Exemplar 1 Exploring Choice through Reading Poems

This exemplar will help you understand:

1. how Torrance Incubation Model can be based on to develop content with appropriate depth for students to achieve the learning objectives;

2. how the HEROIC Questioning and Feedback Loop can guide students to analyse an abstract topic to explore and make choices as they write as writers in the upcoming learning activities and future; and

3. how Bloom’s Taxonomy can serve as an aid to differentiating the content for different ability students to construct knowledge based on their readiness.

Lesson Piloted by: Ms Olivia CHEUNG Oi-li, St. Mary’s Canossian College Level of Students: Secondary 2

Focused Differentiation Strategies: Torrance Incubation Model, The HEROIC Questioning and Feedback Loop, Bloom’s Taxonomy

Aim: The lessons aim to develop students’ knowledge and skills of reading poems with the five senses and associations.

Core Objectives (for all students):

By the end of the lessons, students will be able to:

1. observe daily surroundings and happenings for ideas; and

2. apply and analyse the use of poetic techniques, namely rhyme, rhythm, image, and imagery in poems.

Extended Objectives (for high ability/gifted students):

By the end of the lessons, the high ability/gifted students will be able to:

1. analyse the use of poetic techniques for expressing the themes of selected poems; and

Lesson Flow:

Objectives Learning Activities/Procedure Materials 1. Warm-up

• Show pictures of Hong Kong, e.g. wet markets, Ocean Park, Disneyland, and a clip about Hong Kong¹. Have students identify the things or people from the pictures or the clip to locate any representations of Hong Kong. See Appendix 4.1.1a for ideas of how to pre-assess students’ readiness.

• Put students’ ideas and vocabulary on the board.

Assess your students’ sensitivity to surroundings and details, vocabulary repertoire and prior knowledge of the theme/issue addressed in the clip or pictures.

2. Using the pre-assessment data to prepare students for advanced study

• Assign students in pairs or groups to read a poem out of 2 to 3 according to the pre-assessment data². Have students analyse the writer’s sensitivity to surroundings and the techniques used to express the sensitivity in the poems. See Appendix 4.1.1b for some suggested guiding questions for students.

• Invite students to contribute and explain the examples by illustrating how the writer’s sensitivity is expressed. Introduce the target poetic technique terms (i.e.

rhythm and repetition, images and imagery) to elaborate the examples from students.

Stage I of Heightening Anticipation:

To discuss the key features and the representative meanings of the selected tourists attractions

Pictures

Appendix 4.1.1a

Poems

Appendix 4.1.1b

3. Differentiated activities: Expert groups think alike

• Students work in groups on different aspects of the target poetic techniques to explore answers to the evaluative question as follows:

Does the technique I am investigating make the poem more poetic?

• Have students who talked more about rhythm and repetition in Activity 2 work in the Rhythm Group while the others in the Imagery Group. See the task sheets for

the two groups in Appendix 4.1.1c. Appendix 4.1.1c The pre-assessment provided the teacher

with the information about how well the students had already mastered a learning focus to make timely and responsive instructional decisions.

This evaluative question will intrigue gifted students’ curiosity to argue, define, inquire, and clarify concepts. These thinking processes will provide students with an authentic and immediate need to seek different perspectives before they reach a sound conclusion to the question, as the Heightening Anticipation Stage of the Torrance Incubation Model promotes.

4. Gathering thoughts—Do minds think alike?

• Students summarise and share their thoughts. You may encourage all to clarify thoughts for conclusive answers to the evaluative question as a whole.

5. Owning the knowledge

• Have students create or rewrite a poem they have read with the techniques they have studied. Encourage students to add new content to the poem with what they learnt if they choose to revise a poem Stage II of

Deepening Expectations:

To construct knowledge and develop perspectives

Stage III of Extending the Learning:

To personalise theory through practice and creation

➢ One of the purposes of differentiating instruction is to help

students advance their understanding and application of a concept or a skill based on what they have already mastered.

➢ The task sheets for the Rhythm and Imagery Groups, as described in Appendix 4.1.1c, demonstrate how differentiated tasks can lead gifted students to find out more but not to ask them to do more of a repeated concept or skill.

➢ This is an example of how gifted students can be engaged in the Stage II of Deepening Expectations.

Every lesson rewarded the teacher and the students with moments of concerted efforts.

instead of creating one.

To facilitate gifted students to continue learning with enhanced anticipation, you should connect students’

curiosity with their application of knowledge through creating or rewriting a poem. This is how Stage III of

Extending the Learning from the Torrance Incubation Model can be realised.

Notes:

1. The suggested clip is available at:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZPNxBSAw0Yw (Length: 11 mins and 38 secs).

2. You can use your students’ favourite poems about Hong Kong, or alternatively, any poems from the suggested links below, given that the writers are properly acknowledged or permission for educational use is sought where appropriate:

• Ho, M. K. (30 November 2015). My Hong Kong. 2009/2010 Hong Kong Budding Poets (English) Award Anthology. Gifted Education Section, Curriculum Development Institute, Education Bureau, HKSARG, 77. Retrieved from

http://resources.edb.gov.hk/gifted/ge_resource_bank/files/Awards/NEW-BPA%20 Anthology-2009-10(full).pdf

• Chin, H. T. (30 November 2015). What they say about Victoria Harbour. 2010/2011 Hong Kong Budding Poets (English) Award Anthology. Gifted Education Section, Curriculum Development Institute, Education Bureau, HKSARG, 62, 88-89. Retrieved from

http://resources.edb.gov.hk/gifted/ge_resource_bank/files/Awards/BPA%20Anthology-2010-11(full).pdf

• Harrison, M. ((30 November 2015). On taking the star ferry. Retrieved from http://matthewharrison.hk/english-poems/hong-kong-on-taking-the-star-ferry/

Appendix 4.1.1a