Teaching Ideas and Units - Teaching Units

Blueback

by Tim Winton

An English unit of work developed with grades 7 and 8 students in mind.

This unit was written first by Susan Weston-Smith from Cosgrove High School. She devised a wide range of activities for students to work on before, during and after reading the novel.

Mary Miles, from Claremont High School, and Pam Powell, the Derwent District literacy support teacher, adapted the unit to suit the needs of Mary's grade 8 class. Assessment sheets were provided, some activities were selected by the teacher, some choices were made by the students and other were negotiated as the unit progressed.

One of the distinguishing features of this unit is that it has been written as a series of worksheets for students. It could be printed and presented to students in its current form. Assessment sheets were written for the TLOs. While some schools will want to use alternative assessment criteria, the form provided will still serve as a model.

Click here to download the Word document - 188 k

BLUEBACK

by

Tim Winton

1. BEFORE READING

FIRST Think about the title:

• Blueback is written as one word. What does this suggest?
• What might the novel be about?

Next Think about the author:

• What do you know about Tim Winton?
• Has anyone read any of his books? If yes, can you suggest something that Tim Winton might use in thisbook?

THEN examine the front cover:

• Look at the relative sizes and positions of the images.
• Look at the expressions on their faces.
• Look at the colours, lines and general atmosphere.

Use all of the information you have learned about the cover to predict what you think the novel might be about.

WHILE READING

Choose at least one activity from each section and begin to think, plan, make notes and write first drafts.

Keep records of reading and research activities as you do them. These will be added to your assessment file.

AFTER READING

Work out which activities you want to present to the class and which ways might be best to present them.

Plan, draft, revise, edit, format and publish your chosen pieces. Remember to keep all drafts so that your teacher can assess the processes you have used.

Present your work, gain feed back and plan future learning goals.

RESEARCH

CHOOSE AT LEAST ONE OF THESE IDEAS

2. SCUBA DIVING

As you read make a list of the names of the equipment used for diving.

Find out about

• the ways in which the equipment is used
• the safety rules for diving

Extension activities

• Contact a clubs, organisations or people and interview them about their scuba diving experiences.
  
• Contact an abalone diver and interview or invite him/her to visit the class.

3. SEA CREATURES

As you read make a list of the names of sea creatures mentioned in the book. Choose several of the most interesting creatures or form a group and divide them up.

Find out about the

• appearance
• habitat
• unusual features
• location around Australia.

Extension activities

• Work in a group to prepare a frieze for the classroom which shows the information you have found. Include illustrations, too.
• Contact the Fisheries Department and find out the rules about taking creatures from the sea.
• Investigate the danger in the deep. That is, find out which sea creatures pose threats to people. In what circumstances are they dangerous? How likely are they to harm people?

4. THE HISTORY OF WHALING AND SEALING

Re read page 126. Note the thoughts that Dora has about whaling and sealing.

Find out

• how the whalers and sealers caught their prey.
• which products were manufactured from the animals.
• where and why they were valued.
• what damage occurred to the environment.

Extension activities

• Find out where collections of whaling artefacts are housed. The museum seems the logical place to start. Organise a class visit.
  
• Prepare a wall chart which shows visually both the benefits and the dangers of whaling or sealing.
  
• Find out the location of marine sanctuaries around Australia. Send away for information about the sea life that has been saved. Share your findings with the class.

5. THE AUTHOR - Tim Winton

Use the library, internet or television programs to find out about

• his home and family
• his hobbies and interests
• the other books he has written
• his thoughts, attitudes and values.

Extension activity

• Read through the only print interview he has given about Blueback and decide why he had enormous pleasure writing it, probably more fun than anything he has written for years. And why it is about things close to his heart.

With each topic remember to

• brainstorm and group ideas into a logical order
• plan and write down questions to investigate
• read and make brief notes
• record the sources of your information

Also record which of these techniques you have used to locate your information:

• subject, key word, author, title searches
• tables of contents, indexes, glossaries, bibliographies, catalogues, atlases, directories etc.
• encyclopaedias, data bases, magazines, pamphlets and newspapers
• catalogues, microfiche or CD ROMs

Include your use of illustrations, maps, tables, graphs and timelines

RESPOND

in a

READING JOURNAL

6. Record your thoughts about issues from the novel in a reading journal.

Spend some time writing while you read or you might even like to revisit some of the sections that you found to be particularly interesting.

Think carefully about the issue you have selected and share your thoughts, feelings and reflections.

Some of the experiences that might be suitable for a journal response include

• page 8 - Learning to dive
• page 20 - Abel's unusual life style
• page 30 - Making friends with a wild animal
• page 32 - Learning of his father's death
• page 45 - An accident in a boat
  
• page 52 - Going to boarding school
  
• page 77 - Thinking about the destructive acts of the divers.

NOTE: While those pages numbers have been given as examples, you should choose any section which interests you. In the same way you might like to avoid some sections which bring forth very powerful emotions that you might not wish to share with others.

Write to

• develop your own understanding of the issues
  
• to link your reading with your own experiences
  
• explore your own attitudes and values about the issue
  
• to reach new understandings

RESPOND TO THE WRITING

7. Is this a book for children or a book for adults? Does it really matter?

The following quote from an internet interview with the author outlines the situation:

That yarn about a boy called Abel Jackson, his sea-loving mother, a giant blue groper and the fight to preserve their idyllic Longboat Bay environment has been released in separately packaged adult and children’s editions in Australia. In the U.S., it will be published for adults, in the U.K. for children. "Go figure," laughs Winton. … "I had enormous pleasure writing it,." he allows, "probably more than anything I’ve written in years. And it is about things close to my heart."

(From Tim Winton — Into the Blue http://www.ozemail.com.au/)

Now that you have finished reading the book, what do you think?

Which aspects of the writing might appeal to children and which to adults?

If you were a publisher, which audience would you target? Why?

Explain your answer as fully as you can giving examples from the text to support your opinions.

8. What impressions do you gain from Tim Winton’s writing?

Read about Abel’s first view of Blueback which is printed below.

Underline three or four of the expressions that you think describe the groper well.

Reluctantly he stuck his snorkel back in his mouth and put his head under. Near the bottom, in the mist left from their abalone gathering, a huge blue shadow twitched and quivered. There it was, not a shark, but the biggest fish he had ever seen. It was gigantic. It had fins like ping pong paddles. Its tail was a blue-green rudder. It looked as big as a horse…

Abel and his mother … saw the fish hovering then turning, eyeing them cautiously as they came. It twitched a little and edged along in front of them to keep its distance. The big gills fanned. All its armoured scales rippled in lines of green and black blending into the dizziest blue. The groper moved without the slightest effort. It was magnificent; the most beautiful thing Abel had ever seen.

(Adapted from pages 10 & 11.)

Write down each of the expressions you have chosen and explain what each tells us about the groper. What effects do the words create?

What does Tim Winton want us to think about the groper? In what ways do the words has he chosen, build up his picture of the fish.

9. Recreate the author’s words.

Read the section of the story below.

Some of the words have been left out.

Work with a partner to choose one word to fit in each space.

Towards the end of the novel Dora Jackson faces a terrifying storm that changes her perceptions of the sea..

When it came, the storm was like cyclone. It blew down her fences and took the roof off her freezer shed. The sea grew tormented. It buckled and swelled and bunted against the cliffs and headlands. Surf hammered the shore and chewed it away. The air was thick with foam and sand and spray. Wind gusts screamed till she covered her ears. The old house rattled and rocked like an old lugger at sea. Dora Jackson lay in bed until it was all over.

Late in the morning she got up to see the ………………... She walked down to the shore to see a ……………….. jumble of white stumps on the beach. As she ……………….. close she saw they were whale bones, thousands and ……………….. of them all along the bay. They stood like ……………….. and broken teeth and tombstones where the storm had ……………….. them. Dora Jackson stepped over and under and around ………………... It was like walking through a graveyard. These bones ……………….. lain here under the sand of Longboat Bay for ……………….. century or more. She’d walked over them for forty ……………….. without knowing. It was a terrible feeling having history ……………….. itself so suddenly.

She sat all day with bones ……………….. her, bones the Jacksons had left there in their ……………….. days. It was whaling and sealing that brought the ……………….. here in wooden ships last century. Blubber oil and ……………….., seal fur and fish had paid for this land ……………….. time. The Jacksons were all dead now, generations of……………….., women and children and only Abel and her were left. ……………….. had come down to them. They had lived from the ……………….. all this time. Dora saw what must be done. ……………….. it was time to help the sea live. She ……………….. protect the bay for all time.

Now, find pages 124 to 126 and compare the words the author used with the ones you had chosen.

Discuss the differences in meaning with your partner. Which words make the writing more effective? Why?

Choose three examples. Make notes and share your findings with your class.

RESPOND by WRITING

Your teacher will tell you which of these tasks are essential and which ones are optional. Keep a record of the writing tasks you do.

10. Chart Abel's life as the story develops.

• Plan an approach - a flow chart, graph, dot points, plot profile should work.
• Draft the work in your book.
• Make a larger chart for classroom display when you reach the end of the book.

See how inventive you can be in presenting this information in a way that will encourage others to read and understand it quickly.

11. Write a newspaper report.

Choose a newsworthy topic from the book. Possibilities include

• Mad Macka's death
• Abel's father's death
• the declaration of Long Boat Bay as a marine sanctuary.

Remember to set out your published work as a newspaper.

12. Write a poem

• Re-read Abel's dream in chapter 5. Write a poem which develops some of the key images from his dream.

OR

• Choose a sea creature. Make a quick collection of published poems about sea creatures and write a journal entry about the ways in which words and phrases have been used. Use the ideas you have gained to write a poem of your own about the creature you have chosen.

OR

• Make a list of the words Tim Winton uses to describe the relationship between Abel and Blueback. Write a poem which creates similar feelings.

13. Write a letter

• Write a letter from Abel to his mother at an important stage in his life. It might be his first week at boarding school or his success with his studies. Re- read this section from the book before planning your letter.

OR

• Write at least two of the letters that Dora sent to politicians, scientists and businessmen as part of her quest to save Longboat Bay. Suit each letter to its audience. (Use words which suit the type of person to whom the letter will be sent.)

RESPOND by TALKING

Choose ONE of the following suggestions to present to the class. Remember to prepare and plan your talk. First find and re-read the section in the book that relates to your talk. Next, use the assessment sheet to help you with your preparation.

14. Abel confronts Mr Costello

Imagine Abel meets Mr Costello on the jetty when he returns from one of his fishing trips. Work with a partner to present the conversation that might take place.

15. Abel talks to school students.

As an adult, Abel travels widely and gives lectures about marine life. Imagine he comes to a school assembly to talk to the students. What might he speak about? Give his talk to the class.

16. Dora talks with a property developer

A charming business man arrives with flowers, chocolates and a bottle of champagne. He hopes he might convince Dora to sell her land. He wants to build a hotel, golf course, swimming pool and marina on the Jackson land. Work with a partner to present their conversation.

17. Abel and Stella discuss their future.

As Blueback's fame grows, visitors arrive to dive with him. Abel watches an oil tanker accident on TV and worries about Longboat Bay. Work with a partner to present one of their conversations at that time in their lives.

18. Abel tells his daughter about his first meeting with Blueback.

As a three year old, young Dora dons a wet suit and ventures into the sea to meet Blueback. Imagine that the night before Abel tells the little girl about his first meeting with the extraordinary fish. Give Abel's talk to the class.

 

ADDITIONAL ACTIVITIES



 

Negotiate with your teacher to select activities for individuals, groups and/or the whole class.

19. Prepare a tourist brochure.

You have been employed by the developers to draft a brochure showing the facilities that the company wants to provide for tourists at Longboat Bay.

Plan, draft and publish the brochure seeking feedback from class members at each stage.

20. Conduct a town meeting

Imagine that everyone from the local community and others who have an interest in wanting to develop the area gather in the town hall to debate the issue.

Provide each class member with a role to act. These might include

• the local mayor or shire president
• Dora and Abel Jackson
• Mr Costello
  
• state and federal politicians from all political parties
  
• local shopkeepers and small business owners
  
• lawyers, accountants and architects who represent the interests of the developers
  
• leavers from the nearest school
  
• the unemployed
  
• independently wealthy people who have moved to the area from the city
  
• university students who are very interested in conservation issues
  
• people who have retired to the area seeking solitude
  
• people who have developed a self-supporting community eating only organically grown produce.

You might also like to include a news team. A camera person, reporter and interviewer will add an extra dimension, especially if they are able to video the meeting and replay it as a TV news item.

This activity is limited only by the amount of time available, your interest in the tasks and your own imagination. You might like to prepare

• leaflets advertising the meeting,
• placards to wave at the meeting,
  
• pamphlets representing the views held by both sides,
  
• letters to the editors of the local newspaper expressing individual views,
  
• maps, diagrams and charts which show aspects of the development.

Once everyone has thought his of her position through, conduct the meeting. Conclude with a vote or even a value line to determine the outcome.

21. Create a collage

Look carefully at some of the picture books that use collage techniques. Jeannie Baker has several examples of this type of work including Where the Forest Meets the Sea. Try to find the Storymakers video The Illustrators in which Jeannie Baker explains how she developed the collages.

Reread key scenes from the book and then make your own collages to show what happened. Work on each scene in pairs, then combine them to create a visual representation of the ideas from the book.

22. Write a sequel or an epilogue.

Think about what might happen after the events that are told in the book.

EITHER

Imagine that you are either Abel or Stella or Dora — Abel and Stella’s daughter. You are an old person, now, and you are looking back, telling stories to one of your young friends. Write the conversation that might have happened.

OR

Imagine you are Tim Winton. Use the same style of writing to create a sequel.

Speaking Assessment

BLUEBACK

READING & WRITING ASSESSMENT

Name:………………………