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The good, the bad and the ugly of Roald Dahl

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Authors are magicians. 

pendleburyannette / Pixabay  – Magician or Author

 

They capture your imagination with words and imagery. 

Similar to a siren singing her tune, an author draws the reader in with stories of heroes, villains, mysteries and magic.  There are several writers that come to mind when one thinks about  perspicacity at understanding a developing mind. Enid Blyton comes to my thoughts immediately, as it was her books of Faraway trees, Wishing Chairs, Mallory Towers and the adventurous children that beguiled and transformed me into a certifiable bookworm.  Other authors with these same mystical powers include Emily Rodda, A A Milne, Dr Seuss, C. S Lewis, Beatrix Potter, E.B White, Lewis Carrol, Eric Carle, Rick Riordan, J K Rowling and of course, Roald Dahl.

Dahl’s popularity has enthralled generations of children with his fantastical tales.  Even 30 years after the publication of perspicacious Matilda, the lure is still strong according to Kelly (2019) who recently published an article in the Sunday Times just short of the author’s birthdate.  Dahl’s books have inspired generations of children to read.  His stories of redemption and resilience appeal to both children and adults.  I found it particularly interesting that the books often seem to be narrated by the child protagonist.  By doing so, Dahl places the reader in the central position and thus immediately engages their interest.  The books often place the child in the role of an underdog and their eventual vanquishment of the bigger and older (usually an adult) enemy gives great satisfaction.  Darby (2016) believes that this narrative style is appealing to children as it makes them feel like “someone is in their court”.  

Studiolarsen / Pixabay – Victory at last

 

Some people assert that Dahl’s books are macabre and filled with violence, racial slurs, misogyny and vindictive behaviour.  Anderson (2016) argues that the books caused great disturbance among adult readers when they first started being published in the late 60’s. Stories where witches turn children into mice, people are fed worms and or eaten by giants, and let us not forget principals that swing cute girls by their hair like a discus and push children into nail studded cupboards.  

In fact, “James and the Giant Peach has been lambasted for its racism, profanity and sexual innuendo” Anderson (2016) states.  

punch_ra / Pixabay – Just Peachy

 

It appears Dahl was provoking everyone, as he offended numerous demographics in equal measure.  But I am starting to believe that the provocation is what lured children to read and re-read his books.  It was just that little bit naughty and disgusting. Just enough to make children feel superior and more wise than the character, but not too much as to disengage the reader.  Arguably this is probably what explains Dahl’s longevity as an author. Nice clean stories such as Wilder’s Little House series has its staunch clientele but it does lacks the Dahl’s drawcard in that the majority of children do not identify with these characters.  Kole (2018) suggests that it is when the reader can draw upon their own experience with the subject matter that engagement with the text occurs. This could be contended similar for L M Montgomery’s Anne or White’s Charlotte’s Web. All extremely well written and received books, but not as far reaching as Dahl.  Whilst their stories do have points of personal travail, they simply are not dark enough.  

KELLEPICS / Pixabay – Looking for the Bogeyman

 

This need for darkness is important for children’s literature

as Anderson (2016) and Kole (2018) further elucidate.  One can only think of the popularity of the Grimm fairy tales, Rowling’s Harry Potter, Collins ’Hunger Games and Meyer’s Twilight to realise that the desire for grim has not changed in centuries. The adage about literature reflecting life is the underlying support for this need for fear and fright in children’s books.  Stories of children overcoming great difficulty has the ability to build great resilience and empathy in the reader.  

johnhain / Pixabay – Empathy on your mind?

 

We are all aware of how reading builds empathy.  Readers identify with the characters in the story and thus the feelings from one are juxtaposition-ed on the other .  But reading fictitious stories of giants, witches and wizards, whilst unrealistic, also gives children an important cathartic release according to Bettelheim (2010).  Rochelle (1977) whilst dated, firmly believes that adults and children both require fantastical literature to interweave the complex strains of good and evil in humanity.  Fantastical tales give children innate strength to overcome hurdles life throws at them, no matter how bizarre it is (Kole, 2018).  Children are aware that these stories are unreal in the fantastical sense but the situation that the characters are facing are very real indeed (Rochelle, 1977). Wakefield (2014) agrees and points out that fairy tales are there to protect rather than terrify, as the protagonist is forced to seek inner strength to overcome the villain.  The stories illustrate that these situations can be overcome, and in that, give hope and possibly a way out. 

Fantastical tales are more than just entertainment.  In their own way, they give children (and adults) the ability to fight demons in both the real world and in their dreams. After all, the lives of children are not always filled with rainbows and unicorns.  Many children live in shadows. Reading stories such as Dahl’s encourage children (and adults) to go past their grim quagmire and find their inner strength.  

So this Roald Dahl day on September 13, read a fantastical story… and at the same time, gain some humanity.

References.

Anderson, H. (2016) The dark side of Roald Dahl. BBC Culture. Retrieved from http://www.bbc.com/culture/story/20160912-the-dark-side-of-roald-dahl

Bettelheim, B (2010) The uses of enchantment; the meaning and importance of fairy tales. New York: Vintage Books. Vintage Edition. 

Darby, S. (2016). 15 Must read children’s authors. BNKIDS blog. [blog]. Retrieved from  barnesandnoble.com/blog/kids/15-must-read-childrens-authors/

Kelly, L. (2019). Roald Dahl clan to share £6m dividend from licensing rights. Sunday Times. Retrived from https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/roald-dahl-clan-to-share-6m-dividend-from-licensing-rights-bdtdt6qfd

Grinstead, R. (2016) Happy Roald Dahl day. Medium.com [blog]. Retrieved from https://medium.com/@rhysgrinstead/its-roald-dahl-day-here-s-how-he-influenced-me-844a4e75bc19

Kole, K. (2018). The role of fairy tales in affective learning: Enhancing adult literacy and learning in FE and community settings. Australian Journal of Adult Learning, 58(3), 365-389. Retrieved from https://search-proquest-com.ezproxy.csu.edu.au/docview/2250950746?accountid=10344

Rochelle, L. (1977). The search for meaning through fantasy. The English Journal.  Vol. 66, No. 7, pp 54-55.  Retrieved from https://www.jstor.org/stable/814365

Wakefield, M. (2014). Why scary fairy stories are the best. The Spectator.  

Breaking down the barriers

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Breaking down the barriers

 

Break out boxes are a fabulous activity that engage and excite students of all ages.  These boxes mirror how an escape room works in that students puzzle their way through to find the code that will unlock the box and obtain their prize! 

These boxes were amazing all throughout book week!! My fabulous colleague Jordan is a whiz at creating activities that stimulate the brain, evoke critical thinking, creativity, collaboration and communication.   Using the Critical and creative thinking continuum from the General capabilities, the puzzles were selected to address the various strands at the appropriate stage for each class.  Our students were thoroughly engaged in the pursuit of a grand prize.  TBH, the grand prizes were lollies as that was what the budget permitted.  

The boxes were such a hit that we have been clamoured with requests to repeat them with other classes.  The 2IC of RE has asked the boxes be available for Year 8 RE to sum up their World Religions unit at the end of next term as well as 7 RE for their unit on ‘Gospels, Parables and Miracles’.  9 History wants it for exam preparation in two weeks. 10 English want it next week to reinvigorate the flagging interest in ‘Lord of the flies’ that I have previously grumbled about.   We even managed to get an elusive science class requesting it – 11 Biology is going to trial one to introduce the next unit of work.  

So what does this mean for us as a TL?

Besides embedding the Gen Caps into the teaching and learning, breakout boxes draw in the skeptical teachers by breaking down barriers.  We all know there are teachers in every school that have strong aversions to libraries and teacher librarians.  There are ones that are not sure of what a TL can contribute to the classroom, and others that avoid the library like its a contagious disease.  Some are not even sure why we are there at all!

We have found that breakout boxes are so captivating that its plainly obvious how it can work in the classroom teacher’s favour.  But this indulgence comes at a cost…  They need to book a TL to do this activity either in the library or their classroom.  And maybe then they will see, we aren’t all that scary.  And then… maybe then, they will come back, to borrow books, request teaching spaces and most importantly, collaborate together in planning units of work.  

Maybe then they will understand what we do, and who we are.

Now who is feeling smug?

(my HOD…  this whole concept wasnt my idea, but as my HOD and colleagues are not going to blog about it. I might as well)

Book Week – Making reading fun!

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Book week.  

Two simple words.

Two words that can excite little kid hearts, big teacher hearts and terrify parents who have to organise costumes for their kids’s parades. These are also two words that hold little excitement for those teen hearts.  

Why?

Oh please, ask me why? 

Never mind I will just tell you.

It may come as no great surprise to you – but teens don’t read…

Well they do not read as much as they used to and they certainly do not read the variety and depth of texts that their parents and grandparents read. To put it mildly, many teens do not read for recreational purposes.  A modern teen is overwhelmed by the variety of recreational activities they could choose from including the persistent lure of technology and glitzy apps, which as we all know, hold far more appeal than stodgy texts. For a bibliophile like me and an emerging Teacher librarian, this dilemma has coined a phrase known as ‘reluctant readers’ which means people, both adults and children that do not read for pleasure. 

Why does this occur?  We are all aware of how important literacy and reading are in primary school.  Students have readers that come home weekly and library visits as a class. Parents are constantly bombarded to read to their children by advocates from both the health and educational faculties.  Reading is fun! Schools run literacy activities that boost skills as well as point out the pleasure in reading, such as the CBCA book week. Within this week, teachers and other educational providers seek to promote books and the love of reading to children of all ages.  It is thrilling to see little children so excited by costumes and parades. Their faces light up when they hold up their favourite book against their outfit with happy eyes and grins to match. Primary schools across the country go through great lengths to set up parades. Teachers get dressed up in elaborate costumes and there is a general feeling of goodwill and happiness to all.  But when does this joy with reading decline? 

The answer sadly is high school.  

The same attitude for recreational reading does not translate into the latter years of schooling.  High school students are not encouraged to find pleasure in reading. There are multiple reasons for this decline.  Arguably the primary reason is that teenagers are often plagued by compulsory texts that hold little appeal for them.  Texts that have endured generations of disengaged students. I know from my own memory of high school two decades ago, and the apathy that quickly follows William Golding’s “Lord of the Flies”.  But yet the text’s presence in the curriculum continues. Yes, I agree that it has valuable social commentary. But I am sure that there are more engaging texts exist- “Hunger Games” by Suzanne Collins is plausibly a good replacement for Goldings dry and dismal story.  But forcing students to read books that they have no interest in only elicits anger and disgust for the text and its taint spreads to even the activity of reading.  

Douglas (2013) prescribes that an ability to read for pleasure as a teen is an indication of an ability to thrive in social environments. He goes on to explain that children that derive intrinsic pleasure and joy from reading are also the ones who end up being life-long learners.  This could simply be because those that find that inherent motivation to read are also the ones that have that immanent drive to succeed. Or it could be that those, even when cajoled, bribed and begged to read, with no innate motivation, are guided into the habit of reading, which over time could develop into something that brings great joy’ as Marie Kondo is often quoted.   Either way, the importance of reading is no longer just an educational issue but rather a social issue

Elphaba, 2018

Douglas (2013) elucidates that the demise of recreational reading in teens is based upon gender, attitude and societal expectations.  I can only tell you how many times I have rolled my eyes backwards when I hear parents and occasionally some teachers excuse reluctant readers with the banal phrase ‘boys will be boys’.  In some circumstances, my eyes have rolled back so hard they have gotten stuck against the back of my head! But I digress!! This gender based preference for reading is societal in origin rather than biological as Wong (2018) points out, “the brain is a unisex organ”.  But first world nations such as Britain, US and UK, the disparity in reading statistics between boys and girls is no longer just a fable, a myth. It is a disturbing statistic that affects half our student body. This inability to read translates to less dexterity in processing words, less sophistication in communication, and a consistent decline in educational outcomes.  On the note of societal disparity – in developing countries, the gender gap is primarily based upon unequal access to education. 

Queen of Hearts – 2018

 The other problem lies in that once a student is considered to be a competent reader in upper primary school, the focus changes from ‘learning to read’ to ‘read to learn’.  Ill informed parents believe that their children can now read and after years of being forced to read “Where is the green sheep” (by Mem Fox), (#mylife!), they dance their way from having to read to their children.  I must include myself with this charge. I too stopped reading to my eldest once she could read and have had only re-started after seeing the research. my Netflix time can wait a little longer. 

Malificient – 2018

 

As educators and as teacher librarians, we need to make reading FUN for our high school students.  We need to remind them of when a book character could make you laugh, cry and fall in love. We need to show them how reading books is not just about school work and assignments, but rather reading can be the quickest escape from it all. 

 

Cruella 2018

I am going all out for book week this year.  I am going to make a complete idjit of myself and show my students that reading is FUN! That reading books you are interested in brings great joy!  Most of all, I am going to show my colleagues that recreational reading is still important for teenagers.  And I am going to show them that whilst looking FABULOUS!

 

This year’s theme!

Douglas, J. (2013) The importance of instilling a need to read. The Telegraph UK. Retrieved from https://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/educationopinion/10035473/The-importance-of-instilling-a-need-to-read.html

 

Wong, A. (2018) Boys don’t read enough. The Atlantic- Education. Retrieved from https://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2018/09/why-girls-are-better-reading-boys/571429/

Out of the Box!

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How do you teach students about the context behind texts such as Jackie French’s Hitler’s daughter or William Golding’s Lord of the flies to very disinterested teens? 

I am not sure about you but I found both those books dull, dry and depressing as a teen; and I will say they have not improved with age!

Our graduate English teachers were struggling with the rampant disengagement with those two novels.  The indifference was causing the teachers great distress as they were concerned how the students were going to submit their essay assessment task if they would not engage with the book.    More experienced teachers were able to forge through the disengagement but our newest recruits were finding teaching the text challenging.

It then occurred to me that memorial boxes could be the answer!

WW2 Memorial Box set up

I had discovered that the Australian War Memorial had a whole host of educational resources available for loan to schools in the form of memorial boxes.  These boxes contain genuine artifacts from various military events in Australian history. I had requested a box for our 10 History classes earlier this semester as a ‘hook’ factor to engage and elicit interest at the commencement of their World War 2 unit.  

Artifacts from the memorial box

My cognitive connection between our great English dilemma and the memorial box was very much delayed!  It wasn’t until I was unpacking the resources in our library seminar room that it occurred to me that the same artifacts that were engaging our Year 10 history students could also stimulate our year 7 and 10 English students. 

I had an epiphany of sorts!

I was so happy my HOD agreed with my madcap proposal about using the memorial box as a stimulus for English.  The scheme was simple.  The students would come to our ‘library museum’ and view the various artifacts displayed within. Then in pairs, the students would interview each other to create a podcast with an accompanying transcript.  A very clever English teacher quickly whipped up a worksheet  and then, just like that… our immersive experience had begun.

Pictures and Memorabilia

Now I would love to tell you it was all a huge success, but I would be lying. 

The memorial boxes were a great triumph with our 10 History students but success was variable with our English classes.  This lackluster response could be attributed to the inadequate time for the students to complete the activity. The classes that visited the library twice had more success than ones that came just once. 

What we did discover was that students were stirred out of the apathetic stance towards the books because they began to understand the context  surrounding it. The memorial box activity connected the students to the mileu of the books and engaged them in the character’s turmoil.  As the worksheets were collected at the end of the session, the teachers were able to use those responses to formatively assess student literacy and other learning goals.  

The focus of a school library has changed in the past decade from archivist and curator of information to being an active facilitator of knowledge both physical and digital.  This means that teacher librarian may need to think out side the box for some more out of the box thinking!

The in class essays are all occurring this week for year 7 and next week for year 10.  I would be very intrigued to know if the memorial boxes assisted in increasing student engagement with the books and the outcome of the assessments.  I would also like to analyse the results of the English classes that declined to attend our library museum and compare them to the classes that did come.  If there is a significant difference, then I would have sufficient evidence to run this activity for more teachers and students.  

I await reporting time with great avidity.

#IWD2019 #Balanceforbetter

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#IWD2019

This years theme is #BalanceforBetter, a summon to seek equal rights for both sexes in in all aspects of life.  Notionally, Australia does have significantly better equality among the sexes compared to countries such as Yemen or Saudi Arabia (Haines, G. 2017).  But out of the top twenty countries listed, Australia does not get a mention but oddly enough Rwanda is in the top 5, which one could speculate that both sexes suffer equally in this war torn nation.  Before I digress too much from the reliability of this source, in land down under, we as women are encouraged to hold gainful employment, permitted to vote and drive as well as have access to health care in comparison to Jordan and Pakistan.  All reliable indicators of an equal opportunity. But as the Australian Human Rights Commission image in Figure 1 illustrates, women are still trailing behind in wages and in positions of power. The AHRC (2018) and Haines, G (2017) depict women in Australia at a high risk of personal safety. AIHW (2018) finds that that biggest risk factor for illness, injury and death for Australian women aged between 25-44 is not childbirth or war crimes, but rather just the presence of a partner in their lives.  This fact is horrendous and continues to be a major issue across all Australian states and territories. One only needs to recall the tragedy of Dr Preeti Reddy’s brutal murder in Sydney this week as a frightening reminder of the brutality that can occur behind closed doors ( Gooley G., & Stewart S., 2019).

Figure 1 – Infographic AHRC (2018)

I was musing these thoughts as I was setting up my display for #IWD2019 and one of my regular lunch time visitors interrupted me.  *Rick (name changed) could not understand why I was setting up the book display as “I had it good”. Whilst I was inclined to roll my eyes and tell him to shuffle off, I refrained.  For those that know me, tact and discretion ARE NOT one of my strong suites so this was an unusual occurrence for me. Instead I asked him to help me with the rest of the display and racked my brain with what I was going to say.  

#IWD2019 display

It then occurred to me that out of the roughly ten thousand items we have in our library, I struggled to find biographies of modern women to put in my display.  Granted we have a few books about Elizabeth I, Boadicea, Mary MacKillop, Cleopatra and Florence Nightingale; but our collection of biographies about strong successful MODERN women was limited.  Even though the majority of our regular readers are girls and young women, we seem to have a plethora of books about male sports stars, political leaders, heroes and inventors, but scanty sources solely dedicated to women and their successes.  

I recalled this video I saw a few years ago that illustrated the lack of book choices for our girls that portray strong female protagonists aka rebellious girls.  Then it made me realise that unless our young girls are given the option to imagine being intelligent and tenacious, they will continue to shoebox themselves into the roles of damsels in distress or tire women of great men.  Magras, D (2019) in her article  surmises that strong female characters in books and movies show our young girls that their voices matter and that gender stereotypes can be challenged. It is common knowledge that books stretch the imagination, and it would amazing if books could challenge and inspire our girls.  

Back to Rick* and his statement… Well in true Trish form, I plonked him on my chair, showed him the infographic I had put aside for this blog and then played him the youtube clip.  Once it was over, I asked him what he thought of the video. He hummed and tried to vacillate but eventually settled for “guess you may be right Miss”. I have not have convinced him to become a feminist but maybe I challenged a stereotype in his mind about the need to push for a #BalanceforBetter future.

 

References

Australian Human Rights Commission (2018) Face the facts: Gender Equality 2018.  Retrived from https://www.humanrights.gov.au/education/face-facts/face-facts-gender-equality-2018   accessed 6/3/19

AIHW (2018) New national statistical report sheds light on family violence.  Family, domestic and sexual violence in Australia, 2018 Retrieved from https://www.aihw.gov.au/news-media/media-releases/2018/february/new-national-statistical-report-sheds-light-on-fam accessed 6/3/19

Gooley, C & Stewart, S., (2019) Sydney dentist Preethi Reddy’s body found in suitcase, ex-boyfriend dies in fiery car crash. ABC News.  Retrieved from https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-03-06/body-of-sydney-dentist-preethi-reddy-found-in-suitcase/10874212 accessed 6/3/19

Haines G., (2017) Mapped: The best (and worst) countries for gender equality. The Telegraph UK.  Retrieved from  https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/maps-and-graphics/mapped-the-best-and-worst-countries-for-gender-equality/ accessed 6/3/19

Magras D., (2019) Feminist AF: Hearing Their Voices: Supporting Female Empowerment in Middle Grade Fiction for Tweens and Teens. School Library. Journal.   Retrieved from http://www.teenlibrariantoolbox.com/2019/03/feminist-af-hearing-their-voices-supporting-female-empowerment-in-middle-grade-fiction-for-tweens-and-teens-a-guest-post-by-author-diane-magras/ accessed 6/3/19

Rebel Girls (2017) The ugly truth about children’s books.  Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z1Jbd4-fPOE&t=10s accessed 6/3/19

Saner E., (2017) Books for girls, about girls: the publishers trying to balance the bookshelves. The Guardian. Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/books/2017/mar/17/childrens-books-for-girls-publishers-writers-gender-imbalance accessed 6/3/19.