# English: checks, annotated examples and next moves

Use these as **formative** evidence only. ACARA Year 2 achievement is a wider body of work. Keep four columns: `task and exact response / what was read or heard / access + prompts / next teaching move`. Whole-class responses help teaching but are not independent individual evidence. Rotate 2–3 focus learners per day, ask for a quiet independent sample across several days, and use `not yet observed` honestly.

| Day | Look/listen for | Example and next move |
| ---: | --- | --- |
| 1 | Character Sol/Rae, flat sheet dipped, one story detail | “The beetle did it” after read-aloud: reread the action sentence and distinguish toy from character. |
| 2 | Blend `paint`, `stay`, point to `ai/ay` | Reads a word from its picture only: remove picture, model grapheme and blend; check prerequisite consonants. |
| 3 | Story-supported reason Rae wants another try | “Because she is nice” without text clue: revisit “before we say this fold always works” and ask what that suggests. |
| 4 | Accurate noun group and precise verb | “The purple sheet flew” when source gave no purple/flying: ask what the story actually shows, revise. |
| 5 | Character/place, problem, attempt and outcome in child's adaptation | Four drawings with no problem: ask what goes wrong, add one event, then retell in order. |
| 6 | `You need` finds materials; directions are under `Try it` | Child seeks materials in character dialogue: compare text headings and navigate again. |
| 7 | Blend `green`, `clean`, distinguish `ee/ea` examples | Reads **clean** as **clan**: point to two-letter `ea`, blend /iː/ in this word, revisit with **team**. |
| 8 | Two complete clauses linked for intended meaning | “The paper dipped, so folded”: ask “Who folded it?”; make second clause complete before joining. |
| 9 | Text B for materials, with heading as clue | “Both have paper” is true but insufficient: ask which has an equipment list and why the audience needs it. |
| 10 | Fresh word sample, text-purpose reason, sentence for audience | Keep reading, listening and composition results separate; see below. |

## Day 5 check A — story creation

Ask for a child-chosen, safe toy/paper problem in **three beats**: a character in a place, a problem, an attempted solution and result. The child may use drawing, speech, AAC, dictation or writing. Keep the first and revised version. Look for coherent sequence, an identifiable connection to the familiar story structure, and one child-led edit after listener feedback. A child who draws clear events but dictates words has shown story design, **not** independent spelling. A child who writes fluent sentences with no solution needs event planning, not more handwriting sheets.

**Next teaching:** if sequence is unclear, replay three event objects and ask “Which happened first?”; if referents are unclear, practise naming the person/object before using “it”; if a sentence is crowded, compose one complete idea per card, then join if appropriate. Recheck in a new context rather than asking for an identical copy.

## Day 10 check B — answer key and evidence boundaries

**Word cards:** `tray`, `paint`, `leaf`, `green` presented without pictures. In the listed examples, `ay/ai` represent /eɪ/ and `ea/ee` represent /iː/. Listen for a left-to-right blend, not a memorised spoken label. Mark other consonant errors separately. If using AAC selection, present clearly contrasted choices and record the choice set. Never infer a hearing or speech impairment from one inaccessible oral test.

**Read-aloud meaning prompts from Text B:** “Where would you look to find what you need?” → under **You need**. “Why try more than once?” → one try can mislead; repeated attempts may show whether the result recurs. Accept a child explanation tied to the text. Since Text B was read aloud, this is listening/comprehension and navigation, **not independent decoding**.

**Composition prompt:** “Tell a family adult one way to make a paper test fair.” A keyed example: “Keep the supports the same, so we can compare the paper shapes.” This has two full clauses and a purposeful `so`; a child could instead make one clear sentence. A child saying “Use two identical paper tokens” is also valid if the test compares shape with the same load. Record whether the wording was child's, prompted or scribed.

**Next moves:**

- Vowel team insecure but consonants secure: explicitly model the selected vowel pattern in 3–4 new, accessible words, sort, blend, read in a short sentence, then recheck. Teach exceptions as words when encountered; do not claim a blanket rule.
- Word reading secure but meaning weak: slow down for sentence rereading, question/prediction, and text evidence in a learner-matched passage.
- Meaning secure after read-aloud but independent reading hard: continue rich shared text **and** targeted phonics/fluency work; retain separate evidence.
- Purpose clear but writing hard: plan orally and with cards, then co-construct one sentence; check whether transcription/motor access or sentence language is the barrier.
- English language access emerging: invite a home-language explanation with appropriate speaker/interpreter if possible; explicitly teach the English vocabulary needed for this task. Do not publish an unreviewed translation or treat the home language as an error.

**Rights:** Original assessment text © NeuroForgeIO Pty Ltd 2026, SubjectNest, [CC BY 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Credit, link and note changes.