Task developed by Karen Yager & Jill Brigden, Knox Grammar School, 2013

Northern NSW da Vinci Decathlon

SAMPLE An academic gala day

for years 5 and 6

English

Session 1

‘Art is the queen of all sciences communicating knowledge to all the generations of the world’ Leonardo da Vinci.

Team Number _____________

Activity One: Spelling (10 marks)

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Ten words will be read out to you. Please write your answers on the spelling sheet provided. Activity Two: Colour Match-Up (10 marks) Write the correct colour beside the names for the colours that are provided:

Names for Colours Colours azure

saffron

sable

whey

rubious

ochre

periwinkle

titian

sorrel

porphyrous

Colour Match-Up:

1. purple 2. off-white 3. blue 4. back 5. blue 6. ruby-red 7. yellow-brown 8. red-gold 9. orange-yellow 10. reddish-brown

Activity Three: Analysing an extract from the poem ‘Lamia’ by John Keats (8 marks)

The English poet John Keats ‘Lamia’ to criticise scientists. He complained that they had unwoven the mystery of a rainbow by explaining how a rainbow is created, thus, in his eyes, destroying its beauty. (Lamia in ancient Greek mythology was the beautiful queen of Libya who became a child-eating monster. Keats describes her as having a serpent’s tail.)

Do not all charms fly At the mere touch of cold philosophy? There was an awful rainbow once in heaven: We know her woof, her texture; she is given In the dull catalogue of common things.

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Philosophy will clip an Angel's wings, Conquer all mysteries by rule and line, Empty the haunted air, and gnomèd mine— Unweave a rainbow, as it erewhile made The tender-person'd Lamia melt into a shade.

Questions

1. Identify two ways that Keats reveals his criticism of scientists for unweaving a rainbow. (2 marks)

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b. _____________________________________________________________________

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2. What is ‘cold philosophy’? (1 mark) ___________________________________________________________________________

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3. Find an example of the following devices: (3 marks)

a. Rhetorical question: ____________________________________________________

b. Alliteration: ___________________________________________________________

c. Personification: ________________________________________________________

4. What is the key message of the poem? (Do not refer to the part already explained

about the criticism of science.) (2 marks)

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Activity Four: Analysing an Image: The Wizard of Oz Film Poster (8 marks) The famous children’s film The Wizard of Oz featured the song ‘Somewhere over the Rainbow.’ For Dorothy, the rainbow offered hope and promise. Identify four visual techniques that convey the idea of hope and explain why how they do this.

Visual Techniques How they convey the idea of hope

Activity Five: Analysing an extract from Museum Victoria’s online article ‘What Makes a Rainbow? (4 marks)

Rainbows are seen when raindrops, falling in the distance, bend and bounce sunlight back towards your eye.

Raindrops reflect sunlight, like a mirror. However, raindrops also bend, or refract, light, like a lens. The reflection is spread into a cone of light. The edge of this cone is bright, because sunlight is concentrated at this angle (called the rainbow angle).

Each colour of sunlight is bent and bounced in a slightly different direction. The colours separate around the bright edge of the reflection.

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The collection of raindrops that send the same bright colour towards your eye is curved. The centre of the curve is the shadow of your head (called the anti-solar point). The rainbow always appears at the same distance from this central point, at the rainbow angle.

Questions

1. Identify two features of factual writing. (2 marks) _____________________________________________________________________

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2. Find an example of the following language features: (2 marks)

a. Simile: _______________________________________________________________

b. Second person: ________________________________________________________

Activity Six: Aboriginal Myth – The Rainbow Serpent (5 marks)

Far off in Dreamtime, there were only people, no animals or birds, no trees or bushes, no hills or mountains.

The country was flat. Goorialla, the great Rainbow Serpent, stirred and set off to look for his own tribe. He travelled across Australia from South to North. He reached Cape York where he stopped and made a big red mountain called Naralullgan. He listened to the wind and heard only voices speaking strange languages.

“This is not my country, the people here speak a different tongue. I must look for my own people.” Goorialla left Naralullgan and his huge body made a deep gorge where he came down. He travelled North for many days and his tracks made the creeks and rivers as he journeyed North. Goorialla made

two more mountains, one of the Naradunga was long made of granite, the other had sharp peaks and five caves and was called, Minalinha. One day Goorialla heard singing and said, “Those are my people, they are holding a big Bora.” At the meeting place of the two rivers, Goorialla found his own people singing and dancing. He watched for a long time, then he came out and was welcomed by his people. He showed the men how to dress properly and taught them to dance. A big storm was gathering, so all the people built humpies for shelter.

Two young men, the bil-bil or Rainbow Lorikeet brothers came looking for shelter but no one had any room. They asked their grandmother, the Star Woman but she had too many dogs and couldn't help them. The Bil-bil brothers went to Goorialla who was snoring in his humpy but he had no room. The rain got heavier and the boys went back to Goorialla and called out that the rain was heavy. Goorialla said, “All right come in now.” The Bil-bil bothers ran into Goorialla's mouth and he swallowed them. Then he began to worry about what the people would say when they found the boys missing. He decided to travel North to Bora-bunaru, the only great natural mountain in the land. Next morning the people found that the boys were gone and saw the tracks of Goorialla and knew that he had swallowed them.

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You may never see these lakes or mountains, but after the rain you will see his spirit in the sky, which is the rainbow. This is the reason why he is called Goorialla the Rainbow Serpent.

Questions

1. What is a myth and why have people told them for thousands of years? (2 marks) ___________________________________________________________________________

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2. Why is the myth of the Rainbow Serpent important to the Aboriginal people? (1 mark)

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3. What is the significance of the final paragraph, and why does it use the second person? (2 marks)

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Activity Seven: Composing an original micro-story (15 marks)

The rainbow represents the amazing synthesis of light and colour. Your challenge is to create an original micro-story that features a rainbow, and directly addresses the reader. You could do this literally or metaphorically. The micro-story must not contain the letter ‘e’ but it needs to contain the following ingredients:

At least three striking adjectives (1 mark) A simile (1 mark) References to colour and light (1 mark) At least one example of alliteration (1 mark) The second person (1 mark)

Criteria Sound Effective Skilful

Engaging imaginative writing that uses the reference to a rainbow cleverly

1-2 3-4 5

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Control of language and structure that describes evocatively the iconic object or place

1-2 3-4 5

TOTAL /10 Micro-story featuring a rainbow ___________________________________________________________________________

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