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Can We Help?: Challenging grammar rules, darlings and crowbars

Find out that what appears to be a straightforward grammar rule behind the use of the words 'fewer' and 'less' may not be as straightforward as it seems! Professor Kate Burridge explains that this grammar rule has been under challenge for centuries. She also explains the origins of the word 'darling' and why the 'crow' ...

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A resourceful guide to prefixes and suffixes

Do you know what a prefix and a suffix is? Watch this clip as it explains what they are. Can you think of some words that have been created using a prefix or a suffix that are not included in this clip?

Audio

Radio National: Different meanings for the same word

<span style="line-height: 1.4;">You've heard people speaking English with different accents, but have you noticed that the differences in accent come down to the way words are pronounced? Listen to this interview with linguist David Crystal and find out about accents and why the same word can mean something different or ...

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Can We Help?: Dude: American words and pronunciations

Where does the word 'dude' come from? Why do speakers of English often pronounce words differently depending on their country of origin - not only because of their accent? Find out with Professor Kate Burridge when she takes on these questions from viewers.

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Can We Help?: Word histories: how extraordinary!

Words can change over time and so can their meanings. The word 'extra' broke away from other words to become a word on its own. Professor Kate Burridge explains how this impacts on words like 'extraordinary'. She also explains the origins and meanings of the words 'hearse' and 'rehearse''.

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Can We Help?: Changing letter sounds and butterflies

Have you ever wondered why you can't just add a prefix such as 'in-' to the beginning of a word to make its opposite? Professor Kate Burridge explains how a prefix is influenced by the sound of the letters that come after it. She also gives two explanations about the origins of the word 'butterfly'.

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Big Ideas: Evolving English and the role of social media

How many times have you heard teenagers berated for using the term 'like'? Yet this term has existed at least since 1586 when the term, 'Yon man is like out of his mind' was written into history. The truth is, our language is constantly evolving, with new words added, others dying off and some resurfacing again. In this ...

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Can We Help?: Why do we say the words the way we do?

What kinds of things might influence the way we pronounce words in English? Professor Kate Burridge explains why knowing when 'kilometre' came into English helps us to understand why it is pronounced differently from similar words such as 'kilogram' and 'centimetre'. She also explains what it means to 'barrack' for a team.

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Can We Help?: Words and sayings over time

Have you ever wondered where sayings like 'hanging by the skin of your teeth' come from? Professor Kate Burridge explains the origin and meaning of this saying. She also explains the opposite word (antonym) to 'misogynist' (someone who hates or has a long and deep prejudice against women) and the origins of the word 'goodbye'.

Interactive

Jumbled Sentences 4 - iTunes app

Learn to construct sentences by dragging jumbled words into place. You can turn on sound to hear each word spoken and hear your completed sentences read to you. With each successful sentence, you earn virtual coins to buy virtual stickers for your collection. This is one of a series of nine apps. Free when reviewed 6/6/15.

Interactive

Jumbled Sentences 5 - iTunes app

Learn to construct sentences by dragging jumbled words into place. You can turn on sound to hear each word spoken and hear your completed sentences read to you. With each successful sentence, you earn virtual coins to buy virtual stickers for your collection. This is one of a series of nine apps. Free when reviewed 6/6/15.

Interactive

Jumbled Sentences 9 - iTunes app

Learn to construct sentences by dragging jumbled words into place. You can turn on sound to hear each word spoken and hear your completed sentences read to you. With each successful sentence, you earn virtual coins to buy virtual stickers for your collection. This is one of a series of nine apps. Free when reviewed 6/6/15.

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Can We Help?: 'Bought' or 'brought' and radio code

Changes in the use, pronunciation, and meaning of common everyday English words happen all the time. Professor Kate Burridge explains that we can see this in the way people increasingly switch the past tense of the verbs 'buy' and 'bring'. She also answers a viewer's question about why 'Roger' is used on two-way and CB radios.

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How many versions of the English language are there?

Did you know that in Australia the way we use, pronounce and spell some words is different from the way they are used, pronounced and spelt in America? Can you list all the countries in the world where English is used? See if you can think of countries not mentioned in this clip.  

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Syllabus bites: Visual literacy

A resource with information, study guides and resources on visual literacy to support the English K-10 Australian Curriculum in English. It provides a series of activities, guidelines and tasks about visual texts from a variety of sources. Contains writing scaffolds, templates and proformas for responding and composing ...

Online

Patterns

This is a unit of inquiry made up of 12 learning sequences for year F in the English for the Australian Curriculum resource. Each learning sequence contains a series of resources, suggested activities to carry out with students and a post-activity reflection. This unit examines patterns in literature and language, with ...

Interactive

Syllabus bites: types of sentences

A web page resource with information, teacher guides and activities on types of sentences to support the Australian Curriculum in English K–10. It has detailed activities, links to resources and quizzes.

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Syllabus bites: Exploring Asia-related texts

This resource has information, links and study guides on Asia-related texts to support the Australian Curriculum in English for Year 7, 8, 9, 10.

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SpellingCity - Google Play app

Learn and practise your spelling, grammar and vocabulary with 10 multimodal spelling games. Build customised word listsand test yourself on your spelling. SpellingCity is a companion app for the www.spellingcity.com website. Free when reviewed 7/6/15.

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SpellingCity - iTunes app

Learn and practise your spelling, grammar and vocabulary with 10 multimodal spelling games. Build customised word lists and test yourself on your spelling. SpellingCity is a companion app for the www.spellingcity.com website. Free when reviewed 7/6/15.