This series of middle years English lessons celebrates creative and cultural diversity. It uses picture books from the free online International Children's Digital Library.

2. Thanks to:
Todd Brownlow, Julie Lewis,
Sarah Hamad, Jenny Shlemon
& Amy Krisenthal

3. Let's celebrate diversity and the talents of every student in the
class.
Leading to these optional outcomes:
• A class photo exhibition
• A class art show
• An ebook featuring all classmates
• 3D Me – A set of ipad tasks for a small group
10 weeks duration - Years 5-9 - Choose 5 books, not all

4. 8 online picture books from the International
Children's Digital Library - 'Read books'
http://en.childrenslibrary.org/

5. www.youtube.com/watch?v=laRP25bMGcY
The online picture books for Celebrating Us explore various
cultures. They also celebrate the ingenuity & creativity of
individuals. They are springboards for higher order tasks.

6. Tasks: Discussion tasks, cultural research tasks, point of view
tasks, book reviews, multimodal slideshows, blogging tasks,
image-based tasks. Representing tasks...

7. Aim:
The aim of English in Years K-10 is to enable students to understand and use
language and to make meaning in ways that are imaginative, creative,
interpretive, critical and powerful. IE STUDENT-CENTRED, students as
composers
Objective C:
Think in ways that are imaginative, creative, interpretive and critical
Objective D: Express themselves and their relationships with others and their
world
Objective E: Reflect on their own ways of learning
Types of texts: Imaginative, persuasive and informative

9. • Modelled, guided, independent practice learning cycle
• Learning intentions & criteria for success are shared
• Teacher uses model texts to show what 'good' looks like
• Writing partner conferencing or thinking tools group work are modelled
first
• Students will need explicit teaching about visual literacy, in order to
produce images, animations and slideshows to maximum effect
• There is a constant bridge between inferential reading & evocative
composing - so that students use, and learn about, their own creativity. They
understand & use the codes, stereotypes & clues commonly used by
authors/composers to convey meanings in a compressed, shorthand way

10. • Students are inspired by IMAGES and by DISCUSSING
• Students are inspired by HIGHER ORDER tasks
• Students like to SHARE their work - writing partners &
blogging beyond the school. REAL AUDIENCES
• Students like to use Web 2.0 tools / ipad apps - FUN
• Reluctant writers really enjoy the focus on IDEAS and
AUDIENCE IMPACT first, proof read later. WE CAN'T FAIL AT
EXPRESSING OURSELVES CREATIVELY.
• Students need the TOOLS to do a task well. THINKING TOOLS

11. http://peppercornsandnuggets.weebly.com - Birrong Girls
http://laurenceandkaramandhuzaifa.weebly.com - Blacktown
Boys
http://imagesandwritingideas.webnode.com - Image cards

12. • Book trailers: videos, slideshows, ebooks
• Story cubes - Thanks to Amy Krisenthal's students

13. • Look at the Learning Across the Curriculum items, to generate a big idea +
higher order question to answer, if you need inspiration
• How does diversity enrich our classrooms & impact on our creativity?
• Choose very high quality texts which explore the question. Include
animations, picture books, factual texts How does the composer explore
themes of creativity and diversity?
• Syllabus: Look at Objectives C and D at your stage level, select outcomes
to create a higher order assignment task.
• Create an endpoint task which responds to the meanings in the text /
author’s style
• Backward map: Look at the other Objectives [A,B, E] to select outcomes for
the skills which will need to be taught and other assessment for learning
tasks to be done along the way

14. • Select syllabus outcomes to build towards the assignment task
• Underline key words from the syllabus outcomes you select.
• Think of student tasks that bring the key words to life, building
to the assignment and linking to your big idea.
• Mind map: Which key terms/concepts will all students need to
be taught? Which skills will they need to learn? Thinking tools?
Which products will they make? Enrichment options?
• Assessment for learning: Which snapshots of learning, or "have
a go tasks", will you set to check their progress along the
way? This is work that students will do alone/in pairs…
• Worksheets/scaffolds: Which resources will you gather or
make, to suit your specific class?
• Feedback from students: Thumbs up? Traffic lights?

15. Rubistar rubric maker - Search by author email address
lizziechase@hotmail.com - 9 rubrics - Extract below...
Model text + rubric
Create checklist WITH students.

16. OPTIONS for teachers to choose ONE from:
Create an e-picture book which celebrates
• a specific cultural heritage
• diversity
• our class
• wisdom about living a good life
• 21st century heroes
Fiction or non-Fiction

17. OPTIONS: Teachers will choose some from these, NOT ALL...
 Book review - personal commentary style
 Cultural research about a country
 Autobiographical writing: a powerful memory
 Fiction – short piece, a story starter
 Opinion piece – Persuade others OR Reflect on an issue
 Representing task – Show 3+ themes visually in images
 Slideshow

18. This 5 week blog offers differentiated tasks and CHOICES
Students blog in - They choose one task per week [can do extra]
http://super6plus.edublogs.org

19. Before I write lessons, I create a one page overview of tasks for
each book/text - using the 4 Rs

28. Assessment for learning pack

37. The following slides are very simple tasters to show what
each app can do. Your students can do MUCH more sophisticated
Explorations of their identity!
Partner work for conference participants:
Use the apps to make simple multimedia texts and share
them with your partner...

39. Donna speaks

40. Nathan and the sheriff in Antarctica
"I have reluctant writers queuing with their scripts to
use Puppet Pals. This process has got them past
the usual blocker of worrying about their spelling."
Todd Brownlow, Teacher

41. Easter fun

42. The bin speaks

43. Pete's family photos

44. Lizzie example
Students of Julie Lewis: AJ, Phoenix, Filia
http://sdrv.ms/X5qQHJ

45. http://sdrv.ms/Za22tw
Thanks to:
Anica, Shona, Victoria, Catherine, Christian, Nathan