Lesson Plan | Active Learning | Intertextuality

Assumptions: This Active Lesson Plan assumes: a 100-minute class, prior student study with both the Book and the start of Project development, and that only one activity (among the three suggested) will be chosen to be conducted during the class, as each activity is designed to take up a significant portion of the available time.

Objectives

Duration: (5 - 10 minutes)

The Objectives stage is crucial to establish a clear foundation of what is expected to be achieved in the lesson. By defining specific objectives, the teacher guides the students and ensures that the proposed activities align with the desired learning outcomes. This prior preparation helps to maximize class time, focusing on the essential skills that students must develop for a deep understanding of intertextuality.

Main Objectives:

1. Empower students to understand and identify intertextual relationships, recognizing how different texts relate to and influence each other.

2. Develop critical analysis skills to interpret literary, advertising, and other types of texts, through understanding the present intertextualities.

Side Objectives:

1. Stimulate students' curiosity to explore connections between texts from different times and genres.

Introduction

Duration: (15 - 20 minutes)

The Introduction stage serves to engage students with the lesson's theme, making them apply prior knowledge in situations that stimulate critical thinking and curiosity. Furthermore, by contextualizing intertextuality with real and relevant examples, the teacher prepares the ground for a deeper and more applied understanding of the concept, facilitating the transition to practical activities.

Problem-Based Situations

1. Present to the students two or three short sentences that seemingly have no direct connection. Ask them to identify possible connections between these sentences based on prior concepts of intertextuality.

2. Show an advertisement and a literary excerpt that may have cross-references. Ask the students to identify elements that resemble or complement each other, discussing how this relationship may affect the interpretation of both.

Contextualization

Highlight examples of intertextuality in pop culture, such as references to movies or series in songs, that students may recognize. This can help illustrate how the concept of intertextuality is present in everyday life, not just in formal written texts. Explain how this technique is used to enrich meaning, create humor, or establish emotional connections with the audience.

Development

Duration: (70 - 75 minutes)

The Development stage is designed for students to practically and playfully apply the intertextuality concepts they previously studied at home. These group activities encourage collaboration, creativity, and critical analysis, allowing students to explore the complexities of intertextual relationships in varied contexts. By choosing only one of the proposed activities, the teacher can direct the lesson according to the interests and level of understanding of the students, ensuring deep and meaningful immersion in the subject.

Activity Suggestions

It is recommended to carry out only one of the suggested activities

Activity 1 - Intertextual Treasure Hunt

> Duration: (60 - 70 minutes)

- Objective: Develop skills to identify and analyze intertextualities in different types of texts, promoting a deeper and more critical understanding.

- Description: In this playful activity, students will form groups of up to 5 people and receive a 'treasure map' which consists of a series of intertextual clues. The clues will lead the groups to different texts (literary, advertising, musical, etc.) scattered throughout the classroom or school, that have intertextual connections.

- Instructions:

• Divide the class into groups of up to 5 students.

• Distribute the 'treasure maps' and explain that each solved clue will lead to a new text.

• The texts must be analyzed for references that connect one to another.

• Each group should note the intertextualities found and how they influence the overall understanding of the texts.

• At the end, each group will present their findings and discuss how intertextual relationships enrich the understanding of the texts.

Activity 2 - Theater of Intertextualities

> Duration: (60 - 70 minutes)

- Objective: Stimulate creativity and understanding of intertextual relationships through an artistic presentation, reinforcing students' critical analysis skills.

- Description: Students, organized into groups, will create and present short plays that explore intertextualities between classic literary texts and contemporary songs, for example. Each group will choose a combination of texts and must demonstrate how mutual references influence interpretation.

- Instructions:

• Form groups of up to 5 students.

• Each group chooses a classic literary text and a contemporary song to explore the intertextualities.

• Groups develop a small theater script that highlights the intertextual connections between the two texts.

• After preparation, each group presents their play to the class, followed by a brief discussion about the presented intertextualities.

• Encourage other students to identify references and discuss the interpretations offered by the groups.

Activity 3 - Creating Intertextual Collages

> Duration: (60 - 70 minutes)

- Objective: Promote the skill of identifying and combining textual and visual elements that relate, strengthening the understanding of how different contexts influence each other.

- Description: In this activity, students will use magazines, newspapers, flyers, and other printed materials to create collages that show intertextualities. Each group will have a specific theme (such as 'love and disappointment' or 'utopia and dystopia') and must find and combine texts and images that reflect the theme and relate to each other.

- Instructions:

• Divide the class into groups of up to 5 students.

• Give each group a theme for their collage.

• Groups search in magazines, newspapers, and other printed materials for texts and images that relate and reflect the given theme.

• The materials are then glued onto a large paper, forming an intertextual collage.

• Each group presents their collage, explaining the intertextualities found and the meaning of the ensemble for the proposed theme.

Feedback

Duration: (15 - 20 minutes)

The purpose of this stage is to consolidate students' learning, allowing them to articulate what they discovered and how they applied the concepts of intertextuality in different contexts. This discussion helps reinforce students' understanding of how the relationships between texts influence interpretation and the importance of intertextuality in everyday life and effective communication.

Group Discussion

To initiate the group discussion, the teacher should gather all students and ask each group to share the most interesting discoveries and challenges faced during the activities. It is important for the teacher to start the discussion with a brief recap of the intertextuality concepts addressed in the activities, ensuring that all students are on the same page. Encourage students to discuss how the intertextual relationships discovered may alter their understanding of the texts and how this applies in real contexts, such as interpreting advertisements or appreciating literary works.

Key Questions

1. What were the most surprising intertextualities you found and how did they change your interpretation of the texts?

2. How can intertextuality be used to enrich communication in different media, such as in advertising or literature?

3. Was there any moment when intertextuality hindered the interpretation of the text? How did you overcome that?

Conclusion

Duration: (5 - 10 minutes)

The purpose of the Conclusion stage is to consolidate learning, allowing students to revisit the main concepts and activities carried out, ensuring a clear and profound understanding of the topic. In addition, it aims to reinforce the practical importance of intertextuality, preparing students to apply these skills in diverse, academic, and personal contexts.

Summary

In conclusion, the teacher should summarize the main points addressed about intertextuality, reinforcing how different texts relate to and influence each other. It should recap the practical activities, such as the 'Intertextual Treasure Hunt' and the 'Theater of Intertextualities', highlighting the most significant intertextualities found by students.

Theory Connection

The teacher should explain how today's lesson connected the theory studied at home with the practice in class, demonstrating the application of intertextuality concepts in varied contexts, from literary texts to advertisements and music. The importance of intertextuality for deep comprehension of texts and for the students' critical capacity should be highlighted.

Closing

Finally, the teacher should emphasize the relevance of intertextuality in everyday life, not just for text analysis, but also for understanding how different forms of media and communication influence each other. This understanding is essential for students to become more critical readers and aware of the messages they receive and produce.