An exploration of Scene Five of Winsome Pinnock's 'Leave Taking'
Lesson details
Learning outcome
I can explain what happens in Scene Five of ‘Leave Taking’, and how its action was foreshadowed.
Key learning points
- Del has moved in with Mai.
- Del seems increasingly interested in obeah.
- Scene One foreshadows the development of Del and Mai’s relationship.
- Del did not enjoy school, perhaps because she was not offered the support she needed with reading.
Keywords
Obeah - A series of spell-casting and healing traditions found in the Caribbean.
Stage directions - Instructions written in a play script (often in italics) which explain something about the staging or how an actor should deliver a line.
Foreshadowing - Foreshadowing is a literary device. It gives the reader or audience a hint or indication of what might happen later in the story.
Charm - An object that is thought to have magical powers.
Common misconception
Del is as rude as ever about obeah.
Del is rude in this scene, but she also asks questions and watches Mai's practices.
Teacher tip
Consider the exploration of foreshadowing. Are there any other texts where students have analysed this device and thus would help them understands its purpose in a text?
Equipment
You need access to a copy of Winsome Pinnock's 'Leave Taking' published by Nick Hern Books.
Content guidance
Contains strong language
Depiction or discussion of sensitive content
Supervision
Adult supervision recommended
Licence
Lesson video
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Prior knowledge starter quiz
6 Questions
Q1.Pinnock includes stage directions in her play, 'Leave Taking'. What is true of stage directions?
Q2.In 'Leave Taking', one of the play's central characters is Mai, an obeah woman. Obeah is a series of spell-casting and traditions found in the Caribbean.
Q3.In 'Leave Taking', the characters of Del and Mai meet in Scene One. How would you characterise their initial relationship?
Q4.At the end of Scene Two of 'Leave Taking', Enid slaps Del. What happens next?
Q5.At the end of Scene One of 'Leave Taking', Mai offers to be a confidante to Del if she ever needs to talk. Del says, 'I got I wanna talk.'
Q6.At the end of Scene One of 'Leave Taking', Mai says to Del, 'I can see you to talk.'
Assessment exit quiz
6 Questions
Q1.What is arguably surprising about the opening of Scene Five of 'Leave Taking'?
Q2.In Scene Five of 'Leave Taking', Del asks Mai if her husband minded her being an obeah woman. Mai responds, 'He had no choice...It was my .'
Q3.In Scene Five of 'Leave Taking', Mai reads Del's palm and speaks to her experiences with education. Mai says she knows that Del 'had a liking for '.
Q4.In Scene Five of 'Leave Taking', Del drops some of Mai's cards to the floor on purpose. What happens when Mai tries to pick them up?
Q5.At the end of Scene One of 'Leave Taking', as Enid, Viv and Del leave Mai's house, the stage directions state, 'Enid and Viv go. Del back.'
Q6.In Scene Five of 'Leave Taking', we learn that Del has moved into Mai's home. How is this foreshadowed in Scene One of the play?
To help you plan your 10 English lesson on: An exploration of Scene Five of Winsome Pinnock's 'Leave Taking', download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your 10 English lesson on: An exploration of Scene Five of Winsome Pinnock's 'Leave Taking', 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 4 English lessons from the Leave Taking: a sense of belonging unit, dive into the full secondary English curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.