‘Have I Got a Book For You!’

I recently happened upon an awesome picture book entitled Have I Got a Book For You!  I hope to use this book as an introduction to a unit about persuasion and marketing.  In particular, I want students to test drive some of the strategies and evaluate the effectiveness of each.

Picture book mix and match

I love studying picture books with my students.  Next time I engage with picture books I want my students to think critically about the relationship between language and images in the text.  To do this, I hope to provide students laminated images from the text and laminated strips of texts.  Students are to work in small groups to (a) match each line of text to the relevant image and (b) to order the narrative correctly.  At the end of this activity, students will discuss their choices with the class.

Civil Rights

I recently watched an episode of Foreign Correspondent about the Black Lives Matter movement.  It was really interesting to learn about the movement and to see it framed as an extension of the Civil Rights movement.

I think it would be interesting to study this episode alongside other texts spanning from the Civil Rights movement to today.  In particular, it would be interesting for students to make comparisons with Martin’s Big Words (a picture book), ‘Diallo’ (spoken word poem), ‘Even if it gets to 104 degrees’ (poem), and ‘I Have a Dream’ (speech).  Students could also source newspaper articles and documentaries of their own.

AOS Journeys

A number of schools are looking to revitalise their Year 10 and Year 11 courses by introducing Areas of Studies that better prepare their students for AOS Discovery in Year 12.  A popular choice seems to be AOS Journeys.  With this in mind, I have compiled a list of texts which could be used as related material for a unit with ‘Journeys’ as the conceptual focus.  The list is not arranged in any particular order, and I will continue adding to it over time.

1. Jasper Jones by Craig Silvey (novel)
2. The Ultimate Safari by Nadine Gordimer (short story)
3. Looking for Alibrandi by Melina Marchetta (novel)
4. Over a Thousand Hills I Walk With You by Hanna Jansen (biography)
5. ‘I am an African’ by Thabo Mbeki (speech)
6. Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury (novel)
7. ‘I Have a Dream’ by Martin Luther King Jnr (speech)
8. ‘The Manhunt’ by Simon Armitage (poem)
9. ‘Refugee Blues’ by W.H. Auden (poem)
10. I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou (autobiography)
11. ‘Caged Bird’ by Maya Angelou (poem)
12. Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer (novel) (or the film adaptation)
13. September, directed by Peter Carstairs (film)
14. Selected The Gods of Wheat Street episodes (television drama)
15. The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, directed by Ben Stiller (film)
16. ‘Cartography for Beginners‘ by Emily Hasler (poem)
17. ‘Journey to the Interior’ by Margaret Atwood (poem)
18. The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry by Rachel Joyce (novel)
19. ‘And of Clay We Are Created’ by Isabel Allende (short story)
20. Cool Runnings, directed by Jon Turteltaub (film)
21. For Colored Girls, directed by Tyler Perry (film)
22. ‘The Second Bakery Attack‘ by Haruki Murakami (short story)
23. Americannah by Chimmamanda Ngozi Adichie (novel)
24. All That I Am by Anna Funder (novel)
25. The Help by Kathryn Stockett (novel) (or the film aedaptation)
26. Grave of the Fireflies, directed by Isao Takahata (film)
27. A Mighty Heart, directed by Michael Winterbottom (film)
28. Girl Rising, directed by Richard E. Robbins (film)
29. The Tempest by William Shakespeare (play)
30. Hamlet by William Shakespeare (play)
31. Tell the Wolves I’m Home by Carol Rifka Brunt (novel)
32. Anzac Girls (television series)
33. Time’s Arrow by Martin Amis (novel)
34. Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro (novel)
35. The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver (novel)
36. The Color Purple by Alice Walker (novel)
37. Meet the Patels, directed by Ravi and Geeta Patel (film)
38. Inside Out, directed by Pete Docter and Ronnie del Carmen (film)
39. The Testimony, directed by Vanessa Block (documentary)
40. ‘The Lie‘ by T. Coraghessan Boyle (short story)
41. Lion, directed by Garth Davis (film)
42. ‘A Sheltered Woman‘ by Yiyun Li (short story)
43. Elizabeth is Missing by Emma Healey (novel)
44. The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind by William Kamkwamba (memoir)
45. A Long Way Gone by Ishmael Beah (memoir)
46. ‘Home’ by Warsan Shire (poem)
47. Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi (film or graphic novel)
48. Life of Pi by Yann Martel (novel)
49. Freedom Writers, directed by Richard LaGravenese (film)
50. The African Doctor, directed by Julien Rambaldi (film)

Pairs of texts

I have spent a lot of time recently thinking about interesting textual pairings for study as part of a comparative unit.  Many of my ideas are not suitable for my school context or the ability levels of my classes.  However, I do think that, in the right contexts and with the right classes, all could form the basis of interesting and engaging units.

1. A Lesson Before Dying (novel) & To Kill a Mockingbird (film)
2. A Long Way Gone (memoir) & Freedom Writers (film)
3. A Long Way Gone (memoir) & Girl At War (novel)
4. A Long Way Gone (memoir) & Hotel Rwanda (film)
5. A Long Way Gone (memoir) & Schindler’s List (film)
6. A Long Way Gone (memoir) & Poetry of Siegfried Sassoon (poetry)
7. A Long Way Gone (memoir) & The Devil That Danced on Water (non-fiction)
8. A Long Way Gone (memoir) & Poetry of Wilfred Owen (poetry)
9. Americanah (novel) & selected episodes of Black-ish (television series)
10. A Monster Calls (novel) & Boy (film)
11. A Monster Calls (novel) & Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close (film)
12. A Monster Calls (novel/film) & Frankenstein (novel)
13. A Monster Calls (novel/film) & Mother to Mother (novel)
14. And Then There Were None (novel) & Selected episodes of Trapped (television series)
15. Animal Farm (novel) & Selection of episodes of House of Cards (television series)
16. Antigone (play) and Home Fire (novel)
17. Anzac Girls (television series) & Poetry of Siegfried Sassoon (poetry)
18. Bad Feminist (collection of essays) & For Colored Girls (film)
19. Bad Feminist (collection of essays) & When I Hit You (novel)
20. Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress (novel) & Freedom Writers (film)
21. Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress (novel) & The Dreamer (novel)
22. Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress (novel) & The Kite Runner (film or graphic novel)
23. Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress (novel) & Wadjda (film)
24. Becoming Kirrali Lewis (novel) & Boy (film)
25. Becoming Kirrali Lewis (novel) & The Kite Runner (graphic novel)
26. Beloved (novel) & Dracula (novel)
27. Beloved (novel) & Frankenstein (novel)
28. Beloved (novel) & Icarus Girl (novel)
29. Beloved (novel) & Mother to Mother (novel)
30. Beloved (novel) & Uncle Tom’s Cabin (novel)
31. Beloved (novel) & Unconfessed (novel)
32. Boy, Snow, Bird (novel) & Americanah (novel)
33. Boy, Snow, Bird (novel) & Selected short stories of Chinua Achebe (short stories)
34. Boy, Snow, Bird (novel) & Desdemona (play)
35. Boy, Snow, Bird (novel) & God Help the Child (novel)
36. Boy, Snow, Bird (novel) & Kissing the Witch (novel)
37. Brave New World (novel) & The Crucible (play)
38. Brave New World (novel) & Never Let Me Go (film)
39. Brave New World (novel) & V for Vendetta (film)
40. Briar Rose (novel) & Grave of the Fireflies (film)
41. Briar Rose (novel) & Lion (film)
42. Briar Rose (novel) & Night (autobiography)
43. Briar Rose (novel) & Schindler’s List (film)
44. Deadline (novel) & Dead Poets Society (film)
45. Deadline (novel) & The Fault In Our Stars (film)
46. Deadline (novel) & The Secret Life of Walter Mitty (film)
47. Deadly, Unna? (novel) & A United Kingdom (film)
48. Deadly, Unna? (novel) & Hairspray (film)
49. Deadly, Unna? (novel) & Invictus (film)
50. Deadly, Unna? (novel) & Remember the Titans (films)
51. Deadly, Unna? (novel) & Selected episodes of Redfern Now (television series)
52. El Deafo (graphic novel) & The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time (novel)
53. Etiquette and Espionage (novel) & Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone (film)
54. Exit West (novel) & Romeo and Juliet (play)
55. Exit West (novel) & The poetry of Selina Nwulu (poetry)
56. Exit West (novel) & The poetry of Warsan Shire (poetry)
57. Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close (novel) & After the Storm (film)
58. Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close (novel) & 11’09’01 (collection of short films)
59. Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close (novel) & Lion (film)
60. Face (novel) & The Intouchables (film)
61. Fahrenheit 451 (novel) & Persepolis (graphic novel or film)
62. Fahrenheit 451 (novel) & V For Vendetta (film)
63. For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide / When the Rainbow is Enuf (choreopoem) & When I Hit You (novel)
64. For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide / When the Rainbow is Enuf (choreopoem) & Mustang (film)
65. Frankenstein (novel) & Boy, Snow, Bird (novel)
66. Frankenstein (novel) & Frankenweenie (film)
67. Frankenstein (novel) & The Iron Giant (film)
68. Frankenstein (novel) & Metropolis (film)
69. Frankenstein (novel) & Never Let Me Go (film)
70. Frankenstein (novel) & The Rocky Horror Picture Show (film)
71. Frankenstein (novel) & The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde (novel)
72. Girl Rising (film) & Poetry of Maya Angelou (poetry)
73. Girl Rising (film) & When I Hit You (novel)
74. Hamlet (play) & A Monster Calls (novel/film)
75. Hamlet (play) & Nutshell (novel)
76. Hamlet (play) & The Lion King (film)
77. Hiroshima (novel) & Grave of the Fireflies (film)
78. Jasper Jones  (novel) & The Help (film)
79. Jasper Jones (novel) & To Kill a Mockingbird (film)
80. King Henry IV, Part I (play) & Selected episodes of House of Cards (television show)
81. King Henry IV, Part I (play) & Selected episodes of Scandal (television show)
82. King Richard II (play) & Selected episodes of House of Cards (television show)
83. Life of Pi (novel) & Castaway (film)
84. Lord of the Flies (novel) & Where the Wild Things Are (film)
85. Lord of the Flies (novel) & The Hunger Games (film)
86. Macbeth (play) & Selected episodes of Designated Survivor (television series)
87. Macbeth (play) & The Dressmaker (film)
88. Macbeth (play) & The Gods of Wheat Street (television series)
89. Macbeth (play) & The Kite Runner (graphic novel, novel or film)
90. Macbeth (play) & Selected episodes of House of Cards (television series)
91. Macbeth (play) & Selected episodes of Scandal (television series)
92. Maus (graphic novel) & A Long Way Gone (memoir)
93. Maus (graphic novel) & Night (autobiography)
94. Maus (graphic novel) & Schindler’s List (film)
95. March (novel) & Little Women (novel)
96. Me and Earl and the Dying Girl (novel) & The Fault in Our Stars (film)
97. Night (autobiography) & A Long Way Gone (memoir)
98. Night (autobiography) & Beatrice and Virgil (novel)
99. Night (autobiography) & Girl At War (novel)
100. Night (autobiography) & Over A Thousand Hills I Walk With You (biography)
101. Night (autobiography) & Rabbit-Proof Fence (film)
102. Night (autobiography) & Schindler’s List (film)
103. Night (autobiography) & The Seven Stages of Grieving (play)
104. Nineteen Eighty-Four (novel) & Pleasantville (film)
105. Nona and Me (novel) & Looking for Alibrandi (film)
106. Nona and Me (novel) & September (film)
107. Of Mice and Men (novel) & Hunt for the Wilderpeople (film)
108. Othello (play) & Boy Snow Bird (novel)
109. Othello (play) & Desdemona (play)
110. Othello (play) & Gone Girl (film)
111. Othello (play) & Jasper Jones (novel)
112. Othello (play) & New Boy (novel)
113. Othello (play) & Selected episodes of Redfern Now (television series)
114. Othello (play) & V For Vendetta (film)
115. Over a Thousand Hills I Walk With You (biography) & Girl At War (novel)
116. Over A Thousand Hills I Walk With You (biography) & Hotel Rwanda (film)
117. Over A Thousand Hills I Walk With You (biography) & Lion (film)
118. Over A Thousand Hills I Walk With You (biography) & Maus (graphic novel)
119. Over A Thousand Hills I Walk With You (biography) & Night (autobiography)
120. Over A Thousand Hills I Walk With You (biography) & Schindler’s List (film)
121. Pride & Prejudice (novel) & Bride and Prejudice (film)
122. Pride & Prejudice (novel) & Bridget Jones’s Diary (film)
123. Pride & Prejudice (novel) & Mustang (film)
124. Pride & Prejudice (novel) & The Wedding Plan (film)
125. Refugee Boy (novel) & Freedom Writers (film)
126. Refugee Boy (novel) & The African Doctor (film)
127. Refugee Boy (novel) & The Arrival (picture book)
128. Romeo & Juliet (play) & Alex and Eve (film)
129. Romeo & Juliet (play) & A United Kingdom (film)
130. Romeo & Juliet (play) & Freedom Writers (film)
131. Romeo & Juliet (play) & Hairspray (film)
132. Romeo & Juliet (play) & Meet the Patels (film)
133. Romeo & Juliet (play) & Mustang (film)
134. Romeo & Juliet (play) & My Big Fat Greek Wedding (film)
135. Romeo & Juliet (play) & Tanna (film)
136. Romeo & Juliet (play) & The Fault in Our Stars (film or novel)
137. Romeo & Juliet (play) & Titanic (film)
138. Romeo & Juliet (play) & Viceroy’s House (film)
139. Romeo & Juliet (play) & West Side Story (film)
140. Safana and Aunt Sarrinah (play) & Selected episodes of Redfern Now (television show)
141. Safana and Aunt Sarrinah (play) & The Green Bicycle (novel)
142. Safana and Aunt Sarrinah (play) & The Kite Runner (novel or graphic novel)
143. Safana and Aunt Sarrinah (play) & Wadjda (film)
144. Safana and Aunt Sarrinah (play) & Poetry of Warsan Shire (poetry)
145. Scattered Lives (play) & Americannah (novel)
146. Scattered Lives (play) & Freedom Writers (film)
147. Scattered Lives (play) & Looking for Alibrandi (novel)
148. Scattered Lives (play) & Poetry of Peter Skrzynecki (poetry)
149. Scattered Lives (play) & Poetry of Selina Nwulu (poetry)
150. Scattered Lives (play) & Poetry of Warsan Shire (poetry)
151. Schindler’s Ark (novel) & Hotel Rwanda (film)
152. Speak (novel) & For Colored Girls (film)
153. Speak (novel) & The Lovely Bones (novel)
154. Speak (novel) & The Scarlet Letter (novel)
155. Speak (novel) & When I Hit You (novel)
156. Stargirl (novel) & Wadjda (film)
157. Station Eleven (novel) & A Midsummer Night’s Dream (play)
158. Station Eleven (novel) & Hag-Seed (novel)
159. Station Eleven (novel) & Never Let Me Go (novel or film)
160. Station Eleven (novel) & The Tempest (play)
161. Stolen (play) & Rabbit-Proof Fence (film)
162. Stolen (play) & The Rabbits (picture book)
163. The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian (novel) & Hunt for the Wilderpeople (film)
164. The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind (memoir) & Queen of Katwe (film)
165. The Color Purple (novel) & For Colored Girls (film)
166. The Crucible (play) & Mother to Mother (novel)
167. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time (novel) & Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close (film)
168. The Dreamer (novel) & Billy Elliot (film)
169. The Drover’s Wife (play) & Selected episodes of Redfern Now (television series)
170. The Drover’s Wife (play) & ‘The Drover’s Wife’ (short story)
171. The Drover’s Wife (play) & Mother to Mother (novel)
172. The Drover’s Wife (play) & When I Hit You (novel)
173. The First Third (novel) & Boy (film)
174. The Fault in Our Stars (novel) & Me and Earl and the Dying Girl (film)
175. The Handmaid’s Tale (novel/television series) & Never Let me Go (novel/film)
176. The Help (novel) & A United Kingdom (film)
177. The Help (novel) & Remember the Titans (film)
178. The Help (novel) & The Blindside (film)
179. The Outsiders (novel) & Hunt for the Wilderpeople (film)
180. The Outsiders (novel) & Freedom Writers (film)
181. The Outsiders (novel) & Yolngu Boy (film)
182. The Rabbits (picture book) & Deadly, Unna? (novel)
183. The Rabbits (picture book) & Poetry of Oodgeroo Noonuccal (poetry)
184. The Rabbits (picture book) & Rabbit-Proof Fence (film)
185. The Real Inspector Hound (play) & Selected episodes of Trapped (television series)
186. The Real Inspector Hound (play) & And Then There Were None (novel)
187. The Scarlet Letter (novel) & Easy A (film)
188. The Skull Beneath the Skin (novel) & The Real Inspector Hound (play)
189. The Skull Beneath the Skin (novel) & Selected episodes of Trapped (television series)
190. The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde (novel) & The Drover’s Wife (play)
191. The Street Sweeper by Elliot Perlman (novel) & Freedom Writers (film)
192. The Story of Edgar Sawtelle (novel) & Hamlet (play or film)
193. The Kite Runner (novel) & Big Fish (film)
194. The Kite Runner (novel) & Boy (film)
195. The Queue (novel) & Animal Farm (novel)
196. The Queue (novel) & Brave New World (novel)
197. The Queue (novel) & Fahrenheit 451 (novel/film)
198. The Queue (novel) & Nineteen Eighty-Four (novel)
199. The Queue (novel) & Persepolis (film/graphic novel)
200. ‘The Yellow Wallpaper’ (short story) & Icarus Girl (novel)
201. To Kill a Mockingbird (novel) & A United Kingdom (film)
202. To Kill a Mockingbird (novel) & Boy, Snow, Bird (novel)
203. To Kill a Mockingbird (novel) & Hairspray (film)
204. To Kill a Mockingbird (novel) & Poetry of Langston Hughes (poetry)
205. To Kill a Mockingbird (novel) & Jasper Jones (novel)
206. To Kill a Mockingbird (novel) & Pleasantville (film)
207. To Kill a Mockingbird (novel) & Remember the Titans (film)
208. To Kill a Mockingbird (novel) & Selected episodes of Redfern Now (television series)
209. To Kill a Mockingbird (novel) & The Blindside (film)
210. To Kill a Mockingbird (novel) & The Hate U Give (novel)
211. To Kill a Mockingbird (novel) & The Help (film)
212. To This Day (graphic novel) & Wonder (novel)
213. To This Day (graphic novel) & Face (novel)
214. Vernon God Little (novel) & Elephant (film)
215. Vinegar Girl (novel) & The Taming of the Shrew (play)
216. Vinegar Girl (novel) & 10 Things I Hate About You (film)
217. Voices from Chernobyl (non-fiction) & Grave of the Fireflies (film)
218. War Horse (film) & Poetry of Siegfried Sassoon (poetry)
219. War Horse (film) & Poetry of Wilfred Owen (poetry)

Building relationships between texts

As students move through high school, it is important that they learn to (a) engage with and analyse a range of texts and, (b) build connections between thematically and/or conceptually linked texts.

In order to help my students do this, I want to read them Doreen Rappaport’s picture book Martin’s Big Words and have them compare this text with a poem by Langston Hughes entitled ‘Dream Variations‘.  Through comparing these texts, I hope to have my students understand that texts can exist in conversation with each other.

There is also scope to connect the picture book to a range of other poems, see here.

Picturing Heroes

As part of my Year ‘Heroes’ unit for Year 7, I want to offer students an opportunity to engage with picture books that represent different types of heroes and various heroic qualities.  In particular, I am keen for them to engage with historical heroes.

Below are a list of picture books that engage with the concept of ‘Heroes’ and my rationale for why I want to use them as part of the unit:

• Freedom on the Menu (Carole Boston Weatherford): Explores the notion that heroism involves bravery and staying true to one’s beliefs.
• The Other Side (Jacqueline Woodson): Emphasises that children can be heroes too.  Also, discusses the idea that heroism is about addressing unfairness and inequality.
• The Man Who Walked Between the Towers (Mordicai Gerstein): Heroism can involve feats of physical daring and charting new territory.
• One Boy’s War (Lynn Huggins-Cooper & Ian Benfold Haywood): Engages with the notion that heroism involves persevering despite challenging circumstances.  As this narrative is about war, there is also an opening to discuss how perceptions of heroism might differ depending on perspective.
• Rose Blanche (Roberto Innocenti & Ian McEwan): Again, the hero here is a child.  Suggests that heroism might involve taking risks and acting in accordance with one’s conscience.

Differentiated instruction

As we all know, it is important to differentiate instruction to ensure that all students can access course content.  Sometimes differentiation involves simply sitting with a student and explaining the task differently.  Other times, it involves a separate set of worksheets.  See, for example, HANDOUT – Connecting paragraphs.

In the example above, most students complete the first handout (Handout 06) with various amounts of assistance.  My weaker students and some of my ESL students complete the second handout (Handout 06A).  My strongest students complete the first handout and then build on their knowledge from previous extension activities by completing the third handout (Handout 06B).

Opera in the English classroom

As part of the introduction to my Year 10 ‘Visions of Australia‘ unit I asked students to explain how images were created in written text, a double-page spread of a picture book and an opera.  All three texts engaged with a series of quotations from Marsden and Tan’s The Rabbits.  The idea was that they would recognise how different types of texts create images in different ways.

On the whole, students came up with perceptive responses.  They noted, for example, that the rhetorical questions in the original text example created a sense of loss, that the high-pitched voice in the musical clip suggested pain, and that the overwhelming use of black in the double-page spread might represent the absence of something.

Analysing ‘The Rabbits’

Learning how to analyse texts and display that knowledge in clear paragraphs is the focus skill for my Year 10 class.  In order to assist them to organise their information I have given them a paragraph proforma that we use each time we write a paragraph.

Typically, we complete the first paragraph together as a class, which can then be used as a model.  Students must then complete the other two examples by themselves with varying levels of assistance. An example handout can be found here: HANDOUT – The Rabbits analysis table.