Teaching sequence

20 minutes

Part A: Watch, Read and Discuss

20 minutes

Part B: Synthesis of Information

50 minutes

Part C: Writing Task

Part A: Watch, Read and Discuss

Step 1

Watch the following video. It includes details about the process of manufacturing Australian made recycled paper.

GOING BUSH SPECIAL EDITION The Recycled Paper Journey: Closing the Loop (https://vimeo.com/245474142)

Step 2

After watching the video, project the image below at the front of the classroom and guide a class discussion to help students understand the steps of the paper recycling loop.

Use these questions to start a class discussion:

What does “closing the paper recycling loop” mean?
If people don’t use recycled paper could the loop still be closed?

Part B: Synthesis of Information

Step 1

Students are now invited to share their understanding about closing the paper recycling loop by creating a bubble chart like the one below.

Short and long term effects - bubble chart v1

Use the following prompts to guide discussion, and invite students to add their ideas to each bubble:

What short or long term effects would closing the paper recycling loop have on the environment?
What effects closing the paper recycling loop have on people?
What other effects might closing the paper recycling loop have?
Are there any effects that are both short and long term? Add these to the bubble in the middle.

Students can work in groups or as a class to create and complete this chart.

Prompt students to extend their thinking beyond the bubble chart. You could refer to the Closing the Recycled Paper Loop Factsheet to extend students' understanding the benefits of using 100% recycled paper.

NOTE: If students are working in groups, they can use the Short and long term effects - bubble chart.

Step 2

Once complete, engage students in a class discussion around the ideas presented in the bubble diagrams to ensure students understand the variety of short and long-term effects of closing the paper recycling loop. In addition, spend some time working with the class to identify which of these effects could be considered positive and which could be considered negative.

Part C: Writing Task

Step 1

Assign 40 minutes for students to complete the NAPLAN style narrative writing task (details provided on the Student Worksheet).

Step 2

Once complete, ask students to exchange their writing with a partner (more than once if time allows) and read for 10 minutes. Guide students to provide feedback in a positive way. Encourage students to structure their feedback as follows:

Give three compliments
Make three suggestions
Recommend three improvements

Alternatively, use your preferred method to share students’ work.

*This lesson plan is not an officially endorsed publication of NAPLAN’s creators and administrators – the ACARA body – but is designed to provide practise for the Australian Curriculum’s compulsory NAPLAN testing scheme.

Additional teacher information about NAPLAN

The following information about narrative writing has been extracted from the National Assessment Program website which is designed to support the teaching of literacy in schools. To view this text in its original form, please click here.

“Narrative writing tells a story. Narrative text types include, for example, short stories, fairy-tales, fables and myths. They can take a variety of styles including adventure stories or mysteries. Stories can be realistic or imaginative. Many story writers base their stories on real life events. The main purpose of a narrative is to entertain a reader, but stories can also contain a universal theme or moral, or teach the reader a lesson.
A NAPLAN narrative writing test requires students to write a complete story that has an orientation, a complication and a resolution. These are sometimes called the beginning, middle and ending. Each of these structural components serve a function.
An orientation (or beginning) sets the scene and introduces the characters in the story. It lets the reader know what the story is going to be about.
The building up of a complication (or middle) is usually the largest part of the story. It is made up of a series of events that presents a problem or conflict that needs to be solved. The problem, often in the form of an obstacle that needs to be overcome, introduces tension or excitement into the story. The problem or complication needs a response from the main character in the story that leads to the resolution.
The resolution (or ending) brings the story to an end. It lets the reader know how the problem was solved or sometimes, in more sophisticated stories, how it couldn’t be solved and how the main characters deal with this.
Unlike other text types that have a definite order to their structure, the structure of a narrative can be very flexible. For example, a beginning writer is likely to use the beginning, middle and ending structure, in that order. However, some very experienced story writers may choose to begin with the resolution or ending and then tell the reader how this ending was arrived at by building the complication, and in the process of doing so will reveal the scene, characters and purpose of the story - the orientation.”

The table below summarises how marks are allocated in the narrative writing task:

Marking criterion	Description of narrative writing marking criterion
Audience	The writer’s capacity to orient, engage and affect the reader
Text structure	The organisation of narrative features including orientation, complication and resolution into an appropriate and effective text structure
Ideas	The creation, selection and crafting of ideas for a narrative
Character	The portrayal and development of character
Setting	The development of a sense of place, time and atmosphere
Vocabulary	The range and precision of contextually appropriate language choices
Cohesion	The control of multiple threads and relationships across the text, achieved through the use of grammatical elements (referring words, text connectives, conjunctions) and lexical elements (substitutions, repetitions, word associations)
Paragraphing	The segmenting of text into paragraphs that assists the reader to negotiate the narrative
Sentence structure	The production of grammatically correct, structurally sound and meaningful sentences
Punctuation	The use of correct and appropriate punctuation to aid the reading of the text
Spelling	The accuracy of spelling and the difficulty of the words used

For further information about how narrative writing is assessed in NAPLAN, please refer to the Narrative writing marking guide.

Differentiated activities

Provisions for Learning Support: Students may require a reader/writer to assist them. They may also find it easier to write in a more specific style: e.g. diary entry or letter.

Extension activity: Invite advanced students to construct a more complex text containing elaborate character development: e.g. a flashback that further develops an aspect of a character.

Homework

Students could take their story home to share with their family, and use it as a starting point to discuss how to close the paper recycling loop.

National Recycling Week - Write a Short Story

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