Novel Study: Generic Activities

Fourteen reading-response activity pages are written to pair with any novel a class is currently reading, rather than one specific book.
Year levels
Years 6–10
Pages
20
File type
Multiple File Types

Updated Apr 23, 2024

Subject
Literature, Reading Comprehension, Reading, English
Topic
Novel Study, Literature Companion
Resource types
Novel Studies
Australian Curriculum content descriptions
AC9E9LE05 — analyse the effect of text structures AC9E9LA08 — analyse how vocabulary choices contribute to style

From the author

About this resource

Select response pages for the novel your class is reading. The 19-page PDF includes context clues, word choice, symbolism, mood and tone, figurative language, Answer–Proof–Explain responses, inference, question writing, character traits and change, punctuation, foreshadowing and a favourite-scene movie project.

A punctuation answer page is provided; responses tied to your chosen novel vary. The packet also includes six JPG preview/example images and one PNG. Supply the novel and any craft or recording materials needed for the project.

In the classroom

Teaching tips & learning objectives

Learning objectives

  • Student can apply context-clue strategies (synonym, antonym, inference, definition, example) to define unfamiliar words in a novel.

  • Student can identify and create examples of figurative language (simile, metaphor, onomatopoeia, alliteration, idiom, hyperbole) from a novel.

  • Student can track how a character changes over the course of a novel and support the change with textual evidence.

Teaching tips

  • Keep this packet on hand as a rotating centre or sub-plan activity, since every page is written to work with whatever novel the class is currently reading rather than a specific title.

  • Use the logo-identification warm-up before assigning the symbolism task, since it primes students with a familiar, low-stakes example of 'reading' a symbol before applying the skill to their novel.

  • Assign the punctuation-editing page independently of the novel-specific pages, since it uses its own generic sentences and includes a self-contained answer key.

Skills covered

  • Context-clue strategy application — students use the synonym/antonym/inference/definition/example method to define unfamiliar words from their current novel.

  • Figurative-language identification — students locate simile, metaphor, onomatopoeia, alliteration, idiom, and hyperbole examples in their text and then compose their own.

  • Symbolism analysis — students first identify well-known company logos, then transfer that pattern-recognition skill to find and explain a symbol within their novel.

  • Evidence-based answer structuring — students use an Answer-Proof-Explain framework to support a claim about a character with a direct quote.

No reviews yet

Downloaded this resource? Tell other teachers how it went.

Australian Curriculum (Version 9.0)

Australian Curriculum content descriptions

Australian Curriculum content descriptions

  • AC9E9LE05 — analyse the effect of text structures, language features and literary devices such as extended metaphor, metonymy, allegory, symbolism and intertextual references
  • AC9E9LA08 — analyse how vocabulary choices contribute to style, mood and tone

Core concepts

  • Figurative language

  • Context clues

  • Symbolism

  • Character analysis

  • Inferencing

Explore more

Categories this resource belongs to

Explore related searches

More to explore

You may also like