1. EAL Nexus resource Checking Out Me History
This project and its actions were made possible due to co-financing by the European Fund for the Integration of Third-Country Nationals
EAL Nexus resource
Checking Out Me History
Lesson 2: Meaning, emotions and language
Subject:
English
Age groups:
12–14, 15–16
Topic:
Poetry
Licence information | This resource is free to use for educational purposes. ©British Council 2015
Source | This resource was originally developed by EAL Nexus.

2. Lesson 2 – Learning objective:
To explore the meaning, emotions and language of the poem ‘Checking Out Me History’ by John Agard

3. Our history: an important aspect of our identity
Work in the same small groups as last lesson.
Rearrange your historical events and characters cards under these headings, as you did before:
Nursery rhymes and stories
European history
African and Caribbean history
Card numbers:
1, 4, 5, 8, 12, 13
Card numbers:
2, 6, 9, 10
Card numbers:
3, 7, 11, 14, 15

4. ‘Checking Out Me History’
by John Agard
How do you think the historical events and characters we have looked at will be represented in this poem by John Agard?

5. First impressions Listen to a reading of the poem.
What are your first impressions? What did the poem make you feel and think of?
Now listen again as you read the poem yourself.

6. Language: the voice of our character and identity
This poem is written in a Caribbean creole or dialect.
How is it different from standard English?
Why do you think the poet chose to use this form of language, and not standard English?
What effect does it have on the reader?

7. Language: the voice of our character and identity
Match the creole and standard English words, then find and annotate them on your copy of the poem.
dem
wha me
bout he
dat de my
his
the
they
about
that
what

8. ‘Dem tell me ...’ ‘Dem tell me Wha dem want to tell me’ ‘They tell me
What do these lines mean?
‘They tell me
What they want to tell me’
‘no dem never tell me bout dat’
‘no, they never tell me about that’

9. Other key vocabulary
Some words are the same in both the narrator’s creole and standard English.
Find these words in the poem, highlight and check you understand them.
Work together and look them up in an English or bilingual dictionary if you need to. Write the meanings on your vocabulary sheet.
slave vision battalion
thorn beacon struggle
freedom to brave healing
wounded sunrise

10. Back to history
Work with your small group again. Place the character and historical event cards from the previous activity next to where they appear in the poem.
Look at where you have put your cards and think back to the lines we looked at: ‘Dem tell me ...’ and ‘no dem never tell ...’ What do you notice?

11. Learning about our history
Which aspects of history was the narrator taught at school, and which was he not taught?
Why do you think this was?
What is your experience of learning history, in the UK or in another country?

12. Highlighting your poem
On your own copy of the poem, use different colours to highlight the lines according to our three categories of historical events and characters:
Don’t forget to put a key so you remember what the colours mean!
This copy of your poem will be your record for your exam revision in the future!
Nursery rhymes and stories
European history
African and Caribbean history

13. From problem ... to resolution
‘Bandage up me eye with me own history
Blind me to me own identity’
‘But now I checking out me own history
I carving out me identity’
Look at these lines from the beginning and the end of the poem.
What experience has the narrator had in the past?
What has he decided to do now?

14. Analysing poems: SMILER
When we analyse poems, especially for exams, we need to look at six different aspects. We can remember these by thinking of the word SMILER :
Structure
Meaning
Images
Language
Emotion (feelings)
Reader’s response

15. ‘Checking Out Me History’: meaning and emotion
In your groups, write a brief summary of what you think John Agard wants to tell us in this poem.
You could use these sentence starters to help:
The poet wants us to think about ...
He believes history lessons are ...
The narrator feels ... because ...
He wants to find out ...

16. ‘Checking Out Me History’: meaning and emotion
How does your summary compare to the one on the next slide?
Would you like to add or change anything to your group’s summary?
Make sure you have all copied down your group’s summary.

17. The poet wants us to think about how history is taught, and about how this affects our own sense of identity.
He believes history lessons are too focused on white European events. They are biased (one-sided).
The narrator feels angry that he learned about unreal, nursery rhyme characters instead of living, black people from the past.
He wants to find out about his own history and so develop a clearer sense of his own identity.

18. Reflection: reader’s response
How does the poem make you feel?
Can you identify with the narrator’s experience and emotions?
Add your own ending to your group’s summary. You could use this sentence starter:
The poem makes me feel ...
Refer to Black History Month, Disability History Month, LGBT History Month, GRT History Month and Women’s History Month.

19. Next lesson ...
We will look at the structure and images used in this poem.
We will learn some key words for describing poetic techniques, so that we can analyse this and other poems in more depth.