Teaching Sequence

Work through this resource material in the following sequence:

Optional Preparation – Ground Rules For Classroom Discussion
60 minutes – Part A: The Value Of Stories
60 minutes – Part B: Learning About Biographical Writing
60+ minutes – Part C: Research And Create A Biography
20 minutes – Reflection

Part A: The Value Of Stories

Step 1.

Begin the lesson by engaging students in the stories featured in Life After The Oasis, a documentary film that follows the stories of people who were being supported by The Oasis Youth Support Network in their youth, and shows how opportunities and experiences have shaped their lives over the last ten years.

Invite students to sit where they can see the screen, and show one or more of the clips below. Before you begin watching, remind students that the clip they are about to see features real people courageously sharing their stories:

Paul's Story (https://vimeo.com/348326904/7d9ee6ee2c)

Owen's Story (https://vimeo.com/347212785/065d0b0d97)

Darren's Story (https://vimeo.com/346336219/2ace7f2662)

Emma's Story (https://vimeo.com/347210687/d9e3ffb66b)

Haley's Story (https://vimeo.com/347230350/89c438565d)

You may choose to select one clip to view or multiple, depending on how much time that you have.

Step 2.

Invite students to make sense of the story or stories they viewed by joining with a partner and discussing their responses to the questions below (they are also on the Student Worksheet):

What are your first impressions of the story or stories you viewed?
Has your world view changed in any way after viewing the story? If so, how? If not, why not?
Are other peoples' stories important? If yes, why? If no, why not?
Can we learn from other peoples' stories?

Step 3.

Extend student’s understanding of the value of stories by facilitating a class discussion. If possible, invite the class to sit on their chairs in a circle formation with tables moved to the sides of the classroom - this can help students to better engage in the discussion, even if they are not contributing.

Begin the discussion by informing students that you will be making several statements and asking them if they agree or disagree with each. They should indicate that they agree by giving a ‘thumbs up’ and that they disagree by giving a ‘thumbs down’. Once students have indicated their stance on each statement, ask several volunteers to share why they have that view.

If the class is reluctant to contribute, use the circle formation to your advantage by going around the circle and asking students to respond one-by-one.

Use the main statements below to prompt discussion, and if required, add the secondary point after students have shared their views:

• Stories are universal:

• they help us to build meaning and purpose that help us understand ourselves better and find what we have in common with other people.

• Stories help us understand our place in the world:

• they can help us to shape who we are, how we think, what we feel and how we make decisions throughout our lives.

• Stories help us learn how to act wisely:

• stories can teach us good from bad, how to act wisely with others in social situations and when we’re alone. They can also teach us about the consequences of not doing the right thing by ourselves and society.

• Stories help shape our perspective of the world:

• they help us explain most things that we experience. With every story we hear, read or listen, our mind makes connections that build and change how we view the world.

• Stories help us understand other people and their perspectives:

• they can help you learn to empathise with other people as you hear about and build an understanding of how they see the world.

Adapted from an article from: https://www.tckpublishing.com/stories-matter/

Step 4.

Invite students to consolidate their understanding of the value of stories by working independently to respond to the prompts on the Student Worksheet. Encourage the class to respond in a way that is honest, and to detail their reasons for their responses. They are asked:

Are stories important?
Is it important to understand the experiences of others? Why or why not?
Do other peoples' stories benefit you personally? If yes, why? If no, why not?
Do stories benefit society more generally? If yes, why? If no, why not?

Step 5.

Once students have finished responding independently, ask them to turn to the person next to them to share their thoughts. If there is time, provide the opportunity for students to understand each other's perspectives by inviting a few students to volunteer to share their responses with the rest of the class.

Part B: Learning About Biographical Writing

Step 1.

Inform the class that they now have an opportunity to learn about a specific type of story-telling: biographical stories. They will be learning about the key features of a biography, then will apply their knowledge to research, plan and write a short biography about a person of their choice.

Invite students to read the key features of a biography that are listed on the Student Worksheet.

A Biography:

Is a person’s life story, written by someone else
Describes and discusses the life of a real person.
Describes the person’s legacy, or the impact they have had (or are having) on their world.
Information is based on fact - primary and secondary sources are used to tell the person’s story.
All events, conversations, and people included are accurate and from a reliable source using first-person accounts when available.
Other people and events of the time in which the person lived are included in order to illustrate the wider context of the person’s life.
The story is written/told in a style and tone that the reader/listener can relate to the person and believe in their humanness.
Develops the person as a real and interesting individual rather than as a persona or stereotypical member of a group.

Step 2.

Ask students to relate what they have read to their own experiences with biographies. They can do so by responding to the questions on the Student Worksheet. They are asked:

What do you remember about a biography that you have read/seen/heard?
Did the life story in the biography change the way you thought about your own life? If yes, how? If no, why not?

Students may need some extra guidance to be able to recall the biographical texts they have read in the past. Remind students that any story about a person that is true could be considered a biography.

Optional extension: Students could spend some time reading one or more short biographies found at this biography website: https://www.biography.com/people in order to familiarise themselves with a short biography.

Step 3.

Invite students to apply their understanding about biographies to plot out the main points that could be included in a biography of one of the people featured in the clips from Life After The Oasis. They can use the subheadings provided on the Student Worksheet (and detailed below) to guide them:

Name of person:
Childhood (and education) - describe the early life of the person:
External influences - the people and events that influenced the person and how they approach their own life:
Personal philosophy - describe how the person sees life - what guides them and the decisions they make?
Legacy - Describe the impact the subject has had on their world (or family, town, community, or society - the impact doesn’t have to be enormous!)
Major setbacks and victories that the person has experienced:
Description of the person’s life now:

Part C: Research and Create a Biography

Step 1.

In this part of the lesson, students will have the opportunity to create their own biographical text (writing/video/audio) that details a person’s life story, their legacy and the impact that they have had on their world. Provide each student with a Steps To Creating A Biography Factsheet which outlines the planning, writing and editing process for creating a biography.

They can use the planning guidelines provided in the Steps To Creating A Biography Factsheet to help them decide who to research (their subject), and how to find out more about their subject.

Students will need to create a plan, then conduct their research by interviewing their subject. They could also interview people who know and have been impacted by the subject. Students may want to collect photos and other artefacts that create their subject’s story. Students should use the "Basic Outline for a Biography", detailed in the Steps To Creating A Biography Factsheet, to guide them in what they need to find out in their research so that they can include it in their biography.

Encourage students to decide on the form that their biography will take. Some options for their biography include (these options are also listed in the Steps To Creating A Biography Factsheet):

Writing - short essay or article about the subject.
Podcast - a voice recording that tells the story of the subject - some of the interviews could be included in this with permission from the subject.
Short film - this might include images such as photos, any archival footage of the subject (used with permission of both the subject and the producer of the footage), and footage of the interview being conducted.

Allow students time to make their plan.

Step 2.

Once students have made their plan, they should be given some time out of class to organise and conduct their interview and other research.

Step 3.

After students have conducted their research and gathered the material required to write (or create) a biography, encourage students to plot out the person’s life events in a timeline or storyboard format. They could then annotate their timeline to identify key people and events in their subject’s life that are notable. For example, highlighting a person who had a big impact on their life, or an event that changed their perspective on life.

Step 4.

Allow time for students to draft their biography, then encourage them to use the peer assessment provided in the Steps To Creating A Biography Factsheet to seek feedback from their peers.

Step 5.

Encourage students to refine their biography and publish a final version. If possible, make the class’s biographies available for public reading, listening, and viewing.

Reflection

Encourage students to reflect on their learning throughout the lesson by responding in writing on the Student Worksheet to these questions:

Can biographies change people’s perceptions around an issue such as homelessness? If so, how? If not, why not?
What did you do in this lesson that was easy? Why was it easy?
What did you do that was difficult? Why was it difficult? What did you do to overcome the difficulty you faced?

Differentiated Learning

Extension – Invite students to extend their biography out into several chapters describing their subject’s life.

OR

Ask students to tune in to one of the many episodes of the podcast “Conversations”, produced by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation to gain an insight into how to conduct a great interview that uncovers the many layers of an individual. They can go to: https://www.abc.net.au/radio/programs/conversations/episodes/ or search “Conversations” wherever they usually find their podcasts to choose one or more episodes to listen to.

Provisions for Learning Support – Conference with students who require more scaffolding before they begin their research - work with students to draft a list of questions, and then to write one paragraph per main/interesting point they discover about their subject.

Teacher Reflection

Take this opportunity to reflect on your own teaching:

What did you learn about your teaching today?
What worked well?
What didn't work so well?
What would you share?
Where to next?
How are you going to get there?

Life After The Oasis - Telling a Life Story

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