Lesson video

Hello everyone, it's lovely to see you here today.

My name's Dr. Clayton and I'm going to guide you through your learning journey today.

So today's says called, "How Simon Armitage writes about news and media in "Transmission report"".

So we're going to listen Armitage talk about the poem, "Transmission Report", then think about how we might respond creatively.

So if you're ready, grab your pen, laptop, whatever you're using for this lesson and let's get started.

So by the end of the lesson, you'll be able to respond to how Simon Armitage writes about news and media in "Transmission Report".

So we have four words today we're going to be using as our keywords.

They'll be identified in bold throughout the learning material and I'll try to point them to you as well, so you can see them being used in context.

So our first keyword is transmission, which is the process of broadcasting or sending out something by radio or television, or on the internet.

So the title of the poem refers to something being sent out by broadcast or signal.

Our second keyword is commission, which means a formal request to do a special piece of work.

So Armitage was commissioned to write "Transmission Report" for the 100th anniversary of the BBC.

Our third keyword is BBC, which stands for British Broadcasting Corporation, a non-profit making, publicly funded TV corporation in the UK.

And our final keyword is celebratory, which means celebrating an important event or occasion, expressing happiness or pride.

Now, you might think of Armitage's "Transmission Report" as a celebratory poem.

So I'll just give you a moment to write down those keywords and their definitions.

So pause the video, write them down now.

Fantastic, let's get started with the lesson.

So we have two learning cycles in our lesson today.

For our first learning cycle, we're going to watch Armitage talk about the poem and think about how we respond to it.

For our second learning cycle, we're going to think about how we can write our celebratory poem about news and media.

So what I'd like us to start off by doing, is listen to Armitage introduce "Transmission Report".

Now, we going to watch the video through twice to make sure you can take in all of the information.

So in this first watch, I'd like you to answer the following questions.

So question one, who commissioned the poem?

Question two, why did they commission it?

And question three, what does Armitage suggest the BBC can offer you?

So let's watch Armitage introduce "Transmission Report" now.

<v ->This is a poem called, "Transmission Report"</v> and it was commissioned by the BBC to celebrate 100 years of the BBC, and I'm a big fan of the BBC.

I've travelled the world and there is nothing like it in any other country.

And I've often maintained that if you pay your licence fee, you pretty much get a free education to degree level and above just by listening to the radio and watching the right kinds of TV programme.

So it was an honour to write this poem.

It's such a big subject that, well like all poems, you just got to try and find an angle into it and I imagined somebody who'd been around for that whole 100 years out there in space, picking up the BBC's signal and amongst all the kind of the junk of noise and transmissions and signals out there in space, this is the one signal that this person wants to tune in to all the time.

<v ->Welcome back, everyone.

</v> I really hope you enjoyed the video.

Now, it was the BBC who commissioned the poem to celebrate their 100th anniversary.

Armitage suggests can offer a degree-level education if you watch and listen to the right programmes.

So now we're going to watch the video again.

So let's watch Armitage introduce "Transmission Report" again.

<v ->This is a poem called, "Transmission Report"</v> and it was commissioned by the BBC to celebrate 100 years of the BBC, and I'm a big fan of the BBC.

I've travelled the world and there is nothing like it in any other country.

And I've often maintained that if you pay your licence fee, you pretty much get a free education to degree level and above just by listening to the radio and watching the right kinds of TV programme.

So it was an honour to write this poem.

It's such a big subject that, well like all poems, you just got to try and find an angle into it and I imagined somebody who'd been around for that whole 100 years out there in space, picking up the BBC's signal and amongst all the kind of the junk of noise and transmissions and signals out there in space, this is the one signal that this person wants to tune in to all the time.

Now, Armitage says he approached the poem by imagining someone out in space who had been picking up the BBC signal for 100 years.

Out of all the information and signals in space, it was the BBC signal they wanted to tune into.

So what I'd like you think about is what impact do you think writing from this perspective has on the reader?

Pause the video, take a few moments to think about it.

Welcome back, everyone, some great ideas there.

Now, potentially you might've thought it conveys importance onto the BBC if someone's choosing to tune into that channel out of all the options they have.

So now for a quick for understanding.

What I'd like you to do is tell me whether the following statement is true or false?

So true or false?

Armitage's "Transmission Report" was a commissioned poem.

Pause the video, take a few moments to think about it.

Now, the correct answer is true.

Now I'd like you to tell me why it's true.

So pause the video, take a few moments to think about it.

Welcome back, everyone.

Now, you might've said that "Transmission Report" was commissioned by the BBC to celebrate its 100th anniversary.

So very well done if you got those right.

So now what I'd like you to do, is watch Armitage talk about his tips for reading a poem and I'd like you to answer the following questions.

So question one, what does Armitage recommend for reading silently?

Question two, that does he think those words will help you realise or remember?

So let's watch Armitage talk about his tips for reading a poem.

<v ->If you're reading silently,</v> but you want to get to grips with the poem and think about its meaning, I would get a highlighter pen and I would highlight what you think are the five or six most important words in the poem.

I would them neon words.

So highlight them with a pen so it jumps out, it's the luminosity of the word.

And I think what you'll often find is that those words sometimes have double meanings and you start realising then or remembering that poems haven't occurred arbitrarily.

Each word in that poem has been chosen for a specific reason by the poet and each word will be very intensional, because words come with luggage and they have little signals and nods and gestures with them, and that's what's been utilised in a poem.

That's how language is being used.

If you're reading a poem out loud, then I would just say, take your time to begin with and honour the language, honour each word, honour the line breaks.

Think of it maybe as a kind of prayer, rather than conversation, which is just happening naturally.

Think of it as something heightened and intense.

That doesn't mean to say you have to dramatise it or over-dramatize it, it's just such a relishing of the language and making sure that you give each syllable its due.

<v ->Welcome back, everyone.

</v> I really hope you enjoyed the video.

Now, Armitage says you should highlight the five or six most important words and he says this will help you realise or remind you that each word has been chosen for a specific reason.

So now what I'd like you to do, is read Armitage's "Transmission Report".

You can find a copy of the poem in the additional materials.

As you're reading, I'd like you to highlight the five words that stand out to you and explain why you think those words have been specifically chosen.

So pause the video, read the poem now.

Welcome back, everyone.

I really hope you enjoyed the poem.

Now, everyone will have different words that stand out to them, because it's a very subjective choice and language affects us all differently.

So now what I'd like us to do is watch Armitage talk about his tips for reading a poem again and this time, I'd like you to answer the following questions.

So question one, what does Armitage recommend for reading aloud?

Question two, what does he suggest you might think of the poem as?

So let's watch Armitage talk about his tips for reading a poem again.

<v ->If you're reading silently,</v> but you want to get to grips with the poem and think about its meaning, I would get a highlighter pen and I would highlight what you think are the five or six most important words in the poem.

I would call them neon words.

So highlight them with a pen so it jumps out, it's the luminosity of the word.

And I think what you'll often find is that those words sometimes have double meanings and you start realising then or remembering that poems haven't occurred arbitrarily.

Each word in that poem has been chosen for a specific reason by the poet and each word will be very intensional, because words come with luggage and they have little signals and nods and gestures with them, and that's what's been utilised in a poem.

That's how language is being used.

If you're reading a poem out loud, then I would just say, take your time to begin with and honour the language, honour each word, honour the line breaks.

Think of it maybe as a kind of prayer, rather than conversation which is just happening naturally.

Think of it as something heightened and intense.

That doesn't mean to say you have to dramatise it or over-dramatize it, it's just such a relishing of the language and making sure that you give each syllable its due.

<v ->Welcome back, everyone.

</v> Now, Armitage says you should take your time and honour the language and the line breaks.

And he suggests that you might think of it as a prayer rather than a conversation.

So there's a copy of Armitage's "Transmission Report" written out in prose in the additional materials.

What I'd like you to do, is the prose version aloud.

So pause the video, read the prose version now.

Welcome back, everyone.

Now, there's also a copy of "Transmission Report" in its poetic form in the additional materials and what I'd like you to do is read the poem aloud.

So pause the video, read the poem now.

Welcome back, everyone.

Now, what I'd like you to think about is what differences can you see in how you read a poem aloud and a piece of prose aloud?

Pause the video, take a few moments to think about it.

Welcome back, everyone.

Now, I think the way a poem is structured creates a different experience of reading aloud than a piece of prose does, because it's not necessarily where we'd naturally pause, because the poet wants to emphasise certain ideas or create a certain feeling to the poem.

So now what I'd like you to do, is listen to Armitage read "Transmission Report".

While you're listening, I'd like you to look at the poem in the additional materials and follow along as you're listening.

So let's watch Armitage read the poem now.

<v ->It's the year 2022 on planet Earth apparently</v> and I'm careering through time and space, careening between galaxies, scanning the frequencies.

The weather is mostly cosmic drizzle and the media mostly celestial drivel, but for a century now, I've picked up a station called the BBC.

And despite occasional interference, I've experienced deep vibrations in my brain cells, tear ducts and funny bones.

As a bonus, it annoys the hell out of tyrants and moguls.

But what is it this BBC, this corporation with nothing to flog, this soul of the nation?

If there's some world order it's trying to favour, then it's a complete failure.

Just recently, I learned all there is to know about the sex life of the natterjack toad, then witnessed war, then considered the meaning of meaning of life, then deep dived beneath Antarctic ice.

Then watched a pride of lionesses make a football stadium's grassy plain its natural terrain.

Above gridlocked air waves and channels jammed with crosstalk and static, I set my clock and steer by a signal that pulses keen and measured and clear.

<v ->Welcome back, everyone.

</v> Now, what I'd like you to think about is how was Armitage honouring the line breaks and the language in the poem while reading it aloud?

Pause the video, take a few moments to think about it.

Welcome back, everyone.

I really hope you enjoyed the video and listening to Armitage read his poem.

So now for a quick check for understanding.

So what advice did Armitage give about reading a poem aloud?

Was it A, you should make the reading as dramatic as possible, B, you should take your time and honour the language or C, you should make up your own line breaks when reading?

So pause the video, take a moments to think about it.

Welcome back, everyone.

Now, the correct answer is B.

You should take your time and honour the language.

So very well done if you got that right.

Amazing work, everyone.

We're on to the first task of the lesson.

Now, what I'd like you to do, is read Armitage's "Transmission Report" again.

You can find a copy of the poem in the additional materials and I'd like you to answer the following questions.

So question one, how does reading the poem make you feel about the BBC?

Question two, how do you think the poem is celebratory?

Question three, what impression of the BBC do you think Armitage wants us to have?

And question four, does the poem reflect your experience of the BBC?

So pause the video, answer the questions now.

Welcome back, everyone, some great work there.

Now, what I'd like you to do is share your answers with a peer and reflect on the following questions.

So did you have similar or different reactions to the poem, why?

Did you have similar or different ideas about the impression that Armitage wants us to have of the BBC, why?

And did the poem give you similar or different ideas about the BBC, why?

So pause the video, reflect on the questions now.

Welcome back, everyone.

Now we're moving on to the second learning cycle.

We're going to think about how we can create our own celebratory poem.

Amazing work, everyone, we're now on to the second learning cycle where we're going to think about how we can create our own celebratory poem about the news and media.

So what I'd like you to do, is imagine you've been asked to write a celebratory poem about your favourite source of news or content.

And I'd like you to answer the following questions.

So what perspective would you choose to write the poem from?

Who is listening to the news or content?

What impact might that have?

Question two, what is it about that source of news or content that makes it your favourite?

Question three, is there anything about that source of news or content that makes it unique?

And question four, how would you describe it to someone else to make them want to listen to it or watch it as well?

So pause the video, answer the questions now.

Welcome back, everyone.

Now, hold on to your answers, because we're going to turn them into a poem a little bit later on in the lesson.

So now for a quick check for understanding.

What I'd like you to do, is tell me whether the following statement is true or false.

So is it true or false?

A celebratory poem should express positive ideas and emotions.

Pause the video, take a few moments to think about it.

Now, the correct answer is true.

Now, I'd like you to tell me why it's true.

So pause the video, take a few moments to think about it.

Welcome back, everyone.

Now, you might've said, "A celebratory poem either celebrates an important event or occasion or it is used to express happiness or pride towards someone or something.

" So very well done if you got those right.

Amazing work, everyone.

We're now on to the final task of the lesson.

So what I'd like you to do, is take your answers and manipulate the language and structure to turn it into a celebratory poem.

Now, you might manipulate the language and structure by adding in line breaks and punctuation, tweaking the language to help communicate an idea or emotion to the reader, adding in poetic language such as metaphors to help communicate an idea or emotion.

So pause the video, create your poem now.

Welcome back, everyone, some great work there.

What I'd like you to do, is reflect on your poem and think about the following questions.

So what do you think your poem communicates about your favourite source of news or content?

Is there anything further you would like to change about your poem to help it communicate more effectively with the reader?

So pause the video, reflect on your poem now.

Welcome back, everyone.

I really hope you enjoyed listening to Armitage talk about "Transmission Report" and creating your own poem today.

You all did amazingly well today, everyone.

Here's a summary of what we covered.

Armitage's "Transmission Report" was commissioned by the BBC to celebrate their 100th anniversary.

Armitage chose to write "Transmission Report" from the perspective of someone in outer space choosing to tune into the BBC.

Armitage suggests that when reading a poem silently, you should highlight the five words that stand out to you the most.

In doing so, Armitage states that it will help you remember or realise how intentional language choices are.

When reading a poem aloud, Armitage says you should honour the language and the line breaks.

I really hope you enjoyed the lesson, everyone.

I hope to see you for another lesson soon.

Goodbye.