Into English

📚 NEW: Mastering the Craft of Writing Student Books have landed!

We’re excited to launch two brand-new Student Books for the new NSW English 11–12 Syllabuses:

✍️ Mastering the Craft of Writing in Standard English
✍️ Mastering the Craft of Writing in Advanced English

Each book has been purpose-built for the distinctive demands of its course, with extensive syllabus alignment and a strong focus on helping students understand writing as a deliberate craft.

At the centre of each book are 8 carefully selected short mentor texts that represent imaginative, discursive, persuasive, and reflective writing styles.

Why short texts? Because they are manageable in the classroom and allow students to see how particular aspects of craft work without having to read lengthy texts first.

The mentor texts include a mix of classic and contemporary writing and have been chosen for their distinctive authorial choices, their value as models and stimuli, and their broadly affirming subject matter.

Each section follows a clear craft cycle:

reading → noticing → analysing → experimenting → composing → reflecting → refining

Students will also find:

⭐ A wide variety of HSC-style questions
⭐ Extensive model responses
⭐ Explicit teaching of authorial choices and form
⭐ Opportunities to draft, edit, refine, and reflect

Two different courses. Two purpose-built books. No one-size-fits-all approach.

Available now via the Into English website: https://www.intoenglish.com.au/digital-editions

COMING SOON: Mastering the Craft of Writing for the new HSC English syllabuses!

Into English’s new Mastering the Craft of Writing in Standard English Student Book and Mastering the Craft of Writing in Advanced English Student Book are almost here.

Each has been purpose-built for the distinctive nature and expectations of its course, with extensive alignment to the new Standard and Advanced Craft of Writing focus areas.

A major feature of both books is the use of short, carefully selected mentor texts.

📖 Each Student Book includes 8 short mentor texts: 2 imaginative, 2 discursive, 2 persuasive, and 2 reflective.

The texts have been chosen because they demonstrate a rich range of authorial choices in relation to form and style. They operate both as effective models of writing and as stimuli for students’ own compositions.

The selections balance classic and contemporary texts, giving students access to varied voices, styles, contexts, and approaches.

And the emphasis on shorter texts is deliberate. Teachers can explore complete, manageable works in the classroom without students having to read lengthy texts simply to understand how particular aspects of craft operate.

Students will also find:

✍️ Explicit guidance for reading as a writer and analysing choices involving voice, imagery, rhetoric, characterisation, point of view, dialogue, tone, structure, and style

💡 Practical opportunities to experiment with these choices before applying them independently

📝 A wide variety of HSC-style questions

⭐ Extensive model responses demonstrating different approaches to HSC questions

🔄 Guided opportunities to plan, compose, reflect, edit, and refine writing

Most importantly, these are two distinct books designed around the specific demands of Standard and Advanced English, rather than a one-size-fits-all approach to The Craft of Writing.

Both Student Books will be available soon via the Into English website!

Yesterday I had the privilege of spending the day in Orange with Kristi Ryan and a wonderful group of early career English teachers as part of the CEDB ‘Growing Great Stage 6 English Teachers’ professional learning program.

One of the great joys of working with teachers is seeing the moment when complex ideas become practical classroom strategies. Throughout the day, we explored how meaning emerges the dynamic relationship between context, author, text, and reader.

Together, we unpacked this foundational aspect of the Stage 6 English Syllabus using the Meaning-Making Circuit as a framework for translating syllabus expectations into classroom practice. From there, we examined what effective close textual analysis actually looks like and how we can explicitly teach students to move from comprehension to sophisticated analysis. The workshop then shifted to developing stronger extended responses, equipping teachers with practical tools to help students construct coherent, evidence-based, syllabus-aligned arguments.

What struck me most was the enthusiasm in the room. Every discussion, Think-Pair-Share activity, and collaborative task reflected a genuine commitment to becoming the best teachers possible for their students.

Teaching Stage 6 English is about far more than preparing students for examinations. It is about helping young people think critically, read deeply, write persuasively, and engage meaningfully with the world around them. Supporting teachers to develop the confidence to do that is work I find immensely rewarding.

A sincere thank you to everyone who participated so generously throughout the day. Your curiosity, thoughtful questions, and willingness to engage with challenging ideas made the workshop a genuine pleasure to facilitate.

I’m already looking forward to the next opportunity to continue the conversation.

This week, Emily had the privilege of presenting at the inaugural English Study Day at McCarthy Catholic College in Tamworth.

The event brought together Year 12 students from Catholic schools across the Catholic Diocese of Armidale for a day focused on building confidence, strengthening analytical writing skills, and preparing for the HSC English examinations.

Emily presented sessions on:

• Mastering Section I: Texts and Human Experiences
• Mastering the Texts and Human Experiences Essay
• Mastering the Language, Identity and Culture Essay
• Mastering the Close Study of Literature Essay
• Mastering the Craft of Writing

The students were an absolute pleasure to work with. They were respectful, engaged, enthusiastic, and genuinely committed to improving their understanding, exam skills, and analytical writing.

Sincere thanks to Michael Whitton, Principal of McCarthy Catholic College, and Melissa Carr, Head of English, for their vision, organisation, and warm hospitality in bringing this valuable event to life.

It was wonderful to see so many students and teachers from across the Diocese learning together and supporting one another as they prepare for the HSC.

If you would like to book Emily to deliver a targeted student incursion at your school, either in person or via Zoom, Into English offers sessions across a wide range of Year 11 and Year 12 English focus areas: https://www.intoenglish.com.au/student-incursions

Turn Trial HSC results into targeted revision!

Trial HSC results should do more than produce a mark. They can help teachers and students identify exactly what needs attention before the final examinations in October.

An Into English student incursion can provide focused post-Trial revision in areas such as:

- Texts and Human Experiences, including Section I and prescribed-text essays
- Year 12 Standard and Advanced focus areas
- The Craft of Writing

Each incursion runs for 50 to 60 minutes and is available in person or live via Zoom.

Every student receives an incursion booklet so they can participate actively and retain a practical revision resource.

Schools booking two or more incursions on the same day or across consecutive days receive a 10% discount. Zoom incursions do not attract a travel fee, making them an accessible option for schools across NSW.

Book early to secure a suitable post-Trial date for your Year 12 cohort: www.intoenglish.com.au/student-incursions

Everything you need for the English classroom this term!

Term 3 is here, and Into English has classroom-ready support for Year 11, Standard, Advanced, and Extension English.

Our student books are designed to do more than summarise a text. They guide students from their first encounter with a text towards increasingly confident interpretation and writing through:

- Accessible introductions to texts, authors, contexts, and focus areas
- Close-reading activities focused on language, form, and structure
- Thinking routines that deepen interpretation
- Explicit support for evidence selection, argument development, and analytical writing

Over the past six months, we have released 16 titles for the new HSC prescriptions, including Away, Cold Enough for Snow, Arrival, Othello, Henry Lawson Short Stories, One Night the Moon, and Swallow the Air.

Explore the range and find the right support for your classes this term and beyond: www.intoenglish.com.au/digital-editions

📚 One price. Two formats. More flexibility for your classroom.

One of the key benefits of the Into English Student Book range is choice.

Each new title we release is designed to be available in two convenient formats:

💻 eBook PDF download — ideal for immediate access, digital distribution, and flexible classroom use.

📖 A4 paperback — perfect for student book packs, annotating in class, revision programs, and students who prefer working with a printed resource.

Even better, the price is the same for either format: $29.95.

This pricing decision is intentional. We want schools, teachers, and students to be able to choose the format that works best for their learning context, without price being the deciding factor.

Our student books are written specifically for NSW English classrooms and are designed to save teachers time while helping students build confidence with their prescribed texts, focus areas, and writing skills.

Across the range, each title includes accessible explanations, close textual analysis, purposeful learning activities, explicit writing support, and practical strategies to help students move from understanding the text to writing about it with clarity and insight.

✨ Explore the full Into English Student Book range today and choose the format that works best for your students!

www.intoenglish.com.au

📚 Teaching Literary Worlds to the HSC 2027 cohort?

Our Literary Worlds On Demand professional learning course is now available!

This course has been designed to give English Extension 1 teachers clear, practical, and flexible support with this rich and demanding focus area.

Whether you are teaching Literary Worlds for the first time, returning to the course, or looking to refine your current approach, this professional learning will help you:

✨ build confidence with the conceptual demands of the focus area
✨ make purposeful decisions about teaching time
✨ support students as they prepare for the HSC examination
✨ strengthen close textual engagement and student writing
✨ connect classroom learning to assessment and examination expectations

The best part? It is fully on demand, so you can complete the course when it suits you: after school, during faculty planning time, across several shorter sessions, or as part of your own professional learning schedule.

Ideal for individual teachers, faculty teams, and schools looking for flexible, targeted professional learning without the need to attend a scheduled live session.

👉 Start the course today and feel more confident, prepared, and supported as you teach English Extension 1!

https://www.intoenglish.com.au/extension-1-literary-worlds-on-demand

St. Pius X College - HSC Presentations

It was such a pleasure and a privilege for us to work with the Year 12 HSC students at St. Pius X College, Chatswood, on Friday. Over the course of this school holiday study day, organised by the amazing English Department at St. Pius, we delivered tailored workshops on Shakespeare's "Merchant of Venice", Kenneth Slessor's poetry, the comparative study of Sylvia Plath and Ted Hughes' poetry, Rachel Perkins' "One Night the Moon", and how to master Paper 1, Section 1, of the English HSC examinations.

Standard and Advanced students were engaged throughout the day in a focussed and conscientious manner that is a testament to their esteemed College, St. Pius X, and its excellent learning culture. Questions were answered, thinking was expanded, and knowledge and skills were refined in preparation for their upcoming Trial HSC Examinations and their final examinations later in the year.

A huge thank you to St. Pius X College, Chatswood, for inviting Anthony and I along to work with their Year 12 students for the day, and especially to Diana Emery, Head of English, for organising this wonderful learning event.

We’re proud to share that Into English has published 16 new student book titles in the past six months to support English Studies, Standard, Advanced, and Extension 1!

This major publishing effort has been driven by a clear purpose: to give English teachers resources they can trust as they continue to implement the new Stage 6 English Syllabus and prepare to teach the 2027–30 HSC prescriptions.

Our student books are:

📘 Purpose-built for the new Stage 6 English Syllabus and 2027–30 HSC prescriptions
Designed to support confident programming, prescribed text study, focus area understanding, and strong student writing.

🔍 More than summaries and notes
Each book offers carefully sequenced learning that moves students from comprehension to close analysis, interpretation, evaluation, and written response.

🧠 Strongly syllabus-aligned
Our resources are written around the conceptual demands of the course, including representation, textual form, personal response, human experience, literary value, perspective, voice, and context.

✍️ Built around the Idea-Insight Writing Method
Idea → Evidence → Technique → Analytical Verb → Insight

This practical method helps students develop stronger analytical paragraphs, more sophisticated essay arguments, and clearer textual interpretation.

💬 Full of writing support
Many books include labelled model paragraphs, writing scaffolds, and analytical, imaginative, persuasive, discursive, and reflective tasks.

🗂️ Classroom-ready
With structured activities, close analysis questions, thinking routines, contextual support, and synthesis tasks, these books are ready for day-to-day teaching, revision, assessment preparation, and independent study.

💰 Excellent value for money
Affordable, complete, and practical, our student books allow teachers to teach directly from the resource with little need to search for additional material elsewhere.

Our unique strength is simple: we create classroom-ready student books that help students understand what they are studying, why it matters, and how to write about it with clarity and confidence.

Explore the range:

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