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Advice for teachers -
Greek

Teaching and learning activities

Unit 1

Unit 1 – Area of Study 1: Interpersonal communication

Theme: The individual
Topic: Aspirations, education and careers
Sub topic: Experiences of schooling

Outcome 1

Exchange meaning in a spoken interaction in Greek.

Examples of learning activities

  • Read a blog about a recent school exchange in Greece/Cyprus; take notes and highlight the differences observed between school life in Australia and Greece/Cyprus.
  • Skype a student in Greece/Cyprus who has recently completed an exchange in Australia. Compare their answers to the blog.
  • View a video about secondary school education in Greece/Cyprus. Reflect on how it differs from a school in Victoria.
  • Listen to a conversation between a student from Australia on exchange and their host family. Answer prepared questions about the conversation.
  • Write six to eight questions to ask someone who has been on student exchange in Greece/Cyprus. Swap questions with a classmate and answer their questions based on research material.
  • Undertake research about an exchange program (actual experience or researched via class materials), noting major similarities and differences between Australia and Greece/Cyprus. Create PowerPoint slides. Present research findings to the class.
  • Interview another student in the class, using prepared questions. Discuss specific aspects of the school they attended during their exchange or one that they have researched. Concentrate on classrooms, subjects studied and school routines.
  • Listen to a student from Greece/Cyprus talking about their school experience in Greece/Cyprus. Reflect on how this information correlates to other material on the topic by discussing it with a classmate.
  • Summarise all the findings discovered on this topic in a graph or Venn diagram.
  • Read source material about education from Greece/Cyprus’s Bureau of Statistics. Extract information and make comparisons with information about Australian education sourced from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS).
  • Note vocabulary used in any material viewed, heard or read relating to education. Discuss any words or phrases that are not readily translatable into English.
  • Produce an article of 200 words outlining for an Australian audience some aspects of Greece/Cyprus’s education system.
  • Read journal entries written by students in Australia and Greece/Cyprus to gain an insight into the personal aspects of participating in an exchange in another country and staying with another family.
  • Find a blog on the internet written by someone who has been on a school exchange to Greece/Cyprus. Annotate it to identify key points that represent individual experiences.
  • Listen to a guest speaker talk about their experience of an exchange in Greece/Cyprus. Ask prepared questions of the speaker.
  • Watch a video or film about families with school-age children in Greece/Cyprus. Take notes about their lives.
  • Listen to a recorded discussion or radio programs about school exchanges. In pairs, make a list of the insights gained by the students on the exchanges. Categorise them as personal, educational, cultural, social, etc.
  • In pairs or small groups, discuss the following example topics and create draft plans to produce a piece of writing.
    1. a. Imagine you have been on an exchange. Write an email about the experience for your school's website.
    2. b. Write an email to your teacher about your time on exchange.

    With the class divided into two groups, debate the topic ‘Language and education exchanges are very worthwhile’. Both sides must use evidence and examples from the research gathered.

detailed example icon

Detailed example

An email to your teacher about your time on exchange

  1. Create a workbook to record information, notes and bibliographic details gathered throughout the area of study. Develop a glossary of key terms and concepts.
  2. View a documentary/undertake research about students from Australia who participated in an exchange in Greece/Cyprus. Take notes under a series of headings, which could include: type of school, subjects studied, school routines, homework expectations, school uniforms, impressions, teaching and learning styles.
  3. Compare the different experiences of the students. How were they similar or different?
  4. Conduct research on aspects of the education system in Greece/Cyprus. Include school subjects (elective and compulsory subjects), English and other languages education, and senior secondary examinations.
  5. Construct a table to summarise the information found.
  6. Make comparisons to the situation in schools in Victoria/Australia.
  7. Listen to a speech/interview given on the education system in Greece/Cyprus.
  8. Construct a concept map to establish what you have found out about schooling in Greece/Cyprus.
  9. Draft the email to your teacher.

Unit 1 – Area of Study 2: Interpretative communication

Theme: The world around us
Topic: Communication and media
Sub topic: The internet and social media

Outcome 2

Interpret information from two texts on the same sub topic presented in Greek, and respond in writing in Greek and in English.

Examples of learning activities

  • Read an article about ‘screen addiction’ and extract vocabulary for a class glossary for the topic.
  • Listen to an interview and read an article about screen use in Greece/Cyprus, or in Greek-speaking communities. Answer questions about each one. Write a 100-word summary of all the views expressed in both texts.
  • Search the internet for stories in Greek on the topic of ‘When being on screen is harmful’.
  • View a video/vlog/YouTube clip where young people discuss how and when they are ‘on screen’.
  • View a documentary about the usefulness of screens in modern life.
  • Example icon for advice for teachers
    Discuss the themes mentioned in the article on ‘screen addiction’ and prepare a two- to three-minute presentation to the class about your personal screen usage.
  • Discuss the positive aspects of screen usage with a classmate. List your combined positives on a poster for the classroom wall.
  • Compare the salient points from the documentary with the class posters. Discuss any differences in small groups. Using the lists and summaries, debate the issue ‘Screens are ruling our world today’.
  • List the types of screens that could be part of the topic ‘Screens are ruling our world today’. Write a 200-word letter to a friend in which you express your concerns about being ‘on screen’ so much.
  • Create a list of positives and negatives about screen use. Write a 100-word summary of the list.
  • Research statistics relating to screen use in Australia and Greece/Cyprus. Tabulate the results.
  • Write an imaginative short story in which you project current screen usage into a utopian future.
  • Write an article of 200 words, based on two texts you have studied for publication in a school magazine on the topic of screen use by young people.
  • View a series of photos that depict young people using screens in their daily lives. Discuss and analyse them.
  • Discuss how schools operated prior to having access to the internet. Write an imaginative story where you wake up in a pre-internet age and have to live one day without the internet.
Example icon for advice for teachers 

Detailed example

A 2–3 minute presentation to the class about your personal screen usage

  1. Read an article about how people are using screens in Greece/Cyprus or a Greek-speaking community today.
  2. Identify the key points made in the article and create a matrix to find any overlap in positive and negative points.
  3. Conduct further research to discover any material that can be added to the matrix.
  4. Listen to an interview about this topic. Identify key vocabulary and expressions associated with the major concepts.
  5. Drawing on the ideas in the article and interview, draft the oral presentation paying attention to the structure and sequencing of ideas.

Unit 1 – Area of Study 3: Presentational communication

Theme: The world around us
Topic: Communications and media
Sub topic: A film from a Greek-speaking community and/or the Greek language film industry

Outcome 3

Present information, concepts and ideas in writing in Greek on the selected subtopic and for a specific audience and purpose.

Examples of learning activities

  • Watch a film, or extracts from a film (including from a Greek Student Film Competition), and take notes under the headings: plot, main characters, actors, soundtrack, special effects, themes or ideas.
  • Read film synopses and critiques in Greek, identifying the vocabulary used.
  • Identify cultural differences between film critiques in Greece/Cyprus and Australia.
  • Search for statistics on the selected film industry.
  • Read one or two articles on the selected films and/or film industry. Answer comprehension questions about them.
  • View a video of interviews with Greeek-speaking actors, directors and producers in order to answer a set of questions.
  • Write about a Greek-speaking actor, director or the film industry in general in 50-100 words.
  • Identify cultural elements from your reading, viewing and listening. Consider the questions: Are there any particular elements that could only come from Greece/Cyprus? How can you tell? What identifies them? Compare these ideas to films produced in Australia.
  • Research notable actors or directors in Greece/Cyprus's film industry. List the films made by one notable director.
  • Listen to Greek-speaking directors talking about their films. Identify their main concerns: artistic, economic and other.
  • Write draft outlines for one of the following topics:
    • A journal entry about a film recently seen.
    • Imagine a film that you would like to direct. Write the script of a conversation you have
      with a leading actor that you would like to star in the film.
    • Write an informative article about an aspect of the Greek-speaking film industry that interests you.
  • Write a letter to a Greek-speaking film director about an idea that you have for a film.
  • Example icon for advice for teachers
    Create a three- to four-minute video with another student about your favourite films, actors or directors from a Greek-speaking community.
detailed example icon

Detailed example

Three- to four-minute video about favourite films, actors or directors from a Greek-speaking community

  1. View a film from a Greek-speaking community.
  2. Take notes under headings: plot, main characters, actors, soundtrack, special effects, themes or ideas.
  3. In pairs decide which elements are to be included in the final video. Discuss the outline with the teacher.
  4. Plan the structure of the video to be filmed. Write it up as a series of dot points.
  5. Research the particular elements to be discussed.
  6. Write a script.
  7. Draw a storyboard.
  8. Film.
  9. Edit as necessary.
  10. Show video to the class.
  11. Other students give oral and written feedback to each pair and the teacher.