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Death in Poetry: A.E. Housman's "To an Athlete Dying Young" and Dylan Thomas' "Do Not Go Gentle into That Good Night"
Students analyze poems about death. In this poetry analysis lesson, students read poems from both Dylan Thomas and A.E. Housman and analyze them in groups for common poetic devices. Students present their analysis and complete a Venn...
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Introducing Poetry
Students explore poetry. In this language arts lesson, students discuss the elements of poetry and students rewrite a lyric or poem.
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A Song By Any Other Name Would Be a Poem
Students examine the poetic elements of a piece of music. They discuss favorite songs, select a song, and write a persuasive essay identifying the poetic qualities of the song lyrics.
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Writing Lyrics
Pupils examine the themes and structure of a bluegrass song and identify the common themes in bluegrass music. They practice songwriting by rewriting the lyrics of "Oh! Susanna" as a bluegrass tune.
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Poems and Songs: Rivers and Ponds
Students explore songs and poems related to the animals, habitats, and activities on rivers and ponds. They listen to song clips, explore various websites, read poems and song lyrics, complete worksheets, and define key vocabulary words.
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How Poets Evoke Social and Historical Representations
Students explore how poems represent the social, historical, and cultural times that they were written in. In this poetry lesson plan, students compare and contrast poems with music of the time and explore implications of writing poems...
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On the Beach: Disabled and Mother's Pride
What do an early 20th century poet and a 1980's rock star have in common with a novel from the 1960's? Using Wilfred Owen's poem "Disabled" and George Michael's song "Mother's Pride," learners answer questions about the lyrics and themes...
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Individuality: India Arie Music Video
Students examine individuality. In this music video lesson, students listen to music by India Arie to determine how music shapes our ideas of what normal is as well as how music is a form of poetry. Activities are related to Stargirl.
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Poets Got Them Blues
Contemplate what music learners listen to and why they listen. Can they find poetry within music lyrics? Specifically hone in on blues lyrics and ruminate upon the social issues prevalent in the themes. Particular song lyrics coincide...
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A Modest Proposal: Irony Made Understandable with Rock and Roll
Who doesn't love music? Poems and songs will engage your high school class in a discussion about irony. Use songs like "Rockin' in the Free World" or "Born in the U.S.A." to illustrate the ironic point of view. Print the lyrics so...
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Tupac Poem Lesson Plan
Students brainstorm what they know about Tupac. In groups, they divide the statements into good and bad and read "The Rose That Grew From Concrete" about Tupac's life. To end the lesson plan, they answer questions about the meaning of...
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Civil War
Historical poetry is lyrical in form and rich with content. After examining the differences between the Northern and Southern states before and during the U.S. Civil War, learners complete a Venn diagram and create an illustration of the...
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Rock and Poetry: A Thematic Project
Students explore poetry. In this literature lesson, students examine music and lyrics by Natalie Merchant in order to make the transition to analyzing poetry by Keats and Wordsworth.
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Connecting Poetry with Philanthropy
Students use their knowledge of philanthropy and poetic conventions to write original poetry about philanthropic giving. In this philanthropy lesson, students write poetry based on philanthropy using poetic conventions. Students...
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Analyzing Poetry and Characters
Students investigate historical context by reading poetry. In this language arts instructional activity, students discover the work of Michael Longley and examine his poem "Ceasefire." Students identify the sonnets used in the piece...
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Guantanamera: A Poem and a Song
Students compare revolutionary actions of Jose Marti and Pete Seeger. In this Cuban folk song lesson, students listen to the song "Guantanamera" and discuss the content. Students read articles on the poet and the songwriter and create a...
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Rhythm & Improv: Jazz & Poetry
Learners analyze the elements of poetry and jazz. In this critical thinking skills lesson plan, students take a closer look at the rhyme, rhythm, alliteration, form, free verse, lyricism, and imagery that exist is jazz as well as poetry.
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Poetry
Twelfth graders examine the main characteristics of poetry. They read and discuss a handout on the characteristics of poetry, read the poem, The Road Not Taken, discuss their interpretation of the poem, and research poetry on the Internet.
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Color My World Grey and Blue
Can colors help to convey a mood in writing? Explore this question with your class using the songs "Grey Street" by the Dave Matthews Band and "Blu is a Mood" by Blu Cantrell. After analyzing the effect of the color words in these songs...
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Poet Analysis: Ciaran Carson
Students analyze lyrics and narration by reading poetry. In this language arts lesson, students read and examine the poem Belfast Confetti. Students discuss the topics and questions asked by the author Ciaran Carson.
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Poetry Writing
Students compose a piece of poetry modeled after the poetry of Carl Sandburg and share their poem(s) with their colleagues. They use a cluster diagram to organize their thoughts and brainstorm their ideas.
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Other Poetic Types
Rather than a lesson, this resource is a list of poetic forms and young poets are encouraged to try their hand at composing poems of various types.
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Screening Coleridge’s Fantasies: Using Popular Music as a Bridge to Literacy
Twelfth graders use music to aid them in interpreting poetry. For this poetry lesson, 12th graders analyze the lyrics, figurative language, and literary devices of selected music. Students compare the music to the poetry of Samuel...
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“And Still I Rise” Proud Black Women
Students examine the experiences of African American women. In this poetry instructional activity, students use their literary analysis skills to compare the poetry of Maya Angelou to rap music performed by Queen Latifah and Lauryn Hill.