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English PoetryThrough the ages

Year 8 – Summer term 2

Year 8 Weekly Working Guide

Week Beginning

Task 1 Task 2 Task 3 Task 4

Monday the 1st of June

Complete Page 3 of the poetry booklet.

Complete Page 4 and 5 of the poetry booklet.

Complete the question “How does Pharell show his emotions to the reader” using 3 PEE paragraphs.

Complete the creative writing task on page 7 of the booklet.

Monday the 8th of June

Read the text entitled “A Summary of Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night” on page 8 of the booklet and complete the vocabulary, understanding and exploration tasks

Read the Poem “Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night” on page 9 and complete the vocabulary, understanding and exploration tasks on page 10

Complete the question “What techniques does Dylan Thomas use to convey his message in the poem?” using 3 PEE paragraphs

Complete the creative writing task on page 11 of the booklet.


Read the text entitled “Doing the hajj more than once isn’t obligatory, but here’s why I keep going back anyway” on page 12 and 13 and complete the vocabulary, understanding and exploration tasks.

Read the Poem “Geography Teacher” on page 14 and complete the vocabulary, understanding and exploration tasks on page 15.

Complete the question “How does the writer use language to make travel seem appealing?” using 3 PEE paragraphs

Complete the creativity challenge on page 16 of the booklet.

Monday the 22nd of June

Complete the activities on page 17 of the booklet.

Read the Speech from Richard II on page 18 and ‘translate it’ using page 19. Then, Complete the vocabulary, understanding and exploration questions on page 20.

Read the introduction and poem on page 21. Then complete the activities on page 22.

Watch the video and complete the creativity challenge on page 23 of the booklet.


Read the text about cities on page 24

Read the poem on page 25 and complete the ‘translation’ activity on page 26 and the activities on page 27

Read the poem on page 28 and complete the activities on pages 29 - 30

Complete the creative challenge on page 31

Monday the 6th of July

Read the text entitled “Sour mood getting you down? Get back to nature” on page 32 and complete the vocabulary, understanding and exploration tasks.

Read the Poem “Daffodils” on page 33 and complete the activities on page 34.

Read the poem on page 35 and complete the activities on page 36

Think about a time when something small cheered you up. Write a poem in the style of Wordsworth or Littlefair to discuss this experience.

Monday the 13th of July

Compete the comparison activities on page 37

Complete the planning worksheet on page 38

Complete the writing preparation activities on page 39

Complete the essay writing task on page 40

Summer Holidays

Please use your Knowledge Organizers to revise the following topics: War non-fiction War Fiction Of Mice and Men Poetry Through the Ages

In addition, aim to read at least one novel of your choice and write a 150 word review of it.September You will begin by studying the genre Dystopia. You might like to research this genre and read ‘The Hunger

Games’ by Suzanne Collins over the holidays to prepare.

Section 1: How to Read A Poem

See – you’re already a poetry critic!

So… what is poetry, anyway?

A poem is defined by the Dictionary as: a literary work in which the expression of feelings and ideas is given intensity by using a distinctive style and rhythm;

A good way to analyse poetry is through the use of the ‘SMILE’ method.

S Structure: How is the poem built? How many verses are there? Does the poem have a rhyme or a rhythm?

M Meaning: What is the poem about? Think about what the poet is trying to tell us? What is the message of the poem?

I Imagery: What pictures does the poem create in your head? Think about similes, metaphors and personification.

L Language: Look at the use of particular words and discuss why you think they have been chosen by the poet.

E Effect: This is the opportunity for you to discuss your opinion of the poem. How does the poem make you feel? What do you think the poet wants the reader to feel?

Let’s practice the SMILE method using these lyrics by Pharell:

Activity 1

What is your favourite song lyric? (Clean lyrics only)

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Why do you like this song lyric?

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Activity 2

Look up the underlined words and write your own definition of poetry below:

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It might seem crazy what I'm 'bout to say <- ASunshine she's here, you can take a break <- BI'm a hot air balloon that could go to space <- CWith the air, like I don't care baby by the way <- A

Huh, because I'm happy <-Clap along if you feel like a room without a roof <-Because I'm happy <-Clap along if you feel like happiness is the truth <-Because I'm happy <-

Activity 3

Structure

1. Give each of the lines a letter. When they rhyme, give them the same letter. The first verse is done for you.

2. What is the effect of the rhyme choices here?a) It makes the song catchy and memorableb) It draws your attention to particular wordsc) It can make a bigger point about the lines (e.g. a disruption in the rhyme can mean

the poet is taking about disruption in real life)d) All of the above

Meaning

1. What is the poem about? 2. What is the message of the poem?

Imagery

1. The line “Sunshine she’s here” is PERSONIFICATION. What picture does this create for us in our head? ____________________________________________________________

2. How does this line link to the bigger ideas in the piece? _______________________________________________________________________

3. Find your favourite simile or metaphor in the piece and write it here: _____________________________________________________________________

4. What picture does this simile/metaphor create for us in our head? ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

5. How does this link to the bigger ideas in the piece? ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Language

1. What word is repeated the most in the poem? Why? ___________________________________________________________________

2. What other words can you find that link to the repeated word? ______________________________________________________________________

Effect

1. This is the opportunity for you to discuss your opinion of the poem. How does the poem make you feel? What do you think the poet wants the reader to feel?

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Here are some key poetry tools:

You are now going to write your own poem about an emotion of your choice. You will use Pharell’s lyrics as a guide.

It might seem crazy what I'm 'bout to say 1. Introduce what you’re about to saySunshine she's here, you can take a break 2. Use personification to describe your emotionI'm a hot air balloon that could go to space 3. Use a metaphor to describe your emotionWith the air, like I don't care baby by the way 4. Make a clear statement about how you feel

Huh, because I'm happy 5. Choose a phrase to repeatClap along if you feel like a room without a roof 6. Use a simile to describe how you feelBecause I'm happy 7. Repeat your phraseClap along if you feel like happiness is the truth 8. Use another simile to describe the emotionBecause I'm happy 9. Repeat your phrase

Example:

You may tease me for how I feel

The fog’s set in and the water’s full of eels

I’m lost in a field and I know it’s real

There isn’t even a map I can steal

Huh, because I’m confused

I’m a sat nav that’s lost its signal

Because I’m confused

Can’t see nothing but smoke in my ball of crystal

Because I’m confused

Activity 4: Write your own poem about an emotion of your choice, using the rules written above.

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Section 2: Mortality (Life and death)

Thinking Question: How should we approach death?

Dylan Thomas – Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night (1947)

A Summary of Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good NightThe poem “Do not go gentle into that good night” by Dylan Thomas is a rebellion against death. Throughout six stanzas (groups of lines), the poet describes how people are never prepared to die, even if they are old, good or wild, experienced or not.

Dylan Thomas finished Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night, a villanelle, in 1951, and sent it off to an editor friend of a magazine, together with a note which read:

“The only person I can’t show the little enclosed poem to is, of course, my father, who doesn’t know he’s dying”.

He also remarked to his friend, American Robert J. Gibson, that the spark for the poem was his father's approaching blindness. Thomas's father was to pass away a year later and the poet himself succumbed to illness and died in 1953.

When Dylan Thomas was a child his father would read Shakespeare and nursery rhymes to him and the dreamy, sensitive Welsh boy absorbed the sounds and music of the texts at an early age.

Their relationship was complex but loving. Dylan Thomas respected his father, a senior master of English, but was no academic at school, and left without furthering his education at university. The young Dylan wanted to publish his poems and go one better than his father, himself a frustrated, never published poet.

So Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night is a poem that meant a lot to Dylan Thomas, who wanted to see his father face death in a blaze of defiance.

Dylan Thomas wrote many crafted, musical poems during his turbulent and boozy life as a romantic poet. His love of sound and his subject matter - religion, death, sin, redemption, love, the nature of the universe, the processes of time - helped create uniquely memorable poetry.

Vocabulary:

Enclosed –

Succumbed –

Complex –

Defiance –

Turbulent –

Redemption -

Understanding:

1. What have you learned about Dylan Thomas from this section? Write down at least three things.

2. Who did he write the poem about?3. Why did Dylan Thomas and his father have a

slightly difficult relationship? (5th Paragraph)

Exploring:

1. Why do you think Dylan Thomas chose to write a poem about his father getting older?

2. What about Dylan Thomas makes him interest or stand out to you?

The Poem:

1 Do not go gentle into that good night,

2 Old age should burn and rave at close of day;

3 Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

4 Though wise men at their end know dark is right,

5 Because their words had forked no lightning they

6 Do not go gentle into that good night.

7 Good men, the last wave by, crying how bright

8 Their frail deeds might have danced in a green bay,


10 Wild men who caught and sang the sun in flight,

11 And learn, too late, they grieved it on its way,


13 Grave men, near death, who see with blinding sight

14 Blind eyes could blaze like meteors and be gay,


16 And you, my father, there on the sad height,

17 Curse, bless, me now with your fierce tears, I pray.



First Ideas – Read the poem once. What might the main ideas be? Note down some of the things you think about.

Structure

Why does the writer repeat certain lines?

Why does the writer repeat the word men? (‘Wild men’, ‘Grave men’)

What do you notice about the number of lines in each stanza?

What is the rhyme scheme of this poem? (How are the rhymes arranged?

Themes and Ideas

What are the key themes/ideas of this poem?

What is the message that the reader will take away from this poem?

SummaryWho is the persona in the poem? (Who is speaking? Describe them a little)

What do the phrases ‘good night’ and ‘dying of the light’ mean?

What does the poet urge people to do at the end of each stanza?

Who does the poet talk about at the end of the poem? What is happening to them?

Keywords:

Rave – Curse -

Wild – Rage -

Grave - Grieved -

Creative Task: Using Repetition

You are going to write a poem in the style of Dylan Thomas.

1. Think of a key message that you will REPEAT throughout your poem e.g. “Do not go gentle into that good night”. In your message, include an IMPERATIVE (a command) eg. “Don’t look back in anger”.

2. Write this message for line 4 of each of the stanzas below3. Write the rest of your poem. It doesn’t have to rhyme, but your lines should explain why

your message is important

e.g.

“When you feel trapped in a snowglobe,

world whirling like snow yet you’re perfectly still,

Gasping for breath in this glass cased misery,

Remember that things won’t always be this way”

Brian Patten – Geography Lesson (2000)

Thinking Question: Why is it important that we travel?

1.

2.

3.

4.

1.

2.

3.

4.

1.

2.

3.

4.

1.

2.

3.

4.

Doing the hajj more than once isn’t obligatory, but here’s why I keep going back anyway

I have been lucky enough to have gone on hajj (An Islamic pilgrimage to

Mecca, Saudi Arabia, the holiest city for Muslims.) three times, most recently in 2018. This hajj was something my wife and I had planned since 2006, but for some reason or another it had taken 12 years for the two of us to go together.

It is an overwhelming experience, filled with lots of apprehension and a great sense of personal fulfilment.

For a start, when you set on the hajj journey, you are going there with the intention of starting afresh spiritually, knowing that you are one of the lucky ones that have been selected by Allah to visit his house. It is a true blessing for any Muslim to be given such an opportunity.

Praying in the main mosque in Mecca for the first time is probably the most awe-inspiring thing that I have ever done. Just the sight of the holy Kaaba makes you tremble – as technically speaking you are standing right in front of the place that you face during your daily prayers. It is a difficult feeling to describe, and certainly very emotional.

The Hajj is not compulsory for those who are unable to afford the journey, or those that are not physically able to do so either. For those who can afford it and are physically able to travel, it is obligatory to go on hajj at least once in your lifetime, as the prophet Muhammad did when he took the pilgrimage.

For me, given the amount of travelling, walking, praying and the sheer number of people present, the hajj is not something one can truly understand while in the midst of undertaking the journey. Often, the biggest lessons become clear to you once you have returned home.

Hajj for me is all about solidarity with other Muslims and recognising that in the hereafter, it is not your worldly possessions that will matter, but how you remembered Allah through good and bad times and what you did for others without any reward that really counts.

https://www.independent.co.uk/topic/hajj

Only once the hajj is over can you sit down and comprehend how lucky you have been to have been blessed, yet again, to be invited by Allah to his house and given the opportunity to seek forgiveness for your sins. And that is why I feel driven to keep returning.

Brian Patten – Geography Teacher (2000)

1 Our teacher told us one day he would leave

2 And sail across a warm blue sea First Ideas – Read the poem once. What might the main ideas be? Note down some of the things you think about.

Vocabulary:

Pilgrimage –

Apprehension –

Fulfilment –

Kaaba –

Compulsory –

Obligatory –

Solidarity –

Comprehend –

Understanding:

1. List two reasons why the writer enjoys the pilgrimage to Mecca (hajj)2. What was the best experience for the writer and why?3. Why might the writer have waited 12 years after getting married to visit Hajj with his

wife?

Exploration:

1. Why is the journey of hajj important for many muslims?2. Why is travel important, even if you are not religious?3. Why might it be important to travel to new places when you are able to?

3 To places he had only known from maps,

4 And all his life had longed to be.

5 The house he lived in was narrow and grey

6 But in his mind's eye he could see

7 Sweet-scented jasmine clinging to the walls,

8 And green leaves burning on an orange tree.

9 He spoke of the lands he longed to visit,

10 Where it was never drab or cold.

11 I couldn't understand why he never left,

12 And shook off the school's stranglehold.

13 Then halfway through his final term

14 He took ill and never returned.

15 And he never got to that place on the map

16 Where the green leaves of the orange trees burned.

17 The maps were redrawn on the classroom wall;

18 His name was forgotten, it faded away.

19 But a lesson he never knew he taught

20 Is with me to this day.

21 I travel to where the green leaves burn,

22 To where the ocean's glass-clear and blue,

23 To all those places my teacher taught me to love

24 But which he never knew


Keywords:

Redrawn – Drab -

Stranglehold – Longed -

Clinging - Narrow -

Structure

What is the rhyme scheme?

The last line is the shortest line. Why do you think this is?

Why might the writer have chosen NOT to break the poem up into verses?

Themes and Ideas

What are the key themes of this poem?



What things did the teacher want to experience?

What happens to the teacher?

What does the persona say he learned from the teacher?

Creativity Challenge

You’re going to create a poem called ‘A Recipe for a good life’

In the box below, write some ideas about what makes life good.

Now, try to turn some of these things into similes

Now write a 10 line poem about what makes life good. Try to rhyme the two last lines for a striking ending.

Laughing with friends

Cackling like a maniac with friends, gasping for breath that mirth mischievously snatched.

Theme 2: Patriotism

Look at the words above. Find out the definitions of any that you don’t understand.

Choose the 5 BEST words that describe England in your opinion. Give a reason for each.

1. Word: Reason:

2. Word: Reason:

3. Word: Reason:

4. Word: Reason:

Patriotism: The quality of being patriotic; devoted to and vigorously supportive of one's country

Look up the meaning of the underlined words above. Then, write down what ‘Patriotism’ means in your own words. Use the pictures below to help you:

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Beautiful Advanced Unequal Dirty Accepting

Strong Powerful Weak Great Measly

Paltry Green Pleasant Grim Hardworking

Diverse Racist

5. Word: Reason:

Shakespeare – Speech from Richard II

This speech is by a man called John of Gaunt, who is dying. As he dies, he is talking about how beautiful England is, and how it is such a shame that the country is now being mistreated by the current king, Richard II.

1 This royal throne of kings, this sceptred isle,

2 This earth of majesty, this seat of Mars,

3 This other Eden, demi-paradise,

4 This fortress built by Nature for her self

5 Against infection and the hand of war,

6 This happy breed of men, this little world,

7 This precious stone set in a silver sea

8 Which serves it in the office of a wall

9 Or as a moat defensive to a house,

10 Against the envy of less happier lands,

11 This blessed plot, this earth, this realm, this England,

First Ideas – Read the poem once. What might the main ideas be? Note down some

of the things you think about.

Structure Lesson: Iambic PentameterIn a line of poetry, an iamb is a beat consisting of an unstressed syllable followed by a stressed syllable, or a short syllable followed by a long syllable. For example, deLIGHT, the SUN, forLORN, one DAY, reLEASE.

Activity: For the first line of this speech, underline the stressed syllable (the word or part of the word that you would put stress on) Then check your answer at the bottom of the page.

Interestingly enough, the iamb sounds a little like a heartbeat.

Pentameter is simply penta, which means 5, meters. A line of poetry written in pentameter has 5 ‘Iambs’, or 5 sets of stressed and unstressed syllables. For example ‘Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?’ from Shakespeare’s sonnet 18.

Answer: This royal throne of kings, this sceptred isle,

https://rpo.library.utoronto.ca/poems/richard-ii-excerpts-royal-throne-kings-sceptred-isle#0




The speech has been ‘translated’ into language that is easy to understand, but the order has been mixed up. Re-write the speech in the correct order:

This majestic Earth, where the god of war sits

This half-paradise, like god’s perfect garden

This secure castle that Nature built to protect herself

Against disease and the damage of war

This lucky race of people, this little world,

This precious jewel of an island sitting in the sea

—which protects it like a wall

or a moat that protects a house

against the evil intentions of less fortunate

countries—this blessed land, this England,

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How is England depicted in this speech?

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Do you agree with this depiction of England? Why/Why not?

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Keywords:

Sceptred – Majesty -

Fortress – Moat -

Envy - Realm-

Teeming - Renowned –

Sephulcre - Leased –

Tenement - Siege –

Conquest - Parchment -

Structure

Most of the poem is written in Iambic Pentameter (10 beats, each second beat emphasied) – why is this?

“This blessed plot, this earth, this realm, this England” – which words would be emphasised in this line? Why?

Challenge: Why has Shakespeare made this line longer than 10 syllables?

Why is the word “this” repeated so much?

Themes and Ideas

Highlight as many words as you can find that have connotations of conflict or war. Why has the writer included so many of these words?

How does the FOCUS of the speech change as it goes on? (What is being talked about at the Beginning, middle and end?)

How does the writer want the audience to feel after the speech?

Why is Christianity mentioned frequently (many times)?


List five adjectives used to describe England. What is the writer’s overall opinion?

What does the writer say is happening to England?

Challenge: Why is the persona emphasising (making obvious) the beauty of England?

This kingdom, ruled by the monarchy

Jackie Kay – In My Country

Here is a short explanation from the writer about what this poem is about:

“People often ask me where I'm from, even in my own country - I seem to have a whole collection of strange anecdotes of people doing that. I'm going to sit down in a pub on a chair in London and this woman went "You cannae sit in that chair. It's my chair." And me saying to her, "Oh right, you're from Glasgow aren't you?" And she says, "Aye, how did you know that?" And I said, "I'm from Glasgow myself," and she went, "You're not are you? You foreign looking b*****!" So that kind of thing happens a lot, and it happens so often I decided I'd just write a poem about being black and Scottish.”

1 In my country

2 walking by the waters

3 down where an honest river

4 shakes hands with the sea,

5 a woman passed round me

6 in a slow watchful circle

7 as if I were a superstition;

8 or the worst dregs of her imagination

9 so when she finally spoke

10 her words spliced into bars

11 of an old wheel. A segment of air.

12 Where do you come from?

First Ideas – Read the poem once. What might the main ideas be? Note down some of the

things you think about.

Keywords:

Honest – Watchful -

Superstition – Dregs -

Spliced - Segment -

Structure


Why does the writer choose to have the first line “In My Country”? How does this contrast with the last line?

What do you notice about the length of the first and last lines? Why are they like this?

Themes and Ideas

Why does the writer use the possessive pronoun in “My country”?

What technique is used to describe the river and the sea? Why might they be shown like this?

How do the river and sea contrast to the woman? Why?

What are the key themes of this poem?



Why is the woman suspicious of the persona?

What is the persona doing? What does she see?

Creative Challenge

Watch this video by famous dub poet Linton Kwesi Johnson. It is a dub poem about a young black boy writing a letter to his mother explaining how the police treat his brother in a racist way and arrest him for ‘sus’ – looking suspicious.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7uvY5qU7ayg

If you can’t watch it, a small extract is here:

Mama, I really did try mi besBut none a di lessSorry fi tell ya seh, poor lickle Jim get arresIt was de miggle a di rush hourHevrybody jus a hustle and a bustleTo go home fi dem evenin showerMi an Jim stan up waitin pon a busNot causin no fuss

When all of a sudden a police van pull upOut jump tree policemenDe whole a dem carryin batonDem walk straight up to me and JimOne a dem hold on to JimSeh dem tekin him inJim tell him fi leggo a himFor him nah do nutt'nAnd 'im nah t'ief, not even a but'nJim start to wriggleDe police start to giggle

Then, write your own letter, trying to use rhyme like the poet does, to explain an experience that sums up your view of England – positive or negative. Write it in whatever style you like.

You could use the lines below to start it off:

“Hi mom,

You’ll never believe what’s gone on

…”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7uvY5qU7ayg

Theme 3: Cities

Article: Birmingham should be leading the way - instead inequality leaves people struggling

Community activist Desmond Jaddoo tells Claire Donnelly how people from Birmingham, once dubbed the city of 1,000 trades, live in today's Britain

Desmond Jaddoo, 50, community activist and lay minister, has lived in and around the Lozells area of Birmingham all his life.

He works with local people to help fight injustice and the impact of the cuts but as he tells Claire Donnelly he worries growing inequality could lead to unrest.

Birmingham is an amazing city and it should be leading the way when it comes to social equality and access to services.

Instead we’re seeing the same old problems coming back, going backwards to conditions we saw in the past.

Poverty is a fact of life. Educational inequality, health inequalities - they say there can be a difference of 10 years in life expectancy depending where you live in the city - and poor housing all play their part.

Yet another Child Poverty Action Plan has just been launched and food banks are such an essential that we celebrate when a new one opens.

People come here, to this church, who have no money and nowhere to turn. We see families with not enough to eat and no way to heat or light their homes.

They used to say Birmingham was the city of 1,000 trades - but what are those trades in 2017? The loss of manufacturing has had a knock on effect on the skills base. It wasn’t that long ago that in this area alone you had a wealth of industry and mass employment - that's gone.

Vocabulary

Inequality –

Activist –

Injustice –

Poverty –

Manufacturing -

Understanding

1. What is a key problem with Birmingham that the man identifies?

2. How does this affect people in Birmingham?

Exploring

1. Does this article reflect your own opinion of Birmingham2. What positive things could you say about Birmingham?

Composed upon Westminster Bridge, September 3, 1802 – William Blake (1802)

1 Earth has not any thing to show more fair:

2 Dull would he be of soul who could pass by

3 A sight so touching in its majesty:

4 This City now doth, like a garment, wear

5 The beauty of the morning; silent, bare,

6 Ships, towers, domes, theatres, and temples lie

7 Open unto the fields, and to the sky;

8 All bright and glittering in the smokeless air.

9 Never did sun more beautifully steep

10 In his first splendour, valley, rock, or hill;

11 Ne'er saw I, never felt, a calm so deep!

12 The river glideth at his own sweet will:

13 Dear God! the very houses seem asleep;

14 And all that mighty heart is lying still!

Keywords:

Fair – Majesty -

Doth – Garment -

Unto - Steep -

Splendour - Glideth –

This poem is a SONNET – which means it has 14 lines and is written in ‘Iambic Pentameter’.

Recall: What is Iambic pentameter?

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Apply: Underline the STRESSED syllables in the first 4 lines.

First Ideas – Read the poem once. What might the main ideas be? Note down some of the

things you think about.

The sonnet has been ‘translated’ into language that is easy to understand, but the order has been mixed up. Re-write the sonnet in the correct order:

There is nothing more beautiful on Earth

Ships, towers, domes, theatres, and temples lie

In his first amazing appearance, on the valley, rock or hill

A view that is so touching because it is so majestic

Open to the fields and to the sky

Dear god! Even the houses seem like they’re sleeping

The beauty of the silent, empty morning

The city now wears, like clothes,

The sun never rose so beautifully

All bright and glittering in the smokeless air.

You would have to have a dull soul to walk past

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I’ve never saw such calm or felt so calm

The river glides by in its own time

And all the wonderful heart of the city is lying still.

What is more beautiful to the writer – the buildings of London or the valleys, rocks or hills? How do you know?__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

George The Poet – My City (2015)

In this poem, the poet describes his view of London, and the mixed feelings he has about the inequality of the city.

First, watch the poem performed : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1zVhSKsMnok

Then, read the poem using the ‘genius’ website if you can: https://genius.com/George-the-poet-my-city-lyrics

1 My city has a lot of faces2 Some can be found in forgotten places3 Comfortably sound with a lot of graces4 The Sun could be down on his hungry town but in London he found him a shot at greatness5 My city has a lot of faces

6 Some can tell you what a “loss of faith” is7 Be-Fore we hated people we were all created equal then we8 Learnt to despise the strife and9 Forgot that variety’s the spice of life – look around you

10 Constantly standing on the brink of history11 Watching newsreaders linking mysteries12 Even though a few reporters taught us to be cautious ‘cause they13 Stink of this disease called inconsistency14 See, my city has a lot of faces

15 Four of them belonging to Big Ben16 The rest of them hidden behind big business and Big Brother17 Ensures all of them are monitored with them18 Under social tensions you can see London languishes:19 30% minorities, 300 languages20 Differences – race and class, it’s all enormous21 But the common ground we found surpasses all the borders21 If you meet a rich man, ass-kiss all his daughters…22 Or his sons. We all live once23 And who among us wouldn't want all of his funds?24 That’s rhetorical but I don’t need call and response


What does the persona think about the view they can see? List 3 adjectives that show this.

Look at the lines below:

6 Ships, towers, domes, theatres, and temples lie7 Open unto the fields, and to the sky;8 All bright and glittering in the smokeless air.9 Never did sun more beautifully steep10 In his first splendour, valley, rock, or hill;

What particular features of the scene does the writer talk about?Structure


How many syllables are in each line?

Iambic pentameter is said to sound like a heartbeat. Why might the writer have wanted people to be reminded of a heartbeat?

Themes and Ideas

How does the idea of a city differ from what we imagine cities to be like?

What does the simile in lines 4 and 5 suggest about how the city looks?

The writer uses a list on line 6 and line 10. Why might the writer have used these two lists?

What are the key themes (big ideas) of this poem?


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1zVhSKsMnok

25 To know that’s how Londoners are from time to time26 Only got the time to grind and whine

27 Technically I’m from an elegant city but I’m not the kind to wine and dine28 I grew up around lots of crime, the violent kind29 You might have heard about the rocks, the grime, the hype and shine30 It’s not just Cockney rhyming slang, we've got block-beef, violent gangs31 Awkward interactions which most don’t force32 Children navigating through postcode wars33 In estates with the least funding, look at the state of East London34 That’s a paradox:35 Witness economy blooming for the have-a-lots:36 Business is gonna be booming37 But there’s a difference between having a front row seat and watching from the sidelines

38 TFL knows the world is your Oyster as long as you can afford it39 Even though you might need to re-mortgage just to get from Aldwych to Shoreditch40 Inconvenient if you’re poor, which41 Could be expected in a tax system where the more rich get more rich41 273 times the wealth of the poorest yet your door is next door to the extra poor43 We look on the bright side but we’re vexed for sure44 Like all we have to ourselves is sex and war45 And a lot of diversity, so what could I personally Hate a complexion for?46 I see different coloured hands outstretched for more

47 Feel free to come to London and still see the London Dungeon48 Experience a tube of mad claustrophobics49 Where food and bad posture don’t mix50 And join us in moving along to the groove of the song51 What a sight to see, we could swap a nicety52 Some of us feel you've forgotten my city53 But hopefully you’ll be proving us wrong54 If you can take the rough with the smooth then it’s on

First Ideas – Read the poem once. What might the main ideas be? Note down some

of the things you think about.

Keywords:

Despise - Strife - Inconsistency -

Languishes - Minorities – Surpasses -

Navigating - Paradox – Diversity –

Complexion - Claustrophobics - Nicety -

Keywords:

Despise - Strife - Inconsistency -

Languishes - Minorities – Surpasses -

Navigating - Paradox – Diversity –

Complexion - Claustrophobics - Nicety -


What does the persona think about London? List 3 adjectives that show this.

Look at the lines below:

Children navigating through postcode warsIn estates with the least funding, look at the state of East LondonThat’s a paradox:Witness economy blooming for the have-a-lots:Business is gonna be boomingBut there’s a difference between having a front row seat and watching from the sidelines

What do these lines show us about inequality in London?_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Structure



Iambic pentameter is said to sound like a heartbeat. Why might the writer have wanted people to be reminded of a heartbeat?

Themes and Ideas

Write down five adjectives to describe London.

What does the metaphor in line 50 suggest about life in London?

Looking at lines 41 – 48, what is the writer saying about inequality in the city?

What are the key themes (big ideas) of this poem?


Writer’s Workshop: Write a ‘spoken word’ poem about BirminghamStep 1: Idea generation – fill the box below with words and pictures that show your thoughts and feelings about Birmingham.

Step 2: Structure your ideas – Look at the ‘recipe’ to follow for writing each stanza, using ‘My City’ as inspiration.

1 My city has a lot of faces2 Some can be found in forgotten places3 Comfortably sound with a lot of graces4 The Sun could be down on his hungry town . but in London he found him a shot at greatness5 My city has a lot of faces

Rhyme Scheme:

Writing Rules:

Line 1: Write a short metaphor about your city

Line 2, 3, and 4: Explain your first statement by discussing different ideas about your city

Line 5: Repeat line 1

Step 3: On spare paper, write your poem. It should have 4 stanzas, and should follow the writing rules above.

Theme 5: depression and recovery

Article: Sour mood getting you down? Get back to nature

Research suggests that mood disorders can be lifted by spending more time outdoors.

Looking for a simple way to help reduce stress, anxiety, and depression, and maybe even improve your memory? Take a walk in the woods.

Research in a growing scientific field called ecotherapy has shown a strong connection between time spent in nature and reduced stress, anxiety, and depression.

It's not clear exactly why outdoor excursions have such a positive mental effect. Yet, in a 2015 study, researchers compared the brain activity of healthy people after they walked for 90 minutes in either a natural setting or an urban one. They found that those who did a nature walk had lower activity in the prefrontal cortex, a brain region that is active during rumination — defined as repetitive thoughts that focus on negative emotions.

"When people are depressed or under high levels of stress, this part of the brain malfunctions, and people experience a continuous loop of negative thoughts," says Dr. Strauss.

Digging a bit deeper, it appears that interacting with natural spaces offers other therapeutic benefits. For instance, calming nature sounds and even outdoor silence can lower blood pressure and levels of the stress hormone cortisol, which calms the body's fight-or-flight response.

The visual aspects of nature can also have a soothing effect, according to Dr. Strauss. "Having something pleasant to focus on like trees and greenery helps distract your mind from negative thinking, so your thoughts become less filled with worry."

Vocabulary:

Disorders –

Excursions –

Prefrontal cortex –

Rumination –

Therapeutic –

Visual –

Understanding:

1. List two reasons why nature can be good for mental health that were mentioned in the article.

2. What does the article say happens to people when they are stressed?

Exploration:

1. What is the effect of the rhetorical question in the first paragraph?

2. Why does the article talk about scientific studies? Bonus: Would this be an example of ethos, logos or pathos?

Daffodils – William Wordsworth

1 I wandered lonely as a cloud2 That floats on high o'er vales and hills,3 When all at once I saw a crowd,4 A host, of golden daffodils;5 Beside the lake, beneath the trees,6 Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.

7 Continuous as the stars that shine8 And twinkle on the milky way,9 They stretched in never-ending line10 Along the margin of a bay:11 Ten thousand saw I at a glance,12 Tossing their heads in sprightly dance.

13 The waves beside them danced; but they14 Out-did the sparkling waves in glee:15 A poet could not but be gay,16 In such a jocund company:17 I gazed—and gazed—but little thought18 What wealth the show to me had brought:

19 For oft, when on my couch I lie20 In vacant or in pensive mood,21 They flash upon that inward eye22 Which is the bliss of solitude;23 And then my heart with pleasure fills,24 And dances with the daffodils.

First Ideas – Read the poem once. What might the main ideas be? Note down some of

the things you think about.

Keywords:

Continuous - Margin - Glance –

Glee - Jocund - Oft –

Vacant - Pensive - Inward –

Solitude -


How is the persona feeling at the beginning of the poem? Find a quote to show this.

What cheers the writer up?

What does the writer do when they feel sad now?

Structure

What is the rhyme scheme? Label the rhyming lines.


How are the first and last stanzas similar?

Themes and Ideas

Find the personification of the daffodils. How does this personification pertray the daffodils?

What different things are the daffodils compared to? What impression does this create of them?

Why is the word ‘dance’ repeated so many times?

Giraffe – Bryony Littlefair (2017)

1 When you feel better from this – and you will – it will be quiet and

2 unremarkable, like walking into the next room. It might sting a little, like

3 warmth leaking into cold-numbed hands. When you feel better, it will

4 be the slow clearing of static from the radio. It will be a film set when

5 the director yells cut! When you feel better, you will take: a plastic spoon

6 for your coffee foam, free chocolates from the gleaming oak reception

7 desk, the bus on sunny days, your own sweet time. When you feel better,

8 it will be like walking barefoot on cool, smooth planks of wood, still

9 damp from last night’s rain. It will be the holy silence when the tap stops

10 dripping. The moment a map finally starts to make sense. When you feel

11 better, you will still suffer, but your sadness will be graspable, roadwork-

12 thy, have handlebars. When you feel better, you will not always be happy,

13 but when happiness does come, it will be long-legged, sun-dappled:

14 a giraffe.


Keywords:

Unremarkable - Numbed –

Static - Gleaming –

Graspable - Dappled -


Who is the persona talking to?

What things will the person do when they feel ‘better’ after experiencing depression?

Structure

How is the structure of this poem different to the poems

studied so far?

The poet uses lists to show the things the person will be able to do after they’ve emerged from

depression. Why?

Themes and Ideas

Look at this section:When you feel better,it will be like walking barefoot on cool, smooth planks of wood, stilldamp from last night’s rain. It will be the holy silence when the tap stopsdripping. The moment a map finally starts to make sense.

What is your favourite simile/metaphor here? Why?

How might it feel to walk barefoot on cool planks of wood? Why has the writer used this to describe emerging from a depressive episode?

Why will the person take chocolates once their depression is over?

1. Essay plan – Use your comparison grid to think of three important similarities/differences between the two poems.

Similarity or difference 1: Similarity or difference 2: Similarity or difference 3:

Evidence from poem 1

Quote:

Technique:

Evidence from poem 2:

Quote:

Technique:


Quote:

Technique:


Quote:

Technique:


Quote:

Technique:


Quote:

Technique:

Linking Phrases:

“In addition” “Simultaneously” “On the other hand”

“Contrastingly” “Similarly” “Additionally”

2. What does a good one look like?

Read the paragraph and highlight it using a colour code.

Feature Colour

Mentioned a technique

Used a quote

Picked up on a key word

Used a linking phrase

Referred to the words in the question

3. Now, use your plan to write ONE paragraph which compares the two poems. Then, colour code your paragraph using the guide above, seeing if there is anything you have missed.

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

“Compare how the poems “The Giraffe” and “I wandered lonely as a cloud” portray the experience of depression and recovery”

While “The Giraffe” presents recovery from depression as a gradual process, “I wandered lonely as a cloud” presents the experience as a sudden flash of happiness. In “The Giraffe”, Littlefair uses the metaphor of handlebars to show how a person can slowly learn how to navigate their sad experiences. The quote “your sadness will be graspable, roadworkthy, have handlebars.” Demonstrates this. The fact that the sadness now has “handlebars” demonstrates how it was previously uncontrollable, but now you are able to control and drive it. Contrastingly, in “I wandered lonely as a cloud”, Wordsworth describes the happiness created from seeing daffodils as a “flash upon the inward eye”, showing that life’s beauty can suddenly make one feel better, like a “flash”. This is reflected in the beginning of the poem when the writer says they see the daffodils “all at once”. Therefore, in Littlefair’s poem, the experience of recovery from sadness becomes more manageable over time, while Wordsworth describes this feeling as a sudden rush of joy. In my opinion, Littefair’s depiction of recovery from depression is more accurate, but Wordsworth describes perfectly the feeling of sudden happiness that a lovely sight can bring to you, which can temporarily cheer you up when you are sad.

4. One you have done this, write the full essay. Include a short introduction where you summarise the two poems, three paragraphs talking about the similarities and differences and a short conclusion where you summarise the key similarities and differences very briefly.

Documents

A Summary of Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night€¦ · Web viewLooking for a simple way to help reduce stress, anxiety, and depression, and maybe even improve your memory? Take