Hello, my name is Ms. Grant.

I'm so glad you've decided to learn with me.

Today we're in the unit: Myths, legends, and stories that inspire.

Today we are going to look at the opening of a novel.

The novel is called "Skin of the Sea," and it's by Natasha Bowen.

It's a fantastic opening, very, very powerful.

I cannot wait to read it with you.

The first thing we need to do is get a copy of that novel so that we can read the opening couple of pages.

Now, it is "Skin of the Sea." It is by Natasha Bowen, and it was published by Penguin Random House in 2021.

So I'd like you to pause the video and go and get your copy of "Skin of the Sea" by Natasha Bowen, published in 2021 by Penguin Random House.

Pause the video and get your copy of "Skin of the Sea" now.

Welcome back, fantastic to see everyone with their copy of "Skin of the Sea." We are now ready to get started with our lesson.

Let's get going.

So by the end of today's lesson, you are going to show understanding of "Skin of the Sea" through comprehension and annotation.

We're gonna read the opening section of this novel.

We're gonna annotate it really carefully, and then we're gonna use those annotations to show off our clear understanding of the main character.

There are some key words which are going to help us unlock our learning today.

They're gonna help us achieve our objective.

They are on the board now.

If you'd like to, pause the video and spend a bit more time with these key words than you can, otherwise, they're going to come up in today's lesson and we'll go through them then.

I'd like to draw your attention to just one word, and it's the first word on the board, and it's Mami Wata.

That is how you pronounce that phrase, Mami Wata.

And it's a water spirit or deity, god, sacred to West, Central, and Southern Africa.

And our main character today is Simidele.

She is a Mami Wata.

As I say, if you would like to pause the video and spend a little bit more time with these keywords, then you can do so now.

Our lesson outline for today, we're gonna start off by reading and annotating "Skin of the Sea." And then in the second learning cycle, we are going to evaluate the presentation of Simidele.

She is our main character.

Let's start off with reading and annotating "Skin of the Sea." Today, you will read an extract from "Skin of the Sea," a novel by Natasha Bowen, a Nigerian Welsh author.

And as I say, it was published in 2021.

The story centres around a Mami Wata, a mermaid, called Simidele.

Simidele was once mortal.

She was once human, and she has flashbacks to her time as a human.

So there are moments where Bowen makes it clear that Simidele is remembering something from earlier in her life.

This is what a flashback is, a transition from the character's present to something in their past.

And we will see one of these flashbacks in the extract that we read today.

Now, she, Simidele, was transformed into a Mami Wata by the goddess, Yemoja.

The role of the Mami Watas in this story is to gather the souls of enslaved people who die as they are transported across the Atlantic Ocean.

So Natasha Bowen is exploring the transatlantic slave trade, and she's relying on mainly West African mythology in order to explore this period in history.

Now, a check for understanding before we get into the idea of annotating this extract and learning a little bit more about our main character Simidele.

I'd like you to match the sentence stems to their endings.

So Simidele is a Mami Wata because.

Simidele is a Mami Wata but.

Simidele is a Mami Wata so.

I'd like you to match the sentence stems to their endings.

Pause the video and complete this check now.

Welcome back, well done for already showing a really good understanding of our main character.

So we've got Simidele is a Mami Wata because Yemoja transformed her into one.

So the goddess transformed her into a Mami Wata.

She was once mortal.

Simidele is a Mami Wata but she was once mortal.

So she was a once a human.

And Simidele is a Mami Wata so she gathers souls of enslaved people who die while being transported across the Atlantic Ocean.

So this is you showing off your really clear understanding what Natasha Bowen is doing in her novel with her main character.

Now, we are about to read and annotate the extract.

Now, annotate means to make short notes on and about a particular text.

Now there's some things we can do to make sure our annotations are really clear and useful to us, not just as we're doing the annotation, but when we return to the extract or the novel or whatever it is you're annotating a bit later.

So to annotate: A, circle key vocabulary.

So for example, you could circle adjectives which describe Simidele, in this case.

B, underline important words and phrases.

For example, when we learn something about a character.

C, use square brackets around important sentences.

So for example, when Simidele has a flashback, when we see that she is remembering something from her past, that would be a really important sentence.

D, put a star next to a key idea.

For example, a description of the enslaved people on the ship.

E, write notes about key inferences and ideas.

For example, about characters or events.

Now, E is really, really important.

It is good to use symbols like underlining, circles, stars, square brackets, but you must include short notes.

They don't need to be really, really long, but you must include short notes.

Otherwise, when you return to the extract a little bit later and you see all of these different symbols, you might not remember what they mean.

So make sure that you do include notes about key inferences and ideas.

And we're gonna have a look at an example of what great annotation looks like before we move on to annotating ourselves.

So the first thing I would like you to do is just read the first paragraph of "Skin of the Sea." I know you will want to read it all straight away, but just read the first paragraph of "Skin of the Sea" because then we're gonna watch Lucas annotate it and explain his ideas.

So first thing I'd like you to do is pause the video and just read the first paragraph of "Skin of the Sea." Pause the video and read this first paragraph now.

Welcome back.

I hope you enjoyed reading that first paragraph.

Don't worry, we'll get onto reading the full extract very shortly.

But I just want to show you Lucas and his annotation.

So watch Lucas annotate that first paragraph and explain his ideas.

So the first thing he does is circle key vocabulary, and he says, "I circled the word stolen because it describes the people on the ship, making it clear that they are being taken against their will and that it is a crime." So you might have thought, "I would've circled a different word," but we can see here that Lucas has justified his choice and that is why that word is important for him.

Underlining important words and phrases.

"I underline the phrase that tells us that Simidele doesn't want the men on the ship to see her." C, use square brackets to draw attention to important sentences.

"I put square brackets around the sentence which describes the ship and its cargo." So you can see that Lucas is really, really focused on the description of the people on the ship and so he's put square brackets around that sentence.

There will be other sentences in the extract later on that he will also want to put square brackets around.

D, "I put a star next to a key idea." So he put a star next to the idea that Simidele swims with the sharks.

And then that all important one, write notes about key inferences and ideas.

So he is got all these different symbols to help him.

But what Lucas has written is, "I wrote that Simidele is presented as at one with the sea, even though it is dangerous.

She's not scared of the sharks, but she is scared of men being able to see her." So just a few short notes just to remind him why he was so interested in the idea that Simidele is swimming with sharks or why he was interested in the idea that the men on the ship do not see her.

So now we've got a really, really good example of those annotations from Lucas.

And that means we are ready to do our own annotations.

So now you are able to read all of the extract from "Skin of the Sea." So you're gonna read "Skin of the Sea" from the beginning of the novel to the end of paragraph three on page three.

So reading "Skin of the Sea" from the beginning, very beginning.

So that first paragraph that you just read, reread that, and then continue to page three and the end of paragraph three.

And I would like you to annotate the extract using the prompts to guide you.

Do not rush the reading.

Really, really enjoy it.

It's such a powerful start to the opening of this novel.

And then use these guides to help you create your annotations.

Pause the video and complete these two tasks now.

Welcome back, always such a pleasure to see people reading at opening of a novel and really engaging with it for the first time.

Some people reading aloud, some people reading in their head and just enjoying getting to know a bit more about this character and thinking, "Wow, the opening of this novel is so gripping," and wanting to continue to read.

And really, really nice to see those annotations as well.

So lots and lots of different symbols, things that people want to draw attention to in the extract.

And really importantly, we've got some really, really nice notes at the side which are really gonna guide you if you start to do some deeper thinking about this extract.

Let's do a little bit of feedback.

We're gonna look at Lucas's annotations to begin with.

So Lucas draws attention to some of his most important annotations.

So these aren't all of his annotations, just some of the most important ones.

So he said, "I circled the words miss and embracing because it shows Simidele is divided between missing her home and loving the sea." So the miss is the fact that she misses home, but embracing, she does embrace the current at one point, so she is enjoying being in the sea.

B, underline important words and phrases.

"I underline the phrase which describes Simidele grasping for more of her memories." So wanting more of those memories, like physically trying to hold onto them.

C, use square brackets to draw attention to important sentences.

"I put square brackets around the sentence where Simidele has the flashbacks." That will guide Lucas back to that moment in the extract if he wants to explore the flashback at the moment where we hear a little bit more about Simidele's past in more detail.

D, put a star next to a key idea.

"I put a star next to the idea that Simidele nearly allows the current to control her, but then remembers she must fulfil her role as a Mami Wata." So this key moment in the text where Simidele almost leaves the woman, the woman who ends up plunging into the water and whose soul she has to save, she nearly doesn't go.

She's so overwrought by the memory that she has just had of her past that she nearly leaves, but then she realises, "No, I must fulfil my role.

That is my role as a Mami Wata." E, his notes about key inferences and ideas.

Well, Lucas wrote, "I wrote that Simidele is really focused on her task, but she also seems to be desperate to remember her life on land." So just a short note there, just one of Lucas's notes, which will really help him understand this main character.

So a really nice set of annotations there.

Now, I'd like you to discuss what are some of your most important annotations.

They will, of course, differ from Lucas's.

There'll be ideas that you wanted to draw attention to that we haven't seen from Lucas yet.

There will be key vocabulary or things that you wanted to underline.

So discuss what are some of your most important annotations.

Pause the video and discuss the question now.

Welcome back, so lovely to hear those discussions of those annotations.

What was really nice to see is people were able to form their discussions from their annotations, which show they're a good set of notes because you were able to understand them and to explain them to somebody else.

So it wasn't just loads and loads of highlight or loads and loads of things underlined, but instead some really precise annotations and some precise notes that you are able to share and explain to others.

Okay, we're gonna move on to our second learning cycle now, and we're going to evaluate the presentation of Simidele.

So think a little bit more about our main character.

So having read the extract, Lucas argues, "Bowen makes it clear that Simidele is confident in the water, but also that she would like to return to her previous life on land." So I really, really like this argument.

It's got two parts to it, so it's very nuanced, it's very sophisticated.

So she's confident in the water, but, but she would also like to return to her previous life on land.

So these two contrasting ideas showing the depth of this character.

She's not a simple character, but a really developed one, a complicated one who's got these competing desires within her.

Now, I'd like you to discuss what might have led Lucas to this argument, and I'd like you to find examples for both ideas.

Of course, you'll rely on your extract and you will rely on your annotations again.

Pause the video and discuss this question now.

Welcome back, a lovely discussion proving that Lucas's argument is a valid.

You've got examples for both.

So I'm just gonna take one of each.

So makes it clear that Simidele's really confident in the water.

So lots of people noted there are loads of verbs which show her easy movement in the water.

So she's moving around the water with ease, with confidence, with beauty, with grace.

But she would like to return to her previous life on land.

Of course, that flashback is incredibly important, but lots of people noted that it's the impact of the flashback on Simidele that's really important.

So the flashback itself is very short, it just lasts a sentence or two, but the impact continues as she searches for those memories, wants to hold onto them, and they have a very powerful impact on the way that she is feeling.

So really, really nice to prove that argument.

And again, returning to your extract and showing that your annotations can really be relied upon.

A check for understanding before we develop Lucas's argument a little bit further with some more examples.

So which of the following examples could be used to evidence the idea that Simidele is confident in the water, A, B, C, or D? Pause the video, read through the responses, and then select the responses you think are correct.

Pause the video and complete this check now.

Welcome back, well done if you selected C and D.

So she swims with sharks, that definitely shows she's confident the water, and fish, large and small, obey her commands, says a moment where the sharks obey her commands and also a moment where the eels obey her commands.

So her confidence is not evidenced by the fact that she does not want to seen by humans.

This is a moment of vulnerability for Simidele.

And B, she has a flashback whilst swimming.

This is not to do with the idea that she feels confident in the water.

This is to do with her past.

So it's C and D are the correct answers.

Okay, I would like you to complete the table, finding examples from "Skin of the Sea" to support both ideas about a character of Simidele.

So idea one, Simidele is confident in the water, and idea two is Simidele would like to return to her previous life on land.

Now, I'd like you to select a relevant quotation, nice, short, sharp quotation, and then explain what the quotation tells you.

Pause the video, rely on the extract, and see people reaching for it now.

Rely on those great annotations that you made earlier in order to help you find evidence.

So quotations, which would support both sides of the argument.

Of course, once you've got these quotations, you will want to explain them, explain how they support that particular argument.

Pause the video and complete this table now.

Welcome back, lovely to see these fantastic tables in front of me.

We've got ideas about the complexity of our main character of Simidele.

Let's choose some feedback to make sure that these tables are absolutely up to scratch.

So here is a section of Lucas's table.

So we've just got one idea about the idea that Simidele is confident in the water.

So he wrote, "Simidele notices the teeth of the shark, but that doesn't make her leave.

Instead, she orders them to wait as she collects a dead woman's body." So that's how the extract ends with Simidele collecting dead woman's body.

She's going to gather the soul of this woman.

That is her task as a Mami Wata.

Now, it makes the checklist because we've got a quotation, teeth and wait, so nice, short quotation there.

And then Lucas has of course explained his quotation.

That doesn't make her leave, instead she orders them.

So a nice explanation there as well.

Now I'd like you to identify where each of your ideas meets the checklist.

Pause the video, go through each of your ideas, make sure you've got a quotation, and that crucially, you have explained that quotation.

Pause the video and complete this check now.

Welcome back, well done for showing how each of your moments in those tables meets the checklist.

You've got some really, really great ideas about each side of Lucas's argument, and you have proved them not just with quotations, but also explaining those quotations.

In summary, "Skin of the Sea" centres around a protagonist called Simidele who is a Mami Wata, in this instance, a mermaid.

As a Mami Wata, Simidele's role is to collect souls of enslaved people who die as they're transported across the Atlantic Ocean.

Natasha Bowen makes use of flashback in the opening chapter to hint at Simidele's life before she became a Mami Wata.

When annotating a text, you can use a range of symbols and notes to help develop an understanding of the text's ideas.

It has been such a pleasure to read the opening of "Skin of the Sea" with you today, and I look forward to seeing you next time.