Lesson video

Hello, everyone.

My name is Mr. Brown and I will be your teacher for today's English lesson.

And today we're going to be generating vocabulary to describe the setting in "The Viewer." So for this lesson, you'll need a copy of "The Viewer" by Gary Crew.

Pause the video and go and get your copy now.

And welcome back.

Now, that you have your copy of "The Viewer," let's start generating vocabulary to describe the setting.

Let's get started.

The outcome for today's lesson is I can generate vocabulary to describe a setting in "The Viewer." The keywords we will use are setting, atmosphere, noun, figurative language, and personification.

Let's say this together.

My turn and then your turn.

Setting, atmosphere, noun, figurative language, and personification.

Excellent.

Well done.

Let's look at the keywords definition.

So a setting is where or when a story takes place.

Atmosphere involves how a writer constructs their writing to convey emotions and mood to the reader.

A noun is a naming word for people, places or things.

Figurative language is the use of metaphor, simile and personification to paint vivid pictures for the reader.

And personification in particular, well, that is a linguistic device that compares non-human objects to human characteristics to create vivid imagery.

There's an outline.

We will start by generating descriptive vocabulary, and then we'll move on to focusing on just personification.

In today's lesson, we will be generating descriptive vocabulary to describe a setting from "The Viewer." Now, a setting is where or when a story takes place.

We want to create a detailed and clear picture of the setting for the reader.

And we do this through using lots of precise description.

We also want the description to build a suitable atmosphere for the setting.

Now, atmosphere involves how a writer constructs their writing to convey emotions and mood to the reader.

So we are trying to paint a very vivid, detailed picture for our reader, and also at the same time, create an atmosphere that works for the story that we are telling.

Let's check our understanding.

How do we create a detailed and clear picture of the setting for our reader? Is it a, do we use lots precise description.

Is it b, build a suitable atmosphere.

Or is it c, use lots of conjunctions.

A, B, C, or maybe two of these answers are correct.

Pause the video and decide what do you think are the right answers now.

Welcome back.

Okay, let's see if you manage to find the right answers.

I can tell you now there are two correct answers.

So if you've only got one, this might be your last chance to pause the video and find the other correct answer.

Because we're going to reveal the correct answers are A and B.

Use lots of precise description and build a suitable atmosphere.

Not to use lots of conjunctions.

We may use lots of conjunctions, but that won't help us to be able to create a detailed and clear picture of the setting for our reader.

Now the front cover sets the tone for the atmosphere and mood of a book.

And here, as you can see, is the front cover of "The Viewer," by Gary Crew and illustrated by Shaun Tan.

What atmosphere is created by the front cover of "The Viewer?" Hmm, look closely.

What atmosphere is created by just it's front cover? Why don't you have a discussion with your partner? Pause the video and talk about what atmosphere you think is created by the front cover of "The Viewer" and why? Off you go.

Welcome back.

Okay.

So what atmosphere do we want to create in "The Viewer"? Because maybe that will match the atmosphere that is created by that front cover we've just looked at.

Use these different atmospheres to help you to decide.

So I've listed six different atmospheres that different various stories might evolve.

We've got peaceful, mysterious, eerie, suspenseful, joyful, and tense.

Your job is to decide, do any of these atmospheres, and it could be more than one.

Do any of these atmospheres fit "The Viewer?" Hmm, what do you think? Take a moment.

You can pause the video if you would like to take a bit longer.

So I believe that out of these six atmospheres, mysterious, eerie, suspenseful, and tense, all fit the atmosphere that we are trying to create in "The Viewer." The atmosphere that's reflected by that front cover.

To create an atmosphere like this in our writing, we need to carefully select the vocabulary we use in our descriptions.

Let's look closely at what atmosphere we are trying to create.

So we said that it's a mysterious atmosphere.

Now, mysterious means having a sense of strangeness or secrecy.

Everything is not clear.

There is a real feeling in "The Viewer" that there might be something that the reader doesn't know about that's going on.

Something that perhaps even the writer isn't telling us.

That's a mysterious feeling to have.

Eerie, creating a sense of discomfort, unease or fear.

Well, certainly the ending of "The Viewer" does that.

Definitely, but I think throughout there is an eeriness to it.

We don't know about this viewing object that's found in the box.

We don't know the images that are being shown to Tristan.

We don't know whether these images are from this world, whether it's something else.

It is very eerie.

Suspenseful, a state of anticipation or uncertainty.

Well, there is lots of this throughout "The Viewer." We can think of several moments during the story when Tristan doesn't know what is going to happen next.

And we as the reader do not know what is going to happen next.

And tense, a state of anxiety and potential imminent danger.

Absolutely.

Tristan takes home this strange object he finds at the rubbish dump.

Takes out this viewing piece of equipment and uses it and sees all these different things that are very unusual, and strange, and frightening.

This definitely creates a sense of anxiety, of potential imminent danger.

Now, which of these descriptions creates the atmosphere that we are looking for? I'm going to show you two descriptions now, and I would like you to tell me which of these creates the atmosphere that we are looking for.

So they're both describing the same thing.

The busy, color-filled dump stretched out like a treasure trove of possibilities.

Really nice description of the dump.

How about this one? The chaotic, shadowy dump lay motionless like a graveyard of discarded, lonely objects.

So they are both describing the dump.

They are both very vivid, interesting descriptions, but which one fits our atmosphere? Which one fits the atmosphere that we are trying to create? Have a think.

Is it the busy, color-filled dump or the chaotic, shadowy dump? Well, well done if you said the second one.

The chaotic, shadowy dump lay motionless like a graveyard.

So the first one says like a treasure trove, whereas this is like a graveyard.

We are describing it in a way that's going to fit that mysterious, eerie, suspenseful and tense atmosphere.

Let's check our understanding.

Which of these atmospheres does not fit with our setting description of "The Viewer"? Is it a, mysterious.

B, eerie.

Or C, festive.

Which of these atmospheres does not fit with our setting description? Pause the video and decide what you think is the correct answer now.

Welcome back.

Okay, let's see if you found the correct answer.

So well done if you said C, festive, so festive.

A festive atmosphere is something that makes us think of Christmas, and happiness, and family time, and that's very different to the atmosphere that we are creating in "The Viewer." So well done if you said, C.

When we are describing a setting, we use lots of expanded noun phrases.

Now an expanded noun phrase is a group of words with no verb that adds detail to a noun.

Here are some examples.

Chaotic, shadowy dump.

And you can see there is a comma separating the two adjectives in this expanded noun phrase.

The car with twisted tyres.

The machine in the corner.

The amber, ominous sky.

Now the setting we are describing in the opening of "The Viewer" is the dump.

Look at pages three and four, and these pages contain a detailed image of the dump.

To begin describing this setting, we first need to decide what are the most important nouns within the setting.

These will be the nouns we'll include in our setting description.

Now remember, you can't describe everything, so choose wisely.

The nouns that you will most likely want to include in your description are, the sky, factories, a car, machinery.

These are some examples of some of the nouns in our setting that we will want to include.

You will notice that we haven't included Tristan, the boy on this list, and this is because he is a character rather than part of the setting.

So we'll describe him separately.

Now, once you've generated those list, the list of nouns that you're going to describe, you now need to generate adjectives to describe each noun.

Now keep in mind the eerie, mysterious, and tense atmosphere we want to create.

So what adjectives would you use to describe the sky? The factories, the car, the machinery? I would like you now to work with a partner and come up with two adjectives to describe each of these nouns.

Two adjectives for the sky, two for the factories, two for car, and two for machinery.

And remember, those adjectives need to help us create that eerie, mysterious, and tense atmosphere.

So you may not use, for example, the adjective, beautiful to describe the sky.

Now it is quite a beautiful evening, sunset sky, isn't it? But that doesn't fit our particular atmosphere.

So pause the video and work with a partner to come up with two adjectives to describe each noun now.

Welcome back.

How did you find that? Let's take a look at some examples.

So for sky, we've got amber, murky, ominous, cloud-scattered and smoke-filled.

Factories, tall, dark, grimy, smoky, dreary, noisy.

Again, all of these adjectives are contributing to that atmosphere.

The car, dented, mangled, crumpled, twisted and smashed.

And the machinery is rusted, faulty, broken, eroded, creaky, discarded.

I wonder if you had any of these adjectives when you were generating.

To add further depth and detail to your description, you can describe the nouns within the noun.

Now, every single noun you look at will have nouns within it.

For example, the shirt that I'm wearing.

I could describe it as a shirt, but I could also describe the collar, or the sleeves, or the buttons.

These are all nouns within the noun.

So the nouns within sky would be clouds, birds, sun, smoke.

The nouns within the car would be windows, tyres, paint, seats.

The car is a noun, but these are also nouns.

For example, the amber, ominous sky, which was shrouded by thick, choking smoke.

So I have described the sky as amber and ominous.

And then I have added a little bit more detail about the noun within the noun, using the shrouded by thick, choking smoke, so I've described the smoke as well.

A dented, mangled car.

That could be a description of a car, but then adding more detail, with torn, twisted tyres.

Which of these nouns could be considered a noun within the noun, pocket watch.

So if you look very closely, you will see a pocket watch in the setting.

Now, if I was describing that pocket watch, there are nouns within the noun pocket watch.

Is it a, seat.

B, speaker.

Or C, hands.

Pause the video and decide now.

Welcome back.

So a pocket watch, does it have a seat? No.

Does it have a speaker? No, but it does have hands.

So well done if you said C.

The hands on the watch that move, they are nouns within the noun.

So for a practise task, I would like you to complete the table to create your own list of important nouns to describe from the setting and then generate adjectives to describe each one.

So I've started you off with sky, factories, car, but you can generate more nouns if you want to, and then generate adjectives to describe those.

And remember, they should be adjectives which fit our atmosphere.

To go even deeper on this task, I would like you to write a list of nouns within the nouns that you will also use in your descriptive writing, just like we looked at previously.

Okay, it's over to you now.

Pause the video and complete this task now.

And welcome back.

Let's take a look at some example answers.

So for sky, we had amber, murky, ominous, cloud-scattered, smoke-field.

I wonder if you were able to add any more to these.

So for factories, tall, dark, grimy, smoky, dreary, and noisy.

The car was dented, mangled, crumpled, twisted and smashed.

And the machinery, there was lots of machinery all over the setting.

Rusted, faulty, broken, eroded, creaky and discarded.

And then nouns within the nouns.

Obviously in sky we've got clouds, birds, the sun, smoke.

And the factories, you've got chimneys, windows, and towers.

Well done if you manage to include any of these when generating your descriptive vocabulary.

Let's move on to personification.

Throughout our setting and character description, we will use a range of figurative language to hook the reader in and build atmosphere.

Literary devices that create figurative language include metaphors, personification, and similes.

We could also use literary devices such as alliteration and repetition to further create atmosphere in our writing.

Comparing non-human objects to human characteristics creates vivid imagery and makes our writing more engaging and exciting to read.

When we do this, it's called personification.

Personification creates vivid imagery by describing non-human objects as if they are people, describing non-human objects as if they have feelings.

Now, using personification helps to bring settings to life.

When we use it as part of a setting description, examples of personification can also help to set the atmosphere of a scene.

Let's check your understanding on that.

Personification creates vivid imagery by, a, using words that start with the same sound.

B, describing objects as if they are people and have feelings.

Or C, repeating words and phrases.

Pause the video and decide what do you think is the correct answer now.

Welcome back.

Okay, so personification creates vivid imagery by, describing objects as if they are people and have feelings.

Well done if you said B.

Using words that start with the same sound, well that's alliteration.

And repeating words and phrases is repetition.

Let's look at an example of personification.

The dark, dreary factories loomed ominously over the cluttered dump.

In this example, loomed ominously is something that a human might do.

It has negative connotations and conjures up images of an angry adult towering over a small child, perhaps to tell them off.

Now this creates a sense of tension in the atmosphere, which is what we are trying to achieve.

That negative feeling and the imagery that loomed ominously creates in my head, fits with how I want those factories to appear in my setting.

I want the factories to feel like they are looming over Tristan in an almost threatening, negative way.

And loomed ominously does that.

Look at pages three and four.

These pages contain a detailed image of the dump.

To generate language to use as personification, you first must decide which non-human objects, so the nouns you want to describe as human.

Again, there should be nouns that you will include in your description.

So this time, instead of adjectives to describe each noun, you'll generate verbs to say what's that noun he's doing in the scene? And remember, those verbs should be things that a human might do.

So look closely at pages three and four.

Look at that image of the dump.

Which nouns are you going to describe using personification? Pause the video if you want to have a closer look at that image now.

Welcome back.

Okay.

Let's have a look.

So I would like you to come up with two verbs to describe each noun using personification.

So hopefully, you've had a look through the setting and decided which nouns you think would suit to be described using personification.

I've chosen sky, factories and smoke.

Now your job now is to create verbs.

Now the verbs should be things that a human might do and should support in creating a tense, eerie atmosphere.

So we need to describe the sky as doing something that a human might do.

The factories, the smoke, exactly the same.

I'm just going to show you the examples on sky.

So I've gone for stretched, like a human might stretch out in the morning when they wake up.

Hovered, you might hover around someone.

So just keep hovering around them, not moving away, just hanging around.

Lurked is similar, but a bit more negative, has negative connotations.

If you're lurking around someone, it's probably because you are hanging around them to perhaps do something negative or for negative reasons.

And glared.

Now glare is like an angry stare.

If you glare at someone, which will just glare at me now, I'll glare back at you.

Yes, it's an angry stare.

Okay, so these are all things that a human might do.

And I'm saying the sky stretched, hovered, lurked, glared.

At the moment I'm generating.

So these are ones that I might use in my writing.

Okay, I'd like you to pause the video and with a partner, come up with two verbs each for factories and smoke.

And if you can add any more to sky, well, that would be brilliant too.

Pause the video and have a go now.

Welcome back.

Okay, so let's take a look for factories.

How about loomed? So loomed is when something tall or someone tall is towering over someone in a negative way.

Loomed has negative connotations.

Towered.

Coughed.

Of course, a cough is not a good thing.

Spluttered similar to a cough.

Smoke, marched, crept, reached, strode.

Okay, let's look at how we're going to use those.

So I would like you now to come up with two adverbs to describe how each verb was done.

So we've created verbs or generated verbs.

Now it's time to generate some adverbs that we can use.

So we've said that the sky stretched, hovered, lurked and glared, but how did it do those things? Because that's what an adverb will do.

It will tell you how a verb was done.

So pause the video and see if you can generate two adverbs to describe how each of these verbs were done.

Pause the video and do this now.

Welcome back.

Okay, I just want to show you my examples for sky, and then I want to remind you about this.

Remember, the adverbs should also exactly the same as the verbs contribute to creating the atmosphere we will require.

So have a look at the adverbs you've generated so far.

Do they contribute to that atmosphere? If they don't, they need to be edited, improved, replaced.

Let's look at the ones that I've generated for the sky.

So I've got the sky, I said it stretched, hovered, lurked and glared and the adverbs, menacingly and gloomily.

So I would put that together by saying, the sky menacingly stretched above the rubbish dump.

Or the sky gloomily glared down over the land.

Now, I would like you to pause the video again, and just check the adverbs you've generated for factories and smoke that they fit the atmosphere, and the ones for sky too, you may need to edit that too.

Okay, pause the video and have another look at your adverbs now.

Welcome back.

Okay, let me show you the other examples that I came up with.

So for factories, ominously, and authoritatively.

So ominously means when something.

When you're worried about something bad is about to happen.

So it's ominous.

You might look up at a grey sky and think, "Oh, that looks a bit ominous," because it might be about to rain.

Authoritatively.

Authoritatively when someone is in charge.

So they are commanding over you, and that's what the factories will be doing, certainly towards Tristan.

The smoke.

I've gone for slowly and threateningly.

So we said about the smoke, marching, creeping, reached, strode.

And I thought threateningly so it's with threat and sometimes slowly works.

So slowly marched across the sky.

The smoke crept slowly across the sun.

That would help to create that atmosphere we're looking for.

Again, let's check your understanding.

Which of these is an example of personification? Is it a, smoke billowed steadily across the sky.

B, smoke floated gently across the sky.

C, smoke strode threateningly across the sky.

Which is an example of personification.

Which example is something that a human could do? And which example is the smoke being described as if it is a person and has feelings? Okay, pause the video and decide what do you think the correct answer is now? Welcome back.

Okay, congratulations if you said, C.

Strode is a way of walking and threateningly.

Well, an object can't threaten you, it can't threateningly do anything because it doesn't have feelings, but it does if you're describing it using personification.

So well done if you said C.

Time for a practise task.

I'd like you to use the table to complete the sentences below to create personification using verbs and adverbs.

So here's the table that we've generated in our lesson so far.

An amber, cloud-scattered sky something, something over the cluttered dump.

Mm, what did it do? Tall, dreary factories something, something, thick, black smoke into the air.

Your job, fill in those blanks with verbs and adverbs that create personification.

Pause the video and complete this task now.

Welcome back.

I am so excited to see how you got on.

Let's have a look at my examples.

An amber, cloud-scattered sky hovered menacingly over the cluttered dump.

And tall, dreary factories ominously coughed thick, black smoke into the air.

Now you might have created different verb and adverb combinations, and that's absolutely fine because everything that you've created will hopefully, because it's from this table, fit towards the atmosphere that we're creating.

We just want to check that they work together.

So for example, coughed, you might say, tall, dreary factories authoritatively coughed? I'm not sure if you can authoritatively cough.

But ominously coughed, well, that's definitely something you can do.

So you just need to read through and check that your combinations work.

Well done.

Let's summarise the learning we've done today.

A setting is where or when a story takes place.

Atmosphere involves how a writer constructs their writing to convey emotions and mood to the reader.

The atmosphere in the setting of "The Viewer" is eerie, mysterious, and tense.

We can use expanded noun phrases to add detail and description to a noun.

Personification involves describing non-human objects as human to create vivid imagery.

Well done.

Superb work today.

I will see you again very soon.