Literacy Assignment Two

Childrens Picture Story Book The Island by Armin

Greder

Rational
The Island by Armin Greder is a captivating tale about a man who washes up on the
shores of The Island only to be scrutinised by its people. The man appears
different to the rest of the islanders and their lack of understanding about the
unknown causes them to reject him from their society. The people of the island are
puzzled by the man who has washed up on their shores, the majority of them
wanted to send him back where he came from, although one islander persuades the
people to let him stay. The man was subjected to horrific conditions, forced to
search for food within the islands village. The people feared the man, and though
they wanted to put him back into the sea, the fisherman again convinced them to
allow him to stay, but to work for his keep. The villagers grew more and more
fearful of this unknown man, therefore they decided to cast him back into the sea,
building a wall around their island resulting in the unknown being kept out forever.

This picture book shows themes of human rights and acceptance of all beings. We
see throughout the book the fear in the majority of the islanders, although we also
see one mans courage to stand up to the rest, attempting to accept the unknown. In
order to completely understand the text the students must have a basic knowledge
of refugees and human rights within todays society. They must be able to
understand the links between pictures and text and must be able to comprehend the
text to a high standard.

Throughout the book the author uses a narrative voice in order to portray the story.
He is telling the story from both an outsiders point of view and the Islanders point
of view. During the book we see a consistent voice of the people, and the lack of
opinion from the outsider. As readers we are faced with the emotions and
judgements of the people, but only when we look deeper are we forced to see from
the perspective of the outsider.

This unit focuses on level six of the Australian Victorian Early Learning Standards
(AusVELS). It pays attention to the literacy and civics and citizenship domains of
AusVELS and utilizes the three strands of literacy, these being reading, writing and
oral language. Throughout this unit of work you will see how the use of the book
The Island is used to explicitly teach these areas of the curriculum.




Learning Outcomes

LO1: Students will develop an understanding of the underlying message
within the book including the human rights issues within todays society.

LO2: Students will develop an understanding of the different types of text
used within picture story books, in particular narrative writing.

LO3: Students will understand the ways in which images are used to help
portray the story to the reader and will understand the link between the
pictures and the writing.

LO4: Students will develop the ability to contribute to group discussion and
learn to engage and understand others ideas.

LO5: Students will create their own narrative piece of text from the view of
the outsider, showing his emotions and views throughout each occurrence.


Learning Sequence One

LO2: Students will develop an understanding of the different types of text used
within picture story books, in particular narrative writing.

Engage:
Students will be asked if they have read a narrative story before, and if so what are
some of the characteristics of a narrative storybook. The teacher will record these
ideas on the smart board. Students will then be asked if they can remember any
narrative stories that they have previously read, and how do they know that they are
a narrative.

Explain:
The teacher will show the students the front cover of the book that we will be
reading over the next few sessions. The teacher will ask the students what they
think the book may be about simply from looking at the title and the front cover.

The teacher will then read the story to the students, ensuring that the students are
paying close attention to the structure of the book and what aspects of the book
make it a narrative.

Explore:
Students will be given a copy of the book between pairs and will be required to read
through it. As a class we will go through each of the pages of the book and write
down on large poster paper if we can work out what the plot is, the setting, who the
characters are, what the atmosphere is, what the point of view is and the underlying
conflict.

Narrative Story
Title The Island
Plot Man washes up alone on shore of the
Island, the people saw him and noticed
he was different, they wanted to send
him back but the fisherman convinced
them not to. The people decided to let
him stay, they made him sleep in a goats
pen and ignored him, the man appeared
in town because he was hungry, the
people were afraid of him but the
fisherman tried to convince one of the
people to give him a job, because of the
peoples fear they did not give him a job.
The people began to talk about what the
man might do to them and their island,
they decided to take him back to the sea,
they put him back on his raft and set him
back off into the sea. They build a wall
around the Island so that no one could
get in again.
Setting The Island, The sea
Characters The man, the fisherman and the
islanders
Atmosphere/Mood Depressing, gloomy, fearful, dark
Point of view Third person it is not written from the
point of view of the fisherman or the
islanders or the man, but rather from an
outside source.
Conflict The fisherman believes that the man is
no harm, whereas the islanders believe
that the man should not have been
accepted into their island as they see
him as a danger to their society.

Evaluate:
As the students are coming up with ideas regarding narrative stories, the teacher
will be writing down their answers on an observation template (see formative
assessment) with each of their names, recording the answers of the students who
speak.








Learning Sequence Two:

LO3: Students will develop an understanding between the written and visual text
and will begin to understand how images help the writer to portray the story.

Engage:
The teacher will hold up the book The Island in front of the class and get the
students to look at the front page of the book, thinking about what they think the
book is about now that they have read it. Ask the students if they can quietly talk to
the person next to them about why the author would have chosen to use this image
as the front page. Does the image relate to the story? What kind of emotions does
it set off in the students?

Explain:
The teacher will re-read the story to the class as a whole, asking the class to pay
particular attention to the pictures on each page. At the end of each page the
teacher will pause for a minute as the students delve into the pictures, mentally
noting down what is on each page, the use of colour etc.

Explore:
The class will be broken up into groups of 4, where they will be given a worksheet to
fill out relating to each of the pages of the book, thinking specifically about the
pictures.

Table for groups to fill out
Page Illustrations Why they might be there?
1-2 The mans raft and the man To show that the man was
all alone
3-4 A group of villagers with rakes, looking angry and
scared

5-6 The sea, dark and gloomy To show what the
Islanders thought of the
sea. The did not think of it
as a pleasant place, but
rather one that they
should fear
7-8 The Islanders with rakes in their hands pointing
towards the man, forcing him to their village.
To show the idea of power
and who possesses it
9-10 Women cooking, people eating, people washing,
people drinking beer and children using sticks to
assert their authority towards another child.
The author has drawn the
everyday occurrences of
the islanders.
11-12 A lady looking incredibly scared, standing alone. To show the fear that the
islanders poses
13-14 A group of islanders holding up their rakes and a
can of half opened tuna.

15-16 Four separate pictures of the man completing To show how the man is
different tasks within the village including
producing a poorly made chair and being
portrayed as the devil in the choir.
seen through the
islanders eyes in
comparison to actual fact.
17-18 The islanders standing in a large group, one man
standing above the rest portrayed to be yelling.
Three men at the front with pitch forks.

19-20 Similar to pages 7-8. The islanders with pitch
forks and rakes, the outsider tied up and being
led out of town.

21-22 Similar to pages 19-20 although in these pages
you do not see the outsider.

23-24 A large building, similar to a castle or a prison. A
seagull with an arrow through its chest falling to
the sea.
To show how fearful the
islanders are towards
anything unknown or
anything that may
threaten their community.
25-26 The sea, dark and dreary. What looks like the
outsiders boat, on fire.


Elaborate:
Students will come together as a whole and share their findings with the rest of the
class. Students will compare their results and discuss the similarities between their
own findings and the findings of their peers.

The teacher will delve into the images further, discussing specifically pages 9-10
where we see the illustration of the young children using sticks to assert their
authority towards another child. This image is similar to the one shown on the
previous page where we see the islanders using pitchforks and rakes to assert their
power towards the outsider. The teacher will ask the students why the author has
decided to use these images one after another. Who are the children in the second
image?

Evaluate:
The teacher will collect each of the groups sheets with the names of the students
written on the top. This will help to understand which groups understood the use of
illustration and which didnt.

Through group discussion and conversations about the students findings the
teacher will come to understand whether or not the children understand the links
between written text and illustrations.








Learning Sequence Three:

LO1: Students will develop an understanding of the underlying message within the
book including the human rights issues within todays society

Engage:
Students will be asked what they think are our rights as humans. Do we have any
rights at all as human beings? Are there individuals within the community who do
not possess any rights? Should everyone have equal rights, or are there some
people who should have more power over another person, and if so, why?

Students will then be asked if there has been a time within their lives where they
have personally felt as if they did not have any rights, or if they have seen someone
else within their home or school environment have more or less rights than
someone else.

Explain:
The teacher will read the story to the students again, asking the students how they
think the outsider is feeling at each of the sequences of the story. The teacher will
pause at each important section to allow the students to have thinking time and
reflect. The students will need to put themselves in the outsiders shoes, thinking
about how they would feel if they were being treated this way.

Explore:
Students will break off into pairs and will be required to research basic human rights
of Australian individuals. The students will be required to fill in a worksheet,
requiring them to find out a list of each of our basic rights, do any of these rights
relate to our story and are there any rights that are being followed or not followed
by either the islanders or the outsider (see formative assessment, assessment
schedule).

Evaluate:
Students will come together to present their findings to the rest of the class. Some
students may have found different rights to others and some may have found the
same.

As a class discuss which of these rights you think are fair, and which you think are
unfair and make a list. Discuss with the students which of these rights do they
believe to be unfair or unjust that are occurring to the outsider who has washed up
on shore.

Ask the students if they were the islanders, how would they have reacted
differently?

The teacher will collect each of the pairs worksheets to help with assessment.

Learning Sequence Four

LO4: Students will develop the ability to contribute to group discussion and learn to
engage and understand others ideas

Engage:
Students will be brought back to the underlying issue of the book, the rights of the
outsider who has washed up on the shore. Students will be asked if they think it is
fair the way the man has been treated, or if they think it is unfair.

Explain:
Based on students work throughout this unit, the students will be broken up into
two groups for a debate. One group will be on the islanders side and one will be on
the unknown outsiders side. Those who are on the islanders side will need to make
an argument on why the actions of the islanders are just, attempting to relate to the
underlying message of human rights. Students who are on the outsiders side are
required to argue why the actions of the islanders are unjust, again relating to the
underlying issues seen in the book.

Students will have time to go off in their groups and come up with some points that
they would like to make in relation to their argument.

Explore:
Students will be involved within a formal debate and they will each choose four
people who will be required to speak for the whole group. Throughout their debate
there will be a statement and a rebuttal from each side trying to persuade the other
that they are correct.

Elaborate:
The teacher will bring the students back together, asking them whether or not they
personally agree with the outsider or the islanders after the points made in the
debate. The teacher will ask the students questions: Did the outsider do anything to
stop the islanders from doing these horrible things to him? Do you think that
throughout the story he was acting in a wrongful way? If so, how did he act
wrongful? Do you think that we would treat someone like that in todays society if
they washed up on our shores? Why or why not?

Evaluate:
The teacher will take noted observations of the children who spoke throughout the
debate, as well as the children who answered the questions after the debate.







Learning Sequence Five

LO5: Students will create their own narrative piece of text from the view of the
outsider

Engage:
Students will again be asked what they believe the outsider is thinking. They will be
asked if they were to write a story from the outsiders point of view, how would the
story look. As a class, go through the book, page by page for the first 4 or 5 pages
and re-write the story from the point of view of the outsider who has washed up.
This re-written story must not simply be written as an opposite, but rather a
narrative story written in first person about how the outsider is feeling in each
sequence relating to the illustrations and linking to the previous text.

Explain:
The teacher will tell the students that they are going to be re-writing the story by
themselves. They will be required to go through each page and individually re-write
the story. The students must think of the things that they have learnt over the past
sessions about human rights and relate these into their story when they are writing
it.

Explore:
Students will go off and write a draft for their story. After their draft has been given
the OK from the teacher, the students will begin to write their stories. The
students will write their stories ensuring that they leave enough space for their
illustrations. Students can also choose to re-create their own drawings if they wish,
or they can stick on the drawings from the picture book.

Elaborate:
Students will present their re-written stories at the front of the class for all of the
parents and teachers to view. Students will read their re-written stories aloud (if
willing) in order for other students to understand the similarities and differences in
one anothers stories.

Evaluate:
The teacher will evaluate the students based on their drafts of their stories, as well
as their finished product. This will be done using a rubric (refer to summative
assessment), which the students will be given at the start of this project.









Assessment Schedule

Formative assessment:
Throughout each of the learning sequences the teacher will use different forms of
formative assessment including written observations, evidence, notations of verbal
involvement and written work including work sheets that the students have been
provided. These worksheets can be seen throughout the evaluation section of the
learning outcomes.

LO1: Teachers will use observations to assess the students learning. These
observations will be completed on an observation form including the childs name,
links to the curriculum and a specific quote of what the student has said. Example is
shown below:

Name LO1 LO2 LO3 LO4 LO5
Name Link to
curriculum
Quote Link to
curriculum
Quote Link to
curriculum
Quote Link to
curriculum
Quote Link to
curriculum
Quote
Name Link to
curriculum
Quote Link to
curriculum
Quote Link to
curriculum
Quote Link to
curriculum
Quote Link to
curriculum
Quote

Teachers will also collect students worksheets relating to human rights of
Australians. Example of worksheet is shown below:





















LO2: Teachers will use observations to assess the students learning using the same
format as LO1. Teachers will also collect students worksheets that they have
completed relating to the characteristics of a narrative piece of text (see evaluation
LO2).
Human Rights Within
Australian Society
What rights do we as Australian Citizens
have within our society?

Are any of these basic human rights seen
throughout our story?

..

Are the Islanders following these basic
human rights in the ways in which they are
treating the outsider?

.
LO3: Teachers will collect students worksheets relating to the illustrations within
the book. Through these worksheets, teachers will be able to find out whether or
not students understand the link between the illustrations and the written text.
Teachers will also use the observation template to note down students comments.

LO4: Teachers will use the observation template to note down which student spoke
throughout the debate and post-debate.

LO5: Teachers will collect students drafts for their cumulative text to gather
whether or not the students understand the process of creating a draft, as well as
understanding the underlying message within the book.

Summative Assessment:
As a final assessment of everything the students have learnt, a rubric will be
provided. The students will have the opportunity to view this rubric throughout the
creation of their cumulative text in order to gain their best results. The rubric will
include aspects of what has been taught over the course of this unit of work and will
relate closely to learning outcomes one, two, three and five.

Narrative Writing Final Assessment Rubric

Layout Narrative is well laid
out in a logical
sequence, with each
piece of text and
illustration in their
correct place
Narrative is laid out in
a logical sequence,
there is space left for
illustrations although
spacing may be
cramped
Narrative is not in
sequence and hard
to read, space for
illustrations not
included or writing
cramped/oversized
Re-written Story Story is excellently and
inventively written
from the mans point of
view with correct
grammar, punctuation
and language. Writing
includes a consistent
tense throughout (past,
present, future)
Story is well written
from a new (the
outsiders) viewpoint
but only present this
viewpoint as opposite
to the original story,
regardless of
appropriateness.
Grammar,
punctuation and
language used is
adequate.
Story is a basic
rewrite of the
original story with
simple word
substitutions, ie-
badgood,
differentnormal.
Grammar and
punctuation are
acceptable.
Students
illustrations/images
taken from the
original book.
Students have
drawn/composed
images to tie in with
the story in a
compelling or inventive
manner. Students who
have used original
images have used these
Students images are
drawn well,
attempting to link to
the ideas of the story.
Students who
included original
images have only
used some of the
Students have not
included any
drawings or
original images or
have included
images where
context is
inappropriate.
images in a creative
manner.
images or used
images inappropriate
to their text.
Links to Human
rights
Students have written
their story with a
strong link to human
rights within todays
society. They have
shown what they have
learnt and linked it in
their own re-written
narrative.
Students have written
their story with some
links to human rights
within todays society.
They have shown
some understanding
of what they have
learnt.
Students have
written their story
with no link to
human rights
within todays
society. They have
shown a lack of
understanding of
what they have
learnt.