Unterrichtsmaterial Boy2Girl
Pre-viewing tasks
Gender stereotypes
As the story Boy2Girl is humorous it uses a lot of stereotypes for male and female
outward appearances and behaviors.
Male or female stereotypes
Decide if this behavior is male or female by ticking the male-female column.
Action
Female
Male
Touching someone when speaking
Speaking in a low, soft voice
Shouting in order to get something
Swaggering when walking
Speaking in a loud voice
Being self – confident and assertive
Chatting
Being caring
Gossiping
Being easily persuaded to do s.th.
Pleasing the other sex
Being loving and compassionate
Being competitive
Neglecting one’s family
Being interested in small children
Being brave
Being the financial provider of the family
Being emotional
Crying
Being moody
cancelling things
Hitching their crotches
Add more
Info
Gender stereotypes are simplistic generalizations about the gender attributes,
differences, and roles of individuals and/or groups. Stereotypes can be positive or
negative, but they rarely communicate accurate information about others. When
people automatically apply gender assumptions to … they are perpetuating gender
stereotyping. Many people recognize the dangers of gender stereotyping, yet
continue to make these types of generalizations.
The weight of scientific evidence demonstrates that children learn gender
stereotypes from adults. As with gender roles, socializing agents—parents, teachers,
peers, religious leaders, and the media—pass along gender stereotypes from one
generation to the next.
(http://www.cliffsnotes.com/sciences/sociology/sex-and-gender/gender-stereotypes)
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Read these scenes and then act them out
1 The Shed Gang
At the shed in the park– Matt / Tyrone / Jake / Sam / Miss WC?
Matt, Tyrone and Jake are waiting for Sam. Miss WC passing with her dog
MATT
He’s always late.
JAKE
Maybe he doesn't exist at all, maybe he's Matt's imaginary friend.
MATT
I wish.
Time passes. Jake kicks a football against the wall of the shed
JAKE
Our shed, our gang.
ALL
The Shed Gang, yeah!
They’re acting out some gang stuff, when Sam finally swaggers towards them. T-shirt
and jeans and blond hair flowing behind him as if he were a very small ship under sail.
MATT
TYRONE
JAKE
MATT
JAKE
MATT
SAM
Here we go.
That’s him? Bit of a shrimp, isn't he?
And get a load of that hair.
It's like I told you, he’s a hippie.
Looks more like a girl to me.
laughing You wait.
hands in pockets How ya doin'? I'm Sam Lopez.
Tyrone and Jake mumble a greeting.
SAM
MATT
SAM
TYRONE
JAKE
SAM
JAKE
SAM
So this is the famous shed. It's OK.
We like it.
So what goes on around here?
Not much.
D'you play football?
glancing at the ball. You mean soccer? In the States, it's a girls' game.
That's because in the States, you can't play it. kicks the ball hard
Sure we could if we wanted to. takes Tyrone's cell phone and casually works
the game with his thumb. Thing is, we prefer real football. Hands the phone
back. There you go; you're onto the next level. He gets up, spits on his hand
and catches the ball as it comes back off the wall. Take a look. This is football.
He bends his knees, holding an imaginary ball in both hands, . Two! Sixty-five!
Hut! Hut!” Off, dancing and jinking across the pavement, shouldering imaginary
players aside, Touchdown! We haaaaaaave a ball game. Dances along, head
thrown back. The other boys laugh.
JAKE
TYRONE
Nutter.
What planet is that guy from?
Sam returns, lumps down on the bench, exhausted
SAM
JAKE
SAM
That's what you call football. It's better with a ball, of course.
You are one crazy Yank.
You ain't seen nuttin' yet. wipes his nose with the back of his sleeve.
MATT COMMENT / Stepping out of the scene’s FRAME
Eight days ago, life was simple. Summer vacation had just started.
Then the news came through from America....
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2 The Bitches
In the park- Charley / Elena / Zia / Miss WC?
The three girls, all with the same handbags, dancing some weird Bitch Ritual.
ALL
ELENA
ALL
ELENA
ZIA
CHARLEY
ALL
We're close, we Bitches. If you upset one of us, you have all of us to
answer to. Elena Griffiths, Zia Khan and Charley Johnson. We are like
the different sides of one all-conquering personality. Each of us is
nothing special.
Except for me, ladies!
Together we are unbeatable.
I am pretty.
I am charming.
But who needs charm if you have brains. Smells like boys around here.
Boys are a waste of time. Elena tries to hide her feelings. We're close, we
Bitches. Laughing and running of.
3 Boy’s Talk
At the shed in the park – Matt / Tyrone / Jake / Sam / Miss WC?
All boys bored.
SAM
TYRONE
SAM
JAKE
SAM
TYRONE
Back home I got celebrated as the most frightening and hardest player
of the year…
Where was that?
At one of my schools.
How many schools have you been to?
counts on his fingers for a moment, then shrugs
Twelve? Thirteen? My mom and I moved around a lot. Something like
that.
Whistles. Matt said she was a bit wild.
Sam gasps
MATT
Tyrone means wild in a good way.
SAM
doing something wild That was Mom all right, Wiiiiild.
JAKE COMMENT (Jake stepping out of the scene)
The American shakes up our little group. - However strange and crazy
our lives might seem, his is much more crazy.
Back in scene
JAKE
TYRONE
MATT
SAM
My mum and dad split up last year. I see Dad once a week but that is
no picnic, either. As if we were strangers.
I have never met my father.
Well, my dad, is doing all that housework and going around in an apron.
Loser City, man. The three boys laugh. So. What do you guys do for kicks
around here?
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Language of the play
The characters are speaking in colloquial English; Sam and his father more so than
the English boys. Sam and his not so educated father often don’t care so much
about grammar, for example:
“lemme” is “let me” in standard English,
”“less” is “let’s”
“dono” is “don’t know”
“´em” is “them”
“`tis” is “it is”
“He doesn’t” often is just “he don’t”!
“is not” often is “ain’t”
“if I had known” sometimes is “ if I’d a know/knew
“d’you” is do you”
“nuttin’” is nothing
“How ya doin'” is how are you?
Vocabulary you need to know to understand the play (You do not have to learn
these words by heart! Translate.
Word
Explanation or definition
ganzungas
breasts
cute
pretty as a little girl
socko (sl.)
successful
German
English TV sucks
snug
cosy, comfortable
you’re crap at
you’re bad at
to crack up
to laugh hard
kinda friendly
kind of, a little bit
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Vocabulary
Here are words you might need if you want to speak about the play. Listen to
your teacher read all the words and try to pronounce the words yourselves.
Word field 1: gender
Headword
male, female,
Definition, explanation
German translation?
wage earner,
house husband
role reversal
to reverse roles
to act in a
stereotypical way
to act, behave
as/like
initiation into
gents bathroom
to have cramps
(enhanced)
bra(ssiere) with
clasps
gay
to hitch up with sb
to get married
topless
to molest
crotch
silicone implants
awkward
to pluck one’s
eyebrows
to date sb
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Word field 3: family, friends and human behavior
Headword
Definition, explanation
wage earner,
German translation?
strained
relationship
to burst into tears
domestic violence
dysfunctional
upset, to upset sb
embarrassed
jail
irresponsible
weird
romance
successful
jealous
honest
frank
fake
scheming, to
scheme
to annoy sb
to take revenge on
wacky
miserable
secure
gloomy
moody
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Word field school, students’ and teachers’ actions and behavior
Headword
Definition, explanation
German translation?
middle school
publicity
to get the blame
hostile
to spread the
rumour
to gossip
to be biased
against
inappropriate
tension
to apologize
to enforce a rule
assembly
reputation
principal
bully
to relate to
detention
trap
cooperative, to
cooperate
recess
to split up
to reprimand
nerd
locker
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Post-viewing tasks:
1. Here are some names and vocabulary to talk about Boy2Girl. You may
consider one of both tasks.
Shuffle the cards and draw one.
a. Use the word to talk about the play. Only once you may put down one
card to take another one.
b. With mime and gesture show what the word means. The rest of the class
has to guess the meaning.
role reversal
self-confident
to long for
lonely
danger(ous)
(Rollentausch)
menstruation/
period
to lure s.o.
(locken)
(to) love
football
sports watch
fake (falsch)
desperate
jealous
bra
boys’/girls’
bathroom/toilets
frightened
depressed
to get rid of
scared
sad
(loswerden)
rumour
prison/jail
to mourn
(trauern)
Crash
family
inheritance
(Erbe)
Sam
to scream
closet
to blame s.o.
(jdm. die
Schuld
geben)
to leave
Ottoleen
to run away
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breast
money
to have a
crush on
s.o.
(verknallt
sein)
hostile
chest
2. Statements - right of wrong?
Tick the correct statements and correct the wrong ones. Add something to the right
statements that you think are important.
Yes
No
Here you can create your own statements for your Yes
classmates.
No
Sam was born a girl.
Sam is short for Samantha
Sam has to dress up as a girl to become a member of The
Sheds.
Right from the start The Sheds like Sam.
Sam is a very polite American boy.
The girl gang is called “The Bitches”.
Sam has to wear boy’s clothes for a week.
Elena wants to be Sam’s best friend.
All pupils of Bradbury High like Mrs. Cartwright, the
principal.
Elena lends Sam her pants.
Zia is in love with Sam.
In order to relax, Mrs Cartwright screams in her closet
(Schrank).
Crash was once a famous musician.
Ottoleen is Sam’s step mother.
Ottoleen wants a baby.
Sam and Elena both like classical music.
The Bitches believe Sam when he says that boys’ watches
are the latest craze (der letzte Schrei) in the USA.
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3. Go into groups of three. Each student draws one card. He/she has to do
the task on his/her card in more than one sentence. After doing it, write
the correct answer on the back of the cards (in notes).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Describe Elena’s and Describe Matt’s and Sam’s Say how you
Sam’s relationship.
relationship.
understand the
ending. Was it
appropriate? If not,
invent a new ending.
Why does David Burton Why does Crash Lopez Describe the special
do
most
of
the come all the way from musical relationship.
housework?
California to London?
Why does Sam agree Characterize Zia.
go out with Mark
Kramer, and why does
it end in disaster?
Why does Sam call
Mr. Burton a “loser”?
Is Elena really Sam’s Why does Sam always Characterize
confidante?
refer to differences in Ottoleen Lopez.
England and America?
Does Mrs Cartwright Does Mrs Cartwright enjoy Why does Burger
enjoy being a school being a school principal? Billie throw the kids
principal? Explain.
Explain.
out of her restaurant
and later he treats
them to a free drink?
4. After watching the play write a (proper) ending for the story and send
your stories in.
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6. Personal evaluation of the play
Your age: _________
Your gender: _________female __________male
Story
What I liked most about the play was ………………………………………………..
What I didn’t like about the play was………………….……………………………....
For
me
the
most
important
scene
/statement/sentence
was
when…………………………………………………………………………………………….
It showed that ………………………..………………...……………………………………..
Another good scene was …………………………………………………………………
because …………………………………………………………………………..…………
I didn’t like the scene when ………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
Characters
The characters I could sympathise most were …………………………….
because ……………………………………………………………………………..
………………………………………………………………………………
Acting
The persons I found most interesting on stage were:
……………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………….
……………………………. because …………..
………………………………………………………………………………
Send me your evaluations
Material for older students
If you consider coming to the play with older, more mature students, here is a task to
use in class.
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Compare what Sam says to The Bitches to what is said in the review of the new film
“Supergirl” that is shown on US public television:
Boy2Girl (p. 96)
Basically her message was that girls are the new guys. They were learning that the
best way of dealing with boys was to be like them — talk to them in the only language
they understand. “Check this.” Sam was talking to a group of us in the playground
that morning. “The way you girls stand is way too apologetic, too … .”She gave a sort
of joke sneer — “female.” “What’s wrong with female?” Elena asked. Sam gave her
the look. “Sorree,” she said. “See what I mean.” Sam smiled. “Give someone the old
eyeball and suddenly you’re in charge. You should try it sometime.” “If we go around
staring at boys, they’ll just think we fancy them,” said Elena.
JAMES PONIEWOZIKReview: ‘Supergirl’ Leaps Tall Buildings While Leaning In,
OCT. 21, 2015 http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/22/arts/television/supergirlpremiere-review-cbs.html?ref=todayspaper
Kara Zor-El (Melissa Benoist), Earthling named Kara Danvers, comes from the same
planet as her cousin Superman. But her personal kryptonite is her tendency to
apologize for herself.
Early in “Supergirl,” which begins Monday on CBS, we find Kara not leaping tall
buildings but saying “Sorry! Sorry!” to a guy she bumps into on the street. She has
superpowers, but she’s chosen to hide them: “I decided the best thing I could do was
fit in,” she says. Even her domineering boss, the media mogul Cat Grant (Calista
Flockhart), criticizes her meek-mannered nature at the office. “If you can’t take credit
when you do something well,” Cat says, “you’re going to be at the bottom of the pile
forever.”
Fortunately, in her second job, Kara can fly. The zippy-as-a-speeding-bullet pilot of
“Supergirl” had the built-in challenge of making its heroine more than Superman’s
female brand extension. But the co-writers Ali Adler, Greg Berlanti and Andrew
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Kreisberg have smartly fit Supergirl’s origin story to a very current feminist theme:
that women must overcome being socialized to say sorry, to put themselves second,
to efface themselves. It’s a superhero story whose motto could be “Up, up and lean
in!”
Like her super cousin (whom we see in brief glimpses), Kara is express-mailed as a
child from an about-to-explode Krypton. Unlike him, she takes a time-warp detour
and arrives on Earth after he has grown and become famous. Put in care of a human
family, she grows up and moves to National City (like Metropolis, but with palm trees)
with her foster sister Alex (Chyler Leigh), who encourages her to keep a low profile.
But when Kara finds herself the only one able to stop a passenger jet from crashing,
she accepts her powers and discovers that she likes the family business….
Superheroes are all about helping others, of course; as James says of Supergirl and
her ilk, “Saving people is what they’re born to do.” But we’ve seen that a million
times. The biggest pleasure of “Supergirl” is watching Kara Zor-El free herself.
Other recent interesting articles
Marisa Meltzer: “Where are all the tomboys gone?” New York Times Oct. 13,
2015
DAVE ITZKOFF: “Supergirl’ Leads a Wave of Female Heroes.” OCT. 16, 2015
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/18/arts/television/supergirl-leads-a-wave-offemale-heroes.html
Longer texts - Fiction and non-fiction
All of these book deal with gender issues, specifically gender stereotypes that
protagonists are fighting. Especially good for older students is the novel
Annabel by the Canadian writer Kathlyn Winter. The Boy in the Dress is
another hilarious book for younger learners (from grade 7 on.)
David Levithan: Every Day. Stuttgart: Ernst Klett Sprachen, 2015
Liz Prince: Tomboy. A Graphic Memoir. Zest Books, sold by New York: Houghton
Mifflin, 2014
Amy Ellis Nutt: Becoming Nicole. The Transformation of a Family. New York:
Random House, 2015
David Walliams: The Boy in the Dress. London: HarperCollins, 2008
Kathlyn Winter: Annabel. New York: Grove Press, Black Cat. 2011
.
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