1. Why doesn’t Callum tell his Dad the truth about what happened at school? 2. What does the stage direction [Aside] mean? Why is this used? 3. What kind of person do you imagine Mrs Hadley to be? 4. Why do you think the director chose not to put a television screen on the stage?
5. If you were directing this scene, what props would you include? Explain your choice.
Investigate
1. Segregation has been a part of life for people all over the world for many years. In South Africa, for example, a policy called Apartheid existed from 1948 to 1991 (think back to the extract from Nelson Mandela’s autobiography Long Walk to Freedom on page 20).
(a) Find out as much as you can about this system and how it affected the people of South Africa.
(b) Compare what school was like for children during that time in South Africa to your experience of school today.
Create
1. In pairs, write a paragraph stating how you would stage this scene if it were a fi lm.
2. ‘Jude and Ryan look at each other.’
Callum’s father and brother seem to share similar political views. Work in pairs to write a dialogue that might take place between them about their views. When you have fi nished, act out your dialogue.
3. Write a letter to the president of Ireland, describing a form of discrimination that you feel exists today. Explain how you think this problem could be solved. (For information on formal letters see pages 35–36.)
