1. Course Information

2. Reading & Responding
Study of one major text in depth.
Assessment:
 SAC - “well structured and reasoned text response essay”
 Several minor text response tasks
Semester One “To Kill A MockingBird” Semester Two: Romeo & Juliet

3. Creating & Presenting
Investigate and experiment with different styles and forms of writing.
Refine and enhance your own writing craft in response to a set context.
Be stimulated by a set prompt.
Assessment:
 Portfolio containing a variety of planned, refined pieces written in response to the
given stimulus
 Written SAC (100 mins) on each semester‟s Context Writing Unit
 Unit One: Australian Identity Unit Two: The Use and Abuse of Power

4. Using Language to Persuade
Study of how persuasive media texts (e.g. opinion pieces, letters to the
editor and visual texts in newspapers) use language and other
techniques to persuade their readers.
Assessment:
 SAC – well structured essay analysing an author‟s use of
persuasive language.

5. Area of Study Work required for the Graded SAC Task/s
award of an ‘S’ for
this outcome.
Reading & 1-2 practice text response A well structured text
Responding (Text essays submitted to your response essay presenting a
1-2 planned oral presentations over the semester*
Response) teacher for feedback prior reasoned perspective on the
to the SAC. set text.
Creating & A student Reading & A structured context writing
Semester Exam*
Presenting Writing Journal (see piece completed under SAC
(Writing in below). conditions in response to the
Context) set context and prompt.
Using Language A folio of annotated A well structured language
to Persuade persuasive media articles analysis essay explaining
(Issues) and 1-2 practice language how a set media text uses
analysis essays submitted language to persuade the
to your teacher for reader.
feedback prior to the SAC.

6.  Students must complete all set work in order to achieve an „S‟
for each outcome and pass the semester.
 Your teacher will notify you of dates for your SAC tasks and
you need to be present to sit each SAC.
 Students not present for a SAC will require a documented
reason (e.g. medical certificate). Otherwise they may not be
awarded a grade (refer to the page in the Senior School diary
regarding graded assessment tasks).

7.  To meet course requirements and in line with
English Faculty policy, 80% attendance is
required in all English classes.

8.  In an A4 folder you will need to maintain organised collections of
course work, including:
◦ course outline and weekly planner
◦ ideas, plans, drafts and completed essays
◦ notes and completed exercises on the texts studied and any resource
materials and handouts
 This folder should not contain work from other subjects.
 Your folder is to be set up with coloured file dividers for General,
Text Response, Context Writing, Language Analysis and Reading
& Writing Journal.
 Students are to keep all practice tasks and SAC pieces in their
folder after it has been marked and returned to them. They
should not be disposed of until the end of the year.

9.  As a major focus of their Writing in Context work students
will maintain a Reading & Writing Journal throughout each
semester.
 This will include the student‟s collected models of different
writing styles and forms, inspirations for their own writing, as
well as practice pieces and plans. It will also include student
responses to novels and other texts they have chosen to read
over the semester.
 In Semester 2 students will keep their journal from Semester
1 and continue to develop it as an ongoing project.

10.  Oral Communication is an important aspect of the
course.
 Achievement in this area will be conducted over the
three major areas of study in each semester.
 Students will complete a number of oral
communication activities over each semester.

11.  At the end of each semester all students will sit a
Semester Exam.
 Exams will include writing tasks covering aspects
of the three areas of study covered throughout the
semester.
 The exam is completed under test conditions with
the aid of a dictionary only.

12.  One class set text studied in depth in each
semester:
◦ Semester 1: To Kill a Mockingbird (Harper Lee)
◦ Semester 2: Romeo & Juliet (William Shakespeare)
 Other minor tasks relating to students‟ own wider
reading of novels and other texts of their choice.
 You are encouraged to have a dictionary/thesaurus
with you at all times in your English classes.

13.  Term 1:
◦ Text Response – To Kill a Mockingbird
 Term 2:
◦ Writing in Context – „Australian Identity‟
◦ Issues/Language Analysis
• Oral Communication tasks will occur in both Term 1 and Term 2.
• A Semester Exam will occur at the end of Term 2.

14. Responding to Prejudice and Racism
Visit http://youtu.be/tchspyLEHaw and listen to the excerpt
from Martin Luther King Jr.‟s famous “I have a dream” speech
(5min 44sec).
 Consider:
◦ Why do you think prejudice and racism occurs?
◦ What can be done to reduce its occurrence?
◦ Do you think there will be a time in the future when
prejudice and racism is completely eradicated?
◦ Why or why not?
 Write:
◦ Write a short piece on one of the topics below:
1. Give your point of view, with reasons, in response to one
or more of the questions above.
2. Write a creative piece (e.g. a story or poem) about a
character who is either the victim or the perpetrator of
some form of prejudice (not necessarily racism).

15. „To Kill a Mockingbird‟ ( Harper Lee)
•Watch Sparknotes TKAM SPOILER ALERT!!!
•http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uqkohqLvClI
•1930s, southern USA
•Small rural town
•Backdrop of financial hard times and racial
prejudice
1. Write your own definition for prejudice and racism.
2. List 2-3 real or hypothetical examples of situations
where a person or group has been or is subjected to
prejudice/racism.
3. Share with the rest of the class.

16.  Read To Kill A Mockingbird up to page 124
(end of Part One).
 Write a 100 word character description on
two characters of your choice from TKAM