Unit 4 — Australia and New Zealand

Track E · Klasse 10 · Niveau E

Template: Activate → Input → Practise → Produce → Reflect.
Niveau: E. class test (“Klassenarbeit”) at Niveau E (45 BE).

Learning objectives Link to heading

  • I can read a short comparative text on Australia and New Zealand and identify three points of difference.
  • I can recognise basic Māori-English vocabulary and Aboriginal-English place names in context.
  • I can write a 200-word comparative regional portrait.

curriculum framework (“Bildungsplan”) alignment Link to heading

  • 3.3.1 Soziokulturelles Orientierungswissen / Themen
  • 3.3.2 Interkulturelle kommunikative Kompetenz
  • 3.3.3.1 Hör-/Hörsehverstehen
  • 3.3.3.2 Leseverstehen
  • 3.3.4 Text- und Medienkompetenz

(Source: https://www.bildungsplaene-bw.de/,Lde/LS/BP2016BW/ALLG/SEK1/E1)

Lead-in story Link to heading

Maja’s class compared two pen-pal letters: one from Brisbane, one from Wellington. The Brisbane letter talked about heat and cricket. The Wellington letter talked about wind, te reo Māori in the cafés, and a national mood that the writer described as small-country, big-listening.

1. Activate Link to heading

Two-flag scan. Quick map exercise: locate Australia and New Zealand on the slide. Write three differences (geography, population, language).

2. Input Link to heading

Reading — Two Pen-Pals Link to heading

Australia is a continent of about 26 million; New Zealand is two main islands of about 5.2 million. While both share British colonial history, Indigenous languages are visible on different scales. In New Zealand, te reo Māori is widely audible in news, cafés and government — kia ora is the everyday hello. In Australia, hundreds of Aboriginal languages survive, often more locally audible than nationally so. Place names like Wagga Wagga and Wollongong preserve those languages in plain sight, even when the city itself looks British.

Vocabulary — Māori-English (basic) Link to heading

kia ora (hello / good health), whānau (extended family), aroha (love / compassion), iwi (tribe), marae (meeting ground), te reo (the language).

Vocabulary — Aboriginal-English place names Link to heading

Wagga Wagga (place of many crows / Wiradjuri), Wollongong (sound of the sea / Dharawal), Parramatta (place where eels lie down / Darug), Toowoomba (place of swamp), Canberra (meeting place).

3. Practise Link to heading

Niveau E — controlled Link to heading

  1. Match: kia ora → hello; whānau → family; iwi → tribe.
  2. T or F: NZ has c. 5.2 million people; Australia is less populous than NZ; Wagga Wagga has a Wiradjuri origin.

Niveau E — productive Link to heading

  1. Build 4 sentences comparing AU and NZ on language, geography, population, and Indigenous visibility.
Answer key

Controlled. 1. all true. 2. T, F (Australia is more populous), T.

Productive. 3. Open.

4. Produce Link to heading

Comparative portrait, 200 words. Compare Australia and New Zealand past stereotypes. Use 2 comparatives / superlatives + 1 whereas + 1 kia ora or Indigenous place name in context.

Sample Link to heading

Australia and New Zealand share a British colonial history but diverge sharply in scale. Australia is a continent of about 26 million; New Zealand, two main islands of about 5.2 million. The most striking linguistic difference is the visibility of Indigenous languages: in New Zealand, te reo Māori is widely audible in news, cafés, and government — kia ora is the everyday hello. Whereas in Australia, hundreds of Aboriginal languages survive, often more locally audible than nationally so. Place names like Wagga Wagga (Wiradjuri) and Parramatta (Darug) preserve those languages in the streetscape, even when the city itself looks British. Australia is climatically harder; New Zealand is, by most measures, less extreme. Wellington’s reputation, however, suggests that ’less extreme’ does not mean ‘gentle’ — the city is the windiest capital in the world.

5. Reflect Link to heading

  • I can identify three differences between AU and NZ.
  • I can recognise 6 Māori-English / Aboriginal-English words.
  • I can write a 200-word comparative regional portrait.

One thing in your notebook: Write one sentence using something you learned in this Unit.

Exam example Link to heading

class test ("Klassenarbeit") — Niveau E (45 minutes)
Time. 45 minutes. Total. 45 points.

Task 1 — Listening (10 BE) Link to heading

Listen twice.

“In New Zealand, te reo Māori is widely audible — kia ora is the everyday hello. About 5.2 million people live there. In Australia, hundreds of Aboriginal languages survive, often more locally audible than nationally. Wagga Wagga is a Wiradjuri place name.”

  1. NZ greeting: ___ . 2. NZ population: ___ . 3. AU languages: ___ . 4. Wagga Wagga origin: ___ .

Task 2 — Reading (12 BE) Link to heading

Read the Two Pen-Pals extract above.

  1. Population gap: ___ . 2. Shared history: ___ . 3. te reo visibility: ___ . 4. AU language visibility: ___ .

Task 3 — Use of English (10 BE) Link to heading

Match.

  1. kia ora → ___ ; 2. whānau → ___ ; 3. iwi → ___ ; 4. Wagga Wagga origin: ___ .

Task 4 — Writing (13 BE) Link to heading

Write 200 words: a comparative AU / NZ portrait. Use 2 comparatives + 1 Māori or Aboriginal place name.

Answer key
T1. kia ora; about 5.2 million; hundreds of Aboriginal languages; Wiradjuri. T2. ~26m vs ~5.2m; British colonial; widely audible incl. news / cafés / government; often more locally audible than nationally. T3. hello / extended family / tribe / Wiradjuri (place of many crows). T4. Open.
grading scale (Notenschlüssel) (von 45)
| 42–45 | 1 | 36–41 | 2 | 30–35 | 3 | | 22–29 | 4 | 13–21 | 5 | 0–12 | 6 |

Downloads Link to heading

**Slide deck timing.** 45 minutes total. Lead-in 4 min · Activate 5 min · Input 14 min · Practise 8 min · Produce 11 min · Reflect 3 min.

Differentiation. Below Niveau E: scaffold card. Above Niveau E / into Oberstufe: extension prompt linking to Klasse 11 (Basisfach / Leistungsfach choice).

Common pitfalls Link to heading

  • New Zealanders speak Māori (over-claim) → ✗. About 20 % of NZ population identifies as Māori; te reo is widely audible but not the home language of all.
  • Aboriginal refers to mainland Australia. Torres Strait Islander peoples are a distinct group.
  • Stereotype check: AU ≠ outback only; NZ ≠ Lord of the Rings.

Further reading / listening Link to heading

  • ABC Australia News, RNZ News (NZ).
  • Te Papa Tongarewa (NZ national museum) — accessible online articles.

Downloads

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