1. This project and its actions were made possible due to co-financing by the European Fund for the Integration of Third-Country Nationals Singh Song! Presentation – Singh Song! Subject:English Age groups:12–14, 15–16 Topic:GCSE Poetry EAL Nexus resource Licence information | This resource is free to use for educational purposes. © British Council 2015 Source | This resource was originally developed by EAL Nexus.

2. Learning Objective: To look at how character and voice are created in Singh Song! by Daljit Nagra

3. Who is Mr Singh? Our new poem is called Singh Song! Think by yourself for a minute...  Mr Singh is the narrator of this poem.  Where do you think he is from?  What will his voice be like?

4. Who is Mr Singh?  Look at the pictures on the following slides or on your cards.  Do they give you any more clues about Mr Singh and the background to his character?

9. Our own experiences  What do you already know about families from the Punjab region of India living in Britain?  Are there cultural similarities between the Punjabi community in the UK and other migrant communities that you know about?

10. Mr Singh’s voice  Why has the poet used non-standard English in his spelling and grammar?  How does this use of language help us to understand Mr Singh’s character and voice?

11. Mr Singh’s voice  Look at the poem Singh Song! How do you think it should be read? Why?  Now listen and follow on your copy as the poem is read to you.

12. Non-standard English  How does the poet write these standard English words and phrases?  Find the words and phrases in the poem and write the standard English terms next to them. wantthiswithwhenthelove youofthatthingsyouwhere when nobody is in, I lock the door where have you been? she is swearing because upstairs is my new bride

13. Other vocabulary  Work in pairs. Look at the vocabulary sheet.  Find and highlight the words on your sheet in the poem.  Find the meanings in English or your first language and write them on the sheet. Use dictionaries or computers.  You could draw or find an image to help show the meaning.

14. Characters and voices – jigsaw activity  Work in small groups.  Your group will look at one of three characters: Mr Singh, Mr Singh’s wife or the shoppers.  Look at the poem, using your vocabulary sheet to help you if you need it.  Answer the questions on your card together. At least one person in the group should make notes on your answers.

15. Sharing our answers  The groups will now be mixed up, so you are working with people who have looked at the other characters.  Share what you have learnt with the others in your new small group.

16. Think back to your previous lessons … Which poetic techniques can you remember? Revising poetic techniques  repetition  rhyme  narrator  metaphor  alliteration  enjambment

17. Revising poetic techniques  Work with a partner.  Look at Stanza 9, which begins ‘Late in di midnight hour’.  Find three poetic techniques used by Daljit Nagra. Highlight and annotate them on your poem. Extension:  Explain the effect of these techniques. To help you, think about what was mentioned in your discussions earlier about the characters in the poem.

18. Revising poetic techniques – whole class feedback Did you find these techniques? What was their effect?  rhyme  personification  alliteration  metaphor  enjambment Extension: What is the overall effect of this stanza? How does it show us what is really important to Mr Singh?

19. The tone of the poem  Nagra has said that he wanted to make Singh Song! like an ‘Indian Music Hall Song’ – he wanted it to be playful and light-hearted.  How does the poem resemble a song? (Look at the structure and language.)  Do you think Nagra has achieved a playful, humorous tone? How has he done this?  Extension: explain the significance of, and techniques used in, the title of the poem.

20. Plenary Think of one sentence to describe Mr Singh. Share your sentence with a partner.