The author Journey and craft Comparisons Culminating task

Introduction

This unit of work was created in partnership with The Garret and accompanies Nic Brasch’s interview with Ursula Dubosarsky. Visit the website to access the interview, show notes and transcript.

The following activities and tasks can be used in full or in part, depending on the teaching context. They have been formulated for whole class or small group settings, but can be adapted to suit smaller groups or individual students, and can be spread out over class time. Each activity is linked to a specific section of the Dubosarsky interview and the relevant portion of the interview is noted at the beginning of the activity.

This unit also includes a range of extension activities that involve in-depth study of some of Dubosarsky’s work, particularly The Blue Cat. As such, the interview is an excellent base from which to begin such a study.

Activity 1: childhood experience

02:15–03:09

This activity relates to family history at the beginning of the interview where Dubosarsky describes her parents as avid readers and writers (of non-fiction).

Ask students to respond to the following questions, first making individual notes, then sharing in pairs or small groups via discussion:

  • How did Dubosarsky’s childhood experience of reading, and her family’s reading and writing culture, impact on her as a writer?
  • What genre of writing does she mostly create?

Activity 2: individual/group work and homework

03:17–05:00

After listening to and making notes on Dubosarsky’s reading influences, ask students to write down and then share their own personal ‘bookprint’ with a partner or group. A ‘bookprint’ is like a reading footprint: a list of favourite books or reading material and how they have influenced you. Students can list their favourite books/authors/reading activities and justify their choices in writing or through discussion.

Synthesising task

Direct students to interview ONE OR MORE family members about their own ‘bookprints’. Students should transcribe the interview(s) using the table below and bring it to class to share and discuss.

  Favourite books/authors Reasons for liking these books/authors
Student’s name:

 

  

 

 

  

 

 
Family member’s name:  

 

 

  

 

 

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The writer’s journey

Activity 3

27:00–30:31

In the middle of the interview, Dubosarsky explains why she became interested in Australia’s Jewish community, which in turn influenced her novel, The Blue Cat. What specific experiences did the author draw upon in her writing about this group of people?

Individually, in small groups or as a class, ask students:

  • Visit the website of the Sydney Jewish Museum, which will assist them to understand more about the Australian Jewish community. The website features the stories of Holocaust survivors. Students should read one or two of these stories to enhance their understanding of the subject matter, plot and characters of The Blue Cat. Other useful resources are Garret interviews that deal with the Holocaust (Morris Gleitzman*) and a similar event, the Cambodian genocide (Alice Pung).
  • Why do you think Dubosarsky creates realistic fiction set in the past? What can you discover from the interview about her motivation to tell a story about characters during World War II?
  • Listen to the interview. Record which of Dubosarsky’s other novels relate to The Blue Cat and discuss how these connections are made. Synopses can be found online and provided as intertextual connections. Students can read these earlier novels to discover what happens to the character of Ellery.

* Reading Australia title

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The writer’s craft

Activity 4

This next set of activities is particularly relevant to The Blue Cat. The activities can be undertaken as extension tasks and build progressively to Reading Australia’s teaching resource for The Red Shoe. They also provide links to a number of texts by both Dubosarsky and other writers.

The activities can form part of a jigsaw lesson, with small groups focusing on different aspects of the writer’s craft and reporting back to the rest of the class. Alternatively, they can be spread out over separate lessons, depending on time and class ability. Allen & Unwin’s teaching notes for The Blue Cat suggest other activities that may be useful for a jigsaw exercise.

Direct students to examine the following aspects of the craft of writing, as discussed in the interview, and apply these to text analysis activities.

Character
  • Read Chapter 3 of The Blue Cat, in which Columba first encounters Ellery. How does Dubosarsky successfully get into the mind of the child? Discuss how she represents Columba’s narrative viewpoint of Ellery as ‘different’. How much depends on physical description, and how much on other factors?
  • Consider the friendships that are central to the narrative, especially those between Columba/Hilda and Columba/Ellery. How do the friendships develop over the course of the novel?
Structure and meaning in context (including non-fiction genres and text types)
  • How does the ‘Commonwealth of Australia, National Security (Aliens Control)’ text in The Blue Cat help to construct Ellery’s life situation? Find other examples of different text types and genres in the novel, and check the sources of these in the back of the book.
  • How does the inclusion of different print-based texts affect your reading and understanding of the novel and the period in which it is set? View the Blue Cat resources on Dubosarsky’s website to further contextualise the period in which the story is set.
  • Read excerpts from other multi-generic novels (i.e. novels that combine different text types), such as Trash by Andy Mulligan or So Much to Tell You by John Marsden. Both texts intersperse the narrative with letters. Can students list any other novels that do this kind of multi-generic work? How does this stylistic technique develop setting and era?
Setting and plot

Like many of Dubosarsky’s books, The Blue Cat is set in the past. Students can discuss how understanding the historical context helps readers to fully appreciate the characters’ dilemmas.

  • Were there events or complications in this story that you found puzzling during your initial reading?
  • What (if any) topics relating to World War II and Australia’s experience have you covered in history classes?
  • Have you seen, read or viewed any other texts that helped your understanding of the plot?
  • Again, students can view the Blue Cat resources on Dubosarsky’s website to further contextualise the period in which the story is set.
Narrative voice and point of view

The narrative voice in The Blue Cat shifts between the first and third person. This can be referred to as ‘floating first person’ or ‘shifting focalisation’ (i.e. the point of view through which we see the story at any given point).

  • How effective do you think this shifting voice is and how does the author do it? Find examples where the voice shifts between chapters.
  • Revisit the interview transcript – what does Dubosarsky say about featuring children’s voices and points of view in her writing?
Images and symbols

View the book trailer for The Blue Cat. Discuss the meaning of the poem and the images and symbols chosen to represent the story. How effective is this trailer in drawing readers into the world of the novel?

Having discussed the meaning of the poem, follow the references to the ‘character’ of the blue cat throughout the novel. Is the blue cat a symbol? If so, what does it symbolise?

Synthesising task

Following examination of Dubosarsky’s craft, each group should report their findings to another group and then the whole class. This can be done:

  • orally
  • by displaying discussion notes
  • by adding to a shared document (e.g. Google Slides), including hyperlinks to resources that may be useful to the whole class

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This section examines some of Dubosarsky’s key themes as expressed in other modes, media and contexts.

Activity 5

This activity involves a small group or whole class web quest in which students research Australia’s attitudes to ‘enemy aliens’ during World War Two.

Direct students to research ‘enemy aliens’ and internment camps. Reliable sources include:

Examine some pictures of civilian internment camps, particularly those featuring children. Discuss:

  • What can you discern about the lives of people living in internment camps?
  • What are the effects of politicians and the media using loaded terms like ‘enemy aliens’ or ‘illegal immigrants’ in the public sphere?

Activity 6

Consider more recent events concerning refugees and asylum seekers. In pairs or small groups, students can visit one or more of the following websites to learn more about these groups of people:

Allow time for students to explore the personal stories of people who have built new lives in Australia. You can also revisit the stories of Holocaust survivors from Activity 3 (see Journey and Craft). The following websites will be useful:

Synthesising task

Following these web quests, can students draw any parallels between internment during World War II and the contemporary internment or detention of refugees in Australia or abroad? Have them write down and discuss their ideas.

They can also research other Australian books and authors who deal with these and similar themes. Suggestions include (but are not limited to):

* Reading Australia title

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Activity 7

In her interview, Dubosarsky says: ‘You can write a story about anything.’

  • Try a storytelling exercise that will lead to individual development of fuller stories. Assemble three jars and place strips of paper inside that contain different story starters. The first jar could contain news headlines, the second character ideas, and the third setting ideas. Students can take a strip from each jar and combine them to form the basis of a new story.
  • Encourage students to share their work with at least ONE other person and exchange constructive written feedback. What changes could they make as a result of their peer’s suggestions?
Sharing work more broadly

Consider possible publication contexts for students’ writing. This might include a class blog, a class book that you display in the library, or your school newsletter. You might like to pursue one of these for the Culminating Task at the end of this unit.

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Rich assessment task

Using Nic Brasch’s interview with Ursula Dubosarsky and additional research and work done in class (especially on The Blue Cat), write your own short story.

This should be between 300–400 words in length (or the equivalent for Option 4, in consultation with your teacher).

Option 1

Create a short story from ONE OR MORE headlines chosen at random from Australian news outlets.

Option 2

Create a short story based on a news story from an earlier era (perhaps World War II).

Option 3

Rewrite Ellery’s account of his first day of school from his adult perspective.

Option 4

Create a digital story based on any of the above ideas.

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