Explore the Story Setting

Overview

Lesson 1 of 4 in Harnessing Wind: Malawi in Miniature. Students investigate how William Kamkwamba’s windmill, home and Malawian environment are represented in The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind. Working in pairs, they research visual features and create a labelled cardboard scene plan that will guide later construction.

Learning intentions

• WALT research and identify important story-setting elements.
• WALT explain how environment and purpose influence colour, texture and form.
• WALT develop a practical plan for a miniature cardboard scene.
• WALT work respectfully and thoughtfully when learning about Malawi and another person’s story.

Success criteria

• I can identify the windmill, house, dry landscape, tower, spinning blades and electricity connection.
• I can explain how the setting influences my choices of colour, texture and materials.
• I can create a labelled plan showing the windmill, house, landscape and wire connection.
• I can identify at least one construction challenge and suggest a possible solution.

Curriculum links

• Visual Arts: developing ideas in response to researched subject matter, using visual elements and processes to communicate meaning.
• Technology: developing a design brief and considering materials, stability, function and user needs.
• Social Sciences: understanding how people, places, resources and environments influence one another.
• Key Competencies and class values: thinking, managing self, participating and contributing; Manaaki, Aroha, Niwha and Atamai.

Lesson structure (60 minutes)

1. 0–7 minutes – Hook and prior knowledge

Open with the hook and story-setting images. Ask: “How can a machine change a family’s life?” Show a carefully selected image or illustration of a windmill, house and landscape, then introduce William Kamkwamba and the setting of Malawi. Clarify that students are investigating a real person’s story and should avoid making assumptions about all Malawian homes or communities.

2. 7–15 minutes – Notice, wonder and vocabulary

Display the visual vocabulary on the noticing and vocabulary slides. In pairs, students record what they notice and wonder about the windmill, house, dry landscape, tower, blades and electricity connection. Invite several pairs to share; distinguish observation (“I can see…”) from inference (“I think…”).

3. 15–28 minutes – Paired research investigation

Distribute the story-setting research and planning sheet and provide pairs with teacher-selected book pages, photographs, short text extracts or offline reference images. Students investigate the six key elements and record two accurate observations for each. They should note possible materials, textures and colours, such as rough timber, dry soil, woven or corrugated surfaces, shadows and weathered textures. Remind students to record where information came from in simple source notes.

4. 28–36 minutes – Share and discuss design implications

Return to the research discussion and design prompts. Each pair shares one finding and explains how it could affect a miniature scene. Discuss questions such as: “What would make the tower look stable?” “How could blades appear to spin?” and “How might a wire show electricity travelling to the house?” Model a quick example of a labelled plan, including a construction problem and solution.

5. 36–52 minutes – Create the scene plan

Students sketch a bird’s-eye or front-view cardboard scene plan on the story-setting research and planning sheet. The plan must include the windmill, house, landscape, tower support, blades and wire connection. Students label proposed materials, colours and textures, and identify at least one challenge, such as balancing the tower, attaching blades or representing wire safely. Circulate, question their decisions and check that plans show relationships between the parts rather than isolated objects.

6. 52–58 minutes – Pair presentations and peer feedback

Pairs give a one-minute explanation of their plan to another pair, using the peer-feedback prompts. The listeners identify one clear story element and ask one constructive question beginning with “Have you considered…?” Students make one improvement to their plan in a different coloured pencil.

7. 58–60 minutes – Exit reflection

Students complete the final reflection prompt on the story-setting research and planning sheet: “One setting detail I will communicate through colour or texture is…” Collect plans and briefly preview that the next lesson will test materials and begin construction.

Resources

• the complete story-setting slide deck
• the story-setting research and planning sheet
• A copy of The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind or suitable teacher-selected extracts
• Teacher-selected, age-appropriate reference images of Malawi, windmills, homes and landscapes
• Offline information cards or printed short texts about William Kamkwamba and the setting
• Pencils, coloured pencils, rulers and erasers
• A3 paper or cardboard planning sheets
• Sample cardboard, paper, string, foil and sticks for examining texture and structure
• Board or shared display space for vocabulary and student ideas

Assessment

• Observe pair discussion and research notes for accurate identification of story elements and respectful interpretation of the setting.
• Formatively assess each labelled plan for the required components, material and texture decisions, electricity connection and awareness of construction challenges.
• Use the peer-feedback response and exit reflection to identify students needing support before construction.

Differentiation

• Provide visual vocabulary, labelled examples, a partly completed planning template and a modelled example for students who need structure.
• Offer audio instructions, read-aloud text extracts and simplified information cards; allow students to dictate or use labelled diagrams instead of extended writing.
• Use mixed-ability partnerships, assign clear roles such as researcher, sketcher and checker, and chunk the six research elements into smaller tasks.
• Extend confident learners by researching traditional Malawian building materials or windmill design, then adding accurate, credited details and explaining how they improve the plan.