Week 2 Term 2 - Teacher Practice - Pre Reading Exercise for NCEA Level 3 English Extended Text (May 6 - May 10)

Pre-reading exercises are an important part of a reading program. I believe that it helps to build prior knowledge, provide a context and help to pull the reader in. Fisher Digital Publications state that "Findings have shown that pre-reading strategies influence student motivation, increase the activation of prior knowledge and they can be used as a tool for increased comprehension." Over the last 4 years I have tried different types of pre reading exercises and activities to engage my NCEA Level 3 students with for our extended text study. This year I came across this pre reading activity online for the text study of Tim O'brien's 'The Things They Carried' and I loved it. Click on the image below to access a link to the pre reading activity. 

Joseph Carnevale's Pre Reading Exercise: The Things They Carried

I took the activity and modified it so that it made sense for myself and my students. I loved how the pre-reading activities looked at the key features of the text that I want my students to write about for their assessment. Carnevale's pre reading activity covered the following areas that I particularly focus on with my students, these areas are: 

Context around the text - Vietnam War and America in the 1960s

Visualizing the text - Looking at footage from Forrest Gump and images from the Vietnam War and reflecting on the imagery. 

History of the text - Understanding the history and timeline of the Vietnam War

Beyond the text - Unpacking the title 'The Things They Carried' and reflecting on the tangible and intangible things that we carry and then making connections. 

Context around the text and Visualizing the text

Context + visualizing the context

Understanding the context around the text is vital. Especially in a text like 'The Things They Carried' - there is a huge cultural difference that students are unfamiliar with. So understanding the social and political context around the stories can help them connect and understand the text. Here the students are able to look at the setting (a key feature in the text) and understand where it take place. They are also able to visualize the setting through an excerpt from Forrest Gump - where they can see the Vietnam terrain and what is was like for the soldiers. I like that the the students can visualize the setting in that the setting is such an important and integral part of the story, it acts as both the backdrop but also as another character in the text. 

History of the text

History of the text

This is part of the reading exercise is important - the students are given a simplified summary of the war. The video gives a crash course on the key events and parts of the war - enough for the students to understand what is going on. The war, the event itself, as a text - is an important part of the story and understanding the bones of it is beneficial for them when they start the reading of The Things They Carried. 

Their Voices

Vietnam War Veteran - their stories

This part of the pre reading activities is something that I have added in. I have used this text as a way of getting the students to hear the war veteran's personal accounts of the war. The Things They Carried is a text that is centered the voices of the war veterans and the experiences that they carried as a result of the war. These videos are a good resource in that it helps to showcase the reality (harsh and confronting reality) that the war veterans faced during the war and continue to live with post war. 

Beyond the text

Beyond the text

This was my favorite part of the pre reading activity. The Things They Carried highlights the tangible and intangible things that the soldiers carried during the war and after the war. This part of the activity asks students to unpack their bags and look at the tangible things that they carry. It also encourages them to reflect on the intangible things that they carry and then asks them to reflect on which one carries more weight - the tangible or intangible. The students from my NCEA Level 3 English class enjoyed sharing this in their groups. I also shared with them what I carry physically and also emotionally. 

305ENGLit sharing what they 'carry'

305ENGLit sharing what they 'carry'

Next Steps: 

• Finish the pre-reading exercise
• Start the reading of the first short story from The Things They Carried - Speaking of Courage
• Complete the reading log for Speaking of Courage