Ways to start
These strategies will help you get started and then develop your Mantle of the Expert context
Strategy 1: Sharing a complete story – picture book; storybook; video; audio; TV etc.
Strategy 2: Sharing a partial narrative selected or created in advance – a letter; or part of a letter; a photograph; a clip from a video/film/TV programme; part of a story; same as told by a narrator; a piece of audio, music; an overheard conversation; a report of a conversation; a map; a drawing; an artefact etc.
Strategy 3: Interacting with an adult representing a point-of-view in the fictional world (Adult in Role – AIR) – someone in a story who can be watched and then interacted with, in order to: answer questions, give advice, provide help and support, learn more from. For example, a person in a story, or from history, or someone invented by the teacher or class. This strategy is useful when the students need to know more or want answers to their questions.
Strategy 4: Interacting with the teacher representing a point-of-view (Teacher in Role: TIR) – The same as Strategy 3 except the teacher now represents the role and moves in and out of the imaginary world to facilitate the students’ inquiry supporting them and helping them to see the role as a resource for their investigations.
Strategy 5: Creating an image or other resource with the students – This strategy is similar to Strategy 2 except the resource is created with the students rather than in advance. It involves careful negotiation and clear planned outcomes. Examples include: making a map together; creating a plan of a house or a tomb; drawing the front door of a castle; making a set of keys or a warning sign.
Strategy 6: Students create images and resources – This strategy is close to Strategy 5 except the students work in small groups or alone to make the resources, rather than together as a whole class.
Strategy 7: Interacting with the students representing one (or more) points-of-view (Students in Role SIR) – During this strategy the students (with the adults) represent one or more points-of-view. For example, they might be looking around a ruined castle either as people with the job of restoring it or as people responsible for making it safe.
Note: The strategies can be used alone or in any combination