I
observed a year ten set four group and for my observation I have chosen to
concentrate on section 2.2 from the KS4 POS. The class comprises of twelve boys
and it is apparent that there is mutual respect between pupils and staff alike
as they are both proactive and polite. The group have been working through Of Mice and Men and in the previous
lesson they were introduced to the ideas of foreshadowing and symbolism in
relation to the novella. The learning outcomes for the lesson were “to recap
what is meant by foreshadowing and symbolism; to be able to find examples of
the techniques in chapter three; understand how Curley’s wife is presented in
chapter three.”
For the
starter Mr B chose an extract from chapter three and asked the class to discuss
in table groups what the reader learns about George’s feelings towards women.
This starter related to 2.2.a in the POS which states that students should be
able to “analyse and evaluate information, events and ideas from texts.”
Although I am concentrating on 2.2 from the KS4 POS I think it is worth noting
that the task also encompassed section 2.1.j which states students should be
able to “work purposefully in groups, negotiating and building on the
contributions of others to complete tasks or reach consensus” and the table
groups kept on task without requiring any intervention from Mr B or myself.
After
this task Mr B recapped the symbolism that surrounds Curley’s wife and what the
reader can infer about her life from her introductory description. The class
discussed the various perceptions of Curley’s wife which linked to 2.2.h in the
POS: “[students] recognise and evaluate the ways in which texts may be
interpreted differently according to the perspective of the reader.” Mr B put
an AFL ‘reading skills ladder’ on the board so that the class could identify
the grade of their verbal analysis. By doing this the group identified not only
where their verbal analysis fell on the grading ladder but also what they
needed to do to achieve an even higher grade.
After
the starter the class continued reading chapter three using the ‘popcorn’
method and Mr B gave positive feedback to readers for fluency and voice
projection. After reading about the dream and Candy’s proposition to join
George and Lennie the class began to look at foreshadowing and symbolism in
this section. Four questions were put up on the board (i.e. 1. Why is the story
of what happened in Weed important? 2. What happens to Candy’s dog? 3. Why is
it significant that the dog is killed? 4. What do you think the dog
symbolises?) Mr B asked the class to complete three bullet points for each
question. The task related to 2.2.d in the KS4 POS as the students could
“develop and sustain independent interpretations of what they read.” After
completion the class shared their ideas and were given the AFL ‘purple pens of progress’
to add points that they may have overlooked promoting peer learning.
For the
plenary Mr B asked the class why Candy wants to be a part of George and
Lennie’s dream. The class discussed this as a group and, having looked at the
‘reading skills ladder’ earlier in the lesson, they seemed even more inclined
to make points and find applicable quotations. This related to 2.2.e in the POS
as the pupils could “select, compare, summarise and synthesise information from
different texts and use it to form their own ideas, arguments and opinions.” At
the end of the lesson Mr B introduced the learning outcomes for their next
lesson: “summarise the content of the dream; explore and explain the content of
the dream.” 2.2.k states that pupils should be able to “identify the purposes
of texts, analysing and evaluating how writers structure and organise ideas to
shape meaning for particular audiences and readers” and so the proceeding
lesson will also encompass sections of 2.2 from the KS4 POS as well.
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