Cycleways by Sarah Connor is an informative non-fiction text that weaves everyday experiences with civic decision-making to explore how cycleways affect people and communities in Aotearoa New Zealand. Through clear explanations and multiple viewpoints, the text examines why cycleways are built, how they improve safety for cyclists, and how they influence transport choices, health, and the environment. The narrative introduces real people — including children, parents, shop owners, drivers, and a cyclist with a disability — to show that different groups experience cycleways in different ways. By presenting contrasting opinions about parking, traffic flow, accessibility, and safety, the text encourages readers to think critically about fairness, shared spaces, and community planning. Balanced, practical, and thought-provoking, the text supports students to understand how public decisions are shaped by diverse perspectives and everyday needs.

The text is ideal for integrated learning across literacy, social sciences, health, and technology, supporting inquiry into transport, environmental responsibility, community voices, and decision-making in contemporary Aotearoa New Zealand.

My Tūrangawaewae by Georgina Barnes is an informative non-fiction text that weaves art-making with personal identity to explore how students express who they are and where they belong. Through a school-wide tapa art project at Sylvia Park School in Auckland, the text follows four classes as they work with artist Alexis Neal (Ngāti Awa, Te Āti Awa) to design individual squares that represent their tūrangawaewae — a place where they feel connected and grounded. The narrative explains how students used symbols and patterns inspired by Pacific tapa traditions to show what makes them unique, including family, culture, memories, and interests.

The text describes the creative process step by step, from planning designs on grids and using mathematical measurement, to making collograph printing plates with textured materials and printing proofs before creating the final artwork. It also highlights the values of teamwork and manaakitanga as students supported one another and celebrated seeing their identities displayed together as one large artwork. Informative, visual, and community-focused, the text supports students to understand identity, culture, and belonging through lived experience and voice.

The text is ideal for integrated learning across literacy, the arts, mathematics, and social sciences, supporting inquiry into identity, cultural expression, collaboration, and creative process in Aotearoa New Zealand.

This Interactive Comprehension Check has been carefully designed to consolidate and deepen students’ understanding of Cycleways.

Rather than simply revisiting surface details, the questions intentionally target inference, author purpose, vocabulary in context, and deeper thinking. This resource supports meaningful retrieval practice while maintaining academic rigour and clarity.

The Check can be used:

• As an end-of-text consolidation activity
• As revision prior to assessment
• As a retrieval task in subsequent weeks
• As an engaging formative check for understanding

Each question aligns with key literacy skills, supporting students to think critically, justify ideas, and revisit important language and themes.

 

This pack includes:

• Private access link to the interactive quiz
• Lesson overview slides with learning intention and success criteria
• Reflection / extension task to deepen thinking

This resource is designed to support purposeful teaching, structured discussion, and confident assessment — while reducing preparation time.

Curriculum Phase: Phase 2
Year Level: Year 4

English (NZC Levels 2–3): reading for meaning and enjoyment, identifying key ideas and viewpoints, understanding informational and persuasive texts, interpreting visual information such as photographs and diagrams, building topic-specific vocabulary

Social Sciences – Aotearoa New Zealand Histories: community decision-making, continuity and change, identity and belonging, roles and responsibilities, local and national issues

Health and Physical Education: wellbeing, safety, physical activity, inclusion, relationships

Technology: design solutions, urban planning, innovation, problem-solving, transport systems

Text type: Non-fiction, informational text, report, multiple viewpoints article

Key words include: Aotearoa New Zealand histories, cycleways, cycle lanes, cycling, cyclists, transport, traffic, safety, pedestrians, drivers, accessibility, disabilities, inclusion, community opinions, points of view, decision-making, councils, urban planning, environment, climate change, pollution, sustainability, health, exercise, Bikes in Schools, Movin’ March, public transport, parking, footpaths, intersections, surveys, communication, shared spaces, future cities