Year 1 English – Term 1 (WA Curriculum): Term 1 Language Skills

What this unit covers

In Term 1, Year 1 English in the WA Curriculum centres on the unit “Term 1 Language Skills”.

Term 1 English for Year 1. Writing (24 lessons), Reading (16 lessons), Speaking & Listening (40 lessons).

Lesson sequence (80 lessons)

The unit breaks down into the following lesson-by-lesson sequence — each title below is a teachable lesson, in order:

1. Writing Our Names with Capital Letters
2. Drawing and Writing About Myself
3. Using Finger Spaces Between Words
4. Writing Simple Sentences with Full Stops
5. Forming Letters Correctly on Lines
6. Writing About My Family
7. Using Capital Letters for Names
8. Creating a Picture Story Book
9. Writing What I Did Yesterday
10. Learning Common Sight Words
11. Writing Simple Instructions
12. Using 'and' to Join Ideas
13. Writing About My Favourite Things
14. Making Lists with Clear Writing
15. Writing a Letter to a Friend
16. Using Question Marks Correctly
17. Writing About Animals I Know
18. Creating Labels for Pictures
19. Writing What Happens First, Next, Last
20. Using Describing Words
21. Writing About My Weekend
22. Making a Class Book Together
23. Writing Thank You Notes
24. Sharing My Writing with Others
25. Recognising and naming all letters of the alphabet
26. Connecting letter sounds to letter shapes
27. Blending simple three-letter words with short vowels
28. Reading high-frequency sight words in simple sentences
29. Identifying beginning sounds in spoken words
30. Decoding words with common letter patterns
31. Reading simple sentences with expression and pace
32. Understanding that print carries meaning from left to right
33. Exploring picture books and making predictions
34. Finding key information in simple informational texts
35. Learning new vocabulary through picture context clues
36. Retelling familiar stories in sequence
37. Comparing characters and events in different stories
38. Reading simple poems and noticing rhyming patterns
39. Identifying the main idea in short texts
40. Celebrating reading progress and favourite books
41. Learning to Listen with Our Whole Body
42. Taking Turns in Circle Time
43. Using Our Inside and Outside Voices
44. Sharing One Special Thing About Me
45. Following Simple One-Step Instructions
46. Listening for Sounds Around Us
47. Asking Questions with Who, What, Where
48. Retelling What We Did Yesterday
49. Speaking Clearly with Good Volume
50. Listening to Stories and Remembering Details
51. Using Please, Thank You, and Excuse Me
52. Describing Objects Using Touch and Sight
53. Following Two-Step Instructions in Order
54. Sharing Our Favourite Things
55. Listening for Rhyming Words in Songs
56. Taking Turns to Speak in Small Groups
57. Using Actions to Help Tell Stories
58. Asking for Help Politely
59. Describing What We See in Pictures
60. Listening to Different Voices and Sounds
61. Retelling Simple Stories with Beginning, Middle, End
62. Using Our Hands to Show Size and Shape
63. Following Instructions to Play Simple Games
64. Sharing News from Home
65. Listening for High and Low Sounds
66. Working Together to Solve Problems
67. Using Facial Expressions When We Speak
68. Giving Simple Instructions to a Partner
69. Describing Our Feelings with Words
70. Listening to Poetry and Joining in
71. Retelling Familiar Fairy Tales
72. Using Loud and Quiet Voices Appropriately
73. Following Classroom Rules Through Discussion
74. Sharing What We Know About Animals
75. Listening for Different Emotions in Voices
76. Acting Out Simple Stories Together
77. Asking Questions to Learn More
78. Describing Our Family and Friends
79. Listening to Instructions for Art Activities
80. Celebrating Our Speaking and Listening Growth

Curriculum codes in this unit

Content codes:

Reading the codes: WA codes (the ones starting with WA) pack the year level, learning area, strand and content number into one string, while the national Australian Curriculum v9 uses a different anatomy that starts with AC9 — same content family, different labels. Our complete WA Curriculum guide decodes both, character by character.

Planning notes for Term 1

WA terms run roughly 9–11 weeks, and in 2026 Term 1 runs from Monday 2 February to Thursday 2 April — 9 weeks for WA public schools. With 80 lessons in this unit, that leaves breathing room for assessment, moderation and the weeks that disappear to carnivals, camps and public holidays — plan the assessable work to land two to three weeks before the end of term rather than in the final week.