English Speaking & Listeningusually ages 4–11

Group discussions

Participate actively in collaborative conversations staying on topic; continue a conversation through multiple exchanges; maintain attention in discussions

How to tell they’ve got it

Tick these off as you see them — no test required.

Stay on topic during a conversation for multiple turns
Build on what another speaker has said (e.g. 'I agree because...')
Maintain focus and contribute meaningfully in group discussions

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Try this together

When your child is chatting with a friend or taking part in a group activity, can they keep a conversation going back and forth — listening, responding, and building on what the other person said?

Where this sits on the map

Stuck here? Check the skills it builds on first. Confident? Here’s what it unlocks.

Builds on

Listening and respondingages 4–11Listening and responding foundational to conversation

Exploring Ideas Through Talkages 4–6Conversational skills provide foundation for evaluating viewpoints

Group discussionsthis skill · ages 4–11

Unlocks

Preparing for and Explaining in Discussionsages 8–11Coming to discussions prepared extends active collaborative conversation skills

Describing Aloudages 4–8Conversational skills support oral description

Engaging Listeners and Valuing Viewpointsages 7–8Conversational skills provide foundation for evaluating viewpoints

Resolving Disagreements with Friendsages 7–9Resolving disagreements through conversation requires the collaborative speaking skills — staying on topic, building on others' contributions — from Speaking & Listening

Working Well in a Groupages 7–9Group work benefits from collaborative conversation skills

solid = must come firstdashed = helps

Curriculum alignment

Candidate matches to official curriculum codes — machine-suggested, unreviewed (v0.1).

Show candidate curriculum codes · 3 ACARA · 2 NSW · 3 VIC

Australian Curriculum v9 candidate

AC9E3LY02medium confidenceYear 3 · Literacy

use interaction skills to contribute to conversations and discussions to share information and ideas

AC9E3LA01low confidenceYear 3 · Language

understand that cooperation with others depends on shared understanding of social conventions, including turn-taking language, which vary according to the degree of formality

AC9E4LY02low confidenceYear 4 · Literacy

listen for key points and information to carry out tasks and contribute to discussions, acknowledging another opinion, linking a response to the topic, and sharing and extending ideas and information

NSW syllabus codes & stages only

EN1-OLC-01low confidenceEnglish K-10 · Stage 1

EN2-OLC-01low confidenceEnglish K-10 · Stage 2

Victorian Curriculum 2.0 codes & levels only

VC2E4LY01medium confidenceEnglish · Level 4 · Literacy strand

VC2E3LY01medium confidenceEnglish · Level 3 · Literacy strand

VC2E2LY01low confidenceEnglish · Level 2 · Literacy strand

These are candidate alignments generated by semantic matching — machine-suggested and unreviewed (v0.1), not official or verified mappings. For official curriculum content see australiancurriculum.edu.au, curriculum.nsw.edu.au and f10.vcaa.vic.edu.au. Don’t rely on them for registration or compliance purposes.

Nearby on the map

Asking Questionsages 4–11 Describing Aloudages 4–8 Exploring Ideas Through Talkages 4–6 Expressing & Justifying Opinionsages 4–6

All Speaking & Listening skills →