Media Literacy
Clip 1 Food and chores
Activity 1: Relationships
Discover:
  • In the opening scene of this clip, Lily and Phuong are making spring rolls.
  • After viewing the clip have students write down what they think this scene is about.
  • As a class, discuss students’ responses and if necessary draw attention to how the real focus of the scene is the relationship between the two girls, not the task they are doing.
  • Ask students whose point of view (POV) this scene is from; which character is the main character? How do they know?

Reflect:
  • Have students write a description of each girl, Lily and Phuong and the reasons why they think this about the character.
  • Discuss the students’ observations and draw attention to the ways in which the filmmaker sets this up in the scene.
  • Screen the clip again and have students carefully observe and record on the worksheet further detailed information about the relationship between the two girls and how the filmmaker establishes this.(For example, the use of close-ups to emphasise the way Lily is feeling, the shots of the spring rolls on each plate, editing to show to show that Phoung’s pile is growing much faster than Lily’s and how the rolls differ in appearance. The use of language by Lily, for example” ‘Oh it’s like that is it?’)
  • As a class, compile a master list of responses and discuss, highlighting the attention given by the filmmaker to construct this relationship between two characters. .

Download:
Students Activity Sheet: ML3.1

Student Activity Sheet: ML3.1

Clip 1: Food and chores

Activity 1: Relationships

NAME: ………………………………………………………………………...CLASS: ………………

(1) Write a description of Lily and Phuong and provide your thoughts about the character. List the reasons why you think this about the character.
(2) Record detailed information about the relationship between the two girls and how the filmmaker establishes this.
In this scene the filmmaker is establishing a ______relationship between Lily and her cousin Phuong
Acting / Use of camera / Voice-over / Dialogue / Editing
Media Literacy
Clip 1: Food & chores
Activity 2: What about Phuong?
Discover:
  • This clip is told from the point of view of Lily who is the main character in this episode. Have students relook at the way this scene unfolds in this clip and discuss how it might be different if it was told from the point of view of Phuong instead. What would she be thinking if you could hear her thoughts?
  • Have students rewrite the script of the restaurant scene, removing Lily’s thoughts and rewriting it from Phuong’s perspective. Refer to the Episode 3: Lily 1988script and use it as a model.
  • Work through the script with the class, discussing which sections need to be rewritten to show the scene from Phuong’s point of view. For example, consider what would Phuong be thinking in this scene? How would she be feeling?
  • Explain the structure of a script to the class, and how the ‘Big print’ explains the action and sets up the context, and the dialogue is what the characters say or their thoughts as voice over.
  • As a class modeled writing activity, rewrite the first part of the scene together, which means rewriting the opening to have the scene start with Phuong and place her at the centre of what is happening.

Reflect:
  • Once the rewrite is completed, students can independently rewrite the remainder of the scene using the same techniques. Have students read their script to the class.

Download:
Students Activity Sheet: ML3.2

Student Activity Sheet: ML3.2

Clip 1: Food and chores

Activity 2: What about Phuong?

NAME: ………………………………………………………………………...CLASS: ………………

(1) Rewrite the script of the restaurant scene, removing Lily’s thoughts and rewriting it from Phuong’s perspective. Refer to the Episode 3: Lily 1988 script and use it as a model.

Media Literacy
Clip 1: Food & Chores
Activity 3: Colloquial terms
Discover:
  • Discuss the ususal/humorous sayings Mrs. Benson, Lily’s neighbour, speaks when they meet. For example, ‘Well, that’s a face like a wet week!’ As a class, discuss what Mrs. Benson means. Have students identify other sayings from Mrs Benson, such as ‘don’t get your knickers in a knot’.
  • Explain to the class that these are colloquial terms. Have students look up the word colloquial in the dictionary and write the meaning. Ask the students to find more of these examples, such as ‘I couldn’t organise a bun fight in a paper bag.’
  • Mrs Benson also says to Lily ‘Cheer up, nobody likes a whinger’. Have students write a straightforward explanation of this saying so that a new arrival to Australia like Phuong could understand what she meant. Students can write an explanation of these colloquialisms in plain English.
  • Discuss the difficulties someone learning English for the first time would have with trying to understand colloquialisms. In another part of Episode 3, Lily remembers back to her first day at school, where she was told to ‘pay attention’. Discuss what the term ‘pay attention’ means, before sharing the following extract from the script with the class. Lily is remembering some of the difficulties she encountered when learning and understanding English.
LILY
Pay attention is the same as lang
nghe tôi. Yeah? Pay a-ten-shun. My
first day at school I thought I had
to give them money. I flipped.
  • Discuss what Lily thought the command to ‘pay attention’ meant?

Reflect:
  • Students can collect examples of colloquialisms from friends and family, the dictionary and online. They should share their collected sayings and their meanings with the class.

Download:
Students Activity Sheet: ML3.3

Student Activity Sheet: ML3.3

Clip 1: Food and chores

Activity 3: Colloquial terms

NAME: ………………………………………………………………………...CLASS: ………………

(1) What does the word colloquial mean? Look the meaning up in a dictionary.

(2) What is the meaning of the following terms? Find other colloquialisms and their meanings.

don’t get your knickers in a knot’
that’s a face like a wet week!
I couldn’t organise a bun fight in a paper bag
Cheer up, nobody likes a whinger’

(2)

LILY

Pay attention is the same as lang

nghe tôi. Yeah? Pay a-ten-shun. My

first day at school I thought I had

to give them money. I flipped.

What did Lily think the command to ‘pay attention’ meant?

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