The Little Wave

Connecting to prior knowledge

Me and my place

The goal of these initial activities is to support students to clarify how they would describe their personal traits, as well as their local area.

Sketch that trait

Divide the class into two teams. Choose a student from each team and provide them with a card from the trait deck (PDF, 70KB). Each student will have one minute to sketch their trait on a large piece of paper (or whiteboard). They cannot use any words or letters.

During this time, both teams can guess the trait. They can call out, raise their hands, or write their guesses on a piece of paper (or mini whiteboard). The first team to correctly guess the trait scores a point. If nobody correctly guesses the trait within the time limit, reveal the trait and explain its meaning.

Repeat this process with different trait cards and students. You might like to review the deck ahead of time to ensure your class is familiar with the vocabulary.

At the end of the game, ask each student to identify TWO traits they would use to describe themselves, and to sketch a picture for each trait on the traits handout (PDF, 45KB). Allow time for students to share their sketches and explain why they chose those traits to describe themselves.

Local area walk

Identify a suitable route in your local area for an observational walk. Before you go, discuss with students the sort of features they might notice, such as buildings or nature areas that are important to them; evocative sounds or smells; and/or facilities and activities that they enjoy.

Provide each student with an observational journal sheet (PDF, 45KB). Take them on the local area walk and encourage them to use notes and sketches to record their observations. This might include:

• Information about the Traditional Custodians
• What they can see and feel
• Natural and built environmental features
• Special places (e.g. historically significant sites, locations of special events, other personal connections)

After the walk, gather the class and discuss their observations. Encourage students to share what they found most interesting or surprising. Take time to identify the Country you are on and the local language spoken here using the Gambay and/or AIATSIS maps.

NOTE: If it is not practical to engage in a local area walk, use online mapping tools (e.g. Google Maps) and local tourism brochures/information pamphlets as stimulus for the observational journal. Depending on your location, you might be able to access virtual tours or video footage (e.g. Ginninderry, ACT; Boodjamulla, Springbrook, and St Helena Island National Parks, QLD).

Characters and their places

Open The Little Wave to display the front and back covers so that students can see the complete scene. Pose the question:

What can we learn about the characters and their place(s) from the cover and title?

Make annotations as students share responses to this question. These might relate to:

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Exploring the text in context of our community, school, and ‘me’

Understanding characters and ourselves

Display the brief character orientations on the back cover and engage in a scaffolded analysis of each one.

Read Noah’s blurb aloud, then use modelling to analyse it. For example:

Now read Lottie’s blurb aloud and use sharing to analyse it. For example:

Make sure there are enough copies of the book for students to read Jack’s blurb. Invite them to work individually or in pairs to analyse the blurb and identify Jack’s traits and challenges. For example:

Ask the question:

How are these characters and their experiences similar OR different to each other? How are they similar or different to you?

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Understanding settings and our location

Read the first chapter (‘Noah’, pp. 1–7), which introduces the two key settings in the book: Manly and Mullin.

Show students the layout of p. 1. Ask them to describe this form of literature. They might suggest poetry. The Little Wave is a verse novel and an example of free verse poetry. It does not have a strict rhyme scheme or metre (rhythm/beat). Free verse in novels is more fluid, conveying the emotions and thoughts of characters in a direct and impactful way.

Give pairs or small groups of students an A3 location comparison chart (PDF, 45KB), OR work on this together as a class. Re-read the first chapter of the book, pausing at key moments to record information about Manly, Mullin, and your local area. Students can use any available resources to help with this (e.g. the Internet, reference books, tourist brochures, their observational journals).

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Rich assessment task

Explain to students that they need to create a personalised book cover inspired by The Little Wave. This cover should integrate their own personal traits and features of their local area.

Provide students with a range of craft materials, such as:

• A3 sheets of paper or card
• Coloured markers, crayons, pencils
• Collage materials (magazines, stickers, glitter, ribbons, textured card, decorative paper, newspaper)
• Scissors and glue

The book cover must include:

• A title (this could be as simple as ‘The Story of [student’s name]’)
• A blurb that introduces the student as the main character
  • NOTE: Students may write about a personal goal, dream, or challenge, as modelled by The Little Wave, but should not feel obligated to do so. They can simply write about their personal traits if they are not comfortable sharing more information.
• Visual elements that represent their personal traits (refer to the traits handout under Sketch That Trait)
• Visual elements that capture their local area as the setting of the book (refer to the observational journal under Local Area Walk)

Once completed, have students form small groups to share and discuss their book covers, including why they chose certain elements and how they help establish the main character and setting.

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Responding to the text

Roles on the wall

Read the first three chapters of The Little Wave aloud to the class (‘Noah’, pp. 1–7; ‘Lottie’, pp. 8–14; ‘Jack’, pp. 15–20). Then engage in a discussion using prompts such as:

• Which character do you find the most interesting so far? Why?
• Which character is the most relatable to you? Why?
• Does anything in the story so far remind you of something from your own life, someone you know, or another book you’ve read?
• What do you think might happen next and why?

For a role on the wall activity, draw the outlines of three bodies on large sheets of paper and label them ‘Noah’, ‘Lottie’, and ‘Jack’. Display the sheets and tell students that they are going to record information about each character in and around the body.

Start by reading the first ‘Noah’ chapter, pausing to prompt students to identify information about this character. Feelings, thoughts, and traits should be recorded inside the body, while facts (e.g. age, location, family, friends, challenges) should be recorded outside the body.

Now form groups of three to four and ask each group to re-read the first ‘Lottie’ chapter. During reading, they should use sticky notes to jot down information about this character. After reading, they should sort their notes into two piles: information that should go inside the body, and information that should go outside. Reconvene as a whole class and invite the groups to share their ideas. Agree as a class what information should be included inside and outside the body.

Repeat this process for the first ‘Jack’ chapter.

Now complete Part 1 of the Rich Assessment Task (below).

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Exploring plot, character, setting, and theme

Literature circles

Form groups of four to five and assign each student one of the following roles (PDF, 81KB):

1. Director
2. Connector
3. Detective
4. Tracker
5. Summariser (bonus role for groups of five)

Over the course of the next week or two, read the whole text using literature circles and a series of experiences that support a comprehensive understanding of the characters, settings, plot, and themes. You might like to follow a plan like the one below.

Session 1

Session 2

Session 3

Session 4

Session 5

Session 6

Session 7

Session 8

Session 9

Now complete Part 2 of the Rich Assessment Task (see below).

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Rich assessment task

Students will choose ONE of the three main characters and create TWO postcards from their perspective. The first postcard should be completed after reading pp. 1–20, and the second after finishing the rest of the text.

The postcards can be created physically using a postcard template (PDF, 45KB) and craft supplies, OR digitally using a platform like Google Slides, PowerPoint, Canva, or similar.

Part 1

Invite students to create their first postcard from Noah, Lottie, or Jack’s perspective. The postcard should:

• Demonstrate the student’s understanding of the character’s inside and outside (refer to the Roles on the Wall)
• Include a picture on the front that represents an important aspect of the character’s life
• Include a message on the back from the character’s perspective that provides insight into their feelings, interests, challenges, and/or hopes for the future
• Be addressed to ‘Dear Pen Pal’ – this will be an unnamed student from either Manly (if writing as Jack) or Mullin (if writing as Noah or Lottie)
  • NOTE: Students could also substitute ‘Pen Pal’ with their own name!

Share the postcards and lead a discussion on how the three characters are introduced and how their perspectives shape the story. Questions could include:

• What do we learn about the characters in their respective chapters?
• How do their settings influence their stories?
• What plot tensions or challenges are introduced for each character?

Part 2

Invite students to create their second postcard from Noah, Lottie, or Jack’s perspective (this should be the same character they chose for Part 1). The postcard should:

• Demonstrate the character’s growth or change over the course of the story
• Include a new picture on the front that represents an important aspect of their character’s life at the end of the story
• Include a message on the back from the character’s perspective that provides new insight into their feelings, interests, challenges, and/or hopes for the future
• Be addressed to the same pen pal from the first postcard, continuing the correspondence

Share the postcards and lead a discussion on how the three characters’ development shapes the story. Questions could include:

• How do the characters grow from the beginning to the end of the story?
• What events or interactions contribute to their growth or change?
• How did the settings and other characters influence this character’s journey?
• What lessons or themes can be drawn from the character’s experiences throughout the story?

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Examining text structure and organisation

Authorial choices

Make sure there are enough copies of The Little Wave for students to read the first chapter (‘Noah’, pp. 1–7). Model an analysis of these pages, with a focus on authorial choices such as:

Divide the class into small groups of three to four students. Assign half the groups to the first ‘Lottie’ chapter (pp. 8–14) and the other half to the first ‘Jack’ chapter (pp. 15–20). Each group should analyse and annotate the authorial choices on their allocated pages.

Organise a gallery walk so that students can circulate around the room and review their peers’ work. They should take notes on the similar and different authorial choices between the two chapters. After the gallery walk, bring the class together for a discussion. Invite students to share key observations about Pip Harry’s authorial choices and how these contribute to character development and the overall narrative.

Verse structure

Display and read an excerpt from another chapter book that is written in prose, e.g. Mrs Whitlam* by Bruce Pascoe. Identify the purpose, audience, mode, text structure, and any organisational features.

Together examine the ‘Lottie’ chapter on pp. 49–51 of The Little Wave. Identify the purpose, audience, and mode, and compare these to your chosen text (if using Mrs Whitlam, these will be very similar). Ask students what they notice about the text structure and organisational features of The Little Wave compared with the other text.

Break down the ‘Lottie’ chapter and discuss the impact of Harry’s structural choices. These might include line breaks, rhythm, pacing, emphasis, etc. Here is a sample analysis of the impact of structural choices at the start of this chapter:

Organise the class into small groups and provide each group with a copy of a verse novel. Ask the groups to select one or two verses and analyse the author’s structural choices, using the ‘Lottie’ chapter from The Little Wave as a model. Suggested verse novels include:

• Sister Heart* by Sally Morgan
• Pearl Verses the World* by Sally Murphy, illus. Heather Potter
• Bully on the Bus* by Kathryn Apel
• Bindi* by Kirli Saunders, illus. Dub Leffler
• The Kindness Project* by Deborah Abela
• Do-Wrong Ron by Steven Herrick, illus. Caroline Magerl
• Zoe, Max and the Bicycle Bus by Steven Herrick

More verse novels suggestions can be found from the National Centre for Australian Children’s Literature (NCACL).

* Reading Australia title

Invite each group to share their text, their chosen verse(s), and what their analysis has taught them about structural choices in verse novels (and the impact of these choices).

Now divide the class into three groups: one for each of the main characters in The Little Wave. Students should search the book to find verses that provide insight into their assigned character. They can work individually or in pairs to analyse and annotate the verse(s), focusing on structural choices and their impact. Once the analyses are complete, each group should compile their annotated verses (preferably in the order they appear in the novel) and discuss if there are any patterns, themes, or unique features that reveal insights about their character.

Finally, have all three groups present and compare their findings. Focus the discussion on the similarities and unique features of verses across all three characters. Prompt discussion with questions such as:

• Do any structural elements appear consistently across the verses?
• Have structural elements been used to emphasise certain aspects of characters or events?

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Examining grammar and vocabulary

Introducing adverbs

Ask students to read pp. 44–45 of The Little Wave. This scene unfolds during a beach volleyball lesson. Through the interaction between Noah and Harley, we gain insight into Noah’s private thoughts. Pip Harry skilfully portrays the boys’ distinct personalities, as well as the nuances of their relationship.

As a class, take a look at how Harry adds more information about the characters’ actions. Direct students’ attention to the following lines:

• 44, ll. 5–6 – Noah and Harley walk together
• 45, l. 10 – Noah says he might surf alone today
• 45, ll. 11–12 – Harley says Noah would probably ding his board anyway

Ask students to describe the function of the underlined words. What extra meaning do they bring to the sentence? Extend the discussion by asking students to explain how the underlined words connect to the verbs:

• ‘Together’ tells us how Noah and Harley walked
• ‘Today’ tells us when Noah might surf
• ‘Probably’ tells us the likelihood that Noah would ding Harley’s board
• ‘Anyway’ confirms that it is inevitable that Noah would ding Harley’s board

Allow time for students to discuss what they think the connection between these words might be.

Explain that words that tell us about manner (‘together’), time (‘today’), likelihood (‘probably’), and inevitability (‘anyway’) are called adverbs because they provide information about verbs. Adverbs often end in -ly, but not always.

Direct students to some sentences that DON’T have adverbs. Ask them to identify the verb and add their own adverb about manner, time, likelihood, or inevitability. Some examples are:

• 44, l. 11 – add ‘this morning’ (adverb of time)
• 45, l. 3 – add ‘closely’ (adverb of manner)

Discuss students’ new sentences, drawing attention to the connection between verbs, adverbs, and the type of information provided.

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Introducing prepositional phrases

Ask students to re-read pp. 44–45. Explain that they’re going to examine how Pip Harry adds even more information to her sentences. Direct their attention to the following lines:

• 44, ll. 3–4 – the nets are on the sand
• 44, ll. 5–6 – Noah and Harley walk to the beach
• 44, ll. 7–8 – Harley leans on Noah’s shoulder

Ask students to describe the function of the underlined words. What sort of information is indicated in these examples?

• ‘On the sand’ indicates the location of the nets
• ‘To the beach’ indicates Noah and Harley’s destination
• ‘On my shoulder’ indicates where Harley is leaning

Extend the discussion by asking students to explain the grammatical pattern of the underlined words. They might suggest that the first word is about place (preposition), the middle word is ‘which one’ (pointer), and the third word is the ‘thing’ (noun).

Explain that prepositions are small words that can indicate place (‘on’) or direction (‘to’). Prepositions can also indicate other relationships. In pairs, have students discuss what sort of information is indicated by the following prepositional phrases:

• 44, l. 16 – ‘out the back’ indicates location
• 45, ll. 1–2 – ‘to the beach’ indicates destination; ‘on your own’ = indicates with whom
• 45, l. 5 – ‘under his breath’ indicates manner
• 45, l. 6 – ‘with Harley’ indicates with whom
• 45, l. 9 – ‘out there’ indicates location
• 45, l. 10 – ‘on my own’ indicates with whom
• 45, ll. 13–15 – ‘with his finger’ indicates what he’ll use; ‘in the middle of my cheek’ indicates location

Ask students to reflect on the grammatical pattern they identified earlier and check if these sentences conform to the same pattern. Most do, but there are some exceptions.

Finally, ask students to add prepositional phrases to the following lines:

• 44, l. 10
• 44, l. 15
• 45, ll. 7–8
• 45, l. 16

Discuss the sort of information that is indicated by the students’ new sentences.

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Spelling

Choose a page from The Little Wave and engage in a shared analysis of a word ending in the suffix -ing (e.g. ‘getting’ on p. 1).

Start by reading the sentence in which the word appears, then engage in a discussion:

• I can see the word ‘getting’ here. What does this word mean?
  • [It means to receive something, i.e. receive some guests.]
• How is this word built? I am thinking it could be either:
  • get + t + ing
  • get + ting
• Do you know any other words that look like this?

Give each student a different page number so they can scan their copy of the book and create a list of all the words on that page that end in the suffix -ing. Then resume your discussion:

• Can you share some of the words you found on your page?
  • [e.g. ‘thrashing’, ‘sleeping’, ‘coming’, ‘shifting’, ‘filling’, ‘throwing’, ‘saying’, ‘crying’, ‘talking’, ‘baking’, ‘pushing’, ‘cooling’, ‘bubbling’, ‘going swimming’, ‘skimming’]
• What do you notice about the spelling pattern of words that end in -ing? Try to identify the base word and see if there is a pattern for adding the ending.
• My word ‘getting’ has the base word ‘get’ and then a ‘t’ before the suffix -ing. Are any of your words similar?
  • [Yes, ‘swimming’ and ‘skimming’: swim + m + ing and skim + m + ing.]
• Can we notice anything about the words ‘getting’, ‘swimming’, and ‘skimming’?
  • [e.g. they are all verbs; they all have a base word; the base words all have one syllable; the base words all end in a single consonant; the final consonant in the base word has been doubled]
• Did you find OR do you know any other words like this?
  • [e.g. running, sitting, hopping, jogging, letting, shopping]
• There are other words ending in the suffix -ing that don’t double the final consonant. Why?

Working in pairs or groups of three, students will combine their lists and write the words they found in The Little Wave on separate cards or sticky notes. The goal is to sort the words into groups based on spelling generalisations (e.g. double the final consonant). Provide mini whiteboards, blank cards, ‘+’ symbols, dictionaries, and other resources to assist them with their investigation.

Once they have sorted their words, they should write a brief explanation for each category they created. Each pair/group can then join with another pair/group to compare their discoveries and explanations. These might include:

• double the final consonant (‘getting’)
• drop the final ‘e’ (‘making’)
• no change to the base word (‘surfing’)
• words ending in -ie (‘lying’)
• words ending in a single consonant + ‘l’ (‘travelling’)
• words ending in vowels (‘skiing’)

Finally, organise students into groups of three or four. Assign each one a word group and ask them to create a poster to explain the spelling generalisation that applies to that group. The poster should include sample words from The Little Wave.

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Rich assessment task

Each student will choose ONE chapter from The Little Wave (this can be any ‘Noah’, ‘Lottie’, or ‘Jack’ chapter). They should annotate the text to identify how Pip Harry’s authorial choices contribute to the development of character, setting, and plot. They should then choose a tool and mode to communicate their analysis. For example:

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Chapter map

Use a chapter map template (PDF, 51KB) to develop a detailed map of a chapter from The Little Wave, with a focus on character, setting, plot, and text structure. Model this first so that students know how to complete the map. Then organise the class into six groups and allocate them one of the following chapters:

1. ‘Noah’, pp. 1–7
2. ‘Noah’, pp. 151–153
3. ‘Lottie’, pp. 8–14
4. ‘Lottie’, pp. 159–163
5. ‘Jack’, pp. 15–20
6. ‘Jack’, pp. 155–158

Each group should create an A3 chapter map for their allocated chapter. Once they are finished, use the chapter maps to review how Pip Harry develops character, setting, and plot within and across the chapters.

Character profile

Together review the Roles on the Wall (Responding > Responding to the Text), Chapter Maps (above), and emotion maps (Responding > Exploring Plot, Character, Setting, and Theme > Literature Circles > Session 5) to recall key characteristics of the main characters. Using this information, work together to create a character profile (PDF, 68KB) for Jack.

Then organise the class into small groups and ask each group to create a character profile for either Noah OR Lottie.

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Rich assessment task

Students may choose ONE of the following options to complete this task:

1. Write the first chapter of a sequel to The Little Wave – in which the Manly kids travel to Mullin – from Noah, Lottie, or Jack’s perspective.
2. Write the first chapter of a sequel to The Little Wave – in which the Manly kids travel to Mullin – from Ajit or Daisy’s perspective (re-read pp. 230–231 to learn about them).
3. Write the first chapter of your own book, featuring yourself as the main character (revisit your personalised book cover from the start of this unit).

First, students will create a Character Profile (above) for their chosen character.

• For Noah, Lottie, or Jack – describe the character’s life six months after the events of The Little Wave.
• For Ajit or Daisy – develop the character based on the information in the final chapter of The Little Wave.
• For your own character – describe yourself in detail.

Next, students will create a Chapter Map (above) so that they can work on developing the plot, setting, and text structure for their own writing.

Finally, students will draft the first chapter of a sequel to The Little Wave in the same style that Pip Harry used. They should refer to their character profile and chapter map to support the writing process.

Remind students that The Little Wave is written in free verse. Review the information from the Literature section of this unit (Exploring the Text in Context of Our Community, School, and ‘Me’ > Understanding Characters and Ourselves) to assist them with their work.

Together, come up with a checklist that students can use during and after writing to support their learning. See this sample checklist (PDF, 52KB) for ideas.

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