This approach comprises four key Explicit teaching about stages. All stages incorporate social language choices and text. Cycle: support for reading, writing, and Teachers carefully select Reading and speaking and listening, through mentor or model texts which: Writing varied grouping, such as whole are typically beyond what Connections group, small groups, pairs and children can read individual. independently The four stages are: relate to the area of study provide models of good Building the context or field – writing in the focus genre understanding the role of texts in provide clear illustrations of our culture and building shared available grammatical understanding of the topic choices and how these Modelling the text–using mentor choices shape the meanings or model texts to focus explicitly of the texts. on the structure and the language Dependent on the year level, of the text, to identify how the selected text and the language choices work to shape teaching focus, whole texts or meaning, and to build a text extracts can be used. metalanguage Guided practice teachers and – For example: children jointly constructing a text in a focus on narrative texts, Independent construction – a complete narrative might writing or children’s independent be used to illustrate the approximation of the genre. main stages of Orientation, Complication, Resolution an extract might be selected for close reading to examine actionreaction patterns; that is, to characters’ responses what is unfolding in the narrative. and involvement needs to be adjusted to reflect ‘Support the child’s abilities’
Cycle: Reading and Writing Connections This approach comprises four key stages. All stages incorporate social support for reading, writing, and speaking and listening, through varied grouping, such as whole group, small groups, pairs and individual. The four stages are: Building the context or field – understanding the role of texts in our culture and building shared understanding of the topic Modelling the text–using mentor or model texts to focus explicitly on the structure and the language of the text, to identify how language choices work to shape meaning, and to build a metalanguage Guided practice – teachers and children jointly constructing a text Independent construction – children’s independent writing or approximation of the genre. Explicit teaching about language choices and text. Teachers carefully select mentor or model texts which: are typically beyond what children can read independently relate to the area of study provide models of good writing in the focus genre provide clear illustrations of available grammatical choices and how these choices shape the meanings of the texts. Dependent on the year level, the selected text and the teaching focus, whole texts or text extracts can be used. For example: in a focus on narrative texts, a complete narrative might be used to illustrate the main stages of Orientation, Complication, Resolution an extract might be selected for close reading to examine actionreaction patterns; that is, characters’ responses to what is unfolding in the narrative. ‘Support and involvement needs to be adjusted to reflect the child’s abilities’