English resources

This task assesses student ability to find the text features of a science report about moa.

This resource is based on a job application that needs editing. Students identify six different errors and suggest corrections.

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 complete a cloze passage with 28 blanks about a rugby game. A scoring guide with replacement words/synonyms and guidelines for interpretation are included. SJ-1-2-1998. Text provided.

Students identify common spelling errors, taken from the essential word lists, and write the identified errors correctly. Students also identify lines of text without errors.

Assessment focus: ability to interpret visual texts though de-constructing messages to access multiple layers of meaning, by drawing on both the text and previous knowledge and experiences.

Students read a visual and written text about native plants and animals to answer retrieval and inferential questions.

In this resource students read bullet points about different cultures and answer information retrieval questions.

Assessment focus: ability to use contextual clues to infer meaning of a word. (There is a link to the text used for this resource in the Using this Resource section.) SJ-2-1-2006. Text provided.

A poem about fleas from a School Journal is the context for this resource. The assessment focus is on making inferences. SJ-3-1-1999. Text provided.

Students study a poster about being safe in an earthquake and then answer retrieval and inferential questions.

Students complete a cloze passage with 20 blanks on polio to create well-formed sentences.

Students look at a cartoon and answer questions about the use and meaning of particular features and techniques.

A tourist advertisement for the Kaikoura coast has students being assessed on their understanding of alliteration, fonts, logos, and photo images.

From a selection of grammar terms, students assign the appropriate terms to the parts within two sentences.

Students read the humorous narrative 'The Diving Competition' to answer retrieval and inferential questions. SJ-4-2-1996. Text 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.

Students create a vignette with a focus on writing pieces that are brief, descriptive, and set in one point in time. They should not be concerned with plot. As the emphasis is on quality rather than quantity, students need to show a controlled and elegant skill in writing and use figurative language to 'show' rather than 'tell'.

This resource has an assessment focus on comprehending the language features used in an advertisement.

Students read a short article about Black Holes to answer retrieval and inferential questions.

Students complete a cloze passage with 26 blanks about a boy stuck between some steps. A scoring guide with replacement words/synonyms and guidelines for interpretation are included.

This task assesses students' ability to analyse a text to identify and justify character traits and points of view, including the author's.

This resource requires students to match ten ideas about the different parts to books with the correct term.

Students complete a cloze passage with 27 blanks on the release of a killer whale. A scoring guide with replacement words/synonyms and guidelines for interpretation are included.

From a school newspaper interview about a school production, students complete a retrieval chart for a press release. The assessment focus is on identifying key information.