To consider the author's characterisation

Key Stage 2

English

Street Child by Berlie Doherty

﻿- Hello everyone, it's Ms. Henman here. It's our fourth lesson in this unit. And today we're going to look at how the author creates the character of the new boy in this story. Let's get going. Let's start with our agenda. So first we're going to do a vocabulary check, then we're going to read the next part of the story, and finally, we're going to answer some retrieval and inference questions. And all of these things are going to help us understand how the author has created and built a picture of this new character by using words. In today's lesson, you're going to need something to write on such as an exercise book or a piece of paper, something to write with such as a pencil or a pen, and you're going to need to bring your best learning brain. So make sure that your desk space is set up and that there aren't any distractions. If you need to arrange anything or go and get anything, please do that now, first you pause the video, otherwise we're going to start. My turn, your turn: Maypole. Excellent. You can see the maypole in this picture and there are ribbons tied around it. And you can see that there are some young women holding the ribbons and they're dancing around it. And this is a maypole, it is something that used to happen in the Victorian times. And people still sometimes do today, more as a reenactment than as a hobby. My turn, your turn: Shrimps. You can see a picture of some shrimps. They're like big prawns, and they're a type of seafood. Think back to the previous lesson, who was selling seafood? Yes, Rosie. So this is the type of seafood that Rosie would be selling by the River Thames. My turn, your turn: Trance, trance. A trance is a half conscious state. It's when someone's brain is almost hypnotised and they're half aware of it and half not. And I put it in a sentence for you here. I felt like I was in a trance when I made my breakfast this morning. The reason I felt like I was in a trance when I made my breakfast this morning, was because I was tired, and was because I make my breakfast so regularly that I can almost do it without thinking. And so as almost half conscious of what I was doing. Have you ever been in a trunks before? Have a little think? Sometimes it's when we're doing something we really enjoy or when we're doing that we've done a lot of. Now we're going to read the next part of the story. Just to remind you, the boy who Jim had been watching has just had his money taken by a woman. And also to remind you what Jim's job was, he dances next to Rosie, and this helps her sell her shrimps. I'm going to read you this part. You can follow it with your eyes please. "Jim had been crouching on the other side of the road, "watching. "The boys saw him and turned away, "covering his face with his hands. "He stayed hunched up just as the woman had left him. "Jim stood up and clicked his fingers "to make the boy look at him. "Then he started dance, just a few skipping steps. ""Laugh," he wants to say, but daren't. "It's all right. ""Laugh."" I'm going to read you the section two. "It was then that the boy seemed to make up his mind "about him. "He jumped up and joined Jim, "kicking his legs at imitation of Jim's dance, "holding his arms high above his head "so his laces fluttered round like maypole ribbons." And I can see the word maypole there. And that helps me understand how his laces are fluttering. His laces are something that this boy's sells to try and make money. And they are fluttering around like maypole ribbons. I would like you to pause the video and read this section please. Off you go. Fantastic reading, well done. Now it's my time to read to you. Follow with your eyes. ""Here," she said. ""Shrimps or whatever your name is. ""And you Skipping Jim. ""You can finish these off for me, ""I'm going back to get some more. ""I've never sold to whole trayfuls like that in one day, ""never. ""You should go on the shows you two! ""You two should join a travelling circus!" "The two boys sat side by side "near a night watchman's fire "peeling the shrimps with their teeth "and spitting off the shells. ""I love shrimps, I do," said the boy. ""But I've never pinched none off Rosie's stall, never." Pinch means to steal. ""You wouldn't dare," said, Jim. ""She'll pickle you, if you did."" What do you think pickle might mean? Maybe, hurt you? I don't know, but I think it's something that we wouldn't want to happen to us. ""I dare do anyfink, I do," the boy said. ""But Rosie, she's like me. ""She ain't got no more money than me, she ain't."" I'd like you to read now. So you're starting from the word off. Off you go. So what's this boy's name? We've read so much about this character. I think the author has done that purposely. We've read so much about him, but haven't been told his name. What is his name? Shrimps, that's a funny name. Do you think it's his real name, thumbs up or thumbs down? Hmm, I don't think it's his real name either. He says "Shrimps is what they call me, "and Shrimps'll do." It's almost like it's a nickname that someone else has given him. ""Sounds like a funny name to me," Jim said. ""Who was that woman?"" Do you remember back to that woman? What can you remember about her? I remember that she had thick slurred speech, I remember she had red wild hair, I remember that she took Shrimps' coins. "The boy narrowed his eyes." Like he's thinking or he's upset. ""My ma," he said. ""Only she kicked me out years ago, didn't she? ""She only comes looking for me ""when she wants money for gin. ""Not much for a ma, she ain't."" So gin is a type of alcohol, and his mother only comes to look for Shrimps when she needs money. "Not much for a ma, she ain't," is what he says. Why does Jim want to make him laugh? So pause the video, reread this section and write down why you think Jim wants to make this boy laugh. off you go. I wonder what you wrote. I think that boy's upset. It says he's hunched up, and I can imagine somebody who's hunched up, he's feeling very sad. He's upset after being robbed by the woman, and he's a little bit embarrassed. Text says the boys saw him looking and turned away. And remember he covered his face because he's embarrassed about what has happened. I think Jim wants to make him feel better. "His pink shrimpy toes wriggled above the flaps "of his boot soles, "with each step he took, "he slapped his foot down again so firmly on the road "that the muck splattered around him "like flies around a cow." What do you know about the boy from his appearance? So that last sentence described his appearance. What can you infer about the boy from his appearance? Pause of the video and write down what you think. It says in the text 'his pale shrimpy toes wriggled 'above the flats of his boot soles.' This tells me he's got broken boots. So his shoes aren't in good conditions because his toes are wriggling out of them. Also, his toes are described as shrimps. I don't think very many people's toes look like shrimps, so maybe they're not very well looked after, these toes because the boots have exposed them to that cold and muddy floor. I have inferred that this boy is poor and no one cares for him. "He danced with his eyes closed and his mouth wide open, "in a kind of trance, and the more watchers clapped, "the wilder his dance became." Why do you think the boy is dancing in a trance? So think about what's happened to him. Think about the fact that there are lots of people watching him. Why do you think he is dancing in a trance? This time I'd like you to pause the video and say your answer out loud using the word because. Off you go. Okay, now it's my turn. I think it's for lots of reasons. So I think the boy is in a trance because he is trying to enjoy himself. So he's trying to forget about the people watching him. He's trying to make the most of his dancing. I think he's trying to forget the problems with his mum and the difficulties in his life. And that is why he's dancing in a trance. Can you read this part out loud and I'd like you to try and do the accents of the characters if you can. Pause the video as you do so. Hmm, that was great, well done. Why doesn't Shrimps want to steal shrimps from Rosie? And this is a confusing question because his name is Shrimps, it's got a capital letter, and they're eating shrimps which Rosie sells. But why doesn't Shrimps want to steal the shrimps from Rosie. You might need to reread the sentence. Is it because she'll pickle him, thumbs up or thumbs down? No, that's not it. It's because she can't afford to lose any of what she's selling. It says in the text, 'She ain't got no more money than me.' So he's not going to steal from someone who's as poor as he is. What can we tell about shrimps from the way he speaks? Is he speaking standard English, thumbs up or thumbs down? No, he's not. One of the spelling I can see that suggests this is anyfink. "I dare do anyfink," he means anything. "I dare do anyfink, I do." "She ain't got no more money than me." "Ain't she," that's non-standard English, the standard would be she hasn't got. So what can we tell about Shrimps from how he speaks? I think we can infer that he probably doesn't go to school and probably hasn't been to school. And also, maybe speaking this way saying, "I dare do anyfink." He's trying to create the impression that he's brave. So we can infer something about the way that he's speaking, that he may not have gone to school, but also what he's trying to project so that other people get the impression that he's brave. ""Are you really called Shrimps?" Jim asked. ""Shrimps is what they call me, and Shrimps'll do." ""Sounds like a funny name to me," Jim said. What does the nickname Shrimps suggest about the boy? Pause the video and write down your answer. I think maybe it suggests that he's small, like a shrimp. I think it suggests that maybe people don't bother to know or ask his real name, and maybe more literally he just loves eating shrimps. So I think it could suggest a number of things: That he's small like a shrimp, and also that was backed up when we read that his mother flipped him over like a doll. It's his nickname. He probably does have a real name but no one's bothered to ask him or to find out what it is. And maybe he just really loves eating those shrimps. There are six words on the board, I'm going to read them to you. Gentle, selfish, stubborn, shy, optimistic funny. And we've come across some of these adjectives in previous lessons. Which of these words describe the boy Shrimps. I'd like you to pause the video and write down the words that you think describe him using the word because. Off you go. I wonder what your answers were. I'm going to go through my thoughts. I think he is gentle. I think this because he didn't fight back against his mother, and he shares his food with Jim, and that he won't steal from Rosie. I think he is gentle for a number of reasons. I don't think he is selfish. A selfish person puts themselves before anyone else. I don't think the boy Shrimps puts himself before anyone else. If he did, then he would steal from Rosie, and he wouldn't share the shrimps with Jim. I don't think he is stubborn. If he was stubborn, then he probably wouldn't have gone to join him with the dancing. I do think he's a little bit shy because it took him a long time to become friends with Jim. I do think he is optimistic. Hmm, why do I think he's optimistic? Well, I don't think his quality of life is very good, but still, he keeps going, he keeps dancing. I think he could complain about his life quite a lot. There are lots of things to complain about, but he doesn't do that. So I think he's optimistic. Remembering a synonym for domestic is positive. And I do think he's quite funny. I think the way he was dancing was probably quite funny. And I think he wants to entertain his new friend Jim. Does the author ever directly tell us these things? So did it say in the book Shrimps was shy? No. Did it say in the book Shrimps was optimistic? No. So the author never directly tells us these things. So how did we manage to find out about Shrimps' character? How did we manage to find out all of these things? So through his speech, so what he says and how he said it. How he acts, so shrimp's behaviour, and how his physical appearance is described by the author. Why do you think Jim wanted to become friends with 'the boy'? What do you recall? Yeah, they are similar and have things in common, such as they both live on the street, and they're a similar age. They can therefore relate to each other's lives. And I think mainly also they might be a little bit lonely and want company. I think I would, if I was in that position. Well done, you have completed your lesson today. In today's lesson we have reflected upon this new boy, Shrimps, and how the author created our understanding of his character. I look forward to seeing you next lesson and I hope you have a great day. Bye.

To consider the author's characterisation

To consider the author's characterisation

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UnitEnglish / Street Child by Berlie Doherty

English