STAGE

Ned Kelly:
1 A True Story
Christine Lindop

Introduction

This ungraded summary is for the teacher’s use only

and should not be given to students.

The Story
Ned Kelly was born in Australia in 1855. He was the
eldest of seven children. His parents, John and Ellen,
had originally come from Ireland and met and married
each other in Australia.
When their father died the family moved north and
Ned worked hard, doing farming work, to get some
money for his family. Unfortunately, Ned was in a fight
Background to the story
and was sent to prison for six months. The following The British colonised Australia from 1788, originally
year Ned was sent to prison again, this time for three with convicts. From the 1830s there was large -scale
years, when wrongly accused of stealing a horse. immigration of non – convicts as more agricultural
When he returned home in 1874 his mother had territory was opened up. The Australian colonies
married again, a younger man called George King. Ned developed a political system based on that in Britain.
and George stole 280 horses and sold them in New Ned Kelly was regarded as a hero by the poor
South Wales for a lot of money. The police tried very farmers because he stood up to the police and an
hard, but they could not catch George and Ned. unfair justice system. Today he is Australia’s most
In 1877 a new policeman, Alex Fitzpatrick, came famous outlaw, celebrated in a recent Hollywood
to their town. At first he was friends with Ned, but movie.
later Ned tried to shoot him. When Ned disappeared
Before Reading
they sent his mother to prison for helping him try to
Here are some ways to help your students approach
kill Fitzpatrick. Ned, his brother Dan and two others
the story:
formed the Kelly Gang and escaped to the hills.
1 Give students the title of the book and show them
The Gang became outlaws when they shot some
the picture on the cover. Ask them to try and guess
policemen at Stringybark Creek and had a reward of
what kind of the story it is.
£2000 offered for their capture. The Gang then robbed
2 Give students a copy of the text on the back
a bank to get some money, which they shared with
cover of the book, and of the story introduction
their friends.
on the first page. When they have read the texts,
Their next plan was to rob another bank at Jerilderie
ask them a few questions about the story, or use
and print an article written by Ned in the local paper.
the Before Reading Activities in the back of each
However, the letter was never printed and for sixteen
Bookworm.
months the Gang disappeared into the hills.
3 Use the pre-reading activity in this worksheet.
In 1880 the Gang needed some more money, so
4 If there is a recording of this title, play the first few
they made some armour and took sixty-two hostages
pages and stop at an interesting point.
at the Glenrowan Inn. They tried to make the train
bringing the police crash but their plan was stopped
by a school teacher, Thomas Curnow, warning the train
driver.
Two of the Gang were killed in the Inn and Ned was
injured and captured in a shoot-out with the police.
The judge then sentenced him to death. Although his
family got 32,000 people to sign a petition, Ned Kelly
was hanged in prison in July 1880.

89 © OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS

 STAGE
Ned Kelly: A True Story
1 Pre-reading activity

What happens in the story?

1 Match the vocabulary with the definition.

1 brave a a group of people who do bad things together
2 bullet b a building for bad people; they stay there and cannot leave
3 prison c metal clothes that protect you when you are fighting
4 hostage d a small piece of metal that comes out of a gun
5 gang e a person who does bad things and lives outside the law
6 steal f the person who decides when somebody must go to prison
7 outlaw g a prisoner that you keep until people do what you want
8 armour h to take something which is not yours
9 reward i not afraid to do dangerous things
10 judge j money for helping the police find a bad person

2 Are these sentences true (T) or false (F)?

1 N Ned Kelly lived in Australia.
2 N He lived in the 1970s.
3 N Ned's family were very rich.
4 N Life was very hard for poor people in
the 1870s.
5 N Ned was in a gang with his two
brothers.
6 N The police helped the Kelly gang.
7 N There was a reward for the Kelly Gang.
8 N Ned died when he was an old man.
9 N All the Kelly Gang were killed by the
police.

To the teacher
Aim: To introduce students to some of the more Ask them to work on their own for 5 minutes and
difficult vocabulary. To ask students to predict the then compare their answers with a partner. If they
main themes of the story. are not certain of any of the words they could use a
Time: 5–10 minutes for each activity. dictionary to check.
Organization: These activities can be done at the They can also discuss their answers to the true or
same time or separately. Ask students to read the false with a partner, before checking with the whole
information on the cover and the introduction to give class.
them some idea of the facts. Key: Activity 1: 1i, 2d, 3b, 4g, 5a, 6h, 7e, 8c, 9j, 10f.
Give one copy of the worksheet to each student. Activity 2: 1T, 2F, 3F, 4T, 5F, 6F, 7T, 8F, 9F.

PHOTOCOPIABLE © OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS 90

 STAGE
Ned Kelly: A True Story
1 While reading activity

What happens next?

Ned Kelly YES NO

… kills Fitzpatrick yes no

… stays at home yes no
… leaves with his gang yes no
… robs a bank to get some money yes no
… something else yes no

Fitzpatrick YES NO

… follows the Kelly Gang yes no

… offers a reward for the Gang yes no
… finds Ned very quickly yes no
… kills Ned Kelly yes no
… something else yes no

Ellen Kelly YES NO

… goes with Ned and his gang yes no

… helps the police yes no
… stays in prison for three years yes no
… dies in prison yes no
… something else yes no

To the teacher

Where: At the end of Chapter two. people. They should do this without looking beyond
Aim: To encourage students to try to predict what chapter two.
will happen next to the main characters in the story. Students should discuss the reasons for their
Time: 10–15 minutes decision with a partner or in a small group. As
Organization: Give each student, or group of they read through the story they can see if their
students, a copy of the worksheet. Ask them to predictions were correct.
decide what they think will happen to the three

91 © OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS PHOTOCOPIABLE

 STAGE
Ned Kelly: A True Story
1 After reading activity

Order the events

Put these events in the right order. Number them 1–10.

ORDER EVENT

a There are 32,000 names on the petition.

b Thomas Curnow stops the train.

c There is a gunfight at Stringybark Creek.

d Ned’s mother gets a new husband.

e John and Ellen Kelly move north to find land for a farm.

f The gang rob the bank in Euroa.

g Ned goes to prison for stealing a horse.

h Ellen Kelly goes to prison for three years.

i Ned reads his letter to the hostages.

j Ned is shot in the arm and the foot.

To the teacher

Aim: To check that students have understood the events in the right order, numbering them 1-10.
details of the story. Check the answers with the whole class.
Time: 10–15 minutes Key: a10, b8, c5, d3, e1, f6, g2, h4, i7, j9
Organization: Give pairs, or small groups of
students, the worksheet and ask them to put the

PHOTOCOPIABLE © OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS 92