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Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority

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Level 1

Level 1 Description

In Level 1, students communicate with peers, teachers, known adults and students from other classes.

Students engage with a variety of texts for enjoyment. They listen to, read, view and interpret spoken, written and multimodal texts designed to entertain and inform. These encompass traditional oral texts including Aboriginal stories, picture books, various types of stories, rhyming verse, poetry...

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Level 1 Content Descriptions

Speaking and Listening

Language Elaborations
Language variation and change
  1. Understand that people use different systems of communication to cater to different needs and purposes and that many people may use sign systems to communicate with others (VCELA198)
    1. recognising how and where signs and symbols are used and placed in students’ school and community
    2. learning some signs in Auslan and finding out about ‘Hear a Book’ and Braille technologies for hearing and visually impaired people
Language for interaction
  1. Understand that language is used in combination with other means of communication (VCELA199)
    1. recognising the effect of words, symbols, gestures and body language on the way communications are received by others
  2. Understand that there are different ways of asking for information, making offers and giving commands (VCELA200)
    1. learning the difference between questions and statements, requests and commands
    2. learning about different types of questions including closed and open questions and ‘where’, ‘what’, ‘who’ and ‘why’ questions
  3. Explore different ways of expressing emotions, including verbal, visual, body language and facial expressions (VCELA201)
    1. extending students’ vocabularies for the expression of feelings and emotions
    2. considering how others might respond before expressing their views, and how students might respond to others’ views in civil and constructive ways
Expressing and developing ideas
  1. Understand the use of vocabulary in everyday contexts as well as a growing number of school contexts, including appropriate use of formal and informal terms of address in different contexts (VCELA202)
    1. learning forms of address for visitors and how to use language appropriately to ask directions and for information, for example on excursions
Phonics and word knowledge
  1. Identify the separate phonemes in consonant blends or clusters at the beginnings and ends of syllables (VCELA203)
    1. clapping the syllables in words and identifying the separate consonant sounds in blends or clusters in each syllable, for example in 'frost' and 'play-ing'
  2. Manipulate phonemes by addition, deletion and substitution of initial, medial and final phonemes to generate new words (VCELA204)
    1. recognising words that start with a given sound, end with a given sound, have a given medial sound, rhyme with a given word
    2. recognising and producing rhyming words
    3. replacing sounds in spoken words, for example replace the ‘m’ in 'mat' with 'c' to form a new word 'cat', deleting the 'f' from 'farm' to form a new word 'arm', and substituting the 't' in 'pet' with 'n' to form a new word 'pen'
    4. saying sounds in order for a given spoken word (for example f/i/sh, th/i/s)
Literature Elaborations
Literature and context
  1. Discuss how authors create characters using language and images (VCELT205)
    1. identifying similarities between texts from different cultural traditions, for example representations of dragons in traditional European and Asian texts, and how spiritual beings are represented in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander stories
    2. identifying some features of characters and how particular words and images convey qualities of their nature, for example some characters are portrayed as shy, others adventurous
    3. discussing the characters of fictional animals and how they relate to those of humans
Responding to literature
  1. Express preferences for specific texts and authors and listen to the opinions of others (VCELT206)
    1. sharing favourite texts and authors and some reasons for preferences
    2. discussing different texts and considering what is entertaining or appealing
    3. using arts methods and role play to express personal responses to characters and events in stories
    4. identifying who is telling the story in different texts
  2. Discuss characters and events in a range of literary texts and share personal responses to these texts, making connections with own experiences (VCELT207)
    1. discussing characters from books and films and whether these are life-like or imaginary (for example talking animals)
    2. comparing characters and events in texts to own experiences
Examining literature
  1. Discuss features of plot, character and setting in different types of literature and compare some features of characters in different texts (VCELT208)
    1. examining different types of literature including traditional tales, humorous stories and poetry
    2. discussing similarities and differences between texts ( for example features of main characters in different stories)
    3. discussing features of book settings including time (year, season) and place (country or city, realistic or imagined)
    4. discussing how plots develop including: beginnings (orientation), how the problem (complication) is introduced and solved (resolution)
  2. Listen to, recite and perform poems, chants, rhymes and songs, imitating and inventing sound patterns including alliteration and rhyme (VCELT209)
    1. exploring performance poetry, chants and songs from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and Asian cultures
    2. listening to and performing simple haiku poems about familiar topics such as nature and the seasons
Literacy Elaborations
Interacting with others
  1. Engage in conversations and discussions, using active listening, showing interest, and contributing ideas, information and questions, taking turns and recognising the contributions of others (VCELY210)
    1. listening for details in spoken informative texts
    2. participating in informal and structured class, group and pair discussions about content area topics, ideas and information
    3. speaking clearly and with appropriate volume
    4. interacting confidently and appropriately with peers, teachers, visitors and community members
    5. learning to value listening, questioning and positive body language and understanding that different cultures may approach these differently
    6. formulating different types of questions to ask a speaker, such as open and closed questions and ‘when’, ‘why’ and ‘how’ questions
  2. Make short presentations, speaking clearly and using appropriate voice and pace, and using some introduced text structures and language (VCELY211)
    1. reporting the results of group discussions
    2. providing simple explanations about how to do or make something
    3. giving short oral presentations about areas of interest or content area topics, speaking clearly and with appropriate volume and using extended vocabulary and a growing knowledge of content-specific words

Level 1 Achievement Standard

Reading and Viewing

By the end of Level 1, students understand the different purposes of texts. They make connections to personal experience when explaining characters and main events in short texts. They identify that texts serve different purposes and that this affects how they are organised. They are able to read aloud, with developing fluency, short texts with some unfamiliar vocabulary, simple and compound sentences and supportive images. When reading, they use knowledge of the relationships between sounds and letters, high-frequency words, sentence-boundary punctuation and directionality to make meaning. They recall key ideas and recognise literal and implied meaning in texts.

Writing

When writing, students provide details about ideas or events, and details about the participants in those events. They accurately spell words with regular spelling patterns and use their knowledge of blending and segmenting, and many simple and high-frequency words to write predictable words. They use capital letters and full stops appropriately.

Speaking and Listening

Students listen to others when taking part in conversations using appropriate interaction skills. They listen for and reproduce letter patterns and letter clusters. Students understand how characters in texts are developed and give reasons for personal preferences. They can describe characters, settings and events in different types of literature. They create texts that show understanding of the connection between writing, speech and images. They create short texts for a small range of purposes. They interact in pair, group and class discussions, taking turns when responding. They make short presentations on familiar topics.

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