Want to create interactive content? It’s easy in Genially!

Get started free

RSRT Y5 L2 Windrush Child

Literacy Counts

Created on May 1, 2026

Start designing with a free template

Discover more than 1500 professional designs like these:

Search Bar Card

Piñata

Microlearning: When to Use Chat, Meetings or Email

Magazine dossier

Microlearning: Graphic Design

Microlearning: Enhance Your Wellness and Reduce Stress

Microlearning: Teaching Innovation with AI

Transcript

Ready Steady Read Together

Windrush Child: Non-fiction Lesson 2

What do you think you know?

What?
Who?
Why?
Where?
How?
When?

Book Talk: Let's explore this illustration.

Explore

What do you know and think?

“All dat for tea and cakes?”

How might this extract link to the illustration?

Explore

From: Windrush Child by Benjamin Zephaniah © 2020. Licensed under CLA. Do not copy or share.

Today's Question(s)

A) How were the indigenous people of Jamaica treated by Europeans?

B) How were Africans treated by Europeans?

Explore

Let me read today's text

Follow as I read

Explore

“So, young Leonard. Tell me, who discovered Jamaica?” “Christopher Columbus,” I said enthusiastically. But as I looked at my grandma, she raised an eyebrow, so I knew something was wrong. Brother Book smiled and stroked his long beard as he spoke to me with his deep voice. “So what about de Taíno an’ de Arawak people? Christopher Columbus only came here in 1494. People have lived on this island for thousands of years before dat. So how comes you don’t think one of them discovered it?” “That’s what it sey at school in all of de books.” “Yes. But who wrote the books?” he said. “Europeans wrote history from their point of view. We must remember that when Christopher Columbus landed his ship here, flying a Spanish flag with a Spanish crew, everything changed. The Taíno, the Arawak, and all the other people who were here were killed by the Spanish. Those that weren’t killed by them died from the diseases they brought with them.” Then Grandma joined in. “Then de Spanish began to bring Africans here by force, and mek dem work as slaves. Many slaves would run away an’ live in de mountains an’ some of dem would try to fight de Spanish. Dem fight very hard you know, but they were outnumbered.”

From: Windrush Child by Benjamin Zephaniah © 2020. Licensed under CLA. Do not copy or share.

Brother Book interrupted gently. “Other European countries were trying to tek control of land in Africa an’ de Americas to expand their slave trade, but de Spanish held on to Jamaica.” A question came to me. “So why don’t we speak Spanish?” “Because,” replied Brother Book with eyes wide open, “in 1665, de English fought de Spanish for Jamaica an’ won. More an’ more Africans were then brought to de island to work in de sugar plantations. De English were getting tea from India, an’ so they needed sugar for their tea an’ cakes.” I was surprised. “All dat for tea and cakes?” I asked. “Yes,” said Grandma. “Later they started to deal in cotton an’ all kind of minerals, but it started because Europeans had sweet teeth. Now you know Manchester in England? Well not far from Manchester there’s a port called Liverpool. Ships sailed from there an’ other ports like Bristol an’ London, an’ they travelled to Africa. In Africa they captured people, and sometimes they got corrupt Africans to capture people for them an’ they took those captured Africans to Jamaica or other Caribbean islands to work as slaves.” “We are descended from those Africans,” said Brother Book.

From: Windrush Child by Benjamin Zephaniah © 2020. Licensed under CLA. Do not copy or share.

Vocabulary

Explore

Hover for definitions!

Taíno an’ de Arawak people

slave trade

outnumbered

sugar plantations

corrupt

descended

Explore

From: Windrush Child by Benjamin Zephaniah © 2020. Licensed under CLA. Do not copy or share.

I will model the first.

Find the word or phrase Read the sentence Talk about it to a partner

Taíno an’ de Arawak people

Explore

Find Read Talk

Brother Book smiled and stroked his long beard as he spoke to me with his deep voice. “So what about de Taíno an’ de Arawak people? Christopher Columbus only came here in 1494. People have lived on this island for thousands of years before dat. So how comes you don’t think one of them discovered it?”

Reveal Vocabulary

From: Windrush Child by Benjamin Zephaniah © 2020. Licensed under CLA. Do not copy or share.

Your turn

Taíno an’ de Arawak people

outnumbered

Find the word or phrase Read the sentence Talk about it to a partner

slave trade

sugar plantations

corrupt

descended

Use your text

Explore

Vocabulary Check & Re-read

Explore

Reveal Vocabulary

Teacher Note: Re-read if time allows.

“So, young Leonard. Tell me, who discovered Jamaica?” “Christopher Columbus,” I said enthusiastically. But as I looked at my grandma, she raised an eyebrow, so I knew something was wrong. Brother Book smiled and stroked his long beard as he spoke to me with his deep voice. “So what about de Taíno an’ de Arawak people? Christopher Columbus only came here in 1494. People have lived on this island for thousands of years before dat. So how comes you don’t think one of them discovered it?” “That’s what it sey at school in all of de books.” “Yes. But who wrote the books?” he said. “Europeans wrote history from their point of view. We must remember that when Christopher Columbus landed his ship here, flying a Spanish flag with a Spanish crew, everything changed. The Taíno, the Arawak, and all the other people who were here were killed by the Spanish. Those that weren’t killed by them died from the diseases they brought with them.” Then Grandma joined in. “Then de Spanish began to bring Africans here by force, and mek dem work as slaves. Many slaves would run away an’ live in de mountains an’ some of dem would try to fight de Spanish. Dem fight very hard you know, but they were outnumbered.”

From: Windrush Child by Benjamin Zephaniah © 2020. Licensed under CLA. Do not copy or share.

Reveal Vocabulary

Teacher Note: Re-read if time allows.

Brother Book interrupted gently. “Other European countries were trying to tek control of land in Africa an’ de Americas to expand their slave trade, but de Spanish held on to Jamaica.” A question came to me. “So why don’t we speak Spanish?” “Because,” replied Brother Book with eyes wide open, “in 1665, de English fought de Spanish for Jamaica an’ won. More an’ more Africans were then brought to de island to work in de sugar plantations. De English were getting tea from India, an’ so they needed sugar for their tea an’ cakes.” I was surprised. “All dat for tea and cakes?” I asked. “Yes,” said Grandma. “Later they started to deal in cotton an’ all kind of minerals, but it started because Europeans had sweet teeth. Now you know Manchester in England? Well not far from Manchester there’s a port called Liverpool. Ships sailed from there an’ other ports like Bristol an’ London, an’ they travelled to Africa. In Africa they captured people, and sometimes they got corrupt Africans to capture people for them an’ they took those captured Africans to Jamaica or other Caribbean islands to work as slaves.” “We are descended from those Africans,” said Brother Book.

From: Windrush Child by Benjamin Zephaniah © 2020. Licensed under CLA. Do not copy or share.

Fluency

Explore

Let me use my reader's voice...

“So what about de Taíno an’ de Arawak people? Christopher Columbus only came here in 1494. People have lived on this island for thousands of years before dat. So how comes you don’t think one of them discovered it?” “That’s what it sey at school in all of de books.” “Yes. But who wrote the books?” he said. “Europeans wrote history from their point of view.”

What did you notice?

Volume

Pace

Smoothness

Phrasing

Expression

Explore

From: Windrush Child by Benjamin Zephaniah © 2020. Licensed under CLA. Do not copy or share.

My Turn
Your Turn

Echo Read

“So what about de Taíno an’ de Arawak people?”

“Christopher Columbus only came here in 1494.”

“People have lived on this island for thousands of years before dat.”

“So how comes you don’t think one of them discovered it?”

“That’s what it sey at school in all of de books.”

“Yes. But who wrote the books?” he said.

“Europeans wrote history from their point of view.”

Explore

From: Windrush Child by Benjamin Zephaniah © 2020. Licensed under CLA. Do not copy or share.

Sound like a reader!
Stand up!

Choral Read

“So what about de Taíno an’ de Arawak people? Christopher Columbus only came here in 1494. People have lived on this island for thousands of years before dat. So how comes you don’t think one of them discovered it?” “That’s what it sey at school in all of de books.” “Yes. But who wrote the books?” he said. “Europeans wrote history from their point of view.”

Explore

From: Windrush Child by Benjamin Zephaniah © 2020. Licensed under CLA. Do not copy or share.

Strategy Focus

Explore

Strategy: Read Between the Lines

A) How were the indigenous people of Jamaica treated by Europeans?

Be a detective and look for clues!

Teach

Let me show you

Reveal Text Marks

“So what about de Taíno an’ de Arawak people? Christopher Columbus only came here in 1494. People have lived on this island for thousands of years before dat. So how comes you don’t think one of them discovered it?”

Reveal Explainer

This suggests that the indigenous people of Jamaica were ignored and denied recognition by Europeans as the original inhabitants of the island. The Taíno and Arawak people had already lived on the island for thousands of years before Christopher Columbus arrived. It is impossible to ‘discover’ a land that is already inhabited. Europeans still claimed that he had ‘discovered’ Jamaica. This shows how European perspectives overlooked the existence, history and rights to the land of the Taíno and Arawak people.

A) How were the indigenous people of Jamaica treated by Europeans?

Teach

From: Windrush Child by Benjamin Zephaniah © 2020. Licensed under CLA. Do not copy or share.

Strategy Stop

What else could you use to answer today's question(s)?

Teach

Your Turn

A) How were the indigenous people of Jamaica treated by Europeans?

B) How were Africans treated by Europeans?

Pairedreading first
Find the answers
Text mark

Explore

Acceptable Answers

Text Mark Evidence Europeans wrote history from their point of view

rewrote Jamaican history from a biased perspective

A) How were the indigenous people of Jamaica treated by Europeans?

Text Mark Evidence when Christopher Columbus landed his ship here, flying a Spanish flag with a Spanish crew, everything changed

took control of their land

Text Mark Evidence the Taíno, the Arawak, and all the other people who were here were killed by the Spanish

treated with violence

Click on the evidence to reveal acceptable answers

Text Mark Evidence died from the diseases they (Europeans) brought with them

devastated by disease brought by Europeans

Practise & Apply

Acceptable Answers

Text Mark Evidence de Spanish began to bring Africans here by force

transported against their will

Text Mark Evidence - (Spanish) mek dem (Africans) work as slaves - they took those captured Africans to Jamaica or other Caribbean islands to work as slaves - more an’ more Africans were then brought to de island to work in de sugar plantations

enslaved and forced to work on plantations

B) How were Africans treated by Europeans?

Go to the next slide for more...

Text Mark Evidence many slaves would run away an’ live in de mountains

forced into hiding to escape slavery

Click on the evidence to reveal acceptable answers

Text Mark Evidence some of dem (slaves) would try to fight de Spanish…dem fight very hard you know, but they were outnumbered

overpowered when they fought for freedom

Practise & Apply

Acceptable Answers

Text Mark Evidence European countries were trying to tek control of land in Africa an’ de Americas to expand their slave trade

treated as property within the slave trade

B) How were Africans treated by Europeans?

Text Mark Evidence - de English…needed sugar for their tea an’ cakes - later they started to deal in cotton an’ all kinds of minerals

exploited for European profit and trade

Text Mark Evidence in Africa they captured people

captured / kidnapped from their homes

Click on the evidence to reveal acceptable answers

Text Mark Evidence sometimes got corrupt Africans to capture people for them

some Africans were pressured or persuaded to betray their own people

Practise & Apply

Quiz Time

Start

Picture Me

Which image is the best match for ‘outnumbered’?

Find Me

In what year did England take control of Jamaica?

A question came to me. “So why don’t we speak Spanish?” “Because,” replied Brother Book with eyes wide open, “in 1665, de English fought de Spanish for Jamaica an’ won. More an’ more Africans were then brought to de island to work in de sugar plantations. De English were getting tea from India, an’ so they needed sugar for their tea an’ cakes.” I was surprised. “All dat for tea and cakes?” I asked.

Discuss then check

1665

Sequence Me

Put the events in Jamaica’s history in the correct order:

A) Africans were brought to Jamaica to work on the sugar plantations.

B) The English took control of Jamaica and expanded the sugar trade.

C) Christopher Columbus landed flying a Spanish flag.

D) The Taíno and the Arawak people inhabited Jamaica.

Click if correct
Check

Tick Me

Which themes are present in the extract?

Tick all that apply:

A) friendship and loyalty

B) humans vs nature

Check

C) identity and heritage

Click if correct

D) power and control

Feedback: Who did what well?

FindRead Talk

EchoRead

ChoralRead

ReadingStrategy

Answers & Text Marks

Other...

To be a book lover, you could...

discover new authors.

Reveal

Try books from writers you've never heard of to expand your horizons.

Copyright Notice

This document has been supplied under a CLA Licence with specific terms of use. It is protected by copyright and, save as may be permitted by law, it may not be further copied, stored, re-copied electronically or otherwise shared, even for internal purposes, without the prior further permission of the Rightsholder. Extracts sourced from: Windrush Child by Benjamin Zephaniah © 2020 Schools must purchase the original text for full content.