Australian Curriculum v9 / ACiQ Year 7 English - Unit 4 - Informative, persuasive and analytical writing
Informative, persuasive and analytical writing
Plan, draft and revise extended informative, persuasive and analytical texts using purposeful structures and evidence.
Updated 2026-07-24 - 7 min read
Plan, draft and revise extended informative, persuasive and analytical texts using purposeful structures and evidence. This target belongs to an integrated English program: students read and view closely, discuss ideas, and use what they notice when writing, creating or speaking.
What success looks like
- I select a structure that suits purpose and audience.
- I develop ideas with accurate evidence and explanation.
- I sequence and revise paragraphs into a coherent whole.
A strong response makes decisions visible. It does not merely name a feature or give a personal reaction. It identifies the relevant detail, uses accurate English metalanguage and explains how the detail serves meaning, audience, purpose or context.
Core vocabulary and concepts
| Term | Working meaning | | --- | --- | | informative writing | Writing that explains accurate information through purposeful classification and sequence. | | contention | The central persuasive position maintained across a text. | | reason | A distinct justification that helps support a contention. | | counterpoint | A relevant alternative view that is acknowledged and answered fairly. | | analysis | Explanation of how evidence or choices create meaning and support an interpretation. | | thesis | The controlling interpretation or argument of an extended analytical response. | | paragraph function | The specific contribution one paragraph makes to the whole text. | | synthesis | Bringing connected ideas together to show their combined significance. |
Learn each definition as a decision tool, not as an isolated label. When two terms seem possible, ask which one most precisely describes the job performed in the stimulus.
A reliable process
- Define purpose, audience and task.
- Form a controlling idea or contention.
- Group evidence into paragraph functions.
- Draft and connect paragraphs.
- Test evidence, counterpoint and coherence.
- Revise the introduction and conclusion to match the developed whole.
The process is flexible enough for written, visual, spoken and multimodal texts. Evidence might be a short quotation, a paraphrased action, layout, framing, gesture, tone, pace, sound or sequence. State exactly what evidence is available instead of inventing missing information.
Worked examples
Worked example 1
Stimulus: The report explains solar panels: how they work, benefits and limitations.
Question: Which structure best suits an information report?
Strong response: Use sections for process, benefits and limitations, with evidence under each heading.
Why it works: The categories match the reader's likely questions and keep distinct information together.
Worked example 2
Stimulus: Issue: Should the school trial a quiet study zone at lunch?
Question: Which contention is precise?
Strong response: The school should trial a supervised quiet zone because students need a reliable option for focused work and sensory relief.
Why it works: The contention states action and reasons rather than a vague preference.
Worked example 3
Stimulus: The first reason addresses sun safety for new shade structures.
Question: Which reason is distinct?
Strong response: A second reason can address how cooler seating supports comfortable social and study use.
Why it works: The new reason adds a different line of support rather than repeating safety.
Notice that each worked response answers the exact question. The explanation does not claim more than the evidence can support. This is the difference between an interpretation and an unsupported guess.
Diagnose and repair common errors
- genre feature mixing: Select structures and features that serve the stated purpose instead of assembling a generic list.
- opinion without evidence: Support positions with relevant evidence and reasoning, including fair treatment of counterpoints.
- paragraphs without line of reasoning: Give each paragraph one contribution to the whole argument and link that contribution forward.
Repair: The school should expand the garden because monitored planting gives science classes accessible data while shaded beds create a cooler lunchtime activity space.
The repair turns repetition into a position supported by two distinct, testable reasons.
Guided practice
Use one of the worked stimuli above.
- Underline the words in the question that set the purpose.
- Circle or list two possible details from the stimulus.
- Choose the detail that most directly answers the question.
- Write one sentence that names the feature or idea.
- Add a sentence explaining the connection.
- Compare the result with all three success criteria.
If the task is automatically marked, read the worked solution after answering. If it is an open response, use the rubric and exemplar. An open response is an activity for feedback and revision; it is not presented as objectively mastered.
Independent practice
- Plan a three-section informative explanation for Year 7 readers. Stimulus: Topic: why urban trees can reduce heat. Source notes cover shade, evaporation from leaves and limits during drought.
- Write a persuasive paragraph that includes a fair counterpoint. Stimulus: Proposal: trial refill stations near the oval. Concern: installation cost. Evidence: students currently cross the campus for water after sport.
After drafting, annotate where the response meets each rubric criterion. Revise the weakest criterion first. Do not copy the exemplar: compare its decisions with your own and then improve your own wording.
Transfer task
- Reading: locate the precise textual evidence before interpreting it.
- Viewing: treat framing, angle, salience, layout and sequence as evidence when present.
- Writing: organise the response so claims, evidence and explanation form a clear line.
- Creating: select language and multimodal features deliberately for an audience and purpose.
- Speaking: rehearse pace, tone and emphasis, then seek evidence-based feedback.
The target is secure only when the same reasoning transfers to a fresh context after a delay. A correct recognition item is useful formative evidence, but sustained open writing and speaking still require human or rubric-guided judgement.
Self-check before submission
- [ ] I select a structure that suits purpose and audience.
- [ ] I develop ideas with accurate evidence and explanation.
- [ ] I sequence and revise paragraphs into a coherent whole.
- [ ] I used evidence actually present in the stimulus.
- [ ] I avoided plot retell, feature spotting and unsupported generalisation.
- [ ] I revised the explanation rather than merely adding more words.
Assessment evidence and stimulus record
Every assessed stimulus must carry its mode, creator or custodian, provenance, rights or licence status, permitted use, Year 7 age-suitability decision and an accessible equivalent. The practice bank uses original Sylligence microtexts across written, spoken-transcript, visual-description and multimodal-description modes. The framing states when no tone, colour or hidden image detail may be inferred.
Where this pack declares a sustained stimulus pathway, use the complete anchor or the named linked parts before judging comprehension, structure, character, theme, craft or comparison. A short extract can diagnose a precise decision, but it cannot replace the whole-text evidence named by the task.
For written work, collect the response plus a self-check against the task-specific rubric. A correct recognition item supports practice, but sustained creation or analysis requires evidence a teacher or reviewer can check.
Open work uses a task-specific rubric. The criteria name the exact task, target skill, required stimulus evidence and mode control. Open responses remain activity only until a qualified teacher or reviewer has judged the actual response against the rubric.