Sponsored Educational Materials Teacher Lesson Plan 2
3 Read the poem out loud Objectives: once to model fluent reading, • summarize a poem then have students read the • determine the theme poem out loud to a partner. of a poem 4 Explain that understanding Materials: What Does what happens in the poem This Poem Mean? Student is the first step in analyzing Worksheet, teacher-selected poetry. As a class, paraphrase poem for class analysis the poem, either by Possible poems: assigning each stanza to a • “Life Doesn’t Frighten Me” small group of students or by Maya Angelou by completing a think-aloud • “Your World” by Georgia as a whole class. Douglas Johnson 5 If necessary, stop to define Time: one 40-minute class any terms in the poem that period are unfamiliar to students. Essential Question: How does 6 Point out that 8 Have students complete analyzing a poem help us to understanding the feeling the What Does This Poem understand it better? of the poem is an important Mean? Student Worksheet step in analyzing it. Reread to apply these skills to a the poem, focusing on the new poem. question “What type of feeling or mood does this Lesson Steps: poem have?” Use think-pair- Express Yourself share to collect students’ Poetry Contest Explain to students that ideas. Invite students to circle 1 Your students could win a poetry is a way that writers the words or punctuation $400 Scholastic Gift Card OR an express themselves. We marks that helped create the American Girl® 2017 Girl of the often understand poetry mood of the poem. Year TM GabrielaTM Collection— better if we read or hear it plus, you receive a $100 Amex several times and analyze 7 Reread the poem, focusing Gift Card! it, or look closely at the on the question “What Visit scholastic.com meaning. message is this poem /poetryismypower sending?” Use think-pair- 2 Display the selected share to collect students’ poem, either written on ideas, and mark the words Made possible by: chart paper or projected and phrases that support on a screen. the theme.
NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. Void where prohibited. The Express Yourself Poetry Contest (the “Contest”) is open to students in grades 3–5 who are enrolled in public schools, accredited private schools, or home schools in compliance with the laws of the students’ primary state of residence (“Schools”) and who are legal residents of the 50 United States or the District of Columbia (hereinafter referred to as “Student” or “Students”). Entries must be submitted on behalf of the students by teachers of any grade from 3–5, who currently teach in public schools, accredited private schools, or home schools in compliance with the laws of their primary state of residence, or parents or legal guardians. Official Rules at scholastic.com/poetryismypower. SCHOLASTIC and associated logos are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of Scholastic Inc. All rights reserved. trademarks of Scholastic Inc. All rights reserved. trademarks and/or registered SCHOLASTIC and associated logos are American Girl. owned by and used under license from American Girl and associated trademarks are © 2017 American Girl. All rights reserved. STUDENT WORKSHEET Name WHAT DOES THIS Poem MEAN?
Emily Dickinson (1830–1886) was an American writer who used poetry to express herself. Read her poem “Autumn” and answer the questions about the meaning of the poem.
“Autumn” by Emily Dickinson
The morns are meeker than they were, The nuts are getting brown; The berry’s cheek is plumper, The rose is out of town. The maple wears a gayer scarf, The field ascarlet gown. Lest I should be old-fashioned, I’ll put a trinket on.
1 Read the poem one time. What happens in this poem?
2 Read the poem again. Circle three descriptive words. What moods or feelings do these words give the poem?
3 Read the poem one more time. Put a star next to two details that gave you a clue about the person speaking. What do these clues tell you about the speaker and what she is speaking about?
4 What do you think is the message or theme of the poem? Why?