Voyages to Australia

Year Level

Year 4

Learning Area

English

Duration

40 minutes

Class Size

40 students

Australian Curriculum Focus

V9.0 English Language Substrand: Text Structure and Organisation (VC2E4LA03)
Recognise the difference between a text’s form (such as a poster, email or list) and its organisation into stages depending on its social purpose.

---

Learning Intentions

• Students will understand the historical context of the First Fleet and the people involved.
• Students will explore the different forms and purposes of texts (e.g., diary entry, letter, poster).
• Students will be able to identify the stages within a text and distinguish its form based on purpose.

Success Criteria

By the end of the lesson, students will be able to:

• Describe the motivations for the First Fleet's journey and the experiences of different people on board.
• Identify and discuss different text forms and their structures, such as a letter vs. a list.
• Create a small writing sample that reflects the organisation of a chosen text type.

---

Resources

• Visuals of the First Fleet journey map (printed or projected)
• Handouts: Short sample texts (poster, letter, diary excerpt, list) based on First Fleet content
• First Fleet character role cards (pre-prepared)
• Anchor chart for text types and their structures
• Sticky notes and clipboards
• Whiteboard and markers

---

Vocabulary

• Convict
• Colonist
• Settlement
• Transport
• Voyage
• Perspective
• Text form
• Structure

---

Hook (5 minutes)

Wonder Wall Question:
“If you had to travel for months on a ship to a new country, what would you want people to know about your journey?”

Students write a sentence on sticky notes and post them on the Wonder Wall.

Teacher then introduces the First Fleet using a context slide or map and briefly explains:

• Why the ships came to Australia
• Who was on board (convicts, officers, sailors, free settlers)
• Their reasons and expectations

---

Explicit Teaching (10 minutes)

Mini-Lesson: Recognising Text Form and Structure

Use the anchor chart to introduce and explain:

• Forms: Email, letter, diary entry, list, poster
• Organisation & Purpose:
  • Posters: Visual, persuasive or informative
  • Letters: Personal communication, formally structured
  • Diaries: Reflective, emotional, chronological entries
  • Lists: Factual, simple sequence or checklist

Modelled Example:
Read aloud a short diary excerpt from a child convict on the First Fleet. Discuss:

• What form is this?
• What clues tell us what the purpose is?
• What stages can we identify? (date, personal reflection, description of day)

Compare with a poster that might have been used to ‘recruit’ support for British settlement efforts.

Use guiding questions:

• How is this structured?
• Is it informative or persuasive?
• What is different from the diary?

---

Guided Practice (10 minutes)

Role Card Text Matching Activity

1. Each student receives a First Fleet character card (convict, sailor, captain, settler, etc.).
2. Hand out 4 short sample texts (different forms) across tables. They must match the correct text to the character.

For example:

• A convict might relate to a diary section.
• A Captain may write a letter to the British government.
• A sailor’s list may include daily duties.
• A government official may create an informative poster.

In small groups (4 students), they discuss:

• Which text matches their character and why
• What the text form is and how it is structured
• What social purpose it serves

Support with sentence stems:

• “I think this is a ___ because it has ___.”
• “This would suit my character because ___.”

---

Independent Practice (10 minutes)

Quick Write: “A Day in My Shoes”

Still in role, students will choose one form—diary, letter, list, or poster—and write a short piece (3–5 sentences or bullet points) using their First Fleet character’s perspective.

Examples to scaffold:

• Diary: “February 3rd, 1788. Today the sea roared again…”
• Letter: “Dear Mother, I miss England terribly…”
• List: “Supplies needed for shore landing:”
• Poster: “Come to New South Wales – A Land of Opportunity!”

Encourage them to focus on correct text structure and purpose.

---

Sharing/Reflection (5 minutes)

Text Carousel Place finished student texts in four “corners” based on type. Students walk around to read examples of other forms and perspectives.

End with a group check-in:

• “What made you choose your text form?”
• “What helped you know how to organise it?”

---

Differentiation

Support	Extension
Pre-fill sentence starters	Use more complex punctuation
Provide annotated examples	Add historical detail and emotion
Work with partner or scribe	Use text features (titles, dates)

---

Assessment (Formative)

• Observation checklist during group discussions
• Review of students’ matched texts and role reasoning
• Quick Write: Check if text form matches purpose and shows correct stages
• Exit slip: “One thing I learned about a text form today is…”

---

Follow-Up Lesson Ideas

• Exploring Indigenous perspectives on the arrival of the First Fleet (introduce dual narratives)
• Writing a newspaper article about the First Fleet’s arrival
• Drama: Re-enacting one day aboard a First Fleet ship using proper text forms

---

Teacher Reflection Prompts

• Were students able to recognise the relationship between form and purpose clearly?
• Did the historical context engage them with the writing?
• Which text forms were easiest or hardest for them to understand?

---

Note to Teachers: This lesson creatively ties together historical understanding with text structure recognition. It offers multiple formats to cater for diverse learning levels in a large class and ensures the key literacy focus (VC2E4LA03) is embedded in a meaningful context. Reusing this lesson for multimodal writing, cross-curricular history units, or creative extension can help build stronger student connections over time.