Looking for a Year 4–5 English tutor? This term’s novel study pushes your child past “summarising the story” and into forming — and writing — a genuine point of view.
What This Class Is About
We read Black Cockatoo, a true, own-voices story by Indigenous author Carl Merrison. Mia rescues her family’s totem animal — an injured black cockatoo — and in doing so, reconnects with her family and culture. It’s a rich, honest book that naturally opens up conversations about family, culture and identity.
What We’re Covering This Term
- Understanding Mia’s world: the setting, her family, and the significance of the totem.
- Character choices: exploring why Mia acts as she does, and what her decisions reveal about her values.
- Culture and identity: discussing the book’s themes with care and depth, beyond a surface-level plot summary.
- Writing with a real point of view: learning to express a genuine opinion in writing, rather than simply retelling events.
Why It Matters
From this age on, school and test writing increasingly reward a child’s ability to think from multiple angles and express a real perspective — not just recount what happened. This unit builds that skill directly, with a story worth thinking deeply about.
Mica Academy teaches this class live online, so your child gets a qualified English tutor whether you’re in Perth, Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane or anywhere else in Australia.
Term 3 runs 18 July – 25 September. Spots are limited — get in touch to enrol your child.