AC9E4LY01 • Homework
Comparing Texts from Different Times
Download a separate 8-question worksheet aligned to this curriculum code.
Open practiceEight original comparison tasks
Use the supplied fictional pairs for the written tasks. The two clearly marked viewing tasks use genuine linked footage with an adult; record exactly what you view or read. Write in a notebook or download the sheet.
1. Comparison task
Read these original fictional family accounts. Letter to Grandpa, 3 May 1941: We opened the village garden today. I carried a tray of seedlings and felt proud when visitors arrived. Love, May. Message to Grandpa, 3 May 2024: We opened the village garden! Here is a photo of me carrying seedlings. I felt proud when visitors arrived. Love, Theo. Name the two dates, shared purpose and shared audience.
Adult guidance and possible response
1941 and 2024; both share a personal experience of opening a garden with Grandpa.
Require both dates, personal family update purpose and grandfather audience. These are fictional accounts, not archive evidence.
2. Comparison task
Read these original fictional family accounts. Letter to Grandpa, 3 May 1941: We opened the village garden today. I carried a tray of seedlings and felt proud when visitors arrived. Love, May. Message to Grandpa, 3 May 2024: We opened the village garden! Here is a photo of me carrying seedlings. I felt proud when visitors arrived. Love, Theo. Write one similarity and one difference in depiction. Support each with a precise clue.
Adult guidance and possible response
Both describe carrying seedlings and feeling proud when visitors arrive. The letter uses words; the newer message also offers a photo of the seedling-carrying moment.
Require two-text evidence, not “old versus new” alone. Do not invent the photograph’s colour, angle or entire event coverage.
3. Comparison task
Original fictional junior news A, 17 August 1979: The school band marched through the gate. The account describes polished instruments before the families cheering. B, 17 August 2024: Families cheered as the school band marched through the gate. The account puts the cheering first, then describes polished instruments. In three sentences, compare the shared purpose/audience and the order of the described details.
Adult guidance and possible response
Both report a school band event to young readers. Both mention instruments and cheering. A foregrounds the band’s appearance; B foregrounds the families’ response.
Require actual evidence and a fair order-linked interpretation. Do not infer earlier families never cheered.
4. Comparison task
Original fictional postcard to Mum, 5 July 1956: My first canoe trip began with a splash when my paddle slipped. I laughed and tried again. Message to Mum, 5 July 2024: My paddle slipped on my first canoe trip! This short audio clip records my laugh afterwards. I tried again. Explain a shared reaction and how the sound is represented differently.
Adult guidance and possible response
Both describe laughter after a slipping paddle and a further attempt. A names laughter in words; B says an audio clip is attached. The supplied text does not let us actually hear that clip.
Require shared reaction, words versus described recording and honest evidence limits; this is text comparison, not original audio viewing.
5. Comparison task
Original fictional postcard to Mum, 5 July 1956: My first canoe trip began with a splash when my paddle slipped. I laughed and tried again. Message to Mum, 5 July 2024: My paddle slipped on my first canoe trip! This short audio clip records my laugh afterwards. I tried again. A learner says: “The newer canoe message must be more truthful because it has audio.” Write a reply using only these accounts and explain what a date or medium alone cannot show.
Adult guidance and possible response
Both accounts provide similar event details. An audio attachment may represent one moment, but its presence and a newer date do not by themselves prove the entire account is more truthful.
Require a reasoned response grounded in evidence; do not claim either invented writer is lying.
6. Comparison task
Original fictional residents’ news A, 9 April 1963: Neighbours repaired the picnic benches before the weekend gathering. The report begins with their tools and repair work. B, 9 April 2024: Families sat at repaired benches during the weekend gathering. The report begins with the shared meal, then explains the neighbours’ work. Write a comparison in four sentences covering dates, purpose/audience, similarity and different emphasis.
Adult guidance and possible response
The accounts are dated 1963 and 2024. Both inform residents about a gathering made possible by repaired benches. Each includes neighbours’ work and use of the benches. A begins with preparation, whereas B begins with people enjoying the result.
Require all four components and a defensible effect; accept varied wording and no unsupported generalisations about entire eras.
7. Comparison task
With a teacher or adult, view the selected planning portions of ABC BTN Olympic Preparations (24 July 2012): https://www.abc.net.au/btn/classroom/olympic-preparations/10532274 and Paris Olympics (23 July 2024): https://www.abc.net.au/btn/classroom/paris-olympics/104128230. Record an actual image or sound from each with its time/location. Compare their child audience, pre-Games purpose and one shared preparation topic or different emphasis. Use the Topic Guide for the selected focus.
Adult guidance and possible response
A valid response identifies both original reports, child news audience and preparation purpose, then cites an actually observed clue from each and makes a supported comparison. The 2012 report uses a party-planning exchange; the 2024 report includes environmental ambitions.
An adult checks the actual chosen viewing evidence against the films. Official transcripts/captions support access; if only reading occurred, label it transcript comparison and leave moving-image evidence pending. No invented timestamp or scene is acceptable.
8. Comparison task
View the teacher-selected broadcasting-preparation footage in NFSA Nearing the Melbourne Olympics (1956): https://www.nfsa.gov.au/collection/item/nearing-melbourne-olympics. Describe one actual visible preparation. Compare its broad informative purpose with the BTN reports, and explain why its audience is a less exact match than the two BTN reports are to each other.
Adult guidance and possible response
A valid response names an actually observed preparation, such as work on broadcasting arrangements, explains the shared interest in Olympic preparations, and distinguishes a broader public documentary audience from BTN’s child audience.
Adult checks the visible clue against the actual selected film. This is a source-audience extension, not a claim of equal audiences. If only the source description was read, label that reading evidence honestly; do not record it as watched footage.