31 October - 6 November
Section outline
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REFLECT / WHAIWHAKAARO learning intentions:
- We are REFLECTING on our skills and reviewing our topics in preparation for our CAT.
Resources for preparation for CAT.
This is an assignment and must be submitted before the CAT. This shows your understanding of the concepts learned this year and prepares you for your CAT.
RESEARCH: NZ TextsTOPIC: The Representation of New Zealand in text (How New Zealand is represented in text.)
Using the texts provided, select four texts, complete the research activities, then write a report on how NZ is presented in texts.Research Tasks
You must use at least one poem, short story and short film.
You will need to read your short story and poem at home and bring ears to watch the short film in class, so that you can devote an entire hour in class to writing your notes about the text.
You must complete a recording sheet for each of your four texts. Part of the purpose of this sheet is to record the title and author/director of each text.
You will have time in class to write up about each text.
RESEARCH QUESTIONS
You must answer three questions for each text.
Compulsory question:
1. What was the New Zealand setting (time and place) of the text?
Choose two questions from the list below:
2. Does the dialogue used by the characters give a positive or negative impression of New Zealanders? Give examples and quotes in your answers.
3. How has the author shown us that New Zealand has a beautiful natural environment? Give examples and quotes in your answers.
4. Do the characters in the texts have strong opinions and ideas - or are they pushovers? Give examples and quotes in your answers. What does this tell us about New Zealanders' attitudes and/or culture? Give examples and quotes in your answers.
NOTE: The setting questions is compulsory. It would be a good idea to choose the natural environment question as well. Most texts about New Zealand talk about our environment. It is something we are well-known for. There is not often a lot of dialogue in poetry, so think carefully about your chosen questions. NOTES TO HELP YOU
Setting:
The word 'setting' covers three main areas- Time: past, present, future, real, imaginary? What time period is the text set in? 1900s? 1950s? 1980s? etc
- Place: country, city, rural, urban, region, locality? Where is it set? Are they in the city, country?
- Social background: class, wealth, beliefs, structure, ethnicity?
Dialogue:
Dialogue means the things people say to each other, and the way they say it.
Positive = good
Negative = bad
Study your text closely. Look at how the characters talk to each other. Does it show New Zealanders in a good way or a bad way? Does it show you something about the way New Zealanders talk? Do they use colloquialisms or slang? (g'dday mate, you guys, chilly bin, bro, beaut, good on ya, mate! etc) What would people from overseas assume about New Zealanders after reading/watching the text?
Eg. Some of the minor characters in the novel were not so great when it came to the treatment of the whales. Does their dialogue show something bad about New Zealanders? How is dialogue used to show something good about New Zealanders?
Environment:
What quotes or descriptions are used to show the natural beauty of the New Zealand environment? What does the text say about the New Zealand environment? What impression would it give foreigners? Is the environment rugged and untamed? Is it wild? Is it unspoiled by humans?
Eg. Witi Ihimaera uses very descriptive language to describe the beauty of New Zealand, particularly in the opening prologue. He uses metaphors and similes to paint a picture of a stunning environment, very clean and fresh. This could give foreigners the picture in their minds of an unblemished place. However, the descriptions of whaling could give foreigners a more negative view of the New Zealand environment.
Characters:
How are people portrayed in the text? Are the characters strong characters? Do they stick by their beliefs and stand up for their own opinions? Or are they weaker characters who are pushovers? (Note: a pushover is someone who will crumble when someone else disagrees with them). What do they say or do that shows something about New Zealand's attitude and culture?
Templates
There are some examples of filled in planning sheets below. You can see how the texts are used to answer the questions. Notice that quotes are used to support the points. This is necessary.
FORMAL WRITING ESSAY STRUCTURE
STRUCTURE- Introduction: Use the essay question to make a statement. You will need to list the texts and their authors/directors that you will be discussing. You should also mention the three things that your research focused on. Everyone focused on setting in New Zealand texts. You will then mention your other two points - a choice between dialogue, the natural environment and whether characters were portrayed as strong or weak characters.
- Paragraph 1 - State the setting for all four of the texts that you researched. You will have compared and contrasted them (some might have been rural, some might have been city settings etc). What might the settings have said about New Zealand? Remember, your topic sentence should state clearly what the paragraph will be about.
- Paragraph 2 - Write about your second question and what you researched in all the texts about this question. Remember, your topic sentence should state clearly what the paragraph will be about.
- Paragraph 3 - Write about your last question and what you researched in all the texts about this question. Remember, your topic sentence should state clearly what the paragraph will be about.
- Conclusion - Summarise the essay question based on what you have discussed.
Essay questions for the exam
You should learn adjectives to describe a couple of the characters (ones you would be confident writing about). Learn challenges that those characters face and how they face them. Learn key moments that apply to that character and memorise some key quotes. You should also choose a major theme from the novel and why it is important. Learn key moments and quotes for that theme.
It is a good idea to practise planning out, and even writing, essays which answer lots of different questions. This way you will be as prepared as you can for whatever question you are given in your exam. It is a good habit to get in to for next year as well. I am happy to look at and mark any practice essay that you choose to write. I strongly recommend doing this.
Essay questions can sometimes be worded a different way. If the word 'explain' is missing from the essay question, it does not mean that you do not have to explain. You should still stick to the structure we learned in class.
For example:- Describe a character in a text you have studied. Why is that character important? - this question is still asking you to explain why the character is important. The essay question has simply been shortened.
- Describe a theme in a text you have studied. Why is that theme important? - this question is still asking you to explain why the theme was important. Again, the essay question has simply been shortened. Do not let this confuse you!
- Remember: You DO NOT use contractions or abbreviations in response to text essays or formal writing. Contractions = don't, can't, doesn't, won't, shouldn't etc. Abbreviations = 'LFTI' or 'BILB.
- Remember, you should try to link your ideas to society. this can be done in many ways. If you are writing on a challenge a character faces, discuss how the way the character faces the challenge taught you something about overcoming difficulties. If you are writing about a main idea (theme), explain why it is important in society. Try to think of specific examples of events. If you are writing about a character and what you liked about them, think about why those qualities are important qualities to have in life.
Resources are in GOOGLE CLASSROOM