Syllabus content and teaching notes

Possible sequence of teaching activities

Learning to Read – Reading and viewing texts

RS3.5 Reads independently an extensive range of texts with increasing content demands and responds to themes and issues.

Students will:

• use email and Internet sources to request and receive information
  
  
• interpret a variety of factual texts
  
  
• draw on prior knowledge to brainstorm and cluster ideas
  
  
• identify and interpret keywords in task
  
  
• categorise information according to a framework of headings and sub headings.

Teaching notes:

Display maps of Australia and the world. If available, display a map of explorer routes.

Rap Introduction

• Teacher provides an overview of the unit to illustrate purpose and content.
  
  
• Teacher discusses with students how they will examine web sites and a variety of information sources to research Matthew Flinders’ life and times.
  
  
• Teacher discusses with students how they will communicate their research and knowledge with other students by email.
  
  
• Teacher discusses with students how the structure of a particular text type being read relates to its purpose and how readers can use their knowledge of text organisation to predict and extract meaning from texts.
  
  
• Students jointly construct an introductory class email message as a whole class, or small group or paired activity. The class email should detail the school’s name, location, size of group and any other interesting features of the school
  
  
• In developing the class email message students might also wish to identify if their school’s local area has links to Matthew Finders’ voyages or identify the name/s of early explorers in their town/district.
  
  
• Teacher and students discuss email etiquette of subject line, correct email address and formatting of message.
  
  
• Once the teacher has approved the final message, class representative(s) post their email to the rap.
  
  
• Teacher and students access and discuss introductions from other rappers and locate these schools on an individual or a wall Rap map of Australia or NSW.
  
  
• Teachers use tally sheets, if desired.
  
  
• Students, in groups, or as a class activity, brainstorm and record what their current knowledge of exploration in general, Matthew Flinders in particular, and any other figures that are significant in his life.
  
  
• Teacher records this information on an enlarged copy of Rap sheet 1 or similar wall chart. Continue to revisit this retrieval sheet/s as more information is discovered.
  
  
• Teacher and students prepare a copy of the rap sheet for Matthew Flinders, Joseph Banks, George Bass, Ann Flinders, Trim and Charles Decaen.

Syllabus content and teaching notes

Possible sequence of teaching activities

Learning to read – Skills and strategies R3.6 Uses a comprehensive range of skills and strategies appropriate to the type of text being read.

Contextual and semantic information sample indicators
Students will:

• use several strategies for finding information in texts eg. skimming for gist, scanning for specific information
  
  
• adjust reading strategies for different texts and different purposes
  
  
• prepare a simple search plan which lists headings and subheadings, keywords and possible search terms and likely sources of information
  
  
• identify and locate resources from the Internet through subject, keyword/key phrase or author searches

• select relevant and accurate information to formulate and answer questions and requirements
  
  
• clarify and refine research questions

Teaching notes:

The following step by step procedure will support you in explicitly teaching aspects of navigating the site while exploring this site.

Explain the following search strategies to students:

• accessing the electronic archive, then biographies, manuscripts or realia to reach the relevant information.
  
  
• using the Forward/Back buttons and their arrows to move through the different screens
  
  
• selecting hyperlinks to progress through the site
  
  
• using the scroll bar and scroll arrows to move quickly through the text
  
  
• looking at headings, pictures and words in bold type
  
  
• reading the first and last paragraph
  
  
• using the Find in this page command, from the Edit menu, to find and highlight specific keywords on a page. The keyboard short cuts are Ctrl-F (for PC) or Command F (for MAC). Type in the required word or phrase (this could be a word that names, a date, or a phrase that tells) and click Find or press <enter>.
  
  
• accessing the Banks online exhibition
  by using the Search icon or clicking on the hyperlink Search interface to the Banks papers to develop an advanced search of the site. Search by author, subject, date etc.
  
  
• using the Ctrl-Home and Ctrl-End keys to access the start and end of the text.
  
  
• increasing the font size of some pages that may appear a little difficult to read. (This process should be performed by a supervising adult)

• If you have concerns or questions send a message to the accompanying Teacher rap.

Encourage the students to prepare questions by discussing the different types of questions eg.

• Descriptions: What was it like then?
  
  
• Investigations: Who, What, When, Where, How and Why?
  
  
• Comparisons: Is the situation the same as that or different?
  
  
• Testing assertions: Is that really so? How do we know?
  
  
• Narrative: What happened next?
  
  
• Explanations: Why did this happen? Why is it like this?
  
  
• Evaluations: Was this right or wrong? Is there another side?

For more information about constructing questions, see Formulating questions teacher support sheet.

Rap Point 1: Formulate questions about Matthew Flinders’ life

• As a class, discuss what students consider will be found on the web site and extrapolate how different types of source material (letters, photographs, realia etc) can provide us with valuable information.
  
  
• As a class, brainstorm a simple research plan, noting suitable search terms and effective keywords and phrases that may assist in locating accurate information.

• Teacher and students visit Matthew Flinders web site and explore the site.
  
  
• Teacher demonstrates how to navigate through aspects of the site’s online collection.
  
  
• Students access the site, while the teacher demonstrates how to employ the locating and selecting strategies discussed under Teaching notes to discover facts about Flinders’ life and voyages, together with details of the other lives that impacted upon him.
  
  
• Teachers allow students time to explore the site, using the locating and selecting strategies demonstrated.
  
  
• As students discover an interesting fact/s, the teacher asks them to develop a suitable question/s about it, so other students can search the site for the answer.
  
  
• Other students access the archive and attempt to find the answer. They then record the navigation strategy they employed to achieve that answer.
  
  
• Students read through the information on the web site and find an important or interesting sentence/fact, highlight it and record it for later use on Rap sheet 2 (mandala).
  
  
• Students choose a total of four major sentences they think are the most important or interesting and explain the reasons for their choices. These sentences are the answers to the questions.
  
  
• Students now write a suitable question about each sentence. They could use a mandala (Rap sheet 2) to set out their work. The topic is in the centre circle and students fill in the questions and answers in the surrounding boxes. Use the bottom box as a bibliography to explain the precise URL and to record the search strategy/path for each question (eg. Electronic collection /Manuscripts/__________________.
  
  
• Students develop questions that can be answered from the site and also propose questions that will lead to further investigation.
  
  
• As a class, discuss the questions and answers that students prepared and select two closed questions (Rap point 1a) to post to the rap. Then prepare an unanswered question (Rap point 1b) as the class’ response to Rap point 1.
  
  
• Once the teacher has approved the final message, class representative(s) post the three questions to the rap.
  
  
• Teachers and students read and answer questions posted by other participating schools. Send such replies to the rap with the name of the school/class that posed the question in the subject line.
  
  
• Optional: Students attempt to develop answers to any open-ended question posted to the rap discussion.
  
  
• As a class, regularly revisit the Retrieval wall chart/s as additional information is located and extend the information gathered on Flinders and others.
  
  
• In groups, students discuss the positive and negative aspects of Flinders’ life and scribe these cumulatively on Rap sheet 3.
  
  
• Students record character traits and the factual information that provides supporting evidence. (This will form the basis of objective and subjective information to be expanded upon on Rap point 4.) This recording may be organised as a jigsaw (see Choosing literacy strategies that work, Stage 2, p151). Base groups allocate people to expert groups that will each be responsible for using source material to investigate Flinders’ life: up to 1795; from 1796 to 1800; from 1801 to August 1803; from September 1803 to 1814. The findings are added to Rap sheet 3.

• Optional assessment task: Students present the strategy they used to access the answer to a question, as a written procedural text. Focus on accurate sequential order and clarity of expression.

Syllabus content and teaching notes

Possible sequence of teaching activities

Learning to Read – Skills and Strategies R3.6 Uses a comprehensive range of skills and strategies appropriate to the type of text being read.

Information skills sample indicators
Students will:

• locate resources eg. through OASIS Library subject searches, consulting encyclopaedias, CD-ROMs, Internet
  
  
• select relevant information
  
  
• organise information from a variety of sources

Teaching notes:

Have a map of Australia and a world map on display in the classroom so students can identify important places referred to in source material about Flinders. If blank maps and atlases were used initially, students could label them as their knowledge of Flinders’ travels developed.

Encourage students to use: note making strategies such as:

• Take a pad of post-it notes or such. Use a different note for each category of information (eg. early life, achievements). Write your notes on the different post-its, then arrange and re-arrange the post-it notes until you have your information in the order you prefer.



• Create a word processing file as an outline with the categories for your notes and dot points and indents written down the page. While using the Internet or a CD-ROM, highlight key words or phrases (NOT whole sentences or more!) and copy and paste these under the category headings.
  
  
• Highlight key words or phrases on photocopies or Internet print outs, using a different highlighter colour for different categories of information.
  
  
• Use a teacher provided proforma to organise your notes, or make up your own!



• Students could also use the Note making proforma (Rap sheet 4).

Allow students, if they wish, to present their biography using computer-based technologies such as a PowerPoint presentation, a web site, a Hyperstudio stack, a word document or a slideshow in Kidpix or Apple(Claris)works.

Encourage students to investigate different types of timelines, such as these available on the Internet at:

• BBC Schools - Ancient Greece.
• A Celtic timeline.
• The Tolkien timeline.

Research and present a biography of Matthew Flinders

• With the whole class, teachers outline the task of researching a biography of Matthew Flinders. Students brainstorm possible locations where they might find resources and the types of resources they might use.
  
  
• Students form pairs, to research the task together.
  
  
• Teacher negotiates with students which pairs will present their biography as prose and which as a timeline (aim for roughly half of the class doing each).

• In pairs, students decide who the audience will be for their published biographies eg. a Stage 2 class, the readers of the school newspaper, school library users.
  
  
• In pairs, students locate resources about the life and work of Matthew Flinders and select relevant information for their biography, using a variety of strategies such as note making, highlighting.
  
  
• Teachers remind students to keep records of their sources for the bibliography.
  
  
• Students organise their information and present their biography, either as prose or as a timeline, as previously decided.
  
  
• Teachers remind students to keep the audience in mind when drafting and publishing their biographies.
  
  
• Students include a bibliography acknowledging the sources they used.

Learning About Writing - Context and Text
WS3.13 Critically analyses own texts in terms of how well they have been written, how effectively they present the subject matter and how they influence the reader.

Purpose and Audience indicators

Students will:

• respond to the writing of others with specific and constructive comments about the organisation and layout of the text
  
  
• reflect on their own writing, taking into account the interests and needs of potential readers.

Teaching notes:
Remember to ensure that the students’ work is actually shared with its intended audience.

For Rap point 2b: Reflect, compare and contrast

• Have paired students join another pair who chose a different presentation from theirs, ie. one pair did prose, the other a timeline.
  
  
• Pairs compare the timeline and the prose biographies.
  
  
• Teacher asks students to note differences in layout, organisation of information, sentence structure and any other differences.
  
  
• Teacher and students discuss how well they think each biography meets the needs of its intended audience.
  
  
• Students record their responses using a retrieval sheet they have designed, or which the teacher and students have designed.
  
  
• With the whole class together, have a member of each group share their group’s responses from the preceding discussion.
  
  
• Teacher scribes these onto an overhead transparency.

• Teacher and students discuss the similarities and differences between the prose and timeline biographies.
  
  
• Teacher explores with students the idea that the different types of text can both be effective and that its effect on its intended audience must be considered when determining whether or not a text is successful.
  
  
• With the whole class, jointly construct an answer to the rap questions:

• When the teacher has approved the final response, post the answers to these questions to the rap.

Resources

Most school libraries will have encyclopaedias, books, and other resources, which contain information about Matthew Flinders. The NSW State Library Matthew Flinders electronic archive, online exhibition, is a wealth of useful information, including an education kit, which contains Matthew Flinders: A brief history. This document’s last page has a list of further references.

Emphasise to students that the NSW State Library web site is only one source of information. Other possible resources are mentioned under Suggested Rap preparation and Additional resources.

Syllabus content and teaching notes

Possible sequence of teaching activities

Learning to Read – Reading and Viewing Texts
RS3.5 Reads independently an extensive range of texts with increasing content demands and responds to themes and issues.

Guided and Independent Reading sample indicators
Students will:

• read and interpret a variety of factual texts
  
  
• access and interpret email and Internet sources.

Learning to Read – Skills and Strategies
RS3.6 Uses a comprehensive range of skills and strategies appropriate to the type of text being read.

Information skills sample indicators
Students will:

• locate resources eg. through OASIS Library subject searches, consulting encyclopaedias, CD-ROMs, Internet, email
  
  
• select relevant information.

Teaching notes:

Continue to encourage students to add information to the class wall charts and maps.

Encourage students to use a different form of presentation from that used in Rap point 2. An appropriate purpose and audience should be considered.

Research

• Teacher outlines for students the task of researching a biographical recount of an important figure in the life of Matthew Flinders.
  
  
• Teacher explains that students will be expected to use at least three sources of information and that one of these could be the interactive discussion.
  
  
• Teacher explains what the interactive discussion is (see introduction above).
  
  
• Students choose a character to research from the following: George Bass; Joseph Banks; Ann Flinders (nee Chappelle); Charles Decaen; or Trim.
  
  
• Teachers could try to ensure all characters are covered.
  
  
• Students could work in groups so that they can share resources with others researching the same character.
  
  
• Students locate resources about their subject and his / her relationship to Matthew Flinders. They should already be aware that all of the characters except Ann Flinders have a short biography on the State Library web site, explored during Rap point 1 activities.
  
  
• Teachers can further assist students by pointing them to the resources listed at the end of this Rap point section.
  
  
• Students select relevant information for their biography by note making, highlighting, etc as mentioned in the Teaching notes for Rap point 2. They could use the Note making proforma (Rap sheet 4) to help them organise their notes and record the sources used.

Learning to Write – Skills and Strategies
WS2.12 Uses joined letters when writing in NSW Foundation Style and demonstrates basic desktop publishing skills on the computer.

Using computers sample indicators
Students will:

• carry out basic word processing functions, eg. draft, save, and retrieve a text for an email
  
  
• send, receive and print emails.

Teaching notes:

Remind students that it may not be possible, depending on the number of schools involved, for every one of their questions to be answered in the interactive discussion.

Remember to check the email account regularly for incoming information from Ann Flinders, George Bass and others.

Interactive discussion

• Students, having done some initial research using available resources, will know something about their subject.
  
  
• Teachers ask students to read over their notes and see which things they would like to know about their character, but about which they don’t yet have information.
  
  
• Students, in their research groups, draft a few questions which they would like to ask their subject if s/he were alive today.
  
  
• Teachers encourage students to include questions about how the subject was involved with Matthew Flinders.
  
  
• Research groups redraft and proof read their questions using a word processing program, print them and display them in the classroom.
  
  
• Teachers encourage all students to take a turn using the computer to help their group do this task.
  
  
• Students, in research groups, choose a question or two to email to their character during the interactive discussion.
  
  
• Once the teacher has approved the questions the class can post up to four sets of one or two questions to the characters as detailed in the introductory comments above, with the required entry in the subject line, and avoiding duplicating questions which have already been asked.

• Students read the emails from the personas of Trim, Bass etc to look for answers to their questions. Remember that other schools will have asked different questions and thus many of the class’s other questions should be addressed.
  
  
• The class adds any new information obtained to the display in the room.

Teaching notes:

If students are taking too long to present work, consider perhaps not publishing this piece, or completing it later.

Try to ensure your class participates in the Interactive discussion activities and come back to this section if necessary.

Alternatively, this activity could be used as an assessment task, with the final biographical recount as well as preliminary notes and drafts providing useful work samples.

Presenting recount

• Students complete their research on their character, including in their notes any new points from the interactive discussion.
  
  
• Students draft and present their biography in the manner chosen. It should include a bibliography.

Learning to Read – Reading and Viewing Texts

RS3.5 Reads independently an extensive range of texts with increasing content demands and responds to themes and issues.

Responding to texts sample indicators
Students will:

• identify and interpret events and ideas in factual and pseudo-factual (curator in persona roles) texts
  
  
• evaluate arguments with evidence from texts.

Teaching notes:

It is appropriate for students to have a ‘best guess’ when answering this rap question. They will have anthe opportunity in the next rap point to find more evidence about Flinders’ relationships and character.

The Rap question: Rap point 3

• Students, working in their research groups, appoint a scribe for their group.
  
  
• Students discuss the rap question: "How do you think Matthew Flinders related to <insert your group’s character>?".
  
  
• One student scribes the group’s ideas, including any supporting evidence.
  
  
• Each group writes a succinct two to four sentence answer to the rap question.
  
  
• The class creates a single email message, which has the answers from each of the research groups in the class. Once the teacher has approved the final class response, post it to the rap.

Resources

Resources used for previous rap questions and resources from Additional resources may be helpful.

Syllabus content and teaching notes

Possible sequence of teaching activities

Learning to Read – Reading and Viewing Texts
RS3.5 Reads independently an extensive range of texts with increasing content demands and responds to themes and issues.

Guided and Independent Reading sample indicators
Students will:

• read and interpret a variety of factual texts, in particular transcripts of historical documents
  
  
• clarify and comprehend language from historical documents, sometimes with teacher support.

Teaching notes:

Direct students’ attention to a number of detailed references which have been provided to help students them find relevant information amongst the hundreds of pages in the historical archives available on the Internet. Show students how to find a specific word or phrase by revisiting search strategies in Teaching notes in Rap point 1.

Encourage students, when collecting evidence from primary documents, to copy whole sentences or intact sections of text. This will mean that the language features can be discussed in context in the next activity.

Reading historical documents

• Teacher discusses with students the task for Rap point 4 and explains that this task will use, and build on, their learning so far in the rap.
  
  
• Teacher ensures that students’ display of positives and negatives about Flinders is available (see Rap sheet 3 from Rap point 1).
  
  
• Teacher ensures the whole class is able to view an Internet computer.
  
  
• Teacher points out the archive of Matthew Flinders manuscripts on the NSW State Library web site and demonstrates how to click on Transcripts to be able to read the documents in a typed format.
  
  
• Teacher demonstrates how to find a word or phrase in a page (see Teaching notes, Rap point 1).
  
  
• In pairs, students find and read historical documents such as Flinders’ letters, in order to locate information about his relationships with the subjects from Rap point 3: George Bass; Joseph Banks; Ann Flinders (nee Chappelle); Charles Decaen; and Trim.
  
  
• Students write out or copy, paste and print into a word processing document, evidence from primary sources to indicate how Flinders related to the various figures in his life..

Learning About Reading – Context and Text

RS3.7 Critically analyses techniques used by writers to create certain effects, to use language creatively, to position the reader in various ways and to construct different interpretations of experience.

Responding to Texts sample indicators
Students will:

• recognise reader response expected by the author
  
  
• recognise that people with influence / power are the target audience for particular texts and that language choices reflect this
  
  
• recognise that texts could have been written differently
  
  
• identify language which expresses personal attitudes and opinions.

Teaching notes:

Assist students to comprehend some of the archaic language by developing a word wall of words / phrases and using dictionaries.

Explain how language may be used to convey attitudes, eg. positive and negative adjectives, metaphor which is complementary (Bass as ‘Socrates’), ascribing achievements to the reader (such as with positive action verbs), writer portraying him/herself as of lower standing than reader (such as adverbial and adjectival phrases indicating humility).

Interpreting historical documents

• Students, in groups organised according to historical figures (Decaen, Trim etc), share what they found in the historical documents.
  
  
• The teacher could organise to work with each group in turn so that any queries about archaic language cancould be addressed (see Teaching points).
  
  
• Teacher guides a group discussion about how language is used to convey attitudes and opinions.
  
  
• Students could use a highlighter or coloured pencils to identify words and phrases of attitudinal language.
  
  
• Teacher and students discuss what types of language features are being used (not always just a list of positive adjectives; refer to Teaching notes).
  
  
• Teacher asks students how a section of text might have been written differently in order to be more, or less, friendly (such as simply omitting attitudinal language, or changing it from positive to negative language, or by including more attitudinal language).
  
  
• Teacher points out that the writer may have hoped for a certain reader response to his/ her text (eg. Flinders hoped that Banks would support a proposal) and that this would influence the kinds of language choices made by the writer.

Learning to Write – Producing Texts
WS3.9 Produces a wide range of well structured and well presented literary and factual texts for a wide variety of purposes and audiences using increasingly challenging topics, ideas, issues and written language features.

Joint writing sample indicators
Students will:

• contribute to joint text construction activities
  
  
• assist in structuring sustained arguments and discussions supported by evidence.

Writing: Joint construction

• Students bring their further evidence about Flinders’ nature and relationships to a class forum.
  
  
• With the whole class seated in a circle, teacher has each student stand and say whether they believe Flinders was fiery or friendly in his relationship with the character they studied. Each assertion should be backed up with evidence if possible.
  
  
• Teacher leads a class discussion about the rap question:
  Was Matthew Flinders fiery or friendly?

• Students decide as a class which position they would like to argue in a jointly constructed piece of persuasive writing.
  
  
• Students could argue for friendly, for fiery or a bit of both. The position they take, together with the audience, will decide the structure and language features of the writing.

• Teacher and students jointly construct an answer to the rap question, with the teacher scribing or typing straight into a computer and the class suggesting what to write.
  
  
• Teacher guides students towards including supporting evidence for their assertions, if necessary.

• Once the teacher has approved the final response, students post the completed piece of writing to the rap and check for incoming emails, to see how other classes argued their cases.

Resources

Resources used for previous rap questions and resources from Additional resources may be helpful.