Create a news report

An Army commander mistook his orders.

Instead of retaking some guns, he told his
men to charge at the enemy’s cannons.

600 obeyed, 400 were killed or wounded.
In no more than 100 words create a news
report. How will you present the story?
To know the meaning of onomatopoeia.
To understand how language choices made by Tennyson create the sounds of war.
To be able to identify and describe the effects of Tennyson’s use of language when
presenting conflict.
‘The Charge of
the Light Brigade’
Objective:
To know the meaning of onomatopoeia.
To understand how language choices made by Tennyson create the sounds of war.
To be able to identify and describe the effects of Tennyson’s use of language when
presenting conflict.
Success Criteria AO2 (Higher)
Band
Criteria
Band 6
* evaluation of writers’ uses of language and/or structure
and/or form and effects on readers
*convincing/imaginative interpretation of ideas/themes
Band 5
* analysis of writers’ uses of language and/or structure and/or
form and effects on readers
* exploration of ideas/themes
Band 4
* appreciation/consideration of writers’ uses of language and/or
structure and/or form and effects on readers
* thoughtful consideration of ideas/themes
Band 3
* explanation of effect(s) of writers’ uses of language and/or
structure and/or form and effects on readers
* understanding of ideas/themes/feelings/attitudes
Band 2
* identification of effect(s) of writer’s choices of language
and/or structure and/or form intended/achieved
* awareness of ideas/themes/feelings/attitudes
Band 1
* awareness of writer making choice(s) of language and/or
structure and/or form
* generalisation(s) about ideas/themes/feelings/attitudes
Success Criteria AO2 (Foundation)
Band
Criteria
Band 6
* appreciation/consideration of writers’ uses of language
and/or structure and/or form and effects on readers
* thoughtful consideration of ideas/themes
Band 5
* explanation of effect(s) of writers’ uses of language and/or
structure and/or form and effects on readers
* understanding of ideas/themes/feelings/attitudes
Band 4
* identification of effect(s) of writers’ choices of language
and/or structure and/or form intended/achieved
* awareness of ideas/themes/feelings/attitudes
Band 3
* awareness of writer making choice(s) of language and/or
structure and/or form
* generalisation(s) about ideas/themes/feelings/attitudes
Band 2
* simple identification of method(s)
* some range of explicit meanings given
Band 1
* reference to writers’ method(s)
* simple comment on meaning(s)
Keywords
repetition-words or phrases being said more
than once close together in a text for a
deliberate effect
imagery-vivid and descriptive language
which puts a picture in the reader’s mind
Poem based on newspaper report
Journalist W.H.Russell reported on the Charge in The Times:
At the minutes past eleven our Light Cavalry Brigade
advanced…They swept proudly past, glittering in the morning
sun in all the pride and splendour of war…At the distance of
1200 yards the whole line of the enemy belched forth, from
thirty iron mouths, a flood of smoke and flame. The flight was
marked by instant gaps in our ranks, by dead men and horse,
by steeds flying and wounded or rider less across the
plain…They flew into the smoke of the batteries; but before
they were lost from view the plain was strewn with their bodies.
Through the clouds of smoke we could see their sabres
flashing as they rode between the guns, cutting down the
gunners as they stood… The flank fire of the batteries on the
hill swept them down…at thirty five minutes past eleven not a
British soldier, except the dead and the dying, was left in front
of the Russian guns.
To know the meaning of onomatopoeia.
To understand how language choices made by Tennyson
create the sounds of war.
To be able to identify and describe the effects of Tennyson’s
use of language when presenting conflict.
Keywords:
repetition, imagery
The Charge of the Light Brigade
Click on the image below to watch a film clip of the Charge
of the Light Brigade.
To know the meaning of onomatopoeia.
To understand how language choices made by Tennyson create the sounds
of war.
To be able to identify and describe the effects of Tennyson’s use of language
when presenting conflict.
“Half a league, half a league,
Half a league onward,”
Is there a sense of rhythm to
these lines?
What does this sound like to you?
Does this continue throughout the
poem?
To know the meaning of onomatopoeia.
To understand how language choices made by Tennyson create the sounds of war.
To be able to identify and describe the effects of Tennyson’s use of language when
presenting conflict.
Order and Obey
‘Forward
the Light Brigade!’
Was there a man dismay’d?
Not tho’ the soldier knew
Some one had blunder’d:
Theirs not to make reply,
Theirs not to reason why,
Theirs but to do and die:
Into the valley of Death
Rode the six hundred.
The commander
had made a
disastrous
mistake.
Why didn’t the
men question
the order to
charge at the
Russian guns?
To know the meaning of onomatopoeia.
To understand how language choices made by Tennyson create the sounds
of war.
To be able to identify and describe the effects of Tennyson’s use of language
when presenting conflict.
Which words suggest the
sounds of war? Flash’d all their sabres bare,
Flash’d as they turn’d in air
Cannon to the right of them,
Sabring the gunners there,
Cannon to the left of them,
Charging the army, while
Cannon in front of them
Volley’d and thunder’d;
All the world wonder’d:
Plunged in the battery-smoke
Storm’d at with shot and shell,
Right thro’ the line they broke;
Boldly they rode and well,
Cossack and Russian
Into the jaws of Death,
Reel’d from the sabre-stroke
Into the mouth of Hell
Rode the six hundred.
Shatter’d and sunder’d.
Then they rode back, but not
Not the six hundred.
To know the meaning of onomatopoeia.
To understand how language choices made by Tennyson create the
sounds of war.
To be able to identify and describe the effects of Tennyson’s use of
language when presenting conflict.
Sounds of war
The REPETITION of the
word ‘cannon’ with its short
syllable sounds explosive
Cannon to the right of them,
Cannon to the left of them,
Cannon in front of them
Volley’d and thunder’d;
Storme’d at with shot and shell,
Boldly they rode and well,
Into the jaws of Death,
Into the mouth of Hell
Rode the six hundred.
The monosyllabic words after ‘cannon’
sound like a fast-paced, relentless
bombardment of shells
Flash’d all their sabres bare,
Flash’d as they turn’d in air
Sabring the gunners there,
Charging the army, while
All the world wonder’d:
The ONOMATOPOEIC words
Plunged in the battery-smoke
‘volleyed’, ‘thundered’ and ‘stormed’ all
Right
thro’
line they
broke;the
have
highthe
energy
and evoke
sounds
anger,
of aggression, of war
Cossackofand
Russian
Reel’d from the sabre-stroke
Shatter’d and sunder’d.
Then they rode back, but not
Not the six hundred.
To know the meaning of onomatopoeia.
To understand how language choices made by Tennyson create the
sounds of war.
To be able to identify and describe the effects of Tennyson’s use of
language when presenting conflict.
Throughout these stanzas there
are harsh short vowel sounds, ‘o’,
‘u’ and ‘a’ (as in ‘plunged’ and
‘wondered’, ‘Cossack’ and
‘volleyed’ and ‘cannon’ and
‘flashed’). The harsh landscape of
war is evoked by these
aggressive sounds.
Cannon to the right of them,
Sounds of war
Cannon to the left of them,
Cannon in front of them
The drawn out vowel sound of
Volley’d and thunder’d;
the ONOMATOPOEIC
word
‘plunged’
us toshot
imagine
Storm’dhelp
at with
and shell,
the utter despair of the men as
Boldly they rode and well,
if consumed by smoke
Into the jaws of Death,
Into
mouth of Hell word
Thethe
ONOMATOPOEIC
‘shattered’
helps
to imagine the
Rode the
sixushundred.
men and valley as broken
The REPETITION of the ONOMATOPOEIC
word ‘flashed’ with its quick sounding vowel
sound gives us a sense of the speed of the
attack and of death
Flash’d all their sabres bare,
Flash’d as they turned in air
Sabring the gunners there,
Charging the army, while
All the world wonder’d:
Plunged in the battery-smoke
Right thro’ the line they broke;
Cossack and Russian
Reel’d from the sabre-stroke
Shatter’d and sunder’d.
Then they rode back, but not
Not the six hundred.
To know the meaning of onomatopoeia.
To understand how language choices made by Tennyson create the sounds of war.
To be able to identify and describe the effects of Tennyson’s use of language when presenting
conflict.
Tennyson’s Voice – Stanza Six
When can their glory fade?
O the wild charge they made!
All the world wonder’d.
Honour the charge they made!
Honour the Light Brigade,
Noble six hundred!
To know the meaning of onomatopoeia.
To understand how language choices made by Tennyson create
the sounds of war.
To be able to identify and describe the effects of Tennyson’s use of
language when presenting conflict.
What does
Tennyson think
of the soldiers?
What do you
think that he
felt about the
Charge?
Language
How does Tennyson use
language to give the reader a
sense of how terrifying and
violent the battle was?
Remember to use PETER to
structure your paragraph.
To know the meaning of onomatopoeia.
To understand how language choices made by Tennyson create the sounds of war.
To be able to identify and describe the effects of Tennyson’s use of language when
presenting conflict.
How does Tennyson use language to give the reader a
sense of how terrifying and violent the battle was?
Tennyson uses a range of language devices to draw
the reader into violent battle to help them
empathise with the soldiers’ terrifying situation.
“Cannon in front of them Volley’d and thunder’d”.
The onomatopoeic words “volley’d” and “thundered”
all have high energy and evoke the sounds of anger,
of aggression, of war. The repetition of the word
“cannon” with its short syllable sounds explosive, and
emphasises that the Light Brigade were surrounded
by cannons in an increasingly hopeless situation.
Tennyson is trying to not only describe the violent
battle but to help the reader imagine what it would
be like to be in the soldier’s place, and use the
senses to help them better understand
their terrifying situation.
To know the meaning of onomatopoeia.
To understand how language choices made by Tennyson create the sounds of war.
To be able to identify and describe the effects of Tennyson’s use of language when
presenting conflict.
The Learning Journey
What have I learnt about
imagery?
What have I learnt about
improving my analytical
answer?
To know the meaning of onomatopoeia.
To understand how language choices made by Tennyson create the sounds of war.
To be able to identify and describe the effects of Tennyson’s use of language when
presenting conflict.
Extension - The dramatic effect
of Tennyson’s Poem
Rehearse a reading of the poem in groups of 2 or 3
to read to the class. Take into account the things
we have covered – strong rhythm, onomatopoeia,
the sounds of war in vowel choices and Tennyson’s
own feelings for the plight of the soldiers. Make
notes on what you must consider when reading
the poem.
OR Write a paragraph answering the question
“Some poems must be read aloud to be fully
appreciated why is this true of ‘The Charge
of the Light Brigade’?”
To know the meaning of onomatopoeia.
To understand how language choices made by Tennyson create the sounds of war.
To be able to identify and describe the effects of Tennyson’s use of language when
presenting conflict.