Wonder Lesson 8: Paging Mr Tushman and Nice Mrs Garcia - PowerPoint

In Lesson 8 of the English Teaching Resources, students delve into the world of 'Wonder' by focusing on pages 15-18, where two pivotal characters are introduced: Mr Tushman, the Principal, and Mrs Garcia, the school secretary. The class is encouraged to read and discuss these pages together, using the 'Wonder Dictionary' sheet to expand their vocabulary. Students are prompted to pay close attention to the behaviour and speech of these characters, noting any hints that reveal their personalities. This analysis not only deepens the students' understanding of the text but also enhances their ability to infer character traits from subtle narrative cues.

The lesson also includes engaging activities such as a 'Word warm-up' where students use a thesaurus to explore synonyms for the word 'nice', which is used to describe Mrs Garcia. This exercise aims to enrich their vocabulary by finding more expressive words with varying intensities. Additionally, a comprehensive 'Character Analysis' exercise using the D.A.D. (Description, Action, and Dialogue) method is introduced. Students label images of Mr Tushman and Mrs Garcia with their physical descriptions, note their actions, such as body language or facial expressions, and add speech bubbles to capture key dialogue. This multifaceted approach helps students to create a detailed analysis of each character, exploring their appearances, behaviours, and emotions through the text.