Junior Cycle Second Year English: Travel Writing Teaching Unit

This unit is designed to teach key reading and writing skills in the context of travel literature and to help build some of the key skills required when studying non-fiction texts. It moves from reading to writing and is based on the study of a number of short travel extracts from writers such as Paul Theroux, Jonathan Raban and Dervla Murphy. Outcomes include analytical as well as creative writing. All ten resources including key texts are included as are a set of detailed teacher’s notes and a nicely presented 42 slide PPT.

Learning outcomes (from Junior Cycle Specification) addressed in this unit include:
Reading
3. Use a wide range of reading comprehension strategies appropriate to texts.
8. Read their texts to understand and appreciate language enrichment by examining an author’s choice of words, the use and effect of simple figurative language, vocabulary and language patterns, and images, as appropriate to the text.
11. Identify and comment on features of English at word and sentence level using appropriate terminology, showing how such features contribute to overall effect.
Writing

1. Demonstrate their understanding that there is a clear purpose for all writing activities and be able to plan, draft, re-draft, and edit their own writing as appropriate.
2. Discuss their own and other students’ written work constructively and with clear purpose.
3. Write for a variety of purposes, for example imagine, explore, engage, amuse, narrate, inform, explain.
4. Respond imaginatively in writing to their texts showing a critical appreciation of language, style and content, choice of words, language patterns, tone, images.

I hope you enjoy teaching the unit as much as I did.