Lesson video

Hello, and welcome.

Thank you for joining me for today's English lesson.

My name is Mrs. Butterworth, and I cannot wait to get started today because today we will be watching videos of the writer of "Leave Taking," Winsome Pinnock talking about her writing process, her inspirations, and just giving us a great insight into the play.

So let's get started.

In this lesson, you will use Winsome Pinnock's comments to understand how our experiences and research shaped "Leave Taking." Before we delve into the lesson, let's look at those all important keywords.

Some of these you may see in the slide deck, and some of them you may hear Winsome Pinnock herself use.

These words are playwright, intergenerational conflict, legacy, writer-in-residence, and precarious.

Now, Winsome Pinnock can be described as a playwright.

It's a person who writes plays.

Intergenerational conflict, a very important theme in "Leave Taking." This is where disagreements or misunderstandings happen between older and younger generations.

A legacy is the lasting impact or things a person leaves behind for others, even after they're gone.

So you may hear people talking about the legacy they will leave behind.

A writer-in-residence, we hear Winsome Pinnock talking about this, and this is where a writer is invited to work at a theatre or another institution to observe, create and develop their work.

So they spend a long time or an extended period of time at this particular place as a writer-in-residence.

And precarious is to be not secure or safe; likely to change and uncertain.

So we hear Winsome Pinnock using this word when she's talking about the situations of the Caribbean immigrants and how it feels precarious.

So the outline of our lesson looks like this.

We're going to begin by introducing the writer with Winsome Pinnock.

We're going to understand the writing journey with Winsome Pinnock before moving on to reflecting on legacy and career.

So let's start with that first part of the lesson, introducing the writer.

Now, this first video is very short, so make sure you are listening.

So you are going to watch Winsome Pinnock, the writer of "Leave Taking," introducing herself.

And then you are gonna answer the following question, what do you learn about Winsome Pinnock? Okay, so make sure you have everything you need to complete the tasks and following tasks because I'm about to press Play now.

<v ->My name is Winsome Pinnock.

</v> I'm a playwright, the author of "Leave Taking." I was born in London, which is where most of my plays are set.

<v ->Okay, a very short video,</v> but what did you learn about Winsome Pinnock? Jot down some ideas now.

Pause the video to give yourself time to do that.

So here is how Izzy answered.

Izzy said that she learned that Winsome Pinnock is the writer of "Leave Taking" and she lives in London where most of her plays are set.

So a really good answer for Izzy, and hopefully now we are all warmed up and ready to get into some longer videos.

So in this next video, we will watch Winsome Pinnock talk about her inspiration for "Leave Taking." When we have finished watching the video, you will write down three ways Pinnock says her experiences growing up inspired her writing of "Leave Taking." So as you watch the video, you may want to have this task in the back of your mind and to be thinking about it.

Okay, great.

Okay, so I am going to press Play on the video now.

<v ->I wrote "Leave Taking"</v> because I at the time wanted to capture something of my experience as the daughter of immigrants because it was fascinating, my life was interesting to me because I felt caught between worlds.

So my mother and other immigrants from the Caribbean formed a really small unique group in London at the time.

So when I'd be out with my mother, say, she seemed to know every other Black person we passed.

And it wasn't so much that, it was because they were such a small community that when they met each other in the street, they would always acknowledge each other.

And also, it seemed so incredible to me when she'd bump into people that she knew from what she called back home, there was just I sort of used to imagine, I tried to imagine what their lives had been like in Jamaica, that's where my parents come from, compared to London because it must have been so different.

And yet, when they were congregated together in my house, it felt like you were getting a bit of Jamaica.

So in the flat that we lived in, I very much felt like I was sort of in Jamaica.

And then the minute I crossed the threshold outside, I was in London.

At school I was in London and then when I came back home, there was an aspect of Jamaica in my house because of cultural practices, particularly with my mother, she was very religious, religion, and other cultural practices.

So I was just fascinated by that about being someone who was between worlds.

It seemed to me such an enriching thing, it just seemed so rich to have that in your life that you meet with all these characters who were from the Caribbean, which they all seemed really romantic to me.

You know, they were very, they were so different to anyone you'd meet in London or school or wherever, and I wanted to write about them.

When I started writing, I wanted to capture that.

I also wanted, as I say, to write about what it felt like to be at the beginning of a change, to be involved in changing a culture because it felt as though someone like me who was the child of immigrants, but born in the UK, born in London, embodied this kind of change that was happening in Britain at the time, that this influx of immigrants had somehow had an impact on the culture of Britain, and so I wanted to somehow reflect that in the work.

I had big plans about what I would do, but I ended up writing this play, and which captures some of that.

It does some of what I wanted to do I think.

At the time there were lots of debates about the differences between the older generation and the young generation, like conflicts between them, intergenerational conflicts.

There was this idea that the older generation didn't understand what we younger people were going through as people who were caught between cultures.

And again, I wanted to capture that in the play.

<v ->So now it is time to write down three ways</v> Pinnock says her experiences growing up inspired her writing of "Leave Taking." Pause the video to give yourself time to get that down.

Off you go.

Here is how Laura answered.

So Laura said the three things that she listed were that she felt caught between two worlds.

At home it felt like Jamaica, at school and outside it was London.

So Laura picked out what Pinnock was saying about her experiences there.

She was fascinated by the Caribbean community in London, noticing how people acknowledged each other and imagining their lives back home.

And Pinnock wanted to capture the generational and cultural changes she experienced as a child of immigrants in her writing.

So I'd like you to discuss now thinking about your own answers, can you add anything to Laura's answer? Pause the video and discuss that question now.

Okay, so now we need to select an answer, A, B, C, or D, to this question.

Which of the following best describes why Pinnock was inspired to write "Leave Taking"? Pause the video to select your answer now.

Are we ready for an answer? Has everyone got one? So a very well done to everyone that said A, to show the experiences of immigrants in London and the Caribbean community she observed.

So well done everyone that said A.

So in this next video, we will watch Pinnock explain the ideas and questions she explored while writing "Leave Taking." And then you're going to answer the following question, what does Pinnock say she was interested in exploring about people who move to a new country? Okay, great.

So be ready to answer that question when we finish watching the video.

And I'm going to press Play on the video now.

<v ->One thing that I was interested in</v> was the consequences for someone who uproots, who leaves the one life behind and starts another in a new country.

And I was quite fascinated by the cost of that.

You know, what do they gain? That seems, we all seem, we all think we know what they might gain by doing that.

But I was also interested in what's lost.

What do they lose of themselves or materially? What do they leave behind? And how does that impact on them? <v ->Thank you for listening so attentively,</v> and now it's time for you to pause the video to answer that question.

So let's look at how Izzy answered that question.

Izzy said that, "Pinnock was interested in what people gain and what they lose when they leave their home and start a new life in another country.

She wanted to explore how leaving one life behind affects someone both personally and emotionally." And that's a really lovely concise answer from Izzy there that really encapsulates what Pinnock was saying.

So I'd like you now to discuss how might these answers help explain why the themes of identity and belonging are central to "Leave Taking"? So I'll repeat that question again.

How might these answers, so Izzy's answers and your own answers, help explain why the themes of identity and belonging are central to "Leave Taking"? Pause the video to discuss the question.

Thank you for those discussions, but now it is time for some true or false.

So is this statement true or false? Pinnock wondered about the consequences of uprooting one's life, not just the practical ones, but the personal ones too.

Is that statement true or false? Come up with your answer now.

Well done to everyone that noted that the answer was true, but now you need to explain why.

So pause the video to come up with your answer.

Okay, so I'll share an answer, hopefully you have something similar.

So Pinnock says she was fascinated by the cost of uprooting what people gain, what they lose, and how leaving their old life behind affects them personally.

So in this next video, we will watch Winsome Pinnock discuss why she became a playwright.

And you were gonna write down two experiences that helped Pinnock decide she wanted to be a playwright.

Are we ready? Okay, I'm gonna press Play on the video now.

<v ->I became a playwright</v> basically because I fell in love with theatre.

So the first play I ever saw was when I was 12 years old, and I saw a play at a famous theatre, the Royal Court Theatre in London.

And I saw a play called "The Sea," and I loved it so much that from then onwards I wanted to work in theatre.

At first I thought I would be a performer, an actor, and then I started to write more and more little sketches and things.

I joined when I was at university, I studied English and drama at Goldsmiths again in London.

And while I was there, I started writing in secret little sketches and I sent them to the Royal Court Young Writers Group because I knew quite a lot about the Royal Court, I knew they had a youth theatre.

I sent the play, this little sketch I'd written to the person who led their writers group, and he wrote back to me and asked me to come and join them.

So from then onwards, I thought of myself as a playwright.

I started writing in earnest.

It was real fun because that group was made up of playwrights, directors, performers, and they pretty much left us to our own devices and we just got on and we wrote and acted in each other's work and directed each other's work.

So that's what started me off.

<v ->Okay, so before we forget any answers,</v> let's write down those two experiences that helped Pinnock decide she wanted to be a playwright.

Pause the video to get that done.

So let's look at how Andeep answered that task.

So Andeep picked out these two things that Pinnock, she fell in love with the theatre at age 12 when she saw the play "The Sea" at the Royal Court Theatre.

While at university, she started writing sketches in secret and sent them to the Royal Court's youth theatre, which encouraged her to become a playwright.

I was really amazed about her talking about how young she was when she started thinking about plays and writing them, and I found it quite inspirational.

But now it's over to you.

I'd like you to discuss, please, can you add anything to Andeep's answer? Pause the video to give yourself time to do this.

So now we need to select A, B, C, or D as an answer to this question.

What did Pinnock originally think she would become before realizing she wanted to write? Pause the video to come up with your answer now.

Okay, we all got an answer? Are we feeling confident? Of course we are, great.

Well done to everyone said B, a performer.

She says, doesn't she, she thought she might become a performer, but then really got into writing.

So we are now at our first practice task.

So Pinnock describes her influences in the videos.

So she talks about childhood, family, Caribbean community in London, education and her love of the theatre.

When thinking about these things, I would like you please to discuss the following questions.

Which experiences do you think influenced Pinnock most as a writer? And which of these influences is most visible in "Leave Taking" and why? Okay, so you will definitely need to pause the video to give yourself plenty of time to discuss these questions and we'll feedback in a moment.

So pause the video now.

Thank you, everyone.

It was great to hear some really lively discussions and also to hear all the different things that people picked up on in the videos.

So let's see how Alex and Jacob responded.

So Alex said that he thinks, "Her love of theatre influenced her most because seeing plays as a child inspired her to write.

And working with other writers and performers at the Royal Court seemed to really spark her creativity!" And Jacob says, "I think her childhood influenced her most because growing up between London and Jamaica gave her a unique perspective on identity and belonging, which she wanted to explore in her writing of 'Leave Taking.

'" And I think Jacob is definitely right there in terms of seeing these influences and experiences reflected in her work.

So I'd like you to think about your own answers and what you heard in the videos and I'd like you to discuss, please, what could you add to Alex and Jacob's comments? Pause the video to discuss that question now.

So in this next part of the video, we will watch Winsome Pinnock talking about the writing journey.

So in this video, we will watch Pinnock explain the process of writing and getting "Leave Taking" staged.

When you have finished watching the video, you'll answer the following questions.

What challenges did Pinnock face when she started writing "Leave Taking"? And who did Pinnock talk to in order to research parts of the play? Okay, so are we ready? Great, I'm going to press Play on the video now.

<v ->I was writing the play</v> while I was a member of the Young Writers Group at the Royal Court Theatre.

And it was, I found it hard because, as I say, I was learning how to write a play and I had this, I'd written a couple of other things that I'd sent into the Royal Court and they'd come back with notes saying, "Oh, it's gotta be engaging at every moment," so I'd incorporated their notes into this particular play.

But as I say, it's hard because when you go and see a lot of theatre, as I used to as a young person, you think it might be easy to translate your knowledge of what you've seen onto the page, and it's not because you're not really aware of how the playwright has achieved what they have, that there's a sort of structural, there's an engine beneath every play that you don't see a structure.

And so how, how did I get at that? But being at the Young Writers Group, we were being mentored, if you like, by professional playwrights, so I was learning the craft and applying it to this play.

I, at the time, I talked a lot to my mother because there were some things in the play I'm not sure, I can't remember if I'd actually visited Jamaica at that point.

I don't think I had.

I don't think I'd ever been to Jamaica before I wrote this play.

So there were some things in the play that I needed to research, I guess, and so I consulted with her.

For example, there's a, the mother talks about food that her mother used to make for her.

And she talks about having like chocolate tea, and I knew nothing about how you make that, so just things like that my mother would tell me about.

And yeah, also a lot of watching, a lot of observing people, a lot of thinking and finding ways to dramatize what you've discovered, you know, to make that into some kind of story.

I had when I was at the Young Writers Group at the Royal Court, I had a reading, a rehearsed reading of another play I'd written, and I invited all these people to come and see it.

And as a result of that, the Liverpool Playhouse came to see the play and the reading and they commissioned me to write a play.

So I took "Leave Taking," which had already existed, and said that I wanted to work on that.

I don't have the first draft of the play anymore, and I can barely remember it, but I know there were more characters in it than in the existing play because the Liverpool Playhouse told me that they could only afford, I think it was five actors so I changed the play and cut the extra actors, and I think it's good, I think that worked, but that's why you have the number of characters that you have in the play just because they couldn't afford any more.

<v ->And now we have watched the video,</v> it's over to you to answer those questions.

So pause the video to give yourself time to complete those.

Off you go.

So we have Aisha and Jun's answers here, so let's look at what they came up with.

So Aisha for the first question says that, "She found it difficult because she was still learning how to write a play and didn't yet understand the hidden structure beneath plays she had seen." So I think that's a really interesting thing that Aisha had picked out there in terms of the challenges that Pinnock talked about.

And Jun says, "She talked to her mother to learn about experiences and details, such as Jamaican food and chocolate tea that she didn't know about herself." And I like that Jun's picked out that detail there, and I think it was really lovely of Winsome Pinnock to share that, and how her mom really helped her research those things that she needed to know.

So I'd like you to discuss now how might these answers explain why writing "Leave Taking" was a demanding process for Pinnock? Pause the video to discuss your answers now.

Okay, so we now need to pick A, B, C, or D as an answer to this question.

Why did Pinnock have to change the number of characters in "Leave Taking"? So think back to the video we've just watched, but why did Pinnock have to change the number of characters in "Leave Taking"? Pause the video to come up with your answer now.

Okay, so hopefully we have all selected an answer and a very well done to everyone that said C, the Liverpool Playhouse could only afford five actors.

So in this next video, we will watch Pinnock describe how she felt seeing the play performed at the National Theatre.

And once we have finished watching the video, you will need to list three things Pinnock felt or realized about "Leave Taking" being performed at the National Theatre.

Okay, great.

Okay, so I'm going to press Play on the video now.

<v ->Similar to my work at the Young Writers Group</v> at the Royal Court, I was invited into the National Theatre Studio just to be in residence there.

So I was watching stuff there, watching them rehearse stuff.

And then they told me that they wanted to do a production, it was called a mobile production of "Leave Taking." And I can't remember, you know, I can't really remember how I felt about that, but I know how I feel now thinking about it is that, you know, that is a theatre that I've been going to for a very long time, seeing a lot of seminal productions there.

I saw there was a production of "Death of a Salesman," which was really famous with an actor called Warren Mitchell, and I saw that production "Antony and Cleopatra" with Judi Dench and Anthony Hopkins, all these productions I'd seen there.

And so for my play to be, well, it was not, it was going into what was then called the Littleton Theatre.

It's unbelievable really, you know, that because I was committed to working for theater, and you have no idea of where that work is going to take you.

But it was, yeah, it was fantastic to have a play on there.

And I didn't know until many, many, many years later that it was the first play by a Black woman to be staged there.

I didn't know that because of course that wasn't the important thing for me, it was just to do the work and get it on, yeah.

<v ->And now it is your turn to list those three things</v> that Pinnock felt or realized about "Leave Taking" being performed at the National Theatre.

Pause the video and get those three things down.

Right, shall we see how Sofia answered? So Sofia said she picked out these three things that Pinnock said that, "She found it unbelievable because she had seen so many important productions on that stage." It's a really nice thing that Sofia has picked out there.

And I can imagine, I mean it must be amazing for a writer like Pinnock to see their work on the National Theatre stage.

"She felt it was fantastic that her work had taken her somewhere she never expected.

And I think this is a wonderful fact that she later discovered it was the first play by a Black woman staged at the National Theatre, though at the time she was focused simply on making that work." So I just, yeah, that's a really great point that Sofia pointed out there and such an important accolade for her and Pinnock didn't even realize it at the time, but amazing all the same.

So I'd like you now to discuss, so look at your own answers and can you add anything to Sofia's answer? Pause the video and off you go.

Great, so here we are, true or false time.

So is this statement true or false? Pinnock immediately realized the historical significance of her play being the first by a Black woman staged at the National Theatre? Is that true or false? Pause the video to come up with your answer now.

Well done everyone that said false, but you need to explain why that statement is false.

Pause the video to come up with your answer now.

So I'm gonna share an answer now.

Hopefully you have something similar, maybe something a little bit different.

But the reason that statement is false is because Pinnock says that at the time she was focused on doing the work and getting her play on stage, she didn't think about the historical significance until many years later.

So in this video, we're going to watch Pinna describe the plays she likes.

And when we finished, I would like you to list three things Pinnock says about why she enjoys new writing, so listen out for that as you watch the video.

I'm going to press Play on the video now.

<v ->I'm often asked what my favorite play is</v> and/or what my favorite plays are, and I always feel as though I'm cheating people because I find it so hard to actually answer that question.

I know that there are plays that I revisit all the time and it's sort of classic plays, really.

I love "Ibsen." I really love Ibsen and Chekhov.

I love the plays of August Wilson.

There is a play that August Wilson wrote, which is incredible, got a magical play that takes you on a kind of.

The only way I can describe it is that it takes you on a kind of a spiritual journey back to the past.

There's a sort of ritual in that play that you undergo as an audience.

It's really happening to the characters, but you undergo that ritual as well.

And yeah, so I like all sorts of things.

I really love, my passion is for new writing, so I like to see plays by new writers and specifically I suppose young writers, young meaning new, yeah, new people who are just becoming known.

And I suppose the other thing I do like about that is that there's this kind of rawness that you can get with those kinds of plays, which I really love because there's a sort of when there's a passion in a play, when I can feel the playwright's passion, then I'm hooked.

<v ->And now it is over to you.

</v> Quickly get down those three things that Pinnock says about why she enjoys new writing.

Pause the video and off you go.

Okay, so shall we see how Sam answered? So Sam says that, "She loves the rawness that new writers bring.

She feels you can sense the passion of the playwright in the work.

And she says that that passion makes the audience feel hooked and fully engaged." So you add anything to Sam's answer? Pause the video to discuss that question.

Off you go.

And now we have another question, so let's read the question together.

According to Pinnock, what effect does the passion of new playwrights have on the audience? Let's read that question again.

According to Pinnock, what effect does the passion of new playwrights have on the audience? Pause the video to select A, B, C, or D now.

Okay, quickly pick an answer if you don't have one.

Okay, great, it's D, it makes the audience feel hooked and fully engaged.

So we're at our second practice task, and what I would like you to do please is discuss the following questions.

How did Winsome Pinnock's research, observations and creative decisions shape "Leave Taking"? Where can you see their impact in the play? So I want you to discuss those questions, and you may wish to consider the following points.

So think about how she researched her story and characters.

So maybe look back to some of the answers that you have come up with in this lesson so far.

How practical choices like cutting characters shaped the play, and how these decisions make the family and their struggles feel real.

So lots to get your teeth into there and really discuss.

So pause the video to give yourself time to do that.

Off you go.

Great, so many fantastic ideas.

You've clearly got a lot from these videos, which is fantastic.

I love hearing Winsome Pinnock talking about the types of plays she likes because I think it gives us a real understanding of her writing process and her influences, which again, I feel like you can really see some of that in "Leave Taking." But anyway, let's see what Lucas and Alex answered.

So Lucas said that, "Pinnock's research made the family feel real." It's a really nice comment from Lucas, isn't it? "Talking to her mother and observing people shows in how Enid worries about her daughters and how Del and Viv argue about school and the future." Alex picked up on the practical constraints.

So he said, "Practical constraints shaped the play.

Limiting the story to five characters really emphasizes the family's conflicts and tensions in the early scenes, focusing on the relationships and struggles between Enid and her daughters." And I really like that Alex picked that out because I think that's so interesting, isn't it, that actually they just couldn't afford any more than five actors, so it changed the whole outcome of the play if you like.

And I think even Winsome Pinnock would agree that it kind of changed it for the better, which I think is really interesting.

So I'd like you to discuss, please, to what extent do you agree with Lucas and Alex, and why? Pause the video and get discussing.

In this part of the lesson, we will listen to Winsome Pinnock reflecting on her legacy and career.

Let's keep going.

In this video, we will watch Pinnock talk about the play 40 years on.

When we have finished watching the video, I want you to answer the following questions.

How does Pinnock feel about "Leave Taking" now, nearly 40 years later? And why did some people think "Leave Taking" was a new play when it was revived? Okay, so I'm going to press Play on the video now.

<v ->In 2026, that play will be 40 years old.

</v> Now, when I was 23 years old, I don't think I imagined that I would be sitting here talking about that play.

And it's so, it's fascinating to me, but also a little bit strange that I am.

Very proud of it actually, I'm proud of the kids really who wrote that play because it's not me anymore.

But yeah, it's interesting that it's still being read by students, and perhaps it's that it's better understood now because perhaps it's that what I was trying to do with it is that people get it now because while, while you're in it, while you're writing for your time, you know, while you are trying to capture something of it, it isn't until you step back that you realize what it is that was actually being talked about in it.

Because when it was revived a few years ago, we had the Windrush scandal, which was that many people who were British subjects needed to be naturalized.

And if they hadn't done that, then they could be deported back to the Caribbean.

And in the play, someone mentions that the precarious nature of being an immigrant, that you could find that the rules, the law, the immigration laws change at any point and you could be kicked out of a country that you'd thought was your home.

And one of the characters Brod says, "Oh, you know, you gotta be careful and you can't be too certain that you'll be living here for the rest of your lives." And as he was saying those lines, the Windrush scandal was playing out.

And so people, some people who'd not seen the play before thought it was a new play and thought I'd written it specifically about the Windrush scandal.

But sadly I hadn't, sadly some of those issues were still relevant.

<v ->Okay, and now it is over to you to answer those questions.

</v> How does Pinnock feel about "Leave Taking" now, nearly 40 years later? And why did some people think "Leave Taking" was a new play when it was revived? Pause the video and get your answers down.

Okay, so here is how Alex answered.

Alex said that, "She feels fascinated and proud of the play and proud of the young writer she was, noting that it's interesting the play is still being read and perhaps better understood now." And I think that's a really lovely comment from Alex and something I really agree with, that it is just amazing that 40 years on this play just it feels so relevant and important and yet maybe even perhaps better understood now.

And, "Some of the play's themes, like the precarious position of immigrants, mirrored contemporary events such as the Windrush scandal, so audiences thought it was written about those events." And again, that's another really great comment from Alex and something that Pinnock picks up on as well about how it, yeah, it felt like a new play with everything that it was talking about at the time.

But now it's over to you, can you add anything to Sam's answer? Pause the video to discuss.

Off you go.

Okay, so we need an answer for this question.

According to Pinnock, why is "Leave Taking" better understood now? Pause the video to select A, B, C, or D.

Off you go.

Okay, well done to everyone that said B, because audiences are more aware of immigration issues today, particularly around things like the Windrush scandal.

Video, we hear Pinnock talk about some of her other plays.

So in this video, Pinnock is talking about some of her other plays.

Once we have listened to her talk about her other plays, I would like you please to list two themes or ideas Pinnock explores in other plays.

I'm going to press Play on the video now.

<v ->So along with "Leave Taking,"</v> I've written a play called "A Hero's Welcome," which is set in Jamaica, and it's about a soldier who, it's a soldier who professes to be a hero of the Second World War, who has a war wound, and then we discover that there's a very different tale to be told about what actually happened to him when he was fighting on behalf of England in the Second World War.

I wrote a play called "Mules" and another play called "Water," which is about an artist.

And really, I seem to be quite interested in writing about artists and the way that they frame the world, the way that they look at things or the way that we look at their paintings and what they tell us, especially historical pictures.

So those are just a few of the plays I've written, and I continue to write.

<v ->Great, some really great stuff in that video.

</v> But it's over to you now to list those two themes or ideas that Pinnock says she explores in her other plays.

Pause the video to get that task done.

Okay, so shall we see how Jacob answered? So Jacob picked up these two things.

He says that, "In 'A Hero's Welcome,' she explores the hidden or different stories of a soldier from the Second World War.

And in other plays, she explores how artists frame the world and how we interpret their work and paintings, particularly in historical contexts." So thinking about your own answers and what you gained from the video, I'd like you now to discuss, can you add anything to Jacob's answer? Pause the video to discuss that question now.

Right, true or false time.

Pinnock often explores how individual's perspectives shape the way we understand their experiences? Is that statement true or false? Pause the video to come up with your answer now.

Well done everyone that said true.

It is indeed true, but we need to explain why that statement is true.

So pause the video to give yourself time to come up with that explanation as to why that statement is true.

Off you go.

So here is possible answer so you can think about what you thought.

So Pinnock gives examples of characters whose stories reveal hidden truths, showing that how someone sees or experiences the world can change how we understand their life.

So in this video, we will watch Pinnock suggests the questions that should be asked as you read "Leave Taking." Then, when we have finished watching that video, you need to list three questions that Pinnock suggests you could ask as you read "Leave Taking." So we're looking for three questions, so keep your ears listening to what Pinnock says in order to get those three questions.

Are we ready? Great, I'm going to press Play on the video now.

<v ->Do you know a question that would be interesting</v> is how is this relevant to me? Why is this relevant to me? Because I think it is.

How do I? How? What aspect of this resonates with me over this story? Whether it's the mother-daughter relationships, the uncle Brod character, what is it that you identify with in this text? And it might not be obvious at first I think how it relates to your own life, but I imagine there are similarities, and I think it's probably important to try and find them even if at first you think, "Oh, I can't see it," I would urge you to keep looking and don't stop until you come up with an answer.

<v ->Okay, so hopefully we have some ideas</v> because you now need to pause the video and list your three questions.

So let's see what Laura got down.

So Laura says these are the three questions that she picked out, "How is this relevant to me? What aspects of the characters or relationships do I identify with? And what resonates with my own experiences, even if it's not obvious at first?" So I think they're really good questions that Laura picked out there from Pinnock's suggestions and will really help Laura to connect with the play, to understand the play, so those are really great answers.

And thinking about that, I would like you to discuss why do you think Pinnock encourages readers to keep looking for personal connections in the text, even if they aren't obvious at first? I'll repeat that question again.

Why do you think Pinnock encourages readers to keep looking for personal connections in the text, even if they aren't obvious at first? I can't wait to hear what you come up with.

Pause the video and get discussing.

Thank you everyone for those really lovely comments in that discussion question.

We are now at another practice task, so what I would like you to do is I would like you to imagine that you have been asked to write a short article about Winsome Pinnock and her work.

And I would like you to write down what you would include and why.

So think about everything that we have seen and heard today and all the wonderful stuff that we have gathered.

And I want you to consider her career, so any key achievements and how she became a playwright, the plays and her themes, which plays or ideas stand out and why? Relevance, how her work connects to today's issues or audiences, and interest, what you find most interesting about her or her stories.

Okay, so write down what you would include in this article and why? Pause the video and get going.

<v ->Thank you.

</v> So, so many different ways to tackle that task and lots of really good ideas there, so well done.

So Jun is going to share his answer, and this is what he got down.

One important part of Pinnock's career is how she turned her experiences between London and Jamaica into plays exploring identity, belonging and culture.

I mean, that's a fantastic way to start an article, isn't it? He says that he would also highlight "Leave Taking" for its portrayal of immigrant life and "A Hero's Welcome" for revealing hidden historical stories.

Jun would also include how her work remains relevant today as themes like immigration and identities still resonate, especially with connections to events like the Windrush scandal.

Great.

And finally, Jun says that what he's most interested in is how she developed her craft through mentoring, observing rehearsals, and researching her community to make her stories authentic.

Thinking about your own answers, what extent do you agree with Jun's and why? Pause the video to give yourself time to reflect on that question and your own work.

Off you go.

Well done, everyone.

We have reached the end of that lesson, and I hope you enjoyed watching those videos much as I did.

So we know that Pinnock explains how our upbringing in London and Jamaican heritage shaped her ideas about identity and belonging, and we can definitely see that in "Leave Taking." Pinnock describes how her love of theatre and working with others at the Royal Court inspired her as a playwright.

Pinnock shows that writing a play involves research, observation, mentoring and learning the craft.

And I think her honesty there about how difficult it is to write a play was really interesting to hear.

Pinnock demonstrates that passion and authenticity in a play, whether classic or new, engage the audience.

And finally, "Leave Taking" continues to be read and perhaps better understood decades later, showing the lasting impact of her work.

So lots to think about, and thank you for joining me for today's lesson.

Hope to see you all in another English lesson soon.

I'll see you then, goodbye.