information provided in the text. Scans text to identify main messages. Compares and makes connections between the text and own life to create a role-play.

Worksheet information:

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The golden ﬁsh is a folktale that is believed to have originated in Russia. Some of the messages in the story are: – Be kind to others. – Appreciate what you have. – Don’t expect more than you should. – Be humble. – Live simply.

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Page 12 1. (a) (i) happy (ii) within minutes (iii) did not (iv) washtub (v) sympathised (b) (i) Wife asks for a new washtub. (ii) Wife asks for a new house. (iii) Wife asks to become queen. (iv) Fisherman returns home to ﬁnd the old mud hut and his wife standing next to the broken washtub. 2. Teacher check 3. Teacher check Page 13 Teacher check

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Answers:

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Extension:

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There are many websites dedicated to folktales. Students can use a search engine such as ‘google’ to ﬁnd and read more examples of folktales. Students perform their role-plays to a younger class. After the roleplay, ask the students if they know what the ‘message’ of the play was. Primary comprehension

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THE GOLDEN FISH – 1 Read the folktale.

The fisherman arrived at the sea the following day. Swirling currents were pulling at the water and larger waves crashed into the shore. The fisherman knelt down on the sand and called for the fish. He apologised, explaining that his wife was angered that he had not wished for a new house.

One day, just like every other day, the fisherman walked down to the brilliant blue, calm sea and began to fish. What luck! Within minutes there was a tug on the end of his line. The fisherman reeled the fish in and collected it in his net. To his surprise, the fish was a dazzling golden colour.

The golden fish sympathised with the fisherman and granted him his wish. That night the fisherman returned home to his wife, who was standing, hands on hips, inside their beautiful new cottage. She was enraged!

‘Please, kind ﬁsherman, spare me my life’, the golden ﬁsh pleaded. ‘If you do, in return I will grant you any wish you desire.’

When the fisherman returned to the sea the next day, he saw it was nearly black in colour and the water was wild and raging. Feeling disheartened, he once again called to the fish and told him of his wife’s request. The fish turned and swam away from the fisherman.

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The kind-hearted fisherman was surprised as he had never heard a fish speak before. He put the little fish back into the water and said, ‘Thank you, but I do not need anything from you’.

‘It’s not enough!’ she cried. ‘Go back tomorrow. I wish to be queen!’

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very poor but happy couple lived in a mud hut at the edge of the sea. The husband was a ﬁsherman. Each day he would venture down to the ocean and ﬁsh so that he and his wife would have something to eat that night. His wife would spin cloth so that they would have clothes to wear.

The ﬁsherman returned home where he found a mud hut and his wife sitting next to a broken washtub.

‘How could you have not made a wish when I have to wash our clothes in a broken washtub each day? You are a fool!’

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The next morning, the fisherman returned to the sea, which had lost its brilliant blue colour and small waves were now crashing against the shore. The fisherman called out to the golden fish who swam up to the fisherman.

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That night, during their evening meal, the ﬁsherman told his wife about the golden ﬁsh. Her face became red with anger. She stood up and screamed furiously at her husband.

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Humbly, the fisherman bowed and asked the fish, ‘My wife is very cross with me for not wishing for a new washtub’. The golden fish comforted the man and said the he would grant the wish. The fisherman returned home happily anticipating his wife’s delight but, alas, although his wife stood next to her new washtub, she cursed him angrily. ‘You are a silly fool! Why did you not wish a new house for us? Go back tomorrow and ask the fish for a house!’

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Primary comprehension

THE GOLDEN FISH – 2 Use the text on page 11 to answer these questions.  Literal (a) Circle the correct word to complete the sentence. (i) The poor couple were happy/sad in the beginning of the story.

(b) Complete the chain of events in the folktale The golden ﬁsh.

Fisherman catches the golden ﬁsh.

(iii) The kind-hearted ﬁsherman told the golden ﬁsh that he did/did not want anything from him.

(ii) Wife asks for

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(i) Wife asks for

(iv) The wife demanded a brand new washtub/ washcloth from the golden ﬁsh.

(iii) Wife asks to

(v) The golden ﬁsh sympathised/empathised with the ﬁsherman.

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(ii) The ﬁsherman caught the golden ﬁsh within minutes/within hours of casting in.

(iv) Fisherman returns home to

 Inferential

(a) List some words to describe how the ﬁsherman was feeling each time he had to return to the sea to ask the golden ﬁsh for another wish.

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(a) What do you think the changes in the appearance of the sea mean in the story?

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(b) Make notes to show how the sea changed throughout the story.

(b) If you were ﬁshing and caught the golden ﬁsh, what would you wish for?

Primary comprehension

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THE GOLDEN FISH – 3 Use the text on page 11 to complete the activities. At the end of the story, the fisherman arrives home to find a mud hut and his wife beside a broken washtub. Predict what the husband and wife’s first conversation will be. Write it below.

Husband

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With a partner, reread the text, discussing what the main messages or lessons from the story might be. Write your ideas below.

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In groups of three, you have been asked to create and present a short play that has a similar message to the folktale The golden ﬁsh. Your play will be set in the present time.

Title:

Setting: On the edge of the sea.

Setting:

Characters: • The humble ﬁsherman • The greedy wife • The golden ﬁsh

Characters:

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Title: The golden ﬁsh

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Plot: Fisherman catches a golden ﬁsh who can grant wishes. Greedy wife asks for more and more wishes until she goes too far and the golden ﬁsh erases all the wishes.

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Primary comprehension

PRINCESS BELLA AND THE FROG PRINCE Teacher information

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Genre:

Fairytale • • •

Analyses and extracts information from a fairytale to answer literal, inferential and applied questions. Predicts information about a character and considers own choices if in a similar situation. Makes connections between a text and a well-known fairytale to synthesise the conventions of the fairytale genre.

Worksheet information:

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Indicators:

Before completing the activities, students may beneﬁt from reading or discussing a range of fairytales and comparing common character traits, magical happenings or beings, the beginning/endings of the stories, talking animals or disguises.

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because she very rarely smiled. (b) The princess stopped and listened to the conversation in the kitchen because she thought there may be an opportunity for her to leave the castle. (c) The princess was imagining that she was ﬂying away from the castle forever. (d) The princess blushed and stormed away. She then decided to catch the frogs herself using the hood of her cloak. (e) Princess Bella did get what she had wished for, which was to travel the land having many adventures. 2. Teacher check 3. Teacher check Page 17 Teacher check

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Extension: Read other fairytales and fractured fairytales such as: • Snow White in New York by Fiona French • Princess smartypants by Babette Cole • The paper bag princess by Robert Munsch • Revolting rhymes by Roald Dahl • Legally correct fairytales by David Fisher

Primary comprehension

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PRINCESS BELLA AND THE FROG PRINCE – 1 Read the fairytale.

‘Two dozen of frogs legs,’ she ordered from the man behind the stall. The butcher leaned towards her, the stench of raw ﬂesh entering the princess’s nose, making her sneeze. ‘Two dozen, eh?’ he said, greedily rubbing his hands together. ‘You must have a hefty purse for that order.’ The princess, realising she hadn’t brought any money with her, blushed and stormed away—cross with her own stupidity. Never one to give up, Princess Bella walked to a nearby stream. Removing her cloak, she decided that she would catch some frogs in its hood. The princess’s auburn hair fell around her face and the sun’s rays gleamed on her exquisite gown. Hearing a croaking sound, the princess knelt down on the bank and parted the leaves of a nearby bush. Just as she moved closer to the bush, a frog made a giant leap towards the princess’s face. The princess was startled by the frog that had just left a slimy, wet patch on her cheek. She wiped it away and, surprisingly, began to smile. ‘Why, little frog’, Princess Bella said in a light-hearted tone (realising she had just experienced her very ﬁrst kiss). ‘I do believe you just kissed me.’ The frog bounced over to a lily pad and stared back at the princess. ‘I did, riddip’, said the frog. ‘I am Beau, the frog prince, riddip. I have been waiting for seven riddip years for a beautiful princess to come to the riddip stream so I could kiss her.’ As soon as the frog prince stopped speaking, the princess started to feel strange. Her body began to tingle and a magical silver shine spread its way across her body. Within a few seconds, the princess had transformed into a frog. The two frogs hopped away from the village along the banks of the stream. Together they travelled across all the land, having many adventures and feeling very free. The frog prince and his princess lived happily ever after.

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nce upon a time, in a faraway land, lived a beautiful but quite unhappy princess. Princess Bella lived in an enormous castle with her mother and father. She had an extravagant bedroom and maids to clean it for her. She could request any meal she liked and the cooks would prepare it, and she could attend the grandest parties in the land. Even though Princess Bella wanted for nothing, she was known in the land as ‘Brooding Bella’ because she very rarely smiled. ‘I wish I had the freedom to leave the castle and have many adventures travelling across all the land’, she would say to herself each night while quietly weeping into her pillow. One day, the princess was in the castle walking past the kitchen when she heard the head cook announce that the King was having noblemen from France to dinner. ‘The only thing is,’ she discussed with her staff, ‘I haven’t any frogs to make garlic frogs legs!’ Princess Bella, hearing an opportunity for her to leave the castle, entered the kitchen. ‘I shall take Bolt, my fastest stallion, and ride to the markets to purchase some frogs for this evening’s supper’, she said with authority. The cook was most pleased but felt that the princess should inform her father of her journey. The princess, thinking quickly, replied, ‘Father would be very cross if we bothered him when he is preparing for his meeting with the French Ambassador’. The cook hesitantly agreed and soon after, Princess Bella was galloping across the meadows towards the village. As the wind caught in her long auburn hair, she imagined that she was ﬂying away from the castle forever. Arriving at the markets, the princess put on her long dark cloak and covered her head in its hood—she was not in the mood for bowing commoners today. She walked briskly towards the stall with skinned animals hanging from large hooks and chickens waiting to be plucked.

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Primary comprehension

PRINCESS BELLA AND THE FROG PRINCE – 2 Use the text on page 15 to answer the questions.  Literal (a) How did Princess Bella earn her nickname?

 Inferential (a) Why do you think the cook was hesitant to let the princess leave the castle?

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(b) Do you think the princess had been to the markets before? Why do you think this?

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(b) What made the princess stop and listen at the kitchen?

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(c) Why do you think the princess smiled after the frog © R. I . C.Pu b l i c afrom t i o nthesbush? leapt at her behind •f orr evi ew pur posesonl y•

(d) Describe how the princess reacted when she couldn’t buy the frogs legs.

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(d) Describe some of the qualities Princess Bella possessed.

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(e) Princess Bella lived happily ever after. Did she get what she had wished for?

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(a) If you were in Princess Bella’s situation, living with your family in a castle, would you be unhappy? Explain.

(b) If you could travel across any land having many adventures, where would you go and who would you go with?

Primary comprehension

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PRINCESS BELLA AND THE FROG PRINCE – 3 Use the text on page 15 to complete the activities.

 While Princess Bella lived in the castle, she wanted for nothing. Add details to describe

her life in the castle. What would you choose if you could live like a princess or a prince? Complete the table for both Princess Bella and yourself. Princess Bella Your own choice

Having an enormous, extravagant bedroom. What was it like?

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Request any meal and the cooks will make it. What type of meals?

Attends the grandest parties in the land. What type of parties?

Summarise the main components of the fairytale from page 15 in the table below. Choose another fairytale that you are the most familiar with to complete the table.

Title: Princess Bella and the frog prince

Title:

Main characters

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Ending

Happy

Sad

Compare your summaries above. Write three ‘rules’ for writing a fairytale story. Discuss your ideas with a partner.

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Primary comprehension

PETRIFIED WOOD

Teacher information

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Genre:

Horror • • •

Analyses and extracts information from a horror narrative to answer literal, deductive and evaluative questions. Makes connections between the text and his/her own experiences. Predicts how a character will react to a speciﬁc object when the setting changes from night to day.

Worksheet information:

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Indicators:

For the activity on page 21, students complete sentences describing any personal connections they made to the text. These connections may have occurred due to: staying overnight at a relative’s or neighbour’s house without other family members present, sleeping in a room with an eerie object at the window, being afraid of something, causing them to become afraid of something that is actually not very scary in a different context etc.

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Page 20 1. (a) iii (b) i (c) iii 2. Teacher check 3. Teacher check Page 21 Teacher check

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Extension:

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Students compile lists of authors of the horror genre and titles such as the Goosebumps series by RL Stein. Students draw or paint a picture of the tree described in the story. They write a poem describing its spooky features.

Primary comprehension

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PETRIFIED WOOD – 1 Read the horror narrative.

oey is back in the uncomfortable bed, with the lumpy pillow and the grey ‘army blanket’ covers that make him itch. His whole body is turned towards the wall. The spare room, at his Aunt Jean’s house, is on the first floor and there is a very large tree outside that fills the window, blocking all else from view. The tree moves with the wind—its branches rubbing up against the window—scraping and scratching at the glass. Joey’s dad had promised him the time before this, that it would be his last business trip for a while, but here Joey is again, staying overnight at his aunt’s. Surely Joey’s dad had noticed the black marks underneath his eyes when he picked him up from Jean’s the last time? But he hadn’t asked why Joey had looked so tired. He just talked about how well the business trip went and told Joey that he would now be able to pay for his hockey club membership and buy Joey the new stick he wanted.

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Joey, tense with fear and eyes glued shut, listens to the scraping against the glass. If he could move his hands from underneath the sheets, he would cover his ears, but his limbs seem paralysed in place. It is as though the tree is moving side to side, trying to get a better look in the window, and at Joey. Joey shudders and curls up into a tight ball. He repeats over and over in his head—‘It’s just a tree. It’s just a tree.’ When Joey’s body starts to ache from being in one position for so long and his lungs hurt from holding his breath, he becomes cross with himself for being ‘such a baby’ and summons up the courage to turn his head and stare directly at the tree. Its thick trunk has round holes in it where branches once were. They look like black eyes watching him in his bed. The branches have swollen knots in them that look like elbows and the tips of the branches are bare of leaves. Joey imagines they are stick-thin ﬁngers with sharp nails. He is certain that a strong gust of wind will allow them to pierce the thin glass of the bedroom window.

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A screeching sound tears through the night. ‘Bats! They must be in the tree!’ Joey thinks. He turns quickly over and lies ﬂat on his stomach. The hairs on the back of his neck stand on end and his face is full of pillow—the cotton entering his nose with every quick breath he takes. His arms are tight by his sides now (just in case there’s anything underneath the bed!).

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Joey stays frozen like this for the longest time, wishing over and over that he could just fall asleep.

Meanwhile, Aunt Jean’s cat climbs up her favourite tree and onto one of the branches. The cat, purring and licking her paws, stares in the window. Her cat mouth is turned upwards, almost as if she is smiling at the frightened little boy, lying like a piece of petriﬁed wood in his bed.

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Primary comprehension

PETRIFIED WOOD – 2 Use the text on page 19 to answer the questions.  Inferential

 Literal

(a) Why do you think Joey couldn’t stay at home when his dad went away on the trip?

Tick the correct answer. (a) Joey is staying at his aunt’s house because ... (i) it is school holidays.

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(ii) his aunt asked him to come over. (iii) his dad is on a business trip.

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(b) Joey’s dad was excited because he could afford to ...

(b) Did Joey have a similar experience the last time he slept at his aunt’s house?

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(i) buy Joey a hockey stick. (ii) buy Joey shin pads.

(iii) buy Joey a new cricket bat. (c) Joey can’t get to sleep because ...

(i) the noise of the branches on the window is keeping him awake.

© R. I . C.Publ i cat i ons •f orr evi ew pu r posesonl y• (d) Do you think the tree would look as scary during the (iii) he is too frightened of the tree at (ii) his aunt’s cat is keeping him awake by meowing loudly. his window to fall asleep.

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day? Explain your answer.

(a) How old do you think Joey is?

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(b) In the story, Joey becomes cross with himself for ‘being such a baby’. Who do you think might have called him a ‘baby’ in the past?

Primary comprehension

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PETRIFIED WOOD – 3 Use the text on page 19 to complete the activities.



When you read a story, your memories of your own experiences, people that you know and the things you have read about or seen in movies can be ‘triggered’. This is called ‘making connections’ with the text. What connections did you make when you read ‘Petriﬁed wood’? Complete the sentences below. (a) The story reminds me of a time when

(b) The character of Joey reminds me of

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because

Imagine that it is the next morning. Joey eats his breakfast and goes outside to discover that it is a glorious and bright, sunny day. He looks up at the tree, shielding his eyes from the sun.

How do you think Joey’s perception of the tree may have changed from the night before? Add words and phrases to describe how Joey might see the tree during the day.

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The tree (during the day)

The tree (at night)

• branches scratching the glass

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• tree looking in the window

• holes in trunk look like black eyes, watching him • branches are reaching for the window • knots in branches are sharp nails • bats in tree

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BRAILLE

Teacher information

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Genre:

Explanation •

Analyses and extracts information from an explanation to answer literal, inferential and applied questions. Makes connections between his/her own ideas and new information presented in a text to plan a speech. Determines the importance of information contained in a text.

• •

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Indicators:

Worksheet information:

Before the students complete the activity on page 25, teachers should emphasise that their ideas are to be written in note form. The students must either present their speeches using as much eye contact as possible or present them entirely from memory.

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(a) 1812 1819 1821 1824 (b) (i) False 2. Teacher check 3. Teacher check Page 25 Teacher check

Punctured his eye with a sharp tool Went to the Royal Institution for Blind Youth His school was visited by a French army captain Invented braille (ii) True (iii) False (iv) False

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Extension:

Encourage the students to read a range of nonﬁction texts. Internet search engines aimed at children will also ﬁnd a range of explanation texts online.

Primary comprehension

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BRAILLE – 1 Read the explanation.

raille is a type of code used by people who are blind or visually impaired to read and write. It uses raised dots that are felt with the ﬁngers.

Braille was invented by a 15-year-old French boy. His name was Louis Braille. Louis was born in France in 1809. When he was three years old, he was playing in his father’s shoemaking workshop and punctured his eye with a sharp tool. His eye became infected. The infection soon spread to the other eye, leaving him completely blind.

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In 1821, the school was visited by a French army captain. He had invented a code for soldiers to use that could be read on battleﬁelds at night without needing light. The code used raised dots to represent sounds. Louis experimented with this and eventually came up with a simpliﬁed version of the code that represented normal spelling—the braille system. The basis of the braille system is called a ‘cell’. A cell is made up of six dots and looks like this:

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Louis went to school with sighted children where he learnt by listening to his teachers. When he was 10 years old, Louis went to the Royal Institution for Blind Youth in Paris. Here, he learnt to read by feeling raised letters on a page. The letters had been made by pressing copper wire into the paper. Although Louis was thrilled to be able to read, he felt that the method could be improved upon – it was cumbersome and provided no way for blind people to write.

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If you were to learn braille, you would begin by learning the letters and putting them together to form words. Once you were an expert at this, you would learn a kind of braille shorthand, where dots represent words. This means that you could read more quickly and less paper would be used. You could also learn to read braille cells that represent numbers, punctuation marks and even musical notes.

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Each letter of the alphabet is made up of one or more of these dots. For example, p = • • and r = •

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The simplest way to write braille is using a slate and a stylus. A sheet of paper is placed in the slate and the stylus is used to push dots into the paper. Braille can also be written with braille writers (like typewriters) or electronic machines called ‘braillers’. A brailler can be plugged into a computer where the braille can be read by a voice synthesiser or printed out as normal typescript. Today, braille has been adapted to almost every language in the world and is accepted as the standard form of reading and writing for blind or visually impaired people. There are braille books, musical scores, playing cards, watches, board games and many other materials. R.I.C. Publications®

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Primary comprehension

BRAILLE – 2 Use the text on page 23 to answer the questions.  Literal (a) Write a fact for each date in Louis Braille’s life. 1812 1819 1821 1824

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(b) Tick true or false.

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(ii) You can do mathematics problems using braille.

True False

(iii) English is the only language that can be written in braille.

True False

(iv) Each letter in braille contains at least ﬁve dots.

True False

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(i) Louis Braille punctured both his eyes with a sharp tool.

 Inferential

(a) Why do you think the way Louis Braille ﬁrst learnt to read is described as ‘cumbersome’?

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(b) List three drawbacks to writing braille with a stylus and slate.

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(a) Write three questions you would like to ask Louis Braille about his life or his invention. • • •

(b) Do you think the braille system should have also been named after the French army captain? Give reasons.

Primary comprehension

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BRAILLE – 3 Use the text on page 23 to help you complete this activity. Imagine you work for an international group that promotes the use of braille. You attend a conference about educating blind or visually impaired children. One speaker says the following: The conference organisers ask you to respond to this speech. They want you to explain why braille should still be taught to blind or visually impaired children. Write some notes for your speech in the space below.

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‘Blind or visually impaired children do not need to learn braille in today’s world. It is old-fashioned. Teachers should be concentrating on modern technology instead; for example, teaching the children to listen to stories on audio CDs or computers, record their own texts using a dictaphone or CD recorder and touch type on a computer keyboard. The children can then listen to the computer read their writing back to them.’

(a) Write some reasons why you think children should learn to read in braille.

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(b) Write some reasons why you think children should learn to write in braille.

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(d) Use your notes to practise your speech. When you are ready, present it to a small group. R.I.C. Publications®

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Primary comprehension

LONE SURVIVOR! Teacher information

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Journal • Analyses and extracts information from a journal to answer literal, inferred and applied questions. • Scans text to identify relevant events. • Makes connections between text and a character’s emotions. • Compares similarities and differences between interpretations of text. • Predicts the next entry in a journal.

Worksheet information: •

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Genre: Indicators:

After students have read the journal they may be interested to know the following details about that ordeal. Unknown to Mawson and Mertz, toxic levels of vitamin A in the livers of the dogs they were forced to eat was the cause of them becoming ill: they were slowly being poisoned. The ship that was to take the expedition back to Australia was forced to leave before the ocean froze over, not long before Mawson made it back to base camp. It could still be seen on the horizon and the six men who had stayed behind in the hope of rescuing Mawson and his men, plus Mawson, had to wait until the following December to return. • Before completing Question 1 on page 29, students could highlight keywords and phrases to identify various incidents that occurred in the journal before deciding on the emotion felt by Mawson. Different pairs of students may interpret a particular incident as depicting a different emotion. For example, Mawson could have felt panic or despair when he realised that Ninnis has fallen into the crevasse. • Discuss how the journal is written in the present tense before students write their own entry for Question 3 on page 29. Page 28 1. (a) (i) True – Proof, Teacher check (ii) True – Proof, Teacher check (iii) False – Proof, Teacher check 2. (a) Teacher check (b) (i) acute, severe (4) (ii) writhes (4) (iii) laboriously (1) (iv) inevitable (2) (v) whimpering (1) (vi) presence (5) 3. (a) (i) 160 kilometres (ii) 224 kilometres (iii) 504 kilometres (iv) 45 metres (b) Teacher check Page 29 Teacher check • Students can use the Internet or locate nonﬁction books in the library to discover more about Sir Douglas Mawson’s expeditions to the Antarctic and his life in general. • Other famous polar explorers include Roald Amundsen, Robert Scott, Robert E Peary, Richard Byrd, Sir Ernest Henry Shackleton and Sir James Clark Ross.

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Primary comprehension

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LONE SURVIVOR! – 1 Read the journal.

ir Douglas Mawson is one of several explorers who boldly led expeditions to investigate the harsh, frozen continent of Antarctica. In November 1912, Mawson and two other men, Xavier Mertz and Belgrave Ninnis, left base camp to map the continent to the east. It was to be a fateful journey, with Mawson being the lone survivor of a terrible ordeal. The journal extracts below are based on his experiences.

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9–14 December 1912 ... and once again we dig the dogs and sledges out of the snow after three long days of sheltering from yet another blizzard. We continue to trek laboriously east, always on the lookout for deep crevasses hidden by thick snow. Mertz, who has gone ahead on skis, locates a snow-covered crevasse. Just as I make it safely across with my sledge, Mertz suddenly cries out in horror. The terrible feeling of dread fills my stomach. I turn around and realise Ninnis, his sledge and six dogs have fallen into the crevasse. We stare into the gaping abyss and can only see one dog, whimpering in pain on a ledge some 150 feet below. For hours, we call out to Ninnis, unable to accept his inevitable death. We cling to each other for comfort. Finally, Mertz and I take stock of supplies. Ninnis had the most important supplies on his sledge, along with the strongest dogs. This realisation fills us with alarm. We wonder how we will survive the 315 miles back to base camp with only 10 days’ rations and none for the remaining dogs … 15–30 December 1912 ... fashion a tent out of a spare tent cover and drape it over skis to provide some shelter … are forced to feed the dogs worn-out fur boots, mitts and rawhide straps … focus on our goal of making it back to base camp, with hunger and bone-chilling cold trying to crush our spirit … begin to kill the dogs one by one to feed the others and ourselves … 1–8 January 1913 … still some 140 miles to go and poor Mertz is extremely weak and has acute stomach pains of which I am suffering from less intensely. Both of us have severe frostbite. With what little strength I can gather, I haul Mertz by sledge to within 100 miles of base camp. He becomes delirious ... put him in his sleeping bag and hold him down while he raves on and writhes in agony ... finally he quietens and dies peacefully in the morning ... I am left alone to continue the journey ... I lie in my bag with my spirits low and wonder how I can survive with little food and my toes, fingers and skin turning black with frostbite … 9 January–8 February 1913 … despite my suffering I manage to continue... I feel the presence of a spirit helping me, especially when I find myself dangling in a crevasse by my harness. It would be easier to let go and not get out ... I saw my sledge in half and keep dragging my crippled body onwards ... finally, a welcome vision greets me. I have stumbled into base camp and stare into six disbelieving pairs of eyes—my colleagues who have stayed behind to continue the search …

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Primary comprehension

LONE SURVIVOR! – 2 Use the text on page 27 to answer the questions.  Literal (a) Tick true or false and write a phrase or sentence to prove your answer.

True False

(i) The three explorers had experienced several blizzards.

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(ii) Mawson and Mertz were left without a tent after Ninnis’s fall.

rue

alse

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(iii) The dogs help Mawson to haul the sledge carrying Mertz.

True False

 Inferential

(a) Why do you think Mawson sawed his sledge in half?

(b) Write a synonym from the text for each word below and list the number of the journal paragraph it is found in the brackets.

(v) moaning

)

(vi) company

(

) ) )

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(c) Mawson and Mertz were forced to make do when their necessary supplies fell into the crevasse. Scan the 15–30 December entry to describe three examples.

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(a) Convert these distances in the journal from miles and feet to the nearest kilometre or metre.

(b) Describe how you think Mawson could have escaped from the crevasse he fell into.

(1 mile =1.6 kilometres, 1 foot = 0.3 metres)

(i) 100 miles =

(ii) 140 miles =

(iii) 315 miles =

(iv) 150 feet =

Primary comprehension

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LONE SURVIVOR! – 3 Use the text on page 27 to complete the activity.



(a) With a partner, scan the text to ﬁnd and describe an incident which caused Mawson to experience each emotion listed below. Add an emotion of your own choice in the blank box. (b) Compare your answers with other pairs of students in your class.

Incident

Emotion Despair Pain

Hope

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Incident

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Panic

Emotion

Loneliness

Add more words and phrases to the list below to describe some qualities Mawson possessed that helped him to survive. Discuss and compare with others in your class and list any more you think would be relevant.

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brave, thoughtful,

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Imagine you are Mawson and have just stumbled into base camp, where your colleagues are staring in disbelief. Write your next journal entry.

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Primary comprehension

SIR DONALD BRADMAN Teacher information

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Genre:

Biography

Indicators:

Analyses and extracts information from a biography to answer literal, inferential and applied questions. Scans a text to locate speciﬁc details. Compares a character in a text with others and himself/herself. Makes connections between a text and himself/herself.

• • •

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•

Worksheet information: •

A biography is an account of a person’s life written by someone other than that person. Before completing the activity, ask the students to brainstorm any prior knowledge they may have about the late Sir Donald Bradman.

•

married: 1932

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(vii) Opinion (Although people argue this to be fact.) 2. Teacher check 3. Teacher check Page 33 1. Year born: 1908 Year died: 2001 Year Year knighted: 1949

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Number of runs when awarded ﬁrst cricket bat: 37

Age Bradman earned his highest number of runs: 21

Highest number of runs: 452

Years Australia lost the Ashes tour in England: 1932-1933

Year Donald was captain of national team for ﬁrst time: 1936

Length of career as a cricketer: 20 years

First overseas tour run score at Leeds: 334

Age at death: 92

Teacher check

Extension: Look at the biographies of other elite cricketers on the Internet using a search engine such as ‘google’. • Ricky Ponting • Ian Botham • Allan Border • Graham Gooch • Adam Gilchrist • Sir Richard Hadley • Steve Waugh • Imran Khan • Matthew Hayden • Douglas Jardine 30

Primary comprehension

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SIR DONALD BRADMAN – 1 Read the biography. Full Name:

Donald George Bradman

Born:

27 August 1908, Cootamundra, New South Wales

Died:

25 February 2001, Adelaide, South Australia

Major Teams:

Australia, New South Wales, South Australia

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Right-hand bat

Bowling Style:

Leg break

Donald Bradman, the youngest of one brother and three sisters, moved with his family to Bowral, in New South Wales, when he was two. One of Donald’s favourite games as a child was a type of backyard cricket. A golf ball was thrown at a wall and he would try and hit it with a cricket stump. The constant practice sharpened Donald’s reﬂexes and increased his concentration— adding to his already unique and exceptional abilities as a cricketer.

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Also Known As: The Don

When he was 12, Donald was scoring at his father’s and older brother’s cricket game. Fortunately, they were short of a batsman on this day, so Donald was asked to play. He scored 37 runs and was awarded his very ﬁrst cricket bat.

© R. I . C.Publ i cat i ons When Donald• wasf 18, the state selectors invited him to ar cricket trial in Sydney. Although they were looking for o r r e v i e w p u p o s e s o n l y • a bowler, it was a batsman they discovered that day. By the following year, Donald was representing New South Wales in the Shefﬁeld Shield where he scored 118 runs against South Australia. Bradman was known as the ‘baby’ of the team and his fans in Melbourne began to call him ‘The Don’.

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During a match in 1930, when Bradman was 21, he earnt his highest score—452 runs! He also made 1000 runs for the season. Donald continued with work and cricket commitments as well as ﬁnding time to coach hundreds of schoolchildren. Bradman’s ﬁrst overseas tour in England was the beginning of his immense fame. Scoring 254 runs at Lords and 334 runs at Leeds, Bradman returned to Australia a celebrity.

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For many years, Bradman dominated the game of cricket, so much so that English captain Douglas Jardine invented a new type of bowling known as ‘bodyline’ to try to reduce Bradman’s batting scores. Australia lost the Ashes in the summer of 1932-33, possibly due to this new (and often regarded as dangerous and unsporting) style of bowling. Donald married Jessie Menzies in 1932 and, shortly after, they moved to South Australia where Donald became captain of the team and a state selector. In 1936, Donald Bradman led the national team for the ﬁrst time as their captain. After World War II, Bradman, who was approaching his forties and had suffered some illnesses, was chosen to be captain of the Australian team which defeated England 4–0. His cricketing career spanned 20 years and his batting averages are the goals of many aspiring young cricketers. Sir Donald Bradman was knighted in 1949 and for the greater part of the rest of the century, continued to be involved in cricket and its administration. He died in February, 2001.

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Primary comprehension

SIR DONALD BRADMAN – 2 Use the text on page 31 to answer the questions.  Inferential

 Literal (a) Decide if the statements are fact or opinion. (i) Donald Bradman had four siblings.

Fact

(ii) Hitting a golf ball with a cricket stump improved Donald’s reﬂexes.

Fact

pinion

act

pinion

(iv) Donald Bradman always wanted to be a professional cricket player.

Fact

Opinion

(v) Donald turned 24 the year he was married.

Fact

Opinion

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(b) Why do you think the state selectors in Sydney chose Donald, a batsman, when they were looking for a bowler?

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(iii) By the age of 12, Donald was a better cricketer than his older brother.

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Opinion

(a) Why didn’t Donald use a cricket bat and ball to practise his batting when he was a child?

act O. pinion © RF. I . C Publ i c at i ons (c) How do you think the English cricket team felt about Donald Bradman’s success? •f o ev i e w p u r p o s esonl y• (vii) Donald Bradman wasr the r Fact Opinion (vi) Donald Bradman preferred living in South Australia to New South Wales.

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greatest cricketer of the 20th century.

(a) Write some words and phrases to describe how you think Donald felt when he was representing his country in the game of cricket for the ﬁrst time.

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(b) Do you think it was fair that the English team changed their bowling style to try to prevent Donald’s exceptional run rate?

(c) Sir Donald Bradman is said to be not only one of the world’s greatest cricketers, but also athletes. His achievements have been compared to those of Pele (soccer), Tiger Woods (golf) and Michael Jordan (basketball). Do you agree?

Primary comprehension

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SIR DONALD BRADMAN – 3 Use the text on page 31 to complete the activities. Scan the biography about Sir Donald Bradman and write numbers to answer these questions.

Year born:

Year died:

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Age Bradman earnt his highest number of runs:

Highest number of runs:

Year Donald was captain of national team for ﬁrst time:

Length of career as a cricketer:

First overseas tour run score at Leeds:

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Years Australia lost the Ashes tour in England:

(a)

Year knighted:

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Number of runs when awarded ﬁrst cricket bat:

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Year married:

Age at death:

What type of qualities do you think Donald Bradman possessed to be able to achieve such enormous success in his life (for example; perseverance, commitment etc.)?

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(b) Read through the qualities you have listed. Is there a person you admire who also possesses one of more of these qualities?

Name:

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Quality:

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Primary comprehension

SONNET AND AN ELEGY

Teacher information

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Genre:

Poetry • • • •

Analyses and extracts information from two poems to answer literal, inferential and applied questions. Scans for relevant information. Makes comparisons between two poems. Makes connections between feelings expressed in a poem and own feelings.

Worksheet information: •

•

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Indicators:

An elegy, in classical times, was a love poem written in a specific meter. However, since the seventeenth century, it has become more commonly known as a poem about sorrow or consolation. The subject of an elegy is often the death of a person, the passing of time, the loss of beauty or reflections about life and death. A sonnet is a poem which consists of fourteen lines following a set rhyming scheme in iambic pentameter (a set of five unstressed and five stressed syllables—a total of ten syllables in a line). Sonnets may be of the Italian or English variety. The Italian sonnet has the rhyming scheme (for the last word of each line) ‘abbaabba’ then ‘cddcdc’ or ‘cdeedc’ or ‘cdecde’. The English (Shakespearean) sonnet follows the form ‘abab cdcd efef gg’. The first eight lines of a sonnet are traditionally rather sad or morbid, while the last six lines express joy or a resolution to sorrows. The sonnet in this example follows the English format. Students should be given some of the above information before reading the poems on page 35, particularly the information about the rhyming patterns.

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Pages 35–36 1. (a) (i) True (ii) True (iii) False (iv) True (v) True (vi) False (vii) True 2. (a) Answers will differ but may include ‘veil of fear’, ‘cuts through like a knife’, ‘embarrassment or sneers’, ‘Her nights are ﬁlled with tears’ etc. (b) Answers may include the fact that he ‘joked, rebuked and praised’. (c) Teacher check 3. Teacher check Page 37 Teacher check

Extension:

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The poems given in this example will probably not appeal to most students. Some may be interested to read Elegy by Robert Bridges, Elegy written in a country churchyard by Thomas Gray or one of Shakespeare’s many sonnets. Students may feel that writing an elegy helps to express their grief when a favourite pet or relative dies. Primary comprehension

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A SONNET AND AN ELEGY – 1 Read the poems below.

Sonnet of a shy girl

Elegy for Grandad

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The straw hat sits upon the shelf The snippers click no more The weeds now choke the velvety petals Of the plants once stroked and adored. A stillness fills the garden air A few bees brave the quiet The leaves float softly to the ground As blossoms take to flight. The boxes will soon be ready to go The furniture’s divided and stacked No clothes clutter the dresser drawers No towels hang on the racks. No laughter echoes through the rooms No jokes, rebukes or praise For Grandad’s voice was stilled the day We laid him in his grave. The memories are stored away In frames and in our heart We never will forget the love He gave us from the start.

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Beneath the well-presented face Uncertainty is rife. A veil of fear gives no grace And cuts through like a knife. A juggled word, a hasty phrase Bring embarrassment or sneers. Silence ﬁlls her waking days Her nights are ﬁlled with tears. A simple word, a smile, a wave Begins to crack the ice As she emerges from her cave And prepares to pay the price. The years of shyness slip away Like rain upon the clay.

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(a) Answer the questions by circling true or false.

(i) The sonnet states a problem and then resolves it.

rue

alse

(ii) The ﬁrst four lines of the sonnet follows the rhyming pattern ‘abab’.

rue

alse

(iii) The sonnet has sixteen lines.

True False

(iv) The ﬁrst eight lines of this sonnet state the problem.

True False

(v) The ﬁnal six lines show how the problem was solved. (vi) The elegy is a happy poem about Grandad’s life.

True False True False

(vii) This elegy follows an unusual rhyming pattern.

True False

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Primary comprehension

A SONNET AND AN ELEGY – 2 Use the poems on page 35 to answer the questions.  Inferential (a) Write words from the sonnet which indicate that being shy was a painful experience for the girl.

(b) Name three things from the text which show that the grandad in the elegy was a good grandad.

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Applied

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(a) Rewrite the following lines from the poems in your own words to show that you understand their meaning. (i) ‘A veil of fear gives no grace And cuts through like a knife.’

(ii) ‘Begins to crack the ice’

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(iii) ‘The memories are stored away In frames and in our heart’

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(b) Do you think it is a good idea to think and talk about family members who have died? Why? Why not?

Primary comprehension

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A SONNET AND AN ELEGY – 3 

Complete the table using information from the poems on page 35 to show similarities and differences between the sonnet and the elegy.

Sonnet

Elegy

Number of lines Rhyming pattern

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Interesting words or phrases used Unfamiliar words or phrases used

Rating (1 to 5) of the style of the poem

(a)

© R. I . C.Publ i cat i ons (b) The • feeling ofr sadness expressed inp the After I read then sonnet of the shy girl, f o r e v i e w u r p o s e s o l y • elegy reminds me of the time when … I realised that …

Complete the sentences to relate the poems to your own experiences.

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Feelings expressed by the poet

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(d) The person I most admire, who has overcome a personal obstacle to do great things, is

because

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Primary comprehension

MERCURY AND THE WORKMEN Teacher information

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Genre:

Fable • • •

Analyses and extracts information from a fable to answer literal, inferential and applied questions. Uses sensory imaging to write paragraphs from the viewpoint of different characters. Makes connections between the text characters and others.

Worksheet information: •

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Indicators:

This fable by Aesop was chosen because it is slightly longer than most. Even some of the shorter fables by Aesop have a moral better suited for older students.

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workman’s only way to make a living. (ii) gold, silver then the ordinary axe. (iii) Answers will vary but should include that he wanted to get some good luck for himself or to get rich like the ﬁrst workman. (iv) Answers may vary, but should include the fact that Mercury did not give the second man any axe including his own because he lied. 2. (a) (i) Yes (ii) Yes (iii) Yes (iv) Yes (b) Teacher check 3. Teacher check Page 41 Teacher check

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Extension: • •

•

Students select and compare a number of short Aesop’s fables. Students write a fable to ﬁt a given moral such as ‘The most vocal person is not always the one with the best answer’, ‘Appearances can be deceptive’, ‘A workman can only do the best work if he has the best tools’ etc. Students choose a moral for a peer to write a fable about.

Primary comprehension

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MERCURY AND THE WORKMEN – 1 Read the fable.

workman was chopping wood near the banks of a river when his axe accidentally fell into the deep water. Because the axe was his only means of making a living, he was very upset. He sat down on the bank in great distress, crying and cursing. Mercury appeared and wanted to know why he was so upset. After the workman told him the reason for his distress, Mercury dived into the river and brought up a golden axe.

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‘Is this axe the one which you accidentally lost in the river?’ Mercury asked.

The workman replied that the axe was not his, so Mercury dived into the water again but this time he brought up an axe made of silver.

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Again the workman replied that the axe was not his. Mercury dived into the water for the third time, this time returning with the axe that was lost. The workman claimed the axe and was greatly relieved to have his property returned. Mercury, who was very pleased to see how honest the workman was, gave him the gold and silver axes as well.

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‘Is this axe the one which you accidentally lost in the river?’ he asked.

© R. I . C.Publ i cat i ons •f orr evi ew pur posesonl y• He ran to the river and threw his axe into the water in exactly the same When the workman returned home, he related his experiences to his friends. One of his friends decided to go to the river to try to obtain the same good luck for himself.

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Mercury appeared to the man and asked why he was so upset. After the man had explained what had happened, Mercury plunged into the river and brought up a gold axe.

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‘Is this axe the one which you lost in the river?’ he asked.

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place where his friend had lost his axe. He then sat down to cry and moan about his fate.

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The man exclaimed that it was and seized the axe. Mercury knew that the man was lying for his own gain so he immediately took back the gold axe. To make matters worse, he also refused to retrieve the axe which the man had thrown into the water, leaving the man with nothing.

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Primary comprehension

MERCURY AND THE WORKMEN – 2 Use the text on page 39 to answer the questions.  Literal (a) Answer the questions by completing the sentences. (ii) Mercury retrieved the three axes from the river in the following order...

(iii) The man who threw his axe in the river did so because ...

(iv) Because the man claimed an axe which was not his, Mercury ...

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(i) The workman was very upset when his axe fell in the river because ...

 Inferential

(a) Tick ‘Yes’ if the statement is true and ‘No’ if it is not true.

(ii) The man who threw his axe in the river was a greedy and dishonest man.

(i) The workman who accidentally lost his axe in the river was an honest, hard-working man.

Yes No © R. I . C.Publ i cat i ons Yes (iii) Mercury rewarded the ﬁrst (iv) Mercury punished the second man hes lied to gain workman• because her wasr f o evYi ew pur pbecause ose o nl y• es No Yes wealth for himself.

honest.

No No

(i) All fables have a moral. What do you think the moral of this fable is?

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(ii) What do you think Mercury’s purpose was for testing the two workmen?

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(a) Give an example from ‘real life’ which you may have heard on the news or read about in the newspaper for: (i) a person who was rewarded for hard work and honesty.

(ii) a person who tried to gain wealth by being dishonest and was punished in some way instead.

Primary comprehension

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MERCURY AND THE WORKMEN – 3 Write a paragraph from the point of view of each character from page 39, including what each can see, smell, hear and touch. Also include how each is feeling. A space has been left to illustrate the character or the scene. Be concise and make each paragraph different.

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First workman

Mercury

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Primary comprehension

THE CREATION OF

NEW

ZEALAND Teacher information

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Genre:

Legend

Indicators:

• •

Analyses and extracts information from a legend to answer literal, inferential and applied questions. Uses sensory imaging to consider a text from the main character’s point of view. Makes connections between his/her own senses and what a character from a text might have sensed.

Worksheet information:

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Before the students complete the activity on page 45, teachers should explain that they do not have to write words for each of the senses—just those they feel are appropriate for each event.

©R . I . C.Publ i cat i ons Page 44 1. (a) (i) the mouth of Maui’s ﬁsh •f orr evi ew(ii) p ur posesonl y• where Maui put his foot during his struggle with the ﬁsh Answers:

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(iii) the anchor of Maui (iv) the fishhook of Maui (v) the tail of Maui’s fish (b) Aotearoa or Land of the Long White Cloud (c) 5, 3, 1, 4, 2 2. (a) Because Maui had made the land appear to be a long distance and they didn’t want to row back. (b) (i) the (ii) of (iii) fish (iv) anchor (v) canoe (vi) fishhook (c) (i) Lake Taupo (ii) New Plymouth 3. Teacher check Page 45 Teacher check

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Extension: •

•

Traditional Maori tales can be found online at http://www.maori. org.nz. This website also provides a list of books containing Maori legends. Students may also like to view the movie Whale rider for more information on Maori culture. Read legends from different cultures and compare the common themes. There are many books available which contain collections of myths and legends. Primary comprehension

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THE CREATION OF NEW ZEALAND – 1 Read the Maori legend.

ong ago, the demigod Maui lived in Hawaiki, the Maori ancestral homeland. He had secret magical powers.

North Island Northland Peninsula Auckland

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Lake Taupo

New Plymouth

Mahia Peninsula

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One day, Maui’s brothers decided to go ﬁshing in their canoe without him. But Maui hid in the bottom of the boat. His brothers were well out to sea before they found him. They wanted to take Maui back to land, but he used his magic to make the land look much further away than it actually was. So the brothers let him stay.

Wellington Kaikoura Peninsula

Before long, they stopped rowing and the boat was anchored. Maui brought out his magic ﬁshhook, the jaw of his sorcerer grandmother. He tied it to a rope and then dropped it into the water. Soon, Maui felt a powerful tug on the line.

Christchurch © R. I . C.Publ i cat i ons •f orr evi ew pur posesonl y•

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Stewart Island

New Zealand (Aotearoa)

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Maui began pulling on the line. The fish was so strong that he had to brace himself and pull with all his might. But after a long struggle, Maui finally pulled up a giant fish. This fish became the north island of New Zealand or Te Ika a Maui (‘the fish of Maui’). The fish’s mouth is Wellington Harbour and its tail is the Northland Peninsula. Immediately after he caught the fish, Maui began to pound it with his greenstone club. This created the mountains and valleys of the island. Maui’s fishhook became Mahia Peninsula—the Te Matau a Maui (‘the fishhook of Maui’).

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This does not feel like any ordinary ﬁsh, he thought.

South Island

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The other islands of New Zealand were also created by Maui. The South Island is his canoe—Te Waka o Maui (‘the canoe of Maui’)—and Kaikoura Peninsula is where he placed his foot during his struggle with the ﬁsh. Stewart Island, the tiny island below the South Island, is Te Punga a Maui (‘the anchor of Maui’).

It would be many years later that the Maori people would sail the thousands of kilometres from Hawaiki to live on these islands. They called the country Aotearoa (‘Land of the Long White Cloud’).

Primary comprehension

THE CREATION OF NEW ZEALAND – 2 Use the text on page 43 to answer these questions.  Inferential

 Literal (a) What are each of these places known as to the Maori? (i) Wellington Harbour

(iii) Stewart Island

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(b) What do you think each of these Maori words means in English? (i) ‘te’

(iv) Mahia Peninsula

(ii) ‘a’ or ‘o’

(v) Northland Peninsula

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(ii) Kaikoura Peninsula

(a) Why do you think Maui’s brothers let him stay in the canoe?

(iii)l ‘ika’ © R. I . C.Pub i cat i ons •f orr evi ew pur posesonl y•

(b) What is another name for New Zealand?

(iv) ‘punga’

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Maui caught a giant ﬁsh. Maui’s brothers discovered Maui in the canoe.

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(v) ‘waka’

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The Maori people migrated to New Zealand.

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Maui created the mountains of the North Island.

(vi) ‘matau’

Maui tied his magic ﬁshhook to a rope. 

Applied

Do you think it is important for all New Zealanders to know this legend? Why?

(ii) Which place on the map of New Zealand do you think the Maori believe is on one of the giant ﬁsh’s ﬁns?

Primary comprehension

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THE CREATION OF NEW ZEALAND – 3 Use the text on page 43 to help you complete this activity. This legend does not give us much information about Maui’s point of view. What might he have felt, seen, heard, touched or smelt?

 For each of these events from the legend, write your impressions of what Maui might have sensed.

Event

Maui is discovered by his brothers.

Sights, sounds, smells or feelings (touch)

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Maui hides in the canoe.

Emotions

Maui makes the land appear far away.

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Maui pounds the ﬁsh, creating mountains and valleys.

Choose one of the events listed above. Rewrite this section of the legend from Maui’s point of view. Include all the senses you listed.

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Primary comprehension

THE MYSTERY OF THE CAVE Teacher information

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Genre:

Mystery • • •

Analyses and extracts information from a mystery story to answer literal, inferential and applied questions. Considers how sensory imaging can be used by authors to set the scene for the reader. Makes connections to the setting and the characters in a text.

Worksheet information: •

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Indicators:

For the activities on page 49, students reread the text and highlight phrases or sentences that describe the scene using the ﬁve senses— sight, sound, smell, taste and touch. Students write a paragraph describing any personal connections they made to the text. Students may comment on the author’s use of the senses to describe the scene or discuss a similar adventure they have had with a group of friends. Students may also have connected to the text due to previous experiences camping or venturing into caves or from movies they have seen. Students then decide which character they are the most similar to.

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Answers:

Page 48 1. (a) Demi left her tent in a hurry leaving her shoes behind, when she saw her two best friends leaving the camp grounds. She didn’t want to be left out. (b) • Air changes from stale to fresh. • Floor has more loose pebbles on it. • Moss appears on walls. • Shallow stream appears on ﬂoor. 2. Teacher check 3. Teacher check Page 49 Teacher check

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Extension: Other mystery stories include: The Mennyms by Sylvia Waugh Harriet the spy by Louise Fitzhugh The Hazel Green series by Odo Hirsch 46

Primary comprehension

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THE MYSTERY OF THE CAVE – 1 Read the mystery story.

hey walk in single ﬁle, heads bowed as if being led to a hangman. The musty odour of the cave’s air ﬁlls their nostrils and their mouths—so they can almost taste its staleness. Every step they walk echoes in their ears. Occasionally, the sound of something moving is heard from above. Although all three children had come to the conclusion that there were bats, hanging upside down, asleep, above their heads, no-one had managed to say the words out loud.

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‘They will be looking for us by now’, Demi announces to Ethan and Nat. She wishes over and over that, for once, she hadn’t been her normal pig-headed self and had just let her two friends sneak out of the camp without her.

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‘The cave’s getting narrower’, announces Ethan.

The sounds beneath their feet change slightly. The trio seem to be moving and kicking stones and pebbles as they walk now.

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Demi jumps suddenly. She has been running her ﬁngertips along the cave walls, almost enjoying its rough texture, until she feels something soft and spongy.

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‘There’s moss on the walls—that means water.’ Ethan speaks quietly, hoping not to disturb the winged creatures above him. ‘We’re getting closer.’ They walk about another hundred metres when Demi shrieks. The dry cave ﬂoor is all of a sudden a shallow stream of icy-cold water. Demi curses under her breath. She thinks back to earlier in the evening when she had spotted Ethan and Nat doing their ‘mission impossible’ routine between the trees and tents. Her fear of missing out on ‘all the fun’ had made her slip out of her tent in such haste that she had forgotten to collect her shoes from outside.

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Ethan blinks a few times to make sure the thin stream of light he can see ahead of him isn’t a mirage. The three friends begin walking faster towards the light. A minute later, Ethan stops dead, causing Nat to collide into him and Demi to squash her nose into Nat’s back, making her eyes water. They have reached the end of the cave. ‘We’ve made it!’ Ethan announces. The three friends look around them and then look up. The light, coming from a small, circular opening high above them is moonlight. Ethan bends down, reaching into the freezing water with both hands, searching for something. He brings his hand up to his eyes and inspects its contents. The moonlight reveals a grin spreading quickly across Ethan’s face. ‘Have you got the bag, Nat?’ Ethan asks excitedly. ‘C’mon! Help me to ﬁll it up!’

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Primary comprehension

THE MYSTERY OF THE CAVE – 2 Use the text on page 47 to answer the questions.  Literal (a) Why is Demi walking through the cave in bare feet?

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(b) Explain three ways the cave changes during the story.

 Inferential

(a) List some words and phrases to describe how you think Demi felt when she saw her two friends leaving the camp grounds without her.

(b) Although the children suspect there are bats above them, why do you think they never mention it out loud?

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Why do you think this is?

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(d) Which of the children do you think planned the trip into the cave? 

Applied

‘They will be looking for us by now’, Demi announces to Ethan and Nat. (a) Who do you think will be looking for the children?

(b) What do you think Ethan uncovered on the ﬂoor of the cave?

Primary comprehension

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THE MYSTERY OF THE CAVE – 3 Use the text on page 47 to complete the activities. To help readers imagine a clear picture of a setting in a story, authors often use the ﬁve senses to describe the scene. This can help readers to enjoy and understand the story better, especially if the setting is a place that is foreign to them.



Reread the story. Highlight the sentences or phrases that describe the scene using one of the senses. Record your ﬁndings in the boxes in point form.

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What did they touch/feel?

hat did they hear?

hat did they smell?

What did they taste?

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What did they see?

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Did you have a clear picture of the three children walking through the cave when you read the story? Explain your answer and include what helped you to make connections to the text.

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

Which character do you think you are the most like: Ethan, the leader; Nat, the quiet follower; or Demi, the friend who doesn’t want to be left out?

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I think I am the most like the character

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because

Primary comprehension

FIRST MISSION

Teacher information

r o e t s Bo r e p ok u S

Genre:

Adventure •

Analyses and extracts information from an adventure narrative to answer literal, inferential and applied questions. Uses sensory imaging to describe what he/she imagines the characters and settings of a narrative look like. Scans a narrative to locate character and setting information.

• •

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Indicators:

Worksheet information: •

For the activity on page 53, invite the students to close their eyes to help them focus on the images they imagined when reading. After the students have completed Question 3, a class discussion could be held.

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(a) 2 pm (b) (i) He wanted to lose the men. (ii) He wanted to see if he was being followed. (iii) He saw the fountain. (iv) He knew the men wouldn’t approach him with that many people around. 2. (a) It would be easier for him to hide from the enemy. (b) (ii) should be ticked 3. Teacher check Page 53 Teacher check

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Extension:

Other adventure stories include: Redwall series by Brian Jacques Chronicles of Narnia by C S Lewis A series of unfortunate events by Lemony Snicket

Primary comprehension

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FIRST MISSION – 1 Read the adventure narrative. Chapter 2

he gypsy woman peered into her crystal ball and sighed deeply.

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‘I see an unhappy future, young man. You will meet with a tall, dark stranger who will bring peril to your life. He will bear the sign of the rose.’ She dropped her melodic voice to a whisper. ‘You must give him the package at the fountain.’

Sam nodded and stood up to leave. He felt in his pocket and tossed the woman a coin. ‘Here.’ She caught it and gestured towards the ornate curtain hanging at the back of the tent. ‘Go out this way, my friend. Good luck.’

through the gates. There was only a small group of © R. I . C.Pub l i cat i ons people in the street ahead, all heading to the fairground. Sam could hear the o menn walking behind him. Should •f orr evi ew pur p o s e s l y • he run or play it cool? For a few more seconds, he

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His ﬁrst mission as a spy had gone well so far, but now he was reaching the most dangerous part. He knew the enemy was watching. They could be anywhere and look like anyone. Remembering his training, Sam forced himself into a casual stroll, as if he were enjoying the sights and sounds of the fair like anyone else. He glanced at his watch. 1.50 pm. He had to be at the fountain in the city centre in the next ten minutes to meet his contact. The sign of the rose. What exactly did that mean? He had no idea.

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‘Faster, faster!’ he urged himself, his feet thundering on the uneven surface. Up ahead, he spotted an alleyway and darted into it, hoping to lose the men. But it didn’t work. He could hear their echoing footsteps growing louder in the deserted space. Panting, Sam wildly looked around for an escape. Then he saw it. Up ahead. The crowded city square, with its huge stone fountain.

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Sam reached the fairground gates and paused. With a sudden, practised movement, he dropped a handkerchief on the ground and twisted around to pick it up, taking the chance to scan behind him. There were two scruffy-looking men walking in his direction, staring at him. Sam gulped, picked up the handkerchief and continued R.I.C. Publications®

kept to his slow pace. Then he exploded into action, charging off down the street.

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Sam walked past the woman and pushed the curtain aside. The fairground was crowded, for which he was thankful. He smoothed down his unruly hair and straightened his clothes. Then, his heart pounding, he stalked out.

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Sam felt relief ﬂow into his body. He gradually slowed his pace as he reached the end of the alleyway, knowing the men wouldn’t dare attempt to approach him with this many people around. He pushed his way through to the fountain, thinking hard. He still had to ﬁnd his contact and pass the package to him, all without the men seeing what was going on. And he didn’t have a clue how he was going to do it.

Primary comprehension

FIRST MISSION – 2 Use the text on page 51 to answer the questions.  Literal (a) What time did Sam have to be at the fountain? (b) Why did Sam:

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(iii) feel relief?

(ii) drop the handkerchief?

(iv) slow down at the end of the alleyway?

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(i) dart into the alleyway?

 Inferential (a)

The gypsy woman dropped her voice to a whisper because …

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(ii) she was giving Sam secret information.

(i) she was tired.

(iii) she didn’t want Sam to hear what she was saying. 

Applied

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(b) Tick the best end to this sentence.

(iv) she was frightened.

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(a) What do you think the ‘sign of the rose’ might mean?

(b) Write two possibilities for what might happen next after this chapter ends.

Primary comprehension

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FIRST MISSION – 3 When we read a narrative, we create images in our minds of the characters and settings. We do this by processing the information that is given in the text and then using our imaginations to build on it.



Write any information that was given about these characters and settings in the text on page 51 and then write what you imagined each one looked like.

Information given woman

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Sam

What I imagined

the two men

gypsy tent

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city square

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

Which image(s) was/were the strongest for you? Why do you think this is?



Choose two of your descriptions and compare them to a partner’s. Are they similar? Discuss possible reasons why/why not.

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Primary comprehension

JUNK

FOOD

VEGETABLES

Teacher information

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Genre:

Persuasive writing • • •

Analyses and extracts information from a persuasive advertisement to answer literal, inferential and applied questions. Determines the importance of information contained in a text. Uses synthesis to prepare an interview based on the claims made in a persuasive advertisement.

Worksheet information:

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Indicators:

The students may consider claims made in other food advertisements to help them answer Question 1 on page 57.

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days of reading the advertisement. (c) They have no added salt, sugar or fat, they contain no dangerous chemicals and they have been grown under strictly controlled conditions in pure, clean air. (d) Norway 2. Teacher check 3. Teacher check Page 57 Teacher check

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Extension:

Ask the students to collect different forms of persuasive writing from newspapers and magazines. These may include letters, articles, editorials etc.

Primary comprehension

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JUNK FOOD VEGETABLES – 1 Kids

Read the persuasive advertisement.

WELL, NOW THERE IS A SOLUTION! Thanks to groundbreaking technology developed by leading food scientists, you can now enjoy VEGETABLES THAT TASTE LIKE JUNK FOOD!

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! ents Par ur et yo ir g t ’ n he Ca eat t o t s ? kid ables t e g ve

! Do yo u wis h your paren t s would le eat ju t you nk all the food time?

Incredible but true! Imagine eating • zucchinis that taste like potato chips • pumpkins that taste like chocolate • broccoli that tastes like pizza • brussels sprouts that taste like ice-cream

Thousands of happy Norwegians are already enjoying the amazing beneﬁts of Tastyveg®. Here is what they have been saying about this incredible product:

Does this sound like a diet disaster? It’s not! Tastyveg® have no added salt, sugar or fat. MODIFIED—SAFELY.

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No dangerous chemicals have been used. Tastyveg® have been developed and grown under strictly controlled conditions in the pure, clean air of the mountains of Norway. Beware of imitations—Tastyveg® are probably the healthiest and best-tasting vegetables in the world!

can’t stop them from eating their Tastyveg®! Buying junk food is a thing of the past.

RB, Kristiansand

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• and many more!

I had been overweight for years - I was a junk food addict. That has all changed, thanks to Tastyveg®. I’m now slim and healthy. This could be you too. Get your hands on some Tastyveg®!

o c . c e her r AND NOW IT’S YOUR TURN! o t s super KV, Oslo

Yes, Tastyveg® are now available in your country—for a select number of customers. And here is some more good news – Tastyveg® ARE NEARLY THE SAME PRICE AS NORMAL SUPERMARKET VEGETABLES! It’s so easy! Phone 1600 809 2220 to place a weekly vegetable order. If you call within 7 days of reading this advertisement, you will receive your ﬁrst order for half price!

® T a s y t r y T v ! e y g a l e today d t D on ’

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Primary comprehension

JUNK FOOD VEGETABLES – 2 Use the text on page 55 to answer the questions.  Inferential

 Literal (a) What do you need to do if you want to buy some Tastyveg®?

parents

children

overweight people

healthy people

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(b) How could you get some Tastyveg® for half the normal price?

Give reasons for your choice.

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(a) Which group do you think this advertisement would most appeal to?

(b) A friend of yours reads the advertisement and is keen to buy some Tastyveg®. Your friend says, ‘They will be cheap to buy and are the healthiest and best-tasting vegetables in the world!’

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Applied

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what you would say to your friend.

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Imagine you buy some Tastyveg® and the product is just as good as it is claimed in the advertisement. Would you want to eat vegetables that taste like junk food? Give reasons.

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(d) Which country do ‘RB’ and ‘KV’ come from?

Primary comprehension

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JUNK FOOD VEGETABLES – 3 Use the text on page 55 to help you complete this activity. Food advertisements like the one for Tastyveg® often make claims that encourage people to buy the product. List some of them.



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Which of the Tastyveg® claims do you find difficult to believe? Which statements in the advertisement do you find questionable? Imagine you get the chance to interview a representative from the Tastyveg® company. Write five questions you would like to ask him/her about the product.

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

Now imagine you are the Tastyveg® representative. Write answers to your questions, defending the company. You can be as creative as you like!

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Find a partner. Discuss the questions and answers you wrote and compare them to your partner’s. Choose your ﬁve favourite questions and answers. Prepare a television interview, with one of you as the interviewer and the other as the Tastyveg® representative.

•



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When you have practised your interview, present it to the class.

Primary comprehension

THE

TREE

HOUSE

Teacher information

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Genre:

Science ﬁction • • • •

Analyses and extracts information from a science ﬁction story to answer literal, inferential and applied questions. Determines importance by identifying key elements in a story. Makes predictions about a character. Makes connections with events in a text and his/her own beliefs.

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Indicators:

Worksheet information: •

For activities on page 61, students identify important information and consider the structure of a science ﬁction text (see page vi) to aid comprehension in Question 1. Students make predictions about the personal traits and appearance of a character in Question 2. Predicting helps the reader to construct meaning. Students work in pairs to make connections between the events in the text and their own beliefs and evidence regarding the existence of extraterrestrials.

Answers:

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Page 60 1. (a) (i) False (iii) False (v) False 2. Teacher check 3. Teacher check Page 61 Teacher check

(ii) True (iv) True (vi) False

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Extension:

Science ﬁction novels include: • The watertower by Gary Crew • The neverending story by Michael Ende • The lord of the rings by JRR Tolkein

Primary comprehension

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THE TREE HOUSE – 1 Read the science ﬁction story.

Krystal, with a mouth full of cereal, thinks, ‘They won’t ﬁnd any rats here’. ‘I know,’ responds Ashlea, giggling. ‘What’s so funny?’ her mother inquires. ‘Nothing, Mother.’ Ashlea places her bowl in the sink. ‘We are going to school now.’ The twins collect their backpacks and kiss their mother goodbye. They begin the short walk through their garden to the back fence of the school. They look over at their tree house to see their father standing at its base, deep in thought. Krystal shudders and begins to worry that he might try to stop them from visiting the tree house at night. She looks over at her older sister … waiting. Creases in Ashlea’s forehead appear. She nods and thinks, ‘Don’t worry, Krystal. He’s just wishing that he could come to the tree house with us at night too. He misses it’. Krystal grins and starts happily skipping towards the school gate.

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he silence of the still, cloudless night is interrupted by the frantic barking of two Maltese terriers. Twins, Ashlea and Krystal, look up at the window. Smiles appear on their identical faces. ‘Time to go!’ thinks Ashlea. The girls slide out of their beds and sneak into the dark corridor. Ashlea reaches for Krystal’s hand and they walk, barefoot, past their parents’ bedroom. The twins overhear a discussion about the noisy dogs. Their father yells in a loud, stern voice for the dogs to be quiet. His wife has decided that there must be large rats in the roof, setting the dogs off. Ashlea opens the back door, knowing it won’t be locked. The girls walk by the dogs who are still barking and snapping their jaws up towards the star-ﬁlled sky. They arrive at the base of the largest tree in the garden. They look up—their exotic, almond-shaped eyes twinkle with anticipation. Ashlea reaches for the ﬁrst wooden rung of the makeshift ladder. Krystal follows her, climbing up towards their tree house. Ashlea pauses. ‘I AM being careful!’ Krystal whispers with a furrowed brow. The tree house sits in the branches of the oldest tree in the garden. It was built for their father when he was a little boy, with planks of wood nailed together for walls and a ceiling, and an old piece of plaster board acting as a miniature door. The girls love their treehouse because it is the perfect size for them, but its low ceiling means adults only ever climb up the ladder and peer in—never enter. The girls reach the top. Ashlea calls, ‘We’re here’. ‘Can we come with you?’ Krystal asks excitedly. The girls climb inside. If the twins’ mother had opened the bedroom window at that very moment, and looked towards the treehouse, she would have seen shards of brilliant emerald-green light escaping out of the gaps in the wood and from under the door. As quickly as the green light appears, it is gone. The tree house becomes a nest of shadows once more. The dogs’ barking stops. The cloudless night, once again, is still. The next morning, the girls are pouring cereal into their bowls, discussing whether they had any homework, when their mother enters the kitchen. ‘Goodness! You girls are always so quiet! People will think you don’t like each other.’ Their mother takes the phone from its charger. ‘I must call someone about the rats in our roof.’

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Primary comprehension

THE TREE HOUSE – 2 Use the text on page 59 to answer the questions.  Literal (a) Answer true or false. (i) The Maltese terriers stop barking after the twins’ father yells at them to be quiet.

True False

(iii) An adult could easily ﬁt through the door of the tree house.

True False

(iv) The twins’ father played in the tree house when he was a little boy.

True False

(vi) Krystal is older than Ashlea.

True False

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(v) The twins’ mother worries about their constant arguing.

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(ii) The girls are excited about their night-time visits to their treehouse.

 Inferential

(a) Do you think the twins’ father knows what happens after the light appears in the tree house? Why?

(c)

(b) Do you think the girls have visited the treehouse at night before? Why?

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Applied

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for the girls at night? Who?

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(a) Ashlea is the older twin. Do you think she acts like she is older? Explain.

(b) What is so special about the twins in the story? What do you believe is possible?

Primary comprehension

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THE TREE HOUSE – 3 Use the text on page 59 to complete the activities.



Reread the story. Complete the boxes below by adding notes.

Setting

Characters

Y r o e t s B er oo Mp E u k S

our opinion of the story.



(What did you like/dislike?)

vents

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ain themes

Choose one of the characters from the story. Describe him/her. Draw what you believe the character looks like.

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Is it possible that the twins were visited by an extraterrestrial? Do you believe in extraterrestrials? With a partner, make a list of ‘for’ and ‘against’ points, considering whether extraterrestrials (aliens) really exist. On the back of this sheet, draw what you think an alien might look like.

Extraterrestrials do exist! For

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Against

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Primary comprehension

CHILDHOOD OBESITY

Teacher information

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Genre:

Report

Indicators: • •

Analyses and extracts information from a report to answer literal, inferential and applied questions. Determines the importance of information contained in a text. Reduces a text to a summarising paragraph.

Worksheet information:

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•

Note: Obesity in children can have some of the following effects: Health risks hypertension (high blood pressure), respiratory ailments, diabetes (type 2), depression Social risks bullied/teased, ostracised, ﬁnd it difﬁcult to make friends, low self-esteem • Discriminating between important and less important information contained in a text is a vital skill for students to gain, especially for their studies in secondary and tertiary education. Students need to practise the strategy of stripping away extraneous information from a text to summarise the main idea. Discuss with the class that the summarising paragraph needs to give the reader the main idea of the report about childhood obesity.

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Page 64 1. (a) It can be determined if a person is obese by calculating a his/her Body Mass Index (BMI). This measures the ratio of height to weight. People are called ‘obese’ if their BMI is above the 95th percentile of all people of their age and gender. (b) Children play less sport because it is not offered by many schools. There is also the cost involved in joining a sporting club, such as membership fees, uniforms and transport. (c) The authors of the report believe that if advertising directed at children focused on promoting a more active lifestyle and eating healthier food, the occurrences of childhood obesity may decrease. 2–3. Teacher check Page 65 Teacher check

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In groups, choose one of the following topics and create a survey for a group of students in your school: – Time spent watching television vs time spent being active. – Nutritional vs unhealthy foods eaten. – Availability of sport outside of school hours (school sport, club sport, cost, transport etc.). – Advertising during children’s television programs. – Effect of junk food advertisements on children. – Childhood obesity: Who’s responsible? – Effects of obesity on children (for example, depression, bullying, health risks etc.).

Primary comprehension

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CHILDHOOD OBESITY – 1 Read the report.

Health Report

Childhood obesity

Due:

Tuesday 28 June

Oval Village School

Teacher:

Mr Elliot

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There has been a lot of attention in the media lately stating that children weigh more today compared to those of three decades ago. The percentage of children who are obese has increased dramatically. Determining if a child is obese can be calculated by looking at his/her Body Mass Index (BMI), which measures the ratio of height to weight. People are called ‘obese’ if their BMI is above the 95th percentile of all people of their age and gender. Research shows that there are a number of possible causes for the increase in children’s weight. Children of today spend more time in front of a screen compared to those of thirty years ago. Children watch television and play computer games instead of playing outside. We conducted a survey of 50 children from the ages of 6 to 14 which showed that, on average, children are spending four hours a day in front of a screen. Another factor that is possibly affecting children’s weight is that many schools today do not offer sport outside of school hours. For children to play sport, they have to join a sporting club, which costs their parents money and time, when transporting their children to games. This cost for membership fees, uniforms and so on may also be a reason why children are unable to join sporting clubs. Our survey of 50 children showed that: • 22 children participated in a sporting club. • 15 children would participate in a sporting club if there was less cost involved. • 13 children would not like to play sport outside of school hours. Another possible reason why children weigh more today than they did thirty years ago involves advertising of snack food and ‘junk’ food. If children are watching approximately four hours of television each day, this means they are being exposed to many snack food and fast food commercials. Children may then pressure their parents to purchase food with little or no nutritional value. Some large companies use children’s favourite cartoon characters or actors to advertise their products and even include toys with their meals. Our survey showed that 33 out of 50 children ask their parents to buy fast food because they want the toy that comes with the food. Obesity in children is increasing. Possible reasons include: children being less active and spending too much time in front of screens, less sport being offered in schools, and ‘junk’ food advertising that is directed at children. If advertising for children promoted having a more active lifestyle and eating healthier foods, we believe that the occurrences of childhood obesity may decrease.

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Written by Jamie M. and Hamish C.

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Primary comprehension

CHILDHOOD OBESITY – 2 Use the text on page 63 to answer the questions.  Literal (a) How is it decided if a child is obese?

(b) According to the report, give three reasons why children do not play sport outside of school hours.

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 Inferential

(a) Why do you think Jamie and Hamish wrote the report?

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(b) How do you think Jamie and Hamish collected their statistics for their report?

Applied

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(a) If you surveyed children in your school about how they spent their time and their eating habits, do you think you would have results similar to those in the report? Explain your answer.

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(b) Do you think fast food companies should be allowed to include children’s toys with their products? Why?

Health risks

Social risks

Primary comprehension

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CHILDHOOD OBESITY – 3 Use the text on page 63 to complete the activities. Being able to identify keywords and phrases in a text and then summarise that information are important skills to learn—and they take practice!



The principal at Oval High School is so impressed with the boys’ report that he has asked you to summarise it into one paragraph for the school newsletter. (a) Reread the text. Underline keywords and phrases.

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(b) Sort the words and phrases you have underlined by placing them into one of the following categories. Use point form to record the information.

Possible cause 1:

Other points:

ossible cause 2:

ossible cause 3:

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Main idea:

Possible solution:

Use the information above to write one paragraph that summarises the report about childhood obesity.

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R.I.C. Publications®

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Primary comprehension

BEACH HOTEL

Teacher information

r o e t s Bo r e p ok u S

Genre:

Review •

Analyses and extracts information from a movie review to answer literal, inferential and applied questions. Scans a movie review to locate and identify the writer’s opinions. Compares and analyses differing opinions and aspects of a review.

• •

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Indicators:

Worksheet information: •

Before the students begin the activity on page 69, some additional examples of writing an alternative point of view may be necessary. Encourage the students to use humour for Question 2.

Likes The actors use good facial expression.

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(iii) adventure (iv) Ruth Kinmont 2–3. Teacher check Page 69 1. The list of likes and dislikes should be similar to the following: Dislikes

There is too much focus on the action scenes and not enough on the characters’ personal growth.

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The cinematography is The script is poor, particularly the conversations between Zac and Kieran. breathtaking and makes you feel like you are sharing in the adventure.

The movie is entertaining and colourful.

The music is boring and dreary.

The movie will keep young viewers on the edge of their seats.

The movie is too long; several scenes could have been cut or shortened.

Teacher check

Extension: Weekend newspapers, the Internet and free magazines from DVD/video rental outlets are excellent sources of movie reviews. The students could compare the styles used in different sources. 66

Primary comprehension

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BEACH HOTEL – 1 Read the movie review.

Beach Hotel (rated PG) Starring Foster Adams and Nathan Clark

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Directed by Candace Marsh

Based on the popular children’s novel by Ruth Kinmont, this movie has been eagerly anticipated by thousands of pre-teens.

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Rating: * * *

The script and the music also let the movie down. It is curious that the scriptwriters chose to ignore the tensionﬁlled conversations between the main characters in the novel. Instead, Zac and Kieran say little of importance to each other. The background music is boring and dreary— something brighter would have been more appropriate for an adventure movie.

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Kieran go to the beach on holidays where they decide to investigate an old, deserted hotel. Soon afterwards, a stranger appears, warning them to stay away. Needless to say, the boys don’t take any notice and soon ﬁnd themselves embroiled in a hair-raising adventure.

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Making their movie debuts, Foster Adams (Zac) and Nathan Clark (Kieran) are appealing to watch. They are both skilled at using facial expression to show their emotions as they embark on a whirlwind journey through twisting tunnels, spooky forests and rocky clifftops. The cinematography is breathtaking and makes you feel as if you are sharing in the adventure along with the two main characters.

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Beach Hotel is surprisingly long for a movie aimed at children (running at close to three hours) and you leave the cinema with the feeling that several scenes could have been cut or shortened, particularly the ﬁrst scene showing the car trip to the holiday house.

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However, Beach Hotel will certainly keep its young viewers on the edge of their seats. It is an entertaining and colourful ride and is certain to be a winner during these school holidays. – Jody Flynn

But while the movie is certainly visually exciting, fans of the novel might be disappointed with the way Zac and Kieran are portrayed on the big screen. Director Candace Marsh (Chase, Crime scene) has concentrated too much on the action scenes and glosses over the personal growth of the characters as they face their worst fears. R.I.C. Publications®

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Primary comprehension

BEACH HOTEL – 2 Use the text on page 67 to answer the questions.  Literal (a) What did the reviewer like about the actors who played the main characters?

(b) Name:

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(i) another movie directed by Candace Marsh. (ii) the actor who plays Kieran. (iii) the genre of the movie.

 Inferential

(a) Summarise the plot of Beach Hotel in one or two sentences.

(b) Based on your summary, suggest an alternative title for the movie.

Applied

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(a) Imagine you are an entertainment reporter. You are asked to interview director Candace Marsh about the movie. Write three questions you would like to ask her.

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(c) In the space, create a ﬂyer that might be used to promote the movie. You may like to draft your design on scrap paper ﬁrst.

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(iv) the author of the novel Beach Hotel.

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(b) Circle one of your questions. Write what you think Candace’s answer might be.

Primary comprehension

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BEACH HOTEL – 3 

A movie review contains the writer’s opinions on different aspects of the movie. Scan the movie review on page 67 to list reviewer Jody Flynn’s likes and dislikes of Beach Hotel.

Likes

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Imagine you are a movie reviewer. You go to see Beach Hotel, but ﬁnd that your opinions are very different from Jody Flynn’s! In fact, everything Flynn liked about the movie, you disliked. Everything she disliked, you liked. (a) Highlight two of Flynn’s likes. Rewrite them as dislikes. For example, ‘The costumes were bright and colourful’ could become ‘The costumes were gaudy and overdone’.

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•

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(b) Highlight two of Flynn’s dislikes. Rewrite them as likes. For example, ‘The actors mumbled and were difﬁcult to understand ’ could become ‘The voices of the actors were soft and subtle and drew you into the movie’.

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Primary comprehension

BUS TIMETABLE

Teacher information

r o e t s Bo r e p ok u S

Genre:

Informational text • • •

Analyses and extracts information from a bus timetable to answer literal, inferential and applied questions. Scans text to locate speciﬁc information. Synthesises a range of information to plan a bus timetable to fulﬁl a number of different criteria.

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Indicators:

Worksheet information: •

Timetables present information in a succinct and accessible format. Students should be aware of these requirements and how they are achieved. They could try to represent a portion of the timetable information in narrative script to enhance their understanding of the value and usefulness of the visual representation provided by timetables. On page 73 it is important that students can justify the choices they make.

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Pages 71–72 1. (a) iii (b) iv 2. Teacher check 3. Teacher check Page 73 Teacher check

(d)

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Answers: 9.05

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Extension:

• • •

Collect examples of timetables and categorise them according to different criteria; for example, transport, TV programs. Many timetables use a 24-hour clock. Discuss reasons for this and practise converting 12-hour time notation to 24-hour time. Students conduct a survey and graph the results, showing how class members travel to school.

Primary comprehension

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BUS TIMETABLE – 1 Read the bus timetable. Bus to Brighton

Twin Rocks

Trent Station

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8.15 8.40 9.10 10.00 10.35 11.10 11.45

Sandy Beach

= Express Brighton Station 7.00 7.30 7.55 8.38 9.05 9.35 9.53 10.25 10.59 11.35 12.10

am Brighton Station 6.40 E 7.05 7.40 E 8.05 8.20 E 9.50 9.15 9.40 10.20 11.05 11.40

Bus to Trent Sandy Beach

Fishing Bay

7.13

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11.15 11.50

8.57 9.27

10.17 10.51 11.27 12.02

8.13

8.25

9.58

9.10

9.48 10.25 11.13

10.00

Twin Rocks 7.29

9.15 9.38 10.05

= Express Trent Station

7.10 7.39 8.10 8.39 8.50 9.25 9.48 10.15 10.58 11.40 12.13

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6.30 E 7.00 E 7.25 E 8.05 8.30 9.00 9.20 9.50 10.25 11.00 11.35

Fishing Bay

11.25 11.59

11.30

Answer the questions using the timetable above.

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 Literal

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Select the correct answer. (a) The 9.20 bus from Trent station:

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(b) The bus that arrives at Trent at 11.40:

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(i) stops at Sandy Beach.

(i) stops at two places.

(ii) is an express.

(ii) leaves Brighton at 11.35.

(iii) stops at Fishing Bay.

(iii) takes 30 minutes.

(iv) arrives at 9.52.

(iv) stops at Twin Rocks.

(ii) arrive before 8.30.

(iii) only run before 8.00 in the morning.

(iv) stop at Sandy Beach.

(d) What is the earliest a person living in Sandy Beach could arrive by bus in Brighton?

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Primary comprehension

BUS TIMETABLE – 2 Use the timetable on page 71 to answer these questions.

 Inferential (b) Why do you think the express buses run at the times they do?

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 Applied

(a) What times do you think the express buses would be likely to run in the afternoon? Why?

(b)

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(a) How do you think secondary school children and young working people living in Fishing Bay, Twin Rocks and Sandy Beach might get to school or work?

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Advantages

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Primary comprehension

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BUS TIMETABLE – 3 

(a) Prepare a bus timetable for travel from a large country town to the capital city. • There are 12 buses per week. • Only 3 buses travel on the weekend. • Weekend buses must cater for people wishing to spend the weekend in the city as well as those shopping or attending sporting events. • Weekday buses must arrive in time for business opening hours.

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• The bus trip takes 11/2 hours.

from

Depart

Arrive

Monday

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

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Bus timetable for travel:

Friday

Saturday

Sunday

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(b) On which weekdays is there more than one bus?

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Why?

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(d) Are there more buses on Saturday or Sunday? Why?

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Primary comprehension

PAY ATTENTION

Teacher information

r o e t s Bo r e p ok u S

Genre:

Humour •

Analyses and extracts information from a humorous narrative to answer literal, inferential and applied questions. Writes character and plot summaries of a humorous narrative. Predicts events that may take place after the close of a narrative.

• •

Worksheet information: •

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Indicators:

Students may require scrap paper to draft their answers to the questions on page 77. This page could be completed individually or in pairs.

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Answers will vary but should mention that Holly blushed and looked at her shoes when she talked to Justin. 3. Teacher check Page 77 1. Answers will vary, but may include some of the following: • Holly reads the words on the board. • Holly tries to remember the story. • Holly writes a love letter. • Holly gives what she thinks is the permission form to Justin. • Holly puts Justin’s letter and what she thinks is her letter on Miss Turner’s desk. • The siren goes and Holly leaves the classroom. • Miss Turner calls out to Holly. • Holly sees Justin and his friends with her letter. 2–3. Teacher check

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Extension: •

Read humorous books by authors like Paul Jennings, Roald Dahl and Andy Grifﬁths.

Primary comprehension

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PAY ATTENTION – 1 Read the humorous narrative. ‘Okay, class. Now that you’ve listened carefully to the story, you may begin the activity on the blackboard.’ Uh-oh. I whipped my head away from the window. Miss Turner’s voice had interrupted my daydream. Stacey was frowning at me. ‘You didn’t hear any of that, did you?’ I shook my head and read the words on the board with a sinking feeling in my stomach. Write a letter from one of the characters that describes his or her feelings. I turned to Stacey in panic. She rolled her eyes and started to speak.

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‘Stacey, no talking!’ Miss Turner snapped. ‘This is a test. If Holly wasn’t listening, that’s her fault. Maybe it might ﬁnally teach her to pay attention.’ She folded her arms and glared at me.

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I groaned and massaged my temples. Had any of the story filtered through into my brain? Hmm … there had been something about a princess who secretly loved a poor man … she was trying to organise to meet him at the palace gates. It was typical of the soppy stuff Miss Turner was always reading to us. I picked up my pencil. It was simple. I’d write a love letter from the princess to the poor man. I’d make it as flowery as I could and Miss Turner would be sure to like it. ‘You are the man of my dreams. My heart beats quickly whenever you are near’, I wrote. That was a good start. I added some more sickly phrases and finished with ‘Meet me at the gates at 3 pm’ Then I drew lots of love hearts and kisses. I looked at my letter admiringly. There. Miss Turner would have to be happy with that. It hadn’t mattered that I hadn’t been paying attention. ‘Class, when you’ve finished, please bring your letters to my desk. Oh, and if anyone hasn’t handed in the permission form for next week’s excursion, please give it to Justin.’

Justin was the notes monitor for the week. He was also the best-looking boy in the class. I scooped up my letter and my excursion form and went to his desk ﬁrst. ‘Here’, I said, not looking at him. I felt my cheeks ﬂame as I held out the form.

‘Er, thanks. Can you hand my letter to Miss Turner?’ he asked.

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‘Okay’, I said, looking at my shoes. I grabbed his letter and put it on Miss Turner’s desk with mine. Then I went back to my seat. A few minutes later, the siren went. I breathed a sigh of relief. Three o’clock was the best part of the school day. I picked up my bag, waited for Stacey and then started to walk to the school gates to meet my little brother.

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‘Holly!’ I spun around. Miss Turner was walking towards me. ‘Where is your letter? You’ve handed me your excursion form by mistake.’ ‘But I gave that to …’ I started. Then it hit me. I gulped and looked towards the gates. Justin was standing there with three of his friends, my love letter in his hand. ‘Holly loves Justin.’ I could just hear the singing over the sniggers and giggles. Maybe today would be the day I’d ﬁnally learn to pay attention.

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Primary comprehension

PAY ATTENTION – 2 Use the text on page 75 to answer the questions.  Literal (a) Why didn’t Holly hear any of Miss Turner’s story?

(b) Tick the statements Holly would agree with.

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(ii) Miss Turner likes ‘soppy’ stories.

(iii) Justin is good-looking.

(iv) The love letter was well written.

 Inferential

(a) How do you think Holly felt about speaking to Justin? Explain why you think this.

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(i) Home-time is the worst part of going to school.

(b) List words to describe how you think Holly felt at the end of the story.

Applied

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(a) Imagine you are Miss Turner. Complete comments on this school report for Holly.

Writing

Listening

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(b) Would you like to have Miss Turner for your teacher? Give reasons for your answer.

Primary comprehension

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PAY ATTENTION – 3 Use the text on page 75 to help you complete this activity. Summarise the plot of the story by listing the main events that happened in time order. You should list between six and 10 events. The ﬁrst one has been done for you.

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10.

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1. Holly realises that Miss Turner is speaking.

 Based oni your plots and character summaries, what © R. I . C.Publ i c at on do you think Holly might do next after the story ends? Describe six events you would like to see •f orr evi ew pur po sesonl y• happen.

Describe the character of Holly. Use from two to four sentences.

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Primary comprehension

THE EXPERT

Teacher information

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Genre:

Play • •

Analyses and extracts information from a play to answer literal, inferential and applied questions. Summarises the main events in a play.

Worksheet information: •

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Indicators:

After completing the activity on page 81, the students could present their summaries as television news reports or interviews.

Answers:

Page 80 1. (a) His tourist guide book. (b) (i) glare (ii) stare at him with open dislike 2. Teacher check 3. Teacher check Page 81 Teacher check

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Extension:

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Look for plays adapted from popular children’s books; e.g. • Charlie and the chocolate factory by Roald Dahl • Charlotte’s web by E B White • Hating Alison Ashley by Robin Klein • The lion, the witch and the wardrobe by C S Lewis

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Primary comprehension

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THE EXPERT – 1 Read the play. (A group of 11 people are standing centre stage. All are talking quietly, except for one man, Mr Dingles, who is reading a book. A tour guide walks up to them.) Tour Guide

Hello and welcome to this tour of the Castle’s Chocolate Factory.

Mr Dingles

(pushing to the front and waving the book) Excuse me, Miss. Reg Dingles is my name. According to my trusty tourist guide, there should be a maximum of 10 people on this tour, but I’ve counted 11.

Tour Guide

That’s okay sir, one extra person won’t matter.

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(She smiles, but Mr Dingles wags his ﬁnger at her and shakes his head. The tour guide’s smile starts to tighten. She motions the group forward a few paces.)

Mr Dingles

(referring to his book) That’s not strictly correct. Castle’s Easter eggs are made in your factory in Pine River.

Tour Guide

(gritting her teeth) On to another topic … Does anyone know what our most popular chocolate is?

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(pointing to her right) Here we are at the wrapping room. Every chocolate we make is wrapped in here.

(Several people in the group put up their hands, but Mr Dingles ignores them.)

Mr Dingles

That would be the Castle’s chocolate cat.

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Tour Guide

He became a millionaire …

Mr Dingles

(still looking at his book) Billionaire, actually.

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Mr Dingles

(The whole group are now staring at Mr Dingles with open dislike. The tour guide pauses and then points to a door to her left.)

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Tour Guide

To my left, ladies and gentlemen, are our mixing rooms.

Mr Dingles

Not according to the ﬂoor plan in my book.

Tour Guide

Really, sir?

Mr Dingles

Yes. (He opens the door and walks in.) You see, this used to be the mixing area but as of ﬁve years ago, it became a toilet block.

Tour Guide

You’re absolutely correct. (She shuts the door and locks it.)

Mr Dingles

(in a mufﬂed voice) Hey, let me out!

Tour Guide

Before we move on, I’ll just do a quick head count. (She mimes counting the group.) 10. That must be correct. That’s the maximum number allowed in a group. (She smiles.)

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(The people who had their hands up glare at him. Mr Dingles doesn’t seem to notice. He goes back to reading his book).

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(The group smile back and follow her offstage. Mr Dingle’s cries fade out.)

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Primary comprehension

THE EXPERT – 2 Use the text on page 79 to answer the questions  Literal (a) Where is Mr Dingles getting his facts from? (b) Write two ways the people in the tour group look at Mr Dingles. (i)

(ii)

(a) Tick the best answer to the question.

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 Inferential

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(b) List words to describe the character of Mr Dingles.

Why do the tour group smile at the end of the play? (i) The tour is almost ﬁnished. (ii) They are glad to be rid of Mr Dingles.

(i) ‘Hello and welcome to this tour of the Castle’s chocolate factory.’

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Applied

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(ii) ‘He became a millionaire …’

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(c)

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Imagine you are the tour guide. Think of three reasons why you locked Mr Dingles in the toilets. Now imagine you are Mr Dingles. Think of three reasons why you did not deserve to be locked in the toilets. Write the reasons below.

Tour guide

Mr Dingles

Primary comprehension

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THE EXPERT – 3 

Use the headings below to write notes about the play on page 79.

How does the play begin?

Setting Characters

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hat happens in the middle?

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Main character descriptions

What happens at the end?

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Imagine one member of the tour group rings the local newspaper to describe the events that take place in the play. She gives an accurate summary of what happened. Use your notes to write what the tour group member might say.

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Primary comprehension