Show Students the Front Cover of Fast. Point out the Title. Give Students Two Minutes In

Lesson 1

Learning objectives:
To work well with others to share, develop and justify predictions.
Assessment Foci:
Speaking and Listening AF2; Reading AF3

Starter

Show students the front cover of Fast. Point out the title. Give students two minutes in silence on their own to think about what the play might be about. Tell them to get ready to explain their prediction.

Introduction

Thought spinner: Put the class into two circles, one inside the other. Each student on the outside circle should face inwards; each student on the inside circle should face outwards. This means that everyone is facing a partner. Tell students to take it in turns to tell their partner their thoughts about what the play might be about, and why they think that. They should listen carefully to each other and then discuss and ask each other questions. After two minutes move the outer students one place clockwise and the inner students one place anti-clockwise. They now have new partners. Each of the new partners should take it in turns to tell each other what their original partner thought (rather than what they themselves thought) and then discuss. After a few minutes move the circles round again and repeat the process but with each partner telling their new partner about what both their previous partners thought.

Development

Gather a few thoughts from the class about their predictions and the clues that have prompted them. Ask the class what they have learnt from the thought spinner exercise (e.g. to listen carefully, to be prepared to question their own first thoughts). Use this process to establish the lesson aim.

Turn the class' attention to the play's list of characters (on page iv of the play). Model for them how to infer things on the basis of clues. For example: “the word 'fasters' suggests that this is not about speed, but about two people who are fasting. Does anyone know what 'fasting' means? ….There seem to be different groups of characters. Perhaps there is conflict between different groups.

Ask every student to work with the partner they ended up with in the thought spinner activity. The pairs should look carefully at The Welsh Fasting Girl text on Resource Sheet 1a, and use it to make predictions about what the play is going to be about, and what will happen. Give them five to ten minutes for this.

Use the thought spinner activity again to spread the latest predictions between students.

Plenary

Ask students in groups of nine to read through the opening scene of the play and to consider which of their predictions about the play look like being accurate. What can they predict about the rest of the play from the first scene? How can they share ideas so that they support each other's thinking? Take five minutes of feedback.

Homework/Follow-on

Get students to do some research around this question: Who was responsible for the death of Sarah Jacobs?

Lesson 2

Learning objectives:
To use evidence to draw conclusions about characters.
Assessment Foci:
Speaking and Listening AF2; Reading AF2 and AF3

Starter

Put the class into pairs and show them Resource sheet 2a. Give them five minutes to discuss what we learn about Emma. What first impressions do we get? What things give us these impressions? Students fill in the boxes on the sheet.

Development

Take some quick feedback about Emma. Concentrate on the clues students have used to make inferences about her: e.g. the fact that she is reading the leaflet might suggest that she is methodical. Her aside, “Aren’t we, Hollie?” might suggest a number of things – she is teasing Hollie’s devotion to appearances, or she is sharing that devotion. It might indicate that she is close to Hollie and knows what she is thinking. Use this process to establish the lesson aims.

Now ask the class to tell you some of the impressions they have got of Charlie in scenes 1-3. Take these without comment and without requiring evidence. Note them down on the board. Look out for conflicting impressions.

Now model for students how to look for evidence to confirm or deny impressions. Use some of the class’ impressions – especially conflicting ones. It is very important to focus on specific details in the script and then analyse those details to suggest interpretations of Charlie’s character. You could use Resource sheet 2b to draw the class’ attention to specific details.

Give each student one of the following characters to study in Scenes 1-3: Hollie, Kate, Zoe, Jack or Bor. Tell them to use a simple table like the one in Resource 2a to note down their impressions about their given character and how they get these impressions. Give them ten minutes

Plenary

EITHER put the students into groups of three to five with each member having studied the same character, OR put the students into groups of five with each member having studied a different character. Appoint a chairperson for each group. Tell the group members to take turns in telling the rest of the group their ideas about the character they have been studying, and then to discuss differences and similarities in group members’ ideas. Encourage the chairperson to keep the discussion civilized. Encourage group members to use phrases such as: “What makes you say that….?” “I agree with you when you say…., but I’m not sure about….” “I wonder if that suggests that….” Write these helpful stems on the board

Homework/Follow-on

Write character notes for some of the main characters to give guidance to actors playing the characters. Write about 70 words for each character.

Lesson 3

Learning objectives:
To consider why Charlie continues the fast, and to understand the idea of inferring in the light of evidence.
Assessment Foci:
Speaking and Listening AF3; Reading AF3

Starter

Put students into pairs (preferably boy/girl). Give each student Resource sheet 3a. Ask the pairs to rank order the offered reasons for Charlie's determination to continue with the fast. They can add up to two reasons of their own, using the blank boxes. Emphasise that students should work towards an agreement over their rank order, and they should be ready to justify their rank order.

Development

Take some feedback from pairs about their top two choices and why they chose them, OR – better – nominate one envoy in each pair and tell them to go to the next pair clockwise. With their new partner they should report their original pair's rank order and reasons for it, and then discuss differences between their pair's decisions and those of their new partner. You could move the envoys on again before returning them to their original partner for final discussion and amendment of their decisions where appropriate.

Point out that there are likely to have been differences in the rank orders because the playwright has not given us the right answer; he has left us to interpret – to infer – on the basis of clues in the script.

Draw the class' attention to Charlie's final quote at the end of Scene 4 (on page 25 of the play). Model for students how to make inferences about Charlie on the basis of what he says. Show the class how speaking the words in different ways might lead the reader/audience to make different inferences.

Put the class into pairs (preferably boy/girl) and ask them to imagine and act out the conversation between Charlie and his mother that Charlie reports near the end of Scene 5 (“...we had a talk about it...”, line 155 on page 32). Before they start, ask them to discuss:

● the sort of relationship that Charlie and his mother have with each other

● Charlie's reasons for the fast (and the reasons he might give to his mother)

● Charlie's methods of persuasion.

Plenary

Ask a couple of competent pairs to perform their versions of the conversation for the whole class. Ask students to make comments on differences in the two versions and the different views of Charlie and his motives that are suggested. Which version is more believable? Why?

Homework/Follow-on

Students EITHER (a) explain – and give their reasons – why Charlie continues with his fast OR (b) write a script of the conversation Charlie has with his mother in which he wins her support.

Lesson 4

Learning objectives:
To improve students' ability to work effectively in groups, and to consider the impact of fame and publicity on the characters.
Assessment Foci:
Speaking and Listening AF2; Reading AF3

Starter

Tell the class that they are going to explore one issue in the play through small group discussions. Quickly establish the meaning of 'discussion'. Put students in groups of four and give them five minutes to discuss and decide on a list of rules for good group discussion. As examples you could offer: listen carefully to what others say; don't shout. (Alternative: give students Resource sheet 4a and ask each group to agree on a mark out of five for each item on the list.)

Development

Take feedback from the starter and establish 10 key rules for group discussion. Try to make this one of the rules: respect other people's ideas. Ask the class how well the students in the script stick to the rules for good discussions. What is the result of how they talk to each other?

Now ask the class: how do newspapers and other forms of publicity affect Charlie? Take an idea from a volunteer and then ask another volunteer first to comment on the previous point and then to build on that comment. You could model this for the class. Try to elicit more points, insisting that each speaker respects previous contributions by referring to them, re-phrasing or summarising them before making their own points. Point out that this is a way of building on and respecting other people's views.

Tell the groups to discuss and answer the questions on Resource sheet 4b. Nominate one member of each group to take no part in the discussion but just to listen and observe, noting down examples of when other members do or don’t stick to the class rules of good discussion.

Plenary

Choose some of the observers to give feedback to the class (or their groups) on their evaluations. You could give the observers a few minutes to compare notes before feeding back.

Homework/Follow-on

Students write 200 words about how well their group discussed the questions and stuck to the rules for good discussions. What were they pleased with? What could they have done better?

Lesson 5

Learning objectives:
To improve students' ability to improvise plausibly around a given situation.
Assessment Foci:
Speaking and Listening AF3

Starter

Ask students to imagine that two newspaper reporters are coming round to Charlie’s house to ask him and his mother about the allegations that Hollie has been cheating. Put students into pairs. Tell some of the pairs to talk about what questions the reporters would want to ask. Tell the rest of the pairs to decide how Charlie and his mother would plan for the arrival of the reporters: What do they plan to say to the reporters? Does Charlie see this as an opportunity to defeat Hollie? They should not act out the conversations; they should only plan what they want to say. They should look closely at Act 2 Scenes 4 and 5 for ideas.

Development

Gather some quick ideas about the sorts of questions the reporters would want to ask, and about what Charlie and his mother would want to say. Give the pairs two more minutes to develop their ideas.

Tell the students that they are going to improvise (role play) the reporters arriving and then interviewing Charlie and his mum about the allegations of Hollie’s cheating. Tell them improvising is a way of getting ‘inside’ characters and situations and must be based on what we know from the play script: the characters must speak and behave in ways that fit the script. Show the pairs Resource sheet 5a which outlines the assessment criteria. Tell the pairs to look carefully at the criteria and decide what they will have to do in the improvisation to meet the grade they want.

Put Charlie and his mother pairs together with reporter pairs and ask them to improvise the reporters’ arrival and the interview. Give them 10-15 minutes for this. Circulate and make assessments using Resource sheet 5b

Plenary

Ask students to offer comments against the criteria about other members of their group. Give some of your own feedback.

Homework/Follow-on

Ask students EITHER to write the interview as a play-script, OR to write an evaluation of their own improvisation skills, referring closely to the assessment criteria on Resourcesheet 5a.

Lesson 6

Learning objectives:
To explore Charlie's feelings and how the audience might react to him.
Assessment Foci:
Speaking and Listening AF2; Reading AF3

Starter