The Moment Before the Gun Went Off - session 2

• Engels
• Voortgezet speciaal onderwijs
• Leerroute 4

Welcome to Mrs Everstijn's online classroom

Literatures - short stories

Inge Everstijn-Veldhuizen

The Moment Before the Gun Went Off

by Nadine Gordimer

Lesson series:

1. Introduction + instruction key concepts + first reading
2. Second reading = reading comprehension
3. Post reading activities
   

Lesson series - learning objectives:

Students can…:

• explain key concept Apartheid
• explain key concept whiteness
• explain key concept core & periphery
• explain the impact of whiteness and core & periphery on key concept Apartheid.
• analyse literary texts using key concepts, STEAL method and the historical lens.
• offer underpinned reader responses
• learn in a collaborative setting

Explain key concept 'whiteness'?

Give an example of the key concept ‘core & periphery’ and explain your answer.

What does the word 'gleefully' mean?

1. happy
2. slippery
3. sticky
4. secretly

What does a 'jutting belly' mean?

1. a slim stomache
2. a bell that rings very loudly
3. someone who scans beaches in the hopes to find treasures
4. a big belly

The Moment Before the Gun Went Off

by Nadine Gordimer (1991)

What is significant about the year this short story was published?

What do you gues about the author?

Next slide = reading of the story by an American teacher.

Your first response to

The Moment Before the Gun Went Off

by Nadine Gordimer (1991)

Students' own answers.

What stands out?

Anything that puzzles you?

How can you link the story to your own live/experiences?

Session 2 - reading comprehension

• textual
• reader-response
• linguistic
• contextual 

(Bloemert, Jansen & van der Grift, 2016).

This session focusses on reading comprehension through the textual (reading comprehension), reader-response (how do you feel about the text?), linguistic (word meaning, historical context, word formation) and contextual approach (historical setting, politics, science, location, author) (Bloemert, Jansen & van der Grift, 2016).

Scaffolding: Do a couple of paragraphs as a class assignment to make sure all students understand what is expected of them. Teacher helps or gives examples if necessary.

Differentiation: Students work in pairs/groups on the questions. Teacher divides class into segments which work individually, in pairs/groups or coached by the teacher/peers.

How can you link this video to Gordimer’s short story "The Moment Before the Gun Went Off"?

Which key concepts, as discussed in the previous session, can you link to this video?

Reading comprehension - class:

Read the assigned passage/paragraph first, then answer the question(s).

Paragraph 1: “Marais Van der… ruling Party.”
1)    What is the etymological (historical) origin of “Afrikaner”.

“shooting a black man who worked for him will fit exactly their version of South Africa.”
2)    What is ‘their’ referring to?
3)    Which key concept(s) could you link to this paragraph? Explain why.

We will do questions to paragraph 1 & 2 as a class assignment then you can proceed on individual basis.

Reading comprehension - class:

Paragraph 2: “People in the… not be.”
4)    To what/which historical events does “those Americans and English, and none of those people at home who want to destroy the white man’s power will believe him” refer to?

“It just goes to show what shock can do. When you look at the newspaper photographs you feel like apologising; as if you had started in on some room where you should not be.”
5)    Why would people in the farming community believe this?
7)    List elements in this paragraph that refer to key concept ‘Apartheid’. Explain why.

Who:  

What: 

How:  

Help:  

Time: 

Result:

Done:  

in pairs / groups

Reading comprehension activities paragraphs 3 - 12 (handout p 11 - 12) = divide topics

Jot down answers in your notebook/laptop

your team mates/teacher

20 minutes

input post-reading activities

What things stand out ? Were the predictions (previous lesson) included?

Teacher divides the class in pairs/groups.

= collaborative learning

= scaffolding

Differentiation:

Select Mutism students work individually and need to assess the presentations using their research notes and the speaking rubric.

Class discussion on:
* What stands out to you. Explain why. (student’s own answer)
* Comparisons with Gordimer’s The Moment Before the Gun Went Off. (Elaborate funeral; luxurious coffin; women dressed in black)

What stands out to you.
Explain why.

Name comparisons between the funeral of Steven Biko and Gordimer’s story "The Moment Before the Gun Went Off".

Session 3 - post reading

This session is focussing on critical thinking, implied meaning and text analyses (Beach, Appleman, Becho & Simon, 2016).

Differentiation - enrichment

Who:  

What: 

How:  

Help:   

Result:

Done:  

individual / pairs / groups

Create your own trailer to this short story

film or design using a editing tool

none

shown in class

Send to teacher [e-mail]