Using Literature in English Lessons in the Basic School – Recognizing Cultural Images and Symbols

Home , Richard at the Lee

MASARYK UNIVERZITY BRNO

Faculty of Education

Department of English Language and Literature

Using literature in English lessons in the Basic School – recognizing cultural images and symbols

Bachelor Thesis

Brno 2011

Supervisor: Author:

Mgr. Pavla Buchtová Petra Faktorová

Declaration

I declare that I worked on this bachelor thesis on my own and that I used only the sources listed in bibliography.

I agree with the placing of this thesis in the library of the Faculty of Education at the Masaryk University and with the access for academic purposes.

Prohlášení

Prohlašuji, že jsem bakalářskou práci vypracovala samostatně, s použitím pouze citovaných literárních pramenů, dalších informací a zdrojů v souladu s Disciplinárním řádem pro studenty Pedagogické fakulty Masarykovy univerzity a se zákonem č. 121/2000 Sb., o právu autorském, o právech souvisejících s právem autorským a o změně některých zákonů (autorský zákon), ve znění pozdějších předpisů.

Souhlasím, aby práce byla uložena na Masarykově univerzitě v Brně v knihovně Pedagogické fakulty a zpřístupněna ke studijním účelům.

Brno, 15Th September 2011 ……………………………….

Petra Faktorová

Acknowledgements

I would like to thank my supervisor, Mrg. Pavla Buchtová for her kind help, valuable advice and comments as well as her encouragement and support through the whole work on my thesis.

I would also like to thank parent for trusting me to teach their children.

Petra Faktorová 3

Contents

Contents ………………………………………………………………….…………………4

INTRODUCTION ……………….……………………………………………………….5-7

1. THEORETICAL PART 1.1 Literature in ESL classes primary school ………..……………………….8 1.2 Why to use literature in ESL………………………………. .…………..9 1. 2. 1 The cognitive and cultural role of literature………………..…10 1.3 Reading in English classes………..………………….…………….10-12 1.4 Symbols in literature……………………………………………….13-14

1.4.1 Theme in literature ……………………………………………………………..14

1.4.2 Signs in literature……………………………………………..15

1.5 Children´s literature………………………………………………………………………………….15-16 1. 5. 1 The selection of a proper book………………………………………….16-17

2. PRACTICAL PART Introduction………………………………………………………………………18 2.1 School profile………………………………………………………………..18 2. 2 Class profile……………………………………………………………..….19 2.3 Comenius programme at the basic school………………………………….20

2.3. 1 The story of Robin Hood ……………………………………………………………..20-21 2.3.2 Programme methods…………………………………………………..22

2.3.3 Evaluation and Assessment……………………………………………….23 2. 4 Self-assessment………………………………………………………………24 2. 5 Pre-teaching the book title…………………………………………………….25 2.5. 1 Pre-teaching activity for the culture symbols and icons………………….26 2.5.2. An anticipation guide…………………………………………………26-28 2.5.3 Class library…………………………………………………………….29 CONCLUSION…………………………………………………………….30

RESUME……………………………………………………………….31

WORKS CITED ………………………………………………..…32-34

APPENDICES

1. Reading Questionnaire …………………………………………..…………..35

2. Chapter 1 – activity sheet………………………...... … ……………………36-37

3. Robin Hood – workbook (9th class)………………………… ……………….38-44

4. Robin Hood – workbook (5th class)…………………………… …………….45-50

5. Self-assesment sheet……………………………………………………………51

6. Pre-teach pictures – guessing the title of the book……………..… ………… 52-58

7. The Anticipation Guide……………………………………………...... 59

Introduction

In my classes I try to use literature among ordinary class activities such as working with the textbooks or workbooks. During my teaching practice I have found that children learn more of language when they have possibilities to create different projects. This school year our school project concerns the role of literature in English classes. Our task is to go through a book of Robin Hood in any suitable way. The project can be focused on the grammatical bonds or vocabulary or we can choose to look at the book from the view of Geography, History or Social Studies. . I have decided to look at geographical and historical icons and symbols in the book.

While reading any authentic literature pupils are naturally taken to stories. Using literature in classes can increase pupils´ reading comprehension skills. Pupils can learn about culture and social background of main heroes in the book and better understanding of historical events as well.

Pupils need to feel that they can relate to what they are reading. Reading literature promotes cultural understanding and awareness, trains mind and literature itself can be memorized. Literature is open to interpretation. It can serve as a basis for authentic interaction between pupils.

From my experiences as a teacher I know that a good teacher must be enthusiastic to engage students more in the learning problems. While working on a project a teacher should become a guider, a facilitator or a follower. A teacher should enjoy the hunt for knowledge and share the enjoyment. Meeting the needs of the pupils is a part of teaching. The project work is also possibility to understand more of my pupils and their skills.

Many pupils have opportunity to travel or to study in English –speaking countries. Familiarity with culture symbols helps students to feel more confident and fluent. They need to become aware of the lifestyles of people in the different culture. That is what I believe that pupils should start in primary schools to learn about different cultures when learning the foreign language. Involvements of real books and stories instead of just course books is therefore the opportunity to teach cultural, geographical or social images.

This thesis will focus on how to interject these symbols in literature into the primary school classes. I have chosen for my project the fifth class (pupils aged 10-11) and the ninth class (pupils aged 14-15) in primary school.

The theoretical part of my thesis concentrate on the term literature and why to teach literature in English classes in primary schools. I will also try to answer a question why reading is important when students learn foreign languages.

I would also like to pay attention to pupils’ abilities and the level of their language skills. For me the pupils’ motivation and interests in reading are the reasons in using books in my English class.

The practical part of my thesis is focused on teaching about social background geographical sings in a story, what the social situation was at the time of the story. This part provides lesson plans which I used in my classes. There is also included students´ feedback and self- reflection.

1.Theoretical part

In the first part of my bachelor thesis I focus on the role of literature in the EFL classes. I am trying to answer the question why to use literature in English classes in primary schools. I concentrate on choosing the right book for pupils. Also I write about a project work as a part of English teaching.

1.1. Literature in ESL classes in primary school

Literature is „ a pleasure“ which arises not only from the things said, but from the way in which they are said, and that pleasure is only given when the words are carefully or beautifully put together into sentences“ ( Stopford Brooke) 1

In the past literature was removed from language teaching in ESL classes. At first every ESL teacher has to teach grammar. Textbooks used in elementary schools cover the basic grammar, vocabulary and daily conversation topics. Due to three granted lessons a week there may be a little time devoted to teaching English through literature. Literature can contribute to language learning. Natural language is presented. For example, classical literature can be used to teach history and social backgrounds. Reading literature promotes cultural understanding and awareness. A teacher can make significant difference in how a student is able to learn from and appreciate literature in a foreign language. When encouraging pupils to read literature we can start by assigning them fables, comic books or songs to read. It depends on a level of pupils when they are comfortable with one of those categories of writing it is time to move to a more complex level of the written word.

I think that if the material is chosen according to pupils it may trigger a liking to reading for pleasure. As teachers we should not just “our subject” and be strict. We also should be tutors and help pupils to go through language learning.

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1 Stopford Augustus Brooke. The History of Early English. Macmillian and Co. 1992, page 2 8

1.2. Why to use literature in ESL

Parkinson and Reid Thomas (200, 9-11) give a list of benefits for teaching literature. They claims that reading literature promotes cultural understanding and awareness.2Before approaching a piece of literature in a class , give your pupils some time to discuss the reasons for reading literature in the first place. Most of pupils in basic school do not like literature itself because they have to learn authors and their novels, poems or stories which are not their favourite. They have no choice to choose what author to learn. Reading and writing are important tasks taught to pupils in order to promote their creativeness and development. A reading questionnaire for pupils can be an important tool that can help teachers to find out reading skills of their pupils. The questions need to be easy to understand and also should be open to allow for pupil’s responses. After handing in the reading questionnaire the next step should be introduction of basic literary terms as an antagonist , an author, protagonist or main hero and setting. As a teacher I have the opportunity to use a piece of literature in my classes as a part of Comenius project. Learning language should not only be acquiring of grammar but also acquiring information about lifestyles – what people do in the common situations which are part of ordinary everyday life. Ellis proves „ literature is a useful tool in linking fantasy and the imagination with the student’s real world. It provides a way of enabling children to make sense of their everyday life and forge links between home and school. “3 Lazar argues that pupils can learn from reading an authentic material without intention as long as they are absorbed in the plot of story. He refers the question of the cultural background and how much literature reflects the culture. Lazar also agrees and claims that literature educates the whole person. Literature helps students „ to develop their emotional awareness “4. ______

2 Parkinson B. ,and H. Reid Thomas. Teaching literature in a Second Language,Edinburgh: Edinburh University Press 2000, page 9-11

3 Ellis Gail and Brewster J. The Storytelling Handbook for Primary Teachers, London: Penguin Books 1991, page 31

4 Lazar Gillian. Literature and Language Teaching. A guide for teachers and trainers. Cambridge University Press, 1993, page 15

1.2. 1 The cognitive and cultural role of literature

Pupils can learn many things about life thought literature and language. The Story of Robin Hood is well-known as a story of good and bad. Many pupils can imagine themselves being as Robin, knights or the other heroes of the story. The story teaches about social values of English society which can be easily transferred to modern life. I have an opportunity as a teacher to show my pupils that literature is not written only in a formal style. Literature can be informal, there can be a lot of slang’s expressions and of course many other styles. Another roles of literature can be a communicative, stylistic , aesthetic and for my project a cultural role is worth to be used in the classes. To Kyloušková (2007) language and literature have a very important and irreplaceable role in the education and upringing. Literature can be good way how to teach a different culture to pupils in different way than in History subject. Kylouškova (2007) says that a nation has its culture impressed in its literature and students can learn more about a different culture from reading its literature. Pupils can easily compare a culture of different nation to their own culture. They read about foreign customs or traditions through reading the target book. We have to also have on mind that sometimes literature can be a fiction. A teacher should explain pupils every time the background of a story .

1.3 Reading in English classes

„ A nation that reads little, little known. A nation that knows little, take bad decisions – at home , in business , in the court at the ballot box. Uneducated majority can outvote the educated minority – it is a very dangerous aspect of democracy. „ (Jim Trelease, 2006,2) 5

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5 Trealese Jim. The Read- Aloud Handbook, London: Penguin Books 2006-2007, page 2

We were never born to read. Human beings invented reading only a few thousands years ago. And with this invention , we rearranged the very organization of our brain, which in turn expanded the ways , we are able to think, which altered the intellectual evolution of our species. (Wolf, 2007,3) 6

Jim Trealese claims that a school’s objective should be to create lifetime readers graduates who continue to read and educate themselves throughout their adult lives. Children have got 100 percent enthusiasm and desire when they start primary school and when leaving primary school only 19 percent of pupils read anything for pleasure daily. 7

Harmer states that: „ Reading is an exercise dominated by the eyes and the brain. The eyes receive messages and the brain then has to work out the significance of these messages.“ 8

Many of us take reading for granted. Pupils on the way to school read signs, text messages in their mobiles, billboards or they read whenever they write tests, notes or home works for school. Literature became less popular because of thoughts that literature just teach to read and write. At first pupils learn the new grammar and vocabulary they encounter. Answering question about the text is also practise of reading comprehension skills. Another strategies for reading practise can be used skimming or scanning etc.

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6 Wolf Maryanne. Proust and the Squid.The story and Science of the reading brain. Harper 2007, page 3

7 Harmer J. The practice of English language teaching. Essex. Longman 1991,page 153

8 Trealese Jim. The Read- Aloud Handbook, London: Penguin Books 2006-2007, page 16

Pupils can become easily demotivated or frustrated as a reason of not understanding the text what they are reading. To help them to close the gaps in misunderstanding a teacher needs to design and teach different strategies. If a teacher gets a positive reaction from the students she can use this opportunity and expand on it in the next lesson. Pupils are happy to try new things and to experiment with language when they are motivated. Mainly they learn through explorations and plays. Pupils also need opportunities to join and interact with the teacher and with each other. When we work with stories children can express themselves through writing , drawing, colouring , singing based on the story. It is important for teachers to take into account that all children have stronger and weaker aspects of intelligence and each child prefers different learning styles.

Androulla Vassilou, European Commissioner for Education, Culture , Multilingualism and Youth started on 1st June 2011 Project „ The whole of Europe reads for children „ and also opened a campaign to promote literacy, entitled as „ Europe loves reading „. The target of this project and campaign is to appeal to youth and adults to motivate children to read. 9 Therefore I have decided to maximize the reading in my classes and also it helps me the Comenius project which I already mentioned in my introduction.

„ Using mother tongue is not forbidden but we as teachers should try to use English as much as possible during the lessons . If the pupils don’t understand in English is much better to explain in their mother tongue. . In teaching English to young learners “there are times when the use of English is counter-productive” (Phillips 6).” 10

At the beginning as a pre-reading activity can be taught a set of vocabulary, phrases which can help pupils to communicate during lessons Pupils should understand reading with confidence and using prepared materials helps them. Every time a teacher should think on pupils abilities and try to make lessons according their language skills.

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9 Androulla Vassilou: All of Europe reads to Kids ,http://www.allofpolandreadstokids.org/all-of-europe- reads-to-kid

10 Phillips, Sarah. Young Learners. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1993. page 6

Reading and writing are usually taught in parallel. Children who begin to reand enjoy writing too. Depending on their specific language background children may need more or less practise.

Annamaria Pinter writes in her book “Teaching young language learners “ that speaking, listening, reading and writing in the primary foreign language classroom do not need to mean fully developed skills from the very beginning. She suggests that at the beginning of the programme and with young learners, the teacher might introduce written words to let children experience printed materials. 11

1.4 Symbols in literature

Literature is often remote from learners culturally, linguistically, geographically and historically. Learning language should be also acquiring the images and symbols included architectural , landscape features or the knowledge of famous people.

The Statue of Liberty can express a symbol of freedom from the historical point of view or can reckon a symbol for New York. In Victorian times in British literature, children’s books were used to convey a strong sense of morals and discipline. Margaret Wise Brown and Maurice Sendak changed the paradigm of children’s literature generations later. They gave a voice to real live of children , with their many worries and delights. 12

Theme and symbolism are two main areas of writing. A symbol has a complex meaning. It has the literal meaning but also one or more additional meanings . All language is symbolizing one thing or another. When children read about a dove they can see a dove as an animal. What can not be seen in the story is the other meaning of the dove - the meaning of Peace.

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11 Pinter Annamaria , Teaching young language learners, Oxford University press, 1998, page 69

12 Margaret Wise Brown/Maurice Sendak http://bookmineset.blogspot.com/2010/03/great-wednesday- compare-5-margaret-wise

Symbols can be people, things or places used to represent something else in literature. Every nation has an obvious example of a flag which symbolize the nation. In literature, a symbol is expected to have significance. The cross is often used to represent suffering, but it is also a symbol of Christianity.

In my classes I have been given to work with an heroic outlaw in English folklore – Robin Hood. He is mainly known for „ robbing from the rich and giving to the poor. He can be a symbol of an earl, an outlaw , a rebel or an external symbol of freedom. The theme of Robin Hood is still popular between pupils and the aimed of the project was to introduce pupils geographical symbols and icons mentioned in the book. Stephen Knight in his book „ Robin Hood: A Mythic Biography „ writes that the main features of Robin Hood are recognized around the Word. In the early stories the medieval Robin is not an earl or even a knight and he has no relationship with a lady.

1.4.1 Theme in literature

According to The Oxford Dictionary of literary terms ,theme in literature is „ the piece of writing „. It is a broad idea, message or moral of a story. Human nature , life or society can be represented in a message. It is one of the fundamental components of fiction along with style, petting, character and plot. And it is often the hardest element for a student to identify in a book. In most stories, the theme is not stated directly. Moral is the example of theme in a fable. The theme of fairy-tale is its teaching. A view about how people live and behave is the theme of a fiction. Robin Hood is often associated with the mysterious Green Man of art and folklore, because of wearing green. He possibly represents the ancient pagan god of vegetation and fertility, a primordial „ Lord of the Trees.“

1.4.2 Signs in literature

A sign is anything that stands for something else. It represents something – an idea, an experience, a feeling or an object. A sign has literal meaning. The study of a sign is called Semiotics. Stephen Knight in his book Robin Hood: A Mythic Biography wrote that the main features of Robin Hood are recognized around the world. The stories have changed through the last centuries. At the beginning in the early stories the medieval Robin is not an earl or even a knight, he has no relationship with a lady, is not a Saxon confronting Normans, does not live at the time of Prince John and never robs. The early outlaws do not wear green clothes.

1.5 Children’s literature

Writers take their reading very seriously. When they read, they discover topics for their own writing. They become interested in new genres and formats. They study authors techniques to learn how to improve their own writing. They discover mentor relationship with their favourite writers, aspiring to be more like them. (Harwayne, 2005. 121) 13

Children’s literature has long held a cherished place in our culture as a conveyor of values, of belief systems that will give our children courage and help them through a hard day. At the beginning children are only listeners of literature up to about age 7 when they learn to read . Gradually they explore a world of reading and they come to be not only listeners, but also readers. Primary education is very different in various parts of the world. Children may start learning English at different stages of their primary education. Children ´s literature is a powerful idea to teach children about our world. We can find various genres included in children’s literature – historical realism, contemporary realism or fantasy, picture books, traditional literature or poetry and drama. Teachers can use literature in Science, Geography, Social Studies or even Maths.

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13 Harwayne Shelley. Writing through childhood: Rethinking processes and product. Heinemann 2001, page 121

Children’s literature should be illustrated and can be divided in many ways . At first children can be divided in many ways. At first children use picture books in their early age. Picture books are most often target to very young children. The books have two functions in the lives of children. Firstly they are read to children by adults and then children read the books once they began to learn. Picture books help to develop children speaking, communication skills when narrating the story. Very small children use a kind of picture books which we know as board books. They play with these books. In my classes I use children´ Usborne´s books from reading series which are easily to be read and are nicely illustrated.

1.5.1 The selection of a proper book

The lucky children are those who love to read. (Travers, 2007,2) 14

Pupils have to cope with the text which was originally meant to be for the native speakers and so they see the “natural “ use of English. It is not only with the books but also they see natural language in newspapers, magazine articles, comics or advertisements.(Collie and Slater, 2003). 15 Pupils acquire new vocabulary and interesting collocations.

The story’s events and themes should be adequate for the child’s developmental level. The key to selecting the appropriate book for child is not only the knowledge of the teacher or parents, but also what is the level of children’s development. A child should be familiar with the topic in a book or has at least background knowledge.

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14 Travers Barbara E.Childrens´literature: A Developmental Perspective, Boston College,2007 15 Collie J, Slater S. Literature in the language classroom, Cambridge. Cambridge University Press, 1987, page 266

The choice of the text can be a problem. According to Ur literary texts are very often written in the language which can be difficult for the foreign language readers to read and understand. If we use in the class simplified version this could motivate students to try and read the original work. 16

For my classes I use the book : The Story of Robin Hood by Rob Lloyd which I have found to be familiar with my pupils. It is nicely illustrated and with younger pupils I can use pictures to talk about. The texts are not long – for some pupils a longer text might be too difficult to read and also longer texts are time-consuming when we are limited by the length of the lessons.

Pupils often find reading boring, difficult and demanding. Therefore as professional teacher I should try and predict those problems and solve them. Getting pupils ready to read is the goal of preparational strategies. One important advantage of reading aloud a picture book is that everyone is privy to the same information and is prepared for discussion. Whould should be avoides is asking students to read aloud spontaneously. Asking students to be involved in the reading or to do an extra work is another way to encourage interest. Teachers need to be creative if they want their students to pay attention.

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16 Ur Penny. A course in language teaching. Cambridge. Cambridge University Press,1996, page 375

2 PRACTICAL PART

2.1 School profile

Our primary school is called Strž and it is located on the top of the hill nearly at the end of Dvůr Králové nad Labem. Primary school was officially opened on 4th September 1995 and it is therefore the youngest elementary school in Dvůr Králové nad Labem. Our school combines a full primary school for 9 years, always with one or two classes. In detached school in a village Žireč are classes from 1 st to 5 th grade.

The complex includes the main school building, kitchen and dining wing with the gym .Each floor has a separate toilet for disabled. In the basement of the main building are changing rooms and technical facilities. Each floor has separate sanitary facilities for children.

There are 322 pupils mainly from the surroundings block of flats and also from a village called Žireč. We teach according to a programme called Elementary School with extended lessons of P.E. and new for this year with extended lessons of languages. The building is only 15 years old.

We also integrate pupils with special learning disabilities and pupils from nearby children’s sanatorium “Les Království” Our school is only one school in the town which can be called a school for disabled , because it is a quite new school there is a special lift for pupils dependent on wheelchairs. Currently there is a girl after cerebral palsy who is dependent on her wheelchair. She is very ambitious and she commutes to school every day for an hour, because around her home is not any school for disabled. Children from children’s sanatorium are taking a part in the social scheme where they live in the sanatorium without parents who are temporarily unable to look after them. The reasons are different – single mothers who find themselves in a sudden hard life situation, children whose parents happened to be without a place for living or children whose parents or grandparents looking after them are seriously ill. Nowadays there are 9 children.

Students can learn a second foreign language from the 6th class – for this school year it is Russian or German. English language is learnt from the 1st class in the form of a club and from 3rd class pupils have three lessons of English per week. Since last school year students

were tested in CEFLA to obtain a certificate of achievement level of the European Language Framework.

2.2 Class profile

I chose for my project the fifth class and the ninth class. Both classes are typical mixed- ability classes.

In the fifth class are 18 children , 11 boys and 7 girls. There is one boy that has an individual learning plan and he needs an assistant to be with him. He is very clever, but he has problem with behaviour and can easily get very nervous and therefore very dangerous to other classmates. There are 5 children who are diagnosed with dyslexia or dyscalculia. As a class it is a very well-coordinated team, they help each other and there is not any serious problem. I have one extra lesson devoted to 4 children who are preparing for Cambridge exams and one extra lesson of English as a club. Children there are really talented and their potential for languages should be developed. For me as a teacher it is very demanding to teach there but due to children’s attitude to English it is also rewarding. The pupils have been learning English for two years. As a course book we use Cambridge English for schools. Pupils are able to understand classroom language and basic grammar. They have one special topic which they get every month to speak about. They have learnt present simple and present continuous tense and little bit of past simple . Working in groups is not a problem for them they love this kind of learning. Cooperation between their classmates is also positive. We started reading books and work with literature last year. All children found it very funny and enjoyable. We made a lot of posters, diaries or some of them created their own little books.

As a second group I chose the ninth class. It is a group of 23 children, there are 14 boys and 9 girls. A social background in this class is very diverse. One girl is disabled, using a wheelchair. Another 5 children came to this class at the end of the last school year from children’s sanatorium where there are because of their complicated family situations. Also there are 8 children from single-parent families. Despite on these conditions it is very adaptive class and they attitude to English learning is good. They have been learning English for 6 years, but because of difficult conditions for learning they are not intermediate ,but we still do the basic grammar. They have known present simple, present continuous , past simple and using future will. There is a huge gap in grammar, but what really helped 19

them was starting with literature in English classes. They expanded a vocabulary a lot and also their communicative approach.

2. 3 Comenius programme at the basic school

We started at our school with Comenius programme which was aimed on literature. The programme started in September 2010 and was finished in June 2011. It became a part of ordinary English lessons. We cooperated with schools from Great Britain, Turkey, Portugal and Poland. The target was to look at a book given by the lead country Great Bretain.

The main aim of this literature programme was to give pupils an opportunity to meet with one of the heroes of English medieval times through reading and to show that children can enjoy learning.

Some pupils had also change to visit Nottingham in Great Britain. They lived in English families and learnt a lot about their culture and traditions.

I decided to use multiple copies of the parts of the book for all pupils. Pupils made their own Robin Hood’s workbook or their own portfolios. We read the texts mostly at lessons and we tried to make a project every month - a lot of posters, flashcards or stories, rhymes were made.

2.3.1 The story of Robin Hood

Pupils in my classes chose a book called The story of Robin Hood by Rob Lloyd. The book is nicely illustrated by Alan Marks. There are many colours and images in the books It retells the classic tale of Robin Hood. Every page is illustrated.

The mysterious outlaw Robin Hood has captivated imaginations for centuries. Pupils liked this book very much, because this book brings the legend to life for the little children. The

theme of Robin Hood is close to children . It focused on relationships and explained the situation in Great Britain at the time of Robin Hood.

We learnt about lives of outlaws – some of the became heroes as Robin Hood. We discovered the times Robin lived in. The question we were discussing a lot about Robin was if he was ever real, or were these tales about him just legends. The book took us in typical English society in the Middle Ages – pupils learnt about the feudal system in country. What pupils found out about the society they used in their social studies.

Also pupils made maps of Great Britain - they learnt about places around Nottingham and Sherwood. These information they used in Geography.

The book is written in easy English. The most important factor when helping pupils to choose the right book was their own interests . The story deals with values of ordinary life – the question of money, love , family , health. Pupils could explain during the literature project their own feelings and emotions from the story and compare it with the real life.

When choosing the book I was mindful of pupil’s interests in the book – it was the most important factor.

Rationale for chosen book

- mysterious and interesting story

- full of values of Good and Bad

- questions of ordinary life - associated with Social Studies

- the Middle Ages – associated with History

- Nottingham , Sherwood, - associated with Geography

2.3.2 Programme methods

The programme was realised in ten 45-minute lessons and some extra lessons in a school club.

Before starting the programme pupils completed an attitude towards reading in questionnaire. Next lessons were concerning pre-reading activities, post- reading activities and activities during reading.

The last lesson dealt with the finishing of pupils posters , portfolios , flashcards or stories and their prepared their special lecture for other pupils in the school, parents and teachers.

Some students were greedy to do more work at home. The class activities were made on association with Geography and Social studies. The programme was not aimed to do a lot of homeworks. The more pupils didi in the class the less they did at home. Everytime they could ask their teacher for help. I appreciated all efforts when doing some extra work. Everybody learns at their own pace and uses different methods. Some pupils were able to make historical posters, geographical posters or a lof of them made vocabulary flashcards.

Programme goals

- background knowledge

- to search for new information

- to improve pupils understanding of grammar and vocabulary

- to improve pupils reading, speaking and writing skills

- to develop fluent readers

2.3.3 Evaluation and Assessment

The pupils were assessed during the whole programme – their reports after every session, their performances in the class and their extra work.

The first questionnaire (Appendix No. 1) that students filled in before starting the reading programmes was based on questions about reading in general. The questionnaire had ten questions.

The results of the first questionnaire

reading questionnaire - results 1

(data in the table in %)

I was mainly interested in two questions. As seen in the figure above the results of the reading questionnaire are different when comparing two classes . The young pupils are still more enthusiastic in reading then the older ones.

Pupils answered the questions at home as a part of their homework.

The main objective was to determine whether students are devoted to reading outside the classroom. Pupils in 5th class are still fond of reading , they are enthusiastic and many of

them are members of reading clubs. On the other side the pupils in 9th class read less than their younger schoolmates.

After submission the questionnaire we discussed their answers in the class. We opened with pupils many questions about books and reading. The main problem with older group of pupils was the question of internet. Pupils answered that at the time of internet it is not worthy for them to read if everything can be found on internet.

All questionnaires and pupils´ reports were involved in the final grade. The pupils were told to put all their posters, home works and works what they did during the literary classes in their workbooks or portfolios.

Since two classes participated in the reading programme I have compared them. Both classes were given the same tasks to be completed. The vocabulary and grammar was chosen according the level of pupils.

1.2.1. Pupil’s workbook of Robin Hood

In Appendices No. 3 and 4. are included samples of workbooks which I have made for this project. Pupils were given whole workbook during first lesson and they were told to go through their workbook during the Comenius Programme. It was up to pupils if they kept their work in their school portfolios or made another portfolio just for the programme. And the end of Comenius programme I gathered all portfolios, workbooks and pupils work for their evaluation.

2.4 Self –assessment

The method of self-assessment was used throughout the whole Comenius literature programme. I made self-assessments parts according to the parts in the book. I could easily notice making progress or problems during the project. I divided the self- assessment sheet into parts A- E. I can see from the results of self-assessment sheets how the pupils felt during the lesson and what do to better during the classes. You can see the self-assessment sheet in appendix NO. 5.

2.5 Pre-teaching the book title

I pre-teached some of the vocabulary when playing a game „ Guessing the book“ I used a set of pictures with questions (Appendix NO 6) and on the board I wrote some of the vocabulary a bow, a gun, a hood, a bird, ,long, a red bird, a wood, a forest, a castle , to steal, to give, poor , rich and Great Britain. I also hung a map of the Great Britain on the wall And then I asked my pupils to fill a table with answers (Appendix NO 8). We checked the answers after 15 minutes and we used the new vocabulary in sentences to check pupils understand the meaning. I put an answer sheet on a special board which we use just for the project. Did the same with both classes to learn vocabulary. Pupils in 5 the class used a simple sentences „ It is a castle, It is a boy. In 9 the class I wanted pupils to use grammar according to their level. They made sentences „ I can see an old castle on the top of a hill, The boy is carrying money“ During the programme pupils got more confident in speaking and used more complex sentences.

Most pupils have had the experience of using a dictionary during classes. At the beginning or Comenius programme not every one had a dictionary at home. I asked parents to buy a good dictionary for their children . They found it difficult to find a new word in dictionary but they were getting better during following lessons . Guessing the meaning of a few words from context may be also a good idea for pupils.

2.5. 1 Pre-teaching activity for the culture symbols and icons

During the next lesson we formed a project according to Chapter One . It was mainly a group work and the greater par of lesson was focused on English society. Pupils were given an activity sheet (Appendix No 2) and there was a map of Great Britain on the wall. At first some of pupils showed where the Sherwood is and pupils then could draw this place on their blind maps. Pupils listened the part of the book about a society at the time. The rest of the lesson was devoted to a discussion on the topic. We compared the society in the past with society now.

The ability in speaking about taxes in 5th class was lower than in 9 th class. Only 20% of pupils in 5th class had clear information about taxes in Czech Republic. In 9 th class the percentage of clear information was 74 %. According to self-assessment sheet from this lesson 96% of pupils loved the lesson because they could express their feelings and learn a lot about living in the past. Students need to have an adequate knowledge of cultural background to understand the text.

The younger pupils used more Czech than English during discussing then the older pupils.

2.5.2. An anticipation guide

This guide is a set of statements , typically I used three to five, that asks pupils to agree or disagree with statements of opinion. I can record what they think, or they think they know, before the topic is presented.

We discussed responses as a class . For example , statements on an ancticipation guide for “ The story of Robin Hood might be the following:

1. “ Robin Hood was a hero” 2. “The living in English society was easy, the taxes were low and people were free” 3. “ Robin Hood could meet King Richard”

The first statement is about personal feelings of pupils. For some of them Robin was hero, but there were also students with different opinions. The second statement is about social feelings and knowledge and the third one is concerned with history.

Engaging pupils in the topic is a critical step toward getting them involved in their readings. Pupils alo want to be respected for what they already know.

In Appendix No. 7 is presented Anticipation guide. When completing answers before reading pupils were not thinking a lot about answers.Mostly they ticked the answers within a minute. On the other side when we finished reading a particular chapter it took more time to be complete the Ancticipation quide.

Before reading – results - 5 th class

(data in %)

After reading – results – 5th class

(data in %)

Before reading – results - 9 th class

(data in %)

After reading – results – 9 th class

(data in %)

2. 5. 3 CLASS LIBRARY

This project was also the start of setiing up the class library. At the beginning it was problem to find suitable books for my classes. Therefore I decided that it was better to leave the students to decide what they want to read after this project. They were motivated to find their favourite books. We collected any kind of reading materials such as books, poems, magazines, newspapers, leaflets or fairy tales.

We chose one student to be a librarian. They liked it very much to have the possibility to be important for others. After sixth month we changed the librarian for another term.

Conclusion:

This bachelor thesis focused on using literature in English classes at primary school.

In the theoretical part there was written why to use literature in English class, how to select a proper book and I mentioned about themes and signs in literature. There are also described what considerations the teachers need to make before starting with literature in their classes. The first charter I wrote about the role of literature , next parts I depicted the role of reading.

The practical part showed the results of the reading questionnaire and of the anticipation guide I made among my pupils from the fifth class and the ninth class. It was evident from the answers from the questionnaire that pupils in lower class read more than their older school friends. It was evident from the answers from both questionnaires that the pupils changed their attitude to reading.

From both my past and present experiences with primary-age children, I have found it to be more beneficial to teach social skills through literature. Children are able to relate to the characters in the stories and are able to connect to their own lives.

As a teacher I will continue to influence their behaviours in a positive way. The purpose of my thesis was to see how pupils changed their attitude to literature while working on this project .

I felt positive opinion about using literature in the English classes with my pupils. I now know that using literature can be enjoyable not only for students but also for me as their teacher. And also according to their parents the project was very successful. Pupils learn a lot of new words, phrases , but also what was important they learnt about foreign culture. They used their information from the project in History, Geography and Social studies.

Another positive thing about this project was that more students started to read in English but also in their mother language.

RESUMÉ

Bakalářská práce pojednává o využití literatury ve výuce anglického jazyka. V teoretické části se zaměřuji na důležitost čtení či výběr správné knihy. První kapitala pojednává o tom co je to literatura, zaměřuji se na role literatury a na symboly v literatuře. Dále se zmiňuji o dětské literatuře a výběru knihy. V praktické části se zaměřuji na Comenius project,který proběhl u nás na škole. Uvádím zde výsledky dotazníků , které jsem použila v hodinách.

The bachelor thesis deals with the using of literature in English teaching. In the theoretical part I focus on the importance of reading and selecting the proper books. In the firs chapter I discuss what the literature is and I also focus on the roles of literature and on the symbols in literature. I mention the children literature . In the practical part I focus on Comenius project which too place at our school. I present the results of questionnaires which I used in lessons.

BIBLIOGRAPHY Works Cited

(in alphabetic order)

Collie J, Slater S. Literature in the language classroom, Cambridge. Cambridge University Press, 1987, page 266

ISBN 0-521-31224-8

Ellis Gail and Brewster J. The Storytelling Handbook for Primary Teachers, London: Penguin Books 1991, page 31

ISBN 0140810161

Harmer J. The practice of English language teaching. Essex. Longman 1991,page 153

ISBN 0-582-40385-5

Harwayne Shelley. Writing through childhood: Rethinking processes and product. Heinemann 2001, page 121

ISBN 978-0325002903

Knight Stephen. Robin Hood: A Mythic Biography, Cornell University Press 2009

ISBN 080148992X

KYLOUŠKOVÁ, H. Jak využít literární text ve výuce cizích jazyků. Brno. Masarykova univerzita, 2007. 172 p. ISBN 978-80-210-4373-2

Lazar Gillian. Literature and Language Teaching. A guide for teachers and trainers. Cambridge University Press, 1993, page 15

ISBN 978-0325542896

Phillips, Sarah. Young Learners. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1993. page 6

Stopford Augustus Brooke. The History of Early English. Macmillian and Co. 1992, page 2

ISBN9 780548107522

Travers Barbara E.Childrens´literature: A Developmental Perspective, Boston College,2007

ISBN 978-0-470-11104-8

Trealese Jim. The Read- Aloud Handbook, London: Penguin Books 2006-2007, page 2

ISBN 0143037390

Ur Penny. A course in language teaching. Cambridge. Cambridge University Press,1996, page 375

ISBN 0521-44994-4

Wolf Maryanne. Proust and the Squid.The story and Science of the reading brain. Harper 2007, page 3

ISBN 978-0060186395

Dictionaries

The Oxford Dictionary of Literary Terms, Oxford University Press,1999

Internet sources

Androulla Vassilou: All of Europe reads to Kids http://www.allofpolandreadstokids.org/all-of-europe-reads-to-kid, 2010

Margaret Wise Brown/Maurice Sendak http://bookmineset.blogspot.com/2010/03/great-wednesday-compare-5-margaret-wise

APPENDIX NO. 1READING QUESTIONNAIRE

Name:…......

Class:…...... / Age…......

DO I read?

What do I read every day?

How many books do I read every month?

What is my favourite book?

What is my favourite main character?

When do you read most of your books? (at home, in school, on the bus...... )

When is the best time to read a book? (during class, during bed time, in the morning....)

Who buys you most of the books? (you , your parents, Granny.....)

Where do you keep your books ?(in a bookcase, on a shelf, in a box...... )

Do you go to library?

Appendix NO.2 Chapter 1: Not just any outlaw

Pay up! Pay Up! The shrill cry rang out around Sherwood village. Soldiers marched room house to house, pounding their fists on doors and yelling at the villagers. „Wake up, you stinking peasants“ they demanded. „Time to pay your taxes“

New vocabulary:

English word Czech meaning

Tasks for group work:

Geography:

1) Where is Sherwood? (country, state)

Culture:

What was the behaviour of soldiers to villagers?

How did the villagers feel?

Write something about SOLDIERS Write something about villagers

How would you feel if you were…………………………….?

A soldier A villager

History changes:

Taxes

How did the villages pay the taxes? How do we pay taxes now? What taxes did they pay? What taxes do we pay? Were the taxes high or low? Are the taxes high or low? How often did they pay taxes? How often do we pay taxes?

Reading and discussing: An organized society

- Together we read a part of the book about English society

- First listen and then we will discuss the topic

( Who was the head of the state ? Who is the head of the state now? - in Great Britain)

- Try to think of other questions about the topic

APPENDIX NO. 3

ROBIN HOOD

Workbook (9th class)

by......

School year:

Class:

Final Score:

Draw your idea of Robin Hood

1) How did he look? 2) What did he wear?

Write at least 10 words from description of ROBIN HOOD

English word Czech meaning Your own sentence

Imagine what was typical Robin’s day. You should think about what he was doing, who he was with, what kind of person he was and what his job was. Was he happy?

A day in the life of Robin

This homework is due on ......

If it is not done for that day there will be a 30 minute detention on last Tuesday in a month after school where it will be done then. Homework is very important part of school life and is essential that it is done on time so that you can keep up with the rest of 39

the class.

Robin and his background

Q1 : How did Robin meet Little John? Who was Little John?

Q2: Give 2 examples of Robin’s main dreams?

Q3: Can you describe Robin’s social status?

Q4: When meeting real Robin Hood in your life what would you tell him?

Task 1: Research British history. What was it like to be a poor man living in England at the of Robin Hood?

Task 2: Imagine you are a person living in England around the same time as Robin. In a diary entry , explain what society is like at this time and what impact it has on your life. Explain how you feel as much as you can.

Date:

Weather today:

Dear Diary......

LONELINESS

Robin Hood is full of characters . We will look at three characters in particular.

Little John: How did he look? Was he a funny person? What did he like?

Marian: Who was she? What was her position in society?

Friar Tuck: What was his position? How did he look like? 41

Now, what character is your favourite one in Robin Hood? Why? What do you adore about this character?

Role playing: you will get set of cards and you are supposed to choose one (without looking on the back side). There will be two names written on the card. The first name in the bold is your character and the second name is the name of the character would be your mate. Find him and try to make 2 minute conversation with him/her.

An example of card (Robin Hood – you ) (Sherriff of Nottingham – your mate)

ROBIN HOOD

Sherriff of Nottingham

Theme: Relationships in Robin Hood

There are many different types of relationship in this book. I would like to look at what the relationships are between some of the main characters:

Task 1: In groups of 4, explain on your sheets what type of relationship there is between each of the characters, e. g. A friend, colleague, an enemy etc. Explain you can know about the relationship.

Task 2: In your group feedback to the class one of the relationships you have discussed.

Prince John Marian Little John Sherriff of Nottingham

Richard at the Lee Will Scarlet Merry Men

Norman village : An every day life in a typical Norman village

¨ 44

APPENDIX NO. 4

ROBIN HOOD (5th class)

Workbook by: school year: class: final score:

1. COLOURS (colour his clothes green, red feather, his body brown)

What animal is it?

Take first letter in word 5 = , 1= , Roman numeral 10 =

This animal is a symbol for cunning and trickery.

Robin’s home:

Robin lived in SHER so , the word is

______

Geography:

Where can you find SHERWOOD? (in which state)......

What nationality was Robin Hood? ......

IF he comes from Sherwood he must be ......

Colour our country yellow and Robin’s country green.

How is it called the island on the left side of Robin’s country?

History:

Do you know who is the king on the picture?

He is Prince ...... (Honza) = The King ...... of England

He had a brother called King Richard. He assumed the crown when his brother went for The

Third Crusade. He lived in the ...... of Nottingham.

What animal is said to be a king of all animals? ......

This animal is a symbol of royalty, stateliness and symbol of bravery. 48

Was Robin Hood brave?

Religion connections:

King Richard was an older brother of ......

He spoke ...... (S'il vous plaît, Paris, ) He lived in the southwest of ...... )

In the book or in the movies he is also an uncle of Maid Marian.¨

He was Christian.

The Third Crusade = King’s crusade was an attempt to reconquer the Holy Land from Saladin.

Where was THE HOLY LAND? Circle the right answer: in Europe/in Asia

THE Holy LAND = The Kingdom of ...... 49

- help: the cat in THE SMURFS is called AZRAEL

- take out the First letter A and put instead I

- take out the second letter Z and put instead S

you should know now

APPENDIX NO.5

SELF-ASSESMENT –SEBEHODNOCENÍ

NAME:

CLASS:

A: THE STORY YES/NO

I ENJOYED THE STORY I WAS BORED I LEARN A LOT FROM THE STORY MY OWN OPINION OF THE STORY:

B: VOCABULARY CIRCLE THE RIGHT ANSWER

I LEARNT LESS THAN 5 NEW WORDS I LEARNT MORE THAN 5 BUT LESS THAN 10 WORDS I LEARNT MORE THAN 10 NEW WORDS

C: IN THIS LESSON I LEARNT ABOUT

A) CULTURE B) HISTORY C) GEOGRAPHY WHAT DID YOU LIKE MOST?

D: CIRCLE OR COMPLETE

I DIDN´T HAVE ANY PROBLEMS DURING THIS LESSON

I HAD PROBLEMS WITH (COMPLETE THE SENTECES)

E: DID I DO ANY EXTRA WORK? (POSTERS, FLASHCARDS) YES/NO

IF YES : I MADE…………………………………………………………….

APPENDIX NO 6.

PICTURE NUMBER 1

Can you guess a title of well-known film or a book?

What is it on the picture? Who can use it? What for is it used? From which material is it made?

PICTURE NUMBER 2

Can you guess a title of well-known film or a book?

What is it on the picture?

Do you know the name of the building?

Do you know where is it? 52

PICTURE NUMBER 3

Can you guess a title of well-known film or book?

What kind of place is it?

What kind of trees are on the picture?

Do you know the name of the place?

PICTURE NUMBER 4

Can you guess a title of well-known film , a book?

(at the time of story only the gold coins were used, the money were called farthings, grouts, angels, or pennies)

How do they feel?

Complete the table:

Picture 1: A thing:

Picture 2: A building:

Picture 3: A place:

Picture 4: A What is the boy’s financial situation? Mood?

......

B What is the boy’s financial situation?

......

Answers sheet Answer picture 1

The word is : Longbow

Answer picture 2

picture 3

Picture 4

The name of a man is

His name:

His surname:

He is

Robin HOOD

Appendix NO 7

ANTICIPATION GUIDE

Before reading

Agree Disagree – circle the right answer

1. “ Robin Hood was a hero”

Agree / Disagree

2. “The living in English society was easy, the taxes were low and people were free”

Agree/Disagree

3. “ Robin Hood could meet King Richard”

Agree/Disagree

After reading- Agree Disagree – circle the right answer

1. “ Robin Hood was a hero”

Agree / Disagree

2. “The living in English society was easy, the taxes were low and people were free”

Agree/Disagree

3. “ Robin Hood could meet King Richard”

Agree/Disagree