Session 2-The Living Photograph by Jackie Kay. V6

ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHING CENTRE, MALAYSIA
ENGLISH-IN-CAMP: PROFICIENCY THROUGH LITERATURE:
SESSION 2
Kementerian Pendidikan Malaysia

Trainer Toolkit
Session 2: The Living Photograph by Jackie Kay
Activity 1 : Movie Poster

Duration : 15 minutes
Learning Outcome(s):
1.1 Make friends and keep friendships by
i) Talking about oneself to others, sharing information about each other that is of
interest to both parties.
Learning Objective (s):
Students are able to state and write at least 10 characteristics of their
grandmother.
Resources
Portrait
Procedures
1. Give a portrait of a grandmother to each group (Handout 1).
2. Teacher refers to the portrait and asks the students questions such as the
following:
Who is this in the picture?
Why do you say she is an old woman/ a grandmother?
How old do you think she is?
What do you think grandmothers do?
3. Teacher shares personal information about his/her grandmother after
eliciting answers from students.
4. Teacher guides the students to discuss the characteristics and the physical
attributes of their own grandmothers.
5. Students write down the characteristics and the physical attributes of their
grandmother using the portrait as a stimulus.
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Note to teacher
1. Teacher will have to describe his/her grandmother to model the activity.
Please listen to and correct students spelling and pronunciation.
2. Place students work in the file provided.
Session 2
Activity 1
Handout 1
SESSION 2

Trainer Toolkit
Activity 1: Suggested Answers
old
kind
hunched
sweet
wrinkled
simple
loving
short-tempered
caring
small
funny
feeble
grey hair
blonde hair
quiet
friendly
SESSION 2

Trainer Toolkit
Activity 2: Say it Right!

Duration: 30 minutes
Learning Outcome(s):
1.1 Make friends and keep friendships by
vi) Pronouncing words clearly and correctly and making statements with correct
intonation, word stress and rhythm.
Learning Objective(s):
Students are able to
1. pronounce at least 5 out of 10 words correctly.
2. arrange the poem strips in the correct sequence.
Resources
A set of word cards, CD (WordWeb app), poem strips, coloured A4 paper.
Procedures:
1. Teacher prepares word cards with the following words:
Anglaise
Flat
Pleated
Old
Crinkled
Hunched
Unthinkable
Awful
Bun
broderie
2. Teacher will flash one word at a time and instruct the students to
pronounce it after him/her.
3. Students who fail to pronounce the words correctly will be asked to do one
of the following task:
Sing a nursery rhyme
Sing an English song
Talk like Mickey Mouse
Scold your friend
Ask permission to go to the washroom
SESSION 2

Trainer Toolkit
4. Then students watch a video of the poem (CD or

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OqdSbDtHvHk
5. The first time students watch the video quietly. The second time students
recite the poem together with the video. During the third time the lyrics will
not be shown to the students. Students recite the poem together with the
video.
6. Each group will be given an envelope consisting of poem strips and
coloured papers. They will discuss and arrange the lines of the poem in the
correct sequence.
7. The students paste the poem strips on the coloured paper in the correct
sequence.
8. Teacher will check and discuss the sequence of the poem with the students.
Note to Teacher
1. Correct students pronunciation when necessary.
2. Refer to the WordWeb apps uploaded in the CD if confusion arises on
correct pronunciation and also to check the meaning.
3. Ensure that the students recite together.
4. Switch off the video before distributing the poem strips.
Activity 3:
Get me right..!!!!
Learning Outcome(s) :
3.2 Express themselves creatively and imaginatively
Learning Objective(s) :
Students are able to
1. discuss the meaning of each stanza.
2. write the meaning of each stanza in their own
words.
Resources
A4 papers
Procedures:
1. Teacher divides the poem stanzas among the members of the group.
2. Students will discuss the meaning of each stanza in their smaller groups.
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3. Then, one student from the group will collate the meanings of the various
stanzas from the others.
4. Students compose a tune/melody to state the meaning of the poem (if
there is time).
5. Finally, they present and sing the song
Note to Teacher
1. Teachers can help students when they are discussing the meaning and
consolidating the overall meaning of the poem.
2. Logical answers can be accepted.

Stanza 1
Meaning
My small grandmother is tall there,
My grandmother looks tall in the

photograph.
Straight back, white broderie anglaise

shirt, pleated skirt, flat shoes, grey
bun,
Grandmother wears a white

embroidered shirt, a pleated skirt and
flat shoes. Her hair is tied up in a bun.
a kind, old smile round her eyes
Grandmothers eyes look kind.
big hands holds mine,

white hand in black hand.
Grandmother is holding the grandchilds

white hand in her black one. This tells us
that the grandchild may be of mixed
parentage.
White hand represents the poet's youth,
purity, and innocence. Black hand
represents that the grandmother is
experienced. An old soul who has been
through a lot in life.
Her sharp blue eyes look her own

death in the eye.
Grandmother has sharp blue eyes and

they seem to look at death without fear.
This reveals that grandmother is
growing old and death is unavoidable.
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The persona described her grandmother as tall and well-dressed with a kind
smile. Her smile comes from her eyes. On her deathbed, she held the personas
small black hand in her big white hand. She was not afraid to leave the world.
Stanza 2
Meaning
It was true after all that look.
The look on grandmothers face that she was expecting

death was true.
My tall grandmother became

small.
Her back round and
hunched.
Grandmother became shorter as her back grew bent with

age.
Her soup forgot to boil.
The soup that did not boil reveals that the

grandmother became forgetful and senile
She went to the awful place

grandmothers go. .
Somewhere unknown,
unthinkable
Grandmother died. Death is described as an awful,

unknown and unthinkable place. This is clearly a childs
view point.
The persona accepts that her grandmother has passed to the other world, as all
grandmothers do. Grandmother, who was of a tall stature became small, hunched and
forgetful.
Stanza 3
Meaning
But there she is still,
The word there refers to the old

photograph taken with the grandmother
when the persona was three years old.
in the photo with me at three,
To the grandchild, the grandmother looks

alive in the photograph.
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Trainer Toolkit
the crinkled smile is still living, breathing.
The memory of his/ her grandmother is still

fresh and new.
The persona at the age three had taken a photograph with grandmother. When she
looks at the photograph, she feels grandmothers presence. To the persona, her
grandmother is still very much alive and smiling at her.
OVERALL MEANING
The persona talks about grandmother as 'The Living Photograph'. A photograph of her
at the age of three with her grandmother makes her feel that grandmother is always
there for her. Grandmother when young was tall and has a kind smile. She was dressed
very neatly in a white shirt and pleated skirt. She was not afraid of dying. The persona
sat by her bedside and held her hand as grandmother drew her last breath and went to
the awful, unknown and unthinkable place. The persona recalls that her grandmother
became forgetful. Her back became round and hunched. But, to the persona, her
grandmother is still very much alive as she looks at the photograph of herself and her
grandmother.
Additional Resources:
http://amandachristinewong.blogspot.com/2015/02/the-living-photograph-by-jackie-kay.html
http://www.slideshare.net/Theodora-Tang/the-living-photograph-presentation-slide?qid=952f76768ec5-4065-82c7-4ac5ef0781cb&v=default&b=&from_search=1
https://magic.piktochart.com/embed/4939709-the-living-photograph
SESSION 2

Trainer Toolkit
Activity 4 :
Test my understanding??
Learning Outcome(s) :
2.3 Present information to different audiences
by
iii) Responding to questions and comments.
3.1 Listen to, read, view and respond to
literary works.
Learning Objective(s) :
Students are able to discuss and answer at least 10 out of 15 questions correctly.
Resources
Worksheet 1
Procedures :
1. Teacher asks students questions stated in Handout 1 and discusses the
answers with them.
2. One student in each group will write the answers.
3. Then students watch a video clip about a grandmother.
SESSION 2

Trainer Toolkit
Note to Facilitator
1. Generate critical thinking through questions such as those given below:
Why do you think so? Please explain.
What do the others think about this answer?
2. Do you agree with his/her answer? If yes/no, give reasons to support your
answer.
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Session
2
Activity 4
Handout 1
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Answer all the questions.

1. State three themes of the poem.
________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________
2. Give four moral values that are found in the poem.
________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
3. In your opinion, how does the persona feel towards his/her grandmother?
Support your answer with evidence from the poem.
________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
4. A picture is worth of a thousand words is a common proverb. How would
you relate this proverb to the poem The Living Photograph?
________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________
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5. An elderly member of a family is sometimes sent to a nursing home. Do you

agree
with this practice? Provide your reason.
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________
6. If you were to take care of your grandmother for a day, what would you do to
make her experience an unforgettable one?
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________
7. What do you think the writer is referring to in the phrase the awful place
grandmothers go?
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
8. Why do you think the writers small grandmother is tall in the photo?
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
9. In the first stanza, what does the word there refer to?
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
10.Which line tells you that the writer and her grandmother come from different
ethnic background?
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
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11.How old was the writer when the photo was taken?
___________________________________________________________________________
12.Why do you think the writer says that her grandmother was tall in the photo
but later became small?
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
For Question 13-15, refer to line 14-16 in the poem.
13.Quote evidence from line 14 to line 16 that the photograph was taken a long
time ago.
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
14.Explain the meaning of the word crinkled.
___________________________________________________________________________
15.What do you feel when you look at the photographs of those you love?
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
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1.
Remembering loved ones
Family relationship
writer
Life and
Death to a lonely dark place.
7. The
is referring
Love and Appreciation
CloseitFamily
Ties because the photo was taken when the writers
8. I think
is probably
grandmother was
2. younger. Her back was not rounded and hunched then, so she looked
tall. We should remember our elders
We should treasure our family photographs
9. It refers
to the cherish
photograph.
We should
the memories with our grandparents.
We
must
strive
for
close
family
relationship
with
grandparents/parents
10. white hand in black hand
3.
11. She was three years old.
Nostalgic
Appreciative
12. I think
it is because at the time the photo was taken, her grandmother
Positive
was younger. Her
Thankful
back
was straight, therefore she seemed taller. It could also be because
Thoughtful
the writer was very
young
at that time (only 3 years old). As her grandmother grew older,
Sentimental
her back
became
Simple
round and hunched. So she appeared small. The writer would also
have
grown
bigger
andthat his/her grandmother is still alive/living and her
4. The
persona
feels
taller too,
memories
aretherefore her grandmother no longer appears tall to her.
perpetually fresh in her/his mind.
13. The persona says that the photograph was taken when he/she was three
years
old. any correct or logical answers
5. Accept
14.
6. Wrinkled
Accept any correct or logical answers
15. (Accept any logical answers)
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SESSION 2

Trainer Toolkit
Session 2
Additional Handout
Complete the poem. Do NOT refer to the text.
The Living Photograph
My (1)______________ grandmother is (2) ____________ there,
straight-back, white (3) ____________ anglaise (4)___________________,

(5) _____________ skirt, flat shoes, grey (6) ____________ ,
a (7) _____________, old (8)_________ round her eyes.
Her big hand (9)____________mine,
white hand in (10) ___________ hand.
Her sharp blue eyes look her own (11) ______________ in the eye.
It was (12) __________ after all; that look.

My tall grandmother became small.
Her back round and (13) _____________.
Her (14) _____________ forgot to boil.
She went to the (15) ____________ place grandmothers go.
Somewhere unknown, (16) ___________.
But there she is still,

in the (17) ____________ with me at (18)____________,
the (19) ________________ smile is still (20) _____________ , breathing.
Jackie Kay
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ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHING CENTRE, MALAYSIA

ENGLISH-IN-CAMP: PROFICIENCY THROUGH LITERATURE:

Kementerian Pendidikan Malaysia