SSLC English Lesson Plan
Lesson plan English
Chapter: The Trumpets of Change (Unit III)
Period 1
- Learning Objective: Listens and appreciates songs (September, October)
- Concepts and Ideas: The song ‘Another Day in Paradise’ deals with social indifference and the plight of the homeless. The woman is cold, crying, has nowhere to sleep, and has blisters on her feet.
- Values or Moral: Compassion and empathy. The need to "Think twice" about the suffering of others.
- Learning Activity 1 Explained: Identify Poetic Devices: The students will identify the Refrain (a repeated word, line, or phrase) and Anaphora (repetition of words at the start of clauses) in the song lyrics. For example, "Oh, think twice, cause it's another day for you" is repeated.
- Summary Consolidation: The purpose of using the Refrain is to emphasise ideas, and students should understand how this device highlights the contrast between "paradise" and the woman's suffering.
- Learning Group Activity 2 Explained: Appreciation Writing: Students will write a brief appreciation of the song, focusing on its central theme (social indifference), the images used (e.g., blisters on feet), and the poetic devices identified.
- Assessment Questions:
- Why does the writer ask the listener to "think twice"?
- How do the man's actions reveal the general attitude of society to the homeless?
- Extended Activity: Prepare a script detailing the movements and gestures suitable for a choreography of the song to capture its central idea.
Period 2
- Learning Objective: Reads and comprehends the text. (September, October)
- Concepts and Ideas: 'War': The theme is the misery and grief of ordinary people resulting from war. Concepts include parental love and arguments about national necessity.
- Values or Moral: Sharing grief and the awareness of shared humanity. The emotional struggle to accept personal loss and suffering.
- Learning Activity 1 Explained: Question-Based Comprehension: Students read the text 'War' and answer comprehension questions (e.g., Why was the woman upset?). Students will specifically analyze the quote: "Parental love is not like bread...".
- Summary Consolidation: Consolidation will focus on the different ways people cope with loss and grief in wartime, as shown by the passengers in the train.
- Learning Group Activity 2 Explained: Speech Script: Prepare the script for a speech to be delivered on 6th August (Hiroshima Day) in school, focusing on the effect of war on common people.
- Assessment Questions:
- Why did the stout man finally break down when the woman asked if his son was "really dead"?
- What did the speaker mean by saying, "Our children do not belong to us, they belong to the country..."?
- Extended Activity: Conduct a debate exploring whether technological advancements in warfare lead to a safer future or self-destruction.
Period 3
- Learning Objective: Imbibes moral values and relates them to practical life (September, October)
- Concepts and Ideas: 'A Piece of String': The concepts are false accusation, the importance of honour and dignity (Hauchecome's suffering), and the devastating nature of social judgment.
- Values or Moral: Integrity (Hauchecome’s effort to prove innocence) and the recognition of the importance of truth. Avoidance of prejudice.
- Learning Activity 1 Explained: Character Sketch: Students will prepare a character sketch of Hauchecome, highlighting his determined nature, his tireless effort to defend himself, and his sense of justice when everyone mistrusts him.
- Summary Consolidation: The class summarizes how the villagers' lack of credence (trust) and constant ridicule led to Hauchecome's shame, indignation (anger), and eventual death while claiming his innocence.
- Learning Group Activity 2 Explained: Write-up on Society's Role: Prepare a write-up on how society's attitude (e.g., mockery, suspicion) can make or break an individual, drawing examples from 'A Piece of String'.
- Assessment Questions:
- What was the impact of the injustice of the suspicion on Hauchecome's life and mind?
- Why did Hauchecome try to conceal the piece of string when he saw Malandain?
- Extended Activity: Diary Entry: Hauchecome expresses his feelings of shame, humiliation, and deep distress in a diary entry after he is falsely accused of theft.
Period 4
- Learning Objective: Constructs different discourses in meaningful contexts (September, October)
- Concepts and Ideas: Discourse Structure: Focusing on conversations that involve argumentation (defending oneself) and expressions used for apology (extending and accepting).
- Values or Moral: Respectful communication, the value of giving and receiving apologies, and dealing with conflict maturely.
- Learning Activity 1 Explained: Argument Scripting: Draft a script of an argument between Hauchecome and a villager, where Hauchecome uses expressions like "Do you have any evidence to support your accusation?" to defend his innocence.
- Summary Consolidation: The consolidation involves listing and practising various expressions used to present arguments (e.g., "I’d beg to differ," "My point of view is diametrically opposite").
- Learning Group Activity 2 Explained: Apology Conversation: Draft a conversation where the woman who asked the painful question to the stout man extends her sincere apologies, and the stout man graciously accepts her apology, using appropriate expressions (e.g., "I apologize for behaving like this," "It's okay. You couldn't help it").
- Assessment Questions:
- Provide two expressions a person could use to politely accept an apology.
- Write a sentence using the expression: "I’m not yet convinced".
- Extended Activity: Create a Readers Theatre Script based on the story 'War,' ensuring the narration, dialogue, and voice modulation bring out the shared grief of the characters.
Period 5
- Learning Objective: Gets familiarised with vocabulary (September, October)
- Concepts and Ideas: Phrasal Verbs (specifically those using 'put') and Homonyms (words with the same spelling/sound but different meanings, like 'kind', 'address').
- Values or Moral: Vocabulary development and using words with precision and clarity.
- Learning Activity 1 Explained: Phrasal Verb Analysis: Students analyze a provided speech text on the consequences of war and identify phrasal verbs using 'put' (e.g., put across, put aside, put up with, put forward) and note their meanings.
- Summary Consolidation: Students summarize the meanings of the identified 'put' phrasal verbs (e.g., 'put across' means to communicate, 'put up with' means to tolerate).
- Learning Group Activity 2 Explained: Homonym Matching: Students match the words right, address, and kind with their multiple meanings (e.g., 'kind' as a group of things OR showing generosity; 'address' as a location OR a formal speech).
- Assessment Questions:
- Use the word 'kind' in two different sentences to show its dual meaning.
- Complete the Crossword Puzzle clue: One who helps another in a crime (10 letters).
- Extended Activity: Complete the Crossword Puzzle provided in the worksheet section, using unit vocabulary such as accomplice, incredulous, delirium, and indignation.
Period 6
- Learning Objective: Interprets the structure of language in various contexts. (September, October)
- Concepts and Ideas: Past Perfect Continuous Tense ('had been -ing'), Present Perfect Continuous Tense ('have/has been -ing'), and Correlative Conjunctions ('either...or', 'neither...nor').
- Values or Moral: Logical expression of time sequence and structural clarity in language.
- Learning Activity 1 Explained: Tense Analysis: Read the conversation about Arjun and his friends and identify examples of the Present Perfect Continuous (action started in the past, continues now, e.g., "We've been waiting to talk") and Past Perfect Continuous (action continued up to a point in the past, e.g., "I'd been trying to stay away")...
- Summary Consolidation: Summarize the main rule for using the Past Perfect Continuous tense: indicating an action that began before a certain point in the past and continued up to that point.
- Learning Group Activity 2 Explained: Correlative Conjunction Rule: Analyze sentences using 'either...or' and 'neither...nor' to understand the Subject-Verb Agreement rule: the verb agrees with the noun closer to it....
- Assessment Questions:
- Fill in the blank using the correct verb form: Neither New York nor London _____ (is/are) a city in India.
- Write a sentence in the Past Perfect Continuous tense about the woman in the train.
- Extended Activity: Complete the fill-in-the-blanks exercise using the appropriate forms of the Present Simple or Present Continuous tense, showing future events (found in Unit I, Activity 1).... (Note: This links a Unit I language concept to a Unit III period).
Period 7
- Learning Objective: Listens and comprehends the context (September, October)
- Concepts and Ideas: Social issues (injustice, inequality) and the importance of collective action; the use of Signposting Expressions (Linkers) (e.g., then, next, consequently, finally).
- Values or Moral: Acceptance, Tolerance, Kindness, and Friendship. Upholding the essential values of life.
- Learning Activity 1 Explained: Linker Usage: Students analyze how the use of linkers (like then, consequently) improves the coherence of a passage and then apply these linkers to summarize the sequence of events in a Unit III story.
- Summary Consolidation: Consolidation will focus on the importance of Upholding Essential Values to promote greater understanding and address global issues like inequality and injustice.
- Learning Group Activity 2 Explained: Seminar Planning: Plan a detailed group project for a Seminar on 'Compassion in Action: Exploring the Effects of Kindness and Empathy', including defining objectives and listing sub-topics (e.g., Compassion in times of crisis, Compassion in Art and Literature).
- Assessment Questions:
- According to Desmond Tutu, what choice have you made if you remain neutral in situations of injustice?
- List four values, aside from compassion, that promote social justice.
- Extended Activity: Organize a Values Fair (e.g., setting up stalls, creating a 'Kindness chain' or 'Gratitude wall') to encourage reflection on important life values
Chapter: Woodland Whispers (Unit IV)
Period 1
- Learning Objective: Develops an awareness of the need for harmony; reads and understands plays and gains knowledge of theatrical terms and techniques; performs plays and enacts the roles of characters. (November, December, January)
- Concepts and Ideas: The concept of harmony and co-existence between humans and nature. Theatrical terms like Dramatis Personae (list of characters) and Exit (actor leaving the scene).
- Values or Moral: Respect for innocent life (Hermit stopping the hunt). Kindness and sisterly affection towards trees and plants.
- Learning Activity 1 Explained: Dialogue Analysis: Revisit the play Shākuntalam and identify dialogues that express the characters' love of nature (e.g., King Dushyanta appreciating the deer's beauty; Shakuntala treating trees as sisters).
- Summary Consolidation: Consolidation focuses on how the ancestors' attitude to nature was one of co-existence and how the hermitage demonstrated this harmony (e.g., trustful deer not running away).
- Learning Group Activity 2 Explained: Performance: The Warning: Students, in groups, perform the scene where the Hermit warns King Dushyanta not to kill the deer. Focus on the respectful request and Dushyanta's swift obedience.
- Assessment Questions:
- Why did the hermits refer to Dushyanta as 'a shining example of kings'?
- List two instances from the play that show the harmonious co-existence of all beings.
- Extended Activity: Prepare a storyboard for a short video depicting the scene where the King's hunt is stopped by the hermits.
Period 2
- Learning Objective: Reads and understands plays and gains knowledge of theatrical terms and techniques; listens to the audio text of plays and understands the significance of voice modulation and intonation; understands the function of the past perfect tense and gerunds. (November, December, January)
- Concepts and Ideas: Gerunds ('-ing' words functioning as nouns). Past Perfect Continuous Tense (action that began and continued up to a specific past point, using 'had been + -ing').
- Values or Moral: The value of clarity and precision in communication, both emotional (intonation) and linguistic (grammar).
- Learning Activity 1 Explained: Gerund Identification: Read the social media post by the travel vlogger (Unit V) and identify the gerunds (e.g., Travelling, Earning, searching, watching, gazing, Hitch-hiking, travelling) and determine their function in the sentence (e.g., subject, object, or object of a preposition).
- Summary Consolidation: Define the term Gerund (a verbal noun) and summarize the rule for using the Past Perfect Continuous Tense (to describe an action ongoing up to a specific point in the past).
- Learning Group Activity 2 Explained: Tense Application: Students practice filling in blanks using the Past Perfect Continuous Tense (e.g., "The woman, bundled in a corner, had been listening till he finished speaking").
- Assessment Questions:
- In the sentence, "Earning fame is not easy," what function does the word 'Earning' perform?
- Write a sentence using the Past Perfect Continuous tense related to Hauchecome's efforts to prove his innocence.
- Extended Activity: Draft a short narration (about 100 words) of an event, ensuring you use at least three verbs in the Past Perfect Continuous tense.
Period 3
- Learning Objective: Reads and understands plays and gains knowledge of theatrical terms and techniques; becomes familiar with descriptive adjectives and idiomatic expressions. (November, December, January)
- Concepts and Ideas: Descriptive Adjectives (words that show the quality of a person/thing). Idiomatic Expressions (phrases whose meaning cannot be understood from the individual words, e.g., 'rack your brains').
- Values or Moral: Appreciation of beauty and the importance of vivid expression in language (as seen in the poem The Wild Swans at Coole).
- Learning Activity 1 Explained: Adjective Completion: Complete the diary entry of W. B. Yeats (Unit V) about his visit to Coole Park, choosing appropriate descriptive adjectives (e.g., graceful, peaceful, autumn beauty) to describe the swans and the park sights.
- Summary Consolidation: Summarize how descriptive adjectives enhance writing by adding detail and precision and define Idiomatic Expressions with one example.
- Learning Group Activity 2 Explained: Idiom Pictionary Creation: Students visualize and create an 'Idiom Pictionary' entry for one of the following idioms: 'Hold your tongue' or 'Spill the beans', including its definition, a sentence, and an illustration.
- Assessment Questions:
- Pick out two descriptive adjectives used by the King when describing the signs of a pious grove.
- Explain the meaning of the idiom: "rack your brains" and use it in a sentence.
- Extended Activity: Develop a detailed Character Sketch of King Dushyanta, using instances from the play and incorporating a variety of descriptive adjectives.
Period 4
- Learning Objective: Understands the urgency of conservation of the environment; investigates the environment in one’s locality and engages in activities to ensure the sustenance of biodiversity in the school campus and at home. (November, December, January)
- Concepts and Ideas: The urgency of conservation. The concept of biodiversity sustenance. Ornithology and the observation of flora and fauna. Environmental challenges (e.g., habitat loss due to development projects like Parambikulam dam).
- Values or Moral: Environmental responsibility and social action (engaging in activities for biodiversity).
- Learning Activity 1 Explained: Biodiversity Garden Planning: Prepare a detailed plan for designing and developing a biodiversity garden in the school campus, ensuring provision for local plant varieties, attracting birds, adding a butterfly garden, and installing a birdbath.
- Summary Consolidation: Consolidate the definition of conservation and list the guidelines for garden sustenance (e.g., avoid using plastic/pesticides, avoid burning dry leaves).
Chapter: Woodland Whispers (Unit IV) & Songs of the Self (Unit V)
Period 1
- Learning Objective: Demonstrates sensitivity, appreciation, and respect for nature; develops values such as empathy and the need to take personal responsibility for environmental stewardship for sustainability; engages in group projects to create a biodiversity park and prepares a report of the activity. (November, December, January)
- Concepts and Ideas: The concept of harmony and co-existence between humans and nature. Ancestors showed respect for nature. Environmental stewardship and the role of collective effort in sustainability.
- Values or Moral: Empathy towards all living beings (like the trustful deer at the hermitage). The duty to protect the innocent. Respect for life and nature.
- Learning Activity 1 Explained: Ecotourism Guidelines: Groups discuss and frame guidelines to be displayed at the entrance of an ecotourism site, ensuring visitors maintain the integrity and harmony of the natural surroundings (e.g., "Don't litter the surroundings").
- Summary Consolidation: Summarize the necessary precautions for environmental sustenance in a dedicated space, such as avoiding the use of plastic and pesticides, and preventing the burning of dry and fallen leaves.
- Learning Group Activity 2 Explained: Biodiversity Garden Planning: Groups prepare a detailed plan for designing and developing a biodiversity garden in the school campus. The plan must include provisions to attract local plant varieties, add a butterfly garden, and install a birdbath.
- Assessment Questions:
- How did King Dushyanta demonstrate respect for the life of the deer and the hermits' way of life?
- List two features of the hermitage that indicated it was a 'pious grove'?
- Extended Activity: Develop the content for a blog on the planned biodiversity garden, focusing on its objectives and highlighting the need for environmental care in the local area.
Period 2
- Learning Objective: Appreciates the beauty, value, and significance of the natural world and realises that human survival is dependent on nature; analyses environmental issues (critical thinking) and develops creative solutions for issues that affect nature (problem solving). (November, December, January)
- Concepts and Ideas: Ornithology as a peaceful pursuit, despite potential hazards. The significance of flora and fauna. The adverse impact of large development projects (like the Parambikulam hydro-electric project).
- Values or Moral: Dedication and Perseverance (Salim Ali's work). Recognition that human survival is dependent on nature and its conservation.
- Learning Activity 1 Explained: Birdwatcher’s Diary: Students write a birdwatcher's diary entry, imagining they spot the Broad-tailed Grass Warbler at a reserve. The diary should record observation details, focusing on features, size, movement, and location.
- Summary Consolidation: Consolidate the challenges faced by ornithologists, such as dealing with wild elephants in the jungles of South India or traversing dangerous Himalayan trails. Emphasize that birdwatching popularity is growing rapidly.
- Learning Group Activity 2 Explained: Conservation Research and Write-up: Groups identify other bird sanctuaries in Kerala (beyond the Salim Ali Bird Sanctuary/Thattekkad), list the resident and migratory birds, and prepare a write-up on the state's bird wealth and the need to conserve it.
- Assessment Questions:
- What, according to Salim Ali, was the impact of the Parambikulam hydro-electric project?
- Why did the author of Trills and Thrills find himself in a "hair-raising incident" near the Kali river?
- Extended Activity: Draft a speech for a memorial lecture dedicated to a noted birdwatcher, citing instances from Trills and Thrills about the peaceful pursuit of ornithology and its excitement.
Period 3
- Learning Objective: Understands the influence of Nature on human and other lives; realises that many works of art were inspired by Nature; realises that human beings are not separate from nature. (November, December, January)
- Concepts and Ideas: Nature is a great influence on our lives. The serenity of nature evokes tender feelings (The Wild Swans at Coole). The idea that one impulse from a wood can teach more of morality than sages.
- Values or Moral: Realizing that breaking the bond with nature will result in disaster. Appreciation of beauty and recognizing the dignity of all life.
- Learning Activity 1 Explained: Images of Nature: Pick out the images of nature from the poem The Wild Swans at Coole (e.g., "trees are in their autumn beauty," "dry woodland paths") and comment on what feeling or significance they convey.
- Summary Consolidation: Consolidation focuses on the theme of The Wild Swans at Coole: the influence of nature's unchanging beauty (the swans) contrasting with the sorrow and personal change (the poet's heart is "sore").
- Learning Group Activity 2 Explained: Art and Harmony Discussion: Discuss works of art in which humans are depicted in harmony with nature, based on the visual harmony noted in Shākuntalam (Shakuntala, the jasmine vine, and the mango tree).
- Assessment Questions:
- What reason did Shakuntala give for treating the trees like sisters?
- In The Wild Swans at Coole, what does the poet mean by saying, "The nineteenth autumn has come upon me"?
- Extended Activity: Write a critical appreciation of The Wild Swans at Coole, exploring how the poet uses metaphor, personification, and imagery to convey the ideas of time and identity.
