'Small Island': reading Act 1 Scene 2
Lesson details
Learning outcome
I can explore the relationship between Bernard and Queenie.
Key learning points
- Both Queenie and Hortense tell their story by directly addressing the audience.
- Class is a key dimension here - Bernard offers Queenie the hope of a middle class life.
- Bernard is a caricature of a repressed English gentleman, who is fearful of all that is unfamiliar.
- The setting of Bernard's cold, closed-off Edwardian house mirrors his personality and is opposite to Queenie's warmth.
- The playwright uses humour to show the lack of passion between the couple.
Keywords
Characterisation - how a writer creates and constructs a fictional character
Motif - a dominant or recurring idea or theme in a text
Caricature - a description where characteristics are exaggerated to create a comic effect
Humorous - describes something that is funny
Stoicism - experiencing pain or hardship without complaining
Common misconception
That Queenie and Bernard's relationship is only a marriage of convenience.
How do Queenie and Bernard interact with each other? Can you find any clues where love or affection might be present?
Teacher tip
Scene 2 has descriptions of the sexual relationship between Queenie and Bernard. Consider how you will manage the reading and discussion around this scene.
Equipment
You will need access to a copy of the play 'Small Island' written by Andrea Levy and adapted for the stage by Helen Edmundson
Content guidance
Depiction or discussion of discriminatory behaviour
Depiction or discussion of violence or suffering
Depiction or discussion of sexual content
Supervision
Adult supervision required
Licence
Lesson video
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Prior knowledge starter quiz
6 Questions
Q1.In 'Small Island' why does Edmundson begin with a description of Jamaica "bracing itself" for a hurricane?
Q2.A literary trope is...
Q3.In 'Small Island' who joins the RAF at the end of Act 1 Scene 1?
Q4.The Windrush scandal, in contemporary discussions, refers to...
Q5.In 'Small Island', what dramatic device does Edmundson use that enables Hortense to tell her own story about her upbringing and life?
Q6.In 'Small Island' Edmundson uses direct address. Which word is used to describe how Hortense speaks to the audience?
Assessment exit quiz
6 Questions
Q1.In 'Small Island', what does Bernard sign up for at the end of Act 1 Scene 2?
Q2.Which word describes the act of enduring hardship or pain without complaining?
Q3.In 'Small Island', what is the significance of the house in Earl’s Court in Scene 2?
Q4.In 'Small Island' how does Edmundson use the 'Pathé-style news footage' throughout the play?
Q5.In 'Small Island' Bernard could be considered a caricature of a repressed English gentleman. What does this mean?
Q6.In 'Small Island' what dramatic techniques does Edmundson use to narrate Hortense and Queenie's stories?
To help you plan your 9 English lesson on: 'Small Island': reading Act 1 Scene 2, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your 9 English lesson on: 'Small Island': reading Act 1 Scene 2, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs.
The starter quiz will activate and check your pupils' prior knowledge, with versions available both with and without answers in PDF format.
We use learning cycles to break down learning into key concepts or ideas linked to the learning outcome. Each learning cycle features explanations with checks for understanding and practice tasks with feedback. All of this is found in our slide decks, ready for you to download and edit. The practice tasks are also available as printable worksheets and some lessons have additional materials with extra material you might need for teaching the lesson.
The assessment exit quiz will test your pupils' understanding of the key learning points.
Our video is a tool for planning, showing how other teachers might teach the lesson, offering helpful tips, modelled explanations and inspiration for your own delivery in the classroom. Plus, you can set it as homework or revision for pupils and keep their learning on track by sharing an online pupil version of this lesson.
Explore more key stage 3 English lessons from the 'Small Island' unit, dive into the full secondary English curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.