English Resources for Secondary Schools

How do Essential Resources’ English resources support the Australian Curriculum? 

The Australian English curriculum aims to create Australians who are “confident communicators, imaginative thinkers and informed citizens.” It does this by developing students’ “knowledge, understanding and skills in listening, speaking, reading, viewing and writing.” 

The secondary English curriculum involves three strands – language, literature and literacy. 

Essential Resources secondary school English resources are aligned with the Australian Curriculum. We provide teaching resources that cover all three strands and support lower to middle secondary year levels.  

For example, part of the language strand asks students to analyse text structures and language features of persuasive texts. The Language of Persuasion is written to align with Year 6 to Year 8 of the curriculum. The English resource presents “a range of persuasive language features” to captivate young learners. 

Our secondary English resources also support the Australian curriculum by giving opportunities for students to work on their basic literacy skills. How to Teach Writing, Spelling and Grammar is one literacy resource for this. It turns research into teaching practice to progress students’ writing.  

What are three ideas for improving reading comprehension in secondary school? 

Some ideas for improving reading comprehension in secondary school English students are: 

• Worksheets – Well-designed worksheets promote active learning and hold students’ interest. They can also be used to track students’ progress. Comprehension Smart is an English resource for high school students that provides worksheets to consolidate core comprehension skills. 

• Book clubs – These are a great way to encourage students to discuss books and develop a deeper understanding of their meaning. Literacy: Guided Reading Rotation Programme helps teachers set up their own Guided Reading Book Club. There are also activities to support reading comprehension. 

• Make meaningful connections – Studies have shown that students better understand what they have read when they can find connections with texts. It makes reading purposeful and meaningful for the students. This is also a necessary skill for assessment purposes. Making Connections helps students connect to the texts they have read and relate them to the wider world. 

How to plan for persuasive writing lessons? 

To plan for a persuasive writing lesson start by determining the intended Learning Outcomes, as stated in the Australian Curriculum. A Learning Outcome associated with persuasive writing could be to “investigate how text structure and language features are used to convey ideas and present people and events in a range of texts.”  

To plan a lesson on persuasive writing, think about: 

• What “hook” will be used to introduce the lesson? What current issue would grab students’ attention? 

• What activities will support persuasive writing? Will students practice persuasive strategies and techniques using In Your Opinion; analyse examples of persuasive writing; create a persuasive essay outline as a class; or practice persuasive writing? 

• What resources will be needed to implement the lesson? Which newspaper or online articles can be used as examples? Have the worksheets been photocopied or uploaded? 

• How will students’ learning be assessed? Will students share writing with their peers? Will the teacher use an “exit pass” strategy, where students share something they learnt as they leave the class?