[T4R] Let’s Build a Boat: L1 Background Knowledge

The Book

Let’s Build A Boat

Written by Jane Godwin, illustrated by Meg Rennie, published by Little Hare Books

This inspiring picture book celebrates teamwork, creativity, and determination. As a group of children come together to build a boat for their picnic on an island, the story naturally lends itself to discussions about the purpose of a boat in general and context of the text (AC9TDE2K01 – Years 1 and 2, Design and Technologies). The story also highlights the importance of preparation before they begin (AC9TDE2P01 – Years 1 and 2, Design and Technologies), innovation and problem-solving when they face the challenge at sea (AC9TDE2P03 – Years 1 and 2, Design and Technologies).

Throughout their journey, they experience challenges and moments of joy, allowing students to reflect on how they manage emotions in different situations (AC9HP2P03 – Years 1 and 2, Health and Physical Education). The story also supports children in understanding how teamwork, resilience, and problem-solving help them to achieve shared goals (AC9HP2P01 – Years 1 and 2, Health and Physical Education).

Let’s Build a Boat is a perfect launchpad for hands-on STEM or creative projects, as well as social-emotional learning discussions around collaboration, effort, and celebrating differences.

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Resource creator

Steven Huynh

Subject

Design and Technologies, English Language and Literacy,

Level

Year 1, Year 2,

Description

In this first lesson of the T4R unit of Let’s Build a Boat, students activate their prior knowledge about building and making, then apply it to the text. Through the cover exploration, boat-making process, and a class discussion, students question, predict, and wonder about the text as well as the process and purpose of build a boat based on personal experiences.

Learning Intentions

• We are learning to use what we already know to help us understand the text.

Successful Criteria

• I can talk about something I have made before.
• I can make a prediction using the book’s cover and title.
• I can ask questions and share ideas about boat-making after watching the video.

Curriculum Alignment

AC9E1LY02 9.0 (English Language and Literacy Year 1): Use interaction skills including turn-taking, speaking clearly, using active listening behaviours and responding to the contributions of others, and contributing ideas and questions

• using turn-taking in group and pair work
• building a conversation by staying on topic, supporting other speakers, eliciting responses, listening supportively and attentively, asking relevant questions, providing useful feedback and prompting
• participating in informal and structured class, group and pair discussions about content area topics, ideas and information
• interacting appropriately with peers, teachers and visitors
• formulating different types of questions to ask a speaker, such as open and closed questions and “when”, “why” and “how” questions

AC9E1LY05 9.0 (English Language and Literacy Year 1): Use comprehension strategies such as visualising, predicting, connecting, summarising and questioning when listening, viewing and reading to build literal and inferred meaning by drawing on vocabulary and growing knowledge of context

• identifying information and details from spoken informative texts
• building topic knowledge and learning new vocabulary before and during reading
• making predictions from the cover, from illustrations and at points in the text before reading on, and confirming and adjusting understanding after reading
• drawing inferences and explaining inferences using clues from the text
• making connections with existing knowledge and personal experiences

AC9E2LY02 9.0 (English Language and Literacy Year 2): Use interaction skills when engaging with topics, actively listening to others, receiving instructions and extending own ideas, speaking appropriately, expressing and responding to opinions, making statements, and giving instructions

• exploring ways to comment on what others say, including using sentence starters such as “I like the way you …”, “I agree that …”, “I have a different thought …”, “I’d like to say something different …”
• demonstrating appropriate listening behaviours, responding to and paraphrasing a partner’s contribution to a discussion; for example, in think pair share activities
• asking relevant questions and making connections with personal experiences and the contributions of others
• understanding how to disagree or respectfully offer an alternative

AC9E2LY05 9.0 (English Language and Literacy Year 2): Use comprehension strategies such as visualising, predicting, connecting, summarising, monitoring and questioning to build literal and inferred meaning

• listening for specific information and providing key facts or points from an informative or persuasive text
• listening and responding to detailed instructions
• integrating information from print, images and prior knowledge to make supportable inferences
• identifying the main idea of a text
• predicting vocabulary that is likely to be in a text, based on the topic and the purpose of the text; for example, predicting that “station” and “arrive” would be in a text recounting a train journey
• using prior knowledge to make and confirm predictions when reading a text
• using graphic organisers to represent the connections between characters, order of events or sequence of information

AC9TDE2K01 9.0 (Design and Technologies Year 1,Year 2): Identify how familiar products, services and environments are designed and produced by people to meet personal or local community needs and sustainability

• exploring how First Nations Australians have long understood their dependence on living systems to meet their local and community needs, for example exploring the material culture of the Ngarrindjeri Peoples who sustainably make woven items from a grass-like sedge
• exploring how particular services meet different needs of people in the community, for example describing why doctors provide medical care to people in many ways including by phone, video conference, plane, car or outdoor clinic
• asking questions about the design of a range of shelters provided for the public and how they meet the needs of people in the community, for example the structures of a school or local sportsground or how to improve accessibility
• exploring how local products are designed, for example brainstorming the materials and processes needed to create a costume for a school or community event including using recycled clothing or components to minimise waste
• exploring how people come up with new ideas or modify existing designs, for example preventing water wastage when caring for plants

Materials

Let’s Build a Boat by Jane Godwin
Video: “How to make a simple boat”
Lesson 1 Slides
Wonderings page template

Instructions

Warm-Up: Prior Knowledge

Ask students:
- “Have you ever made something?”
- “What was it?”
- “How did you feel when you made it?”
Prompt for ideas like cubbies, cards, Lego, models, etc.
Encourage 2–3 children to share and highlight pride, creativity, or effort.

Book Cover Prediction

Show the cover of Let’s Build a Boat. Ask:
- “What do you think they are building?” “I wonder…”
- “What clues can you see in the picture?”
- “Why might someone want to build a boat?”
Write a few student predictions or ideas on the wonderings page (butcher’s paper)

Video: Simple Boat Making

Watch a short video: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/N44ZZ_dsvLI
Afterwards, Discuss:
- “Do you think it’s easy or hard to make a boat?”
- “What materials or tools might the characters use?” – “I think… or I notice in the video…” (e.g., they’ll use wood, nails, and some kind of glue)
Explain the topic we’re learning throughout the unit.
Record students’ ideas about boats or anything about the cover on the wonderings page.
Teacher can use a butcher’s paper instead of the provided template.

Students’ Wonders about the Story

Records students’ inputs and wonders on the wonderings page:
- What do you think the story is going to be about? – “I wonder if the story is about…”
- Do you think they will use the same materials and tools that are used in the video?

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