Lesson video

Hi, everyone.

My name is Ms. Voyle.

And welcome to today's lesson where we are going to be "Exploring themes in 'The Iron Man.

'" For this lesson, you need a copy of the 2005 Faber and Faber edition of "The Iron Man" by Ted Hughes.

Pause the video and get your copy now.

Great.

Now, I know you have the book with you.

During this lesson, you'll need to be listening and looking carefully and there will be tasks where you need somebody to talk to.

I hope you are feeling excited and ready to learn.

Let's get started.

The learning outcome for today's lesson is, I can explore the main themes in "The Iron Man." Here are our keywords for today's lesson.

Let's practise saying them.

My turn, your turn.

Theme.

Difference.

Perception.

Understanding.

Great job.

Well done.

A theme is a big idea, topic or message that recurs within a story.

Difference is a way in which people or things are dissimilar.

Perception is the way in which something or someone is viewed or interpreted.

And showing understanding means showing that you realise someone's true feelings and intentions.

There are two parts to today's lesson.

In the first part, we will be understanding and identifying themes.

And in the second part we will be exploring themes in "The Iron Man." So let's begin with understanding and identifying themes.

What do we know about "The Iron Man?" It is a fiction text written by the English poet and author Ted Hughes.

It belongs to the genre of science fiction, which involves imaginative and futuristic concepts linked to science and technology.

The protagonist in "The Iron Man" is a robotic giant named The Iron Man.

Let's summarise the story of "The Iron Man." Chapter one, the mysterious Iron Man fell off a cliff and his body broke apart.

He gradually pieced himself back together and went into the sea.

Chapter two, Hogarth encountered the Iron Man.

The Iron Man ate all of the farmers' machinery.

They responded angrily by trapping and burying him.

Chapter three, the Iron Man resurfaced.

Hogarth persuaded the farmers not to hurt the Iron Man and instead found him a home in a metal scrapyard.

Chapter four, the space-bat-angel-dragon landed on Australia and demanded to be fed.

The Iron Man resolved to battle and defeat the dragon.

Chapter five, the Iron Man defeated the space-bat-angel-dragon in a fire strength test.

The dragon had to produce music to spread peace on Earth.

Let's look at the Iron Man's character arc through the way he is viewed and treated by other characters.

In Chapter one, we know that the Iron Man is mysterious and different.

In chapter two, the Iron Man is feared and hated by humanity because of the impact he is having on their lives.

In chapter three, the Iron Man begins to become understood and accepted and he finds his home in the metal scrapyard.

By the end of chapter four, the Iron Man is respected and he is needed in order to protect the Earth from the space-bat-angel-dragon.

And by the end of the story, the Iron Man is admired and celebrated because he defeated the space-bat-angel-dragon and protected the Earth.

Let's check your understanding.

Which statement best summarises the meaning behind the Iron Man's story? a, it explores how he goes from being an evil character to being a good character, b, it explores how he changes himself to be more like humans or c, it explores how he goes from being feared due to his difference, to being understood, accepted, and ultimately admired.

Pause the video and select the correct answer.

The answer is c, well done.

The best summary of the meaning behind the Iron Man story is that it explores how he goes from being feared due to his difference, to being understood, accepted, and ultimately admired.

A theme is a big idea, topic or message that recurs within a story.

Within literature, authors use techniques to convey themes to the reader.

These themes are often communicated through the deeper meaning of a story.

They can make us consider issues and topics that we encounter in our own lives, making the story relatable to the reader.

Here are some examples of themes you might see in stories.

Friendship.

Bravery.

Love.

Family.

Difference.

Right vs wrong.

Fear.

Protection.

Acceptance.

Survival.

Let's check your understanding.

What is a theme within a story? a, an idea, topic or message that appears once, b, the genre that a story belongs to, or c, a big idea, topic or message that recurs.

Pause the video and select your answer.

The answer is c.

Well done.

A theme is a big idea, topic or message that recurs.

Themes are recurring, which means you see them appear throughout a story, and you may notice similar themes within a genre.

Identifying themes within a text involves inference.

Themes are not explicitly stated within a text.

Authors commonly use repetition to convey themes to the reader.

How to identify themes.

You can do this by considering characters' actions and character traits.

Identifying repetition of actions, emotions or traits.

Searching for deeper meaning in the story using inference.

And considering the overall message of the story.

Let's check your understanding.

True or false? Themes within a text are explicitly stated by the author.

Pause the video and select your answer.

That is false.

Well done.

Now, it's time to justify, a, identifying themes involves using inference to identify underlying messages the author is trying to convey, or b, to identify themes you need to retrieve key information from the text.

Pause the video and select the correct justification.

The answer is a.

Well done.

Identifying themes involves using inference to identify underlying messages the author is trying to convey.

We are going to identify the themes within "The Iron Man." It can help to consider the deeper meaning behind a character's journey over the course of the story.

The themes within "The Iron Man" are.

Difference, we see this explored by how different the Iron Man is to humanity.

Fear, we know that humanity fears the Iron Man because of his difference.

Understanding, when humanity shows the Iron Man understanding, they are able to fear him less and accept him.

And perception, which refers to the way that you views something.

We see that the humanity's perception of the Iron Man changes over the course of the story.

Some themes are more complex and encourage us to consider their meaning.

Perception is an example of this.

For example, we might consider is our perception of something always accurate? Let's check your understanding.

True or false? Considering the deeper meaning behind a character's journey can help me to identify themes.

Pause the video and select your answer.

That is true.

Well done.

Now, it's time to justify, a, you can identify a theme by looking at one action taken by a character, or b, a character's journey and how they are perceived over the course of a story conveys underlying themes and messages.

Pause the video and select the correct justification.

The answer is b, well done.

A character's journey and how they are perceived over the course of a story conveys underlying themes and messages.

It's now time for your first task and it is a talk task.

Discuss which other themes appear throughout the story.

Consider the characters' actions and character traits, as well as the overall meaning behind the story.

Pause the video and discuss with your partner now.

Welcome back.

Well done for having such fantastic and interesting discussions about the themes within the story.

Let's take a look at some of the other themes identified.

Morality, this means what's right and wrong.

Protection.

Acceptance.

Kindness.

Empathy.

Compassion.

And bravery.

These are just some of the other examples of themes within the story, and you may have identified others.

Well done for discussing and identifying themes within "The Iron Man." It's now time for the second part of our lesson where we are going to be exploring some of the themes in "The Iron Man" in greater detail.

Exploring themes can help us consider issues and topics in our own lives and we can learn important lessons from them.

Let's consider some of the themes conveyed through the Iron Man's story.

Difference, this means a way in which people or things are dissimilar.

Perception, this means the way in which something or someone is viewed or interpreted.

And understanding, this means showing that you realise someone's true feelings and intentions.

We are going to be focusing on these three themes from "The Iron Man." Let's check your understanding.

Match the theme to the correct definition.

The themes are.

Difference.

Perception.

And understanding.

The definitions are.

The way in which something or someone is viewed or interpreted.

Showing that you realise someone's true feelings and intentions.

And a way in which people or things are dissimilar.

Pause the video and match the theme to the correct definition now.

Let's take a look at the answers together.

A difference is a way in which people or things are dissimilar.

Perception is the way in which something or someone is viewed or interpreted.

And showing understanding means showing that you realise someone's true feelings and intentions.

Well done for demonstrating your understanding of these three themes.

It's now time for a task.

How are the themes of difference, perception, and understanding conveyed through the story of "The Iron Man?" Your sentence starters up.

The theme of difference is conveyed through.

The theme of perception is explored through.

And the theme of understanding is shown through.

Pause the video and discuss with your partner now.

Welcome back.

You had such interesting discussions and you were able to identify how these three themes were conveyed.

Let's take a look at some of the wonderful answers I had.

Sam said, "The theme of difference is conveyed through the protagonist being a robot in a human world." She also said, "The theme of difference was conveyed through the ways in which the Iron Man behaves and has different needs to humans." Laura said that "The theme of perception is explored through the ways in which humanity's view of the Iron Man changed over time as they grew to understand him better." And Yun said, "The theme of understanding is shown through the ways in which Hogarth empathised with the Iron Man in order to understand his true feelings and intentions." Well done for discussing and identifying how these three key themes were explored through the story.

It's now time for your final task.

What lesson or moral can be learnt from the themes within the story of "The Iron Man?" Your sentence starter is.

The lesson that I take away from the story is, because, don't forget to explain your answer.

Pause the video and discuss with your partner now.

Welcome back.

Well done for discussing the lessons and morals that could be drawn from the story.

Let's take a look at some answers I heard.

Sam said, "The lesson I take away from the story is that you should never judge somebody by their appearance or differences because it is more important to get to know their character.

The Iron Man was feared because he was different, but he didn't need to be." And Yun said, "The lesson I take away from the story is that our perception of someone can change because when you show someone understanding and acceptance for who they are, you often get to see the very best parts of them.

The Iron Man's story is a great example of this." Identifying and discussing themes within a story can help us infer lessons or morals that we can apply to our own lives.

Well done for doing this.

We've now come to the end of our lesson, so let's go over a summary to together.

The Iron Man goes from being feared due to his difference, to being understood, accepted and ultimately admired.

A theme is a big idea, topic or message that recurs within a story and authors use these to convey deeper meaning.

Considering the deeper meaning behind the Iron Man's story can help us identify themes.

Key themes such as difference, perception, and understanding are explored through the Iron Man's character arc.

And the themes within "The Iron Man" help us learn important lessons about issues and topics in our own lives.

Well done again for all of your hard work during today's lesson.

I have really enjoyed teaching you.