Hello, everybody.

My name is Ms. Afzal and I'm really, really pleased to be here with you today.

That's because we're going to be exploring a fantastic text.

It is a piece of historical fiction and it's called "Escape from Pompeii." This is what it looks like.

It's written and illustrated by Christina Balit.

What a talented person to do both of those things.

I'd like you to pause the video now while you go off and get your copy, 'cause you're going to need this text for our lesson today.

So I'll just pause here and admire this incredible front cover while you go and get your copy of the text.

Okay, so you're back, you've got your text.

Oh my goodness, look, I wonder if you have predictions about what's gonna happen in this text.

I wonder what you know already about this event, about Pompeii and Vesuvius, and I'm really excited for us to explore all of this together.

So, make sure you've got your thinking brain, your listening ears, your curiosity, your enthusiasm, your great ideas, your great skills and let's go for it.

Let's get into "Escape from Pompeii." The outcome for today's lesson is I can compare characterization across a text.

We have got some keywords in today's lesson.

Let's go through them, my turn, your turn.

Perspective.

Character trait.

Characterization.

Convey.

Fantastic, good to hear those words.

Let's find out more about them.

Perspective refers to the point-of-view or position from which the reader reads, influencing the way events or ideas are portrayed and understood.

Character traits are the special qualities that make a character in a story unique and interesting.

Characterization is the way an author and illustrator describes and develops the personalities and traits of the characters in a story.

To convey means to communicate a message directly or indirectly.

So let's make sure we look out for these words and let's find out what's involved in today's lesson.

Exploring characterization in "Escape from Pompeii." Well, we've got two things in today's lesson.

First of all, we'll be reading the text.

Next we'll be exploring characterization.

So first, the text.

Here it is, "Escape from Pompeii." It's written and illustrated by Christina Balit.

So what do we know so far? "Escape from Pompeii" is a historical fiction picturebook text.

It is based on the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD.

The afterword provides readers with lots of additional information and context about when and where the story is set.

There are two children on the front cover, who we will likely encounter as we read the text.

Let's take a look at this front cover.

There is so much going on there! And look at those two children and how they're feeling in that moment as they see what has happened to their beloved home.

So before we start reading, let's have a look at some words that we'll encounter in the opening few pages.

Tradesmen, these are skilled craftsmen who sell their goods.

Tavern, a place that sells food and drink.

Harbour, a sheltered body of water where ships dock.

Forum, a public gathering space.

Tremors, a shaking movement.

So here we can see the remains of a Roman tavern.

Looks really interesting, doesn't it? You can see maybe where people gathered and sat and spent time together.

And here is an artist's impression of the forum.

Again, really fascinating.

Look at the details in that image.

While reading, we might encounter a new or unfamiliar word.

There are a few strategies we can use to help us understand the meaning of the word.

I'm sure you probably use these strategies already, but let's go through them, just as a reminder.

You can look for a word within a word, for example, joy in enjoyment.

Love those words.

You could read around the word to look for other clues.

Remember, if it has a capital letter, it's the name of a place or a person.

You could identify the word class of the word.

You could replace the word with another word.

And you can use the illustrations to give you a clue, and we're very lucky with that as our text is a picturebook with so many amazing illustrations.

Check for understanding: which strategies can help when trying to uncover the meaning of new or unfamiliar words? Skipping the word entirely, if it has a capital letter it's the name of a place or a person, identify the word class of the word, not paying attention to the context of the sentence it is located in.

So pause the video while you decide which of these would be helpful strategies when trying to uncover the meaning of new or unfamiliar words.

Well done if you selected statements b and c.

So yeah, if it has a capital letter, then we know that it's going to be the name of a place or a person.

And we can also identify the word class of a word.

So is it a noun, an adjective, a verb, and so on.

Let's begin by reading the text.

We're introduced to Tranio, a young Roman boy who lives in Pompeii.

Read pages one to six, up to the mention of earthquakes, ending with the word "more." And then share with your partner one fact you know about Tranio from reading the first three double page spreads.

So pause the video here while you read pages one to six, and then share with your partner one fact about Tranio.

Okay, what did you come up with? So what fact did you share with your partner? Maybe something like this from Laura.

"Tranio's father was an actor who works in the theatre." And here's Jacob, "Tranio enjoys people watching, especially the stall holders and politicians." Yeah, I really enjoy that too, people watching.

I love sitting in the park, or sitting anywhere really, and just watching people going by.

I wonder if you like that too.

Tranio is friends with Livia, the daughter of one of Pompeii's bakers.

Pages 7 to 12 up to the description of the tremors affecting the scenery at the theatre, ending with the word "street." After this, I'd like you to answer this question: what are the names of the two games that Tranio wants Livia to join in with? So pause the video while you read pages 7 to 12, and then tell someone nearby the two games that Tranio wants Livia to join in with.

Okay, so what were those games? Well, here's Sam.

"The games that Tranio plays are called Jacks and Knucklebones." In Roman times, Jacks involved tossing and catching small bones or pebbles.

Knucklebones was another popular game, played with the ankle bones of sheep or goats.

Oh wow, that's quite something.

Check for understanding, true or false.

The text is written from Tranio's perspective.

Pause the video while you decide if this is true or false.

Well done if you selected true.

Now I'd like you to justify your answer.

The reader follows Tranio as he wanders around Pompeii.

The text follows his point-of-view.

The text is written in third-person perspective.

Pause the video while you decide which of these justifies your answer.

Well done if you selected the first statement.

Yes, indeed.

The reader is following Tranio as he wanders around the city and the text follows his point-of-view.

Tranio is worried something bad is happening.

He runs off to find Livia.

Read pages 13 to 18 up to the description of Pompeii being covered by pumice and ash, ending with the word "ground." And then I'd like you to refer to page 16.

Which location do the children head to to escape the dust? Pause the video while you read these pages and then especially refer to page 16 to help you answer the question: which location do the children head to to escape the dust? Pause the video here.

Okay, so where do the children head to? See what Jun has to say.

"Tranio and Livia run to the harbour.

They get onto a cargo ship and hide below a range of materials." Whoa, oh my goodness.

The two children witness the eruption of the volcano.

It explodes in a roar of fire and flames.

Read pages 19 to 22 up to the resolution of the story, ending with the word "hearts." And then I'd like you to answer these questions: how might Tranio and Livia be feeling at the end of the text and why? Pause the video while you read these pages and then answer these questions.

Share your answers with someone nearby.

Here's Izzy.

"I think Tranio and Livia might be thankful that they survived.

However, it is a sad ending, they lost lots of their friends and family." Yeah, thank you, Izzy, for sharing that.

It's a really, really intense ending.

Sure, they've survived, but they've lost so much.

If your observation can be backed up by evidence in the text, it's a good observation.

Check for understanding.

Who are the main characters in the text? Tranio, Dion, Livia.

Pause the video while you decide, who are the main characters in the text? Well done if you selected Tranio and Livia.

Although Dion is an important person to Tranio, the reader follows the story of the two children, so they are the main characters.

And now it's time for your task.

Having read the story, I'd like you to put the following events into chronological order.

So chronological means in time sequence.

Chronos, chrono means time, so order in which they occurred.

Tranio and Livia stand beneath an orange tree, remembering the city that they had once lived in; Tranio sprints to the bakery, he wants to check Livia is all right; Tranio watches goods being loaded onto the ships in the harbour; tremors rock the city, the buildings shake, props at the theatre fall to the stage; the sky fills with ash, darkening the sky.

So pause the video now while you put these events into chronological order.

Okay, good to be back with you.

Did you get them in this order? First of all, Tranio watches the goods being loaded.

Next, tremors rock the city.

Tranio sprints to the bakery to find Livia.

The sky fills with ash.

And then at the very end, Tranio and Livia, many years later, standing beneath the orange tree, remembering the city they once lived in.

Well done if you put the events in this order.

And now we're onto the next part of our lesson, exploring characterization.

What is characterization? Characterization is the way an author and illustrator describe and develop the personalities and traits of the characters in a story.

A trait is a quality or an aspect of a person that makes them special, it makes them different.

I wonder what traits you have, what are some of your particular traits, special traits? Authors and illustrators use a range of methods to convey characterization.

Convey means how they communicate something directly or indirectly.

So characterization could be conveyed through a character's appearance, a character's words, a character's actions, how a character is depicted, how they're shown.

So how might we describe Livia in "Escape from Pompeii"? We can use evidence from the text to support our understanding.

So pause the video here while you share with someone nearby some of the ways in which you would describe Livia.

What are some traits that she possesses? And use some evidence from the text to support your understanding, to support your ideas.

We could say she's playful.

She joins Tranio in playing Jacks and Knucklebones.

She's excited.

After the tremors, Livia's goat ran off.

She's unsure what's happening.

She's nervous.

The sky begins to darken.

Her facial expression looks worried as she notices the ash cloud.

And she's shocked.

She witnesses the devastation of the eruption from the boat.

Her hand is clasped close to her face.

Check her understanding, true or false.

Characterization can only be conveyed by an illustrator through the use of facial and bodily expressions.

Pause video while you decide if this is true or false.

Well done if you selected false.

And now I'd like you to justify your answer.

Characterization can be conveyed through the character's actions, alongside their dialogue, how they're depicted, and their appearance; or characterization can only be conveyed through what is written by an author.

Pause the video while you decide which is the best justification for your answer.

Well done if you selected the first statement.

Yes, indeed.

Characterization can be conveyed through so many different things, such as the character's actions, their dialogue, how they're depicted, and their appearance.

And now it's time for your next task where we'll be exploring the characterization of Tranio.

We'll be looking at Tranio at the beginning of the text and at the end of the text.

How does Tranio's characterization change from the beginning of "Escape from Pompeii" to the end? I'd like you to create a mind map, noting down Tranio's character traits and how they are conveyed, and use evidence from the text to support your answers, just as we did when we were exploring Livia's character.

You can use information from the words, illustrations, or a mixture of both.

So pause the video now while you create your mind map, noting down Tranio's character traits, how they're conveyed, and using evidence from the text to support your answers.

I'll see you when you're finished.

It's good to be back with you.

So how did you get on with this task, exploring the characterization of Tranio? So, Tranio at the beginning, he was curious.

Tranio enjoys watching the tradesmen in the streets of the city.

He's a people watcher.

He is brave.

When Tranio feels the tremors, he goes off in search of Livia to check that she's alright.

What about the end of the text? He's protective.

He has his arm around Livia when they're on the boat.

And he's reflective.

He lays flowers to remember the city buried beneath the ground and the people who perished.

Well done for exploring the characterization of Tranio and seeing the changes that he goes through from the beginning of the text to the end.

In our lesson today, exploring characterization in "Escape from Pompeii," we have covered the following: there are a range of strategies readers can use to help in understanding the meaning of new or unfamiliar vocabulary.

"Escape from Pompeii" is written from the perspective of Tranio, a young boy.

Characterization is the way an author and illustrator describe and develop the personalities and traits of the characters in a story.

Characterization can change over the course of a text's narrative.

Characterization can be conveyed through a character's appearance, their dialogue, and actions they perform in the text.

I'd like to say very well done to you today.

It was great spending time with you and I loved how you really got into exploring the characterization in "Escape from Pompeii." It was great to find out your views on Livia and her traits, and then especially to find out about Tranio and how he changes from the beginning to the end of this text with all that he goes through.

Such a life-changing event that he experienced.

So thank you for being here once again, and I'm really looking forward to seeing you at the next lesson.

Bye for now.