Hello, my name is Mr. Barnsley.

Welcome to today's lesson.

Fantastic to see you.

Thank you so much for joining me today.

We are gonna continue our study of the AQA "World and Lives" poetry anthology, and today we're gonna be looking at a new poem.

This is James Berry's poem, "On an Afternoon Train from Purley to Victoria, 1955." You are gonna want to make sure you have your copy of the AQA "World and Lives" poetry to hand 'cause you are gonna want to be able to see a version of this poem.

Okay, make sure you've got this, and then I think it's time for us to begin.

Okay, let's have a look then at our outcome for today's lesson.

So by the end of the lesson, you are gonna understand how Berry presents ideas of connection and difference.

So there are five key words in today's lesson that I want you to keep an eye out for.

We're gonna be using them in our discussions, and they're gonna really help us understand the poem and the themes and the ideas behind the poem.

They are migrant, ignorance, Quaker, symbolism, and inference.

So migrant is a person who moves from one place to another, predominantly to find work or better living conditions.

Ignorance is a lack of knowledge or information.

A Quaker, you'll notice this is capitalised, it's a proper noun.

So it's a member of the Religious Society of Friends and they are devoted to peaceful principles.

And symbolism and inference, these are two words that we see a lot in English.

Let's make sure we definitely know what they mean.

So symbolism is the use of a symbol, which can be a word or an image, that communicates a really distinct idea to us.

And an inference is a guess that we make or an opinion that we form based on the information that we have.

All right, so let's keep an eye out for these.

Let's use our symbolism.

Let's use our inferring skills throughout today's lesson.

So we are gonna be understanding a new poem today and that poem is called "On an Afternoon Train from Purley to Victoria, 1955." So three steps today to understanding this poem.

Firstly, we're gonna be making a personal response to the poem, making some predictions.

Then we are going to read the poem, and then we'll start to bring in a little bit of contextual knowledge and see if that changes our understanding, our interpretation of the poem.

But let's start with a personal response.

So today we're gonna be looking at that poem, "On an Afternoon Train from Purley to Victoria, 1955." So let's discuss that central image in the title of the poem, and it's a train.

What might a train symbolise to you? Why don't you pause the video? You can do this via a discussion if you have a partner.

Otherwise, you might even wish to do this as a mind map in your exercise book or on a bit of paper.

All right, over to you then.

What does that central image, in the title, of a train, what might it symbolise? What might it represent to you? All right, pause video, give this a go, and press Play when you're ready to continue.

Okay, some really lovely ideas there.

I just wanna shine a light on some of the fantastic things that I heard.

So I heard lots of people saying "a journey," "a train takes from A to B," "it takes us on a journey." I really liked that.

Some of you think, "Well, if I think about journey, I think about progress.

'Cause often, when I think about the progress that I make, whether that's in school, whether that's in a skill that I'm learning, that's always a journey for me." And you might have even linked that to personal growth.

So you can see how we're developing this idea and taking it further.

So a train could be a symbol of personal growth because it represents a journey.

But you could also say it represents a change.

Sometimes that movement from A to B, that change in destination can often represent a change.

So well done if you said something similar, and of course, you might have had many other ideas.

Those can be equally valid as long as you can really explain them clearly and logically.

So let's have a think then.

Which of the following is probably the most likely symbolism of a train? Two of our Oak pupils have given this a go.

And Sam said, "Trains could be a symbol of progress because of the association with the Industrial Revolution and the social change brought about by the improvements to transport." And Sophia said, "Trains could be a symbol of climate change because of that association with the Industrial Revolution and the use of fossil fuels." Which of these feels like the most likely and relevant interpretation of what a train could symbolise? Pause the video, pick between Sam and Sophia, and press Play when you are ready to find out who was right.

Yeah, great job if you said Sam.

They had a much more, I thought, logical interpretation.

Okay, when we think of trains, we think of the Industrial Revolution, lots of social change because there was improvements to transport, therefore trains could be a symbol of progress.

All right, over to you then for the first task.

I am gonna give you a few more hints about the poem.

Here are three words that come from the poem.

They are moved, inspired, and thoughtful.

I would think about how these words connect to the symbol of the train, and as a consequence to that, what can we predict about the poem? All right, I'm gonna pause the video now and throw this one over to you.

You can do this as a discussion activity, but don't worry if you're working by yourself, if you don't have a partner to discuss with, you could just think through this independently.

Maybe even make a couple of notes.

But over to you now to think about the connection between these words and that key symbol of a train.

And then, can you build on and make a prediction what this poem might be about? All right, pause the video, give this a go, and press Play when you're ready to move on.

All right, welcome back.

I could hear some great discussions, and I could see some really good independent thought.

Let's now compare our thinking to the work of some of our Oak pupils who are doing a very similar task.

So Jun said, "The idea of movement with ideas of being thoughtful and inspired perhaps suggest the idea of a journey of personal growth." So maybe this is about personal growth.

This is a journey and that's a journey of personal growth, is we're gonna see in this poem.

Alex said, "Perhaps the poem is about a journey someone takes and the inspiration they find from it." So our journeys may be inspirational.

Why don't you think about which of these two answers felt most closely reflected to your thinking and why? All right, pause the video, have a think, and press Play when you are ready to move on.

Okay, welcome back.

Some really great reflection going on there.

All right, we've started to have a bit of a personal response.

We thought of some of that key imagery.

We've started making some predictions.

Now it's time for us to read the poem.

Now, of course, I warned you at the beginning of the lesson, you are gonna need your own copy of the AQA "World and Lives" poetry.

You're gonna do some independent reading here, so you definitely need a copy of the poem in front of you.

If you are not already prepared, I'm gonna give you one more chance.

Pause the video, get that anthology in front of you, and make sure you have it open on the page of James Berry's poem.

All right, pause the video, get yourself sorted, and press Play when you are ready to move on.

All right, we should all be ready now.

Okay, I'm gonna hand over to you to do some independent reading of the poem.

My top tip to you is actually to read the poem twice.

Read it once, think about what your initial thoughts might be, and then read it once over again.

All right, I'm handing it over to you.

The baton is being passed on.

That's my metaphor for you.

Over to you, do some reading, read the poem, and press Play when you are ready to continue.

Great work there, some really, really wonderful independent reading there.

What I want us to do then is think about our initial interpretations.

So these are things you could discuss.

If you have a partner, you can discuss it with them.

If you're working by yourself, you can either think through these questions independently, that's fine.

Or if there's someone else in your household, you can maybe even share with them what your initial interpretations of the poem were.

But things I want you to think about, what happens in the poem, what images stand out to you in the poem, and what are the three stand-out words from the poem for you and why did you choose them? All right, over to you to do some reflecting on what you read in this poem.

Pause video, have a think, and press Play when you are ready to continue with today's lesson.

Okay, welcome back.

Some really interesting first interpretations.

So we know in this poem, the stranger who talks to the speaker of the poem is a Quaker.

And remember, the Quaker is a member of a religious group.

Now, the stranger makes a geographical mistake.

This is where the stranger thinks Jamaica is in Africa, but this is where Jamaica actually is on the map.

Why do you think this geographical mistake is so significant? Why do you think it's so significant to the speaker, but also just kind of as the general message of the poem? Pause the video, if you've got a partner, you can think through these ideas together.

Or otherwise, you can just think through this independently.

Why is this geographical mistake so significant? Over to you, pause the video, and press Play when you're ready to continue.

Well done, some really interesting ideas there.

I really liked what I heard from some of you who said, "Actually this mistake implies ignorance from the stranger.

The everyday in which the situation occurs suggests that actually this is the kind of misunderstanding that the speaker probably hears quite often." And I think this really reflects the kind of ignorance that migrants face on a regular basis.

There isn't necessarily something malicious here.

The speaker hasn't meant to be rude and ignorant and showy that they do not understand about the speaker's country or heritage, but they do.

It's a kind of a regular mistake that happens frequently and something that migrants have to face every day.

It's a very normal experience for them.

Well done if you said anything similar to that, I heard some really great discussions there.

So the stranger is a Quaker.

Now, Quakers are members of a Christian movement, but they really believe in human rights.

They really believe in social equality, justice, and fairness.

So how might we interpret Berry's message? Why has he chosen for a Quaker to make such a geographical mistake? What do you think? Hand it back over to you, if you've got a partner, discuss with them.

Otherwise, just think through this independently.

Why did Berry choose to make the stranger a Quaker? All right, pause, have a think, and press Play when you are ready to reflect on some ideas.

Really interesting there.

I really liked it when those of you who said that "perhaps we can interpret it as Berry implying that even those who believe in human rights, they believe in social equality, that they're really capable of making mistakes." Not all ignorance, you know, is a deliberate act of harm to minorities, to migrants.

So the speaker responds to the stranger mistake in actually a very lighthearted way.

What do you think this suggests then? What might this response suggest about the overall tone and the meaning of the poem? Okay, the fact that they respond in a really lighthearted way? They could get upset and angry that this person shows little to no understanding of their heritage, their culture, but they don't, they respond in a lighthearted way.

What does that suggest about the overall tone meaning? Over to you, pause the video, have a think, and press Play when you think you have a response.

Some really interesting ideas here, and I think we're starting to really understand the migrant experience.

The speaker doesn't express surprise which really emphasises this idea that this represents an experience that migrants feel on a regular basis.

Okay, this is normality for them to be met with ignorance and a lack of understanding.

However, the lighthearted response, rather than anger or frustration, suggests that actually this is gonna be quite a positive and optimistic poem.

It may be is optimistic about the way that people can interact with each other and maybe show some hope and optimism for the intentions behind people's words, separating intentions from impact of the word.

And you know, I think we need to say that whilst we can sometimes separate intentions and impacts, just because someone doesn't mean to cause harm though, doesn't mean that they don't cause harm and these things aren't hurtful to people.

But here the speaker seems to be acknowledging the intention here wasn't to cause hurt or to cause harm and separates those two things.

All right, let's have a little check then, see how we're getting on.

What does the everyday setting of the stranger's mistake imply about it? Is it A, that it's not meant with malicious intent, they don't mean to be hurtful? Is it B, it's a regular experience for migrants? Or is it C, that the speaker feels startled by the mistake? Which of those do you think is the correct answer? Pause the video, have a think, and press Play when you are ready to find out if you are correct.

Really well done if you said B.

I think we can rule out C, we know that the speaker is not startled, okay? This is something that happens all the time.

So C, we know, is incorrect.

A, I think we can make inference that is true.

It's not that the Quaker isn't meaning to be malicious here.

They're not deliberately trying to be hurtful or harmful.

However, the question was about why Berry uses this everyday setting and I think that the best inference we can make is because this shows that this is something that happens every day.

This is something that migrant population experience this kind of lack of knowledge and this ignorance towards their culture or heritage.

Okay, I really want us to then return to the symbolism of the train as we move on to our next activity.

I want you to think about how we might interpret the symbolism of the train now that we've read the poem.

How might it represent ideas of connection and difference? They were keywords from our outcome.

So I want you to write a short answer.

Things I want you to consider, the journey of the train from Purley to Victoria, both of these are areas within London.

So it's a short train journey inside the same city.

I want you to think about the references to other countries, so Africa, Jamaica, Ireland, and Lapland.

And I want you to think about what Berry is trying to say about journeys in general.

All right, over to you.

This only has to be a short response.

I want you to try and summarise the thinking and discussions that we've had so far.

So pause the video, give this a really good go, and press Play when you are ready to do some reflection.

Okay, welcome back, really great job there.

And I want to give a massive shout out to anyone who check their spelling, punctuation, and grammar before they put their pen down.

We love to see it.

All right, let's reflect on what we've written then.

And we're gonna do this by comparing our work to one of our Oak pupils, Sam, who has written the following response.

I want you to think about as we're reading this, do you agree with Sam? Do you disagree with Sam? Why, and most importantly, which ideas might you like to steal? So Sam says, "I think the symbolism of the speaker and the stranger taking a journey on the train together represents the concept that, though we have our differences, we are all ultimately taking a similar journey.

The train journey from Purley to Victoria is particularly poignant because they are both places in London, so perhaps Berry is using this to represent the wider idea that places such as Jamaica and Lapland are both places on Earth.

Furthermore, perhaps the Quaker's comment is meant to show that we are all on a personal journey of growth and development." Okay, I really want to think about what you liked about Sam's response, if anything you disagree with.

And let's take a moment to reflect on our own writing, pausing the video, and adding any of Sam's ideas to our own if we didn't already have them.

All right, pause the video, let's improve the work we've done so far, and then press Play when we're ready to move on.

Okay, onto our final learning cycle.

We're gonna understand some more context behind the poem.

So the poet, James Berry, was raised in Jamaica and he settled in Britain in 1948.

His poems often explored the experience of, very specifically, Caribbean migrants.

So things that we might need to know.

In 1948, the British Nationality Act was passed, and this allowed people from British colonies to live and work in the UK.

Thousands of Caribbean migrants arrived in the UK between 1948 and 1971 and they've become to be known as the Windrush generation.

Right, let's check then, which of these statements are true? This is all context that's gonna be really useful for understanding the poem.

Is it A, "On an Afternoon Train from Purley to Victoria, 1955" is Berry's only poem to consider the migrant experience? Is it B, thousands of Caribbean migrants arrived in the UK between 1948 and 1971? Or is it C, in 1955, the British Nationality Act was passed, allowing people from British colonies to live and work in the UK? Which do you think of these is the contextual information that is true and important first to understanding why this poem might have been written? All right, pause the video, have a think, and press Play when you are ready to find out the answer.

Yeah, well done if you said that was B, that thousands of Caribbean migrants, the Windrush generation arrived in the UK between 1948 and 1971.

All right, over to you then for our final task.

We are gonna be considering how Berry presents the migrant experience in the poem.

Ultimately, we are gonna be trying to answer this question at the bottom.

What inferences can we make about the migrant experience? Okay, so we're really gonna be thinking what inferences can we make? What messages is Berry trying to share with us about the migrant experience? But before we can answer that, we need to answer these two questions, they will really help us.

So looking at line two in the poem, what does that suggest about connections between people? And looking at lines 20-21, what does it suggest about how people perceive the migrant experience? Once you've answered those two questions, you should be able to answer that bigger question at the bottom.

What inferences can you make about the migrant experience? All right, pause the video, over to you.

Remember, you can bring in some of your contextual knowledge into this answer, but let's see, what do you think Berry is trying to say? Okay, pause the video, give it a go, and press Play when you're ready to do some reflection.

All right, welcome back and really well done for giving this a good go.

I could see lots of you bringing in a lot of the knowledge that you picked up during today's lesson.

That's fantastic to see.

All right, let's consider Sam's thought process as she answered this question.

So her answers to the first few questions were, "Well, the repeated pleasantry implies common ground and agreement between the speaker and the stranger." So yes, we know that they do not know each other.

And yes, we know, as the poem goes on, that the stranger shows themselves with ignorant.

But actually there is a commonality, there's a common ground, and we see this through the pleasantries.

And the focus on the weather in line 21 could imply that people often misunderstand the reason for migration.

Okay, so there is clearly, again, some more ignorance here, not just ignorance from where the speaker has migrated from, but the reasons why someone would choose to migrate.

So let's think about that bigger question then.

So Sam says, "I think there are instances of connection within this poem as well as suggestions of misunderstandings and ignorance around the migrant experience." So this isn't necessarily gonna be a poem that is just talking about all the negatives and the difficulties that are faced through the migrant experience.

Although, we are gonna look at some elements of those, particularly misunderstandings and ignorance.

There is this sense of connectivity, connection, in the poem that I think is gonna be explored.

So they made the following inference about the migrant experience.

They said, "Berry shows the migrant experience is one where you will come across occurrences of misunderstandings and ignorance.

However, ultimately, we are all people trying to find common ground and connections between each other." Really well done if you said something similar to Sam.

I think that shows that we've got to the end of this lesson with a good understanding of Berry's poem.

So on the screen in front of you, you can see a summary of everything that we have learned today in today's lesson.

Do pause the video, read through each of these bullet points very carefully, making sure you feel really confident with each of them before you move on.

Thank you so much for joining me today.

It's been an absolute pleasure learning alongside you.

I hope I see you in one of our lessons in the future.

But that's it from me, so have a great day with the rest of your day, however you choose to spend it.

Thank you so much for joining me and I hope to see you all soon.

Goodbye.