how to teach fantasy fiction?

HOW TO TEACH FANTASY FICTION?
Today, computers and media have practically invaded our lives, so, it is vital to
bear this in mind when teaching our students. Fantasy is closely linked with high
technology and it can restore reading to its proper place among teen-agers and the youth,
addicted to computer games, the internet and movies. Fantasy has generated a fashion
and boosted the book sales making people read again, due to the massive promotion of
movies, computer games, soundtracks, DVD’s, blogs (personal public journals), blooks:
serialized books on weblogs, literary and movie sites on the internet, the MOO (MultiObject Oriented) on-line chat rooms that stimulate discussion among book and film fans
worldwide in the common language which is mainly English. Although, fantasy has been
labeled as escapist literature it has, nevertheless, deep roots in reality, offering archetypal,
everlasting vistas of the human experience, giving the modern man, a chance to keep his
humanity, to reflect upon the past and hopefully learn his lesson in building his future.
Fantasy fiction is a captivating, fun, motivating, rewarding, encouraging language
acquisition, shaping and stirring both emotions and the intellect. It stimulates shaping of
opinions through speaking, effective reading and creative writing and expands the interest
in the specific target culture being a valuable authentic educational resource. Literature
helps improve students’ abilities to interpret situations and characters, to shape a modus
operandi, to develop a critical, independent, creative thinking.
The difficult texts can be adapted for younger learners, generating a variety of
student-centered tasks in: Pre-reading, While reading And Post-Reading Activities. The
teacher is a guide and resource provider who stimulates the pupils to actively involve
themselves into reading and discover their own responses to the text, providing only the
basic principles of interpretation. The students’ aesthetic and educational growth proves
the value of literature which also stimulates the learners’ initiative and awareness to
studying.
Teachers could start teaching of fantasy literature by presenting:
A. Fantasy features: hard core characteristics to help students recognize it.
B. Major writers: J.R.R. TOLKIEN, C.S. Lewis, Philip Pullman, J.K. Rowling.
C. Sub-genres: high/epic fantasy, humorous, sword & sorcery, children’s fantasy etc,
illustrating each sub-genre with a fragment.
Tolkien the father of modern epic or high fantasy, created a believable ‘secondary
universe’ of his own, in his masterpiece ‘The Lord of the Rings’. He said that fantasy
appeals to all minds and it is a path to knowledge. Tolkien brilliantly mixed various
elements from myths, legends and fairy tales in his trilogy.
WHAT BASIC SKILLS SHOULD WE TEACH OUR STUDENTS?
The Development of the literary competence. An effective reader masters certain
skills and converts the literary text into literary meaning. Conventions: are the product of
the reader’s exposure to literary texts they lead to interpretation on the basis of a set of
expectations. The teacher initiates the student on various aspects of the literary work: text
structure (surface/deep content structure), the author and the reader (implied or real).
Students are trained to recognize the distinctive features of a fantasy fiction and develop
literary competence skills: a) The plot. b) The setting. c) The characters. d) The narrator’s
point of view. e) The language. f) The theme.
PRE-READING ACTIVITIES
The pre-reading activities stir the students’ interest, help them relax, get them into the
fantasy mood in order to approach the sample text. The teacher tries to: access the
students’ prior knowledge; build students’ content knowledge; set a purpose for reading
and motivate learners. Some activities can also be done as post-reading activities.
- Brainstorm/Cluster map - warm up exercise related tot the topic of the story, students
review the typical characteristics of fantasy fiction, specifying and speculating on their
expectations about it.
- Photo – Problem Solving- the teacher divides the class into groups and lets each group
choose a photo or drawing related to the story then asks them to write a speech, set up a
story line, make predictions as to what they think is going on in that particular scene of
the story. Activities: 1. write a speech for the character, present it to the class; 2. If you
made a play about the situation your character is in, what would your first scene be?
- Archaic versus Modern Matching Vocabulary Activity: a pre-reading activity, the
language used is Middle/Old English or academic style that is less accessible to students.
The students have to match the archaic with the modern word, guess meaning etc.
- Word Webs, Star Diagrams or Cluster maps bubbles – other types of pre-reading
activities that focus students’ attention while they brainstorm the major characteristics of
fantasy literature.
- Knowledge Chart: ‘Know, Want to Know, Learned – the graphic organizer helps
students share their information about a story/topic and ask research questions which they
will answer during a unit of study. The teacher checks what notions, language structures
and vocabulary etc the students already know. Next, students will have to list what they
would ‘Want to know’. The last rubric ‘Learned’ is filled in after the unit is finished and
the students list what they have found out.
KNOW
WANT TO KNOW
LEARNT
They are trilogies. They have specific characters: elves, wizards, trolls, dragons, spells
etc. They have happy endings.
Specific traits in Tolkien’s fantasy: characters – Orcs, Hobbits. Specific influences: fairy
tales and Scandinavian myths etc.
- Think – Pair -(Quickwrite) –Share: students think about a topic or theme and tie it to
their own experience. A. Think: The teacher invites the students to think of a topic, for
example, a time when something miraculous happened to them. B. Pair: Next, students
find partners, tell their stories to them. * Quickwrite - Their colleagues take notes to
remember details, if they want to. C. Share: the first pair gets together with another pair
of students. Each person takes a turn retelling his or her partner’s story. The group can
select one or two stories, bits of information to share with the class.
WHILE-READING ACTIVITIES
- a. Jigsaw Reading; b. Reciprocal Reading; c. Echo Reading; d. Popcorn Reading
collaborative learning techniques.
- Completion of blank summary – a god memory exercise after the reading of the sample
text students can review the main ideas.
- Building sentences/paragraphs – students re-arrange the jumbled elements or key-words
to make up sentences; or re-arrange bits of sentences to make up a paragraph related to
the sample text: summarizing it, characterizing the protagonists.
- Character development and plot – fragment analysis and predictions check.
Characters
TLOR
As they are in the book
Aragorn
Compassionate, brave, smart
Strong, mysterious, tall …
Gandalf
As you imagined them
Wise, skilled, kind, brave
Old, Wise, tall, funny…
Frodo
Kind, innocent, brave
Fat, learned, generous…
Pippin
Curious, impatient, brave
Naughty, curious, lazy…
- Photo Speech – students read the fragment, get a photo of the characters in the sample
text and try to make up a speech, commenting on their decisions and the situations.
- Thought Tracking – Scenario – is a good theatre/drama/directing activity.
1. The Teacher gives the students sheets of paper with the story/fragment.
2. They lie back with their eyes closed and listen to the scenario. While the teacher tells
them the plot, they think of a character they would like to be within the story.
3. The students to take turns and tell their characters’ version/view of what happened.
4. When all the information is gathered the teacher helps students re-create it into scenes.
POST-READING ACTIVITIES
- Jumbled events – students get strips of paper with statements written on or photos of the
characters/events in the story and have to re-arrange them in the chronological order or
they specify the fantastic elements in the text. Application for ‘Eragon’.
Statements – ‘Eragon’ (by Christopher Paolini )
1. Eragon leaves his home after Garrow, his uncle, is killed by the Ra’zac who are
looking for the dragon egg.
2. Arya casts a spell on the blue stone and it lands right in front of Eragon who is hunting
in the mountains.
3. The blue dragon hatches. It is called Saphira and Eragon is her Rider. He is marked
with the Dragon – Rider’s mark ‘gedway ignasia’ on his right palm.
4. Brom the story teller speaks about the former days and the Dragon Riders saying ‘that
one Dragon -Rider’ will return and save the people of Alagesia fighting evil and King
Galbatorix – prophecy.
- GRAPHIC ORGANUZERS: 1. Venn Diagram; 2. Character Sociogram; 3. Timeline; 4.
Fishbone 5. Story Board; 6. Detail Map.
- The Venn Diagram: a graphic organizer of interlocking circles that helps learners to
visually organize the similarities and differences between characters, stories or other
elements. The common traits are placed in the middle section.
Application to ‘The Subtle Knife’ Philip Pullman.
- Character Sociogram: students make a graphic, on big chart, reflecting the relationship
of a main character with other characters in the story. Students work in groups. 1.
Learners write the names of characters in separate boxes. 2. On arrows drawn between
the boxes they write a word or two describing the relationship between the 2 characters.
3. They write a question one character can ask another. 4. Students assume the roles of
the various characters and answer the questions. 5. Students can add other characters and
boxes if appropriate. Application to ‘The Lord of the Rings’.
- The Fishbone: 1. The teacher writes the final outcome of the story on the board, in a box
at the top of the Fishbone. 2. Students write the main causes or the outcome on the “fishbones”. 3. The smaller but significant details should be written in between the “fishbones”. Application to ‘The Lord of the Rings’ Tolkien.
- Story-making using guide-lines: students write a story according to the plan: 1. Main
character is positive or negative. 2. He/She has an aim, goes on a quest. 3. He/She passes
through several trials/tests/events in order to fulfill her/his task. 4. The last event is the
most difficult. 5. Happy ending. Evil is defeated. The dead come back to life. The activity
can be done as a contest. The best story is chosen by the students.
- Plot Profile – is a graphic organizer activity that helps the students clarify their
perception on the events in the story and the level of involvement/excitement of the
characters in these events.
1. Students work in groups and fill in the ‘plot profile’ worksheet. 2. Students write
sentences in the first slot from 1 to 12 to summarize the plot. 3. Students draw the graphic
in the second slot reflecting the level of involvement of the character(s) their evolution in
the story, they use different colours for different protagonists.
- HOT SEAT - Character Analysis: group activity that allows the students to become a
character in the text, analyze the hero of a story and answer questions from other
colleagues in the group from the protagonist’s point of view. 1. The teacher divides the
class into small groups of 3 to 5 students. Each group writes 3 or 4 questions to ask the
character, related on his/her motivation for doing something. 2. Each group sends one
person to the next table or in front of the room to be in the “Hot Seat”. The “Hot Seat”
students answer questions from the other groups.
- Thought Bubbles – is a good post-reading activity during which the students use the
sample texts or book quotes and fill in the chart, analyzing what the characters say and
think. For instance, ‘The Lord of the Rings’.
Character says
Character thinks
I think
ARAGORN: says his name is Strider and he is a ‘mere Ranger from the north’. He tells
Frodo the Nazgul are close and he is not carrying a trinket.
He thinks Fordo and the Hobbits are in terrible danger. He knows Frodo caries ‘The One
Ring’ and his destiny is to help all those who oppose the evil Sauron. He fears they will
get caught.
I believe that Strider is a hero and his identity and mission/part will be revealed later on
in the book. He will manage to help the Hobbit run away form the enemy.
- Story Pyramid – revises the fragment or book and helps students organize the story
elements into a pyramid by filling in its 8 sections on a worksheet: 1. The name of the
main character(s). 2. Two words describing the main character(s). 3. Three words to
describe the setting in the story. 4. Four words to state the problem. 5. Five words
describing the first event that caused a problem. 6. Six words to describe the second event
which lead to conflict. 7. Seven words describing the 3rd event that lead to the climax of
the conflict. 8. Eight words describing the solution, happy ending in the tale.
NON-LITERARY AUTHENTIC FORMATS
Students are shown a model in order to observe: the layout, style, length and register:
1. Guide to a TV or Radio serial: The teacher tells students that the work they are
studying is serialized on TV or Radio. They are shown an example of he “TV Guide and
Radio Guide” in a newspaper and then they must write a very brief account of a scene of
their work as though for that publication.
2. Newspaper Articles: The teacher asks the students to choose a highlight scene from the
work they are studying. She shows them examples of genuine newspaper articles. The
students write about the events in the literary work, for one of these newspapers. Students
can be given a headline for a prompt and a maximum number of words.
3. Missing Person: the format is applicable to many literary works. The teacher shows the
students an example of such a missing person poster. She asks them to write one for a
character who has gone missing in the story they are reading.
4. Blogs - reflect the transition from the printed page to the electronic format turning
diaries into ‘weblogs’ or ‘public diaries’, commentaries originating in the virtual world,
becoming blooks printed texts to read. Bloggers make ordinary daily observations on life
and using the internet to write blog books or blooks which they pay to have printed.
Sometimes, ‘blook’ can refer to a serialized book on a weblog with chapters published
one by one on separate ‘blog post’. A good idea would be to have students write and
exchange their ‘bolgs’ and make comments on whatever topic is of interest for them
during on-line classes. This would stimulate on-line communication, access to
information and cultural exchange through dialogue among different communities.
Students’ awareness on global concern issues would raise: the relationship between
private and public space, respect for authors’ rights, safety of published content and
originality and quality of texts.