Lesson video

Hello everyone, my name's Miss Keller.

Welcome to today's lesson.

In this lesson, we are going to be exploring how to compare two non-fiction texts, and in particular, looking at some useful vocabulary types that we can use in order to do that.

So by the end of today's lesson, we will be able to use comparative and superlative adjectives to produce a detailed and evaluative comparison of two non-fiction texts.

So let's explore today's keywords.

We have overarching, shift, superlative adjectives, and comparative adjectives.

So do take a moment to pause the video here and check that you are really familiar with the meanings of all these words because we're going to be encountering them quite a lot in today's lesson.

But before you do, I'd just like to draw your attention to that first word there on the list, overarching.

So it means something that is so important that it affects all other areas.

So in English, we might refer to a writer's overarching idea.

And what we mean by that is the general overall argument of a piece of opinion writing or a speech.

It's usually referring to what the text is about and the attitude that the writer has.

So do bear that in mind because we're going to talk about the overarching idea in these two non-fiction texts as we compare them, because it is the overarching idea that usually helps to guide the direction of our comparison.

So how is today's lesson going to look? Well, we're going to start off by exploring how to use comparatives and superlatives to evaluate and compare two things.

And then in the second half of the lesson, we are going to analyse how to effectively use evaluative language and then we're going to emulate it.

So we're gonna have a go for ourselves.

So in today's lesson, we are going to be writing a comparison of writers' attitudes.

So a great comparison analyses how the writers convey their ideas and perspectives of the events they're describing, supported by a range of examples from the text.

And it's that that we're going to compare.

So what their ideas are about the events they're describing, but also how they convey these ideas because that is equally as important.

So here are some language types that are useful when we are writing comparisons.

So we have comparative adjectives, more optimistic, subtler, less subtly, and we also have superlative adjectives, most dramatic, most cynical, and longest.

Now, don't worry if you've not encountered these types of words before because we're going to go into them in a bit more detail when we move on to the next page.

But in the meantime, a just way to start thinking about how these language types can help us to write a great comparison.

So how are they giving us that toolkit to really compare a writer's attitudes and how they're conveying their ideas? So pause the video here while you take some time to have a think.

And if you're working with people around you, perhaps share your ideas with them and discuss this.

Or if you're working on your own, just make some notes on your paper or on your laptop or in your exercise book.

So pause the video here and click play when you're ready to continue.

Okay, welcome back.

Lots of really interesting ideas there.

So let's just summarise some of the fantastic responses I have heard.

So actually, these words are great because they allow us to explore the similarities and the differences between two things or two texts or two different ideas.

And then they allow us to really signpost that relationships.

So signpost any of those connections showing A, the similarities and the differences, but also weighing the two texts up against each other.

And in this way, we can refer to these types of language as evaluative.

They allow us to evaluate two things against each other, make value judgments, so which is more effective, for example.

So when we compare, we are usually focusing on identifying both similarities and differences.

So it's really important for us to regularly signpost the relationship between the texts.

So all times, our readers are really clear about when we're talking about how the text might be closely connected versus when we're talking about how the texts are different.

So we can do this by using these adjectives.

So over to you for a quick challenge.

Can you match the examples to the correct vocabulary type? So we have two of these answers going with each of those adjective types above.

So pause the video while you have a think and perhaps discuss it with the people around you or make some notes.

And when you're ready to continue, click play.

Okay, welcome back.

So well done if you managed to get them this way around.

So comparative adjectives, we had longer and more dramatic.

And then superlative adjectives, we had longest and most dramatic.

So let's just explore these types of adjectives in a little bit more detail.

So firstly, comparative adjectives.

So they're really useful because they enable us to evaluate the text against each other.

So this is where we really able to do that weighing up.

So for example, apples are juicier than bananas.

And bananas are more convenient to peel than apples.

And what you'll find with comparative adjectives is they will always be formed in one of two ways.

They will either have that er ending that we've got there in that first example sentence, and we've got the top there with longer.

So I'm thinking of quieter, bigger, shorter, for example.

These are all er ending comparative adjectives.

And then you will also see that more prefix.

So you will see that word coming before a word as well.

More convenient, more dramatic, more emphasis.

These are all different constructions that we might see that are comparative.

So when we are using them, it's really important to make sure we're using the right one.

And the best way to work that out is to start by putting an er ending on the end and see if it sounds right.

Say the word aloud to yourself.

So if we take, for example, dramatic, we want to talk about how something is more dramatic.

If we say dramaticer, it doesn't really sound right.

It doesn't sound like a real word.

So that's how we'll know that instead we'll need to say more dramatic.

And then onto superlatives.

So superlatives enable us to form conclusions about each text.

So apples are the crunchiest fruit.

Bananas are the most yellow fruit.

So this is not where we're necessarily weighing something up and saying it's slightly more or slightly less than something else.

Instead, here we are always thinking about the most or the least.

So the superlative form always deals with those extremes.

So again, we'll see that we've got these two versions.

So in order to build superlatives, we can have that est ending.

So I'm thinking longest, biggest, quietest, or we can have most, most yellow, most dramatic, most emphasis.

Okay, so now it's time to pause and check our understanding so far.

So what I'd like you to do is this: match each of the words or phrases below to the correct language type.

So we've got comparative adjectives, superlative adjectives, both of which we've already been discussing, and then a third type, discourse markers.

So don't matter if you haven't come across discourse markers before, because in theory, once you've sorted your comparatives, once you've sorted your superlatives, what remains should be the discourse markers.

So pause the video here while you take some time to have a think.

And then when you're ready for me to reveal the correct answer, click play and we'll carry on.

Okay, welcome back.

So let's see how we would've sorted out these different words and phrases.

So for comparative adjectives then, we would've had taller, more abstract, faster, and less complicated.

Because remember, we've got those two constructions.

We've got that er ending, and then that more or less coming at the beginning.

Superlatives, least expensive, most interesting, best, and smallest.

So again, we've got that est endings, and then least and most at the beginning.

Which leaves us with our discourse markers: in addition, in conclusion, firstly and moreover.

So what are discourse markers? Well, discourse markers are another great way to signpost where we are in a response.

Firstly shows that this is the first point.

Moreover shows, or in addition, shows that we're perhaps adding or developing an earlier idea.

And in conclusion shows that we are wrapping up.

These are all examples of ways that we can signpost or guide our reader through our comparative response.

So now we've explored some useful comparative language.

Let's have a look at the texts we're going to be comparing.

So we're going to be thinking about two different extracts, both from non-fiction texts.

So the first extract is from an article called "Are We Having Fun Yet?" by Elizabeth Day.

So this is a journalist account of attending the Glastonbury Festival.

And extract B is "Greenwich Fair" by Charles Dickens, a personal reflection on visiting an annual festival.

So before we start reading the texts themselves, I'd like you to just have a think about the information that we've got here.

So consider the context of each of these extracts.

So my question to you is this, which of these extracts do you think was written earliest, and why do you say that? So what makes you think that? So pause the video here while you have a think, and perhaps discuss it with the people around you or make some notes.

And when you're ready to continue, click play and we'll carry on.

Okay, welcome back.

It was really interesting to overhear some of the fantastic reasons that you guys were coming up with to justify which of these texts you thought was written earliest.

So I can reveal the answers.

So Extract A was written in 2005 and Extract B was written in 1839.

And we did have a couple of clues there.

So first of all, we had Glastonbury Festival, which is something that we associate with modern society, so it's a music festival.

And then we also had that second clue, Charles Dickens.

Some of you might have heard of Charles Dickens.

He is a famous author from the 19th century.

So that should have indicated to us that that second text was going to be a bit less modern.

So let's take some time to read both articles carefully so you can access both texts in the additional materials section of the lesson.

So really do take as much time as you need to read each article carefully, trying your best to understand the key ideas that we can see, and tracking that all important writer's attitude.

So what is their attitude towards the event, and how are they conveying that attitude? 'Cause these are all things we are going to be discussing later in the lesson.

And then once you've had a chance to read through each article carefully, I'd like you to have a think about this challenge question.

Do both writers convey similar attitudes? Or do they have different views about the events they attended? So take some time to think really carefully about that after reading, perhaps make a few notes or discuss it with the people around you.

So pause the video for as long as you need to and when you're ready to continue, click play.

Okay, so now it's time for the first practise to ask of today's lesson.

And I'd like to work with Andeep's summary.

So after reading the texts, he summarised his initial comparison.

So he began to think about how these texts perhaps conveyed similar ideas, different ideas and attitudes.

So he says, "Although both writers were attending festivals, Dickens and Day appear to have vastly different attitudes towards them.

Dickens appears most initially enthusiastic about the event, seemingly revelling in the chaos of the fair.

Day, on the other hand, is much less enthusiastic and more cynical, initially perplexed by Glastonbury's appeal and only warming it later on through her positive interactions with the crowd.

So what I'd like you to do is identify where Andeep has used comparatives and superlatives to compare the texts.

So it'd be a really good idea, particularly for you to be identifying which is which.

So as you're finding these examples, either using the worksheet or working on screen and making notes on your paper or laptop, try to make sure that you label each one comparatives or superlative so we can start beginning to recognise the differences between them.

So after you've done that, then I would like you to take some time for a discussion or if you're working on your own, some time to independently think and make some notes.

What is the impact of using comparatives and superlatives here? Why is it useful to do that? How does it help Andeep's summary to be an effective one? So pause the video here and take as much time as you need to really get to grips with Andeep's summary and to identify those language types.

Pause the video here and click play when you're ready for us to feedback together.

Okay, welcome back.

So here is where Andeep used comparatives and superlatives.

So we can see most initially enthusiastic, we've got that superlative because we've got that word most.

And then later on we have got two comparatives, much less enthusiastic and more cynical.

And this is actually really good the way that Andeep used these comparatives here because he is using them to talk about one text.

So we've already made the point that Dickens is most enthusiastic about the event that he's describing.

And then as Andeep tries to prove to us that Day is obviously less enthusiastic because of that superlative he used before, he's able to say Day is less enthusiastic but is more cynical.

So it helped him actually to be able to explain perhaps what Day's article does instead.

So what was the impact of using the comparatives and superlatives then? Well, I would argue that these adjectives allow you to directly compare the text instead of just identifying features of each one in isolation.

So yes, we can use words like whereas or on the other hand in order to show similarities and differences.

But by using these comparatives and superlatives, we are able to actually weigh the texts up against each other, which is most effectively conveyed, which text is more dramatic.

Okay, so we've made it to the halfway point of today's lesson.

So now we've explored how to use comparatives and superlatives.

It is time for us to analyse their effectiveness and then have a go at using them ourselves.

So now we've identified our overarching comparisons, we've thought about the overall attitudes that we could see in each text.

Let's explore how the texts are similar and different in more detail.

So it's really important that all the other points in our comparative response link to those initial comparisons that we made.

And in fact, we need to think about these overarching comparisons as the spine of our response.

Really, a great effective analysis will always have that central spine.

And actually, all the other points that you make really should simply explore each of your comparisons that you made at the beginning just a bit further, just develop the ideas that you've already introduced with your initial comparisons.

So here is Andeep's answer again.

So if Andeep was going to go on and might the rest of this response, what ideas from his introduction might we want to explore further? What ideas here are gonna perhaps help to form that central spine? So pause the video here while you reread and Andeep's answer, perhaps discuss it with people around you or make some notes.

And when you're ready for us to feedback together, click play and we'll continue.

Okay, welcome back.

Lots of really interesting responses there.

I was particularly impressed by the way that I could hear lots of different people debating which of Andeep's ideas they thought were most crucial to the rest of his response.

That's fantastic.

So we could explore, first of all how each writer uses language and methods to convey their attitude towards each event.

And if you notice what we can pick out of Andeep's response here, for example, where he says that they have vastly different attitudes, the fact that Dickens is most initially enthusiastic, and then Day is much less enthusiastic but more cynical, so here we've got these differences in attitudes that we can definitely explore.

And then we can think about, as the response continues, how exactly it is that they're using language and methods to convey that.

And also, how each writer's attitude shifts or doesn't shift as the text progresses.

So we've got this idea about how they're initially feeling.

So Dickens appears most initially enthusiastic seemingly revelling in the chaos of the fair, whereas Day is initially perplexed by Glastonbury's appeal and only warms to it later on.

So in both cases perhaps, we've got not necessarily a shift with Dickens, but we've definitely got that progression there with Day.

So we've got another difference that perhaps we might want to explore.

So let's start by directly comparing how the writers use the language and methods to convey their attitude.

So here's an example from Dickens' article.

So he says, "Imagine yourself in an extremely dense crowd." So over to you at this point then, what device does Dickens use here in this quotation? And how does this convey his excitement and enthusiasm about the fair? So pause the video here while you take some time to think and discuss it.

And when you're ready for us to discuss it together, click play and we'll continue.

Okay, welcome back.

So let's analyse this quotation then.

So arguably, the first thing that stuck out to me was this word imagine, this imperative at the beginning.

He's instructing readers to imagine ourselves attending the festival.

And we can argue that this effectively highlights his intense excitement at going to the fair because he wants us, the reader, to be able to imagine ourselves in that situation.

He wants us to be able to empathise with how he felt attending the fair.

So now, let's compare this to an example from Day's article.

So she says, "The colour of exhaled cigarette smoke." So when she's describing the scenery that she can see when she first arrives at the festival, this is how she describes it.

So what about here then? How does Day convey her attitude towards the festival in this quotation? So pause the video here while you have some time to think and discuss it.

And then when you're ready for us to feedback together, click play and we'll continue.

Okay, welcome back.

So what could we have said about this quotation then? Well, arguably, that word smoke really stuck out to me, and it reminds me of toxicity and decay.

It's got these really negative connotations.

So here, the use of that word smoke perhaps hints at Day's borderline disgust at Glastonbury.

So it really helps to convey the sense of disgust perhaps that she feels at attending the festival.

So now, we've had a go at thinking about how the writers use language and methods, let's explore whether the writer's attitudes shift as the text progresses.

So Day describes Glastonbury as a scene of near total devastation at the beginning of her article.

And then by the end of the extract, she declares it's almost nice, this Glastonbury thing.

So how can we use these two quotes to suggest that there has been a shift in Day's attitude here? So pause the video while you take some time to discuss it or make some notes and click play when you're ready to continue.

Okay, welcome back.

So how could these two quotes suggest this shift in attitude? Heard lots of fantastic responses here.

So we just want to summarise some of the great ideas that I overheard.

So it's really clear that we've got this attitude shift because initially, the focus of the article is on the scene of devastation which implies that she sees very few positives to Glastonbury Festival.

However, by the end, her attitude has softened because she's describing Glastonbury as almost nice.

But that word almost there is really important because it shows that although her attitude has softened, it's not entirely positive.

She has been somewhat convinced, but perhaps some of that negativity is still lingering.

So we've definitely seen a shift, but we can still see those echoes of that initial attitude as well.

So now, let's have a go at thinking about whether or not there is a shift in attitude in Dickens' text.

So over to you, what do you think? Do you think his attitude changes as the text progresses? Or do you think that it remains constant? Pause the video here while you take some time to discuss it and click play when you're ready for us to be back together.

Okay, welcome back.

Lots of us in agreement there that there is perhaps a slight change in Dickens' attitude as the text progresses.

So let's explore this a bit further.

So at the beginning of the article, he describes how everybody is anxious to get on and to be at the fair.

But by the end of the article, he describes the atmosphere of screams, shouts, clanging, firing, and ringing, bellowing.

So we've got lots of different words here that perhaps link to the idea of chaos.

So another question then.

How did these two quotes show a shift in attitude? So think really carefully about the language that Dickens' is using in each of these quotes, any methods that you can spot.

So pause the video here and click play when you're ready to feed back together.

Okay, welcome back.

Lots of really interesting suggestions there.

So when we're looking at this first quote from the beginning then, initially Dickens focuses on the buzz of the building excitement before the fair.

Everybody's anxious to get on.

Everything here is focused on this anticipation for this event.

But by the end, we can argue that he's focusing more on dramatic elements.

So he's really zooming in on the lively atmosphere of the fair.

So I would argue that Dickens' attitude does change.

I'm not necessarily sure that I would use the word shift because his attitude isn't necessarily shifting from one emotion to another because Dickens maintains an excited attitude towards the fair throughout the entire text.

However, it arguably intensifies as the text progressive.

This excitement gets more and more intense across the course of the article.

We're going from this quiet buzz of anticipation to the screams and the shouts and the ringing and the clanging, the most dramatic elements that he can describe.

Okay, so now it is time to stop and check our understanding.

So what I would like you to do is fill in the gaps below using comparative or superlative adjectives to compare the writer's attitude.

So you will need to be thinking really carefully about the similarities and differences between the writer's attitudes in both of these texts and how you're going to use comparatives and superlatives to signpost the relationship between these texts to the reader.

So pause the video here and click play when you're ready for us to be back together.

Okay, welcome back.

So before I reveal the answers to this task, with a task like this, there isn't necessarily going to be one correct answer and all of the answers are going to be wrong because summarising or comparing the writer's attitudes in this way necessarily involves some personal interpretations of the text.

So the words that might come in these gaps are words that you might choose based on how you interpreted each of the extracts.

So that doesn't mean however that we could just put any old word in.

That doesn't mean that some answers aren't going to be more valid than others.

And the way that we know that our answer is valid is because it's going to be supported by the evidence and the analysis that we were discussing before.

So the words you choose to express your answers are down to you and we don't all necessarily need to choose the same words.

But the key ideas, we do need to be thinking really carefully.

Are they valid? Do they link to the rest of our analysis? So let's have a look at them.

In both extracts, the writers attitudes towards the events shift.

They're in contrast in ways.

Elizabeth Day begins with the most negative or most cynical outlooks.

We need something there that reflects that negativity she has initially towards the festival.

However, as the text progresses, her tone becomes more positive or warmer as she warms to her fellow festival goers.

So we need something that really shows that shift.

And then in contrast, Charles Dickens maintains a consistently enthusiastic attitude toward Greenwich Fair, though his excitement grows more intense or stronger as the scene unfolds.

So do have a look at what you had filled those gaps in.

Are your responses valid? That is the most important thing.

So now, it's time for the final practise task of today's lesson.

And what I would like you to do is to use comparatives and superlatives to write a comparative paragraph about the articles.

So you could write about how the writers use language and methods to convey their attitudes.

And you could also write about how their attitudes shift as the text progresses.

And down at the bottom of the screen there, I have put a vocabulary bank with some really useful words and phrases that you could include in your response.

So pause your video here while you give this a really good go.

And when you're ready for us to feed back together, click play and we'll continue.

Okay, welcome back.

So let's explore how Andeep, one of our Oak pupils, compared the writers' attitudes.

So he said, "In both extracts, the writer's attitudes towards the events shift, though in contrast in ways.

Elizabeth Day begins with the most negative outlook, describing Glastonbury Festival with imagery of total devastation and floating tents.

However, as the text progresses, her tone becomes more positive, noting the impressively good-humored crowd and finding the festival almost nice.

In contrast, Charles Dickens maintains a consistently enthusiastic attitude toward Greenwich Fair, but his excitement grows more intense as the scene unfolds.

Day's shifting attitude might lead readers to feel more ambivalent or sceptical about the festival, while Dickens' consistent enthusiasm could make readers feel more immersed and excited about the lively atmosphere of the fair.

So now it's time for you to review your paragraph.

So do take some time to read through carefully and think about whether you were including those comparatives and superlatives.

So perhaps grab yourself a different colour pen and highlight any comparative adjectives that you added.

So we can see here that Andeep had more positive, more intense, more ambivalent or sceptical, more immersed and excited.

And interestingly, he was using these comparatives, yes, to talk about the text, but also later on, to talk about a potential read up reaction.

So that's another really good place that you can start to use comparatives and superlatives.

And then once you've highlighted your comparative adjectives, it's time to underline any superlative adjectives that you added.

So here, Andeep said the most negative outlook.

So pause the video here while you take some time to review your response and highlight and underline where you've used your comparatives and superlatives, and click play when you're ready to continue.

Okay, so we've made it to the end of today's lesson.

I hope that you are feeling a lot more confident when it comes to using comparatives and superlatives to begin comparing non-fiction texts.

So let's summarise what we've covered in today's lesson.

A great comparison analyses how the writers convey their ideas and attitudes as a text progresses.

It may use comparatives and superlatives to evaluate the texts against one another.

Comparatives use either a more prefix or an er suffix to directly compare two texts or ideas.

Superlatives use a most prefix or an est suffix to form conclusions about a text in comparison to others.

Comparatives and superlatives let us explore the relationship between the texts instead of analysing each in isolation.

So thanks again for joining me in today's lesson.

I hope that you've enjoyed it as much as I have.

Have a fantastic day, everyone, and I look forward to seeing you again soon.