Teaching Resources: Poetry Lesson Outlines

Poetry Lesson Outlinesfor Primary and Secondary Schools

Page 2 Poetry Lesson Outlines

Poetry Lesson Outlines

A selection of six poetry lesson plans and associated resources for use in the upper years of Primary and throughout Secondary schools

Designed and produced by Mark Grist as part of the Well Versed Poetry in School project.

Contents

Session 1 N+7 Suitable for Years 6-9 p. 3

Session 2 Lipogram Suitable for Years 6-8 p. 6

Session 3 Tanka Suitable for Years 6-8 p. 8

Session 4 Sestinas Suitable for Years 9 and 10 p. 10

Session 5 List Poems Suitable for Years 6-9 p. 12

Session 6 Kennings Suitable for Years 5-7 p. 14

Appendix One Extracts for N+7 p. 16

Appendix Two An Introduction to Tankas p. 17

Appendix Three Two Sestinas p. 18

Appendix Four Blank form for writing sestinas p. 21

Appendix Five Bruce Lansky List Poems p. 23

Appendix Six 50 Ways of Looking at a Sheep p. 24

Page 3Poetry Lesson Outlines

Session 1 - N+7

Advised Age RangeSuitable for Years 6-9

Preparation NeededYou’ll need:

- an assortment of dictionaries- a paragraph that you want the students to work on (See Appendix One) - each student will need to bring in a book/song lyrics/a famous speech that they can use as a stimulus.

Learning ObjectiveTo create poetry formulas inspired by the N+7 form of poetryTo apply these formulas to a text to create own poems

Key WordsNounOulipoDictionary


Time Activity Resources needed

00-10 Word Tennis.

Split the pupils into pairs, A and B

Choose a noun for A to say, then B has 3 seconds to say a word that is linked to As word (it needn’t be a noun).

They will keep bouncing words backwards and forwards until someone stumbles. The winner should raise their hand, once the rally is over – so that you can see which pairs have finished. Do this three times so that pairs can have a deciding match, should they need one.

10-15 Write the three words you started each round of Word Tennis with up on the board. In the same pairs, give the students a minute to come up with 3 things that they all have in common. Then get feedback from them.

15-20 Explain that all three words are nouns that today they’re going to write a new form of poetry where nouns are very important. Hand out a short extract from a text of your choice. The opening chapter of Genesis/Little Red Riding Hood/any famous text will do fine. Juliet’s balcony speech works very well – if you include proper nouns.

Suitable extracts can be found in Appendix One

20-25 Pupils have a few minutes to highlight all the nouns in the text. When they’ve done this, talk through the text and agree what the nouns are.


25-35 They’re now going to create their N+7 poems. They should take dictionaries – best to get a wide range of them for this as each dictionary will create a different poem. Once they find each noun in the dictionary, they should replace it for the entry 7 places below. This can create such changes as

To be or not to be? That is the questionBecomingTo beagle or not to beagle. That is the quiche.

You’ll need an assortment of dictionaries – one per student (or one per pair if you want to have them working together).

35-55 Once the students have done this, get them to read their poems out. Then explain that they’re going to create their own N+ or N– formula for the text that they’ve brought in.

Older students may benefit from seeing Ross Sutherland’s Little Red Riding Hood at this point.

The students then work through their text, applying their new rule and seeing what is produced.

Watch Ross Sutherland performing Little Red Riding Hood here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VhmAa19bMBI

Additional notes

This session works particularly well in the library as long as the students are allowed to talk quietly.

A range of resources to apply their rules to and a very simple noun game (which works well on an interactive whiteboard) can be found herehttp://www.softschools.com/language_arts/grammar/noun/balloon_game/


Session 2 – Lipogram


Preparation NeededPurchase a copy of George Perec’s A Void for the school library.

Learning ObjectiveTo understand what a lipogram is.To apply the rules of a lipogram to our writing.To create our own lipograms from scratch.

Key WordsLipogramVowel


00-10 Write the alphabet on the board where everyone can see. Get students into pairs ask them to stand behind their desks. They’re going to attempt a conversation as if they’re friends who haven’t seen each other in years. The first person must start the conversation with a sentence that begins with the letter A. Their partner can then respond using a sentence that begins with the letter B and so on. The challenge is to see whether you can work all the way through the alphabet.

10-15 Get students to write 3 or 4 sentences that explain what they did at the weekend. They can make the events up.

Now, get them to highlight all the letter A’s in the text. Get students with less than three letter As to raise their hands. For the following exercises, these students will use the letter E instead of letter A. The others will use the letter O instead of A.


15-25 Explain that lipograms are poems where one or more letters have been excluded. To write lipograms, the students have to try and give the same information that they have already written without using the letter A. So for example

I walked to Grandma’s

Could become

I skipped over to my Mum’s Mum’s house.

Notice that walking is quite different to skipping – that’s ok. They’re just using the original text as inspiration for these new pieces of writing.Get the students to read their work out.

25-50 Now the students are going to write their own lipograms. Give each table a vowel. That table are not allowed to use it from this moment onwards. They’re going to create their own stories – of 250-300 words using one of the following first lines.

‘I was extremely scared.’

‘Slowly, he pulled out the sword.’

‘My Birthday party was crazy.’

‘I got lost on my stroll to town.’

50-60 Get the students to read their lipograms out.

Additional notes

Particularly able students could try writing without two vowels.


Session 3 – Tanka


Preparation NeededRead through Appendix Two – An Introduction to TankasAsk students to bring in a photo of them at a time when they were happy

Learning ObjectiveTo understand what a tanka is.To create our own tankas based on a happy memory.

Key WordsTankaSyllable


00-05 Discuss syllables then ask students to try and write an answer in 7 syllables for each of the following questions.

Where is your homework?Why is your brother crying?What would you like for dinner?

Get the students to read out their answers to the class and check together whether they are 7 syllables long.

05-15 Explain that the students are going to be looking at a Japanese form of poetry called a tanka. In some ways tankas are similar to Haikus as they also involve using syllables.

An Introduction to Tankas can be found in Appendix 2


15-30 Write the following on the board5 syllables7 syllables5 syllable7 syllables7 syllables

Explain that we’re going to write a tanka together. The students are to think of a moment when they were scared/nervous. They should make notes one what happened/how they felt/what they remember. They are going to get just one minute on each line.

For the first line, write the following on the board. Tell us when it was

Second lineWhat were you doing?

Third lineWhat were you worried might happen?

Fourth lineWhat really happened?

Fifth lineWhat did you learn from this?

30-35 Students read their tankas out.

35-50 Students now create tankas about a memory – they should brainstorm as many words/feelings as possible to go into their poem based upon that memory. The pictures they’ve brought in are the inspiration. Once they have enough words and feelings they can write their own tanka.

50-55 The students should share their tankas with others on their table and count the syllables to see whether they’ve used the correct number.Then read them out to the rest of the class.

Additional notes

This lesson would work particularly well after working on Haikus. It may be a good idea to run a haiku refresher at the end of the previous lesson to get the students ready for more work on syllables.


Session 4 - Sestinas

Advised Age RangeSuitable for Years 9 and 10

Preparation NeededYou need to book a computer room for the class to useExamples of sestinas – see Appendix 3There are blank templates in Appendix 4You may well want to research the sestina!

Learning ObjectiveTo understand the rules of a sestinaTo begin writing our own sestinasTo retain our sanity throughout the process (optional)

Key WordSestina



00-10 Students come in to find two copies of Sestinas on their tables. They have to see whether, in pairs, they can come up with three rules of sestinas, by using the poems they’ve got to come up with their guidelines. They then share these in discussion with the class.

Two sestinas can be found in Appendix 3

10-15 Explain that a sestina is a form of poetry where six key words are rearranged in each of the first 6 stanzas. The words always feature at the end of the stanzas and they are rotated by following a formula.The formula is as follows, with the final word of each line in the first stanza being labeled A through to F.

1.ABCDEF 2.FAEBDC 3.CFDABE 4.ECBFAD 5.DEACFB 6.BDFECA 7. (envoi) ECA or ACE

The most important thing is to get 6 words that you’re happy to have feature throughout your poem.

15-50 Get students to access the following site. It allows students to create their own sestinas by choosing their six words and then working from a frame that’s generated for them. http://dilute.net/sestinas/index.php

50-60 Students read out their Sestinas

Additional info

This lesson is for more able students – to create a full Sestina will almost certainly take more than one session. Particularly able students may want to work without the website’s frame. If they wish to do this, then they can find a more open template in Appendix 4


Session 5 - List poem


Preparation NeededThere are two list poems in Appendix 5

Learning ObjectiveTo understand what a list poem is.To create an original list poem.To use repetition effectively in a poem.

Key WordsList PoemOriginalityRepetition


00-10 Get students to write a list of things they did this morning before they came to school. The list needs to be boring. They should aim for 8-10 items.

10-15 Get the student with the most to read theirs out. The other students make a note any time something they put down gets mentioned. Discuss whether these were successful poems. Explain that as a writer, we want to try and say something original, that nobody has thought of and so we’re going to write list poems whilst using our imaginations.


15-20 Get the students to write a list of things that they wish they had done before they came to school. They need to try and write a list of between 5 and 10 things that no one else will put down. When they’ve done this, get students to read out their lists and see whether anyone put down the same thing as anyone else.

20-30 Read ‘What Bugs Me’ and ‘My Noisy Brother’ by Bruce Lansky and discuss what makes them successful. Get the students to identify any repetition.

These poems can be found in Appendix 5

30-55 The students are going to write a list poem with one of the following titles

Reasons I can’t accept your friend requestWhy I couldn’t come to your partyWhere would you rather be?

They should try to include repetition in their work and should aim for the poem being at least 10 lines long.

55-60 Students then read their lists out to each other.

Additional notes

You may want to take suggestions from the students for other list topics.


Session 6 – Kennings


Preparation NeededYou may want to print off copies of ’50 ways of looking at a sheep’ for the students to work from. This can be found in Appendix 6

Learning ObjectiveTo understand what kennings are.To create our own kennings.To share our kennings with each other.

Key WordsKenningNarrative


00-10 Create a list of professions. The list should be 5-10 professions long.

10-15 Put these professions to one side for now and work through the Introduction to Kennings PowerPoint as a class.

An Introduction to Kennings PowerPoint can be downloaded from the Writers’ Centre Norwich website


15-20 Each student should look back at their professions on the list and choose one. They should then attempt to write a kenning poem for that profession (without writing the profession on the poem).

20-30 The poems then get given to another student, who tries to work out what the profession is. They then write another kenning poem to send back to the person that sent them theirs.

30-35 The poems go back and the students see whether they can guess what the profession is this time.

35-55 As a class, read through the poem ’50 ways of looking at a sheep’ and read it through. The students can then work in a pair to create their own kenning about an animal of their choice.

This poem can be found in Appendix 6

50-60 The pupils can then read their kennings out to the class.

Additional notes

You could also discuss the narrative that’s inside ’50 ways of looking at a sheep’. Are there 50 ways? Why not? Which kennings were the classes favourite?


Appendix One - Extracts for N+7

Balcony Scene from Romeo and Juliet

O Romeo, Romeo! wherefore art thou Romeo? Deny thy father and refuse thy name; Or, if thou wilt not, be but sworn my love, And I’ll no longer be a Capulet. ‘Tis but thy name that is my enemy; Thou art thyself, though not a Montague. What’s Montague? it is nor hand, nor foot, Nor arm, nor face, nor any other part Belonging to a man. O, be some other name! What’s in a name? that which we call a rose By any other name would smell as sweet;

‘Little Red Cap’ from Grimms Fairy Tales

Once upon a time there was a sweet little girl. Everyone who saw her liked her, but most of all her grandmother, who did not know what to give the child next. Once she gave her a little cap made of red velvet. Because it suited her so well, and she wanted to wear it all the time, she came to be known as Little Red Cap.

One day her mother said to her, “Come Little Red Cap. Here is a piece of cake and a bottle of wine. Take them to your grandmother. She is sick and weak, and they will do her well. Mind your manners and give her my greetings. Behave yourself on the way, and do not leave the path, or you might fall down and break the glass, and then there will be nothing for your sick grandmother.”

Little Red Cap promised to obey her mother. The grandmother lived out in the woods, a half hour from the village. When Little Red Cap entered the woods a wolf came up to her. She did not know what a wicked animal he was, and was not afraid of him.


Appendix Two – An Introduction to Tankas

What is a Tanka- Tanka is an ancient form of Japanese poetry- It is older than a Haiku- It is usually used for a special event or to provoke a strong feeling- Each line consists of one image and the whole thing together completes one thought

Lines and Syllables- It consists of five lines- In total it has 31 syllables

o The first line is five syllableso The second line is seven syllableso The third line is five syllableso The fourth and fifth are both seven syllables

How to start- Tankas are usually used to evoke a strong emotion or mark a special event- The first thing you have to decide is the theme for the Tanka- Then brainstorm about all the feelings and images that you associate with that theme

o Example: a day at the beach – warm, water, hot, fun, sand, wind, seashells, waves, surf, riptides, towels, umbrellas etc

Next- Think about how you felt and what you did- Take your words and start arranging them in the 5-7-5-7-7 patter- Congratulations! You have just written your first Tanka!

For exampleThe Beach

Hot sand my toes squishSun did shine down upon meRed, my skin did getMy day at the beach is doneTomorrow, another one


Appendix Three - Two Sestinas

A Sestina for school

Remember that although the play-dough’s yummyYou aren’t supposed to eat it, so be carefulYou don’t get caught. Don’t worry if the teacherSeems scary. It’s her job. She’s really lovely.You’re not the only kid in here who’s frightened:It’s not so bad, though. Soon you’ll feel at home.

You’ll have so much to say when you get home.About whether the dinners here are yummyOr horrible. And whether you were frightenedBy bigger kids, and how you were so carefulTo ask about the toilet, and how lovelyIt was to be told ‘well done’ by your teacher.

Some tips on how to understand the teachers:They’re not like grown ups you would find at home.Though some of them, admittedly, are lovely,And give you milk at playtime which is yummy,They’re not all nice, so please be very carefulIt’s not at all unusual to be frightened

Because your teacher, probably, is frightenedOf not being as good as other teachers.She has to be so clever and so carefulShe really doesn’t want you going homeAnd saying that the play-dough’s really yummy.She wants you all to know that learning’s lovely

Which means that, sometimes, she cannot be lovely.Sometimes she will get cross. Do not be frightened.But even when school dinners are not yummyDo try to eat them. Try to trust your teacherAnd do those things you never do at homeLike Circle Time and Number Work. Be careful

At playtime. Cos not everybody’s carefulAnd not all children do things that are lovely.


The games are different than the ones at home.So if you find that you’re confused and frightenedDon’t panic: you can always tell a teacherIf you find that your playtime isn’t yummy.

It’s not like home at all. So do be carefulSome things are yummy. Some will make you frightened.But some are lovely. Listen to your teacher.

Wasps In Fact

I know the facts of the story.I was there as witness, of courseand more than that, one of the savedduring the slaying of the wasps.My father played the hero rolearmed with a spray can and ladder.

Not sturdy, it shook, the ladderas he climbed to the top story.I never questioned my dad’s role,the labor of knocking off courseany homesteading plans of wasps,nor doubted if I would be saved.

The nest was enormous; he savedit, carried it down the ladder,proof that the multitudes of waspsmatched the large claims of his story.The stings he received in the courseof battle also served this role.

He insisted they played no rolein making him sick, the stings, savedthat blame for the flu cutting coursethrough the city. That the ladderneeded fixing fit the storywell, too, but not illness from wasps.


Now it falls to me, fighting wasps.My children have filled my old role.I saw right through my dad’s storylong ago. The spin he used savedhis ego I thought. The ladderheld steady later on, of course.

Raising children has been a coursein hindsight relating to waspsand the sturdiness of ladders.Less a character trait than rolerequirement, dad’s bravado savedus from fear ; that’s now my story.

Over the course of time, the roleof wasps did not change; also saved:the ladder’s part in the story.


Appendix 4 - Blank form for writing sestinas

__________________________________________________ a__________________________________________________ b__________________________________________________ c__________________________________________________ d__________________________________________________ e__________________________________________________ f

__________________________________________________ f__________________________________________________ a__________________________________________________ e__________________________________________________ b__________________________________________________ d__________________________________________________ c

__________________________________________________ c__________________________________________________ f__________________________________________________ d__________________________________________________ a__________________________________________________ b__________________________________________________ e

__________________________________________________ e__________________________________________________ c__________________________________________________ b__________________________________________________ f__________________________________________________ a__________________________________________________ d


__________________________________________________ d__________________________________________________ e__________________________________________________ a__________________________________________________ c__________________________________________________ f__________________________________________________ b

__________________________________________________ b__________________________________________________ d__________________________________________________ f__________________________________________________ e__________________________________________________ c__________________________________________________ a

________________________________________________ b, e________________________________________________ d, c________________________________________________ f, a


Appendix 5 - Bruce Lansky Poems

What Bugs Me

When my teacher tells me to write a poem. When my mother tells me to clean up my room. When my sister practices her violin while I’m watching TV. When my father tells me to turn off the TV and do my homework. When my brother picks a fight with me and I have to go to bed early. When my teacher asks me to get up in front of the class and read the poem I wrote on the school bus.

My Noisy Brother

My brother’s such a noisy kid, when he eats soup he slurps. When he drinks milk he gargles. And after meals he burps. He cracks his knuckles when he’s bored. He whistles when he walks. He snaps his fingers when he sings. and when he’s mad he squawks. At night my brother snores so loud it sounds just like a riot. Even when he sleeps my noisy brother isn’t quiet.

Bruce Lansky


Appendix 6 - 50 Ways of Looking at a Sheep

50 Ways of Looking at a Sheep

Grass trimmerBleat giverField roamerRaisin dropperClumsy runnerRain soakerEar twitcherUnknitted jumper

Mindless muncherKnee knobblerAfro bobberClockwise chomperEye ballerHair crimperTime wasterNothing doer

Lip lickerJaw sliderHead tilterNever mooerPointless gazerPoem killerWriter taunterShow destroyer

Vacant starerLate night watcherWindow filler Dream invaderBenign dictatorKenning mockerArtist haterDeath requester


Early riserLonely walkerFlock removerError makerPoet approacherStroke receiverHand nuzzlePoison eater

Poison refuserAlarm sounderRam befreienderHorde gathererBottom biterPoet chaserLucky escaperNemesis maker.

Mark Grist

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Teaching Resources: Poetry Lesson Outlines