Lesson video

Hi, everyone.

My name is Ms. Voyle, and welcome to this final lesson in "The Moon Dragons" unit where we are going to be making comparisons across books.

For this lesson, you need this copy of "The Moon Dragons," written by Dyan Sheldon and illustrated by Gary Blythe.

Pause the video and get your copy of the book now.

Great.

Now I know you have your copy of the book with you.

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

I hope you're feeling excited and ready to learn.

Let's get started.

The learning outcome for today's lesson is: I can form connections to a text and draw comparisons across books.

Here are the keywords for today's lesson.

Let's practise saying them.

My turn, your turn.

Connections.

Comparison.

Female heroine.

Great job.

Let's take a look at their definitions.

Connections are ways in which you connect personally with a text.

Comparison involves the act of highlighting similarities or differences between two or more things.

And the female heroine refers to women within literature who possess heroic qualities.

There are two parts to today's lesson.

In the first part, we will be looking at connecting to the text, and in the second part, we will be exploring connections and comparisons.

So let's begin with connecting to the text.

What do we know about "The Moon Dragons?" Let's remind ourselves.

"The Moon Dragons" is a fantasy story written by Dyan Sheldon and illustrated by Gary Blythe.

The plot is based around the search for mythical creatures called moon dragons.

The illustrations are vivid and a key element in the storytelling.

The main characters are the King and a young girl named Alina.

Let's summarise the story "The Moon Dragons." The King received news that in the mountains there were ancient moon dragons who could sing and whose silver scales shone.

The King instructed his huntsman to retrieve a moon dragon, but they were not successful and they returned with a goat instead.

The King offered a reward of a room filled with gold to anyone who could find the moon dragons.

Many men tried and failed.

Alina said she would embark on the quest.

The villagers mocked her, but she was confident, and she found the moon dragons.

Alina pretended she'd failed the quest because she wanted to protect the dragons.

She felt that the dragons were worth way more than gold.

An author writes a story with the intention for readers to connect to it.

We might connect to the following elements of a story.

The characters.

You might connect to a character emotionally.

For example, you might feel inspired by them or empathise with them.

The setting.

You might feel a connection to where the story takes place or elements of the setting.

And the plot.

You might enjoy similar plots in stories.

For example, stories that involve quests.

The themes that appear in a story may also resonate with you.

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 often mirror issues and topics that we encounter in our own lives, making the story relatable to the reader.

We identified a variety of themes within "The Moon Dragons," including: bravery, which means having the strength to face danger, fear, or difficulty; protection, which means keeping someone safe from harm or injury; and morality, which is the distinction between right and wrong or good and bad.

Let's check your understanding.

Match the elements of a narrative to how a reader may connect to them.

A, characters; B, setting; C, plot; D, themes.

And for how a reader might connect to them: might feel a connection to the place, environment, or surroundings; might connect these to issues or topics in their own life; might connect to them emotionally, for example, feel empathy or inspiration; and might enjoy stories that have similar storylines, for example, quests.

Pause the video and match these now.

Let's take a look at the answers together.

For A, characters, the reader might connect to them emotionally.

For example, feeling empathy or inspiration.

For B, setting, the reader might feel a connection to the place, environment, or surroundings within the story.

For C, plot, the reader might enjoy stories that have similar storylines.

For example, stories that involve quests.

And for D, themes, the reader might connect these to issues or topics in their own life.

Well done.

Our own personal experiences can impact the way we interpret a story and form connections to it.

The things we experience in our life shape us in many ways and impact the following: how we see things in the world around us; what we like or dislike; what we feel an emotional connection to; what we believe is right or wrong.

This means that readers may connect to different types of books, or connect to the same book, but in different ways.

Let's check your understanding.

True or false? All readers will connect to a story in the same way.

Pause the video and select your answer.

That is false.

Well done.

Now it's time to justify.

A, a reader's personal experiences can impact the way they interpret and form connections with a text, or B, people have to be the same age to connect to a story in the same way.

Pause the video and select your answer now.

The answer is A.

Well done.

A reader's personal experiences impacts the way they interpret and form connections with a text.

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

Choose an element of "The Moon Dragons" that you connected with the most and explain why.

Consider the following: character.

Your sentence starter could be, "I felt connected to Alina because.

." Setting.

Your sentence starter could be, "I enjoy stories that are set in.

." Plot.

Your sentence starter could be, "I love reading stories that involve.

." And themes.

Your sentence starter could be, "The theme of.

resonated with me because.

." Pause the video and discuss this with your partner now.

Welcome back.

I loved listening to you discuss the ways in which you connected to the story, and you all connected to it in a variety of different ways.

Let's take a look at some examples.

For character, I heard, "I felt very connected to Alina when the villagers and King mocked her because I empathised with her.

Sometimes I feel like people don't believe in my physical abilities because they judge my appearance before my character traits." This person connected to Alina's experiences because they had experienced something similar.

For setting, I heard, "I enjoy stories that are set in the wilderness because you never know what a character might encounter.

I found it exciting to read about Alina's journey up the mountain and the different sensory experiences she had.

I imagined I was there." This person has identified that they really enjoy reading stories that are set in the wilderness and have rich descriptions of the environment.

For plot, I heard, "I love reading stories that involve an adventure or a quest because there is so much suspense involved.

Not knowing for certain whether a character is going to succeed keeps me gripped and wanting to read on." This person has identified that they enjoy that feeling of suspense in quest narratives, so they have identified a type of narrative writing that they really enjoy.

And for themes, I heard, "I am drawn to stories that have a strong moral to learn from.

This helps me to consider the kind of person I want to be.

I am really passionate about protecting the environment, so Alina's connection to nature resonated with me." This person formed a connection to the story because of their own personal interests and passions.

Well done for discussing and sharing your connections to the story.

I hope you really enjoyed hearing about how other people connected to the story and how that might have differed from the way that you did.

It's now time for the second part of our lesson where we will be making connections and comparisons with other books.

Connections are ways in which you connect personally with a text.

The way that one reader connects might be different to another based on their own life experiences.

Connections can be from text-to-self, text-to-text, or text-to-world.

Text-to-self, this is when the content of the text relates to personal experiences, feelings, or thoughts.

Text-to-text, this is when the content of the text relates to another text, including anything you've seen, read, watched, and heard.

Text-to-world, this is when the content relates to events and issues in the real world.

Connections can also relate to patterns that you spot when reading.

Let's check your understanding.

Match the type of connection to its meaning.

A, text-to-self; B, text-to-text; C, text-to-world.

The meanings are: how the content relates to events and issues in the real world; how the content of the text relates to personal experiences, feelings, or thoughts; and how the content of the text relates to another text.

Pause the video and match these now.

Let's take a look at the answers together.

For A, text-to-self, is how the content of the text relates to personal experiences, feelings, or thoughts.

For B, text-to-text, this is how the content of the text relates to another text.

And for C, text-to-world, this is how the content relates to events and issues in the real world.

Well done for understanding the different types of connections we can make.

We can make text-to-text connections between "The Moon Dragons" and other books.

Making connections and drawing comparisons between books can enhance the reading experience and broaden our understanding of literature.

It can also help us to develop our own reading preferences and identify themes or genres that bring us pleasure.

We can draw comparisons between characters, setting, plot, or themes in stories.

For "The Moon Dragons," if we wanted to draw a comparison between characters, we could identify other stories with leading female characters.

For setting, we might realise that we like stories that are set in an undefined period of history, and then look for other stories like this.

For plot, we could search for stories that also involve a quest or a challenge.

And for themes, we might enjoy reading stories that explore particular topics.

If we enjoyed the topics within "The Moon Dragons," we might search for stories that explored similar ones.

Let's consider some character comparisons.

A key element in "The Moon Dragons" is that the protagonist is a female heroine.

This means a woman possessing heroic qualities.

Authors sometimes use a character's appearance to help portray certain characteristics.

Alina is a redheaded female heroine.

Can you think of any other redheaded female heroines from stories you know? Pause the video and have a little think.

Maybe you thought of Pippi Longstocking, Ariel from "The Little Mermaid," Anna from "Frozen," Annie, or Princess Merida from "Brave." The redheaded female heroine has often been used to portray traits such as bravery, fieriness, and independence.

Now we know that in real life, a person's hair colour or physical appearance does not determine their character traits.

However, we can spot patterns across books where authors may use certain physical features to portray certain types of characters.

Let's check your understanding.

True or false? I can make connections between "The Moon Dragons" and other stories by exploring the concept of the female heroine.

Pause the video and select your answer now.

That is true.

Well done.

Now it's time to justify your answer.

A, the female heroine is a popular character and authors often use similar techniques to portray their heroic traits.

Or B, all female heroines in stories are heroic for the same reasons.

Pause the video and select your justification now.

The answer is A.

Well done.

The female heroine is a popular character and authors often use similar techniques to portray their heroic traits.

We are now going to draw comparisons between the following characters, Alina and Mulan.

In both stories, the protagonist is a female heroine, but there are many more elements we can compare between the two stories.

You are going to consider a variety of connections or comparisons.

Listen carefully to a summary of "Mulan." Consider any similarities you spot between the story and "The Moon Dragons." Mulan was a young girl who lived with her family in China.

A man from each family was required to join the army and fight in the war.

Women were not allowed to be in the army.

Mulan's brother was very young and her father was very old, so she didn't feel it was safe for them to fight.

Mulan decided that she was the right age and capable, so she disguised herself as a boy and lied in order to join the army.

Mulan went on her quest to become a fine soldier and she succeeded, proving that being a girl should not matter.

Let's check your understanding.

What is the best summary of the story of "Mulan?" A, it is about a young girl who loves to fight, so she joins the army; B, it is about a young girl who defies expectations of her in order to go on a quest and protect other; or C, it is about a young girl who lived in China.

Pause the video and select the best summary of the story now.

The answer is B.

It is about a young girl who defies expectations of her in order to go on a quest and protect others.

Hopefully you are already starting to spot some of the similarities between "The Moon Dragons" and "Mulan." It's now time for your task.

Use your understanding of "The Moon Dragons" and "Mulan" to draw comparisons between the two stories.

Consider the following elements: Character.

Your sentence starter could be, "Alina and Mulan both show.

." Consider their character traits.

Setting.

Your sentence starter could be, "'The Moon Dragons' is set.

'Mulan' is set.

." And compare the two.

For plot, your sentence starter could be, "The plot in both stories involves.

." And for themes, your sentence starter could be, "The theme of.

appears in both stories," and explain how.

Pause the video and discuss with your partner now.

Welcome back.

I loved listening to your discussions.

You were great at drawing comparisons between the two stories and highlighting similarities and differences.

Let's take a look at your answers now.

For character, I heard, "The protagonist in both stories is a young girl who displays brave and heroic qualities.

Both characters defy others' expectations of them and believe in their own abilities." This is true.

In "The Moon Dragons," the villagers don't believe that Alina is capable of going on the quest to find the moon dragons, but she does not listen to them and she believes in herself.

And in "Mulan," there is a strong expectation that only men should fight at war, but Mulan knows that she is capable and believes in her own abilities to be a soldier.

And for setting, I heard, "I didn't spot many similarities in the settings of the stories.

'The Moon Dragons' is set in a fictional kingdom, which reminds me of fairy tales, whereas 'Mulan' is set in China during a period of war." This was a key difference that she spotted between the two stories.

For plot, I heard, "The plot in both stories involves the protagonist going on a quest or challenge." This is true.

Alina goes on a quest to find the moon dragons and Mulan goes on a quest to fight in the war.

"Both Alina and Mulan lie in order to protect others.

Alina lies to protect the moon dragons and Mulan lies to protect her father and brother." This is a really key similarity between the two stories.

And for themes, "Both Alina and Mulan show similar qualities, such as bravery and determination, which are key themes.

Both stories also made me consider what is right and wrong and how circumstances impact this." This leads back to what we just talked about in the plot, that both characters lied, but for honourable reasons, which challenges our idea that lying is always wrong.

Sometimes people may lie for a really good and moral reason.

In both stories, the characters lied in order to protect others.

Well done for drawing comparisons between these two stories.

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

Connections are ways in which you connect personally with a text.

Personal experiences impact the way that we interpret and connect to a text.

Connections can be from text-to-self, text-to-text, or text-to-world.

We can draw comparisons between stories by considering character, setting, plot, and themes.

"The Moon Dragons" can inspire us to draw comparisons with other stories that portray the female heroine, for example, "Mulan." Well done for making comparisons across books using critical thinking and discussion.

I have really enjoyed teaching you this lesson.