Autobiography Scheme of Work

AUTOBIOGRAPHY

A Scheme of Work by Vanessa Tucker

Aims of the Scheme of Work

To introduce a range of factual and informative texts.
To develop awareness of different types of non-fiction writing.
To provide opportunity to write imaginatively for specific audiences’ and for themselves.

NATIONAL CURRICULUM OPPORTUNITIES
PROVIDED BY THIS SCHEME OF WORK

En2-Reading:
1e, Range:

Introduced to a wide range of non-fiction texts, e.g. autobiographies, biographies, journals, diaries, letters, travel writing, leaflets .
Given opportunities to read texts that show quality in language use, and portray information, issues, and events relating to contemporary life or past experience in ways that are interesting and challenging.

2c, Key skills:

Given opportunities to read factual and informative texts in order to:
- select information;
- compare and synthesise information drawn from different texts, e.g. IT-based sources and printed articles;
- make effective use of information in their own work;
Evaluate how information is presented.
In using information sources, pupils should be taught to sift the relevant from the irrelevant, and to distinguish between fact and opinion, bias and objectivity.

3a, Standard English and language study:

Pupils are taught to recognise, analyse, and evaluate the characteristic features of different types of text in print and other media. They are given opportunities to consider the effects of organisation and structure, how authors' purposes and intentions are portrayed, and how attitudes, values and meanings are communicated.

En3-Writing
Key skills:

Improve and sustain writing
Use knowledge to organise and express ideas and information in discursive, persuasive and other types of non-fiction writing.

Range:

Given opportunity to write for a range of specific readers.
To extend confidence in writing

LESSON 1

Learning objective:

To introduce the sow and promote understanding of autobiographical writing.

Whole class: Introduce the scheme of work and its aims. Teacher writes the word autobiography on the board and discusses the meaning of the word with the class:-

auto meaning the 'self'
biography- a written account of a persons life etc.

The class discuss the types of things that they could put in their autobiography which are individual to them.

Group: Teacher divides the class into groups and asks them to make a list of the sort of things that help signify to others what we are like as individuals for example, the type of music we listen to, physical appearance, food we eat, sport we play, where we live etc.

Whole class: The groups report back with findings, and the class discusses how and what these aspects tell us about a person. Teacher suggests that they tell us about different parts of a -

person: appearance , feelings
thoughts: vegetarian = animal rights? clothes = fashion conscious? animal lover=kind?

All these things make us the person that we are, but others also make judgements about us by what we do, say, like, dislike etc.

Individual: The class are asked to write a discription of themselves including as many different aspects as possible. They should think for 3 minutes before writing anything and should try to be as thorough and as truthful as possible because the whole class will try to guess who they are from this written discription.

Whole class: The teacher collects in the written discriptions and reads them to the class they have to guess whoose discription is being read.

Recap.: On lesson by asking questions about autobiography. Discuss what makes us individual is often what makes us interesting.

Homework: To gather information and photographs about yourself for the next lesson.

LESSON 2

Learning objective:

To introduce timelines and develop organisational skills.
Resources: A timeline, card, magazines, glue and colouring pencils.

Whole class: Recap on last lesson. Explain what a timeline is and show example. Teacher explains that it is one way of presenting information about yourself that can be viewed at a glance. Explain that they will do a timeline of each year of their life pin-pointing memorable moments and showing how they have grown/matured by demonstrating what has changed about them. Ask the class to brainstorm the types of things they could include in their timelines and write these on the board.

Individual: Draw a plan of timeline and make it.

Recap.

Differentiate by teacher and outcome - understanding and depth of task.

LESSON 3

Learning objective:

To continue to foster awareness of timelines and develop organisational skills.

Whole class: Finish timelines.

Group: Divide into groups and view timelines, discuss how each other has changed and what has stayed the same, include appearance, thoughts likes, and dislikes etc.

Individual: Write a short piece to accompany your timeline explaining what has changed about you and what has stayed the same.

Recap: Discuss together what we have learnt about ourselves.

Extension work: Write a poem based on the information from your timeline entitled 'change'.

Homework: Bring a small mirror to the next lesson.

LESSON 4

Learning objective:

To develop metaphorical thinking.
Resources: Mirrors.

Whole class: The teacher explains that everyones face is unique and so are all of our expressions.The teacher asks each pupil to explore their faces in detail and talks them through this- eye colour, size of nose, lips, colour of skin, shape of face etc.

Pairs: The class is divided into pairs and they have to make" their own" special expression of whatever the teacher calls out e.g, happiness, angry, whilst watching their partner make his/hers.

Individual: The class are asked to write a detailed description of their appearance in five minutes they should try to put down as much detail as possible.

Whole class: The teacher explains that we will play the Furniture Game : one person thinks of someone in the group but does not say who it is. The rest of the class must guess the name by asking certain kinds of questions. What sort of furniture is this person? What type of tree? Flower, weather, what time of day? Animal, drink Etc. The person must answer with whatever comes into her head. The class must guess from the clues no physical descriptions can be used.

Individual: The class is now asked to write a 5 minute description of themselves using the idea of the furniture game - I am a rose, I am a lion, I am a chair, I am orange juice etc.

Whole class: Compare and discuss the two different descriptions.

LESSON 5

Learning objective:

To develop the skills of compiling, contrasting and comparing information.
Resources: Charts, poem.

Whole class: The teacher reads the poem My first day at school (Roger McGough) to the class. The class discuss the poem and why they think he chose to write it as a poem? The class discuss their first day at secondary school.

In groups: The teacher asks the class to remember what their Primary schools were like. How are they different from secondary school? They should make a list of the differences and similarities.

Whole class: The groups discuss their findings with the rest of the class.

Individual: Hand out charts. Each pupil compiles a chart of differences between their past school and their present one.

Whole class: Discuss the charts. The teacher asks the class to think if they were going to write a poem about their two schools what information would they choose to leave out? What other type of information would be necessary - Fact and opinion, thoughts,feelings etc.

Individual: Write poems.

Recap.: On the differences between Charts and poems; what type of information is used and the way the information is presented.

Homework: Write a letter to your old Primary school either to:

one of your old teachers
a friend who is still there
to the pupils who will be following in your footsteps to a secondary school next year. Tell the person you're writing to about how you're getting on in your new school, what you like about it and what you miss about your old school. Describe the kind of work you've been doing in English and how you've enjoyed it.

LESSON 6

Learning objective:

To foster awareness of statistical information, interviews and questionnaires.

Whole class: The teacher asks the class if they know what statistics are - information that can be measured. The class discuss the type of information about them that could be measured.

Individual: Write a list about yourself titled My Statistics .

Whole class: Discuss what they could do with the information that they have collated, what could it be used for? Another way of collating statistical information is by using a questionnaire, teacher shows example.

In pairs: Choose a subject that you want to research - Teachers job, school, what your friends feel strongly about, their hobbies, favourite music etc. Prepare a questionnaire ready for inerviews next lesson.

Recap.

LESSON 7

Learning objective:

To continue to foster awareness of collating and using information.
Resources: Tape recorders.

Whole class: recap on last lesson.

In pairs: Interview chosen subjects using tape recorders.

Individual: Write an article to accompany your research explaining what you have discovered about your chosen subject.

Recap.

Homework: Interview an older person (your parents or grandparents) about the type of clothes that were fashionable when they were young. Bring in some photographs or pictures if you can.

LESSON 8

Learning objective:

To respond imaginatively and to develop descriptive writing skills.

Whole class: recap on last lesson. Discuss homework. The class discuss the fashion industry and what is fashionable today.

Individual: Imagine you were given the money to buy three outfits: for school, for a party, and for casual wear.

What would you choose?
Would you decide on clothes to last a long time, or cheaper clothes that would wear out more quickly?
What kinds of materials would you choose – wool, cotton, nylon, fur, silk, leather?
What styles?
What colours?

Describe each outfit in detail and add sketches to go with them.

Extension work: write a letter to the Principal describing the new uniform you have designed and explaining why it should be used instead of the present one.

Recap.

LESSON 9

Learning objective:

To introduce persuasive language.
Resources: OHP of house details, cloze details.

Whole class:
BOARDWORK: Teacher writes two phrases on the board -

chocolate is made from cocoa beans and is sometimes made with milk.
chocolate is dreamy and delicious. It has a smooth velvety taste that makes your tongue drip with delight.

The class are asked to comment on the differences between the two phrases and are asked to come up with some phrases of their own. They are told that the first phrase is informative - full of facts and the second is persuasive full of opinions. Explain fact and opinion - something that is proved to be true and something that is not proved etc. If suitable bring in the use of adjectives and adverbs here. The teacher explains that persuasive language is used to influence people and sell things.

OHP: The teacher puts up an OHP of different houses and explains that Estate Agents use persuasive language to make people view houses. The class are asked to pick out the persuasive words on the OHP.

Individual: Fill in cloze passage with persuasive words trying to get them as close as possible to the real thing.

Recap.

Homework: Bring in details and photographs or pictures of their own house for next lesson. Explain that they will be writing their own adverts to sell their house.

LESSON 10

Learning objective:

To continue to develop the skills of persuasive language.

Whole class: recap on last lesson. Teacher explains that the class will be writing their own adverts to sell their house. They should remember that they have to sell it and therefore should not put anything negative in. However, by law they have to describe it accurately and honestly - so, if it is very small thay might put 'compact and beiju'.

Individual: Write adverts.

Whole class: Discuss the adverts and the language chosen. Recap on formative language.

In pairs: Swap adverts over and write a description for your partners house using formative language.

Recap.

LESSON 11

Learning objective:

To provide opportunity to evaluate script writing and the spoken voice.
Resources: ' Me at Breakfast ' from 'Myself' book.

Whole class: The teacher reads the spoken version of ' Me at Breakfast ' to the class and they discuss the 'spoken voice'. The teacher asks the class to close their eyes and think of a time when they had an argument with someone. It could be a friend or someone in your family. They are asked to visualise the arguement and remember what was said and how they felt.

In pairs: Each person tells their partner the story of the arguement and what was said.

Individual: The teacher asks them to write the arguement down.

Whole class: The teacher reads the play version of ' Me at Breakfast ' to the class and discusses the format for writing a play.differences between the two versions-point of view, feeling portrayed

Individual: The class write play versions of their arguments with stage directions.

Whole class: The class read their versions and the differences between the two versions (point of view, feeling portrayed, effect on reader/audience etc) is evaluated.

LESSON 12

Learning objective:

To promote thinking of empathy.
Resources: Cut up sentences.

Whole class: The teacher simulates a Victorian classroom situation - the class is lined up outside the room and addressed in a formal manner. The chairs are prepared in rows and the teacher picks on pupils and asks them very difficult questions. (This must be done so that the childern know the teacher is acting).

Whole class: The class discuss how they felt and what school was like in Victorian times. Empathy and sensitivity are discussed and their importance.

In groups: The teacher hands out a sentence to each group and they have to discuss who might have said it and in what kind of situation, they have to think up with as many possibilities as they can.

Whole class: Feedback to rest of class. In the same groups they have to pick one of the situations and come up with a way of creating empathy for an audience/reader. They can choose to write and act out a short play, poetry, a diary entry-anything which will help the reader to understand that person and their situation.

In groups: prepare situations.

Whole class: Watch the prepared pieces and the discuss the different ways empathy can be created. Which was the most effective and why?

Homework: Write chapter one of your autobiography. Call it My Background and explain what your brothers and sisters are like, what kind of family you have, what country you come from. This is an introduction to who you are and will help to set the scene for the reader. Bring in any information that you want to include in your autobiography.

LESSON 13

Learning objective:

To organise autobiographies.

Whole class: Sort through all the information that you have gathered so far about yourself. Organise into chapters.

Individual: Think about an area of 'you' that you want to include that has not already been included. Could be the food you love, your personality, your hobbies, your poetry, your fears etc. Write a chapter about this area.

Whole class: Make a contents page for your autobiography leaving the last chapter blank.

Recap.

LESSON 14

Learning objective:

To develop predictive skills and imaginative writing.
Resources: Self assessment sheets.

Whole class: Write the last chapter of your autobiography - 'Me in the Future'.

Some things to include: your looks, your job, your house, where you will be living, your children, your grandchildren, your beliefs, what the world will be like then.

Individual: Write last chapter.

Whole class: Read extracts from autobiographies. Discuss the SoW and what they have learnt. Fill out self-assessment sheets.