m






Workshop 6: Teaching the

class novel/working with
a

 pverview of workshop

 Micro-teaching session
 Introduction to teaching the class novel
Working on the macro and micro levels«
Micro-teaching
 Teaching the class novel/teaching a


Questions for discussion:

 Is the study of a set class novel appropriate?
Do all schools studying one set text at each
year level?

 Teaching a

What were your responses to reading the
novel?
Would you choose to teach this text? (What
criteria should we use to select texts?)
 ½esources:
 Text selection guidelines (VATE)
 Text selection guidelines (AATE)
 ACA½A draft English curriculum (go to page
36)
 English and censorship (AATE)
½emember that you may not be in a
position to choose the set text«
 Êome key questions and considerations for
teachers prior to teaching the class novel (a
):

 What could/ should my students learn out of the experience of reading and
exploring this particular text?
What might the key learning outcomes be?
What will be the key focus/theme (if any)?

 What kinds of learning activities will I use to ensure:

Maximum student engagement ± the activities should be constructed or
adapted to suit MY students.
A differentiated curriculum
Curriculum guidelines ± VELÊ/ACA½A doc.
A range of learning tasks so that my teaching is balanced and varied (in
terms of LANGUAGE, LITE½ATU½E AND LITE½ACY tasks for example).


     
 
   
     



   

 reparing a unit on a


 ºave a preliminary look at the ACA½A English curriculum document for Year 9
 http://www.australiancurriculum.edu.au/Documents/English%2
0curriculum.pdf

 In groups of three or four, consider the Unit outline template attached. Discuss
the fields in light of the draft curriculum and make a start at filling them
in«we¶ll return to this later.
 Unit outline
6
 


 
 Teaching the class novel
ºow will your students read the text?

Êome popular options include:

1. ½eading whole text together in class
Whole class reads whole text aloud in class, with each student taking turns to
read. pther variations include teacher reads whole text aloud to students,
student readers volunteer to read aloud with teacher reading bulk of novel,
teacher narrates and students read dialogue in character.

2. Êtudents are given homework time to read the entire text prior to the
commencement of teaching. Teacher begins teaching with the expectation that
all students have read entire novel.

3. Teacher plans teaching of the text around a combination of in-class reading

aloud and homework reading.

.
 ½eflecting on the teaching of the class novel

Discussion: What approaches have you seen on your

placement? ºave you employed any yourself?
Anything different?
ACTIVITY: At tables, take a few minutes to discuss the
benefits and constraints of each of these options.
Choose your preferred option ± it may be a different
approach altogether - and give reasons for your
choice.

* Consider the use of talking books«.

 Questions before reading

 Focus on:
 Front cover
 Epigraphs (if any)
 Contents page
INT½pDUCING TºE NpVEL: pne ³way in´

1. Consider the image on the cover of the book.

2. Describe the people in the image.
What do you notice about the image?
(Describe colour, lighting, setting, positioning
of subjects, clothing, facial expression and
actions)
3. Focusing only on the image, what do you think
this book might be about? Why?
4. What sort of adjectives might you use to
describe these people? Why?
5. ºow does the image work with or against the
book¶s title? Give reasons for your answer.
6. Why do you think the author/publisher has
chosen to represent the figure in the foreground
in such a way that we cannot see her/his face?
7. Do you like this cover?
8. Do you have any other predictions about what
might happen in this story?
ºow might you answer those questions differently
if this was the image on the cover of TpWN?
 Contents page«

 What does this contents page reveal about the structure, genre
and interests of this text?
 åeginning reading«p , Year 10s«

 Teacher leads reading of the first chapter/story (pages 1-3).

volunteers to read dialogue ³in character¶?
 Active reading ± with pencil in hand
 Question and activities before/during/after reading:
Who is ³they´ in the first sentence?
What do we already know about Marty after the first paragraph?
What more do we know about him after the second paragraph?
Consider the sentence: ³Which would suck.´ What kind of
language is this? ½ewrite this sentence using formal language?
Is this considered to be a sentence? Why not?
Vocab: geiger counter?
Activity (after reading chapter): Adjectives to describe character
of Marty on post-its on the whiteboard ± to return to at the end of
the story.
 Looking at one story«

What sort of questions will I ask my students? åe aware that the sorts of questions you
ask might reflect your own perspectives on English teaching.

Questions can focus on:

rhetoric (language)
aesthetics
ethics

Questions should address the different levels of åloom¶s taxonomy:

http://www.odu.edu/educ/roverbau/åloom/blooms_taxonomy.htm
 Asking questions«

ºow would you classify these questions?

1. Why d y  hi  ie aced he
ay she did? W d y  have aced
differey?

2. H
d hech ices y aesre.sei

refechisvie
s 
hai eas 
esraia?

3. H
d eshesrcre fhe vec rie y rdersadi

 fi?

4. H
are
easreaders sii ed feea he
ayeachersierac
ih

sdesihefirss ry

5. Wh isary¶s arericri e´?

You may like to consult this great resource:

http://wwwfp.education.tas.gov.au/English/askquest.htm
 Teaching Town: one story

 lan a lesson around one of the stories in a
. This lesson

should link in with you overall aims for the unit.
 Consult the Australian curriculum for English and combine the
strands of literature/language and literacy into this plan
 Consider the ACA½A outcomes for Year 9 or 10 English when
planning this lesson
 ost to Wiki upon completion.

Êome ideas for activities can be found here: 6