Text English Book 1 Teacher Guide
Unit 3 Gothic tales
3
Gothic tales
Lesson plan
1 Features of Gothic stories
Resources needed: Student sheets 3.1–3.5
Student Book pages 58–59
Lesson aims: By the end of this lesson students should be able to identify the main
features of Gothic stories
Curriculum: Personal development – make a positive contribution: working collaboratively
as part of a group discussion.
Framework objectives
Cross-curricular links
2.1b using some verbal and non-verbal
technique; 6.1 understand the different
ways in which texts can reflect their social,
cultural and historical contexts.
Art and design – Cultural understanding and
contexts; History – Chronological
understanding, change and continuity,
significance and interpretation; Science –
Ethical and moral implications.
Starter (15 minutes)
Divide the class into two rows, facing each other. Tell them that for 4 minutes they are
going to take turns to call out names of scary films or characters. You choose the team to
start; the first person calls out and points to a member of the opposite team to reply. Each
team member can only be used twice and they can only pass once. Answers can only be
given once. Points are scored if the opposite team does not reply in 3 seconds. You keep
score and list answers on the board.
Development (35 minutes)
Introduction (10 minutes) Write the word Gothic on the board. Ask: Have the students
heard this word before? Where have they seen it written down? Have they seen any films
that have been described as Gothic? Have they read any books that say they are Gothic?
Where might the word have come from? After this discussion write the definition on the
board: a style of writing, architecture and art that was popular in the eighteenth and
nineteenth centuries. Complete Activity 1 in the Student Book (using Student sheet 3.1).
Activity 2 uses Student sheet 3.2. In pairs, students take turns to read aloud the four
passages in Activity 2. They have to read them in the dramatic style that is appropriate for
each passage, adding emphasis to specific words, e.g. Extract A: soft, romantic voice
emphasising ‘gazed’, ‘shiny’, ‘sighed’, ‘happiness’ etc; Extract B: deep voice emphasising
‘Heath Manor’, ‘dense, gloomy, fir trees’ etc; Extract C: reading quickly but pausing at each
punctuation mark for dramatic effect; Extract D emphasising the speech with an
authoritative, monotone voice. Class feed back about why they felt these passages were
meant to be read in different ways. How did they know how to do it? As a class, discuss
which of the story openings is most Gothic. Students should offer ideas about atmosphere,
descriptive language, and setting.
Read the passage from Frankenstein in Activity 3. Using Student sheets 3.3 and 3.4,
students use one coloured pencil or highlighter to identify the Gothic features in
Frankenstein, and another colour to identify words that show the narrator’s feelings.
Plan and activities
48
Text English Book 1 Teacher Guide
Unit 3 Gothic tales
3
Gothic tales
Plenary (10 minutes)
Assess your progress Using Student sheet 3.5, students assess how far they have
achieved the three levels that are given, ticking those they have achieved and writing down
an example to demonstrate that achievement. After 8 minutes ask them to hold up their
sheets: you should see by the ticks where individuals rate their abilities.
Homework
Students research the Gothic style of literature and architecture. Prompt them with
questions such as ‘Who played a great part in the Gothic revival style of architecture and
wrote one of the first Gothic novels?’ (Answer: Sir Horace Walpole, his novel: The Castle of
Otranto) and ‘In what type of buildings do we still find evidence of Gothic architecture?’
(Answer: Churches and cathedrals traditionally show Gothic features with their pointed
windows and gargoyles).
Plan and activities
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