Hello, everyone, and welcome to this lesson, considering and analysing the use of anecdotes in a non-fiction text.

My name's Dr.

Clayton, I'm here to guide you through your learning here today.

Now, today's lesson is all about anecdotes.

And an anecdote is a short narrative story used in part of your writing to communicate and connect with the audience.

So we're gonna spend a little bit of time reading and responding to the focus article of today's lesson, to begin to understand what the writer's trying to communicate to us as the audience.

Then we're gonna think about why they might use anecdotes to communicate that to us, and then analyse what they're trying to tell us through their use of anecdotes.

So if you're ready, grab your pen, laptop, whatever you're using for this lesson and let's get started.

So by the end of the lesson, you'll be able to identify and analyse the use of anecdotes for effect in a non-fiction text.

So we have four words today we're gonna be focusing on as our keywords.

They're identified in bold throughout the learning material, and I'll try to point to you as well so you can see them being used in context.

Our first keyword is personal essay, which means an autobiographical essay that relates to a significant personal experience of the essay writer.

The text we're looking at today is a personal essay.

We're going to think about what the writer's trying to tell us through sharing their experience with us.

Our second keyword is anecdote, which means a usually short narrative of an interesting, amusing or biographical incident.

Today's lesson is all about anecdotes.

We're gonna think about why a writer might choose to use anecdotes in their writing, as well as specifically analysing the anecdotes in the personal essay, considering what they reveal to us.

Our third keyword is elicit, which means to evoke or draw out a reaction, answer or fact from someone.

This is terminology that's particularly useful in writing about anecdotes because they're designed to create an emotional response in the reader.

So we might talk about them as eliciting that reaction.

Finally, our fourth keyword is sympathetic, which means characterised by feeling or showing sympathy, understanding.

We're gonna be thinking specifically about how anecdotes might create this sympathetic response.

So I'll just give you a moment to write down those keywords and their definitions.

So pause the video, write them down now.

Fantastic, let's get started with the lesson.

So we have two learning cycles in the lessons today.

Our first learning cycle, we're gonna spend some time thinking about how we might respond to a personal essay.

Because I really want to focus on how and why the writer is trying to create an emotional reaction in the reader throughout this lesson.

Then for our second learning cycle, we're going to consider what anecdotes Reedy is used in order to provoke an emotional reaction.

Then we're gonna analyse what emotions they create in the reader and why.

So as I said, we're gonna spend some time at the beginning of this lesson thinking about how we respond to the article.

So today we're gonna be considering Cara Reedy's, "My life as a little person." Now this is an opportunity to practise how we might approach a text for the first time.

When a approaching a text, we might ask the following questions, who is the writer, when was the text written, what genre is it? So for that to mean what type of text is it, is it a letter, an article, or a speech for example? What can we predict about the text based on the title? Who's the audience and where is it published? Now I always like to approach text with questions, 'cause I think it gives you an easy way to get into the text.

If you don't have all of the answers, you can still start to form an opinion of the text based on some of the answers you have.

So what I'd like you to do is look at the information I've given you about Reedy's article.

So we have Cara Reedy's, "My Life as a Little Person," published September 12th, 2014 on CNN, and answer the following questions.

So who is the writer, when was the text written, what genre is it, what can we predict about the text based on the title, who's the audience and where is it published? So pause the video, answer the questions now.

Welcome back, everyone.

Let's talk through what you might have said.

The writer is Cara Reedy.

It was published in 2014.

Now the fact that it says, "My Life," gives us a good idea it's a personal essay, and this is one of our keywords.

It means an autobiographic essay that relates to a significant personal experience of the essay writer.

In terms of the title, we might think it could be an exploration of how being a little person affects her.

Now the audience is the general public since CNN is a national news network in America.

So now, we've identified some information about the text.

I'd like to think about how this information might help us approach the text.

So the information we have is it's written by Cara Reedy, it's published in 2014, we think it's a personal essay, we think it's gonna be an exploration of how being a little person affects her, we think the audience is the general public.

Now if when there someone else who might talk about ideas together, when this by yourself might just think where it is.

So pause the video, discuss how this information might help us approach the text.

Welcome back everyone.

It was great to see people really zooming in and say this is a personal essay.

As our Oak pupil Izzy says, "I think this helps to understand this text about someone trying to communicate with other people, about their life and their experience.

So potentially to educate people or help 'em see how they might approach situations differently." So now we've asked some questions about the title and publication and that's given us an idea of what the text might be about.

I also think it's really important to think about how you respond to a text, 'cause it helps you to gauge your connection with the text.

It's particularly important with a personal essay.

Now typically, we might ask the following questions, to develop a personal response to a non-fiction text.

Now, non-fiction is designed to inform, persuade or educate.

So I'd approach a response by asking, what is the view of the writer? Do I share the same view? What ideas do I think are important to remember? How does this text relate to my own experience in life and world events? Does this text cause me to see the world differently? However, rather than being broadly informative or factual, this text is about someone's personal experience.

So what I'd like you to think about is which questions might we ask differently? A response to a personal essay about someone's life.

Pause the video, take a few moments to consider.

Welcome back everyone.

Now, since this text about someone's personal experience, we might change the opening to questions.

So rather than asking what their viewpoint is, you might instead ask, what does the writer want me to understand about their life? And then rather than ask if you share the same viewpoint, you might instead ask, what emotional reaction do I have to the text to really focus our response on how the writer wants to connect with us as the audience? Now, before we read the text, we're just gonna do a quick check for understanding of what we think we know so far about the text.

So I'd like to fill in the gaps of following statements.

The word, my, shows that Reedy's text is a? From that we might be able to predict that Reedy wants to, with other people about her life and experience.

To approach the text, we might ask ourselves what we think Reedy wants us to, about her life.

So pause the video, complete the statements now.

Welcome back everyone.

They might have said, "The word my suggests that Reedy's text is personal essay.

From that, we might want to predict that Reedy really wants to communicate with other people about her life and experience.

To approach the text, we might ask ourselves what we think Reedy wants us to understand about her life." So very well done if you've got this right.

Fantastic work so far.

For the first task of the lesson, we're going to read and respond to Reedy's essay and you'll find a link to Reedy's, "My Life as a little person" in the additional materials.

What I'd like you to do is read the text, then answer the following questions to develop a personal response.

So what does the writer want me to understand about their life? What emotional reaction do I have to the text? What ideas do I think are important to remember? How does this text relate to my own experience in life and world events? Does this text cause me to see the world differently? So pause the video, read the article, answer the questions now.

Welcome back everyone.

I think it's a really powerful article and I really hope you enjoyed reading it.

Now, know your response is personal, but I would like you to share your thoughts with a peer and then consider the following questions, a personal essay is all about sharing experiences, not to change people's perceptions.

I think part of how we change the world and social ideas to share our thoughts and responses.

So I'd like you to consider, did you both agree on what you think the writer wants to understand about her life? Did you both have the same emotional reaction? Did you both have the same information you felt was important to remember? Did you have similar feelings about how the personal essay might relate to your life? And did you have similar feelings about whether the text caused you to see the world differently? So pause the video, consider the questions now.

Welcome back everyone.

As I said, it's a really powerful essay.

It's great to people able to approach it with such empathy and understanding.

Amazing work so far, everyone.

For the second learning cycle, we're going to think about how Reedy has used anecdotes in order to create an emotional reaction in the reader.

So let's begin by thinking about anecdotes quite broadly before we move on to specific samples from Reedy's article.

So one method a writer might choose in a personal essay is anecdotes.

An anecdote is usually a short narrative, an interesting, amusing, or biographical instant.

What I'd like you to think about is why my anecdotes might be useful in a personal essay.

Remember, a personal essays an autobiographical essay that relates to a significant personal experience of the writer.

As ever, if it with someone else might talk about this together, if it is by yourself, might just think of ideas.

So pause the video, consider why anecdotes might be useful in a personal essay.

Welcome back everyone.

It was great to see people thinking back to the idea that personal essay might be used to help people understand someone else better.

Therefore, as Oak pupil Laura says, "Anecdotes might be helpful in creating an emotional response with a reader, particularly sympathetic response." Now, sympathetic is one of our keywords, means feeling or showing sympathy and understanding.

So by sharing a story for our own life, might help other people to understand our lives better.

So now that we've defined an anecdote, I thought about why it might be useful in personal essay, we're gonna start looking at why a reader used anecdotes.

To do that, we first need to identify what the anecdotes are.

So I'd like you to re-read the text now because in a way you can see examples of anecdotes in the text.

So where can you see examples of Reedy telling short stories about your experience? Pause the video, take a few moments to consider.

Welcome back everyone.

Now there are many examples you might have chosen as Reedy uses multiple anecdotes throughout her article.

So you might have said, "From the moment I was born, people around me were saying, 'Oh God,' the nurse exclaimed it when I finally arrived." You might also have chosen, "When I was a child, I used to walk in public places and scan the room to figure out who would be the first to say something.

Inevitably, they did.

Most of the time it was, 'Isn't she cute?' But sometimes it was more cruel, deeper, darker.

I played basketball in grade school, not very well, but I tried.

The coach, Mr. Sweeney, worked out plays so I could score.

I fly to the house in whatever outfit I've cobbled together, grab breakfast the bodega, check my email before rushing to the subway." Now as I said, those were just a few examples of anecdotes you might have chosen since Reedy uses multiple anecdotes throughout the essay.

What I'd like you to take a moment to think about is why do you think Reedy specifically uses multiple anecdotes? Pause the video, take a few moments to consider.

Welcome back everyone.

As our Oak pupil, Izzy says, "I think it's because she really wants people to understand what her daily existence is like, and the best way to do that is tell stories of her experiences and interactions with others.

I think the fact she's telling multiple anecdotes also really speaks to how common this experience of being treated (indistinct).

She has so many examples to pick from.

I think that really highlights the level of sympathy that's evoked in the audience." So now, for a quick check for understanding, what I'd like you to do is tell me whether the following statement is true or false.

So is it true or false that Reedy's anecdotes only focus on her own actions and not interactions with other people? Pause the video, make your selection now.

The correct answer is false.

Now I'd like you to tell me why it's false.

So pause the video, take a few moments to consider.

Welcome back everyone.

You might have said, "Reedy's anecdotes consider how other people have reacted to her, as well as how the reactions for other people have made her feel." So very well done if you've got those right.

So now that we've identified some anecdotes from Reedy's essay, we're going to think about how we can approach analysing them.

Now, the personal anecdotes elicit an emotional reaction in the reader.

So elicit is one of our keywords, means to evoke or draw out a reaction, answer or fact from someone.

So anecdotes are designed to create an emotional reaction in the reader.

What I'd like you to think about is given this purpose, how do you think we might go about analysing an anecdote? Pause the video, take a few moments to consider.

Welcome back everyone.

Now as out Oak pupil Laura says, "I think we want to consider what emotional reaction we have to the anecdote as well as think about how the writers craft the anecdote through word choices and methods not to elicit that response." So we want to focus on the choice of words and language devices that may be present not to analyse them and think about how the writers craft the anecdote to create that emotional response in the reader.

So let's consider the first anecdote together.

So the first anecdote we picked out was, "From the moment I was born, people around me were saying, 'Oh God,' the nurse exclaimed it when I finally arrived." What I'd like to think about first is what emotional reaction does this anecdote elicit for you? So what emotional reaction does the anecdote create for you? Pause video, take a few moments to consider.

Welcome back everyone.

As our Oak pupil Izzy says, "We might think the anecdote makes feel sympathy towards Reedy and her experience." Now I'd like to think about is how Reedy's crafted the anecdote to create that response.

So what words or methods has she used to create that response and sympathy from the audience? Pause the video, take a few moments to consider.

Welcome back everyone.

Let's talk through what you might have said.

So by opening with, "From the moment I was born," Reedy's telling us this is something she's experienced all her life.

The specific phrase, '"Oh God," is one we associate with a negative shocked reaction.

So we see that she's experienced this type of reaction for her whole life.

Finally, the choice to reference the nurse heightens the shock because the reaction of a medical professional, which shows she has even had these negative reactions of people who would hope remain neutral to us and our situations.

So really specifically chosen words that show us that everyone including professionals have had this negative reaction to her has enhanced our sympathy for her.

Now, for your final task, I'm gonna ask you to write a paragraph that analyses one of the anecdotes.

So let's take a look at what that might look like.

We might say, "By opening with a preposition, from, Reedy establishes this reactions occurred since she was born.

The words, 'Oh God,' create the sensation of shock.

However, Reedy heightens this by having them delivered by a nurse who as a medical professional we hold to high standard behaviour.

In doing so, Reedy elicits sympathetic response from the audience.

as it helps 'em understand what her daily existence is like." Here, we've embedded quotations from the anecdote as evidence for analysis.

We've zoomed on specific words to show the effect of those choices.

We've linked our ideas back to the emotional response and the effect these words have on the reader.

So try to keep those things in mind when you're writing your own analysis.

Now for a quick check for understanding, what I'd like you to do is tell me whether the following statement is true or false.

So is it true or false, the specific use of nurse heightened a sense of shock that Reedy experiences from people.

Pause, video, make a selection now.

The correct answer is true.

Now I'd like to tell me why.

So pause the video, take a few moments to consider.

Welcome back everyone.

They might have said, "Typically, we expect medical professionals to be objective and not have emotional reactions.

Therefore, the nurse's reaction heightens a sense of shock.

This is unexpected." So very well done if you've got those right.

Now, before we move on to the final task, let's just remind ourselves the other anecdotes we identified in Reedy's essay.

"When I was a child, I used to walk into public places and scan the room to figure out who'd be the first to say something.

Inevitably, they did.

Most of the time was, 'Isn't she cute?' But sometimes it was more cruel, deeper, darker.

I played basketball in grade school, not very well, but I tried.

The coach, Mr. Sweeney, worked out plays that I could score.

I fly out the house in whatever outfit I have cobbled together, grab breakfast at the bodega, check my email while rushing into the subway." Now, what I'd like you to do is consider what response do these anecdotes elicit in you.

So pause the video, take a few moments to consider.

Welcome back everyone.

You might have thought that the first anecdote, which she shares how cruel people were to as a child, might evoke those ideas of sympathy again, but also more specific anger at other people and how they've treated her.

In terms of second anecdote, you might have thought that her stories past certain teachers would make sure she could participate and make her feel included, would make us feel optimism and hope because not everyone has reacted in a negative way.

Finally, her stories about everyday activities might make her seem relatable to us and therefore create the impression actually, she's just a normal human being just like the rest of us.

Now for quick check for understanding.

So by listing her daily activities, Reedy is arguably trying to show that, A, she's different from other people.

B, she's the same as other people, or C, she feels saddened by other people's reactions.

Pause the video, take a few moments to consider.

Welcome back everyone.

Now by listing her daily activities, Reedy's arguably trying to show her she's normal and therefore she's the same as other people.

So very well done if you got that right.

Amazing work, everyone.

For the final task of the lesson, we'd like you to analyse one of the following three anecdotes and write a written analysis to show how Reedy's crafted it to elicit a particular emotional response.

So you might choose either, "When I was a child, I used to walk into public places, scan the room to figure out who would be the first to say something.

Inevitably, they did.

Most of the time it was, 'Isn't she cute?' But sometimes it's more cruel, deeper, darker.

I played basketball in grade school, not very well, but I tried.

The coach, Mr. Sweeney, worked out plays so that I could score.

I fly out the house in whatever outfit I've cobbled together, grab breakfast at the bodega, and check my email while rushing into the subway." In order to analyse the anecdotes, you might consider what word choice the writer has made to elicit that particular response, how the structure of the sentence or use of punctuation enhances that particular response, and whether the writer is using any methods not to have an effect on the reader.

So pause the video and write a written analysis of one of those other three anecdotes now.

Welcome back everyone.

Now I'd like us to consider Izzy's response to the first anecdote, and think about how she could extend her ideas, but analysing the repeated D sound in deeper, darker.

So Izzy wrote, "By immediately qualifying that she was a child when this happened, Reedy creates a stronger emotional sense of sympathy since we instinctively feel as if children are vulnerable.

Furthermore, the notion happened in a public place suggests how commonplace and accepted this behaviour was, which heightens our sympathy." So how could Izzy extend her ideas by analysing a repeated D sound in deeper, darker? Pause the video, take a few moments to consider.

Welcome back everyone.

You might have thought she could extend her by adding.

Moreover, the repeated close of D sound, couples with the fragmented nature of the sentences in deeper, darker, lose the harsh treatment that Reedy's endured and the effect it's had on her life.

Now, I always think it's useful to look at other people's work 'cause it's easy for you to be critical of other people's work than your own.

But hopefully, by seeing that other people can improve or extend their own work, that can give you idea to take back to your own work.

You all did amazingly well today.

Here's the summary of what we covered.

In responding to a personal essay, we might ask what it is the writer wants to understand about their lives.

So remember, personal essays all about relating a significant personal experience of the writer.

Why have they done that? What do they want to communicate to us through it? And potentially, how do they want us to change our behaviour because of it? Potentially, writers might use anecdotes and personal essays to create an emotional reaction in the reader.

So writers might share a short story from their own lives to create that emotional connection to the reader and help them understand.

Arguably, Reedy's use for anecdotes illicit a sympathetic response in the reader.

So Reedy's use for anecdotes helps the reader understand what their living is like for her.

We might analyse anecdotes by considering the right specific use of words and methods.

So in Reedy's example, we might focus in on how her language shows us the level of scrutiny she receives is universal and socially accepted since it happened in public places since she was a child.

I really hope you enjoyed the lesson, everyone, from reading the article to consider the anecdotes, and hope to see you for another lesson soon.

Goodbye.