understanding poetry - the · pdf filemetaphors and similes make poetry more descriptive and...

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Understanding Poetry

Strive & Develop


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Aims: To identify different poetic features and devices and use them imaginatively. It is intended that students are able to read and understand the structure of a range of poems, including narrative, nonsense, haiku. Also, it is important to recognise a range of linguistic features used to create meaning in poetry, including simile, metaphor, alliteration, rhyme, personification, repetition.


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Objective 1 - What is poetry? A poem uses imaginative language to express feelings and ideas. There are many types of poetry, and not all of them rhyme. Narrative poems Some poems tell stories. These poems tend to be quite long and often rhyme. Before writing and books were common, people used narrative poetry to tell stories. The rhymes and the rhythm made the stories easy to remember and pass on to other people. Here is an extract taken from a narrative poem: The Highwayman. The wind was a torrent of darkness upon the gusty trees, The moon was a ghostly galleon tossed upon cloudy seas, The road was a ribbon of moonlight looping the purple moor, And the highwayman came riding-- Riding--riding-- The highwayman came riding, up to the old inn door. Poems that follow a pattern Some types of poetry follow a particular pattern. Haiku, for example, is a form of Japanese poetry where there must be only three lines. The first line must have 5 syllables, the second 7 syllables and the third 5 syllables. Revising English Learning about poetry Not all poems rhyme! Shape or concrete poetry Some poems are written in a shape that shows what the poem is about. Nonsense poetry Some poems use made up words to describe things, or just to make a nice sound. In the froogle Did the Boogle Make a grabjous cheep Shushup right now That squalky row Is keeping me from sleep!


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Lewis Carroll, Edward Lear and Spike Milligan are good authors to read if you like nonsense poetry. Activity 1: Think of your own shape poem. You could do it about an animal, a person, or a favourite place of yours. Activity 2: Using a brainstorm, write your own ideas about what you think would makes a poem interesting. Activity 3: Poets often write about their thoughts and feelings in a poem. It is a good way to express emotion. Research a poem where the poet has written about a sad time in their life. SpellWell- Learn these spellings for next week. Remember to practice these every week. 1. Abandoned 2. Benefit 3. Generally 4. Acquire 5. Pierce 6. Mischievous 7. Successful 8. Independent 9. Pursue 10. Apparent


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Objective 2 – Poetry Features There are some particular types of language you can look out for in poetry. Rhyme This is where words with the same sound are used. “Shushup right now That squalky row Is keeping me from sleep! Now and row rhyme.” Alliteration This is when words start with the same sound. You'll also find this used in advertising and newspaper headlines. “The slippery snake came sliding.” Similes A simile describes something by comparing it to something else using like or as. “The snake moved like a ripple on a pond. It was as slippery as an eel.” Flint An emerald is as green as grass, A ruby red as blood; A sapphire shines as blue as heaven; A flint lies in the mud. A diamond is a brilliant stone, To catch the world's desire; An opal holds a fiery spark; But a flint holds a fire. Christina Rossetti 1830-1894 Metaphors A metaphor is a word or a phrase used to describe something as if it were something else. “A wave of terror washed over him”


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The terror isn't actually a wave, but a wave is a good way of describing the feeling. Metaphors and similes make poetry more descriptive and interesting and are often used in other forms of writing. Peace The wind is now a roaring, smashing monster of destruction, raking all man's work from the valleys, from the vales, and sends them spinning, broken flying - but all of that is not its core, its centre is in truth eternal stillness bright blue skies and all you hear are gentle whispers far away and unimportant.


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Personification Poets often give human feelings and actions to objects or ideas. “The friendly rain fell gently over the fields.” Activity 1: Simile or metaphor? 1. Johnny is as calm as a waveless ocean. 2. Ella is a dazzling firework. 3. Anais works as hard as a busy, buzzing bee. 4. Jack, the tiger, prowls the classroom. 5. Hetty whispers like a gentle breeze. 6. Tom roars with his lion’s voice. 7. Bethany sings like a nightingale. 8. Dominic is a high voltage live-wire. 9. Harriet is a fountain of knowledge. 10. Billy scurries as quietly as a mouse. 11. Just like a snowflake Roan floats along in the breeze. 12. Sophia’s silken hair tumbles down her back. 13. Daniel zooms around the playground like a Ferrari. 14. Callum is a giant on the football pitch. 15. Danaya is a bubbling, ball of excitement. Activity 2: Complete your own simile! As poor as a _______. As strong as an ______, As cute as a ______, As smart as ______. As thin as a ______, As white as a ______, As fit as a ______ As dumb as a ______. As bald as an ______, As neat as a ______, As proud as a ______, As ugly as ______. “Use fresh similes when you speak and you write, so your friends will think you are quite clever and bright.”


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Activity 3: Look at the similes/metaphors in the poems “Peace” and “Flint”. Picking 3 examples from each poem, use POINT, EVIDENCE, EXPLAIN to show what the poet means. SpellWell- Learn these spellings for next week. Remember to practice these every week. 1. Achievement 2. Synchronise 3. Exercise 4. Symmetrical 5. Isosceles 6. Lyric 7. Fascinate 8. Schedule 9. Condemn 10. Technician


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Objective 3 – Personal Places in poetry Activity 1: Give an example of one or more of your own "special places": where and what it means to you. Brainstorm these ideas using these sentences to help you: In this special place, what are you eating? What are you drinking? What are you smelling? What are you hearing? What are you seeing? Are you alone? If not, who is around you? Finally, using ONE word only, we will go around the class and ask for a word that sums up this special place. The Lake Isle of Innisfree – William Butler Yeats I will arise and go now, and go to Innisfree, And a small cabin build there, of clay and wattles made; Nine bean-rows will I have there, a hive for the honey-bee, And live alone in the bee-loud glade. And I shall have some peace there, for peace comes dropping slow, Dropping from the veils of the morning to where the cricket sings; There midnight’s all a glimmer, and noon a purple glow, And evening full of the linnet’s wings. I will arise and go now, for always night and day I hear lake water lapping with low sounds by the shore; While I stand on the roadway, or on the pavements grey, I hear it in the deep heart’s core About the author Noted poet and playwright William Butler Yeats was born in Dublin, Ireland in 1865 and received an education in both Dublin and London. The Lake Isle of Innisfree is a real place near the coast of Ireland. it is not inhabited and is on Lough Gill, a lake in County Sligo. Yeats would go to Sligo as a child on vacations, so it was a good memory for him. It is a quiet place. Activity 2: Answer the following questions about the poem. Remember to use full sentences!


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1. What is suggested about the narrator by their desire to live on an unpopulated island? Might the island symbolise something else (possibly a free ireland? Heaven? The imagination?) 2. The narrator is in an urban setting, imagining Innisfree – would they find the reality of life of isolation in a wattle cabin as perfect as they imagine? Would they get lonely? Isolated? 3. What different meanings does ‘peace’ have? 4. What metaphorical use of the heart is being used here? Activity 3: Answer the following questions: 1. Did you like this poem? Say why/why not giving examples from the poem. 2. What do you think is the theme of the poem? Are there sub-themes in it as well, in your opinion? Write down what you think they may be. 3. Try to write a 6-line poem with the same title. 4. What are the best images in the poem, in your opinion? Give examples from the poem. 5. If you were asked to rewrite one word or line from the poem, which would it be? Write out the word or line. 6. What is the mood of the poem, in your opinion? 7. Write a description of the island and the lake (Lough Gill) using the images the poet has provided. SpellWell- Learn these spellings for next week. Remember to practice these every week. 1. Parliament 2. Government 3. Civilisation 4. Dynasty 5. Foreign 6. Language 7. Deceitful 8. Condemn 9. Scenery 10. Conscientious


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Objective 4 – Personal Places in poetry (continued) Childhood Tracks – James Berry Eating crisp fried fish with plain bread. Eating sheared ice made into ‘snowball’ With syrup in a glass. Eating young jelly-coconut, mixed With village-made wet sugar. Drinking cool water from a calabash gourd On worked land in the hills. Smelling a patch of fermenting pineapples In stillness of hot sunlight. Smelling mixed whiffs of fish, mango, coffee, Mint, hanging in a market. Smelling sweaty padding lifted off a donkey’s back. Hearing a nightingale in song In moonlight and sea-sound. Hearing dawn-crowing of cocks, in answer To others around the village. Hearing the laughter Of barefeet children carrying water. Hearing a distant braying of a donkey In a silent hot afternoon Hearing palmtrees’ leaves rattle On and on at Christmas time. Seeing a woman walking in loose floral frock. Seeing a village workman with bag and machete Under a tree, resting, sweat-washed. Seeing a tangled land-piece of banana trees With goats in shades cud-chewing. Seeing a coil of plaited tobacco Like rope, sold, going in bits. Seeing children toy-making in a yard While slants of evening sunlight slowly disappear. Seeing an evening’s dusky hour lit up By dotted lamplight. Seeing fishing nets repaired between canoes.


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About the author James Berry (b. 1924) spent his childhood in a village in Jamaica, before working in the United States, finally settling in Britain in 1948 where he has remained ever since. One of the first black writers in Britain to achieve wider recognition, Berry rose to prominence in 1981 when he won the National Poetry Competition. This poem reflects his childhood memories in Jamaica Activity 1: Answer the following questions about the poem: 1. In the first stanza, the poet very vividly describes items from his childhood. Doing the same, and following a similar style, write your own stanza about childhood favourites from your own experiences. 2. In the second stanza, the poet focuses on smell. Rewrite the sentences as if they would focus on other senses: including sound, sight, touch and taste. Write a sentence for each. For example, instead of “Smelling a patch of fermenting pineapples”, you could say “hearing the birds chirping in the trees”. 3. Does the poet paint a positive image of his childhood? Making a table, show arguments saying “Yes – he does” and “No – he does not” and WHY you think so. Activity 2: Using an acrostic poem style, write your own poem about your own personal special place. This could be your hometown, a favourite holiday destination, or even your own bedroom. To remind you, acrostic Poetry is formed by writing a word vertically down the page. When you write your poem each line must begin with the letter that is on that particular line. Only put one letter per line, and make all of the first letters capitals. For example, here is an acrostic poem about a tiger. TIGER Trying to survive, In the rainforest. Goes out day and night to hunt Eager to attack its prey. Running in the rainforest to find food. Activity 3: Class discussion: what do you think are the main similarities and differences between Yeats and Berry’s poems?


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SpellWell- Learn these spellings for next week. Remember to practice these every week. 1. Latitude 2. Equator 3. Advertisement 4. Dialogue 5. Scenario 6. Advantageous 7. Applause 8. Exhibition 9. Acrylic 10. Absence


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Objective 6 – Personification in poems The _______– James Reeves I can get through a doorway without any key, And strip the leaves from the great oak tree. I can drive storm-clouds and shake tall towers, Or steal through a garden and not wake the flowers. Seas I can move and ships I can sink; I can carry a house-top or the scent of a pin. When I am angry I can rave and riot; And when I am spent, I lie quiet as quiet. Activity 1: Discussion - What is being personified in the poem? Activity 2: Solve the riddles and guess what the object is. 1. __________________ If I climb up a tree, You can try but you wont find me. I am the fastest in the world you see, You will never catch me. I am strong and skilful, Some say I'm boastful. It's not wrong to be proud, In my big crowd. You couldn't keep me as a pet, Do you know what I am yet? 2. _________________ I am bright and colourful and I'm way up high. You're sure to see me I glow in the sky. I'm always cheery and I will always smile. I'll not go away I always stay for a while. I'm very eye catching you'll always spot me. Well I'm very nice and I glow and glee.


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3. _______________ My life can be measured in hours, I serve by being devoured. Thin, I am quick Fat, I am slow Wind is my foe. What am I? 4.________________ I can sizzle like bacon, I am made with an egg, I have plenty of backbone, but lack a good leg, I peel layers like onions, but still remain whole, I can be long, like a flagpole, yet fit in a hole, What am I? A House Sleeps Activity 3: - List the events which happen in and around a house at night. - Write words and phrases to personify the house. - You can do this by making a table like the following:

Events Personification • Curtains drawn

• Windows closing their eyes

Useful

WordsArmsBlinkCoughDozingFeetGargleGroanHunchedLazyMouthNoseRiseShiveringSingSneezeSnoreStareSwallowteethThroatTonguewave


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Activity 4: Use your notes to write a poem about a house at night. Use personification. SpellWell- Learn these spellings for next week. Remember to practice these every week. 1. Unfortunately 2. Technique 3. Impasto 4. Perspective 5. Disassemble 6. Polyester 7. Onomatopoeia 8. Subordinate 9. Cliché 10. Demagogue


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Objective 6 – Limericks Activity 1: Put this poem in order! Rearrange the lines to form a poem and think about the rhyming pattern. who wanted to be a fairy and now her hands are hairy that didn't go well There once was a girl named Mary So she tried a spell Features of limericks

• Usually written about a person or animal. • Has five lines. • Is humorous.

Limericks consist of five lines. Lines 1, 2, and 5 of Limericks have seven to ten syllables and rhyme with one another. Lines 3 and 4 of Limericks have five to seven syllables and also rhyme with each other Activity 2: Look at the limericks – underline the words that rhyme. What do you notice? There was a young fellow called Mark Who would swim out to sea in the dark. On these night time trips He saw lots of ships Until he was seen by a shark! Our school has a bully called Ray Who copies my homework each day. So last night out of spite I did none of it right. Just my luck ‘cause today he’s away.


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Activity 3: Draft your own limericks – it can be about a person that you know or make them up! SpellWell- Learn these spellings for next week. Remember to practice these every week. 1. Prioritise 2. Miscellaneous 3. Questionnaire 4. Sincerely 5. Continuous 6. Parallel 7. Column 8. Coarse 9. Figurative 10. Resolution


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Objective 7 – Haikus A haiku is a form of Japanese poetry that has only three short lines.It has a fixed form. Usually the first line has five syllables, the second has seven and the third has five again: Tea leaf in my cup: (5) Did you read your own future, (7) growing in China?’ (5) There are usually two ideas or images that connect. The poems are normally about nature as a haiku should present a very clear image. The poem tries to capture a ‘word picture’, a snapshot of a moment of beauty. Activity 1: Look at these Haiku poems. Write a few sentences describing the imagery they create. As the wind does blow Across the trees, I see the Buds blooming in May Falling to the ground, I watch a leaf settle down In a bed of brown. I walk across sand And find myself blistering In the hot, hot heat It’s cold—and I wait For someone to shelter me And take me from here.


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Activity 2: With the person next to you, try and make this into a haiku wear mountain fragrant do summer snow the why you warm air a is and Activity 3: Using either the themes of water, fire, wind and earth, draft your own Haiku poem. Remember the structure! SpellWell- Learn these spellings for next week. Remember to practice these every week. 1. Amplification 2. Benevolent 3. Contemporary 4. Righteous 5. Headquarters 6. Obligatory 7. Inspector 8. Parachute 9. Manslaughter 10. Sustenance


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Objective 8 – Nonsense Poems Jabberwocky – Lewis Carroll ’Twas brillig and the slithy toves (What kind of location do you think it is describing?) Did gyre and gimble in the wabe: All mimsy were the borogoves, And the mome raths outgrabe. ‘Beware the Jabberwock, my son! (What kind of character do you imagine speaking here?) The jaws that bite, the claws that catch! (Who are they speaking to?) Beware the Jubjub bird, and shun The frumious Bandersnatch!’ He took his vorpal sword in hand: Long time the manxome foe he sought – So rested he by the Tumtum tree, And stood awhile in thought. And, as in uffish thought he stood, The Jabberwock, with eyes of flame, Came whiffling through the tulgey wood, And burbled as it came! One, two! One, two! And through and through The vorpal blade went snicker-snack! He left it dead, and with its head He went galumphing back. ‘And hast thou slain the Jabberwock? Come to my arms my beamish boy! O frabjous day! Callooh! Callay!’ He chortled in his joy. ’Twas brillig and the slithy toves Did gyre and gimble in the wabe: All mimsy were the borogoves, And the mome raths outgrabe.


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Activity 1: Fill in the glossary with your own definitions for the ‘nonsense words’ Sort out the words into ‘nouns’, ‘verbs’ and ‘adjectives’. Nouns Verbs Adjectives

Activity 2: Portmanteau words A portmanteau word is a word that has been made from parts of two other words. Here are some portmanteau words Advertorial – an advert and an editorial Brash – bold and rash (or brave and rash) Bumble – bungle and stumble Docudrama – documentary and drama Edutainment – Education and entertainment Emoticon – emotion and icon Ginormous – gigantic and enormous. Can you work out which words have been used to make these portmanteau words, and say what they mean? Guesstimate Infomercial Netiquette Motel Skyjack Now try to make up some portmanteau words of your own. word + word = portmanteau word


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SpellWell- Learn these spellings for next week. Remember to practice these every week. 1. Obligatory 2. Territorial 3. Conductor 4. Directory 5. Deranged 6. Tangent 7. Department 8. Apparatus 9. Slothful 10. Distraught


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Mock exam 1. Write your own narrative poem about a place you recently visited. 2. Give two examples of - Simile - Metaphors - Personification 3. What is a haiku? 4. What is a nonsense poem? 5. What is a shape poem?


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understanding poetry - the · pdf filemetaphors and similes make poetry more descriptive and...

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