Year 9 English – Term 1 (WA Curriculum): Language Power and Persuasion

What this unit covers

In Term 1, Year 9 English in the WA Curriculum centres on the unit “Language Power and Persuasion”.

Students explore how language creates meaning, builds relationships, and influences audiences through direct and indirect evaluation across various text types.

Lesson sequence (30 lessons)

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

1. Exploring Language Communities: How Words Create Belonging
2. Teenage Slang and Group Identity: Language as Social Glue
3. Community Languages: From Family to Friends
4. Direct vs Indirect Evaluation: Spotting the Difference
5. Advertising Language: How Words Sell Products
6. Evocative Vocabulary in Marketing: Creating Desire Through Words
7. Allusion in Advertising: Hidden References That Persuade
8. Product Reviews: Direct Evaluation in Action
9. Comparing Review Styles: Formal vs Informal Evaluation
10. Linear vs Non-Linear Narratives: Structure Creates Meaning
11. Interactive Graphic Novels: Words, Images, and Sound Combined
12. Multimodal Storytelling: How Elements Work Together
13. Building Arguments with Text Connectives: Initially, Moreover, Consequently
14. Sequencing Ideas: From Introduction to Conclusion
15. Developing Complex Arguments: Linking Ideas Effectively
16. Creative Sentence Structures: Breaking the Rules for Effect
17. Dependent Clauses as Fragments: When Grammar Rules Bend
18. Interrupting Clauses: Adding Information Mid-Sentence
19. Sentence Fragments for Impact: One Word Wonders
20. Abstract Nouns: Turning Actions into Ideas
21. Nominalisation in Academic Writing: Making Complex Ideas Simple
22. Summarising with Abstract Language: Distilling Key Concepts
23. Visual Symbols: Reading Beyond the Obvious
24. Cultural Symbols in Film: Weather, Seasons, and Colour
25. Symbolic Meanings Across Cultures: Same Symbol, Different Message
26. Vocabulary and Mood: How Word Choice Creates Atmosphere
27. Tone Through Dialogue Tags: Whispered vs Screamed
28. Style Through Word Choice: Formal vs Informal Language
29. Referencing and Citations: Giving Credit Where Due
30. Formal vs Informal Referencing: Academic and Creative Contexts

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 30 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.