Category Archives: NCEA

The Kite Runner-Discussion Question #6

6. As Amir remembers an Afghan celebration in which a sheep must be sacrificed, he talks about seeing the sheep’s eyes moments before its death. “I don’t know why I watch this yearly ritual in our backyard; my nightmares persist long after the bloodstains on the grass have faded. But I always watch, I watch because of that look of acceptance in the animal’s eyes. Absurdly, I imagine the animal understands. I imagine the animal sees that its imminent demise is for a higher purpose.” Why do you think Amir recalls this memory when he witnesses Hassan’s tragedy in the alleyway? Amir recollects the memory again toward the end of the novel when he sees Sohrab in the home of the Taliban. Discuss the image in the context of the novel.

The Kite Runner-Discussion Question #5

5. After Amir wins the kite running tournament, his relationship with Baba undergoes significant change. However, while they form a bond of friendship, Amir is still unhappy. What causes this unhappiness and how has Baba contributed to Amir’s state of mind? Eventually, the relationship between the two returns to the way it was before the tournament, and Amir laments “we actually deceived ourselves into thinking that a toy made of tissue paper, glue, and bamboo could somehow close the chasm between us.” Discuss the significance of this passage.

The Kite Runner-Discussion Question #4

4. We begin to understand early in the novel that Amir is constantly vying for Baba’s attention and often feels like an outsider in his father’s life, as seen in the following passage: “He’d close the door, leave me to wonder why it was always grown-ups time with him. I’d sit by the door, knees drawn to my chest. Sometimes I sat there for an hour, sometimes two, listening to their laughter, their chatter.” Discuss Amir’s relationship with Baba.

The Kite Runner-Discussion Question #3

3. Early in Amir and Hassan’s friendship, they often visit a pomegranate tree where they spend hours reading and playing. “One summer day, I used one of Ali’s kitchen knives to carve our names on it: ‘Amir and Hassan, the sultans of Kabul.’ Those words made it formal: the tree was ours.” In a letter to Amir later in the story, Hassan mentions “the tree hasn’t borne fruit in years.” Discuss the significance of this tree.

The Kite Runner-Discussion Question #1

1. The novel begins with Amir’s memory of peering down an alley, looking for Hassan who is kite running for him. As Amir peers into the alley, he witnesses a tragedy. The novel ends with Amir kite running for Hassan’s son, Sohrab, as he begins a new life with Amir in America. Why do you think the author chooses to frame the novel with these scenes? Refer to the following passage: “Afghans like to say: Life goes on, unmindful of beginning, end…crisis or catharsis, moving forward like a slow, dusty caravan of kochis [nomads].” How is this significant to the framing of the novel?

Literature Essay Tips

If you are in Year 11 you will have to write three literature essays at the end of the year. In this post I will give you a few tips on how to write a good essay.

When writing a literature essay you should:

  • select topics carefully to ensure so that you can deal with the demands of the topic before beginning
  • •take note of the key words in bold to guide your answers
  • •keep to the topic
  • •avoid trying to use rote-learned essays from previous years’ papers
  • •use the planning space provided and structure your ideas
  • •support your ideas with appropriate evidence / examples from the text
  • •provide sufficient evidence to enable you to achieve the standard, using the suggested minimum word length as a guide
  • •understand the requirements of the standard eg in the short texts essay you must answer on at least two texts, and your answers need to show sufficient balance across both texts
  • answer both parts of the topic and refrain from presenting only a plot summary
  • •proof-read your answers, particularly for extended texts. Often a student’s punctuation lets them down.
  • Students also often include detailed examples as “add ons” using only commas, resulting in rambling “run on” sentences. There is also a tendency for students to use conjunctions to amplify ideas, which results in long, grammatically incorrect sentences.

Making a Persuasive Speech

Vodpod videos no longer available.

The slideshow gives you some tips on how to deliver a persuausive speech. All Year 12 students will deliver an oral presentation this year and the first task will be to deliver a persuausive speech.

I have an expanded version of this slideshow that includes video that I will add to the Year 12 wikis.