The metamorphosis - Methodology

Title of Activity
Reading for fun

Description of educational activity
Duration: 2 hours
Pupils’ age: 14-16
Organization of the class of pupils: group work

Pupils' tasks: Students read the extract “Gregor Samsa wakes up” from Kafka’s “Metamorphosis” and analyse it, following the teacher’s instructions. In this first step they work individually, in order to test their ability to analyse extracts, their knowledge of the psychological-fantasy genre and of the author. Then, they organize teams of 4-5 elements to simulate the quiz game broadcast by the third channel of Italian TV on Saturday afternoons “Per un pugno di libri”. Each team chooses the students who are in charge of answering the questions on authors, titles of works, genres, characters and contents of stories.

Support materials:

The extract “Gregor Samsa wakes up” , from Kafka’s “Metamorphosis”.
A Map of the fantasy genre: fantasy and fairy tales
Brother Grimms’ fairy tales “Hansel and Gretel” “Cinderella” and “Little Red Riding Hood”, from : Jacob e Wilhelm Grimm, “Fiabe”- Oscar Classici-Mondadori.
Lists of authors and titles of novels from different countries, read at school, given by the teacher.

Evaluation and assessment method:

The challenge triggers competition both inside the group and among the groups belonging to the other classes involved in the Project.

Games constitute an effective way of learning just because they actively involve all students, who learn while playing.

All students have read the 4 extracts proposed for the analysis and have done homework about them.

Connection to curriculum

Grade: 2^nd grade

Knowledge:

Narrative techniques
Basic structures of narrative texts
The fantasy genre and the fairy tales.

Skills:

Being able to distinguish the peculiar characteristics of the literary genres, recognizing fantasy, horror and terror.

Competences:

Reading
Understanding and interpreting written texts of various kinds, and in particular, using information/knowledge to face a team game, following the rules.

Bibliographic reference to be used during the activity

Italian version

La Metamorfosi di Franz Kafka n. 70 pagine
Editore: Einaudi (7 marzo 2014)
Collana: Einaudi tascabili. Classici
Lingua: Italiano
ISBN-10: 8806220632
ISBN-13: 978-8806220631

Digital sources

The extract is well suited for the narrative analysis requested by the team game modelled on the tv programme “Per un pugno di libri”.

Results

The science fiction genre is highly appreciated by young people who know it also thanks to the cinema. The literary text differs from the film as it does not involve the use of special effects, therefore it offers the opportunity for a deeper reflection on the themes and the possibility to analyse the characters accurately especially if we want to introduce creative writing.

Recommendations

The role play of the “impossible interview” arouses students’ interest and encourages accurate and intensive reading. It enriches vocabulary and fosters oral and written linguistic skills.