14–16
Medium (5-11 activities)
Thank You for The Rain offers an engaging and moving non-fiction text for pupils, aged 11-14, as a means of exploring a range of writing approaches through a Kenyan farmer's first-hand experience of climate change. The lessons work as stand-alone pieces for teachers looking to target individual assessment objectives, or can be taught as one cohesive unit as an imaginative and current non-fiction text.
Lesson One - Story and Structure
Students use film analysis skills to develop their narrative writing, whilst learning about Kisilu's life and his quest to fight against climate change.
Lesson Objective:
Clip(s) to Use - Clip 2: Seeking a Loan
Lesson Two - Powers of Persuasion
Focusing on persuasive techniques, students examine how Kisilu influences other farmers to combat climate change.
Lesson Objective:
Clip(s) to Use - Clip 3: Planting Trees, Clip 4: Climate Change
Lesson Three - Stormy Weather
Students, through group and individual work, develop sensory writing skills to write descriptively, using Kisilu's experience of a storm as a stimulus.
Lesson Objective:
Clip(s) to Use - Clip 5: The Rain Comes
Lesson Four - Leading with Language
Highlights the importance of emotive language in achieving effects and influencing readers, using Kisilu's experience of a vital COP conference as a basis for learning.
Lesson Objective:
Clip(s) to Use - Clip 7: Kisilu Gets News
Lesson Five - Voting with our Feet
Students take the matter into their own hands. Using their language skills to form powerful arguments as part of a class debate, students will discuss how to combat climate change.
Lesson Objective:
Clip(s) to Use - Clip 9: Buying a Suit, Clip 10: Forging Ahead
Full lesson outlines and teacher's notes for English 14-16.
Size: 1.19 MB
Story and structure.
Size: 419 KB
Powers of persuasion.
Size: 102 KB
Stormy weather.
Size: 447 KB
Leading with language.
Size: 111 KB
Voting with our feet.
Size: 100 KB
Kisilu applies for a loan so he can run a taxi service when he can't farm.
Duration: 2:54 mins
Kisilu speaks to his community about the importance of planting trees.
Duration: 4:51 mins
Kisilu visits other farmers in his community to talk about climate change.
Duration: 9:40 mins
The rain arrives, showing us both its positive and negative effects.
Duration: 6:58 mins
Following his speech at COP, Kisilu received news about the conference.
Duration: 9:09 mins
Kisilu buys a suit for his trip to Paris and prepares his letter to the UN.
Duration: 0:44 secs
We take a look at Kisilu's onward journey as he continues his work.
Duration: 2:08 mins
