PAST

Competitions&Giveaways

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Competition:

Antony and Cleopatra (March 2018)
Winners: Annie Yan and Esther Suen

Winning entry

Report: On the 25th of March, we went to the Sydney Opera Playhouse to view Bell Shakespeare’s Antony and Cleopatra’s production. The play was set in a cozy, small and round stage which conveyed meaning through utilising sound, lighting, and special effects. We especially liked the sheer curtain that text was projected upon. Minimal costumes and staging were also used. However, because of this, it was somewhat difficult to keep up with the story, but this was made up for by the engaging and excellent performance from the actors.

This play was quite interesting as it was a contemporary rendition yet still retained the traditional form and context. However due to our lack of knowledge about the play we were also lost at times but still got the general gist in the end.

Giveaway:

Pop-up Globe (August 2018)
Gave away over 60 tickets!

Winning entry
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Report:

Yolanda Pu (Year 7)

On a Saturday, I went to see an “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” performance in the pop up globe. According to Dr Lin, this will be a “Shakespearean” performance where all the actors were men, and there were different seats. She got us some spots in the groudling section.

As I watched the performance go on I realized it is not as serious as I thought it would be. The actors acting the women’s parts are wearing ridiculous puffy dresses. When Hermia and Lysander fled Athens and went in the forest, Hermia hilariously carried a whole suitcase with her. This was not in the play and I found it quite amusing to see Lysander helping Hermia carry her giant suitcase around.

Some of my favourite things about the performance were 1. How the fairies spoke in gibberish and nobody in the audience could understand and 2. The fake blood used in the mechanicals’ play, even though a lot of this sticky red substance stuck to me. Mostly my face. WHY ME?

I thought the performance was a quicker way of covering the play as it is probably modified so that it is shorter than actual “Shakespearean plays”, but still contained most of the information. Watching it instead of reading it is fairly amusing as you actually see the actors stumble around on stage saying silly things instead of black on white paper.

Competition:

Personalised Pencil Case (October 2018)
Winners:

• Penelope Jin (Year 6)
• Yolanda Youqi Pu (Year 7)
• Monica Kim (Year 12)

Giveaway:

Battery Packs (March 2019)
Winners:

• Minqing Ning
• Jennifer Su
• Jessie Qin
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Vanessa Vu

We’re delighted to spotlight Vanessa Vu, one of our fantastic students with a passion for writing. Vanessa started learning with us from 2018, and graduated from Year 12 in 2020. Her English HSC subjects were Advanced and Extension 1 English. She loves writing poetry, stories, and other musings – she always submitted lots of written work for our feedback, and was particularly keen on creative writing homework!

Vanessa will be studying a Bachelor of Psychology at the University of Sydney. She also has a writing blog: http://scribblesandblotts.com/

Suitable for: Year 12
Duration: 2 hours a week for 9-10 weeks; 18-20 hours total

About:

‘The Craft of Writing’ is a new HSC module that focuses on…well, the craft of writing. Specifically, we’ll be looking at writing types beyond your argumentative essays: creative/imaginative stories, discursive writing, persuasive writing, and personal essays. Additionally, we’ll be working on reflection statements, which are a special type of literary essays where you analyse your own writing.

Throughout the course, students are given a range of HSC prescribed texts to study, analyse, and emulate in their own writing. Students learn about the various writing types that are required for the HSC, and practise their writing skills on a range of topics. By the end of the course, students are equipped with the required knowledge and skills to tackle this new HSC module.

Student Writing Outcomes:

  • One full creative/imaginative piece;
  • One full discursive essay;
  • One full persuasive essay;
  • Elements of personal essays; and
  • At least three full reflection statements.

Student Learning Objectives:

  • Reviewing and consolidating techniques for analysing the craft of writing;
  • Employing various literary techniques in own writing;
  • Understanding how a range of prescribed Module C texts are crafted;
  • Developing unique written voices and styles;
  • Having the tools to analyse and write about prescribed Module C texts and students’ own writing; and
  • Practising writing skills under exam conditions.

Suitable for: Year 11 | Duration: 2 hours a week for 9-10 weeks; 18-20 hours total
Prerequisites: Poetry for Beginners OR Literary Techniques (one-day crash course)

About:

You love gossip. Don’t try to deny it. Who doesn’t like hearing about a scandal? Ever talked to your friends about what your other friends are doing when they say they’re “busy”? Maybe they’re shopping. Maybe they’re on dates. Maybe they’re part of an international spy organisation. Or maybe you should mind your own business.

The tragedy Othello, written by our man Big Billy Shakes, shows us the dangers of gossip, as the sly, cunning Iago causes the downfall of a military general, Othello, by doing little more than creating and spreading rumours. Furthermore, Othello, one of the first black protagonists in English literature, struggles with the racist remarks of those around him.

In every lesson, students read extracts from Shakespeare’s text and then analyse how the literary techniques create meaning and explore the themes of the play. Students are also given a range of secondary readings that present alternative perspectives of the play. Each week, students are asked to provide written responses for homework, including essays, opinion pieces, and creative responses.

Student Writing Outcomes:

  • Opinion pieces about the extracts and characters studied in class;
  • Analytical paragraphs or partial essays about the extracts studied; and
  • Full essays about the themes and concerns of the play.

Student Learning Objectives:

  • Reviewing and consolidating an extensive list of techniques for literary analysis;
  • Understanding Shakespearean language;
  • Understanding the characters, themes, and context of Othello;
  • Having the tools to analyse and write about Shakespeare’s plays in opinion pieces and essays;
  • Considering the similarities and differences between people today and people in Shakespeare’s time;
  • Organising and writing literary notes in preparation for essays and exams; and
  • Evaluating Shakespeare’s responses to questions we still have today.

Suitable for: Years 8-10 | Duration: 2 hours a week for 9-10 weeks; 18-20 hours total
Prerequisites: Poetry for Beginners OR Literary Techniques (one-day crash course)

About:

Shipwrecks, cross-dressing, lost siblings, unrequited love, drinking and duelling, and the ultimate prank: yes, this is none other than Shakespeare’s festive comedy Twelfth Night! Beneath the play’s comic surface lies a range of more serious issues: class differences, gender inequality, and how much ‘fun’ is too much. You’ll get to discuss them all here at Shakespeare Academy!

In this course, you will learn about both the joy and melancholy of Twelfth Night. In every lesson, students read extracts from Shakespeare’s text and then analyse how the literary techniques create meaning and explore the themes of the play. Students are also given a range of secondary readings that present alternative perspectives of the play. Each week, students are asked to provide written responses for homework, including essays, opinion pieces, and creative responses. At the end of the course, students are equipped to analyse, understand, and appreciate Shakespeare’s other plays.

Student Writing Outcomes:

  • Opinion pieces about the extracts and characters studied in class;
  • Analytical paragraphs or partial essays about the extracts studied; and
  • Detailed literary notes organised in booklets based on characters and themes.

Student Learning Objectives:

  • Reviewing and consolidating an extensive list of techniques for literary analysis;
  • Understanding Shakespearean language;
  • Understanding the characters, themes, and context of Twelfth Night;
  • Having the tools to analyse and write about Shakespeare’s plays in opinion pieces and essays;
  • Responding creatively to a range of scenarios related to Twelfth Night;
  • Considering the similarities and differences between people today and people in Shakespeare’s time;
  • Organising and writing literary notes in preparation for essays and exams;
  • Evaluating Shakespeare’s responses to questions we still have today.

Suitable for: Years 10-11 | Duration: 2 hours a week for 9-10 weeks; 18-20 hours total
Prerequisites: Poetry for Beginners OR Literary Techniques (one-day crash course)
Additional Material Fee: $20 (one text)

About:

It’s alive! Have you ever created a monster? We don’t mean a bad essay; we mean something that has a life of its own and frightens people. How would you react if you did create a monster?

Maybe you have never made a monster. Maybe you have written a bad post on social media? Made a bad video? We all know about ideas that initially sounded good and then went beyond everyone’s control. Initially a ghost story, Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein is a novel about one of those interesting ideas that went horribly wrong. The novel asks if technological advance always improves human lives and asks how humans relate to their families and societies.

If you’re worried about the advances of technology (and at least one of our teachers is terrified by them) then Frankenstein is the novel for you. Costumes are optional.

Student Writing Outcomes:

  • Opinion pieces about the chapters studied in class;
  • Analytical paragraphs or partial essays about themes in the novel;
  • Full essays about the novel;
  • Creative responses to the themes and concerns expressed in the novel.

Student Learning Objectives:

  • Reviewing and consolidating an extensive list of techniques for analysing novels;
  • Understanding the mindset and challenges of people from a different period of history;
  • Having the tools to analyse and write about novels in opinion pieces and essays;
  • Considering the similarities and differences between people today and people in the 1830s; and
  • Evaluating the novel’s explorations of questions we still ask today.

Suitable for: Years 7-8 | Duration: 2 hours a week for 9-10 weeks; 18-20 hours total

Student Writing Outcomes:

  • Original poetry inspired by the poems studied in class;
  • Opinion pieces about the poems studied in class; and
  • Analytical paragraphs or partial essays about the poems studied.

Course Outline

  • Lesson 1: Introduction to Poetry
  • Lesson 2: The Language of Literature
  • Lesson 3: ‘We Real Cool’
  • Lesson 4: Life, Death, and Between
  • Lesson 5: Invictus
  • Lesson 6: Sonnets – A History
  • Lesson 7: Shakespearean Sonnets
  • Lesson 8: Sonnets after Shakespeare
  • Lesson 9: Nature
  • Lesson 10: Conclusion

Suitable for: Years 8-9 | Duration: 2 hours a week for 9-10 weeks; 18-20 hours total
Prerequisites: Poetry for Beginners OR Literary Techniques (one-day crash course)
Additional Material Fee: $40 (two texts)

About:

Ah, the 20th century. Your grandparents helped shape it, your parents have lived through it, and you’ve learnt about some of its major historical events. But did you know that literature from the 20th century explores issues and ideas very similar to today’s? In this course students will study and analyse prose fiction from the 20th century, including works by George Orwell, Franz Kafka, and James Joyce. Students learn how to analyse and interpret texts based on context, and how to write essay and creative responses to the material studied. At the end of the course, students gain a thorough understanding of 20th century prose fiction and how the literary ideas have carried on into the 21st century.

Student Writing Outcomes:

  • Opinion pieces about the texts studied;
  • One short story (creative writing); and
  • Analytical paragraphs or essays about the texts.

Student Learning Objectives:

  • Reviewing and consolidating an extensive list of techniques for analysing prose fiction;
  • Understanding the mindset and values of people from the wider 20th century;
  • Having the tools to analyse and write about prose fiction in opinion pieces and essays;
  • Considering the intersection between literature and politics;
  • Analysing the literary uses of allegory and anthropomorphism; and
  • Evaluating the relevance of 20th century fiction today.

Suitable for: Years 8-10 | Duration: 2 hours a week for 9-10 weeks; 18-20 hours total
Prerequisites: Poetry for Beginners OR Literary Techniques (one-day crash course)

About:

Romeo and Juliet might be Shakespeare’s most famous play, but how well do you know it, really? Do you know what it means to bite your thumb at someone? What is an apothecary? In this course we will answer these questions while asking what Shakespeare’s tale of star-crossed lovers can tell us about love, marriage, and listening to your parents. In every lesson, students read an extract from Romeo and Juliet and then analyse how the literary techniques in the extract create meaning and explore the themes of the play. The students are then asked to share their analyses with the class and to write analytical paragraphs. Students are taught effective note-taking techniques and fill in two notes booklets based on characters and themes, which they can use as their final study notes for any school exams. At the end of the course, students are equipped to analyse Shakespeare’s other plays.

Student Writing Outcomes:

  • Opinion pieces about the extracts and characters studied in class;
  • Analytical paragraphs or partial essays about the extracts studied; and
  • Detailed literary notes organised in booklets based on characters and themes.

Student Learning Objectives:

  • Reviewing and consolidating an extensive list of techniques for poetry analysis;
  • Understanding Shakespearean language;
  • Understanding the characters, themes, and context of Romeo and Juliet;
  • Having the tools to analyse and write about Shakespeare’s plays in opinion pieces and essays;
  • Considering the similarities and differences between people today and people in Shakespeare’s time;
  • Organising and writing literary notes in preparation for essays and exams; and
  • Evaluating Shakespeare’s responses to questions we still have today.

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