if Cea Ta) ObJectives In this unit you will: By the end of this unit you will: Weert eee cd coText: Building Skills in English 11-14 ‘An autobiography is the story of someone’ life written by that person, Abiography is the story of someone’ lfe written by someone else When we read autobiographies and biographies we learn about a person's life, We may be inspired by their achievements, or we may just lear more about their everyday life Look at the front covers of these biographies and autobiographies. 1 Using a table like the one below, decide which are autobiographies and which are biographies. Make sure you can justify your choices. Biography (/) Autobiography (7) What are your reasons? 1 2 2 Which one does not fit either category? A blurb tells people about a book's contents to encourage them to buy it.‘Unit 1: A Life's story 1 Read the blurbs from the two autobiographies shown here and look at their front covers on page 6. a What kind of audience do you think the blurb is written for and why? b Who might the front cover appeal to? ¢ What kind of readers might be interested in the topics, such as fashion or family life, that are mentioned in these blurbs? d Which words and phrases in each blurb have been written to appeal to that audience? Ian Bennett recalls his childhood couching and told in his unique style. Hampered as he sees it by a family hat rnever manages to be quite like other families, he recounts his early years in Leeds ~a place where cary in lif one learned the quite usefl lesson that ‘ie is generally something that happens elsewhere’. Hiking every Sunday, tris into town and teas in cafe, its an ontinary childhood — his father a butcher his mother a reader of women’s ‘magazines who dreams of coffee mornings, cocktail parties and life ‘own south’. Here Alan Bennett relives family crises, early Pictcs and the lost tradition of musical evenings around the piano, with the wey observation and ionic understatement that has earned him a place in the forefiont of contemporary writing. ~ From Welcome so My World by Coleen McLoughlin — From Telling Tales by Alan Bennett 2 Some public figures have a ‘ghost writer’, a professional writer who either improves their autobiography or writes the vast majority of it for them. Which of the texts above do you think is more likely to have had a ghost writer and why? SUEDTEDV EPG Nouns and verbs Nouns tell us the name of something or someone. Nouns usually have a, an or the in front of them. A verb tells us what a person or thing does. Look again at Blurb A. 1 Can you identify the nouns in the last sentence? How many are there? 2 How many proper nouns are there in the second sentence? 3. Can you identify the verbs in the first two sentences?Text: Building Skills in English 11-14 2 Skimming and scanning are important reading ‘You are learning: skills. Skimming helps you read quickly to get @iofind the information the overall gist of a text to decide whether it you need. contains the information you need. Scanning is a way of looking for specific information in a text, You do not need fo read every word. You can use headings and titles to help you locate your information, This is a reading skill you use when you look words up in a dictionary, or search for telephone numbers in a directory. 09°00 ‘A Post Called Benjamin Zephaniah [<> ][e) [+] © t://m-benjaminzephaniah.com/truth-html i, teens adultz” beats videos. politico BRAN) media ovternet friends ‘words rhymin kidz 1 Read the research topics in the table below. Skim page 9, which is taken from the poet Benjamin Zephaniah’s personal website, Decide how useful the page would be if you were researching the topics in the table below. Try to do this in two minutes. © 2oinsee Research topic Useful? Yes (7) No (X) {a Facts about Zephaniah’ professional achievements b Interviews with Zephaniah, Information about the type of poetry Zephanich writes and performs d Blurbs from Zephaniah’s novels for teenagers @ Information about Zephaniah’s childhood f Pictures and details of his friends and contacts000 [<> [6] [ +) © netp:/;m.benjaminzephaniah.com/truth.html }enjamin Obadiah Iqbal Zephaniah BirmingharrvEngland Occupation: Poet/Writer fartial arts, Numismatios Poetry: Pen Rhythm. London, Page One, 1980 The Dread Affair. London, Arena, 1985; Inna Liverpool. Liverpool, Africa Arts Collective, 1988; City Psalms. Newcastle, Bloodaxe, 1992; Talking Turkeys. London, Puffin/Penguin, 1994 (children's); Out of the ‘Night. Gloucester, New Clarion Press. 1994 (Co-editor = Writings from Death Row); Funky Chickens, London, Puftin/Penguin, 1996 (chitdren’s}; Propa Propaganda. Neweastie, Bloodaxe, 1996; School's Out. Edinburgh, AK Press, 1997 (big children); The Bloomsbury ‘Book of Love Poems. London, Bloomsbury, 1999 (editon; Wicked World. London, Putfin/Penguin, 2000 (children's); The Little Book of Vagan Poems. Edinburgh, AK Press, 2001; Too Black, Too Strong. Newcastle, Bloodaxe, 2001; We are Britain. Francis Lincoln, 2002 Novels: Gangsta Faap, Bloomsbury, 2004; Face. London, Bloomsbury, 1999 (teenagers); Refugee Boy. London, Bloomsbury, 2001 (teenagers) Prose: Rasta Timo in Palestine, Liverpool, Shakti, 1990 Records: Dub Ranting ~ Radical Wallpaper, 1982; Rasta LP — Upright, 1989; Big Boys Don't Make Gis Cry - Upright 1984; Free South Africa — Upright, 1986; Us An Dem LP ~Mango, 1990; Crisis - Workers Playtime, 1992; Back to Roots LP ~ Acid Jazz, 1995; Bolly of De Beast LP — Ariwa, 1996; Dancing Tribes (with Back to Base). (Single) MP Records, 1999; llega (with ‘Swayzak). (Single) Medicine Label, 2000 Spoken Word Cassettes: Radical Rapping. Benjamin Zephaniah Associates, 1989; Overstanding. Benjamin Zephaniah Associates, 1992; Adult Fun for Kids. Benjamin Zephaniah Associates, 1994 (big children); Reggae Head. 57 Productions, 1997; Funky Turkeys. ‘Audio Book and Music Company, 1997 (children's); Wicked World. Penguin, 2000 (children’s) Plays: ‘Stage Listen to Your Parents (adapted from radio. Play); Playing the Right Tune, 1985; Job Rocking, 1987; Delirium, 1987 (dance); Streetwise, 1990; ‘Mickey Tekka, 1991 (children’s) Radio Face ~ Radio Four (adapted from novel) Hurricane Dub ~ BBC, 1989; Our Teacher's Gone (Crazy ~ BBC, 1990; Listen to Your Parents ~ BBC Radio, 2000 Television Dread Poets Society - BBC, 1991 si A Poet Called Benjamin Zephaniah Unit 1: A life's story Oral Poetry Ihave been called a dub poet, an oral poet, a performance poet, a pop poet, a Pub poet, a rap poet, a Rasta poet, a reggae poet and even a black poet, the list goes on. In all honesty, none of those titles offend me, | am probably all of these persons but if | had to choose one | would start with oral poet. | say this because as | write my poetry, | can hear ‘the sound of it, Dub Poetry lf you can see poetry as a tree with many branches and oral poetry as one of those branches, then a leaf on that branch could be Dub poetry. Dub poetry has its roots in Jamaica and is closely linked to Reggae music. Dub poetry is political, no one made this rule, that's just the way it is and poets like myself, Linton Kwesi Johnson, Jean Breeze, Oku Onuora and Lilian Allen all worked in community groups which gave us our first audiences. The oral poet's relationship with the audience is most important, she or he has to read the audience and be able to fully communicate and deliver the message. We oral poets do get published now but knowing that reading is a minority pastime, it would be fair to say that the publishing of books is way down on our list of priorities. We put poetry into music, into plays. On television, radio, we perform like crazy people, we put poems on postcards and in micro chips, in fact we do anything to change the dead, white and boring image of poetry.Text: Building Skills in English 11-14 2 Look again at page 9. Where on this web page would you click to find information on the following research topics? Use a table like the one below. Try to do this in two minutes. OQ anne Research topic ‘What | would click on Information on Zephaniah’s novels for teenagers Teena Examples of Zephaniah’s poerns People and personal contacts that are part of Zephaniah’s life Examples and cuttings of media articles on the poet ‘This picture summarises Zephaniah’s opinions on Dub and Rap poetry. Scan Zephaniah’s web page to find the information you need to complete the picture, The following questions will help you select your information. 1 What does Zephaniah say is the leaf attached to the branch of oral poetry? 2 Which country is the root of dub poetry? 3. Who are the other dub poets that first performed to audiences with Zephaniah? 4 Where would you be able to find their dub poetry?Unit 1: A Life's story CUED TIPETS capital letters and Full stops Read the biographical details below on the dub poet Linton Kwesi Johnson. Use what you have learnt about full stops and capital letters to correct the errors in the passage. Remember: © Every sentence must begin with a capital letter. © Proper nouns must begin with a capital letter. © Use a full stop to end any sentence which is not a question or an exclamation. Linton Kwesi Johnson was born on 24 august 1952 in jamaica. He came to london in 1963, went to Tulse Hill secondary school and later studied at goldsmiths’ college, University of London When he was still at schoo! he joined | the black panthers, which was an organization that started in America to support the rights of black people He helped to organize a poetry workshop within the movement and developed his work with a group of poets and drummers called rasta Love, He published three collections of poems before launching his own record Jabel in 1981, during the 1980s he was involved in journalism. linton kwesi johnson has been made an Associate Fellow of warwick University, an Honorary Fellow of wolverhampton polytechnic and received an award at the XIII Premo Internazionale Ultimo Novecento from the city of p for his contribution to poetry and popular music (1990), He has toured the world and his work has been. translated into italian and german, he is famous as the world’s first dub poetText: Building Skills in English 11-14 3 Note-making ‘Making notes can help you make sense of a text. can also improve your memory of what you have read. It helps you to write the key learning points in your own words, without copying out a text in full Activity 1 Thomas Edison was one of the world’s greatest inventors. Amongst other things, he invented the phonograph (the first device for recording and replaying sound), the first commercially produced electric lightbulb, the typewriter and the motion picture camera 1 Read the biographical information about the childhood of Thomas Edison. Thomas Alva Edison ; Some thought he ‘wasn’t quite right in the head’. ‘He was bom in 1847 in Milan, Ohio, and even as a young boy, his curiosity was always getting him into trouble. He always wanted to know ‘why’. At age three he fell into a grain elevator and almost drowned in the grain because he wanted to see how the elevator worked. And at age four, his father found him squatting on some duck eggs ina cold ‘bam to see ifhe could hatch the eggs instead of ‘the mother duck. He had very little formal education because his teachers thought his constant questions were a sign of stupidity. So when he was seven, his ‘mother, who had been a teacher, took him out ‘of school and taught him at home. ‘Some ofthe neighbours thought this strange child with the small body and unusually large head ‘who asked so many questions must be ‘addled’, and even the local doctor feared he might have “brain trouble’ becanse of his very large head, He loved to read and chemistry books were his favourite books, but he did more than just read them, He tried many of the experiments the books described to prove to himself that: the facts in the books were really true When he was about ten, he set up a chemistry Jab in the basement in his home, and during one Of his experiments, he set the basement.on fire and nearly blew himself up, ‘Thenwhenhe wastwelve, in ordertoearn money to pay for the chemicals for his experiments, he ‘went intobusinessselling.candy andnewspapers to the local train and worked on his scientific ‘experiments in his spare time. He was forced to stop his exper temporarily when a stick of phosphorous started a fire in the crude lab he had set up in the baggage car; the conductor threw him and his equipment off the train at the next stop. It seemed he was always experimenting, Once he gave a friend a triple dose of seidlitz powders, hoping that enough gas would be generated to enable him to fly. This resulted in terrible agonies for his friend and a whipping for him. seidlte powders a mixture of chemicals ‘that are very izzy when mixed with water sey words words that summarise the information contained inthe main topic ‘At sixteen he was given the chance to learn how to be a telegraph operator, and he then became as fascinated by electricity as he had been with chemistry, 12 ~ From Dare to Dream: 25 extraordinary lives by Sandra McLeod Humphrey.Unit 4: A Life's story 2 Write down five key words that sum up Edison's childhood. 3 Now close this book and expand your key words by writing a paragraph of notes from memory. 4 Summarise what you have learnt about Edison's childhood. Activity 2 The text about Thomas Edison is organised chronologically, which means that events are described in the order in which they occurred. Use a timeline like the one illustrated here to summarise key points in Edison's life and how they predicted his future genius. SEED E TS sequencing ‘The points below summarise key points about Thomas Edison's adult life. Put them into the correct order. Write down the word or words that helped you correctly place each section in the sequence. sar Tat Greve at ary E CeRen isis arts ‘ Srnec tency Sarat Boa oR CR Peers emt Mr ase CRc seit or 134 aco CITE TEREST Le eo CR Tee Me You are learning: © fo distinguish between fact and opinion. 1 Read these two texts about Shaun Ellis. Text A gives information about his life. Text B is a TV channel's introduction to a programme before it is broad Text A r Biography Shaun Blis is a man in wol's clothing, living wild with them and talking their language... literally. For a raw meat-eating ‘wild animal’ used to roaming his environment by night and marking his territory wherever he pleases, Shaun Ellis comes across as a surprisingly civilised individual. Well-spoken, intelligent and passionate, it's only the excessively shaggy beard and straggly hair that gives him away as one of the leading members of a pack of wolves. Three years ago, the 42-year-old decided the only way to really get to know his beloved wolves was to become one of them. He entered an enclosure at a wildlife park in North Devon, along with three abandoned new-born cubs, and became the alpha male of the group, raising the small family as his own, For the first 18 months, he was in the enclosure 24/7 and even now spends most of his time, and almost all of his evenings, huddled up alongside his wolf family. He has leamed to eat raw meat straight off the carcass of a dead animal, communicate with them by howling and is covered in scratches and wounds from his playful wrestles and fights with his ‘brothers’ But as unusual a lifestyle as this sounds, this is not some mid- life crisis, breakdown or attempt to turn his back on society. Shaun's adventure has been a long-standing scientific study into the lifestyle of his favourite animal and has so far produced some incredible results. Eventually, he hopes to put his findings to good use and boost the campaign to reintroduce wild wolves to areas such as the Highlands, where they haven't been seen living free for hundreds of years. He feels that working with animals and trying to understand how they live is what he was put on this planet to do and he has travelled the world to get closer to nature.Tans BYCsbaAy Enel Beene MCU Aen ue we nego Reena ae eet cae PC een ene Uae ea Bee eens ee ae CO ee ECs cies uname ae nCCL nena his unique life a 2 Text Ais a recount text and contains facts to inform the reader. In the table below are the features of a recount text. Find an example of each feature in Text A Feature of recount text Example Events written in fine order (chronological orden) Connectives related to time (e.g. later, twenty years on) Dialogue or reported speech to reveal information about the character Specific dates, times, people and places Answers fo the questions when, where, who, what, why 3 Text B contains writing to persuade. The writer of this text chooses words which he or she hopes will persuade people to watch the programme. Can you find phrases that show the writer's opinions? 4 Which of the two texts would be more useful and reliable if you were researching the life of Shaun Ellis? Give-reasons for your answer. Assess your progress ‘A key skill in reading and research is being able to use evidence from texts to ‘back up’ your views. How confident were you in completing questions 2 and 3 above? Look again at the quotations you picked. Are they effective evidence for the questions you were asked? You might lke to ‘cuss your choices with a pariner and compare your selections. Choose the traffic ight that shows how confident you feel in selecting evidence.Text: Building Skills in English 11-14 5 Gathering evidence Information is now available in far more ranges and formats than in the past: film, radio, TY, the Internet, ICT resources, books, newspapers and magazines. It is important to be able to know where to find what you need, select what is useful and then. organise it. Activity 1 You are going to complete a research task to understand more about autism. Use a diagram like the one here to summarise i saree what you already know about autism, what you think you know about it, and what you want to find out about it. Activity 2 Below are links from the National Autistic Society website. Which of the linked pages would be most useful for finding out facts about autism? Give reasons for your choice. ooo. 3 SE: D EO FB Mierrw nes rpc vp @ rer News andl] Information and | || peas Meer eta peed) || professionals a | Ca uke Cenc Co) Sr Activity 3 The following extract describes the writer's experience with their brother, who is autistic. Read the extract, then create a diagram like the one in Activity 1, using the information / you have read about autism. i) a nccnacaciaaian sincaencnemnninonans — — Communication Okay, let's start with number one, difficulty with communication, Some people with autism do not speak, or some people have iffioutty speaking. For those that do not sé Sy speak, they may use plotures, written words ~ or even something called sign language z (hand or arm movements) to tell people what they need or how they are feeling. Sissi toro, 16Unit 1: A life's story ‘My brother sometimes takes my hand or shows me what he wants instead of speaking because he finds this easler to do. My brother can speak but sometimes it takes him a long time to say something back to me. If I say lots of words at once, he can become very confused, 80 I must remember to keep things simple and sometimes say things slowly. ‘My brother also has problems working out when someone is joking or teasing him. To help him understand jokes, I sometimes have to say that I was joking. ‘Wo understand how people are feeling by looking at their faces, My brother and people with autism find it very hard to understand faces. For example, my brother doesn’t seem to know when I'm angry or upset. Sometimes he copies or even laughs at me. He doesn’t mean this to be horrible, he just doesn’t know what to do when I am feeling like this. Sometimes he thinks I'm just pulling a funny face, which is why he laughs at me, but a lot of the time he doesn’t realise that he should help me or leave me alone, 1S ae g CURIOUS TINGE SEED TAIPEI the past tense Autobiographies and biographies are recount texts and are usually written in the past tense. The past tense is used to describe events that have already happened. The autobiographical passage below taken from an article called B is for Bestseller is by the author Mark Haddon, who also wrote a well known book about a boy with Asperger's Syndrome called The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time. Can you identify any examples of the past tense in this recount text? OU ae I've been writing books for children for 17 years. Over that time, I've received a steady trickle of letters. Most are from readers telling me how much they've enjoyed this or that book of mine, which always gives me a glow for the rest of the day. Others begin: ‘Dear Mr Haddon, We're doing Authors with Mrs Patel and I've been told to write to you’, which is flattering, but not in quite the same way. ... The best question I ever received came from a boy who asked whether I did much crossing out. I explained that most of my work consisted of crossing out and that crossing out was the secret of all ‘good writing. Three years ago, I wrote The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, a novel set in Swindon about a teenage boy with Asperger's syndrome who discovers a murdered poodle on a neighbour's lawn. It was published in two identical editions with different, covers, one for adults and one for teenagers. To my continuing amazement, it seems to have spread round the world like some particularly infectious rash. aText: Building Skills in English 11-14 6 Preparing an essay Half the success of an essay is in the structure. Topic sentences give clarity and purpose to your essay. Activity 1 You are going to write an essay about the basketball star and TV personality Ade Adepitan for a magazine aimed at teenagers. The following two texts are written versions of oral texts: a speech made about him when he was given an honorary degree at Loughborough University and an interview with the sportsman. 1 Read Text A and’Text B. Ade Adepitan Public Orator, Charlie Bethel presented the Honorary Graduand at the Degree Ceremony held on Monday 17 July at 10.30 a.m Chancellor, Vice Chancellor, Distinguished Guests, Graduands, Ladies and Gentlemen. Tt was an honour to accept the role of orator today for the recipient. ‘Ade Adepitan was born in Maryland, just outside Lagos, Nigeria in 1973. Ade was a bouncing baby boy. Sadly six months later he had contracted polio, but he survived this, debilitating disease and three years later Ade and his family moved to Britain and made their home in Newham, London. Whilst at school Ade gave up the calipers which helped him walk and picked up a basketball, having seen the Great Britain Wheelchair Basketball Team in action. Since then he has never looked back. Ade has competed on every continent and at every level. He played professionally in Spain for two years for Zaragossa and he has taken up presenting. Ade’s television debut was again as a dancing wheelchair user for Play Station and since then you may have seen him on Sportsround, Tiger Tiger, Xchange, and Holiday. Television has allowed Ade to help those less fortunate than himself and he has campaigned against racism and disability discrimination as well as being a patron for Scope and the Association for Wheelchair Children. In 2005 Ade was honoured by the Queen for services to Disability Sport following his, efforts that saw Great Britain win the bronze at the Athens Summer Paralympic Games. The highlight of the Games for everyone in wheelchair basketball was the quarter final against the World Champions, USA. With his shoulder hurting and thousands in the arena watching, let alone the home crowd an the BBC, Ade made the baskets. With possession it saw GB progress to the semi-finals and finally win the bronze. aRUnit 1: A life's story AA more important achievement of Ade's to us was again in a team, in Singapore, on tthe 6th July 2005. An ambassador for London 2012, Ade was one of those beige-suited delegates sitting in front of Jacques Rogue as we all saw the Summer Olympic and Paralympic Games coming home. For Ade, his road to the Paralympics began at school when he had the opportunity to watch the then GB Wheelchair Basketball Team, Ade has become the role model for many youngsters, and an ambassador for sport, and the cycle has come full circle. Now we see many new athletes coming into sport thanks to him. Chancellor, I have the honour to present to you and the University Adedoyin Olayiwola ‘Adepitan MBE for the Degree of Doctor of the University honoris causa. Public orator: Charlie Bethal Ele Edt ew Favortes Tocls Help Ade Adepitan - wheelchair basketball 19on Text: Building Skills in English 11-14 2 Select six headings from the list below to use as section headings for your essay plan. eon! Hobbies and interests remit tenet) CBBC presenting PO eee eect Maan g emer ekennd Peo Beery ee ttn ste trd Peri 8 Write two or three bullet points summarising what you will include under each heading, Activity 2 1 Which paragraph would you use at the begin essay, following your introduction? Why? 2 Which four of the your plan? Why? Activity 3 Read this magazine article introduction by another student. ections above did you not include in 1 Rewrite the text, correcting any errors in sentence structure, punctuation and spelling. 2 The first line is chatty and informal, to appeal to young people. Improve the tone of the rest of the piece to appeal toa teenage reader. So how mam of you dream of being a sporting hero? Ade ‘Adepitan has achieved significant success in his career even though he is in a wheelchair, he is an example to young people of determination and self-belief, Despite the many prejudices be faced as a child because of his disability, he is famous for bis sporting achievments and also as a tellyvision presenter.Unit 4: A LF Atopic sentence in a text expresses the main idea of a paragraph. It is usually the first sentence of the paragraph. Below is a plan for an essay on Ade Adepitan's life. Write a topic sentence to begin each paragraph, based on your reading, The first one has been done for you. Introduction ———_y_Adepitariy How he became ‘Ade Adepitan isa remarkable man, childhood interested in basketball whose achievement and lie story are inspiring o both able-bodied and disabled people TV work ¢—___Sporting achievements <—__ Charitable ae er sol vl petdonality, ae CIEDTEDTOUPENTUS - adverts © an adver) tells us more about a verb, an adjective or an adverb © an adverb can tell us how, when, where or why | ©@ adverbs often end in -Iy. | Re-read paragraph 5 of text A, on page 18, Then rewrite the paragraph, adding three appropriate adverbs to the passage. Add them to the verbs to emphasise how much | the reader should admire Adepitan’s charitable work.Text: Building Skilis in €nglish 11-14 , Assessment task Reading: Reading for meaning Steve Irwin, Crocodile Hunter ‘Steve Irwin is well known for his work with crocodiles and other animals. In 2006, he was stung by a bull ray fish and died. You have been asked to do some research about Steve Inin, for a book about people who are well known for their work with animals. You have been given various texts about Steve Irwin which you can use for your research, Your task Look at texts A-E on pages 22-9 and do the activities below. 1 Skim through the texts and briefly explain what kind of text each ‘one is and how you can tell. 2 Scan text C. Find and write down: a Two facts about Steve Inwin. b Two opinions about Steve Irwin. 3 a Say which text you think is going to be most helpful to you and explain why. Say which text is going to be least helpful to you and explain why. » 4 Choose one text which you think presents Steve Irwin in either a i positive or a negative way and explain how the text does this. In your answer, comment on: © the choice of information included about Steve Irwin © the choice of language used to describe him and what he did i? other techniques used to convey a particular view of Steve Invin. "6 .What impression do you get of Steve Irwin as a person from the texts? Support your answer with quotations from at least two of them. Make notes of the main points you want to include in your biography of Steve Irwin, and organise them into paragraphs. You can decide whether you want to present him in a positive or a negative way - or present a balanced point of view about him. You can decide how you want to organise your notes.CRIKEY — Next Exit 3km* ek Text: Building Skills in English 11-14 Daredevil Irwin dies doing what he loved best CAIRNS, Australia — Wildlife warrior Steve Irwin was a daredevil who loved flirting with danger around deadly animals. But after years of close shaves it and manager John Stainton. ‘{But} nothing, would ever scare Steve or would worry him. He didn’t have a fear of death at al.” Mr Irwin made his international apne: wasanormally harmless stingray “He died reputation wrestling crocodiles which inaly claimed ise on doing Whats! stakes. But the fameyant londay, plunging a barb into the hnaturalist’s final confrontation Crocodiis Huster’s chest as he 1@ lOVEG ith a wild animal occurred at Bat snorkelled in shallow water on best. Reef off Port Douglas on Monday the Great Barrier Reef. The 44-year-old TV personality may have died instantly when struck by the stingray while filming a sequence for his eight-year- old daughter Bindi’s new TV series, friends believe. *You think about all the documentaries we've ‘made and all the dangerous situations that we have been in, you always think “is this it, is this aday that may be his demise?", said his friend ‘morning, where he had been filming. anew documentary, Ocean's Deadliest. Taking time off from the main project, Mr Irwin was swimming in shallow water, snorkelling as his cameraman filmed large bull rays. “He came over the top of a stingray and the stingray’s barb went up and went into his chest and put a hole into his heart, said Mr Inwin’s friend and manager John Stainton.Unityl: A life's story ‘Is likely that he possibly died instantly when the barb hit him, and I don’t think that he ... felt any pain? Wildlife experts said the normally passive creatures only sting indefence, striking witha bayonet-like barb when they feel threatened Unconscious, Mr Irwin was pulled aboard his, research vessel, Croc One, for a 30-minute dash to Low Isle, where an emergency helicopter had been summoned at about 11 a.m,, his Australia Zoo said in a statement, The crew of the Croc One performed constant CPR during the voyage to Low Isle, but medical staff pronounced Mr Irwin dead about noon. His wife Terri was told of her husband’s death while on a walking tour in Tasmania, and retumed to the Sunshine Coast with her two children, Bindi and three-year-old son Bob. ‘The death of the larger than life Mr Irwin, bestknownforhiscatchery ‘Crikey!” caused shockwaves around the world, leading TV bulletins in the United States and Britain. Mr Irwin was also a global phenomenon, making almost 50 documentaries which appeared on the cable TV channel Animal Planet, and which generated books, interactive games and even toy action figures. Prime Minister John Howard said: ‘Iam quite shocked and distressed at Steve Irwin’s sudden, untimely and freakish death. It’s a huge loss to Australia. ‘He was a wonderful character. He was a passionate environmentalist. He brought joy and entertainment and excitement to ns of people.” ILB “He was one of Australia’s best known personalities internationally and an ambassador for the nation and its wildlife.” IBRARY The Melbourne-born father of two's Crocodile Hunter programme was first broadcastin 1992 and hasbeen shown around the world on cable network Discovery. He also starred in movies and helped develop the Australia Zoo wildlife park, north of Brisbane, which was started by his parents Bob and Lyn Irwin, He grew up near crocodiles, trapping and removing them from populated areas and releasing them in his parents’ park, which he took over in 1991. Bob was involved in a controversial incident in January 2004, when his father held his infant son in one arm as he fed a dead chicken to a crocodile at Australia Zoo. Child-welfare and animal-rights groups criticised his actions as irresponsible and tantamount to child abuse. Mr Irwin said any danger to his only a perceived danger and that he ws complete control of the situation. In June 2004, Mr Irwin came under fire again when it was alleged he came too close to and disturbed some whales, seals and penguins while filming a documentary in Antarctica. Mr Irwin was also a tourism ambassador and was heavily involved in last year’s ‘G’Day LA’ tourism campaign. Queensland Premier Peter Beattie said Mr Irwin was an ‘extraordinary man’. ‘He has made an enormous difference to his state and his country, he said. son was in Sydney Morning Herald 4 September 2006 3— Text: Building Skills in English 11-14 STEVE WASN'T GOING TO DIE IN BED 1 VIRGINA WHEELER 5 SEPTEMBER 2006 WILDLIFE expert David Bellamy last night told of his grief at the loss of Crocodile Hunter Steve Irwin ~ but said: ‘He was never going to die quietly in his bed.’ The British botanist called Aussie icon Irvin ~ killed by a stingray while snorkelling yesterday ~ a ‘fantastic allaction character’. He said: Thad a good cry when | heard the terrible news. Why did it happen to such an important and talented guy? It is the world’s loss and has sadly come years too early’ Outrageous Irwin, 44, won global TV fame by leaping on the backs of giant crocodiles and grabbing deadly snakes while crowing in a broad ‘Aussie accent: ‘Crikey! Look at this ftle bewdy,” Though one of the worlds top naturalists, many of his milions of fans feared he would eventually be killed taking one chance too many with a croc. But he died while filming a bull ray in shallow water at Batt Reef, a remote part of the Great Barrier Reef in northern Queensland. The Sttwide ray, normally a placid creature, suddenly turned on him and speared him through the heart with a lash from the toxic barb on its tai A plume of blood filed the crystakclear reef water. And dadof-two Irwin — universally loved for his childike enthusiasm, khaki shorts and huge boots ~ died almost instantly. Irwin, wife Teri and a croc Last night it was unclear if he was killed by the wound, a heart attack, poison from the blade-ike barb or a combination of all three. Paramedios tried in vain to revive him and he was pronounced dead on his boat, Croc One. His death was caught on film by a cameraman from tis production company, who was swimming in front of him. The footage was being studied by police last night, rnin always told fim crews to keep shooting even if itlooked like he was going to come off worst in a croc or shark attack. His best friend and manager John Stainton, who witnessed the tragedy, weptas he said: Steve would have been sad if he died and it wasn’t captured on camera, 'He died doing what he loved best and left this world in a happy and peaceful state of mind. | hope he never felt any pain. The world has lost a great wildife icon, a passionate conservationist and one of the proudest dads on the planet. ‘His last words would have been, “Crocs rule!” Irwin's American wife Terri, daughter Bindi, eight, and son Bob, three, were on holiday in Tasmania when they learned of his death They flew to Queensiand last night and headed for the family home at Minyama on the state's Sunshine Coast.nlate October 2000, writer Sarah Simpson | from magazine Scientific American finds herself seated at a table in Steve Inwin's childhood home. The Crocodile Hunter himself sits across from her, explaining how his father built this house in 1970. Now it has become one of the administrative buildings for Australia Zoo, which Irwin's parents established and which he now directs together with his wife, Terri. SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN: Why do you think you're so popular? STEVE: Nothing to do with my looks, that’s for sure! [laughing] Yeah, I normally get a big croc out in the foreground of any filming, You know what I reckon it is? My belief is that what comes across on the television is a capture of my enthusiasm and my passion for wildlife. Since I was a boy, from this house, I was out rescuing crocodiles and snakes. My mum and dad were very passionate about that and, I was lucky enough to go along. The first crocodile I ever caught was at nine years of age, and it was a rescue, So now what happens is the cameras follow me around and capture exactly what I’ve been doing since I was a boy. Only now we have a team of, you know, like 73 of us, and it's gone beyond that. As the audience, I want you to come with me, right? So we get cameras, every one of us, if we've got a four- or five-man film crew, including myself and Terri. Every one of us can use a camera. I have one in my green backpack that I pull out for the hard- core shots where you've gotta get right in there, so the camera's always right there, in there, while I’m doing my thing. So when I’m talking to the camera, I'm talking to ‘you, in your living room, Unit 1: A life's story We'veevolved from sitting back on our tripods. and shooting wildlife films like they have been shot historically, which doesn’t work for us. So, now it’s not just, ‘Oh look, there's acheetah making a kill’ I want to take you to the cheetah. I want to get in there as close as I can to that cheetah, You'll see me in Namibia getting attacked by a female cheetah, because T didn’t know she had cubs, but the cameras are right there in a four-wheel-drive, filming me, She’s ‘grrraagh!” putting mock-charges ‘on, and you get that overwhelming sensation that you're there, that you're with me. SA: And what do you think your zany attitude does for the viewers? STEVE: It excites them, which helps me to educate, I believe that education is all about being excited about something. Seeing passion and enthusiasm helps push an educational message. That's the main aim in our entire lives — to promote education about wildlife and wilderness areas, save habitats, save endangered species, etc. So, if we can get people excited about animals, then by erikey, itmakes ita heck of a lot easier to save them. My field is with apex predators, hence your crocodiles, your snakes, your spiders. And then of course you've got lions, tigers, bears. Great big apex predators — they're the species that enjoy the most. That's where my passion lies. Historically, people have seen them as evil, ugly monsters that kill people. Take the crocodile, for example, my favourite animal. There are 23 species. Seventeen of those species are rare or endangered. They're on the way out, no matter what anyone does or says, you know. So, my tactic with conservation of apex predators is to get people excited and take them to where they live.Text: Building Skills In English 11-14 The real crocodile hunter By Germaine Greer 5 September 2006, The world moums. World- famous wildlife warrior Steve Inwin has died a hero, doing the thing he loved, filming a sequence for anew TV series. He was supposed to have been making a new documentary to have been called Ocean’s Deadliest, but, when filming was held up by bad weather, he decided 10 ‘go off and shoot a few segments’ for his eight-year-old daughter's upcoming TV series. His manager John Stainton ‘just said fine, anything, that would keep him moving and keep his adrenaline going” Evidently it’s Stainton’s job could find. What they found Asa Melbourne boy, Irwin to keep Irwin pumped larger were stingrays. You can should have had a healthy than life, shouting ‘Crikey! just imagine Irwin yelling: respect for stingrays. The Irwin tosses chicken to a crocodile while holding his baby son, and punching the air, “Just look at these beauties! film-makers maintain. that IrwinwastherealCrocodile Crikey! With those barbs a the ray that took Irwin out Dundee, a great Australian, stingray can kill a horse!’ was a ‘bull ray’, but this is an ambassador for wildlife, All Australian children —_notusually found as far north a global phenomenon. The know that stingrays bury as Port Douglas. Marine only creatures he couldn't themselves in the sand or — biologist Dr Meredith Peach dominate were parrots. A mud with only their eyes has been quoted as saying, parrot once did its best to rip sticking out. What youdon’t —‘I’s_really quite unusual his nose off his face. do with a stingray is stand for divers to be stung unless What seems 0 have omit. The lashing response they are grappling with the happened is that Irwin and of the tail is automatic; the animal and, knowing Steve a cameraman went off ina barb is coated with a deadly —_ Irwin, perhaps that may have little dinghy to see what they slime. been the case’ ae o-‘The only time Irwin ever seemed less than entirely lovable to his fans (as distinct from zoologists) ‘was when he went into the Australia Zoo crocodile enclosure with his month- old baby sonin one hand and a dead chicken in the other. For a second you didn't know which one he meant to feed to the crocodile. If the crocodile had been less depressed it might have made the decision for him. Asthedozy beast obediently downed its tiny snack, Irwin walked his baby on the grass, not something that paediatricians recommend for rubbery baby legs even when there isn't a stir- crazy carnivore a few feet away, The adoring world was momentarily appalled. ‘They called it child abuse. ‘The whole spectacle was revolting. Irwin’s response to the sudden outburst of criticism was bizarre. He believed that he had the crocodile under control. But he could have fallen over, suggested an interviewer. He admitted Unit 1: A life's story that was possible, but only if a meteor had hit the earth and caused an earthquake of 6.6 on the Riehter scale. What Irwin never seemed to understand was that animalsneed space. The one lesson any conservationist must try to drive home is that habitat loss is the principal cause of species loss. There was no habitat, no matter how fragile or finely balanced, that Irwin hesitated to barge into. There was not an animal he was not prepared to manhandle. Every creature he brandished at the camera was in distress. Every snake badgered by Inwin was ata huge disadvantage, with only a single possible reaction to its terrifying uation, which was to strike, But Irwin was an entertainer, a 2Ist-century version of a lion-tamer, with crocodiles instead of lions. ‘phenomenon remarkable person ‘Marine biologist scientist who studies the sea 2oologists selentiss whe study animals posciotricians doctors of children’s diseases Richer scale measurement scale for ‘earthquakes named after its creator Dr Charles F.RichtorText: Building Skills in English £1-14 , Assessment task “writing: Composition and conventions Steve Irwin, a biography Your task You have been asked to write a biography of Steve Irwin. You have read and studied texts about him and made some notes. If you like, you can * include some information and opinions from other material you find yourself. You can choose whether you present him in a positive way or @ negative way - or present a balanced point of view about him, You should: © organise your points logically into paragraphs or sections with subheadings and provide an effective beginning and ending ‘© use a variety of sentence structures and remember to link your ideas using a range of connectives © use capital letters, full stops and commas accurately to make your writing clear for the reader.