Hello there, welcome to today's lesson when we are going to be looking at "The Jewellery Maker" by Louise Adjoa Parker.

Okay, you are going to need your copy of the AQA "World and lives" Poetry Anthology for today's lesson.

So do make sure you have this in front of you.

Okay, you're gonna need it.

We're gonna be looking at the poem together.

All right.

Thank you so much for joining me today.

My name is Mr. Barnsey, and I'm really looking forward to learning alongside you.

Right.

Let's get started.

Okay, so the outcome of today's lesson then, we are gonna be able to understand how Louise Adjoa Parker presents the craft of "The Jewellery Maker".

(lips smacking) So there are four key words in today's lesson.

They are deft, craft, heritage, and marginalised.

Let's check we know what each of these mean because they're gonna be really useful to help us both understand the poem, but also to allow us to talk about the poem and talk about our understanding of the poem.

So deft means neatly skillful and quick in one movements.

Craft is an activity involving skill in making things by hand.

Heritage is the history, traditions, practises, et cetera of a particular country or society.

And marginalised means to be treated as if you are not important, to be peripheral, on the periphery, on the side, to be isolated.

Okay, let's keep all those four words in the forefront of our mind as we think about this poem, and what this poem might mean and how we might interpret it.

So there are three learning cycles in today's lesson.

Firstly, we're gonna be understanding the maker's craft.

Then we're gonna do a little bit more thinking about the maker's life, the kind of the central character in this poem.

And then we are gonna be considering a little bit of context and thinking about how that might change, or adapt our interpretations.

So let's start with our first learning cycle.

So today we're gonna be exploring Louise Adjoa's Parker's poem, "The Jewellery Maker".

So what image do you have in your head of someone who makes jewellery? Why don't you pause the video and discuss this if you have a partner, or just think through this question independently, if you are working by yourself.

What image do you have in your head of someone who makes jewellery? Pause video, have a think, and press play when you are ready to continue.

Some really interesting ideas there.

Alex, one of our oak pupils said, "Well, I have this image of someone sitting in a really nice airy studio placing crystals very delicately into necklaces." Maybe you had something similar, a really kind of smart studio, or maybe you had something different.

So I want you to think about this image you can see on the screen.

What ideas or feelings do you get.

So if you're working with your exercise book, if you have some paper in front of you, you might wish to actually create a physical mind map.

Otherwise you can just think through and create like a mental mind map, or do it verbally with a partner.

But what ideas or feelings do you get when you look at this image on the screen? Pause the video, have a think, and press play when you are ready to continue.

Some really nice ideas there.

I really want to shine a spotlight on some of the great things some of you said.

I really liked it when people said "precision." Okay.

This takes a lot of skill.

"Focus," you can see how focused the jewellery maker has to be in this image.

"Danger," okay, there's clearly this flame there.

This is not work without danger.

And the level of detail.

Okay, you can see how intricate it is, how small the jewellery is that the maker is working with there.

Well done if you said any of those words on the screen.

But of course you might have said slightly different things and that is absolutely valid too.

All right, now I want to consider these words, and these words come from the poem.

I know we've not read the poem yet.

We will be reading the poem shortly, but these are some words from the poem, and do you think they fit with the image of a jewellery maker? Why? Straight-backed, hot, deft.

Okay, pause the video.

Have a think.

So those words link to this idea of a jewellery maker.

Pause the video and press play it when you are ready to continue.

Hmm.

Interesting.

I think you might have said yes to some of them, but some of them might have been maybe a little bit less clear.

So arguably someone who is sitting very straight-backed working with deft fingers suggests someone who is working with focus and precision.

And the addition of hot that we've seen from that image, that flame also adds an element of danger.

The blow torch in the image really suggested this.

Okay, so true or false, Parker implies that the maker is focused on his work.

Do you know that's true or false.

Pause the video.

Have a think and press play when you're ready to continue.

Yes, that is true.

Let's just divide that, shall we? Is it that the maker's posture is "straight-backed," or is it the maker's eyes are "facing forward?" Which of those quotes have we already come across from the poem.

Pause the video, have a think, and press play when you're ready to continue.

Yes, that is of course the maker's posture is "straight-backed." Okay, first task then, we know that Parker compares the jewellery maker to a surgeon.

That's another little hint I'm gonna give you.

That's another line from the poem.

I want you to think what might Parker be trying to say about jewellery making as a craft through this? So why might Parker be comparing the making of jewellery to being a surgeon? Things I want you to consider what, well, what is it that surgeons do? And how does society value surgeons? And how might this compare to the craft of a jewellery maker? All right, pause the video.

If you're working with a partner, you can do this through discussion.

If you are working by yourself, you can either just think through this question, or you might wish to just make a few notes on a bit of paper.

Okay, over to you now.

Pause the video and press play when you are ready to continue with the lesson.

Okay, welcome back.

What I want to do with you now is share something that you might have said.

Of course we can have different interpretations and you might have said slightly different things, but I want you to compare your response, or your thoughts to what you can see on screen.

So being a surgeon is a highly specialised and respected profession.

By comparing the craft of the jeweller to a surgeon, Parker could be suggesting that same level of detail, focus, and surgical precision goes into jewellery making.

However, by making a comparison, Parker could be implying that the jewellery maker does not have the same level of respect from society as a surgeon might.

Okay, well done if you said something similar.

Let's move on.

So now I want us to understand the maker's life.

And to do that we are going to read the poem.

So you are gonna need to make sure you've got your copy of the anthology in front of you.

Now is the time to pause the video.

If you are not prepared, pause video, get the anthology and press play when you're ready to continue.

Right? You've all had a warning now.

Everyone should have their copy of the poem in front of them.

Okay, I am gonna read the poem to you.

We're gonna read this together.

However, I'm gonna turn off my video because I don't want you focusing on me.

I want you focusing on reading the poem, reading along as I read the poem to you.

If you prefer, you may wish to just read the poem to yourself, and you can pause the video and just move it on forward, you don't have to listen to my version.

But otherwise we are gonna read through this together.

Okay? Poems that are ready, let's go.

"The Jewellery Maker.

Each day after sunrise, he walks to the workshop like his father before him, and his father too.

The slap of sandal feet on heat-baked stone, the smell of blossom, a plate blue sky.

He greets his neighbours with a smile.

In the distance a wild dog barks.

He sits straight-backed, lays out pointed tools the way a surgeon might, neat as soldiers.

He likes hot metal, the smell, the way it yields to his touch.

Under deft fingers, gold butterflies, dance, flowers bloom, silvery moons wax and wane, and then wax again.

Bright dragonflies flap two pairs of wings.

He likes the tiny loops and curls.

He decorate his house in this.

Drape his wife in fine spun gold.

Her skin wrinkled by sun in simple cotton dress.

Her only jewellery, a plain gold band, worn thin.

He imagines the woman who will wear what he has made.

Clear-eyed, bird-boned, unlined skin warming the metal his hand caresses.

Okay, really good following along there.

Right, it's time for a discussion then.

Based on your first impression, do you think the maker is happy with his life? What do you think? All right, pause the video, have a discussion or think through this independently and press play when you're ready to continue.

Welcome back some really interesting discussion there.

I really liked it when some of you zoomed in on individual words like Sam, one of our Oak pupils has done.

Sam said, "Words like 'dance' and 'dragonflies' really stick in the mind, and these give this feeling of happiness and lightness." Well done if you identified some of these words that created this quite positive tone to the poem.

So let's consider then some of the language in this poem, some of the words in the poem, and think about what impression of the maker they give to us.

So this first word I really want to zoom in on is "smile." "Smile" suggests positivity and warmth.

And perhaps or to me certainly suggests that jeweller really loves his work.

That final verb "caress" comes right at the end of the poem.

It suggests someone who really is taking care over his work, and he respects and loves the jewellery he's creating.

And that phrase, "Each day after sunrise," well, it suggests real dedication.

He gets up really early every day to do this work.

However, I now want us to consider the following quotations.

How do they provide a contrast? "Slap," "soldier," "barks." Pause the video, just have a think that how are these contrasting to the rest of the tone of the poem, and what might that mean? All right, pause the video.

Just have a quick think, and press play when you're ready to continue.

(computer mouse clicks) All right, welcome back.

Some really nice interesting discussions there.

What I notice is rather than delicacy and warmth and routine, these words actually provide something quite sharp and sudden, almost something a little bit violent within this poem.

Okay, which of the following words do you think suggests that the maker is happy with their work? Is it "caress," "deft," or "wild?" Pause the video, have a think, and press play when you're ready to continue.

Yes, well done if you said "caress," that really delicate verb showing a real care for the work that they are doing.

(computer mouse clicks) Okay, now we're gonna move on to our second task today.

So we know that the majority of the poem really gives the impression that this is a man who really enjoys his craft, and he spends his days making beautiful jewellery.

However, we did acknowledge that Parker creates these really sharp interludes through words such as "slap" and "barks." What do you think she might be trying to say about the maker's life? I want you to pause the video and you can do this via discussion.

So if you have a partner, just do this via discussion.

But if you don't have a partner, you're working by yourself, don't worry.

You can either make a few notes, or you can just think through this question to yourself.

So why might Parker create these sharp interludes through words such as "slap" and "barks," what might she be trying to say about the maker's life? Pause the video, have a think, and press play when you are ready to continue.

<v ->Some really great discussion there.

</v> What we're gonna do now is compare our ideas to that of Laura, one of our Oak pupils, and think about do you agree or disagree with what Laura said? So Laura said, "I think the sharp interlude of words such as "slap" and "soldier" suggest there is a tension in the background in the maker's life.

It's not in the forefront, as it's clear that the maker really enjoys his work.

However, there is something that bothers the maker." I wonder if you picked up on that.

Did you have something similar? Did you say, "Look, I can see this is a man who enjoys his work, who is generally happy in his life, but there is an underlying tone that there is something that bothers him slightly." I wonder if you said something similar.

All right, we're gonna move into our third learning cycle now, considering context, and this might help us just unpick what it might be, what this slight dissatisfaction might be in the life of the jewellery maker? So for context, Parker is a writer of English and Ghanaian heritage, who is always interested in telling the stories of marginalised voices, those people who've been pushed to the sides, pushed to the periphery in society.

So I want us to consider how we can connect the jewellery maker in the poem with this idea of marginalised voices.

So we know that the maker is said to go to the workshop "like his father before him, and his father too." What inferences can we make from this? Why don't you pause the video, discuss or think through this question independently, and press play when you are ready to continue.

Okay.

Some really interesting ideas there.

So you might be able to infer that the jewellery business is a family business, and therefore it's potentially a really important part of the jewellery maker's heritage.

It goes back through his generations.

It's an important part of who he and his family are.

We also know the maker says he would like to give his jewellery to his wife who has "skin wrinkled by the sun," and is described as wearing "a simple cotton dress." What do you think this implies about the maker's wife, these descriptions of her? What do this imply about her? Pause the video.

Have a think and press play when you're ready to continue.

Interesting that some of you said that actually this implies that his wife and he, therefore, as a couple, are not very well off since she's only has a simple dress made out of a very basic material.

Furthermore, her skin is described as being "wrinkled by the sun," which could imply that she has to work outside in the heat, and it's damaged her skin.

By contrast, however, we know that the maker describes the woman who is very likely to buy his jewellery, buy and wear his jewellery as being "clear-eyed, bird-boned, unlined skin." What inferences can we make about this? About the woman, about who will end up owning the jewellery that he makes? Pause the video, have a think, and press play when you are ready to continue.

(computer mouse clicks) Yeah, really interesting here that we could possibly infer that the maker sells his jewellery to wealthy women or wealthy individuals.

Their unlined skin, we could almost argue is look, actually they're definitely not having to work outside in the beating sun, in the blistering heat, but actually could also suggest that they are immune, or very, like, or immune from life stresses, or very rarely having to live a stressful life.

We can even here make kind of links back to that idea of the surgeon.

We think of surgeons being very well respected and often very well paid in society, yet this jewellery maker clearly isn't, and we see that through his description of he and his wife.

So there's a real contrast here between the man who makes the jewellery, and the people who end up wearing the jewellery.

So true or false, Parker implies the maker and his wife are poor.

What do we think? Pause the video.

Give this a go and press play when you're ready to continue.

Yes, well done.

That is true.

Let's justify our responses.

The wife's dress is described as being "simple," or the wife's dress is described as "fraying." What do you think is the correct answer, the correct way of justifying that then? Pause the video, have a think, and press play when you're ready to continue.

(computer mouse clicks) Yes, well done if you said the wise dress is described as being "simple." (computer mouse clicks) Okay then, I want us to consider the precision, the focus, and the joy that the maker gets from creating jewellery.

Let's finish then with a discussion.

How do you think the maker would feel about giving his creations to a "clear-eyed, bird-boned, unlined skinned" woman when he'd rather give it to his wife? And how can we link this to the idea of being marginalised? Remembering that Parker often wrote, her work was often about those with marginalised voices.

So how does the speaker feel about giving the jewellery, his jewellery to the wealthy rather than his wife? And how do we link this to ideas around marginalised voices? Pause the video, if you've got a partner, or you're working in a small group, this would be a great time to discuss together.

But don't worry if you're working by yourself, you can think through this, or even make some notes on a bit of paper.

All right, pause the video, over to you, and press play when you are ready to continue.

(computer mouse clicks) Welcome back some really, really nice discussions there.

It was great to see you making links between the poem itself and these bigger ideas around marginalisation, and marginalised voices.

Let's have a look at what Lucas said then, shall we? And we could compare our thoughts to his, see if we agree with him, or see if we disagree with him.

Lucas said, "I would imagine that the maker would feel resentment at having to give their creations away to others.

This might explain the sharp interludes of words such as 'slap' and 'barks' in the poem.

It could link to marginalisation because it implies that craftsmen are forgotten.

They put all the hard work and dedication into creating these beautiful pieces, but are ultimately not noticed or seen." What do you think? Do you agree with Lucas? Do you disagree? Why don't you pause the video and compare your own ideas to those of Lucas.

Remember to press play when you are ready to continue.

(computer mouse clicks) (computer mouse clicks) Okay, we have reached the of today's lesson.

On the screen, you can see a summary of what we have learned today.

Let's go through that together and check that you're feeling really confident with everything we've learned.

If you're not feeling confident, that's okay.

You can always go back and watch sections of the lesson again, but you should make sure before you move on, you feel really confident you've understood what this poem is about.

So we've learned that the craft of the jewellery maker is implied to be precise, focused, and potentially dangerous.

"The Jewellery Maker" tells the narrative of an old man who makes beautiful jewellery in the sweltering heat, The jewellery maker dreams of giving his creations to his wife, but instead they are bought by rich women.

Okay, thank you so much for joining me today.

It's been a pleasure to learn alongside you.

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

All right, have a great day and I hope to see you all soon.

Thank you very much.

Goodbye.

(computer mouse clicks) (computer mouse clicks).