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Advice for teachers -
Foundation English

​Unit 2 - Area of Study 2: Creating texts

Outcome 2

Communicate ideas and information appropriately in writing for a particular target audience and purpose.

Examples of learning activities

  • Listen to podcasts of well-known writers speaking about what influenced them to be writers.
  • Listen to ABC podcasts and read the work of students talking about their writing experiences on Heywire.
  • In groups, use a checklist to identify and record the key language and structural features of five different text types, (biographies, argument, narratives, workplace texts and feature articles).
  • Use Microsoft Word templates to create two different text types for a common purpose or event, such as applying for a job or organising an event. This could be a letter, flyer, journal, brochure, resumé, cover letter, recipe or menu.
  • Identify the purposes and target audiences of a number of written and online texts.
  • Create a film or literary book review using text, graphics and visuals, and designed for a particular audience.
  • Create a webpage for a particular purpose and target audience.
  • Discuss and create a rubric for a piece of informative writing.
  • Using a rubric designed for an informative text, peer assess a draft written for a specific purpose and target audience.
  • Example icon for advice for teachers
    Discuss, take notes and write a report on several ideas or proposals connected with a common theme, and using jigsaw discussion groups.
  • Read a selection of job advertisements and identify common requirements.
  • Select a job advertisement, note the specifications, qualifications and requirements and plan a letter of application, paying attention to layout, formality of language, spelling and punctuation.
  • Keep a portfolio of ideas and writing to share periodically with peers, including jottings, doodles, drafts, reflections/opinions, poetry and at least three pieces written for different purposes and audiences.
Example icon for advice for teachers 

Detailed example

Jigsaw discussion groups

This activity can be used to unpack and explore a topic by examining different questions or proposals at once, enabling all students to engage in the skills of discussion, listening and feedback. Students explore an aspect of a common topic in a discussion group and then report back on what they have heard to a ‘home’ group. The other members of the ‘home’ group have also been discussing other aspects of the same topic in their discussion groups and will likewise report back to their ‘home’ group. In this way, everyone should benefit from the discussions of other groups, provided members listen actively, take notes and report back clearly.

  1. In groups of 4–5, students begin in a ‘home’ group, each being given a number from 1–4.
  2. Each student then moves out to a ‘discussion group’ of students with the same number – all the ‘1s’ in discussion group 1, ‘2s’ in discussion group 2, and so on.
  3. Students delegate a leader for their new group to discuss their particular aspect of the topic, expressing their opinions and ideas in an orderly and formal way, using evidence and examples. They must also listen and note down the ideas and examples of others in the group.
  4. After 10 minutes, students are called back to their original ‘home’ groups where they each report the ideas expressed by their ‘discussion group’ members.
  5. This activity can then be extended into a writing activity.