Lesson video

Hi, everyone.

My name is Ms. Voyle, and welcome to today's lesson, where we are going to be planning the build-up of "A Christmas Carol." During this lesson, you'll need to be listening and looking carefully.

There'll be tasks where you need somebody to talk to, and you will also need a piece of paper and pen or pencil for writing your plan.

I am really looking forward to teaching you this lesson.

I hope you are feeling excited and ready to learn.

Let's get started.

The learning outcome for today's lesson is, I can generate precise vocabulary to plan two paragraphs for the build-up of "A Christmas Carol." Here are our key words for today's lesson.

Let's practise saying them.

My turn, your turn.

Build-up.

Suspense.

Sensory details.

Show and tell.

Great job.

Well done.

Let's now take a look at their definitions.

The build-up is the building of action and suspense that leads up to the climax in a narrative.

Suspense is a state of feeling excited or anxious uncertainty about what may happen.

Sensory details are descriptions that include touch, sight, taste, sound, and smell.

And show and tell is a writing technique for showing a character's feelings with description of their actions and expressions.

There are two parts to today's lesson.

In the first part, we will be preparing to plan, and in the second part you will be planning two paragraphs for the build-up.

So let's begin with preparing to plan.

You have already written the opening of "A Christmas Carol." The setting was contrasted by the introduction of the main character, Ebenezer Scrooge.

Let's remind ourselves a bit about this.

The atmosphere in the setting was one of vibrance and Christmas joy.

Ebenezer Scrooge is a miser who holds disdain for Christmas.

The introduction of his character showed a great contrast to the joyous Christmas atmosphere.

In this lesson, you are going to be planning the build-up.

The build-up of a narrative builds suspense for the reader, leading up to the climax.

A narrative can be structured like this.

Opening, build-up, climax, resolution.

You have already set the scene and introduced the main character in the opening.

In this lesson, you will be generating precise vocabulary to plan the build-up.

What happens in the build-up of "A Christmas Carol"? Listen carefully, and I will summarise this to you.

Scrooge returns home and he feels relieved to have escaped London's Christmas joy.

He is comforted by the bleakness of his residence.

The usual silence of Scrooge's home is gradually disrupted by strange whispering sounds, which fill him with unease.

He tries to dismiss the noises, but he becomes increasingly unnerved.

The sound of bells ringing fills the house, and Scrooge's nervousness shifts to fear and panic.

Then the ghost of his former business partner, Jacob Marley, appears.

Marley warns Scrooge of his selfish, cruel ways, and informs him that he will be visited by three ghosts, the Ghosts of Christmas Past, Present, and Future.

Let's check your understanding.

Number the following from one to four to show the order of events in the build-up.

I will read these to you.

A, Scrooge became filled with panic by the ringing of bells and then the ghost of Marley emerged.

B, Marley warned Scrooge of his cruel ways and the ghosts that would be visiting him.

C, Scrooge returned home and felt initially relieved.

D, strange noises filled the house and Scrooge began to feel uneasy.

Pause the video now and number these one to four to show their order in the build-up.

Let's take a look at the answers together.

First, Scrooge returned home and felt initially relieved.

Second, strange noises filled the house and Scrooge began to feel uneasy.

Third, Scrooge became filled with panic by the ringing of bells and then the ghost of Marley emerged.

Fourth, Marley warned Scrooge of his cruel ways and the ghosts that would be visiting him.

Well done for demonstrating your understanding of the chronology of events in the build-up.

A key feature of the build-up in a story is the building of suspense for the reader.

Suspense means a state of feeling excited or anxious uncertainty about what may happen.

This engages the reader and makes them want to read on, and find out what happens next.

Let's check your understanding.

What is suspense? A, a state of feeling certain about what is going to happen next.

B, a state of feeling excited or anxious uncertainty about what may happen.

Or C, a state of not caring about what may happen.

Pause the video and select the correct definition for suspense now.

The answer is B.

Well done.

Suspense means a state of feeling excited or anxious uncertainty about what may happen.

Creating suspense is a key part of the build-up in a narrative.

During the build-up, your choice of vocabulary needs to convey an increasingly eerie atmosphere in order to build suspense.

Eerie means strange or frightening.

The build-up will be split into two paragraphs.

Paragraph one will provide subtle hints to build suspense.

You will describe how Scrooge begins to feel gradually uneasy about strange sounds he hears.

Paragraph two will heighten the suspense.

You will describe how Scrooge's emotions move to intense fear as the sounds intensify and the ghost of Jacob Marley appears.

Describing a range of sensory details within the setting will help to create an eerie atmosphere.

Here are some examples.

Musty scent of untouched, dusty rooms. Flickering shadows cast by the candlelight.

The taste of stale, bitter air.

Icy draught blew through the narrow hallways.

Soft creaking of ageing floorboards.

These examples use precise vocabulary to describe a range of strange or frightening sensory details that could be experienced in the setting, and this helps to create an eerie atmosphere.

Let's check your understanding.

True or false? The most effective way to create an eerie atmosphere is to describe what can be seen.

Pause the video and select your answer now.

That is false.

Well done.

Now it's time to justify your answer.

A, it is most effective to describe what can be smelt.

Or B, it is most effective to describe a range of sensory details to convey an eerie atmosphere.

Pause the video and select the correct justification.

The answer is B.

Well done.

It is most effective to describe a range of sensory details to convey an eerie atmosphere.

As the eeriness of the setting increases, Scrooge's emotions shift and change, which is also a key part of building suspense.

Authors convey a character's feelings and emotions in two ways.

They explicitly state how the character felt.

An example of this is, he felt unnerved by the sounds.

Authors also use show and tell to convey a character's emotions.

Show and tell is a writing technique for showing a character's feelings with description of their actions, body language, and facial expressions.

An example of this is, a shiver ran down his spine.

This does not explicitly state how the character is feeling, but it provides hints and clues that the character might be feeling nervous or scared.

Let's check your understanding for how to use show and tell appropriately.

Match the following emotions Scrooge feels to the appropriate example of show and tell.

For the emotions that Scrooge feels, we have, A, relief, B, unease, C, terror.

And for the show and tell examples, we have, Scrooge felt a tingling sensation throughout his body.

Scrooge shook uncontrollably, unable to speak a word.

Scrooge's body relaxed and he exhaled deeply.

Pause the video now and match the emotion to the appropriate show and tell.

Let's take a look at the answers together.

For A, relief.

The appropriate show and tell would be, Scrooge's body relaxed and he exhaled deeply.

For B, unease.

The show and tell would be, Scrooge felt a tingling sensation throughout his body.

And for C, terror.

The show and tell would be, Scrooge shook uncontrollably, unable to speak a word.

Well done for demonstrating your understanding of the writing technique, show and tell.

It's now time for your first task.

Fill in the blanks in the following example sentences for paragraph one and paragraph two of the build-up.

For paragraph one where you are providing subtle hints to build suspense, the sentences are, "As he ascended the stairs, Scrooge began to hear.

Whispering sounds that.

Through the corridors.

He told himself that it was just the winter breeze, but a.

Tingling ran through his spine." And for paragraph two where you will heighten the suspense, the sentences are, "Suddenly, the.

Ringing of bells descended upon the house.

Scrooge's heart.

In his chest and a.

Sensation consumed his body.

The words for you to choose from are piercing, nervous, strange, trickled, panicked, pounded.

Pause the video now and fill in the blanks with the appropriate pieces of vocabulary.

Welcome back.

Let's take a look at the answers together.

For paragraph one which provides subtle hints to build suspense.

As he ascended the stairs, Scrooge began to hear strange whispering sounds that trickled through the corridors.

He told himself that it was just the winter breeze, but a nervous tingling ran through his spine.

And for paragraph two where the suspense heightens.

Suddenly, the piercing ringing of bells descended upon the house.

Scrooge's heart pounded in his chest and a panicked sensation consumed his body.

Well done for demonstrating your understanding of how precise vocabulary can achieve a specific purpose.

It's now time for the second part of our lesson, where you will be planning two paragraphs for the build-up.

When we write a plan, we use notes.

Notes are concise and capture key vocabulary and information.

The purpose of notes is to help the writer to organise information easily for future use.

We use bullet points when note-taking.

They look like this.

For the build-up, your plan needs to include the following, a range of sensory details to describe the setting and convey an increasingly eerie atmosphere, and descriptive phrases that show and tell the reader what Scrooge is experiencing to build suspense.

Let's check your understanding.

What should the vocabulary in your plan include? A, full sentences with capital letters and full stops.

B, vocabulary describing sensory details within the setting.

C, precise ideas for character speech.

D, vocabulary that shows and tells what Scrooge is feeling.

Pause the video and select the correct answers now.

The answers are B and D.

Well done.

Your plan should include vocabulary describing sensory details within the setting, and vocabulary that shows and tells what Scrooge is feeling.

It's now time for you to write the first part of your plan.

Fill in the plan for paragraph one of the build-up.

A summary for paragraph one is that Scrooge arrived home and was comforted at first.

Then, strange noises gradually began to fill him with feelings of unease.

Your notes need to include sensory details describing the setting and show and tell for Scrooge's feelings.

Pause the video and do the task now.

Welcome back.

I loved reading your notes for paragraph one, and seeing all of the precise and descriptive vocabulary you included.

Let's take a look at some of the examples I saw.

Dark and dreary residence, creaking door, comforted by the bleakness and silence, faint whispering sounds unnerved him, shiver ran down his spine, felt uneasy.

That final note, shiver ran down his spine, is a great example of show and tell.

It's now time for you to complete the second part of your plan.

Fill in the plan for paragraph two of the build-up.

A summary for paragraph two is, the sudden loud ringing of bells caused Scrooge panic and fear.

Then, the ghost of Jacob Marley arrived and spoke to him.

Your notes need to contain sensory details describing the setting and show and tell for Scrooge's feelings.

Pause the video and do the task now.

Welcome back.

You did a great job at planning paragraph two.

I really noticed how hard you concentrated on generating vocabulary that demonstrated the heightened suspense.

Let's take a look at some of the examples I saw.

Sharp tolling of bells, which grew louder, heart pounded, breath became rapid.

Great examples of show and tell.

Ghostly figure emerged, sternly warned Scrooge, trembled with fear, left shaken and full of dread.

These are just some of the wonderful examples I have seen in your plans.

Well done for completing your plan for the build-up of "A Christmas Carol." We've now come to the end of our lesson, so let's go over a summary together.

The build-up of "A Christmas Carol" creates an eerie atmosphere leading up to the ghost of Marley appearing.

A key feature of the build-up is the building of suspense for the reader.

The build-up will be written over two paragraphs where the suspense gradually increases.

The use of precise vocabulary describing a range of sensory details helps to convey an eerie atmosphere.

And the use of show and tell to describe Scrooge's experiences conveys his emotions and supports in building suspense.

Well done for all of your hard work.

I have really enjoyed teaching you this lesson and I'm excited for you to write the build-up of your narrative.