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NSW Curriculum
NSW Education Standards Authority

K–10English K–10 Syllabus

Record of changes
Implementation for K–2 from 2023 and 3–10 from 2024
Expand for detailed implementation advice

Content

Early Stage 1

Oral language and communication

Content in Oral language and communication focuses on speaking and listening. For some students who are d/Deaf or hard of hearing, this will be through signing and watching Auslan as well as, or instead of, speaking and listening. Complementary content has been provided as alternative means to demonstrate aspects of the outcome for students who use other forms of communication to supplement or replace speech. Content should be taught through speaking and listening experiences, where appropriate, in combination with the student’s preferred communication forms. Teachers use the content for alternative communication forms in combination with the content for oral language to meet the needs of individual students.

Listening for understanding
  • Orientate self to the speaker

  • Recognise how nonverbal language can contribute to meaning in spoken communication

  • Respond to spoken questions

  • Follow up to 3-part spoken instructions

  • Understand how pronouns can be linked to nouns to support meaning

  • Understand how the most common inflected word forms affect the meanings of words

  • Listen for a purpose by agreeing or disagreeing, adding to the comment of others, or sharing thoughts and feelings

Social and learning interactions
  • Contribute to group conversations

  • Start a conversation with a peer and/or adult, staying on topic

  • Take turns when speaking during structured and unstructured play

  • Use oral language to make requests and express needs

  • Use oral language to reason when speaking

  • Use oral language to persuade, negotiate, give opinions or discuss ideas

  • Use imaginative, verbal language in structured and unstructured activities

  • Ask questions using who, what, when, where, why or how

Understanding and using grammar when interacting
  • Understand there are many languages that are used by family, peers and community

  • Use short phrases and simple sentences when speaking

  • Use connectives such as and, but and because when speaking

  • Use regular past tense verbs when speaking

  • Use irregular past tense verbs when speaking

  • Use a combination of sentences to elaborate and connect ideas

Oral narrative
  • Tell a story or information to peers or adults using oral language

  • Retell favourite stories, poems, songs and rhymes with some parts as exact repetition and some in their own words

  • Recall details of events or stories using who, what, when, wherewhy and how

Complementary content for alternative communication forms: Listening for understanding
  • Recognise how nonverbal language can contribute to meaning when communicating

  • Respond to symbolic, signed and/or spoken questions

  • Follow up to 3-part instructions given in speech, signs or symbols

  • Attend to a communication partner for a purpose by agreeing or disagreeing, adding on to the comment of others, or sharing thoughts and feelings

Complementary content for alternative communication forms: Social and learning interactions
  • Take turns when communicating during structured and unstructured play

  • Use gestures, symbols, signs in combination with, or in place of speech, to convey requests and express needs

  • Use gestures, symbols, signs in combination with or in place of speech, to reason when communicating

  • Use gestures, symbols, signs in combination with or in place of speech, to persuade, negotiate, give opinions or discuss ideas

  • Communicate imaginatively in structured and unstructured activities

Complementary content for alternative communication forms: Understanding and using grammar when interacting
  • Communicate using short phrases and simple sentences represented by gestures, symbols, signs in combination with or in place of speech

  • Connect 2 or more ideas when communicating

  • Communicate ideas from the past using gestures, symbols, signs in combination with or in place of speech

  • Use gestures, symbols, signs in combination with or in place of speech, to connect and elaborate on ideas when retelling and creating stories

Complementary content for alternative communication forms: Oral narrative
  • Present a story or information to peers or adults using gestures, symbols, signs in combination with or in place of speech

  • Retell favourite stories, poems, songs and rhymes using gestures, symbols, signs in combination with or in place of speech

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