Hi there.

My name is Mr. Charlesworth, and in today's reading lesson, we're exploring a text, "A Journey Through Greek Myths." We're going to be discovering all about the Ancient Greeks and how they thought the world came to be.

I'm really looking forward to working with you today.

Let's get started.

The lesson outcome is, I can compare myths and reflect on their themes.

The keywords are, my turn, your turn, epilogue, afterword, theme, comparing, reflection.

Let's try those once more.

Epilogue, afterword, theme, comparing, and reflection.

Well done.

An epilogue is a final section in a text that provides closure to a story arc or narrative.

An afterword is located after the main content of the text.

It's a concluding section providing additional insights or reflections.

A theme is a big idea, topic or message that recurs within a story.

That means it repeats.

Comparing involves identifying similarities and differences between two or more things, ideas, themes or texts.

A reflection is a consideration and interpretation of a reading experience.

Don't worry if you're unsure about any of the keywords, we'll be exploring them throughout the lesson.

In this lesson, we're going to be exploring the themes of "A Journey Through Greek Myths" in more detail.

We'll first begin by exploring "Home at Last" and the afterword, before then moving on to comparing the themes across the myths that we've studied.

Let's begin by exploring the epilogue "Home at Last." Here's a quick recap about what we've learned from the text so far.

In the myth, "The Trojan Horse", we discovered that the ancient Greeks were involved in a 10-year war with the city of Troy.

Odysseus, a Greek soldier and hero of the myth, had an idea to get past the gates of Troy.

Well remembered, the walls of the city were built by Poseidon, which made it really challenging and difficult to get inside.

The Greek soldiers built a wooden horse, which they hid in.

They wheeled the gift to the gate and waited inside.

Believing the Greeks to have retreated, the Trojans brought the horse into the city.

The Greeks then attacked and finally captured Troy.

In our final lesson, exploring "A Journey Through Greek Myths," we'll be reflecting on our reading so far.

This is something that Little Owl and Night Owl are doing at the conclusion of the text.

This is sometimes called an epilogue.

Well noticed is one of our keywords.

We're going to have a read and explore this together now.

I'd like you to read page 160, pause the video now, whilst you do so.

well done, I'd like you to reflect on the following question.

How do you think Night Owl is feeling? Can you think of any evidence from the text that supports this? Refer back to the page if you need to for support.

Pause video now whilst you discuss the question with your partner.

Well done, there are a range of emotions that Night Owl might be feeling at this point.

Remember, throughout the whole text Night Owl and Little Owl have been exploring a wide range of different myths.

An example that you might have said might be, I think Night Owl is thoughtful.

He's remembering how his ancestor Wise Owl moved from Mount Pelion to Athens.

He might be feeling really proud of how the myths he has shared with Little Owl will carry on.

The epilogue in this text offers the reader an insight into Night Owl's reflection on myths and on his relationship with Little Owl.

Night Owl hopes that the myths that he's shared with Little Owl have imparted a lesson or moral to her.

A lesson or moral is a bit like giving values or instructions to a reader.

We're able to gain an understanding of what's right and wrong by reflecting on the myth.

I wonder, can you list the values and qualities that Night Owl would like little Owl to adopt? There's a clue in the text.

It gives you a short list.

Pause video now whilst you answer the question.

Well done, did you find this section in the epilogue? In it, Night Owl says that he hopes that the stories would teach Little Owl not to be arrogant, to keep her promises, to be kind to others and to stand up for injustice.

He follows this by saying that the most important message to Little Owl is that stories can turn even the most unlikely places into homes.

I wonder what Night Owl meant by this comment.

Perhaps it's the fact that stories can be a safe space for us to experience and learn about new things, or perhaps they're comforting too, like a home should be.

Here's our first check for understanding.

True or false? Little Owl will tell the myths exactly as her grandfather has told them to her.

Is that true or false? Refer back to the text if you need to for support.

Pause the video now whilst you decide.

Well done, it's false.

Now I'd like you to justify your answer.

Is it because A, Little Owl will tell the stories herself in her own way, each time they'll change, or B, Night Owl knew that the stories of the owls would always help guide Little Owl home.

Refer back to the original statement, which justification best fits? Pause video now whilst you decide.

While done, by referring to the text, I think the justification that best fits is A, because Night Owl says it doesn't matter if Little Owl changes the story, the lessons or morals and values that they impart stay the same.

We're now going to explore the afterword and afterword can be thought of as two separate words, after and word, it provides the reader with extra details, facts, or connections beyond the text.

Afterwords usually reflect real life situations that connect to the text and make it more relevant.

In this example, you'll see links that link to history as well as stories and other cultures.

I'd like you to read and explore this together now.

Read page 163.

Pause the video now whilst you do so.

Great work, did you learn something new? I certainly did.

I'd like you to reflect on the following question.

What did you learn from the reading? Perhaps it's a new fact that you didn't know before.

Pause the video now and share with your partner.

Well done, I love making connections beyond a text.

An example might have been, I enjoyed finding out about the owls' connections to Athens.

Owls can be seen on Athenian coins and vases, especially those won at games and used during festivals.

An example of one of the Athenian coins is in the bottom right hand corner.

I wonder if you can see some of the smaller details.

The text afterword connects reader's understanding of the two central characters to the wider world.

Some of these connections include the fact that owls symbolise intelligence with their bright eyes.

They're often considered a good omen.

That means good luck during warfare.

They're depicted as part of culture on coins and vases.

They play a key part in literature including poetry, and finally, owls had links to stories and also to the telling of secrets.

I wonder, can you think of any similar connections to owls in anything that you have seen, read or heard recently? Pause video now whilst you discuss the connections with your partner.

Great work, it made me connect to other texts which I read when I was younger, including "Harry Potter" and poetry by Edward Lear.

I wonder if you know which one I'm referring to, the owl's included in the title.

Here's our next check for understanding.

Which of the following are included in the afterword in "A Journey Through Greek Myths", is it a, Romans believe placing an owl's feather next to a sleeping person made people tell all their secrets.

B, owls are linked to environmental conservation efforts.

C, owls are used as symbols for education and learning.

They're associated with libraries and bookstores or D, Athenians believe seeing an owl on the battlefield meant that they would be victorious.

There may be more than one.

Pause video now whilst you decide.

Well done, there are two of these mentioned in the afterword, that's A and D.

Both B and C are also connections that can be made, but they're not referenced in the text.

In this task, we're going to explore these connections in more detail.

From reading the epilogue and the afterword, we're going to build our connections to "A Journey Through Greek Myths".

I'd like you to reflect on the three myths that we've read together.

That's "The Beginning of the World", "The Birth of Zeus" and "The Trojan Horse".

What did you learn from reading? What connections did you make? Which values or qualities did the myths convey to you? You can use the sentence stems. I have learned.

Because, or I connected with, because.

You can of course refer back to the text.

Pause the video now whilst you complete the task.

Great work, let's have a look at two possible examples which are reflecting on the myths that we've read.

Jin says, I have learned that sometimes intelligence is more valuable than physical strength because Odysseus's thinking in "The Trojan Horse" allowed the Greeks to succeed.

Sofia says, I connected with the myth, "The Beginning of the World" because it made me think about what I've learned in science about the start of our own universe, The Big Bang.

I wonder what your reflections and connections were too.

We're now going to look at comparing the themes that we find in Greek myths.

A theme is a big idea, topic or message that recurs within a story.

Well remembered, that means it repeats.

Within literature, authors use techniques to convey themes to their reader.

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

Here are some examples of themes that might be presented in both stories and myths.

There's friendship, family, love, courage, betrayal, good versus evil, death, protection, loneliness and survival.

I wonder if any of these link to the myths that we've studied already.

Identifying themes within a text involves inference.

Themes are not explicitly stated in the text.

That means we won't find them literally within the words, we need to think and read between the lines.

Authors commonly use repetition to convey themes to the reader.

You can identify themes through considering characters' actions and characteristics, identifying repetition, that's of actions, emotions or character traits.

Searching for deeper meaning using inference or considering the overall message of the text.

Identifying themes in a journey through Greek myths may be quite challenging as some myths don't directly relate to our own experience.

For example, Cronus in "The Birth of Zeus".

Do you remember what he did? Some of those characters will be very difficult to relate to.

However, it can be useful to focus on some of the key characters and heroes and the traits that they exhibit.

For example, Zeus.

Zeus demonstrates collaboration, working with his brothers and sisters to take down the Titans.

Odysseus demonstrates intelligence and shows that a thoughtful approach is better than an aggressive response.

Rhea in the myth "The Birth of Zeus", demonstrates resourcefulness, showing that you should reflect on what you have available to you and finally, Little Owl's interaction in the text demonstrates value of curiosity, helping you find out more about the wider world.

Characters can exhibit many different traits.

Therefore, there can be more than one theme in each myth.

This is just one way that you can identify themes and engage with them.

Here's our next check for understanding.

True or false? Themes are not explicitly stated in the text.

Is that true or false? Pause the video now whilst you decide.

Well done, they're not literally mentioned in the words, so it's true.

Now, I'd like you to justify your answer.

Is it because themes can be inferred through a character's actions and characteristics, as well as reflecting on repeated emotions, or B, some themes from Greek mythology may not directly relate to a reader's own experiences.

Which justification best links with the original statement? Pause the video now whilst you decide.

Well done, it's A, looking at a character's actions, characteristics as well as looking at repeated emotions can help us identify themes within myths.

It is true that some of the themes within Greek myths might not relate to our own experiences.

However, this doesn't link with the original statement.

When there are themes that are across a number of myths, we can compare common themes across them.

I wonder which themes are shared across the myths that we've read.

Some of the examples I picked out were collaboration, working as a team to achieve a common goal, promoting brains over brawn, showing that intelligence is more important than relying on physical strength and also the theme of resourcefulness.

Finding creative solutions to challenges, myths that we've explored may demonstrate some of these themes, all of them or none at all.

Here's our next check for understanding.

Can you match a possible theme to the correct definition? The themes are on the left hand side and the definitions on the right.

Have a read of both of these.

Then match them up.

Pause video now whilst you complete.

Great work.

Resourcefulness doesn't mean working together as a team or that intelligence is more important, so it must be finding creative solutions to challenges.

Having brains over brawn means that you're celebrating your thinking over your physical strength, so that must be, intelligence is more important than relying on physical strength.

Which means our final one, collaboration, means working as a team to achieve a common goal.

I know lots of myths which celebrate these themes, don't you? In this task, I'd like you to reflect on the themes contained within the text.

How do Marchella Ward and Sander Berg convey the themes of collaboration, resourcefulness and brains over brawn through the myths that we've read in "A Journey Through Greek Myths"? you might like to use the sentence stems, the theme of collaboration is shown when, I think the theme of resourcefulness is shown through, or I think that the theme of brains over brawn is shown when, reflect on the myths that we've studied with your partner.

Pause the video now whilst you discuss the three themes.

Well done, let's have a look at some possible examples.

You might have said that the theme of collaboration is shown when Zeus and his siblings have support from the Cyclopes to take down their father, Cronus.

For the theme of resourcefulness, you might have said that it's shown through Rhea's use of the rock to trick Cronus.

It's also shown in "Te Trojan Horse" through the soldier's use of wood from a nearby forest.

For the theme of brains over brawn, it's perhaps shown best when Odysseus thinks of his plan to sneak past the gates of Troy rather than just keep fighting.

I wonder if you reflected on the myths in the same way that I did.

Which themes stood out to you in which myth? In the second part of the task, I'd like you to choose two myths to compare with one another.

You can include your reflection on themes as well as your own personal response to the myth.

These will be unique as each reader is unique and has their own perspectives and background.

You can use the sentence stems, I compared, and, and I notice the themes are similar or different because.

For your personal reflection, here's a reminder of the myths we've read together.

There's "The Beginning of the World", "The Birth of Zeus" and "The Trojan Horse".

Pause the video now whilst you complete the task.

Great work, there are lots of ways that you can reflect on the themes and compare them with one another.

Here's just one example.

I compare the myths of "The Birth of Zeus" and "The Trojan Horse".

I noticed that both stories contained a theme of resourcefulness.

Rhea and Odysseus both had to think creatively in order to overcome challenges.

Rhea shows resourcefulness by protecting Zeus as a baby, hiding him in a cave in Crete.

Odysseus shows resourcefulness in presenting the Trojan horse as a gift.

He knows the Trojan people would likely be curious and bring it into their city.

I wonder which themes are most prominent in the myths that you compared.

Perhaps they were similar or different to mine.

In today's lesson, we've been exploring themes across a number of myths in "A Journey Through Greek Myths" from exploring the text, we know that the epilogue offers readers insight into characters' reflections on myths and their relationships with one another.

We've understood that the text afterword supports readers in making connections to the wider world.

We know that a theme is a big idea, topic or message that recurs within a story, and authors use this to convey deeper meaning.

To help identify themes and myths, readers can focus on key characters and the traits they exhibit.

Finally, comparing themes can help readers reflect on the moral message of myths or the lessons they learn from reading them.

I've really enjoyed exploring this text with you and look forward to working with you again soon.

Well done for all your hard work.