Instructional Series
Welcome to the English medium literacy instructional series teaching and learning resources for years 1 to 8.
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- Nature of science
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- Articles
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Search results
30 items - Showing 11 - 20
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The Great Barrier Reef
by Sarah Wilcox
The Great Barrier Reef is very beautiful – and threatened. This report describes the Great Barrier Reef and explains what coral is. It also outlines the threats to the reef from climate change and its “evil twin”, ocean acidification.
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Seals
by Susan Brocker
This article presents information about seals in an engaging way. Students can find out about the ways seals are adapted for living on land and sea, the various species found around New Zealand, and how they raise their pups.
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Iris and Dogstar
by Iris Marshall
This article is based on the diary of Iris Marshall, a ten-year-old girl who sailed on the yacht Dog Star with her parents and a family friend from New Zealand to Nouméa. The text details the highs and lows of the journey from Iris’s perspective and includes some excerpts from the on-board logbook. While few students will have had the experience of sailing, many will have experienced sea sickness, and most will relate to and be interested in the day-to-day details of life at sea. The text could be used as a starting point to explore the nature of adventure, its perils, and its rewards.
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Magō!
by Hio Kelemete, illustrations by Vaitoa Baker
This is a humorous, entertaining story based on a true event. It provides examples of characterisation and dialogue as well as being a model for imaginative writing. This is a Pacific text. It provides a chance for Tokelauan and other Pacific students to see themselves and their culture reflected in the Journal.
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An Ecologist on Ice
by Matt Vance
An interview with ecologist Phil Lyver about Adelie penguin population dynamics and the marine ecosystem in the Ross Sea.
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The Plastic-free Challenge
by Deanna Ferguson
When the Room 5 students at Motueka South School saw a video about the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, they were inspired to take action. There’s a lot of media attention on how plastic is polluting the oceans, and it sometimes seems as if the problem is too big to tackle. These students show that it’s possible to make small changes that lead to big results.
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Spying on Starfish
by Rebecca McLeod
In “Spying on Starfish”, students are introduced to the work of Dr Miles Lamare, who tested a new tagging technique that could be used on sea stars. Although tagging marine animals is a common practice, tagging a sea star presented Dr Lamare and his team with several challenges.
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Rua and Te Manu
A traditional story of Ngāti Porou
Retold and illustrated by Isobel Te Aho-White
This story, presented in a graphic text format, tells how Rua journeys under the sea to rescue his son Te Manu, who has been taken by Tangaroa. In the undersea world, Rua discovers beautiful whakairo (carvings) on the whare of Tangaroa and, after defeating the sea god, brings the art of whakairo to the world above the sea. Ideas about whakairo are explored further in the article “Kākahu Pekepeke” in this journal.
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Climate Change: Our Biggest Challenge
by Tricia Glensor
Climate change isn’t only about warmer weather. A rise in the temperature means more extreme weather, including wild storms and heatwaves. Climate change also means more frequent droughts and wildfires, melting ice sheets, melting glaciers, and flooding.
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Sharks
by Alison Ballance
illustrated by Gavin Mouldey
This article provides information on sharks, focusing particularly on sharks found in New Zealand waters such as great white, rig, and deep-sea sharks.
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