Resource+1+(Estelle)

__**Explanation of the resource**__

This website allows for children to discover facts about Australia. It provides basic and brief information concerning the geography of the country, along with its Flora and Fauna, its history and also its culture. It provides pictures that guides students to a visual understanding of significant natural landmarks of Australia, including Uluru, and also provides pictures of man-made landmarks such as the Sydney Opera House. It has a video, in which students can observe the ways that Aboriginal people told their stories. The video also shows visual information concerning the geography and land features of the country.

__**Relevance to HSIE outcome ENS2.5**__  The resource is strongly linked to the HSIE Patterns of Place and Location outcome, **ENS2.5 Describes places in the local area and other parts of Australia and explains their significance** (Board of Studies, 2006, p.21). The written and visual text describe significant natural, heritage and built features in Australia and the map gives the location of the country in regards to the rest of the world. The website provides an excellent resource for exploring this syllabus subject matter relating to ENS2.5 (Board of Studies NSW, 2006, p.55). Students will be able to learn about significant landmarks of Australia, along with some facts that provide background information to the history and geography of Australia. They also learn about the Aboriginal and Indigenous people of Australia, and what they also consider to be significant to the country.

 The website provides an opportunity for a variety of aspects of literacy that can be explored. Not only is the website itself a piece of visual literacy, but the information provided allows for a deconstruction of text types and other grammatical features. This example of a multi-modal text allows for a deep analysis of grammar, in terms of the genre of the text, and the language used throughout. It also allows for a deep analysis of the layout of the website, and the visual images of some of the Australian landmarks that can be observed.
 * __  Aspects of Literacy to be explored  __**

 The “facts” presented on the website follow the format of a factual description, as it “classifies and describes” Australia is terms of its history, culture, geography etc. (Droga & Humphrey, 2003, p9). Looking at the grammatical features of this allows for discussion surrounding the language used to describe the country (Australia is... It has... There are...). Students can compare how a factual description of a certain thing compares to a recount, such as the blog used as resource number 4.

 In terms of Visual grammar, this multi-modal text provides an analysis of videos, pictures as also presentation and layout of information. The website provides the opportunity to analysis the modality of images (naturalistic, sensory etc.), the social distance (close up, medium and long shots) and also the Representational/Experiential meanings. Salience and Vectors are used in order to display the images and information on the website in a manner that allows for students to understand how these things must be taken into consideration when creating their own texts. The video on the site uses a variety of techniques which can be discussed by students in order to understand how these can shape the meaning behind a text.

 ** References **

  Board of Studies NSW (2006). K6 HSIE syllabus. Sydney: Author.

  Board of Studies NSW (2007). K6 English syllabus. Sydney: Author.

  Callow, J. (2011, August 3). //Interpreting visual language// (Lecture handout).

<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"> <span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"> <span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;">Droga, L. and Humphrey, S. (2003). //Grammar and meaning: An introduction for primary teachers.// Berry: Target Texts.

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