- Year 11
- Edexcel
Understanding the poem ‘In Wales, wanting to be Italian’ by Imtiaz Dharker
I can explain how Dharker presents ideas of cultural identity and belonging associated with youth.
Copyrighted materials: to view and download resources from this lesson, you’ll need to be in the UK and
- Year 11
- Edexcel
Understanding the poem ‘In Wales, wanting to be Italian’ by Imtiaz Dharker
I can explain how Dharker presents ideas of cultural identity and belonging associated with youth.
Copyrighted materials: to view and download resources from this lesson, you’ll need to be in the UK and
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Lesson details
Key learning points
- Dharker was born in Lahore, Pakistan before moving to Glasgow, Scotland before her first birthday.
- Dharker's poems are testaments to her experience: intercultural identities and global living.
- Dharker's poetry explores the longing of youth - when you desire to be anyone more exciting than who you currently are.
- Dharker's poetry reminds the reader that people often look elsewhere to create a sense of belonging.
Keywords
Yearn - an intense longing or desire for something
Belonging - feeling accepted and comfortable in a particular group or place
Calvinist - a person who follows Calvinism, a type of Christianity that believes God controls everything
Cultural identity - a feeling of belonging to a particular culture or group
Intercultural identity - feeling like you belong to more than one culture; mixing different traditions and experiences
Common misconception
Dharker grew up in Wales.
Although Wales features in the title of this poem, Dharker moved to Scotland just before her first birthday. She references Glasgow (where she grew up) in the second stanza of the poem.
To help you plan your year 11 English lesson on: Understanding the poem ‘In Wales, wanting to be Italian’ by Imtiaz Dharker, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your year 11 English lesson on: Understanding the poem ‘In Wales, wanting to be Italian’ by Imtiaz Dharker, 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.
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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.
Explore more key stage 4 English lessons from the Belonging poetry continued unit, dive into the full secondary English curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.
Equipment
You will need access to a copy of 'In Wales, wanting to be Italian' by Imtiaz Dharker (found in the Edexcel GCSE Poetry anthology - 'Belonging' cluster).
Content guidance
- Depiction or discussion of sensitive content
Supervision
Adult supervision recommended
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