Learning Objective s2

Take Cover

Teacher sheet

12 Kinetic poems

Teacher input required / Medium/some involvement
Framework substrand / 6.3 analysing writers’ use of organisation, structure, layout and presentation
Lesson level / C
National Curriculum ref. / 2.2b infer and deduce meanings, recognising the writer’s intentions
2.2i understand how meaning is created through the combination of words, images and sounds in multimodal texts

Learning objective

To explore the effect of different ways of structuring and presenting poems.

Resources required

Student instructions and student resource sheet, writing equipment, exercise books or paper; students could write their own poems on PCs if available.

Lesson guidance

· Warm up – students create a haiku either a) by rearranging the words provided or b) writing the first and third line to go with the middle line of the poem which has been given. The words for b) are taken from ‘Haiku’ by Jon Glover: The doormat thickened / with winter dust. It was fine / mud, a wet summer. (10+ mins)

· Development – students read three poems in which structure or presentational features are important and then answer the questions by noting down the correct response: 1 B, 2 A, 3 C, 4 C, 5 A or B (5 mins). Students then write their own poems using one of the three poems they have read as a model. (35 mins)

· Plenary – students swap their poems and each partner considers how presentational features have been used. (10 mins)

Notes for SEN students

Less able students may need help with reading the poems. Some students may find ‘A Major Road for Romney Marsh’ challenging and will need to discuss it before tackling the questions. When they come to write their own poems, weaker students may find shape poems the easiest option.

Extension activities / notes for gifted and talented students

Encourage gifted and talented students to tackle the additional questions on the poems which are more open ended. They are more likely to be stretched by writing poems with columns illustrating different attitudes or using different sized words rather than shape poems.

Student instructions

12 Kinetic poems

Learning objective

To explore the effect of different ways of structuring and presenting poems.

Success criteria

By the end of the lesson I will have:

· created a haiku

· read and understood three poems in which presentation and structure are important

· created my own poem in which presentation or structure is important

· evaluated my poem with a partner.

Warm up

A haiku is a poem with 17 syllables (one line of five, one line of seven and a final line of five), like this:

Either: try to rearrange the words below into a haiku:

dust summer with fine the winter it mud a wet doormat thickened was

Or: here is the middle line of a haiku. Can you make up a first and third line?

The misty cat froze, then pounced

Your main task!

On the student resource sheet there are three more poems in which structure and presentation are very important. You need to see the poems as well as hear them for them to be really effective.

Read each poem and then answer these questions about them.

1. Which poem is shaped like the thing it is describing?

2. Which poem uses two columns to show different attitudes to something?

3. Which poem uses the size of the words to tell us something about the way characters are speaking?

4. Which poem uses presentational features to describe a situation in a humorous way?

5. Which poem uses presentational features to make a serious point about a situation?

Take Cover 12 Kinetic poems

Now it’s your turn. Have a go at writing your own poem which uses either shape or columns or the size (or font, style or colour) of the words as well as the words themselves to help readers to understand how the poem should be read or understood.

You could write a poem:

· in the shape of a candle, a balloon or an animal

· using columns or brackets to show two different points of view about a place you know well

· where the size of the words (or their font, style or colour) helps to create two different voices e.g. a mother and child or two friends having a disagreement.

Round it off with this

Swap the poem that you have written with your partner, even if it is unfinished.

· Can you work out whether your partner has written a shape poem or a poem which uses columns or size of the words to help describe something, someone or a situation?

· How do the presentational devices or structure help make the poem more effective?

Extra challenge

If you have finished answering the questions on the three poems and written your own poem using presentational features then you can answer the questions below. Use as much detail as possible in your answers.

1. What is striking about the language in the brackets in ‘A Major Road for Romney Marsh’? Why do you think the poet has used these words?

2. What does the teacher see as the problem at the beginning of ‘Louder’? And what is the problem at the end of the poem?

3. Write a couple of sentences explaining which of the three poems you like best and why. Try to comment on the structure or presentational features in your answer.

Student resource sheet