Stone Cold

“You’re going to find yourself living among hard, violent people, some of whom are deranged. You’re going to be at risk every minute, day and night… There’s nowhere you can run to, because nobody cares.”

Stone Cold by Robert Swindells

In this theme you are going to read the book Stone Cold by Robert Swindells

You will practice:

• reading & listening comprehension
• vocabulary
• speaking
• writing

Topics that you will work with in various ways:

• Homelessness
• Poverty
• Loneliness
• Friendship

Läroplanskopplingar

Syfte

• förståelse av engelska i tal och skrift,
• förmåga att formulera sig och kommunicera på engelska i tal och skrift,
• förmåga att anpassa språket efter olika syften, mottagare och sammanhang, och
• förståelse av kulturella och sociala förhållanden i olika sammanhang och områden där engelska används.

Centralt innehåll

• Aktuella och för eleven bekanta ämnesområden.
• Vardagliga situationer, intressen, aktiviteter och händelseförlopp.
• Åsikter, känslor, erfarenheter och framtidsplaner samt relationer och etiska frågor.
• Levnadsvillkor, traditioner, sociala relationer och kulturella företeelser i olika sammanhang och områden där engelska används, även i jämförelse med egna erfarenheter och kunskaper.
• Talad engelska, även med inslag av regional och sociolektal variation, och texter, från olika medier.
• Talad engelska och texter som är instruerande, informerande, beskrivande, berättande, diskuterande, argumenterande och kontaktskapande – varje slag för sig eller i olika kombinationer – till exempel samtal, intervjuer, nyheter, reportage och tidningsartiklar.
• Skönlitteratur och annan fiktion, även i talad och filmatiserad form.
• Strategier för att uppfatta detaljer och förstå sammanhang samt för att anpassa lyssnande och läsning till framställningens form, innehåll och syfte.
• Samtal, diskussion och skrivande där eleverna berättar, beskriver, instruerar och motiverar sina åsikter.
• Strategier för att bidra till och underlätta samtal och skriftlig interaktion, även digital, till exempel genom att ge bekräftelse, ställa följdfrågor, lyssna aktivt, formulera om, förklara, bidra med nya infallsvinklar och avsluta på ett artigt sätt.
• Språkliga företeelser, däribland uttal, ord och fasta språkliga uttryck, grammatiska strukturer och satsbyggnad samt stavning i elevernas egen produktion och interaktion.
• Bearbetning av egna muntliga och skriftliga framställningar för att förtydliga, variera, precisera och anpassa kommunikationen efter syfte, mottagare och sammanhang.

Uppgifter

Final thoughts Stone Cold

Write a diary entry either from Link's perspective or Shelter's.

Stone Cold p.101-111

Daily Routine 13

Imagine you are Toya’s dad. Write about your search for your daughter so far. What types of feelings? Thoughts? Does he have? (100-300 words)

Daily Routine Orders 14

Answer the questions

• Who do you think rang Shelter’s bell?
• What is Shelter’s golden rule? Why do you think he follows this rule?
• What are Shelter’s instincts telling him?

Stone Cold - discuss Homelessness

In pairs or groups of three discuss the questions about homelessness.

Stone Cold p. 52-61 Word work

In this chapter Swindells chooses vocabulary very carefully to describe Link's situation. Choose 5-10 words or phrases that reflect this. For every word or phrase, describe why you think the author has used that description.

For example:

"chattering teeth" - the word suggest that Link is extremely cold

"half frozen" - the ground can be frozen, but a person can't. This is a figure of speech to help the reader understand just how cold Link is.

Stone Cold 1

Write a summary of the chapters you've read/listen to.

Stone Cold 1 Summary

Write a summary of chapter 1-4 that you've read/listened to.

Stone Cold final part

You will read the final part of the book and after we will discuss the book in groups. All you need to do is to come up with three to five questions that you would like to discuss about the book.

Stone Cold Part 5

Stone Cold Part 5 p. 52 – 73

Word work

scruffier, trickle, merge, futile, exhaling, despair, haddock, eligible, coherent, nauseous, descended, canny, bawling, muffler, complexion, apprehension, acquaintance.

· Translate the words and put them in sentences.

· Write a definition to three of them.

· Find synonyms to four of them.

Daily Routine Orders 8

How does the author manage to heighten tension?

Link

1. Analyse Link’s first experiences with begging. Pay attention to how Link feels at the beginning and in how far this, changes after a few hours.

2. Make a list of ten of the worst inconveniences about having to sleep rough.

Daily Routine Orders 9

1. Find words or phrases which suggest that Shelter thinks that he is infallible.

2. Why did “signing up recruit number three” give Shelter “particular pleasure” (p. 58)?

3. What is Shelter doing to the bodies of the dead vagabonds? Explain his reason for doing so. What does this tell us about his state of mind?

Link

1. Why is no one bothered about whether Captain Hook conforms to health and safety regulations according to Ginger?

2. Where are Captain Hook’s boats? Do you think the boat sounds like a nice place to stay? Explain your answer.

3. What is The Big Issue? How much money does Ginger’s mate make each time he sells a copy of it?

4. Why is Ginger’s friend called Doggy Bag?

5. Why does this name upset Link so much? What does Link’s reaction tell you about him as a person?

Stone Cold part 3

Page 17-28

Why was it the worst Christmas Link ever had?

“And the worst thing was, nobody stuck up for me. Not even my sister.” What is your opinion of the way they treat Link?

Shelter says he is now ready to start “recruiting”. What do you think he means by this?

What mistakes did Link make when he first arrived in London?

Describe the night when Shelter finds his first recruit.

How does he persuade the homeless man to go with him?

Questions and answers

Write at least 4 questions to the pages you’ve read and answer them.

Dictionary work: Look up the meaning of each of the following words: perished, fortnight, tatty, suspicious, hostile, preparation, sodden, misery, clutter. Put each one into a sentence of your own to show their meanings.

Stone Cold 5

Daily Routine Orders 5

1. Describe the night when Shelter finds his first recruit.

2. How does he persuade the homeless man to go with him?

3. What kind of man is Shelter? Explain.

4. “There’s one less dosser to clutter up the place.” What do you think Shelter means by this?

Dictionary work: Look up the meaning of each of the following words:

perished, tatty, suspicious, hostile, preparation, sodden, misery, clutter. Put each one into a sentence of your own to show their meanings.

Stone Cold 4

Link Section 4

1. What types of jobs had Link applied for?

2. Why did no one hire him?

3. Why was it the worst Christmas Link ever had?

4. How would you feel if you were Link at this time?

5. How well do Link and Vince get on?

6. “And the worst thing was, nobody stuck up for me. Not even my sister.” What is your opinion of the way they treat Link?

7. If this was a film, what song would you play at this moment to create an atmosphere?

8. Write the conversation between Link and Carole as he leaves for good.

Stone Cold 2 - talk about it

Daily Routine Orders 3

What do we learn about Shelter’s previous job?

Why was he discharged from his position?

How old was he when this happened?

Is he happy about being discharged? Explain your answer.

“I can’t turn garbage into men anymore, but I can clean up the garbage, can’t I?” What do you think he means by this statement?

Link Section 3

Why did Link not get any of the jobs that he applied for?

What was his Christmas present? Why was he unhappy about this?

What happened on Boxing Day that really upset Link?

Do you think Link has a supportive family? Explain your answer.

What does he decide to do on December 28th?

Stone Cold 2

Link Section 2

1. “I knew the streets weren’t paved with gold.” What did Link mean by this statement?

2. What did Link dislike about being homeless in Bradford?

3. Link used to spend some nights at his sister’s house. Why did he decide to move on?

4. Do you think this was a good decision? Explain.

5. What type of people might you face when living on the streets?

Daily Routine Orders 2

1. How does Shelter get used to his name?

2. What impression do you get of Shelter so far? Give reasons for your answer.

3. List three differences between Link and Shelter’s sides of the story.

Dictionary work: Look up the meaning of each of the following words: handsome, authentic, signature, precious, recruiting, stalling, indulging, anticipation. Put each one into a sentence to show their meanings.

Stone Cold 1

Link Section 1

• Where is Link at the beginning of the book?
• Where was Link born?
• Who does he blame for how he’s ended up?
• Describe Vince.
• How did Link end up homeless?

Daily routine 1

• How do we know someone different is speaking in this section?
• What does he call himself?
• Do you think this is his real name? Explain.

Word work:

Choose

5 words and put them in a sentence

5 words and write a definition to them (think word card)

5 words and find a synonym (a word that means the same)

Home short film

Watch the short film:

Discuss the following questions with someone and record your discussion:

• How does the film make you feel?

• What do you think happens after the film finishes?

• Are there many homeless people in your country?

• What are the main causes of homelessness?

• What can governments do to prevent homelessness?

• What can you do to help homeless people?

• How do you feel when you see a homeless person?

• If you were homeless, how would you feel and what would you do all day?

• Is homelessness a “hidden” issue for society and homeless people “invisible”?

• How do you feel when people say homeless people “should just get a job”?

• Are there homeless children in your country?

• What are the causes of child homelessness?

Write a newspaper article

How to write a newspaper article

Newspaper Article.docx

Moments

Discuss the different photos and then write a description.

Momentos.docx