Playful ACARA v9 English workshop (11-year-old): Close reading, legalese & theatre mock-court sentence-parsing worksheet — Augustine, The City of God

Lesson: Close reading + Sentence-parsing T-model + Mock-court speech (playful legalese / Ally McBeal cadence)

Age: 11-year-old • Focus: parts of speech for each word, sentence parts (subject, predicate, object), phrases, clauses, sentence type. This uses a T-model (Michael Clay Thompson style) for word-by-word parsing and gives a theatrical memorised reading idea.

Text to analyse (read aloud, then parse)

As I see that I have still to discuss the fit destinies of the two cities, the earthly and the heavenly, I must first explain, so far as the limits of this work allow me, the reasonings by which men have attempted to make for themselves a happiness in this unhappy life, in order that it may be evident, not only from divine authority, but also from such reasons as can be adduced to unbelievers, how the empty dreams of the philosophers differ from the hope which God gives to us, and from the substantial fulfillment of it which He will give us as our blessedness.

Step-by-step plan (what we will do)

1. Listen and whisper-read the sentence so you can hear the rhythm.
2. Break the sentence into chunks (clauses and phrases).
3. Use the T-model table below to write the part of speech for each word and label its role.
4. Identify phrases (noun phrases, prepositional phrases, relative clauses) and the clause types (adverbial, relative, content/purpose).
5. Practice a 30–45 second memorised mock-court delivery using the Ally McBeal cadence suggestions.

Worksheet: T-model (student version — blanks to fill)

Instructions: For each word (or small group of words) write: 1) Part of speech (noun, verb, pronoun, article, adjective, adverb, preposition, conjunction, relative pronoun, auxiliary/modal, infinitive marker), 2) Role in sentence (Subject / Verb / Object / Modifier / Complement / Auxiliary), 3) Phrase type (if in a phrase: noun phrase, prepositional phrase, relative clause, infinitive phrase), 4) Clause type (if part of a clause: main clause, subordinate adverbial, relative, purpose/content).

Fully annotated exemplar (teacher model) — use this after you try the worksheet

Below each chunk is labelled: Part of speech (POS) — Role — Phrase type — Clause type / brief note.

1. As — subordinating conjunction — introduces adverbial clause — adverbial subordinating marker.
2. I — pronoun — subject of subordinate clause — noun phrase — in subordinate clause "As I see...".
3. see — verb (main verb of subordinate clause) — predicate — verb phrase — transitive with content clause 'that...'
4. that — subordinating conjunction — introduces content clause (object of see) — clause marker — content clause.
5. I — pronoun — subject of content clause — noun phrase.
6. have — auxiliary verb — part of verb phrase (present perfect / modal-like) — auxiliary to 'to discuss'.
7. still — adverb — modifier of the verb phrase — adverbial modifier.
8. to — infinitive marker — introduces infinitive verb 'discuss' — part of infinitive phrase.
9. discuss — verb (infinitive) — verb of infinitive phrase — part of content clause.
10. the — article — modifies 'fit destinies' — determiner for noun phrase.
11. fit — adjective — modifies 'destinies' — adjective in noun phrase.
12. destinies — noun (plural) — direct object of 'discuss' (in infinitive phrase) — head of noun phrase.
13. of — preposition — starts prepositional phrase modifying 'destinies'.
14. the — article — determiner for 'two cities'.
15. two — numeral — modifies 'cities'.
16. cities — noun (plural) — object of preposition 'of'.
17. the earthly and the heavenly — appositive noun phrase renaming 'the two cities': 'the earthly' (article+adj), 'and' (coordinator), 'the heavenly' (article+adj) — appositive to "two cities".
18. I — pronoun — subject of main clause — noun phrase (main clause starts here).
19. must — modal auxiliary — shows obligation — auxiliary in verb phrase.
20. first — adverb — adverbial modifier of 'explain'.
21. explain — verb — main verb of independent clause — takes direct object 'the reasonings...'.
22. so far as — subordinating phrase — introduces a parenthetical adverbial clause of limit — adverbial clause.
23. the — article — determiner for 'limits'.
24. limits — noun (plural) — object of preposition in the adverbial clause.
25. of — preposition — links 'limits' to 'this work'.
26. this — demonstrative adjective — modifies 'work'.
27. work — noun — object of 'of'.
28. allow — verb — predicate of the parenthetical clause 'allow me'.
29. me — pronoun — object of 'allow'.
30. the reasonings — noun phrase — direct object of 'explain' (what I must explain).
31. by — preposition — begins a relative/prepositional phrase modifying 'reasonings'.
32. which — relative pronoun — introduces relative clause modifying 'reasonings'.
33. men — noun (plural) — subject of the relative clause.
34. have — auxiliary verb — part of present-perfect-like construction 'have attempted'.
35. attempted — verb (past participle) — main verb in the relative clause.
36. to — infinitive marker — introduces infinitive 'make'.
37. make — verb (infinitive) — part of "attempted to make"; transitive inside relative clause.
38. for themselves — preposition + reflexive pronoun — prepositional phrase showing benefit/recipient of the making — modifier of 'make'.
39. a happiness — article + noun — direct object of 'make' (a noun phrase). Note: 'a happiness' is a noun phrase meaning 'a state of happiness'.
40. in this unhappy life — prepositional phrase — adverbial phrase modifying 'make' (tells where/in what life they attempted to make happiness).
41. in order that — subordinating phrase — begins a purpose clause (shows purpose: why he explains the reasonings).
42. it — pronoun — dummy subject of 'may be evident'.
43. may — modal auxiliary — expresses possibility in purpose clause.
44. be — linking verb — links 'it' to complement 'evident'.
45. evident — adjective — subject complement (predicate adjective) meaning 'clear'.
46. not only — correlative adverb — begins a two-part contrast 'not only... but also...'.
47. from divine authority — prepositional phrase — source: 'from divine authority' (one source of evidence).
48. but also — correlative (coordinating phrase) — continues contrast.
49. from such reasons — prepositional phrase — second source of evidence: 'such reasons'.
50. as can be adduced to unbelievers — relative clause modifying 'reasons' ("as" = relative word here) — gives extra info: these reasons can be shown to unbelievers.
51. how — subordinating conj. / interrogative word — introduces content clause that is object of 'evident': it will be evident how something differs.
52. the empty dreams of the philosophers — noun phrase ("the empty dreams" head noun + prepositional phrase 'of the philosophers') — subject of the subordinate clause after 'how'.
53. differ — verb — predicate of the 'how' clause: what the dreams do (they differ).
54. from the hope — prepositional phrase — first thing from which the dreams differ (object of 'differ').
55. which God gives to us — relative clause modifying 'hope' (which = relative pronoun) — adds who gives the hope and to whom.
56. and — coordinating conjunction — joins two prepositional phrases after 'differ' ("from the hope... and from the substantial fulfillment...").
57. from the substantial fulfillment of it — prepositional phrase — second thing from which the dreams differ; 'of it' links fulfillment to the hope mentioned earlier.
58. which He will give us as our blessedness — relative clause modifying 'fulfillment' — explains that God will give this fulfillment to us as our blessedness.

Sentence structure & sentence type (teacher note)

• Main clause: "I must first explain (the reasonings...)." This is the independent clause.
• Many subordinate clauses and phrases: an initial adverbial clause "As I see..."; a content clause after 'see' ("that I have... to discuss"); a parenthetical adverbial clause ("so far as the limits..."); a relative clause modifying 'reasonings' ("by which men have attempted..."); a purpose clause ("in order that...") containing further content and relative clauses; relative clauses modifying 'hope' and 'fulfillment'.
• Overall sentence type: declarative, complex (one main clause + many subordinate clauses). It also contains coordination inside subordinate material ("and" between parallel prepositional phrases).

How to present this in a playful mock-court / Ally McBeal cadence

Make it theatrical but clear. Ally McBeal cadence means: conversational, dramatic pauses, a friendly legal tone, and an emphasis on contrast points ("not only... but also..."). Use short breaths at commas and longer pauses at clause boundaries.

• Opening rhythm (short-held heartbeat): "As I see that I have still to discuss the fit destinies of the two cities — the earthly and the heavenly," (pause — a soft, almost stage-whisper after 'cities').
• Declare the court business: "I must first explain..." (firm, confident; hands up slightly as if presenting evidence).
• Make parentheticals small: "so far as the limits of this work allow me," (quick aside, as if whispering to a judge).
• Bring in the purpose with rising voice: "in order that it may be evident — not only from divine authority — but also from such reasons as can be adduced to unbelievers — how the empty dreams of the philosophers differ from the hope which God gives to us..." (dramatic pause before "and from the substantial fulfillment..." then softer finish: "...which He will give us as our blessedness.")

Short mock-court memorised performance (30–45 sec) — exemplar line by line

(Slow, clear; mark commas with slight holds; mark important contrasts louder)

"As I see that I have still to discuss the fit destinies of the two cities — the earthly and the heavenly — I must first explain (pause), so far as the limits of this work allow me, the reasonings by which men have attempted to make for themselves a happiness in this unhappy life, in order that it may be evident (longer pause), not only from divine authority, but also from such reasons as can be adduced to unbelievers, how the empty dreams of the philosophers differ from the hope which God gives to us, and from the substantial fulfillment of it which He will give us as our blessedness."

Rubrics and comments — Sentence parsing

We give four levels. Read the comments to see what to aim for.

Rubrics and comments — Memorised oral mock-court performance

Focus: clarity, cadence, breathing/pauses, expression of contrast, and accurate phrasing.

Teacher tips & scaffolds for an 11-year-old

• Start with spoken breaks: have the student clap or pause at each comma to feel the sentence divisions.
• Work chunk-by-chunk: parse the clause "I must first explain" before attempting longer clauses.
• Use coloured pens: one colour for nouns/pronouns, another for verbs, another for conjunctions. Visual colour-coding helps young learners keep track.
• Make the mock-court fun: give the student a small judge’s gavel (or spoon) and suggest a court role (defender of clear thinking). Ally McBeal cadence = friendly drama, not over-the-top acting.

Finish: After students complete the blank T-model, compare their answers to the exemplar above. Discuss differences. Then rehearse the short memorised mock-court reading in pairs and use the rubric to give feedback.

(ACARA v9 links: this activity practices grammar and punctuation, listening and speaking, and comprehension/close reading of historical text — all scaffolded for an upper-primary learner.)