Activity Introduction
Subject: English
Year Level: 7 &8.
Topics: Climate, natural disasters, hazards, rhetorical elements, persuasive writing.
Teaching Time: 135 mins.
Quick summary:
In this lesson, students participate in a line debate exploring two opposing perspectives on how to effectively change society surrounding climate-related disasters. They then reflect on the arguments made, seeking to identify the rhetorical elements of logos, pathos and ethos, considering how these persuaded the adjudicator. Building on this learning, students choose a topic to craft a persuasive piece seeking to enact social change in regards to climate change and hazards, with the aim to publishing their writing on a shared social action page.
Learning intentions:
- Students will understand how persuasive devices can be employed to enact social change
- Students will develop their understanding of how social change can occur subsequent to climate change hazards.
21st-century skills:
Australian Curriculum Mapping
Content descriptions:
Years 7 English:
- Plan, draft and publish imaginative, informative and persuasive texts, selecting aspects of subject matter and particular language, visual, and audio features to convey information and ideas (ACELY1725).
Years 8 English:
- Create imaginative, informative and persuasive texts that raise issues, report events and advance opinions, using deliberate language and textual choices, and including digital elements as appropriate (ACELY1736).
Syllabus outcomes: EN4-4B.
General capabilities: Literacy, Intercultural Understanding.
Cross-curriculum priority: Sustainability.
Relevant parts of Year 7 achievement standards:
Students create structured and coherent texts for a range of purposes and audiences. They make presentations and contribute actively to class and group discussions, using language features to engage the audience. When creating and editing texts they demonstrate understanding of grammar, use a variety of more specialised vocabulary and accurate spelling and punctuation.
Relevant parts of Year 8 achievement standards:
Students create texts for different purposes, selecting language to influence audience response. They make presentations and contribute actively to class and group discussions, using language patterns for effect. When creating and editing texts to create specific effects, they take into account intended purposes and the needs and interests of audiences. They demonstrate understanding of grammar, select vocabulary for effect and use accurate spelling and punctuation.
Topic: Disaster and Resilience
Unit of work: Minderoo Fire and Flood
Level of teacher scaffolding: Medium to High – teachers need to set up and adjudicate the line debate, track different arguments on the board, and facilitate a discussion around persuasive rhetoric using the Student Worksheet as a guide.
Resources required:
- Student Worksheets – one copy per student
- Whiteboard to track discussion.
Keywords: line debate, climate solutions, community resilience, national solution, persuasive writing, ethos, logos, pathos, rhetoric, hazard, social action.
Cool Australia’s curriculum team continually reviews and refines our resources to be in line with changes to the Australian Curriculum.
