The red shoe

The content in this unit of work links to the Australian Curriculum: English (Year 10).

General Capabilities are evident across the unit and include Literacy, Information and communication technology capability and Critical and creative thinking.

The three cross-curriculum priorities, articulated in the Australian Curriculum are not evident in this unit. However, there are strong links made to aspects of two content overviews for Year 10 History in the Australian Curriculum:

  • the nature of the Cold War and Australia’s involvement in Cold War
  • developments in technology, public health, longevity and standard of living during the twentieth century.

Consequently, the study of this novel and of the Cold War might be enhanced by collaboration between English and History teachers, and provides opportunities for possible integration of classroom activities and/or assessment.

The Level Description provided for Year 10 English includes the following reference to the kinds of literary texts that should be considered:Literary texts that support and extend students in Years 9 and 10 as independent readers are drawn from a range of genres and involve complex, challenging and unpredictable plot sequences and hybrid structures that may serve multiple purposes. These texts explore themes of human experience and cultural significance, interpersonal relationships, and ethical and global dilemmas within real-worldand fictional settings and represent a variety of perspectives.

Note, in reference to this description, that The Red Shoe includes the reproduction of actual newspaper items of the Petrov Affair from 1954 as an introduction to each chapter, and that the story of the family is told from a range of perspectives.

Language
Language variation and understanding		 Understand that Standard Australian English in its spoken and written forms has a history of evolution and change and continues to evolve (ACELA1563) (EN5-3B)
Language for interaction

Understand how language use can have inclusive and exclusive social effects, and can empower or disempower people (ACELA1564) (EN5-5C)

Understand that people’s evaluations of texts are influenced by their value systems, the context and the purpose and mode of communication (ACELA1565) (EN5-7D)
Text structure and organisation

Compare the purposes, text structures and language features of traditional and contemporary texts in different media (ACELA1566) (EN5-6C)

Understand how paragraphs and images can be arranged for different purposes, audiences, perspectives and stylistic effects (ACELA1567) (EN5-3B)

Understand conventions for citing others, and how to reference these in different ways (ACELA1568) (EN5-2A)
Expressing and developing ideas

Refine vocabulary choices to discriminate between shades of meaning, with deliberate attention to the effect on audiences (ACELA1571) (EN5-3B)

Evaluate the impact on audiences of different choices in the representation of still and moving images (ACELA1572) (EN5-1A)
Literature
Literature and context		 Compare and evaluate a range of representations of individuals and groups in different historical, social and cultural contexts (ACELT1639) (EN5-8D)
Interpreting, analysing, evaluating

Explore and reflect on personal understanding of the world and significant human experience gained from interpreting various representations of life matters in texts (ACELT1635) (EN5-7D)

Reflect on, extend, endorse or refute others’ interpretations of and responses to literature (ACELT1640) (EN5-5C)

Analyse and explain how text structures, language features and visual features of texts and the context in which texts are experienced may influence audience response (ACELT1641) (EN5-3B)

Evaluate the social, moral and ethical positions represented in texts (ACELT1812) (EN5-7D)
Examining Literature

Identify, explain and discuss how narrative viewpoint, structure, characterisation and devices including analogy and satire shape different interpretations and responses to a text (ACELT1642) (EN5-2A)

Compare and evaluate how ‘voice’ as a literary device can be used in a range of different types of text such as poetry to evoke particular emotional responses (ACELT1643) (EN5-3B)

Analyse and evaluate text structures and language features of literary texts and make relevant thematic and intertextual connections with other texts (ACELT1774) (EN5-6C)
Creating literature

Create literary texts that reflect an emerging sense of personal style and evaluate the effectiveness of these texts (ACELT1814) (EN5-5C)

Create literary texts with a sustained ‘voice’, selecting and adapting appropriate text structures, literary devices, language, auditory and visual structures and features for a specific purpose and intended audience (ACELT1815) (EN5-3B)
Literacy
Texts in context		 Analyse and evaluate how people, cultures, places, events, objects and concepts are represented in texts, including media texts, through language, structural and/or visual choices (ACELY1749) (EN5-8D)
Interacting with others

Use interaction skills to present and discuss an idea and to influence and engage an audience by selecting persuasive language, varying voice tone, pitch, and pace, and using elements such as music and sound effects (ACELY1811) (EN5-3B)

Use organisation patterns, voice and language conventions to present a point of view on a subject, speaking clearly, coherently and with effect, using logic, imagery and rhetorical devices to engage audiences (ACELY1813) (EN5-3B)

Plan, rehearse and deliver presentations, selecting and sequencing appropriate content and multimodal elements for aesthetic and playful purposes (ACELY1741) (EN5-2A)

Plan, rehearse and deliver presentations, selecting and sequencing appropriate content and multimodal elements to influence a course of action (ACELY1751) (EN5-2A)
Interpreting, analysing, evaluating

Interpret, analyse and evaluate how different perspectives of issue, event, situation, individuals or groups are constructed to serve specific purposes in texts (ACELY1742) (EN5-2A)

Explore and explain the combinations of language and visual choices that authors make to present information, opinions and perspectives in different texts (ACELY1745) (EN5-1A)

Identify and analyse implicit or explicit values, beliefs and assumptions in texts and how these are influenced by purposes and likely audiences (ACELY1752) (EN5-8D)

Choose a reading technique and reading path appropriate for the type of text, to retrieve and connect ideas within and between texts (ACELY1753) (EN5-6C)

Use comprehension strategies to compare and contrast information within and between texts, identifying and analysing embedded perspectives, and evaluating supporting evidence (ACELY1754) (EN5-2A)
Creating texts

Create imaginative, informative and persuasive texts that present a point of view and advance or illustrate arguments, including texts that integrate visual, print and/or audio features (ACELY1746) (EN5-1A)

Create sustained texts, including texts that combine specific digital or media content, for imaginative, informative, or persuasive purposes that reflect upon challenging and complex issues (ACELY1756) (EN5-1A)

Review, edit and refine students’ own and others’ texts for control of content, organisation, sentence structure, vocabulary, and/or visual features to achieve particular purposes and effects (ACELY1757) (EN5-2A)

Use a range of software, including word processing programs, confidently, flexibly and imaginatively to create, edit and publish texts, considering the identified purpose and the characteristics of the user (ACELY1776) (EN5-2A)

Source for content descriptions above: Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA).