What is this sequence about?
Develops student understanding of the purpose and features of non-fiction information and explanation texts. Builds understanding of how living things adapt to their environment. Equips students with the skills to pose questions, undertake research and create well-structured non-fiction texts.
Provides opportunities for students to explore these concepts by engaging with a range of written and visual texts and creating texts of their own.
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Big understandings Non-fiction texts provide us with information to explore and understand the natural world. Living things have structural features and behaviours (adaptations) that help them survive in their environment. |
The sequence has been written by teachers for teachers. It has been designed to provide students with rich, engaging learning experiences that address the Victorian Curriculum. The sequence consists of six flexible stages, including suggested learning intentions:
Overview of stages
1. Defining Physical and Behavioural Adaptations
Suggested Learning Intentions
- To understand how adaptations help living things survive in different habitats
3. Features of Non-Fiction Texts
Suggested Learning Intentions
- To examine the structures of information and explanation texts
- To understand the purpose of text structures
5. Using Vocabulary to Improve Meaning
Suggested Learning Intentions
- To understand how vocabulary adds meaning to writing
2. Posing and Researching Questions
Suggested Learning Intentions
- To pose questions about the natural world
- To locate information to answer questions
4. Paragraphs: Finding the Main Idea and Supporting Details
Suggested Learning Intentions
- To understand the features and purpose of paragraphs
6. Researching and Creating Non-Fiction Texts
Suggested Learning Intentions
- To plan, draft and publish a non-fiction text
Prior knowledge
Before you commence this sequence, it is suggested that you ensure your students:
- Can distinguish between open and closed questions.
- Can confidently read appropriate non-fiction material while monitoring their understanding of the text, and be familiar with skimming and scanning techniques.
- Have and understanding of life cycles and how living things depend on each other and the environment to survive.
Teaching strategies
The Literacy Teaching Toolkit provides advice on the teaching strategies that you could use in this sequence. These strategies include:
- Teaching and Learning Cycle: Reading Writing Connection
- Shared Reading
- Modelled Reading
- Guided Reading
- Reading Conferences
- Shared Writing
- Modelled Writing
- Guided Writing
- Independent Writing
The sequence highlights opportunities to apply the High Impact Teaching Strategies (HITS), which are a component of the Victorian Teaching and Learning Model.
Vocabulary
Students should be able to understand and use the following concepts and terms by the end of the learning sequence:
|
Adaptation |
Noun, noun group |
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Habitat |
Verb, verb group |
| Phenomenon | Preposition |
| Fiction | Phrase |
| Non-fiction | Clause |
| Text structure | Technical vocabulary |
| Language features | Open and closed questions |
You can find definitions of some of these terms in the Glossaries for the English Curriculum and Science Curriculum.
It is recommended that the explicit teaching of vocabulary occur throughout this learning sequence. The Literacy Teaching Toolkit provides resources and sample activities to support this practice.
A vocabulary table for this sequence is provided below:
Assessment
Opportunities for formative and summative assessment are identified at different stages of the learning sequence, usually under ‘Review’.
You may want to develop a rubric to assess students’ progress. A range of Formative Assessment resources are available from the Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority. This includes a Guide to Formative Assessment Rubrics, a series of modules to support you to develop your own formative assessment rubrics, and sample rubrics across six curriculum areas that demonstrate how you can put formative assessment rubrics into practice in the classroom.
In developing a rubric, you may wish to co-construct assessment criteria with your students. Each stage of the sequence provides sample success criteria for students working at Level 5.
The Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority has published work samples that provide teachers with examples of student learning achievement in each mode of the English curriculum: Reading and Viewing, Writing, Speaking and Listening.
Victorian Curriculum connections
Level 4
This sequence addresses content from the Victorian Curriculum in English, Science and Critical and Creative Thinking. It is primarily designed for Level 5, but also addresses the following content descriptions from Level 4:
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Content description |
Stage |
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English: Reading and Viewing |
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Read different types of texts for specific purposes by combining phonic, semantic, contextual and grammatical knowledge using text processing strategies, including monitoring meaning, skimming, scanning and reviewing (VCELY287) |
Defining Physical and Behavioural Adaptations Posing and Researching Questions Features of Non-Fiction Texts |
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Use comprehension strategies to build literal and inferred meaning to expand content knowledge, integrating and linking ideas and analysing and evaluating texts (VCELY288) |
Defining Physical and Behavioural Adaptations Posing and Researching Questions Researching and Creating Non-Fiction Texts |
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English: Writing |
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Incorporate new vocabulary from a range of sources, including vocabulary encountered in research, into own texts (VCELA293) |
Using Vocabulary to Improve Meaning |
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Plan, draft and publish imaginative, informative and persuasive texts containing key information and supporting details for a widening range of audiences, demonstrating increasing control over text structures and language features (VCELY299) |
Researching and Creating Non-Fiction Texts |
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Critical and Creative Thinking |
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Construct and use open and closed questions for different purposes (VCCCTQ010) |
Posing and Researching Questions Using Vocabulary to Improve Meaning |
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Science |
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Different living things have different life cycles and depend on each other and the environment to survive (VCSSU058) |
Defining Physical and Behavioural Adaptations Researching and Creating Non-Fiction Texts |
The learning sequence can be used to assess student achievement in relation to the following Achievement Standards from the Victorian Curriculum: English Level 4:
- Students understand that texts have different structures depending on the purpose and context.
- Students can describe literal and implied meaning connecting ideas in different texts.
- Students use language features to create coherence and add detail to their texts.
- Students create texts that show understanding of how images and detail can be used to extend key ideas.
- Students use language features to create coherence and add detail to their texts.
Level 5
This sequence addresses content from the Victorian Curriculum in English, Science and Critical and Creative Thinking. It is primarily designed for Level 5 and addresses the following content descriptions:
|
Content description |
Stage |
|
English: Reading and Viewing |
|
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Navigate and read informative and persuasive texts by interpreting structural features, including tables of content, glossaries, chapters, headings and subheadings and applying appropriate text processing strategies, including monitoring meaning, skimming and scanning (VCELY318) |
Defining Physical and Behavioural Adaptations Posing and Researching Questions Features of Non-Fiction Texts |
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Use comprehension strategies to analyse information, integrating and linking ideas from a variety of print and digital sources (VCELY319) |
Defining Physical and Behavioural Adaptations Posing and Researching Questions Researching and Creating Non-Fiction Texts |
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Analyse the text structures and language features used in imaginative, informative and persuasive texts to meet the purpose of the text (VCELY320) |
Features of Non-Fiction Texts Paragraphs: Finding the Main Idea and Supporting Details |
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English: Writing |
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Understand the use of vocabulary to express greater precision of meaning, and know that words can have different meanings in different contexts (VCELA325) |
Using Vocabulary to Improve Meaning |
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Plan, draft and publish imaginative, informative and persuasive print and multimodal texts, choosing text structures, language features, images and sound appropriate to purpose and audience (VCELY329) |
Researching and Creating Non-Fiction Texts |
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Critical and Creative Thinking |
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Examine how different kinds of questions can be used to identify and clarify information, ideas and possibilities (VCCCTQ021) |
Posing and Researching Questions Using Vocabulary to Improve Meaning |
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Science |
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Living things have structural features and adaptations that help them to survive in their environment (VCSSU074) |
Defining Physical and Behavioural Adaptations Researching and Creating Non-Fiction Texts |
The learning sequence can be used to assess student achievement in relation to the following Achievement Standards from the Victorian Curriculum: English Level 5:
- Students explain how text structures assist in understanding the text.
- Students analyse and explain literal and implied information from a variety of texts.
- Students use language features to show how ideas can be extended.
- Students create informative texts demonstrating an understanding of grammar and sentence types.
- Students use language features to show how ideas can be extended.
Level 6
This sequence addresses content from the Victorian Curriculum in English, Science and Critical and Creative Thinking. It is primarily designed for Level 5, but also addresses the following content descriptions from Level 6:
|
Content description |
Stage |
|
English: Reading and Viewing |
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Select, navigate and read increasingly complex texts for a range of purposes, applying appropriate text processing strategies to recall information and consolidate meaning (VCELY346) |
Defining Physical and Behavioural Adaptations Posing and Researching Questions Features of Non-Fiction Texts |
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Use comprehension strategies to interpret and analyse information and ideas, comparing content from a variety of textual sources including media and digital texts (VCELY347) |
Defining Physical and Behavioural Adaptations Posing and Researching Questions Researching and Creating Non-Fiction Texts |
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Analyse strategies authors use to influence readers (VCELY345) |
Features of Non-Fiction Texts Paragraphs: Finding the Main Idea and Supporting Details |
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English: Writing |
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Investigate how vocabulary choices, including evaluative language can express shades of meaning, feeling and opinion (VCELA352) |
Using Vocabulary to Improve Meaning |
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Plan, draft and publish imaginative, informative and persuasive texts, choosing and experimenting with text structures, language features, images and digital resources appropriate to purpose and audience (VCELY358) |
Researching and Creating Non-Fiction Texts |
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Critical and Creative Thinking |
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Examine how different kinds of questions can be used to identify and clarify information, ideas and possibilities (VCCCTQ021) |
Posing and Researching Questions Using Vocabulary to Improve Meaning |
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Science |
|
|
Living things have structural features and adaptations that help them to survive in their environment (VCSSU074) |
Defining Physical and Behavioural Adaptations Researching and Creating Non-Fiction Texts |
The learning sequence can be used to assess student achievement in relation to the following Achievement Standards from the Victorian Curriculum: English Level 6:
- Students understand how the use of text structures can achieve particular effects.
- Students compare and analyse information in different texts, explaining literal and implied meaning.
- Students explain how their choices of language features and images are used.
- Students use make considered choices from an expanding vocabulary to enhance cohesion and structure in their writing.
Learning Progressions
The Literacy Learning Progressions support teachers to develop a comprehensive view of how literacy develops over time. You can use the Literacy Learning Progressions to:
- identify the literacy capability of your students
- plan targeted teaching strategies, especially for students achieving above or below the age-equivalent expected level in the Victorian Curriculum: English
- provide targeted feedback to students about their learning within and across the progressions.
The Literacy Learning Progressions have been mapped against the Victorian Curriculum F – 10: English. Teachers are advised to familiarise themselves with this map to understand how particular progression relate to the Reading and Viewing, Writing and Speaking and Listening modes and particular curriculum levels in English.