Hello everybody, it's really good to see you.

My name is Ms. Afzal and I'm really excited today because I will be sharing with you one of my very favourite books.

It is a graphic novel called "When Stars Are Scattered".

So I'm hoping you've all read the book and you are ready to go.

You've got your copy.

So I'm gonna pause for a moment and let you go and get your copy.

So hopefully your copy looks like this.

Look at that amazing cover and let's just pause here while you go off and find your copy.

Okay, we're all back.

We have our books.

We're ready to go.

Let's begin exploring this text.

The outcome for today's lesson is I can develop my own response to "When Stars Are Scattered".

There are a few key words that are coming up in today's lesson.

Let's go through them one at a time.

My turn.

Your turn.

Character trait, connection, recommendation.

Fantastic.

Great to hear those from you.

Let's find out a bit more about these words.

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

How a text relates to a reader, to another text, or to the wider world can be called a connection.

A recommendation is a suggestion for a text that is well suited to a reader's age and their interests.

So I'd like you to look out for these words, listen for them, think about these words and notice your responses to these words as we come across them in today's lesson.

So what are we doing in today's lesson? Well, we're doing two things.

We'll be exploring characters and relationships and then we'll be looking at connections and recommendations.

So first of all, characters and relationships.

So let's just remind ourselves about our text for today.

So there we can see the cover of "When Stars Are Scattered", which have been created by Victoria Jamieson and Omar Muhammad.

Amazing, amazing cover there.

And "When Stars Are Scattered" is a true story based on Omar Muhammad's own experiences in Dadaad Refugee Camp in Kenya.

The stories told in graphic novel form and illustrations play a crucial role in conveying the emotions, experiences, and challenges that Omar and his brother faced.

And we can see the image there on the right is a view, an aerial views that's from above actually of the refugee camp in Dadaad.

My first question for you today is who do you think are the main characters in "When Stars Are Scattered"? I'd like for you to turn someone nearby and share with them your answer to this question.

Pause the video while you do that.

Okay, good to be back with you.

I'm really curious, who do you think are the main characters? There are a number of them.

Let's get some responses.

Here's Alex, so what do you think Alex? "We read a text from Omar's perspective.

His brother, Hassan, and guardian, Fatuma.

are his family unit." Okay.

Yes, so really thinking about his close family there.

Thanks Alex.

What else? Here's Jun.

What do you think Jun? "One of Omar's best friends is Jeri.

At school he meets Maryam and Nimo." Yeah, of course friends are so important.

Thank you for that great comment.

And here's Sophia.

"There are also some important adults.

Salan, a community leader, and Susana a social worker." Yeah, so these were both people that were helping and supporting Omar, Hassan and others in the refugee camp.

Great responses.

Thank you.

So Omar has to fend for himself.

He has to do a lot of things that many readers would expect of an adult.

How would you describe be Omar at the beginning of the text, in the middle, and at the end? What character traits and emotions does he exhibit? Remember that word, one of our keywords, character traits, is these unique qualities that make a person interesting.

Make them who they are.

Pause the video while you reflect on these questions.

So how would you describe Omar at different parts of the text? And what are some of the character traits and emotions he exhibits? Turn to someone nearby and share.

Okay, it's good to be back with you.

And I'm wondering what did you come up with? Let's have a look at some ideas here.

Omar.

So Omar is caring.

I wonder if you came up with that one.

Who got that? Okay, interesting.

Yeah.

And he looks after Hassan and entertains him.

Maybe you'd like to take a copy of your book and have a look on page 16-17 examples there.

Omar is independent.

He collects rations from the food distribution centre and we've got examples there, pages 63 to 68.

Omar can't help but you are jealous at Adbikarim's positive news, page 139.

Yeah, it's a range of emotions, a range of traits.

One more, Omar feels optimistic at what lies ahead of him, page 257.

That's a lovely word.

Optimistic.

When we're feeling positive, when we're feeling bright about the future.

Hopeful for the future.

I wonder if you've got any of these traits or emotions.

Jealous, optimistic, caring, independent or maybe you came up with some others.

Well done for exploring Omar's character traits.

Check for understanding true or false.

Omar wants to become a social worker.

Refer to pages 121 to 123 to support you.

Pause the video while you decide.

Well done, if you selected true.

It is true.

That's his ambition.

He would like to become a social worker and support other refugees.

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

Which of the following statements best fits with the original statement, Omar wanting to become a social worker? So is it A, Omar thinks United Nations social workers are helpful? They look after members of his community that are unwell or underfed.

Or is it B, Omar wants to become a teacher? Teachers can inspire others and provide hope for students.

Pause the video while you decide.

Well done if you selected A.

Yeah, that statement really links to the original one of Omar wanting to become a social worker.

And if we look at statement B, actually, did Omar want to become a teacher or was it somebody else? I wonder if you can remember.

Who was it? Yes, it was his friend Jeri.

Well done for answering that extra, little bonus question there.

Another thing that really stands out in this text about Omar is his strong bond with his brother.

It's one of the core relationships in "When Stars are Scattered".

The two boys are practically inseparable.

So practically inseparable means you can barely separate them.

They're just so close together.

I wonder if you've ever had a relationship where you felt practically inseparable or if you've known anybody that has a practically inseparable relationship.

Next, I'd like you to reread pages 50 to 51.

And there are lots of incidents like this which show how much the brothers care for one another.

So I'll pause the video here while you read those pages.

So having read those pages now I'd like to ask you, what does Omar do to show that he cares for Hassan? And what does Hassan do to show that he cares for Omar? Pause the video here while you reflect on those questions and share with someone nearby.

Oh, I'm curious to know what you came up with there for those two questions.

Here are some responses.

Omar writes in the sand to teach Hassan what he has learned.

Hassan sits closely by, watching and listening.

Yeah, I think this is so lovely.

Omar really values his education so much and it's so lovely the way he's sharing this with Hassan.

How about the other way around? How's Hassan caring for Omar? Hassan waits for his brother after school.

He runs up to him and gives him a hug.

He's missed him.

So lovely, all that love and care he shows with his brother.

Now I'd like you to refer to page 88.

Why do you think Omar was surprised by his brother? What was it about Hassan that surprised him? And you can begin your sentence with, I think.

because.

Pause the video while you look this up and then answer this question.

I wonder what you came up with.

Here's a response from Lucas.

"I think Omar is surprised because he notices a new trait in his brother.

Hassan is shown as caring and plays with Maryam's younger siblings.

They appreciate him." So lovely, thanks for that Lucas.

And here's Izzy, what do you think Izzy? "I think perhaps Omar was overly cautious about introducing new people to Hassan due to his complex needs.

In Omar's authors note he mentioned that Hassan now looks after his own children." Oh yeah.

That's so lovely.

Thank you for that reminder.

That's really great, Izzy.

I wonder if you came up with answers similar to these or maybe something different.

Check for understanding, true or false? Omar cannot understand Hassan.

Refer to page 17 for support.

Pause the video while you look up this page and decide whether the statement is true or false.

Well done if you selected false, that's not true at all.

Omar absolutely can understand Hassan.

And I'd like you to justify your answer.

Did you choose false because Hassan's only word uttered throughout the text is "Hooyo"? Or is it that Omar makes sense of the noises that Hassan makes to communicate with him? Pause the video while you decide? Well done if you selected B.

Absolutely.

Omar really tunes into and makes sense of the noises, the vocalisation that Hassan makes to communicate with him.

Throughout the text, Omar picks up on the inequality between what life is like for boys and girls at Dadaad.

So inequality means when things are not equal, they're not balanced, they're not equal.

Refer to pages 54 to 56 and then answer the following question, what differences does Omar notice between boys and girls? So pause the video now while you refer to those pages and then talk to someone nearby about your responses to this question.

I wonder what you came up with, anything like this? Maryam is due to be married.

Omar does not know anyone else's age getting married.

Omar notices that girls had to collect water and watch over siblings.

Most were not at school at all.

They stayed home to do chores.

Omar recognises the amount of work that Nimo, Maryam and the other girls have to do.

Whereas boys are able to play a lot more.

I wonder if you notice these things.

On page 105, Omar comes to the realisation of how unfair life can be for himself and others.

He gains a wider understanding of life in the camp and the wider world through discussion with Nimo's mother.

I'd like you to refer to page 105.

Read through that and then talk to someone nearby about this question.

Why do you think Nemo's mother says that there are people in the world less fortunate than them? So fortunate means lucky or to have good fortune, to have good luck.

Pause the video while you read that page and talk to someone about this question.

I wonder what responses you came up with.

Maybe something like this.

Here's Jacob.

"Maybe Nimo's mother is thinking about other refugees who are displaced and have no support, help or community." Yeah, really good point, Jacob.

Perhaps you would like to find out more about charities that help and support refugees.

I know that's something that I really thought about after reading this book.

Check for understanding.

I'd like you now to refer to pages 106 and 107.

Which of the following reasons does Maryam give to Omar to stay at school? A, if she were a boy, Maryam knows she could have the opportunity to resettle her family in Canada.

B, Omar is intelligent and kind and has a chance to help other refugees.

C, other people in the A2 block would help Hassan if he were in trouble.

Or D, Omar can go back to school once Hassan has recovered.

There may be more than one reason.

Pause the video here and discuss with someone nearby.

Which do you think are the reasons that Maryam gives to Omar to stay at school? Well done if you selected these ones.

Omar's intelligent and kind and has a chance to help other refugees and other people in the book would help Hassan if he were in trouble.

When reflecting on a text as a whole, we can consider characters, their thoughts, feelings, and actions and relate them to our own.

So for your task, I'd like to consider the following questions.

Do you think Omar made the right choice by leaving Hassan and going to school? Is education important, particularly for children who have bigger problems, such as food and shelter, to worry about? So discuss these questions with your partner and perhaps make a list of reasons for going to school or reasons to stay home and support Hassan.

Share your response with a larger group or with the whole class.

And you could use sentence starters such as; I think Omar should.

And then give your reasons because.

Pause the video now and have a go answering this question.

Okay, so here are our questions.

Do you think Omar made the right choice by leaving Hassan and going school? And is education important, particularly for children who have bigger problems such as food and shelter to worry about? I'm wondering what you came up with.

I'm really, really interested.

Did you have something like this to say? I think Omar should go to school.

Maryam says he's bright and has a chance to succeed.

Gaining an education is very important as it can help improve your life chances.

Or maybe you took a different opinion.

I think Omar should stay at home to look after his brother.

Not everyone is aware of Hassan's complex needs and may not know how to care for him.

I hope you were able to listen carefully to each other, whether you had the same idea or different responses.

And now let's move on to connections and recommendations.

Connections are ways in which you can connect, connect personally with a text.

The way that one reader connects might be different to another based on their life experiences.

And there are three ways in particular in which we can make connections to text.

So connections can be from text-to-self, text-to-text, or text-to-the world.

So text-to-self is when the content of the text relates to personal experiences, feelings, thoughts.

Text-to-text is when the content of the text relates to another text.

And that could be anything that we've either seen, read, watched, or heard.

And in text-to-the world is when the content relates to events and issues in the real world.

Connections can also relate to patterns that you spot when reading.

So the connections that I make to the text are to Omar's Charity, Refugee Strong, to the picture book "The Journey", which is based on refugee journeys across Europe and to the picture book "Migrations", which combines postcard messages and thought provoking artwork.

And now how about you? Which connections do you make to the text? Do you have any text-to-self connections? Do you have any text-to-text connections? Or indeed text-to-world connections? Pause the video while you're reflect on this.

I'm really curious.

I wonder what you came up with.

Making connections and recommendations can significantly enhance the reading experience and broaden our understanding of literature.

So here are some recommendations based on the themes, form and connections in "When Stars Are Scattered".

So let's go into these five texts in a little bit more detail.

Let's start with this text.

"Who are refugees and migrants? What makes people leave their homes? And other big questions." This is a non-fiction text which explores the history of refugees and migration around the world and the effects on people.

Then we've got "Azzi in Between." This is a picture book text drawn from the author's own experience of working with refugee families.

Next up is "Front Desk", love this book.

Follows Mia Tang.

It's a novel.

And in this novel, Mia Tang is an immigrant who's moved from China to the United States.

It's a very moving and engaging novel.

And then we have "Drawn Across Borders".

George Butler captures life on the front lines through portraits of people affected by war and displacement.

Displacement is when we can no longer stay in our home.

We are displaced, we are moved from our home.

And then there's "Illegal", another graphic novel.

And this text depicts a boy's epic journey across Africa to Europe as he seeks a new place to live and reunion with his family.

So five amazing texts there and quite a variety.

Now let's think about recommendations, when we're thinking about which text suits a person's age and interests.

So which one would you recommend for Aisha? So Aisha says, "I'd like to find out more about the different reasons refugees might flee their home country." Pause the video, while you decide which of these two would be a good recommendation for Aisha.

Well done if you selected A.

Yes, I think that would be the one for Aisha.

And why do you think this would make such a good recommendation? Perhaps just have a little reflect on that as well.

For your next task, I would like you to research one of the recommended texts and discuss with your partner, which one would you like to read and do you have a text that you'd like to recommend to others and why? What is it about that text? So here are those five texts again.

So which one would you like to read? And then also share with your partner, do you have a text that you'd like to recommend and why? Pause the video here.

I wonder which one you went for.

Oh, here's Sam.

What did you think, Sam? "I want to find out more about a range of experiences.

"Front Desk" is based on the author's experience immigrating to the United States." Yeah, I think that would be a great choice for you in that case, Sam.

And how about Andy? "I'm really interested to find out more about "Drawn Across Borders" as it focuses on true stories accompanied by George Butler's pen, ink and watercolour artwork." Good choice, well done.

In our lesson developing responses to "When Stars Are Scattered" through rich discussions, we've covered the following.

Character traits can be explored through the text illustrations or words used by the characters.

When reflecting on a text as a whole, we can consider characters, their thoughts, feelings, and actions, and relate them to our own.

Connections are ways in which you connect personally with the text.

The way that one reader connects might be different to another based on their own life experiences.

Connections can be from text-to-self, text-to-text, or text-to-the world.

Making connections and recommendations can significantly enhance the reading experience and broaden the reader's understanding of literature.

I like to say well done everyone for joining in with this lesson and sharing your ideas, your connections, your recommendations, and all of your thoughts and reflections on this text.

On this very, very rich and wonderful, inspiring moving text.

It was great to be with you and I'll see you again soon.

Bye for now.