Language Study within an Area of Study - Belonging as Depicted in the Rainbows End by Joan Harrison - Book Report/Review Example

rеаting А Unit of Work for Yеаr 11 Stage 6 ЕSL Students (Belonging) Name: Institution: Unit of Work Stage 6 ЕSL students Language Study within an Area of Study: Belonging as depicted in the book Rainbow’s End written by Joan Harrison The unit of work developed will provide activities that the students will explore the concept of journey as expressed in the book Rainbow’s End written by Joan Harrison. The unit has introductory activities for the teacher to engage with the students as they seek to understand the social, cultural, and historical context of the Rainbow’s End. At the same time, demonstrating a pedagogical approach to appreciating the concept of belonging by reading, and understanding the ideas expressed in the text, deconstruct the issues of belonging in order to understand the shaping of meaning. The students should also be able to give imaginative analysis of the text in the extended responses. Unit of Work Stage 6 ЕSL outcomes 1. The students will show a demonstrable understanding of the inherent relationships existing between the author, students, text, and the shaping of meaning within the context of belonging 4. The students will demonstrate appropriate usage of the English language as reflected in the text. 5. The students will gain an understanding of audience and the writing purpose influence the structures of the texts and application of language 8. The students will explore different textual forms, audiences, and contexts 9. The students will have a detailed engagement with the text so as to develop an informed response 12. Finally, the students will be able to exercise imagination to texts as a demonstration of understanding and acquired control of the English language. Outcomes and content Language focus Activities Resources Assessment of Learning outcomes 1.The students are expected to learn how to use language that relates to their study of English as a second language The students will interact with the language applicable in their social, cultural, and workplace environments The students will build vocabulary and get introduced to important concept of belonging and associated synonyms such as: fit in be in the right place feel right Community Harmony Affiliation Association duty PRIOR LEARNING The students are expected to know how to use the dictionary to get the definition of belonging and associated synonyms. The students will undertake an exercise of constructing sentences where they put the word belonging in context to demonstrate an understanding of the concept. Book reading and discussion of short texts that are associated with the concept of belonging The students will engage in a group discussion on their personal opinion and experiences of belonging (family, community) The students will corroboratively develop a list of terms which they will assess, define and apply the same in their assignments throughout the unit. The students will also be able to apply the learning from the study in the discussion groups. Selected texts associated with belonging Rainbow's End by Joan Harrison Swallow the Air by Tara June Winch Dictionaries Thesaurus 2.The students are expected to learn how to use language that relates to their study of English as a second language The students will learn the language for making connections, affirming, challenging, questioning as well as making generalized speculation regarding the text and associated experiences The teacher will introduce to the students important phrases that the students are expected to apply as a demonstration of their comprehension of the texts in the area of study. The phrases may include: emotional connections intellectual disposition New insights Challenges Belonging Self discovery THE AREA OF THE STUDY: BELONGING Going over the rubric with the students is essential so that the students are aware of what they anticipate to learn and how the outcome will be assessed. The teacher will draw a list of general statements derived from the rubric regarding the area of study as shown in Teacher Information Sheet 1. The syllabus for stage six English Teacher Information sheet 1 Provide reading on the Area of Study: Belonging. (Belonging has been viewed as belonging to a society, country, a civilization, or a class) 3.The students are expected to learn the manner they can to the chosen texts by analyzing the provided texts in various modes and media The students learn apply the language to the study of the English language which include; questioning, making connections, speculating, challenging or affirming Application of terminologies to describe how the visual materials relate to the creation of meaning: this calls for the use of graphics, colors, shapes, layouts, foreground and backgrounds. It is essential to identify the emotive language from the texts that reflect convey emotions and associated reactions to events in the story. THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE KNOWLEDGE BASE: for a better understanding of the story it is essential that the students learn to investigate and explore the social, cultural and historical background and the context of the series of events presented in the text or novel as delineated below in order to develop a knowledge base for the events that shaped and influenced the lives of the three women that the story is weaved around. Making predictions The students may be asked to analyze both covers as a starting point and give predictions on the idea of belonging. The students are expected to rely on their experiences and the skills they have learnt from analyzing visual texts in various areas of the course unit. They should clearly describe how the layout, graphics and language have been applied to create meaning in the provided text. For instance, a graphical representation of the three women perusing a book is an illustration of how they view the history of their colonization as represented in most historical books. The matriarch sits as the other two women stand. A graphical representation of power play in the domestic setting of the aboriginal homes. The three women, Nan Dear, Gladys, her daughter and Dolly, represent different views regarding belonging. Nan, the matriarch accepts her lot and her family survival. Her approach to many things is based on whether they are of any useful, especially in keeping the family fed. Gladys dreams reflect acceptance of her reality and her life is focused on her daughter, Dolly, and how she can give child a better life. She hopes that Dolly will get an education, a good job, and a nice fiancé in the name or Errol. Suffice to say, Gladys represent the aboriginal passive resistance and discontent. She aspires to be associated with the white people society, and, therefore is not willing to bring changes to the status quo. The reading of the cover blurb reveals what kind of life the characters have undergone however, irrespective of the difficulties, they are determined to soldier on Vocabulary exercise The students should work in pairs to find the meaning of several terms that are necessary to understanding the story. The teacher should give a handout with some key phrases for the students to discuss alongside their list of vocabularies. The students are issued with copies of the book Rainbow's End by Joan Harrison Handout 1 A dictionary Thesaurus The students’ discussion on the covers of the novel should reveal an understanding of how meaning in texts is created and how it is communicated and mediated through symbolism. The students should demonstrate better responses on the selected visual text and offer an explanation on how such visual texts offered a clear perspective of belonging. Some students may struggle in grasping the concepts. The teacher will ask a few students to tell the class what they understand by some of the words to check on their overall comprehension Outcomes and content Language focus activities resources Assessment of Learning outcomes 4.The students will learn how meaning is shaped and mediated through the relationships between the author, reader, text, and context through: Composing texts focused on addressing a particular meanings in a range of contexts The students will learn to adapt various textual forms through: Writing, composing, and adapting texts that deal with various audiences and purposes Reading through the text to identify the main ideas and use subheading in order to make relevant and clear summary notes JIGSAW READING ACTIVITY The jigsaw activity is meant to give the students a general understanding. The students are divided into groups of three and each student given a certain aspect of belonging to investigate. The familial belonging. assimilation as compared to acceptance Psychological and social barriers to belonging. The teacher will provide appropriate sources with concise details regarding each perspective from the novel and related studies on belonging. The teacher also will issue Handout 2 to the groups. The handout has subheadings that should guide the students on how to carry out the research while also assisting the students on taking notes on their assigned topic. The students’ research will be previewed by the students who researched different concepts. The students can then be reorganized so that groups are composed of a student from each class of concepts and they should report on the learning experience on the allocated concept. The students should be encourage to ask question in order to be able to finish the assignment in Handout 2 As an extension activity, the students can be asked to the notes they made on Handout 2 to give a report on what they understand to be the meaning of belonging. The student should get a guidance model from the teacher. The book Rainbow end by Joan Harrison Allen, K. & Bowles, T. (2012). Belonging as a Guiding Principle in the Education of Adolescents, Australian Journal of Educational & Developmental Psychology. 12, pp. 108-119 Assessment of the students ability to retrieve relevant information from various sources as guided by the subheading on Handout 2 Outcome and content Language focus Activities Resources Outcome assessment 5. The students will learn the methods to respond to texts through analyzing texts in various media and modes. How to follow the text main idea READING THE TEXT The teacher will offer an introduction to the book while discussing the content of Handout 3 as way of getting the student prepared for the exploration of the emotional, physical, and intellectual belonging as presented in the book. The reading of the novel in class may be dependent on the motivation and time available. However, the following strategies may help. The student may read the novel on their own (recommended) The novel may be read aloud in class (time consuming) The teacher may decide to have the reading of the novel in a recorded format Or the teacher may divide the class into small reading groups. The teacher will supervise the activities below which are meant to guide the student to work through the different type of belonging. Familial Belonging The student can identify with the concept of a belonging by identifying the family Nan Dear, her daughter and her granddaughter The students will investigate the family tree. The student should also investigate the responses on the inclusion of cousins The students can draw a graphical representation of the family tree as they take notes. The teacher may provide the students with an illustration of a family tree in Handout 3 to guide them in the drawing of the Nan Dear family tree. 6. Students learn about the various manner they can respond to the texts by composing personal responses and assessing the responses of their peers Students will demonstrate ability to extract information from the book using study guides questions CREATIVE WRITING Emotional and intellectual belongings in the book The students take notes on the challenges that the character face with their emotions. Handout 5a-5d Handout 6a and 6b should be used for the group work in exploring the phrases that identify Nan Dear and her daughter emotional development. Handout 5a-5d Handout 6a and 6b Both handouts are used by the students to trace the emotional growth The students group work and class discussion allows the student to show their understanding of the book and the characters levels of belonging Content outcomes The focus of the language activities resources assessment 7.Identifying various features of several texts and identifying their meanings Analysis technique Plot sequence Narrative technique DECONSTRUCT THE TEXT The student are now familiar with the story and can now engage with the narrative techniques to convey the characters unique perception of belonging The teacher to assess the students for correctness and accuracy use of connectives. Students to read out what they have written in the diary to demonstrate their use of language Outcomes Language focus activities resources assessment Students to analyze the text in detail Personal response to the text THE LINKAGE OF IDEAS The students are to choose several statements that are made regarding belonging. The students to use Handout 12 to choose the phrases that are relevant to the belonging of the three women. The students can support the choices by using direct quotations. An extended response composition. By drawing from what the students have learnt from the novel and how the ideas of belonging have been expressed, the students can compose a response to the question: how does the idea of belonging vary from one character to the other? Teacher information sheet Handout 12 Content and outcome focus activities resources assessment 8. The students will learn the effect of the audience determine the structure of texts. They will select language structures and forms to express ideas for various audiences. Address the clarity of individual composition to demonstrate the acquired complex expression of thoughts. ANALYTICAL WRITING The teacher to guide the students in making analytical assessment as guided by the teacher information sheets Students practice on their writing skills by answering more questions from a second book. The teacher to help the students write a short story about the cultural practices of the indigenous people and post it on the school blog. Handout 14 and 15 Writing of analytical phrases and collecting and processing information to handle extended response questions outcome Language focus activities resources assessment 9.The student will learn how to use language that is relevant to their study of English as a second language and how they can interact with texts ASSESSMENT TASK The students will write an individual presentation to the class. The teacher will discuss and issue the students with the student information sheet that outlines the requirement and the marking rubric. Go over the essential knowledge needed to accomplish the task. The students are to work on their own. The information sheet and marking rubric. Assess the students’ application of the acquired new phrases and their independent understanding of texts. Moving the students along the Mode Continuum in their Zone of Proximal Development The activities in the Unit of work plan move the students along the Mode Continuum in their Zone of Proximal Development. The instructions are planned to offer practice in the zone of proximal development for the students through giving hints and prompts. The teacher will also encourage cooperative learning activities by dividing the students into groups so that the students can assist each other. The teacher will offer graduated intervention by offering encouragement, hints, prompts and illustrations. Activity 1 Using the dictionary to get the definition of “belonging” The teacher helps the students to find words that mean the same as belonging The students read aloud the words they have identified. The teacher helps with the pronunciations. Activity 2 In a group discussion the students’ are to share personal opinion and experiences of belonging such as Family community, and class. The teacher should help the student identify the family in the text. The students will practice the pronunciations of the names of the family members with the teacher giving hints and cues when a student is unable to identify who should be included in the family tree. Activity 3 Individually, the students are to identify their family names, the aboriginal communities, and their country. The teacher will help the students to draw their family trees. The teacher will encourage a discussion on the inclusion of cousins as members of the family tree. Activity 4 Using their computers, the student will write a short story about their experiences in belonging to a family and post it on the class blog. The teacher should help the students in drafting the story. The teacher will call for volunteer students to read their stories to the class. Using cues and hints, the teacher will help the students with proper pronunciations of the vocabularies. The syllabus outcomes and ESL scale pointers 1. The ESL syllabus and pointers indicate that the student is able to communicate in a classroom environment, extract the relevant information from text or conversation and can develop ideas using coherent speech. 2. The student can also communicate using formal or informal registers and organize language and ideas that may be drawn from various sources. 3. The student is expected to display an awareness that effective English demands that a speaker adapts a language depending on the expectation of the listeners 4. The student is expected to create spoken texts in manners that reflect their developing control over given specific registers. 2) Evidence of ability to direct students to complete an activity Vocabulary Exercise Good morning class. Today, you will learn some new phrases from the book Rainbow’s return by Joan Harrison. Please get into groups of two and take out the reading materials. Using the text, can you please look for words that show the belonging in the story. Draw a list of the words that you have identified. Now, I am going to give you a hand out with some key phrases. Can you discuss them and compare with the list you had drawn. Who will read out the list that you have drawn? Can you please tell us which words that you had picked and whether they are on the handout? 3) Evidence of awareness of strategies to evaluate teaching programs After the program has been taught, the teacher should consider dedicating a lesson where the class engages freely in the discussion of the words they have learnt during the program. The teacher should guide the discussion and occasionally provide some graphical illustration of the vocabularies that the students may find difficult to understand. It may help to have some students play-act some scenes in order to reinforce the understanding and deconstruction of the meaning of the phrases. The students should work in discussion groups of either two or three students. However, a class discussion should take place at the end of the program. References Allen, K. & Bowles, T. (2012). Belonging as a Guiding Principle in the Education of Adolescents, Australian Journal of Educational & Developmental Psychology. 12, pp. 108-119. Harrison, J. (2005). Rainbow's End, Redfern: Currency Press Gibbons, P. (2009). English Learners Academic Literacy and Thinking in the Challenge Zone, London: Heinemann Publishers. Read More