Lesson video

Hi, I'm Mr. Buckingham and it's so lovely to see you here for today's lesson.

Today we're going to continue reading the wonderful book, "A Kind of Spark" by Elle McNicoll, and we'll look closely at some of the different relationships and characters we find in the book.

Maybe you already have a favourite character you want to find out more about.

I'm excited to read on, so let's make a start.

Today's lesson is called Exploring Relationships and Perspectives, and it comes to my unit called "A kind of Spark" reading.

By the end of today's session, we'll be able to consider Addie's relationships with other characters in the "A Kind of Spark" and explore different perspectives on a plot point.

For this lesson you will need to have access to the 2020 nights of edition of "A Kind of Spark" written by Elle McNicoll and illustrated by Kay Wilson.

We're going to start reading today from chapter nine, so if you haven't yet read to the end of chapter eight, you might want to pause the video now and do that before you continue.

If you're ready, let's make a start.

Here are our keywords for today's lesson.

My turn, your turn.

Relationships, evidence, perspectives, well done.

So relationships are the connections and interactions between individuals with an narrative.

And evidence is information or fact that shows something is true, and a perspective is a point of view.

See as our lesson outline for today because to start off by exploring relationships between characters in the story and then we'll explore their different perspectives on a plot point.

Now hopefully you've already read up to the end of chapter eight.

And in chapter six, seven and eight we saw the following events.

We saw that Addie is building on her friendship with Audrey and is explaining to Audrey more about her own autism.

We saw that Keedie was angry with Nina for posting her video which contained Addie and Addie sees some unpleasant comments on the internet about herself, which upset her.

We see that Addie's class goes on a trip to see a tree where women accused of witchcraft were hanged and Addie is very overwhelmed and distressed by that experience.

We saw that Addie's parents come to school after that trip for a meeting with Ms. Murphy and Addie explains that she doesn't feel like anyone's seeing those witches as real people.

And finally, Addie tells Audrey about Keedie's autistic friend Bonnie who has been sectioned or locked away.

So in this lesson we're going to start reading from chapter nine and here's some vocabulary were going to encounter in this chapter.

We'll see the word relent.

If you relent, you give in.

We'll see the word pardoning.

Now, pardoning the witches would mean saying that they're innocent of what they're accused of.

So if you pardon someone for a crime, it means you're saying you are no longer convicted of that crime.

You are innocent of that crime.

And masking is a really important word in this story.

Masking is one of autistic people try to act in ways that come naturally to non-autistic people in an attempt to try and fit in and this can be a very tiring and frustrating experience.

Someone is engaging in double speak if they say one thing but they mean another.

So Addie sometimes feels like people are doing that, they're saying one thing, but their actual meaning is something different.

That could be called double speak.

If an autistic person feels overstimulated, they feel overwhelmed by all their senses.

So now we've covered that vocabulary.

I'd like you to try and read up to the star on page 83.

Pause the video and have a read.

Well done, really good reading.

So let's see what Andeep says about this section.

He says, "I really didn't like Nina in this section.

The way she was talking was unpleasant." Do you agree with Andeep? Why or why not? Pause the video and decide.

Well done, good thinking.

So maybe you said this, "I think Nina was just upset that Addie was an hour late.

She must have been worried sick." So she wasn't really meaning to be unpleasant, she was just upset by the fact that she'd been worried about Addie.

Or maybe you said this, "I think Nina thinks that Addie doesn't realise that she has this special voice she uses to try and sound grown up." So that means Nina's being patronising, she's treating Addie like a baby and thinking that she won't notice.

So it's almost like Nina's underestimating Addie's ability to work out what she means when she speaks.

So maybe you thought something similar, well done for your ideas.

So are these statements true or false based on the section we just read.

Pause video and decide.

That's good thinking.

So a says Audrey's parents are worried about where she is.

No, that's false.

b says, Nina stalls the car when Addie mentions Bonnie.

That means it comes to a stop and that's true.

Nina thinks that Addie should not have told Audrey about Bonnie, that is true too.

And d says, Audrey thinks Nina is just like she seems in her videos.

No, that's false.

Audrey thinks she seems very different to how she comes across in her videos.

Really well done if you've got this.

So can you now read to the end of chapter nine, pause the video and have a go.

Well done, good reading.

So in this chapter we've seen Addie and Keedie discussing their experiences of autism and of having to mask as we described earlier.

So for Addie and Keedie, masking means not being able to be themselves because they're trying to blend in instead.

So why might they feel this pressure to mask? Pause the video and discuss with the person next to you or have a think on your end.

Well done, good ideas.

Maybe agreed with Alex.

He says, "Being constantly seen as different might be exhausting and annoying and maybe they want to be able to get through life without people always knowing they're autistic." You might have also said when they don't mask, maybe they get treated disrespectfully or people comment on how they're behaving.

So they might feel pressure to mask for that reason too, to avoid the negative comments of other people.

Really well done for your thoughts.

Now on page 84, Addie is really keen to show Keedie the flyer she's created about the campaign for the memorial.

And Nina says to Addie that she should let Keedie have some tea before she shows her the flyer.

What two possible motivations might Nina have for saying this? I want you to think really carefully about two reasons why Nina might be saying this.

Pause the video and have a think.

Well done, good ideas.

So there are kind of two possibilities here.

Maybe she might think that Addie is just being annoying and childish going on and on about this campaign.

So maybe she just wants to stop hearing about it and that's why she's telling her to wait until Keedie's have some food.

But if we are being a bit more generous towards Nina, we might say this, we might say, maybe she's noticed, like Addie did, that Keedie's looking quite tired and so she thinks that Keedie needs to rest before Addie comes and talks to her a lot about this campaign.

So maybe Nina's just trying to be caring and not being hostile to Addie or maybe she's being a little bit of both.

She's kind of annoyed with Addie going on about this campaign and caring towards Keedie and wanting her to have some time to herself before Addie starts talking to her about the campaign.

So it could be a mixture of things going on there.

Really well done for your ideas.

Now on page 85, Addie and Keedie show that they think Bonnie's situation is similar to that of the witches those hundreds of years ago.

So which of the following are similarities between the two situations.

Between Bonnie's situation and the situation with the witches? Pause the video and have a think.

Well done, good thinking.

So a says a person is being forced wrongly confess to having done something.

Well that was true of the witches, but it's not true of Bonnie.

So that isn't something they have in common.

b says a person is being punished for being different.

So from a and kid's perspective, that is true of both situations.

For c, a person is powerless in their situation so Bonnie can't get out of where she is and the witches weren't able to prove that they weren't in fact witches.

So yes, that's a similarity.

And d says a person is being treated unfairly by more powerful people.

So again, the witches couldn't prove that they weren't witches, so they couldn't escape their punishment and Bonnie isn't able to get what she wants to get out of the place she's being kept in.

So again, we could say that's a similarity.

Really well done if you spotted this.

And then on page 87 we see Addie describe feeling like she's missed out on the instruction booklet for life.

Do you agree with what Aisha says here? She says, I think everyone feels this way.

We're all just trying to work things out as we go.

So do you agree with Aisha or not? And tell me why.

Pause the video and have a think.

Well done, good ideas.

So maybe you said something like this.

It's true that most people feel uncomfortable when they're in new situations.

So we all feel a bit like we've missed out on this instruction booklet at times.

But remember that autistic people might find it much harder to pick up on certain things and to know what's expected in different situations than non-autistic people.

And so it could be much harder for them even though we all feel that we're uncomfortable in certain situations or that we don't understand what's happening in certain situations that might be even more complicated and even more difficult for people who are autistic.

Really well done for your ideas.

So we know that relationships between characters are almost always one of the most important features of a book and I think one of the most interesting features of stories as well.

So in "A Kind of Spark" we can see some relationships which are stable, which are staying the same and some which seem to be changing.

We know that Addie previously for instance, had a much stronger relationship with Jenna, but that seems to have disintegrated to have fallen apart completely.

And we know that Addie is closer to Keedie than to Nina, but we also know that maybe Nina's video could have been an attempt to change that to get closer to Addie.

And we know that Addie has now got a new friendship with Audrey, so a new relationship who appears to be much more interested in her than Jenna ever was.

So it has the potential to be a much stronger relationship than the one she has lost essentially with Jenna.

So where would you place each of these characters in terms of the strength of their relationship with Addie? If we put Addie in the middle, in the centre circle, how close would each of these characters be to Addie or would they even be outside these circles altogether? Pause the video and have a think That's Addie thinking.

Now we can all disagree on this, can't we? But here's one possibility of how he could arrange the names.

I could put Keedie right there closest to Addie, followed by dad and then Audrey very close as well.

Now I could put Mr. Allison slightly outside because she might not see him quite so often and then Nina a little bit further out than him because they don't seem to get on too well.

And then I'm gonna put Jenna outside the circle and Ms. Murphy all the way over here because they really don't have a good relationship at all.

But remember we do have different types of relationship with different people.

So even though Addie and Nina don't get on well together, we can pretty feel pretty sure that they have love between each other, that they love each other even though they don't necessarily get on well.

So I put Nina on the edge of that circle there.

That doesn't mean that Addie and Nina don't have a loving relationship, but they might not have the closest relationship in terms of shared interest and shared excitement together about particular things.

So they might not be close, but they can still have a loving relationship.

And I'm sure that's true for many of us with different people in our lives.

So let's do our first task in this lesson and I want you to take on the role of Addie here.

So you're gonna answer in role as Addie.

I want you to describe in detail how you feel towards each of these people at this point in the book giving some evidence.

So you are going to say how you feel about Keedie, how you feel about Nina and how you feel about Audrey.

Now here's an example of what Addie might say about her relationship with Jenna.

She might say, I thought Jenna was my friend, but Keedie helped me realise she wasn't really interested in me, she never wanted to do things I did and she never made any effort to try and understand me.

So there in role as Addie, I've given some evidence to back up what I feel about my relationship with Jenna.

So for you now in role as Addie, try and do the same thing for Keedie then Nina and for Audrey.

How do you feel about that person and why? Pause the video and have a try.

Well done, really good job.

So here are some examples of what you might have said in role as Addie.

Maybe about Kiddie you would've said, Keedie's the only person who really understands me.

She knows what it's like to see the world differently.

I'd be lost without her.

Maybe for Nina you could say, I know Nina would never do anything to hurt me on purpose.

It's not her fault, she just doesn't know what it's like.

So she's referring here, isn't she? To what happened with the video? And then finally for Audrey, maybe Addie would say this, I can't believe how different it is hanging out with Audrey instead of Jenna.

She's interested in me as a person and she likes doing things with me that I enjoy.

I hope it stays this way.

So she's showing there the contrast between her relationship with Jenna and the relationship with Audrey.

But then we've got a slight element of worry at the end there because obviously she's had a difficult breakdown of her relationship with Jenna.

So maybe she's still slightly cautious about what could happen with Audrey in the future.

Really well done for your ideas there, great job.

So now we're going to move on to exploring some different perspectives on the same event in the story and we'll read some more of the story as well.

So we're now going to read chapter 10 and here's some vocabulary we're going to see in this chapter.

We'll see the word waivers.

If your belief in something waivers, it's becoming less certain.

If someone does something comically, then they do it in a way that appears funny.

If someone is insistent, they're repeating something or emphasising it.

So you might say our teacher was very insistent that we worked in silence.

They keep repeating it or they're very determined that that's going to happen.

Titters are giggles or quiet laughs.

And if someone is indignant, they're annoyed because they feel like they're being treated unfairly.

And a grimace is a twisted expression on someone's face.

So can you now read up to the start on page 96 in chapter 10.

Pause the video and have a read.

Well done, good reading.

So this section has given us a really dramatic plot point, hasn't it? So can you summarise what's happened in this section? Pause the video and chat with the person next to you or have a think on your end.

Well that's done a really good job.

Maybe you said this, "Addie was left at home with Nina to look after her.

Then she saw Keedie's university pass and thought she would get into trouble.

So she got the bus into Edinburgh to give it to her.

She was able to remember where to go and she asked for help to find Keedie.

Addie found Keedie having a lecture, but she was obviously really upset when she saw her and now Mum is coming to collect her." So an awful lot of drama has happened in this part of the chapter, hasn't it? Really well done for summarising it so clearly.

So could you correct these incorrect statements about this section? Pause the video and decide what is the correct information.

We should have instead have a go.

Well done, good job.

So a says Nina obeyed Mum.

That's not right, is it? Mum told her not to film and she chose to film upstairs.

b says Keedie was enjoying her lecture.

No, that's not right.

Keedie was really struggling with the lighting in the lecture hall, wasn't she? c says the woman in the admin office was rude to Addie.

No, that's not right.

The woman was a bit confused, but she was very helpful.

And d says Addie often struggles to find her way around.

Definitely not true.

Addie obviously has a great memory for places and for roots because she was able to get all the way to the university on her own.

Really well done.

We're correcting those incorrect statements, good job.

Now if we focus on Addie's perspective on this event, we can track her changing feelings as that section progressive as we go through.

So we start off with when she finds Keedie's university card.

What's Addie's perspective on that event? What's she feeling? Well, she's worried that Keedie's going to get in trouble, so she decides she needs to help.

What about when she sees Keedie in that lecture hall? Well, she's concerned with how uncomfortable Keedie looks because of the lighting and the heat.

And then when Keedie doesn't react well to her visit, she's feels like she's misjudged or got the situation wrong and she thought Keedie would be pleased to see her.

But it's clear that Keedie's quite upset by what's happened.

So notice how many of Addie's feelings here are link to how she thinks Keedie must be feeling.

And that tells us she's really concerned about Keedie's wellbeing, about how Keedie is doing.

So she's showing a lot of empathy here, isn't she? So now let's try taking on Nina's perspective.

Can you put these feelings she might have experienced as she goes through this section in order, starting with number one.

Pause the video and have a go.

Well done, good job.

So maybe Nina starts off by thinking, I don't wanna babysit all day, I have content to make.

And then maybe she said, "Oh my goodness, she's gone.

Where on earth is she?" When she realises Addie has left.

Then maybe she's thinking, "Why won't Keedie pick up her phone? This is an emergency." So we know Keedie had all those missed calls, didn't she? And then finally we might say, thank goodness she's okay, I would never have forgiven myself.

And she's worrying there about what might have happened.

So Nina's gone through a lot of emotions, a lot of feelings as well.

So we've now looked at the situation from Nina's perspective.

So now let's take on Keedie's perspective.

Why do you think Keedie was not pleased to see Addie at the university? Pause the video and have a think.

Well's done, good thinking.

Maybe you agree with Andeep.

He says, "I think she's overwhelmed by the idea that anything could have happened to Addie.

Keedie feels guilty that Addie did something dangerous to help her even though it's not her fault!" So we know that Keedie left the card at home.

So maybe she feels a little bit responsible for the fact that Addie saw it and has come to find her and anything could have happened along that way.

Maybe agree with Aisha.

She says she agrees with Andeep and then she says, "And remember Keedie was already feeling overstimulated by the lecture hall.

So I think the shock of seeing Addie and the fear of what might have happened has made this extra stressful." So Keedie was already in a difficult position being in the lecture hall with the lights so bright and the heat and then this extra information just kind of tipped her over into being extremely stressed and upset.

Really well done, a few ideas and suggestions there.

So now I'd like you to read the rest of chapter 10.

Pause the video and have a read.

Well done, good job.

So in this section we've seen Mum's reaction, haven't we? And we've seen that Addie and Nina are both a bit worried about the way Keedie reacted as well.

So Addie says Keedie is lying.

What does she mean by this in this section? Post the video and have a chat to the person next to you or have a think on your own.

Well done, good thinking.

So maybe he says something like this.

Keedie saying there's nothing wrong, but Addie's noticing differences compared to how Keedie normally is, including her reaction to when Addie arrived earlier.

So Keedie's trying to reassure her and say everything's okay, but it's not working, is it? Addie's not convinced.

So that's why Addie is saying that Keedie is lying.

Really well done if you came up with something similar.

Good job.

So let's consider Keedie's perspective again now.

Which of the below do you think are her main priorities in this section of the story? Pause the video and decide.

Well done, good job.

So I think a is true.

I think managing the effects of her autism is really important right now because it was so difficult for her in the lecture hall.

Completing a university work, possibly not her main priority right now.

For c, to make sure Addie doesn't worry about her, that is definitely a priority, isn't it? That's why Addie accuses her of lying, because Keedie is making a real effort to make Addie not worry about how she is.

And d, to keep Nina on her side.

No, I don't think that's a main priority for Keedie at this point.

So managing her autism while also trying to reassure Addie that she's not struggling are probably her main priorities at this point.

Now finally, let's consider Mum's perspective in our final task for this lesson.

I want to look at pages 96 to 99.

Again, we can see here that Mum has lots of worries and concerns about this whole situation.

About all of her daughters in fact, in this situation.

I want you to imagine that your Mum at the end of this day writing in your diary.

I want you to write in role as Mum describing your worries about each of your children, about Addie, about Nina, and about Keedie.

Pause the video and write that diary entry, in role as Mum, speaking using I as if you were Mum writing what your worries are about each of your daughters based on the situation that's happened today.

Pause the video and have a go.

Well done, really good job.

So here's some ideas written from Mum's perspective.

Maybe she wrote this.

I know Idea was trying to help Keedie and I love that she's so empathetic, but how could she be so silly? Anything could have happened to her.

I'm not sure how to help her think things through.

When she gets an idea in her head, it's hard to make her see any other sides of the issue.

Maybe about Nina she might have written this.

As for Nina, I'm still furious at her! I know she loves her sisters, but half the time she seems more worried about makeup than about them.

I know she probably feels left out, but that's no excuse.

And maybe about Keedie she might have written this.

Keedie is the one worrying me the most of the minute though.

Addie's right: she seems very different since she started university.

I hope she's coping okay.

She's so determined not to let Addie see her being upset, but she doesn't fool me.

Really well done for trying to take on the perspective of Mum there to think about how her different worries might look for her different daughters in this situation.

Really great work, well done.

First, summarise our learning in this lesson.

We said that in "A Kind of Spark", we can see that Addie has both positive and negative relationships and that how relationships and not static, they change and evolve with different people.

And we've seen that the author shows us the nature of these relationships by telling us about character's actions and the words they say.

And by giving us Addie's thoughts about them because it's from Addie's perspective.

And we know that we can delve deeper into these relationships by considering or taking on different perspectives on a particular event, helping us to understand the complexity of them.

And that's what we've just done so well, really well done for you in this lesson, you've done a great job.

I'd love to see you again in the next lesson where we delve deeper into this book.

If you'd like to join me, please make sure you've read up to the end of chapter 14 by that point.

I'll see you there, goodbye.