This unit of work from Reading Australia is based on the picture book 'The little refugee', by Anh Do, Suzanne Do and Bruce Whatley. The book is an autobiography exploring themes of war, displacement and belonging. The unit explores narrative voice – first and third person, and examines the effect of verb choice in narrative.
Structure and features
This unit of work is sequential. It involves:
- connecting with prior knowledge.
- responding to the text – understanding it through timelines, plot sequencing and setting
- examining language patterns – analysing the types of verbs in the text and their function
- creating text – changing and adapting the original text and composing an autobiography.
For teachers
Most activities need teacher direction but could be adapted to a shorter unit at home with family support.
Teacher notes
Focus areas
- Literature
- Narrative
- Language features
- Verbs
- Biography
- Autobiography.
Curriculum links
- HASS – history, geography, civics and citizenship.
Assessment
Writing an autobiography.
