How are the Kardashians and Lena Dunham changing women's speech?

I heard a nice little piece on the radio over the summer whilst driving my kids to Fountain's Abbey - they were thrilled to be listening to Radio 4 ;)

If you have a spare ten minutes have a listen. It describes how the phenomenon of 'Vocal Fry' has increased recently, led by certain celebrities. You can find it here: Vocal Fry on Woman's Hour

You can also listen to some examples of vocal fry on youtube too, if you have a hunt around.

Y9 Homework set Tuesday 22nd September

Due Friday 25th Sepember

Using the ideas you have gained from Tuesday's lesson, I would like you to write a list of quotations from each person that you have interviewed. What are they likely to have said to you, that you could use in your newspaper report? You need at least two quotations from each person (the victim, the Sheriff and the Boss)

For example:

Mary Lou Hobbs: "It was awful - he just wouldn't let go of my dress."

More about fonts... Graphology

An article from online about font choices. How are individuals being represented here simply by their choice of font?

What Your Font Says About You

There was a time when companies kept graphologists on staff to analyze candidates’ handwriting. Today, many employers are looking at your choice of typefaces to determine your character and suitability for a job. 

So what does your choice of font say about you? A lot more than you think; a recent study by researchers at Wichita State University has revealed that your typeface can reflect your personality type, mood, and attitude. Find out what your favourite font says about you—and when it's appropriate to use it. 

Serif Fonts

These are the fonts with rounded edges on the letters, or extra strokes added to the top and bottom of each character. These details are called ‘serifs’.

·         Times New Roman: Stable, polite, conformist, mature, formal, and practical, TNR is your best bet for business and technical documents, Web text, online news and tests, and spreadsheets. Your all-business font of choice.

·         Monospaced fonts:  Also known as fixed-width, all the characters of this typeface take up the same amount of horizontal width.

·         Courier New: Poor Courier—study respondents deemed it rigid, sad, dull, unattractive, plain, coarse, and masculine, in addition to conformist and mature. You may want to try it for cold, unemotional ‘Dear John’ letters, if at all.

Sans Serif Fonts

These are the typefaces without the embellishments that distinguish serif typefaces—sans means without in French.

·         Arial: Stable and conformist like TNR, this font was also judged unimaginative by those surveyed. Best for spreadsheets, Web headlines, and PowerPoint presentations—so if you’re planning on rocking the company boat at your next meeting, this font could give your ideas authority.

·         Verdana:  Dull, according to respondents. Best for online tests, math documents, computer programming, spreadsheets and PowerPoint. Oh, and instant messaging—we’re not sure why you’d want to appear dull in a text message, but it was ranked second for this purpose.

·         Scripted/fun fonts: Typefaces with a personal, informal touch, designed to resemble calligraphy or handwriting.

·         Comic Sans: The wacky uncle of the font family, subjects described this one as youthful, casual, and passive. Save it for Web graphics, documents aimed at kids, and digital scrapbooking. A fun choice for invitations to kids’ parties.

·         Gigi:  Meet the sex kitten of the typeface universe. Flexible, creative, happy, exciting, attractive, elegant, cuddly, and feminine—these were the adjectives associated with this ornate sans serif font. Also, unstable, rebellious, youthful, casual, passive, and impractical, making Gigi perhaps the most complex typeface of them all. Judged suitable for E-greetings and nothing else, so approach this font with caution.

·         Display or modern fonts: Dramatic, striking fonts, including the grotesque style.

·         Impact: Here’s another font that you may want to use sparingly if at all: the assertive, rigid, rude, sad, unattractive, plain, coarse and masculine Impact. Deemed appropriate for Web headlines only (presumably the scary ones), this typeface is best avoided.

 

The final word on fonts? Feel free to play around with your personal correspondence, but stick to the classics like Times New Roman and Arial, particularly at work. No one wants to read a legal brief in curly, cuddly Gigi.

http://www.readersdigest.ca/home-garden/money/what-your-font-says-about-you/

 

 

This font is called Gigi

 

This font is called Times New Roman

 

This font is called Arial

 

This font is called Comic Sans

 

This font is called Verdana

 

This font is called Impact

 

This font is called Courier New

 

Year 12 Homework Set Thursday 17th September. 
Due Date Thursday 24th September

1. Find two texts. These can be anything - something out of the recycling bin, a newspaper / magazine cutting, something out of your pocket / bag. It can be anything with writing on it.

For each of the texts, write a brief paragraph describing what you think is the Genre, Audience, Purpose and Mode.
* You may be able to find one or two language features that you can link to each of the above. E.g. "The use of adjectives with positive connotations, like "amazing" and "superlative" tie in to the text's persuasive nature, as they serve to create a positive meaning in the mind of the reader. 

2. Start a mind map for each of the language frameworks, so that you can add further information and terms to them as you progress through the course. Add the definitions and examples from the sheet we looked at, and add anything else from your notes so far.

Year 12 Homework 1

Read the following article (Article about A-Level English) and answer the questions below. You don't need to hand the answers in, so you can answer them in note format if you wish. Be ready to explain your answers in class, though.

1. What do you understand by the phrase 'modern cultural references'?
2. Give two reasons why people have criticised the A-level. Do you think these reasons are valid?
3. What is the 'crumbling castle' view of language?
4. What viewpoint does Laura Barton hold about this subject? Select two quotations where this viewpoint is evident.
* The version of this article that you have read was the online version. What genre features in this article would you not have found 25 years ago?

Year 8 Private Peaceful Homework Project - Summer term

Year 8 Independent Homework Project – War Literature

To be completed and ready for display by Tuesday 7^th July

Instructions: This task needs you to work on your organisational skills. You must be self-disciplined and not leave everything until the last minute. You have 5 whole weeks to complete this. I expect that you would spend at least 3-4 hours on this project over the 5 weeks. You should aim to collect between 5 and 10 stars (5 stars minimum) but it is up to you how much work you want to put in. Work will be assessed on effort, writing skills, and engagement with the novel.  You will be rewarded with positive credits, and those who have shown outstanding effort will receive a postcard home. If you have an idea for an activity that you would like to do that is not listed here, see me and I will tell you how many stars your idea is worth.

Tasks worth 5 stars

·         Read another Michael Morpurgo book on the subject of war (War Horse, Kensuke’s Kingdom) or a book by another author who has written about WW1. Write a review of one of the books. http://www.theguardian.com/childrens-books-site/2014/jun/30/best-first-world-war-ww1-books-for-children-and-teens See example of book review mrsdesai.blogspot.co.uk

·         A review of PP said “… a deeply moving portrayal of camararderie and courage, innocence and brutality.” To what extent do you agree with this statement as a description of PP?

·         Do the activity on this webpage: http://www.filmeducation.org/privatepeaceful/authors-questions.html WARNING: this contains a spoiler about how the book ends. Do this once you have finished reading, or if you already know the ending.

·         Imagine you have been asked to compose a piece of music to play in the background of the film version of the novel. Choose one scene from the novel and compose a piece of music to go with the scene OR choose an existing song / piece of music and write why you think the music is appropriate for the scene you have chosen.

·         Do the activities and answer the questions on this website http://www.filmeducation.org/privatepeaceful/obeying-orders.html

·         Dramatise a scene from the novel and film it, either with your friends, or using animation… jelly babies / lego? Note: if this is done as a group task, you can all use it towards your credits.

 

Tasks worth 4 stars

·         Write your own poem about WW1 based on what you have learnt in this unit. Use some of the poetic techniques that you studied when you read the war poetry.

·         Create a photo album (with renal photos) showing Tommo’s life in Devon before the war. If he had a camera, what would he have chosen to photograph?

 

Tasks worth 3 stars

·         Design a board game based on the novel.

·         Create a Treasure box for one of the characters in the novel. What would have been precious to them? What would they have chosen to keep in their treasure boxes?

·         Make a model of a trench based on what you have read in the novel.

 

Tasks worth 2 stars

·         Write the page of a textbook for KS3 students explaining what life was like in the trenches for soldiers. Look at other textbooks for ideas about layout and language. You are writing to inform.

·         Imagine that Charlie has written a letter for his family that is to be read upon his death. Write the letter you think he would leave.

·         What would Tommo’s facebook page have looked like? Draw it.

·         Create a Private Peaceful ‘playlist’. Choose ten songs that match some of the themes we have discussed, or that would match some of the scenes in the book. Write a brief description of why each one has been chosen.

·         Create a quiz about WW1. You should know the answers!

·         You are the casting director for a new film version of Private Peaceful. Write a job advert describing the type of actor you need and a description of the character they will play. Choose Charlie, Tommo or Molly.

·         Draw a comic strip called ‘A day in the trenches’.

·         Research one area of life in the years 1914- 1918 and produce a poster showing what you have discovered. Choose from: education, employment, family life or childhood.

·         Produce a WW1 mini fact sheet aimed at year 6 pupils, explaining to them what WW1 was about. You should do some research first.

·         Imagine that the publishers wish to design a new book cover for Private Peaceful for 2016. Sketch some designs that you think represent the novel.

·         Create a collage which represents the themes of the novel, to be used for display in the classroom.

Tasks worth 1 star

·         Create a map of France / Devon? Label it with places of significance and, if possible, quotations – there is a copy of Private Peaceful in the library that you can use.

·         Create a character profile for one of the characters. Draw a picture of them as you imagine them to be, and label it with adjectives.

·         Imagine that Michael Morpurgo wishes to release a new illustrated version of his novel. Choose three important events and draw the illustrations you would include to show these three events.

·         Imagine that Twitter existed during WW1. Write a selection of tweets that Tommo or Charlie would have tweeted from the front line. 

·         Write a diary entry imaging you are Tommo right after the accident in the forest with his father. Describe his thoughts and feelings.

Character Description homework

Homework – Creative Writing

20 – 30 minutes

 

 

“Then I see Mr Munnings standing on the school steps cracking his knuckles in the suddenly silent school yard. He has tufty cheeks and a big belly under his waistcoat. He has a gold watch open in his hand. It’s his eyes that are frightening and I know they are searching me out.”

 

 

 

 

Michael Morpurgo uses specific adjectives and verbs to describe Mr Munnings. He also ‘shows’ us that he is a frightening character, by giving clues, rather than just telling the reader that he is frightening.

 

Your task: write an excellent descriptive paragraph about a character that you could use in a story. (Just like the one above) You can use the ideas below, or choose one of your own.

1.      A person that you love

2.      A lost young child

3.      A person that you think is funny

4.      A person you know that is very strict

5.      A person that feels very angry about something

6.      This picture:

 

   You will be assessed on:

 

¨  Using lively and interesting vocabulary (you may use a thesaurus)

¨  Accurate spelling

¨  Accurate punctuation

¨  Varied sentence structure

 

I expect you to check all of these things before you hand in your homework. You may wish to re-draft your work to make it as good as it can possibly be. If so, hand in both versions so I can see what improvements you have made.