Worked example
Question: “This reminds me of my first day at school” is a connection because it links the text to an experience.
Key concept
Learning goal: I can share a response to a literary text and connect it with my own experience.
- Ask questions about characters, settings and events.
- Connect a text with your own experiences and explain the connection.
- Show a response to a character or event through drawing or role-play.
- Identify who is telling the story.
Steps to use
Listen/read → Notice part → Connect → Explain response
See it, then try it
Connect the text to your experience
Text: The child lost a toy.Connection: I lost my hat once.Response: I felt worried too.
Use respectful discussion language
I noticed...This reminds me of...I felt...I agree because...
Curriculum Coverage & Elaborations
Curriculum Coverage & Elaborations
The content description is the required target. The elaborations below are taught as examples and contexts, not as disconnected checklist wording.
- E1: generating questions about characters, settings and events from books and sharing responses
- E2: discussing different texts and offering opinions about how they reflect their own experiences
- E3: expressing responses to characters and events in stories using drawing and role-play
- E4: identifying who is telling the story in different texts
Common misconceptions
- Retells only — Add your thought, feeling or connection.
- Connection too vague — Name the part of the text that made the connection.
- Interrupting discussion — Listen first, then respond.
Try these
- Connection sentence — Complete a sentence linking text to experience.This reminds me of...
- Feeling thermometer — Choose a feeling and explain which part of the text caused it.happy / worried / surprised
- Partner response — Listen to a partner and add a related idea.I also thought...
Explain and apply
Connect to experience
A character feels shy on the first day. When have you felt something similar?
Answer and teaching guidance
A suitable connection names the story feeling and one personal experience that is similar or different.
Feeling plus reason
Say: I felt ____ when ____ because ____.
Answer and teaching guidance
The reason should connect to the story event, character action or student's own experience.
Different responses can work
Two students respond differently to the same story event. How can both responses be fair?
Answer and teaching guidance
Both can be fair when each response uses evidence from the text or a real connection.
Share respectfully
Use I noticed, This reminds me of, or I felt to discuss a literary text with a partner.
Answer and teaching guidance
These frames keep discussion clear, respectful and tied to the text.
Check your understanding
Quick checks
- What is a personal connection?
- Complete: This reminds me of ___.
- How can a text make a reader feel?
- Why should we listen to others’ responses?
I am ready when I can
- I can ask questions about characters, settings and events.
- I can connect a text with your own experiences and explain the connection.
- I can show a response to a character or event through drawing or role-play.
- I can identify who is telling the story.
Curriculum equivalents: Victoria, NSW and international
Curriculum equivalents for Literary texts and share responses by making connections with students’...
Mapped skill: discuss literary texts and share responses by making connections with students’ own experiences
These references identify matching or closely related learning. Curriculum sequence, terminology and depth vary, so teachers should use the mapped skill and lesson difficulty to confirm suitability.
| Region | Curriculum framework | Closest level or code |
|---|---|---|
| Australia | Australian Curriculum v9.0 | AC9E1LE02 · Year 1 |
| Victoria | Victorian Curriculum F–10 Version 2.0 — English | VC2E1LE02 · Level 1 |
| New South Wales | NSW English K–10 Syllabus (2022) | EN1-UARL-01 · Stage 1 |
| United States (USA) | Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts | Grade 1 |
| Canada (Ontario) | Ontario Curriculum — English | Grade 1 |
| United Kingdom (England) | National Curriculum in England — English | Year 2, Key Stage 1 |
| India | NCERT / CBSE — English | Class 1 |
Australian Curriculum v9.0 is the canonical source for this SkillrHub lesson. Victoria and NSW entries name the closest published state codes or outcomes; international entries are planning references rather than claims of identical curricula.
🎥 Optional Video Lesson
The SkillrHub lesson remains the primary learning resource. This optional video reinforces the explanation; you can complete the lesson and practice without watching.
Before you watch:
- Pause after each worked example.
- Try the examples yourself.
- Return to the SkillrHub lesson before continuing.
Recommended: How to Learn about Characters
Khan Academy Kids — Understand a character before connecting their experience with your own.
As you watch: Has the character felt or done something familiar to you?
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Try it: Talk about a story you know. Explain one way a character experience is like or unlike your own.
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