Hello, and welcome to today's lesson.

My name is Ms. Watson, and I'm delighted that you have decided to join me, today.

We are going to be reading a new poem today.

It's called "Jamaican British," and it's by the poet Raymond Antrobus.

You'll need your copy of the "Edexcel Belonging Anthology." So when you have that, we are ready to go.

And the outcome of today's lesson is that you will be able to explain how Antrobus presents dual heritage in his poem.

We are going to start with the keywords.

As you can see, there are five keywords which will help unlock your learning today.

They are identity, and that is the set of qualities, beliefs, personality traits, and appearance that characterise a person, and belonging, which is the title of the anthology.

That is a feeling of being happy or comfortable as part of a particular group.

Heritage, that refers to the history, traditions, and practises of a particular country or society.

Something that is multifaceted has many aspects or sides.

You can see the word multi, meaning many, is in that word.

And duality is that is the state of combining two different things.

Now, if you would like a little bit of time to familiarise yourself with the key words, pause the video now and rejoin the lesson when you're ready.

So there are two learning cycles in today's lesson.

We are going to start by conceptualising identity.

That means we are going to think about what it is as an idea, and then we are going to apply what we have learned about identity to understanding the poem "Jamaican British." So we are looking at the poem "Jamaican British" by Antrobus, and we're thinking about how we might interpret ideas of identity within the poem.

And the first thing I would like you to do is actually just to discuss what do you think makes up your identity? Pause the video and have that discussion.

Or if you are working by yourself, pause the video and make a few notes.

Off you go.

So well done, and welcome back.

I'm going to share with you some things you may have said.

You might have said that memories are part of your identity, and that your home is part of your identity.

Makes up who you are, your memories and your home.

And also your heritage.

So where you come from, your grandparents, your family's traditions, your local town's traditions.

Or the relationships you have with people in your family, in your school, they are all part of your identity and who you are.

And your name.

And your feelings.

How do you respond to things? You may have said other things, but what I really hope you understand from this is how many things go in to making up your identity.

Let's move on.

Now, I've got a bit of a challenge for you.

Imagine you were asked to narrow down your identity to one singular thing, just one thing.

I'd like you to have a discussion about whether you think you could do that.

Off you go.

Welcome back.

Bet that was a fascinating discussion.

Let me share with you what Izzy said.

She said, "I couldn't narrow down my identity to one thing.

Identity is too complicated.

And I imagine parts of who I am will change over time." Interesting answer there.

And I would like you to think some more about what Izzy has said.

What do you think her ideas suggest about identity as a concept, about the idea of identity? Again, pause the video and have that discussion.

Or if you are working by yourself, pause the video and make a few notes.

Okay, so this is what Izzy said.

She thought that, "It suggests that identity is something that is multifaceted rather than singular." Many sided.

Who we are is made up of many, many different aspects.

Really interesting thinking there.

Let's move on.

And now I'd like you to have this discussion.

To what extent do you think you are in control of your identity? So pause the video, and off you go.

That was an even more fascinating discussion.

When you start to think about whether you have control over it or other people have made you who you are, you get some really interesting ideas.

This is what Sam said in response to the question.

"I think parts of it are out of my control, such as where I grew up and what my heritage is." And Sofia says, "I think that my memories are my own and that I can choose my own home, so to some extent I can control it." So between them, they seem to be coming up with this idea that you are partially in control of your own identity.

I'd be really interested to know if you had similar ideas.

Now, is it true or false to say that it's easy to reduce our identity down to one singular defining feature? True or false? It's false.

Let's think about why it's false.

What would you say to explain why that statement is false? Have a think.

Well, you might have said something like this, that our identities are made up of multiple things, which arguably may change and evolve over time.

So therefore it's difficult to reduce our identity down to one single thing.

Some people would say it's impossible, and you may very well have used the word multifaceted in your answer.

Well done.

Let's move on.

So what I would like you to do now is read the following two quotations from Antrobus' "Jamaican British." The first quotation is "I'm Jamaican British." And the second quotation is "No way I can be Jamaican British." And I would like you to discuss what do you think Antrobus might be saying about the concept of identity in these two quotations? Pause the video and have that discussion, or pause the video and make a few notes.

Off you go.

So I would like to share with you what Sofia said, and I invite you to think about how well her ideas align with yours.

She says, "I think Antrobus could be expressing that identity is multifaceted because on the one hand he's saying that he has dual heritage and denying it on the other, so perhaps he's saying that there is an element of conflict around saying you have a dual heritage and dual identity?" That's a really good thought from Sofia.

I'd be interested to know how well they align with your ideas.

Do you think he is saying there is conflict or you might be saying that you think he is simply exploring it and wondering if you can have these two possibilities existing side by side without it being conflicted.

So time to move on to the rest of the lesson.

Good learning so far.

Well done.

So we are now going to take what we've understood about identity and look at the poem.

Now, you will need to find a copy of Antrobus' "Jamaican British." It is in the "Edexcel Belonging Anthology." Before you start reading, I'm just going to point out that Antrobus' "Jamaican British" contains references to subject matter and phrases that are outdated and discriminatory.

And he uses language that many people may find both difficult and distressing to hear and read.

And I think it's worth thinking about why the poet might have included this language.

And in particular, what might the use of such language imply about the idea of belonging? This is what Izzy said.

She thought that, "Perhaps the use of such difficult language suggests that certain language and certain words can make us feel as if we don't belong." Let's move on and read the poem.

So I would like you to read the poem, and then I would like you to discuss how would you summarise the poem? So pause the video while you read and have that discussion.

Off you go.

I hope you enjoyed reading that poem, and I hope you enjoyed your discussion.

Izzy said that she would summarise the poem in this way.

"The speaker is arguing with themselves and others about whether they are Jamaican or British." And I'd be really interested to hear if you thought the same.

Did you think there was an argument going on? Now, we are going to consider what Antrobus might be saying about identity in the poem, and we are going to start with the opening line, which is "Some people would deny that I'm Jamaican British." And I would like you to discuss what do you think this suggests about identity? Now, you are looking at a fairly short line there, and I want you really to dive in and look at how Antrobus has used language here Specifically, you might look at what the use of the word some suggests.

There might be other words in that line that you would like to pick out, and that's great too.

So pause the video and have that discussion about what you think Antrobus is saying about identity in the opening line.

Off you go.

And welcome back.

I really like listening to that discussion.

I noticed that some of you picked up on the word deny and some of you thought that the word would was actually really interesting to explore.

This is what Laura said about the word some.

She thought "It suggests that other people, particularly people you don't know, try to have a say on your identity." They try and say who you are or in this case who you are not.

So that's an interesting point from Laura.

I wonder if you would agree with that.

Let's move on.

And now we're going to look at this quotation.

"Anglo nose.

Hair straight." So what does this line suggest about what these people, the some people of the opening line are basing their opinions on? Have a discussion.

What do you think? And Izzy said, "I think perhaps it suggests that people will judge your identity based on how you look." That is a strong, very thoughtful statement, and I wonder if you would agree with that.

Do you think that many people, some people, all of us, what proportion of people, are very ready to base their opinions on how people look? Let's move on.

Now, in the poem, there are references to other people.

There are they, and there are boys, and there is dad, and there are cousins.

And I would like you to think about and discuss what might the constant reference to other people in the poem suggest? Pause the video where you have that discussion or just make a few notes.

Off you go.

And Laura said that, "Maybe people will always try to define your identity for you, whether they are strangers or your family." Which I thought was a fascinating idea because initially when Izzy had spoken about other people basing their opinions on your appearance, I thought that's the people who don't know you.

But what Laura seems to be saying is your family can also be deciding what your identity is.

Really interesting ideas.

Let's move on.

Let's have a check for understanding.

Is it true or false to say that Antrobus' "Jamaican British" implies that other people will try to define your identity? True or false? It's true.

But why is it true? Have a think about that.

Well, you might have said it's true because of the references to some people, the references to some people, as well as to family members suggest that there will always be people around you who try to judge and define your identity for you.

Well done.

Let's move on.

Throughout the poem, there are references to internal and external conflict.

Now, internal conflict refers to a struggle in someone's mind, whereas external conflict refers to conflict with other people.

And I would like you to discuss these questions.

Where can you see references to internal conflict in the poem? What do you think these references to internal conflict suggest? Where can you see references to external conflict in the poem? And what do you think the references to external conflict suggest? Pause the video while you'll have your discussion or if you're working by yourself, just pause the video and make a few notes.

Off you go.

Welcome back.

Here are some of the ideas from our Oak pupils.

Laura said, "I think words, such as choose, hate, and how suggest internal conflict.

Perhaps they imply the speaker is constantly having to justify and define their own identity to themselves." And Izzy said, "I think reference to fought and war suggest external conflict.

And perhaps they suggest that ideas and concepts around identity are fraught and can lead to external conflict and fighting." Some really interesting ideas there.

And I would like to consider the context, some of the context around the poem.

I'm gonna give you some information about the context.

Jamaica is a former colony of Britain.

Antrobus has a British mother and a Jamaican father.

And the subtitle of the poem references Aaron Samuels, a poet whose poetry explores what it means to be black and Jewish.

And I would like you to discuss these questions.

How does knowing that Jamaica is a former colony of Britain enhance, that means improve, our understanding of the poem.

How does knowing Antrobus personal context enhance our understanding of the poem? And how does Antrobus referencing Aaron Samuels help our understanding of the poem? Pause the video while you have that discussion.

Off you go.

So welcome back, and you might have said something like this, that in response to the first question, how does knowing Jamaica is a former colony of Britain enhance our understanding? Perhaps it might help us understand some of the conflict and why people might be hesitant to claim a British identity.

And how does knowing Antrobus personal context enhance our understanding of the poem? Perhaps it helps us understand the reality of how people struggle with these issues.

And the last question, how does Antrobus referencing Aaron Samuels help our understanding of the poem? Perhaps the issues around the internal and external conflict around identity are widespread and something that many people have to consider and deal with.

Now, you may have said different things, and I'm not saying that these are the only answers or the perfect answer.

I just think you will find it helpful to read them and to compare your ideas with them.

Now, let's have a check for understanding.

Which of the following statements about the poem are true? Is it A, the speaker ultimately claims a Jamaican identity for themselves, B, the speaker suggests that they have a dual heritage and identity, or C, the speaker implies that other people try to influence their perception of their identity? Which one of those is true? B and C are true.

Very well done if you've got those right.

Let's move on.

Now, Antrobus' poem "Jamaican British" is part of the "Edexcel Belonging Anthology." And I want you to write about what you think Antrobus is saying about the concept of belonging in the poem, write a few sentences to explain your ideas, and you might consider that arguably Antrobus suggests our identity is multifaceted, the ideas of conflict that run through the poem.

Gather all your thoughts and notes together, pause the video, and write your sentences.

Off you go.

Welcome back.

I'm going to share Izzy's sentences with you.

She wrote this.

"Arguably, we might see Antrobus' 'Jamaican British' as suggesting that identities are multifaceted rather than singular; however, Antrobus implies that this notion of dual identity is uncomfortable at times and may mean that you don't actually feel as if you belong anywhere.

Antrobus depicts a constant internal and external conflict throughout the poem that suggests that both a speaker and other people resist the idea of dual identity and try to force the speaker to choose, which implies that they don't feel safe or happy anywhere; they don't feel as if they belong." I'd be interested to know how well Izzy's ideas align with yours.

You also have time to borrow some ideas from Izzy's and add to yours.

So pause the video while you do that, and then please join me for the end of the lesson.

So before we say goodbye, I would like to summarise what you have been learning today.

You have been learning that Antrobus has a British mother and a Jamaican father.

You have been learning that the poem explores what it means to have dual heritage.

You have been learning that the poem "Jamaican British" explores what it means to have dual heritage.

And arguably, the poem suggests that having dual heritage or identity leads to internal and external conflict.

And we might argue that our identities are never singular, but always multifaceted.

Once again, thank you for coming to today's lesson.

Thank you for your hard work and focus.

I wish you a brilliant rest of the day, and I look forward to seeing you in another lesson on the poetry of belonging.

Bye for now.