Our Fox: Making Meaning Map resource is based on the picture book, Fox by Australian author Margaret Wild. It allows students to demonstrate their understanding of how our understanding of words can change and develop. The science of reading has proven that teaching semantics concepts, such as word association, helps improve students’ reading and writing.

This task is to be completed prior to and after reading the text. Before reading the story, students will be presented with words from the text. They will brainstorm vocabulary that they associate with these set words. After reading, they will need to consider how the words now have a new meaning. They will record an updated brainstorm to reflect this. For example, prior to reading the text, the word magpie might conjure word associations, such as bird, swooping or football team etc. After reading the text, students may connect different ideas to magpie, such as sorrow, friend or poor choices.