DET TESOL Network day 2012

Building a

4x4 toolkit

for academic literacy

Dr Sally Humphrey

Australian Catholic University

Overview of the day

• The Semantic wave

• A 4x4 language toolkit–from whole text to word

• Putting the toolkit to work in the classroom

3

Riding the semantic wave to high

stakes reading and writing

Martin, Maton & Matruglio (2010)

What’s at stake?

Information in High-stakes

readingHigh-stakes

writing

Time

5

Teachers need to explore how the semantic wave works

in their discipline, including:

How to unpack abstract and technical meanings

How to repack these meanings to relate concepts to old and

new knowledge

Dumped on the beach!

Time

The Mode Continuum

(Hertzberg 2012 following Hammond 1990)

Everyday contexts Academic contexts

Purpose

(genre)• familiar everyday spoken

genres

• institutionalized socially valued

and valuable written genres

Subject

matter

(field)

• common sense

understanding personal

issues disconnected from

society at large

• uncommon sense technicality

often bounded by academic

and workplace disciplines

• focus on issues of collective

Reader

relationship

(tenor)

• personal (evaluative)

• strong solidarity

• equal status relationships

• familiar roles – emoter

• impersonal (objective)

• decrease in solidarity

• unequal status relationships

• expert roles – interpreter &

adjudicator

Channel

(mode)

• spoken dialogue (concrete)

• spontaneous

• written monologue (abstract)

• planned, rehearsed

Table 1: Summary of contextual dimensions of everyday and educational contexts

(adapted from Martin & Rothery 1990, Jones et al. 1989, Coffin 2000, Veel 2006)

8

Naplan Practice Writing Prompt 2011

Deconstructing the Naplan Writing prompt

The challenge:

How do we demonstrate ‘high stakes’ knowledge and

language use with prompts which entice/trap students

into shallow water!!!

grammar

and

rhetoric

Once upon a time in a land far far

away, Greek and Roman philosophers

identified three arts of discourse –

the Trivium

grammar

rhetoric logic

The trivium

Grammar: the mechanics of a language

Logic: the mechanics of thought and analysis

Rhetoric: the use of language to instruct and persuade

grammar, rhetoric

and education

For over 2000 years,

teachers used their

knowledge of grammar and

rhetoric to train knowledge

builders, politicians and

active citizens to

communicate effectivelyFrontspiece of 1720 edition of the

‘Institutio Oratoria', Quintilan teaching rhetorics

The decline of

rhetoric And then along came

the The New Curriculum (15th century)–

rhetoric reduced to style, delivery

and memory

• 19th century Expansion of mass

education – focus on correctness

rather than overall meaning and

organization of the text.

• Mass distribution of prescriptive

grammar books, based on Latin syntax

(eg don‟t split infinitives)

The decline of grammar

• Without rhetoric, grammar studied without context – set of drilled rules

• Backlash – ‘whole language’ movement

• 1970’s – grammar removed from curriculum

• Process writing – grammar ‘at point of need’

The result?

Decline in teachers’ knowledge of grammar

The result?

Persisting gap between achievement in schooling and socio-economic/language

background

The ‟80‟s – in our own

backyard

A teacher- led

revival – „language

as social power‟

Functional grammar

– Halliday –

Genre approach -

Martin

Meaning systems

19

Language relates to context

Immediate Context of text

Language

Broader cultural context

The context – language hook -up

context Language – resources

for..

field Expressing and

connecting ideas

tenor Interacting with

audiences

mode Creating cohesive

texts

The ‟90‟s

Grammar goes

mainstream..

again..

development of

NSW syllabus

From functional

to

„functionalised

traditional

K-6 English syllabus

But no explicit hook-up between context

and language systems

No explicit hook-up between grammatical

structure and grammatical function

curriculum…. A new space

for grammar and rhetoric

to reunite

• The Australian curriculum for

English

• Knowledge about the English Language

(“Grammar”)

• Informed appreciation of literature

(„Literatures”)

• Growing repertoires of English Usage

(“Literacies”)

The

Australian Curriculum: English

The challenge

How to work with grammar to do

important work on texts in ways

that develop both literacy and ‘an

informed appreciation of

literature’?

How to avoid returning to the

decontextualised study of grammar

as a ‘reductive’ task?

Resources for developing a rhetorical grammar: A functional perspective

----------------------

----paragraph-----

----------------------

----------------------

----------------------

---sentence/clause-----

----------------------

Word/

expression

Whole text

4 x levels of text

Interacting

with

others

Expressing

ideas

Creating

cohesive

texts

Genre/ Text types

Tenor

Field

Mode

4 x systems of

meaning

Connecting

ideas

Dimensions of language

A register

perspective

whole text paragraph Sentence/

(Grammar)

Word

Expressing ideas (field)

connecting ideas (field)

Interacting with others (tenor)

Creating cohesive texts (mode)

A 4x4 perspective on academic register

Tools for constructing technical, specialised

and formal knowledge of discipline area

Tools for convincing audiences in distanced,

impersonal and objectified ways

Tools for organising clearly signposted,

cohesive and abstract texts

Tools for constructing technical, specialised

and formal knowledge of discipline area

Whole text Paragraph Sentence

(grammar)

Word

(lexis)

Expressing & ideas (field)

Connecting ideas (field

Interacting with others (tenor)

Creating cohesive texts (mode)

The 4x4: a warehouse of tools for developing understandings of academic language

Adapted from Humphrey, Martin, Dreyfus and Mahboob (2010)

a 4x4 perspective to represent resources of specialised learning

domain

Language

to..

Whole text Paragraph

level

Sentence level

(Grammar)

Word level

express

ideas

(field)

Ideas

unfold as

stages to

achieve

the

purpose

of text

Ideas

grouped as

phases

according

to subject

demands

(eg. Point,

Elaboration,

Evidence,

Link)

• Noun groups with

classifiers and

embedded clauses

to describe &

classify

• Verb groups

represent processes

relevant to text type

(ie. relating, action,

saying)

• Well-formed

adverbials to specify

circumstances

• Technical &

generalised

terms for

discipline

knowledge

• Auxiliary verb

forms to

express tense

appropriate to

purpose

Register Perspective: Field

Languag

e to..

Whole text Paragraph

level

Sentence level

(Grammar)

Word level

connect

ideas

logically

(field)

Analytical

framework

used to

relate

multiple

ideas

logically

across text

(eg. as

reasons,

causes,

features,

parts)

phases of

verbal text and

image linked

in logical

relationships

(eg. time,

cause,

consequence,

elaboration,

comparison)

• Ideas in groups

and clauses

combine through

expanding

and/or projecting

to form well

structured simple

and complex

sentences

• Relating and

reporting

terms to

define,

classify,

show

cause/effect,

quote and

report

Register Perspective: Field

Language

to

Whole text Paragraph

level

Sentence level

(grammar)

Word level

(vocabulary)

interact

with

others

(tenor)

Expert

role taken

to engage

and

convince

audience

Claims

supported,

justified and

reinforced

Expert

sources

acknowledge

d and

rebutted

Modality used to

express objective

opinions and

recommendations

Quoting and

reporting of

sources through

verb groups,

phrases and nouns

Objective

evaluative

vocabulary

(relevance,

validity and

significance)

Grading

adjusts force/

focus of core

vocabulary

Register Perspective: Tenor

Languageto

Whole

text

Paragraph

level

Sentence level

(grammar)

Word

level

create

cohesiv

e texts

(mode)

Text

organisation

made clear

through

layout,

previewing

and

reviewing of

content

Paragraphs

organised as

waves from

denser,

‘packed’ to

concrete

‘unpacked’

meaning

Topic

sentences/pre

views predict

and organise

layers of

information

Sentence openers

focus attention on

topic and flow of

information

Nominalisation recasts

processes, qualities

and logical relations

Active or passive

voice adjust

information focus

Participants tracked

using cohesive

resources (eg.

reference, substitution

and repetition)

Abstract

nouns

package

and track

ideas

Articles and

pronouns

keep track

of ideas

Spelling

and

punctuation

assist

meaning

Register Perspective: Mode

Whole text Paragraph Sentence

(grammar)

Word

(lexis)

Expressing & ideas (field)

Connecting ideas (field

Interacting with others (tenor)

Creating cohesive texts (mode)

And..a toolkit for developing understandings of language for specific contexts

Adapted from Humphrey, Martin, Dreyfus and Mahboob (2010)

a 4x4 perspective to represent resources of explanation

a 4x4 perspective to represent resources of explanation

a 4x4 perspective to represent resources of narrative

a 4x4 perspective to represent resources of narrative

Reflecting on a 4x4

view of language

Revisiting

understandings of

language at whole text

level:

A warm up….

Activity 1

Text 1 was written within an

HSIE unit of work on government.

Read the whole text and then

complete the questions to

identify language features of

the sample student text for the

purposes of assessment and

feedback..

Assessing students’ use of language

43

Question:

Are governments necessary? Give reasons for your position

Text A: Student’s response

I think Governments are necessary because if there wasn't any there would be no law people would be killing themselves. They help keep our economic system in order for certain things

If there wasn't no Federal Government there wouldn't have been no one to fix up any problems that would have occurred in the community. Same with the State Government if the SG didn't exist there would have been noone to look after the school, vandalism fighting would have occurred everyday. The local Government would be important to look after the rubbish because everyone would have diseases

44

Assessing 4 meanings

Whole text Comments

Is the purpose and text type

recognisable through the

structure of the ideas as

stages

Are the ideas related

logically within an

analytical framework

Does the writer adopt an

expert role to engage and/or

convince the audience?

Is the text organisation

45

Assessing 4 meanings ..

Paragraph level Comments

Do ideas in paragraph develop an

argument through phases of Point ^

Elaboration ^ Evidence ^ Link

(PEEL)

Do the phases of verbal text (and

image) link in logical

relationships (eg. time,

cause,consequence,

elaboration,comparison)

Are claims supported, justified,

reinforced

Are expert sources acknowledged

&rebutted

whole

text

Para-

graphSentence

(grammar)

Word

Express

ideas

Connect

ideas

Interact with

others

Create

cohesive

texts

Drilling down to the grammar

Language ‘tools’ for expressing ideas

text paragraph Sentence

(grammar)Word

Express

ideas

Connect

ideas

Interact

with others

Create

cohesive

texts

how we name and describe:

• what is going on (processes, activities, behaviours or states of being)

• who or what is taking part (people, places, things, concepts, etc.)

• the details or circumstances surrounding these events (where, when, how, with what, etc.)

Language ‘tools’ for expressing ideas

text paragraph Sentence

(grammar)Word

Express

ideas

Connect

ideas

Interact

with others

Create

cohesive

texts

Opening up the toolkit through visual text

text paragraph Sentence

(grammar)Word

Express

ideas

Connect

ideas

Interact

with

others

Create

cohesive

texts

1. What type of text is this image from?

2. What kind of world is the image creating: literary, scientific/technical or historical?

3. Who or what are the main participants in the image?

4. What are the participants doing? What actions are they engaged in?

5. What circumstances surround these actions? What details are provided about how, when, where, why and with whom?

What type of text is this image from?

1. What kind of world is the image creating: literary, scientific/technical or historical?

2. Who or what are the main things or participants in the image?

3. How are these participants related or described? - as parts of a whole? - as sub-types within a category?

4. What circumstances surround these participants and the relationships between them? What details are provided about how, when, where, why etc..?

Visual grammar in the classroomintroducing students to the grammar through visual texts.

In dynamic literary images, students can:

• search, for recurring images of characters, events and settings that might form a motif or theme central to the story’s message.

• make predictions about the characters, setting, and possible complications and resolutions.

In static conceptual images, students can:

• sort the participants representing parts or types according to different criteria (eg. a type of something, a part of something, a description of something).

Teachers can demonstrate the differences between different types of images by reading a literary text and an information text on a similar topic while students either sort images to illustrate each text, or create their own images to illustrate each text.

Expressing ideas in verbal texts

Exercise 2.3: Organising the parts of clauses in an historical recount

Text 2.A below is an historical recount, a type of text that is very commonly found in school textbooks. Read the text and answer the questions below

Text 2.A Red gold rush

Soon after European settlement a rush on the red cedar forests of the east coast of New South Wales began. During the nineteenth century cedar-cutters in New South Wales logged most of the cedar for housing and furniture. Gradually people began to consider the future of the cedar forests. In recent times some of the last remnants of these majestic forests have been saved.

2. Identify the processes, participants and circumstances in the four clauses in this extract.

Example

Circumstance (when?)

Participant (what?)

Process (what’s happening?)

Soon after European

settlement

a rush on the red cedar forests of the

east coast of New South Wales

began.

Clause 1 Circumstance

(when?)

Participant

(who?)

Process what’s happening?

Participant

(what?)

Circumstance

(why?)

logged

Clause 2 Circumstance

(how?)Participant

(who?)

Process

(what’s happening?)

Participant

(what?)

Gradually began to consider

Clause 3

Circumstance(when?)

Participant (what?)

Process (what’s happening?)

2. Identify the processes, participants and circumstances in the four clauses in this extract.

The first clause is completed as an example.

Example

Circumstance (when?)

Participant (what?)

Process (what’s happening?)

Soon after European

settlement

a rush on the red cedar forests of the

east coast of New South Wales

began.

Clause 1

Circumstance(when?)

_ Participant

(who?)

Process

(what’s

happening?)

_ Participant

(what?)

Circumstance

(why?)

logged

Clause 2

Circumstance

(how?)

Participant

(who?)

Process

(what’s happening?)

Participant

(what?)

Gradually began to consider

Clause 3

Circumstance

(when?)

Participant (what?)

Process (what’s happening?)

In the classroom: probe questions

Students can learn to use the probe questions (what’s

happening? who? what? how? when? where? why?) to

find processes, participants and circumstances in clauses

long before they have mastered the more complex

grammatical forms in which words are grouped together

to express each of these meanings. Once students are

able to think about word groups in terms of the

meanings they make in clauses, they are ready to explore

the formation of these groups.

What is happening or going on: processes and verb groups

Exercise 2.5: Identifying action and relating processes

In Text 2.C Lily has used both relating and action processes in her story. All of these processes have been underlined in the text below. Highlight the relating processes and circle the action processes.

Text 2.C Lily Year 5

The beast was a horrific sight. It had a huge bulbous body with bloated pustules. On its head were two lidless red eyes, which grew larger in the light. At first the beast seemed calm but then it became restless. Suddenly it lurched towards me and spurted green slimy liquid onto the floor. I turned and randown the passage and out of the cave.

Relating verbs in the classroom

To help students identify relating verbs, teachers might refer to them in symbolic terms as ‘equal or arrow verbs’ (=/ ). Students can be encouraged to build word banks of the specialised relating verbs they find in:

• mathematics (symbolises, represents, equals),

• science (is composed of, is classified as) or

• geography (is found, is located, is situated).

Students can also be encouraged to use more formal relating verbs such as concerns and relates to when introducing topics or arguments in persuasive writing. eg

The first argument against nuclear power concerns safety

Verb groups: The grammatical form of processes

Elements of the verb group

In addition to the main verb which expresses the process, verb groups can include other elements which add meaning to the main verb. These elements indicate:

• a phrasal verb (eg. turn off the light)

• a passive verb (eg. the trees were cut by the loggers)

• the tense of the main verb (eg. I came; I am coming;I was going to come)

• the modality of the main verb (eg.; I can come)

• multi-word verb groups (eg. I liked to look at the pictures)

• non-finite verb forms (eg. to be or not to be)

Who or what is taking part: participants and noun groups

Exercise 2.15 Using probe questions to identify participants

Use probe questions to identify the process (eg What’s happening?) and

any participants (Who or what?) in the following clauses taken from a

range of texts of different types. Highlight the process in each clause and

then underline the participants.

1. The reporter asked Mr Norman some very important questions.

2. The movement of electrons causes electrical energy.

3. Mr Tinker appeared to be very polite.

4. Blend the milk, bananas and honey.

5. Sarah watched the strange child with the haunting blue eyes.

6. The peregrine falcon and southern sea eagle are birds of prey.

7. He began to chase the children that had kicked over the rubbish bins.

8. Loss of habitat has led to the extinction of many species of animals.

9. The funny little man sneezed.

10. He gave the bottle to the girl.

Exercise 2.16: Using different kinds of participants in textsText 2.M Excerpt from personal recount written as an email

Bob took some photos with his underwater camera. Some fish were rainbow coloured and others had dark stripes. Then Bob noticed two big sharks near the pontoon and called the instructor.

Text 2.N Excerpt from a poem, The Surfers, by Christopher Year 7The golden ball appears above the horizon.

The worshippers swarm,

prepare their alters on the sand

and glide into the waves.

Glassy water folding around them -

genies on carpets

flying across their watery playground.

Text 2.O Excerpt from scientific report on sharks

Rhincodon typus is a filter feeding shark. It is a member of the genus Rhincodon and

belongs to the Chondrichthyes class. It eats macro-algae and small nektonic life such

as squid or vertebrates.

Exercise 2.16: Using different kinds of participants in textsText 2.M Excerpt from personal recount written as an email

Bob took some photos with his underwater camera. Some fish were rainbow coloured and others had dark stripes. Then Bob noticed two big sharks near the pontoon and called the instructor.

Text 2.N Excerpt from a poem, The Surfers, by Christopher Year 7The golden ball appears above the horizon.

The worshippers swarm,

prepare their alters on the sand

and glide into the waves.

Glassy water folding around them -

genies on carpets

flying across their watery playground.

Text 2.O Excerpt from scientific report on sharks

Rhincodon typus is a filter feeding shark. It is a member of the genus Rhincodon and

belongs to the Chondrichthyes class. It eats macro-algae and small nektonic life such

as squid or vertebrates.

Grammatical form of participants: the noun group

Grammatical structures for expressing participants :

• a noun group or combination of nouns, eg. That funny old man sneezed loudly; the hunters shot four buffalo, two camels and several dingoes.

• an adjective or adjectival group which names qualities, eg. Reality TV shows are boring; Mr Tinker appeared to be very polite

• a whole clause (called an embedded clause) which names facts, activities or ideas, eg. What I’m afraid of is snakes; The fact that it’s raining doesn’t change my plans to go swimming.

the most common grammatical form is the noun group.

Noun Group Structure

Exercise: Identifying noun groups and their parts

In the following clauses use probe questions to underline noun groups

• Circle the main noun.

• highlight premodifiers in yellow

• Highlight the qualifier in green.

• Use brackets **….++, to mark embedded clauses.

Example: Plants use green pigments such as chlorophyll.

1. Animals that use camouflage blend in with their background.

2. This magnified view of the underside of the leaf shows small holes called stomata.

3. Evidence of discrimination can be seen in many ways.

4. Those who are bilingual will experience many advantages.

5. The delicious smell of frying spices wafted in our window.

6. The stock routes used by the early drovers continue to be a feature of the Australian outback.

Students can have fun exploring the potential of the noun group by starting with a simple noun (such as tree) and seeing how much meaning they can continue to add to it, with pre-modifiers but particularly with qualifiers, for example:

I loved the magnificent old gum tree [[that fell down in the horrific storm last week]].

Distinguishing embedded clauses from ‘full’ clauses can be difficult for students. If the probe questions ‘Who?’ or ‘What?’ are used to capture all the words that answer the question, students will be alerted to the role embedded clauses play as qualifiers, defining or further specifying the thing, for example:

Question: ‘What did you love?’

Response: ‘the magnificent old gum tree that fell down in the horrific storm last week.’

In the classroom

The noun group provides a useful framework for

vocabulary development. Word banks of factual

describers, classifiers and technical terms can be built

up as part of learning about a particular topic. Lists of

synonyms could also be developed for common

adjectives and used to make finer distinctions when

building descriptions in narratives. The noun group

also provides a meaningful context for addressing

some of the grammatical challenges students can face

when using articles and comparatives, as well as

prepositions and relative pronouns (in qualifiers).

In the classroom

The grammatical form of circumstances:adverbials

Exercise 2.26: circumstances contribute to the purpose of a narrative

1. Highlight the circumstances in the extracts from The Hunt below.

Label each type.

2. What circumstances relate to the theme of camouflage?

3. What circumstances give the reader a sense of the ‘hunt’ that takes

place throughout the story?

Text 2.W Extract from The Hunt by Narelle Oliver

On silent wings, the frogmouth flies, watching for a flicker of movement, listening for

the faintest sound.

At that moment a Bark Moth flutters towards a tree … Nearby, a Bush Cricket hops

from leaf to leaf. The frogmouth follows, but in a flash, the Bush Cricket has vanished.

Just then a Retiarius Spider swings down across the breeze…Out from the leaves a

stripy Tree Frog long-jumps into view. All of a sudden the stripy frog is no where to be

found. Close by a Leaf-tail Gecko scuttles up a granite rock. In the twinkling of an eye

there is no trace of it at all.

Like an arrow a Stick Insect shoots to a branch above. In the very next moment the

Stick Insect has gone. Finally, an Emperor Gum Moth drifts down through the She-oak

twigs. This time there is no escape And it seems the hunt is won.

But overhead, a Powerful Owl is watching.

Language for expressing

ideas in narratives

Understanding how experiential resources set the scene in

the Orientation stage of a picture book

Experiential resources to set

the scene in narratives

In the Orientation stage of Narratives,

writers typically choose relating verbs,

adverbials of place and time and complex

noun groups help to identify and describe

the characters and situate events (ie the

participants, processes and

circumstances).

Orientation stageThere was once a small boy called Wilfred

Gordon McDonald Partridge,

and what’s more he wasn’t very old

either.

His house was next door to an old people’s

home and he knew all the people who

lived there.

Experiential resources to develop plot and characters in narratives

In the unfolding of Narratives, good

storytellers choose a range of verb types to

engage their audiences in both the outward

action and the inner lives of their characters.

• Action verbs engage audiences in the physical

processes of the plot

• give us access to the inner

worlds of the characters,

• engage us in how characters

communicate with each other.

The way characters participate in these

processes (eg. as doer or done to) is an

important way of building character

Modelling experiential resources to build character in a picture- book: WGMP

He Mrs Jordan who played the organ.

He listened to Mr Hosking who told him scary stories.

He played with Mr Tippett who was crazy about cricket.

He ran errands for Miss Mitchell who walked with a wooden

stick.

He Mr Drysdale who had a voice like a giant.

But his favourite person of all was Miss Nancy Alison

Delacourt Cooper because she had four names, just as

he did.

He called her „Miss Nancy‟ and told her all his secrets.

What’s going on?

Acting? Sensing?

Saying? Being?

Who’s doing the

acting? Sensing?

Saying? Being?

81

Explicit teaching of grammar in context – Gold unitSpecialised terms with more meaning packaged inside them

• Establish shared field of Gold – explaining why people came to Australia during

gold rushes and what changed in Australia as a result of gold rushes. Take students

contributions.

• Write following sentence on board

During the gold rushes many people left their countries and came to Australia and

stayed here.

• Explain that we can divide that sentence into three events.

Event 1 - many people left their countries

Event 2 - many people came to Australia

Event 3 - many people stayed here.

• Ask students how we might have known there were three events (3 verbs)

• Establish that students know what a verb is and that there are different kinds of

verbs (eg. action, relating, saying, thinking and feeling). Establish that the above

sentence has 3 action verbs – this is common for spoken language and for story

(recount and narrative) text types. But when it comes to explaining at stage 3 and 4

sentences tend to have fewer verbs – often only one.

• So lets see if we can turn all those verbs into one. – what did the people do? – elicit

‘migrated’ – so

• During the gold rushes many people migrated to Australia

Group Exercise Worksheet 1

Change the words which are highlighted into more specialised terms. You will find these terms in the text: ‘Why did different groups of people come to Australia during the Gold rushes?’

Example: I was looking for more chances

Answer: I came in search of greater opportunities (paragraph 1)

1. A lot of bad things happened in my country . There were …… (Par 2)

2. I was very good at mining. I had ………………………………………. (Par 4).

3. People were hurt. There was violent …………………………………(Par 5)

4. I left my country after people overthrew the government. There was a …………………………………………………………… (par8)

5. We all wanted to escape. We had a …………………… to escape (Par 9).

6. Things were bad about living in our country. There were …… (Par 9)

7. People died because they didn’t have enough to eat. There was..(par11)

83

Explicit teaching of grammar in context – Gold unit

Nominalisation

• Make link with previous lesson –Give examples to explain the concept of abstract

nouns

• Begin with establishing students understanding of nouns – concrete nouns people,

places or things – ie table, chair,.(All these things can be seen, touched etc,,)

• Explain that nouns can also be a package of actions that cannot be touched and

which in fact name processes. Eg The Gold rushes = people rushing to look for gold.

The search for gold =

• Go through terms on worksheet with students to establish them as abstract nouns.

Eg I was looking for (action – therefore verb) – I came in (the) search of

We all wanted (feeling –verb) – We had a desire

• Note that the verbs which are left in the sentence are often relating (be or have)

Quick exercise:

• Turn the following abstract nouns into verbs (you may need to include other words

as well as the verb)

Gold rushes Migration Convict transportation Prosperity

The increase

84

Unpacking Abstract nouns Worksheet 2

1. Change the following abstract nouns into verbs

1. Gold rushes = when people …………………… to a place to look for gold

2. Migration = when people…………… from one place to another

3. Convict transportation = when convicts were …………………………

4. Prosperity = when people ………………… a lot of money

5. The increase = when things …………… up.

.

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b. Resources for explaining cause and effect Write following three sentences on the board with arrows between.1. Some people discovered gold in Australia2. Many people migrated to Australia3. The population of Australia roseExplain/elicit that these events are linked in time and in cause and effect. Lets look at some ways language can do the job of the arrows.Work through the following examples with two of the events on board 1. Some people discovered gold in Australia and so many people

migrated (spoken like conjunction – leaves action verbs)2. Many people migrated to Australia because some people discovered

gold (Because ( subordinate conjunction – makes a complex sentence but still two verbs/events)

3. Many people migrated to Australia because of the discovery of gold (Because of (preposition phrase - tighter – we have to change a verb into a noun)

4. Migration caused the discovery of gold. ( causal verb: both verbs into nouns – much simpler sentence structure X Y)

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Worksheet 3: cause and effect expressions

In each sentence below, change the underlined verb into an abstract noun to complete the cause and effect sentence.

Example

When the Portugese found gold in Brazil, local native tribes weredevastated.

The discovery of gold in Brazil led to the devastation of the local native tribes

1.The Portugese wanted gold and so they persecuted many people in Brazil.

The Portugese desire for gold resulted in …………………………………………… of many people in Brazil.

2. People discovered gold in California and so people rushed to the goldfields.

The discovery of gold in California led to ………………………………to the goldfields.

Now draw a circle around the cause and effect verbs in the sentences above.

Cause and Effect expressions in Explanations Worksheet 3