Think critically resources

The assessment focus is on student ability to make inferences about character and justify these with evidence from text.

This comprehension task assesses student ability to evaluate the ideas and information in a text about an environmental issue. Students are asked to read a text, then respond to four questions. SJ-4-3-2005. Text not provided.

Students read a narrative that is about being different and about group dynamics. Assessment focus: an evaluation of characters and the author's construction of them. (A link to the text is provided. Reading age <8.) SJ-1-4-2005. Text provided.

This task is about using evidence to find the main idea of a text. Students read a narrative text with a Māori context, find two groups of details, then select the main idea from four choices. Note that the text deals with the hunting and slaughter of pigs, which may be a challenging concept for some of your students. SJ-4-2-2004. Text provided.

This comprehension task assesses student ability to find the main idea of a transactional text about a Māori naturalist/scientist. Students are asked to read a text, identify the main idea from three choices provided, and then justify why they think their choice is right.

After reading a narrative that explores family dynamics, students identify evidence in the text that supports their thinking. Assessment focus: analysing and evaluating a character and the author's construction of him. (There is a link to the text used for this resource in the Task administration section of the Teacher information pages.) Reading age 8-9. SJ-3-3-2003.

After reading a narrative that is about sibling rivalry, students identify evidence in the text that supports their thinking. Assessment focus: analysis and evaluation of a character and the author's construction of him. (There is a link to the text used for this resource in the Task administration section of the Teacher information pages.) Reading age <8. SJ-1-5-2004. Text provided.

Students read a personal recount about family relationships in a Pacific context. Assessment focus: the author's construction of two characters and an evaluation of them.

Students read a narrative about relationships and wanting to impress others. Assessment focus: the author’s construction of a character and an evaluation of this character.

Assessment focus: finding details to support the main idea of an informational text, and justifying why they agree or disagree with the main idea presented. The text used is about environmental issues to do with endangered native species.

This comprehension task assesses student ability to find details that relate to the main idea of a text about a Māori naturalist/scientist. Students are asked to read a text, find details about the given main idea, then justify why they think the main idea is right or wrong.

This resource assesses students' ability to analyse text to identify and find evidence of the author's message and audience.

Students read a play (retold from a traditional Persian folktale) about the interactions at a market place in old Baghdad. They then use evidence from the text and their background knowledge to complete the task. Assessment focus: evaluating. SJ-4-2-2009. Text not provided.

This comprehension task assesses student ability to find the main idea of a transactional text. Students are asked to read a text then complete three short tasks. Junior Journal 30. Text not provided.

Students read a narrative about a family's encounter with a stray cat. They then use evidence from the text and their background knowledge to evaluate the characters. SJ-1-3-2008. Text provided.

Students are assessed on their ability to identify important information and the main idea of a recount about needing to take action. Junior Journal 29. Text provided.

Students are assessed on their ability to identify important information and the main idea of an article about a conservation project for an endangered species. Junior Journal 13. Text provided

Students read a narrative about a mother-child relationship. They then use evidence from the text and their background knowledge to complete the task. Assessment focus: evaluating. SJ-1-1-2005. Text provided.

Students read a narrative about how a girl deals with her anxiety over Sports Day. They then use evidence from the text and their background knowledge to complete the task. Assessment focus: evaluating. SJ-2-3-2009. Text provided.

Students are assessed on the ability to identify important information in order to establish the main idea of a narrative text about being judgemental. Reading age 10-12. SJ-4-3-1994. Text provided.

This comprehension task assesses student ability to identify important information and establish the main idea of a text. SJ-2-2-2006. Text provided.

This comprehension task assesses student ability to identify important information to establish the main idea of a narrative text about acknowledging older people. SJ-3-3-2006. Text provided.

After reading a narrative about a shrewd boy, students identify evidence in the text that supports their thinking. Assessment focus: analysing and evaluating a character and the author's construction of him. (There is a link to the text used for this resource in the Task administration section of the Teacher information pages.) Reading age 8-9. SJ-2-4-2000. Text provided.

Students read a narrative about a girl who behaves like an overly enthusiastic parent and her father who behaves like a reluctantly involved adolescent. They use and evaluate evidence from the text, alongside their background knowledge, to complete the task. SJ-3-2-2010. Text not provided.

Students read a narrative about how a character copes with changes in her family dynamics. Students then complete three tasks focusing on that character. Assessment focus: an evaluation of a character and the author's construction of her. (The text used for this resource is reproduced under the "Working with Students" tab.) Reading age 10-12. SJ-4-2-2000. Text not provided.