Inspired by: The Lost Happy Endings - Week 1

Carol Ann Duffy is a renowned Scottish poet and playwright, celebrated for her poignant and often thought-provoking work. She gained notable recognition when she was appointed as Britain's Poet Laureate in May 2009, a prestigious position that she held for a decade. Students are encouraged to delve into the life and contributions of Carol Ann Duffy by generating questions as a class and then researching in pairs to find the answers. This research activity culminates in creating a fact file or oral presentation about Duffy, which serves to deepen their understanding of her influence on contemporary literature and her role in the cultural landscape.

Exploring Duffy's work further, students are introduced to her story 'The Lost Happy Endings' and the specific language features she employs. The lesson focuses on the use of colons to demarcate boundaries between clauses, with an example sentence from the text: "The shadowy trees looked villainous: tall ghouls with long arms and twiggy fingers." Students discuss the purpose and effect of the colon in this sentence and practice writing their own sentences using colons to connect related clauses. Additionally, they examine Duffy's adept use of figurative language to create a vivid atmosphere in her writing. By analysing phrases such as "scarves of mist draped in the trees" and describing the mood of an accompanying illustration, students learn to identify and emulate the tone and style of Duffy's evocative descriptions in their own writing.