Primary Type: Lesson Plan
Status: Published
This is a resource from CPALMS (www.cpalms.org) where all educators go for bright ideas!
Resource ID#: 44791
Close Reading Poetry Analysis Lesson 2: Speaker,
Figurative Language, and Sound Devices
The goal of this lesson is that students will be able to analyze and interpret the way an author's style (use of poetic devices) develops tone and
theme in challenging grade-appropriate poetry. Close-reading skills culminate in an essay analyzing the way speaker's point of view, sound devices,
and figurative language contribute a poem's theme. A student handout with charts, text-marking codes, guiding questions, links to the poems and
video, an essay model, and an essay grading scale is provided.
Subject(s): English Language Arts
Grade Level(s): 11, 12
Intended Audience: Educators
Suggested Technology: Computer for Presenter,
Internet Connection, Overhead Projector,
Speakers/Headphones, Computer Media Player
Instructional Time: 2 Hour(s) 15 Minute(s)
Resource supports reading in content area: Yes
Freely Available: Yes
Keywords: close reading, analysis, poetry, poems, speaker, narrative point of view, sound devices, figurative
language, love, war, essay, text-marking, understatement, Death of the Ball Turret Gunner, I Am Not Yours,
Randall Jarrell, Sara Teasdale
Resource Collection: CPALMS Lesson Plan Development Initiative
ATTACHMENTS
PA2 Poetry Devices Quiz.docx
PA2 Student Handout.docx
PA2 Teasdale Model.docx
LESSON CONTENT
Lesson Plan Template: General Lesson Plan
Learning Objectives: What should students know and be able to do as a result of this lesson?
Students will be able to identify an author's stylistic choices (poetic devices) in a poem such as speaker's point of view, figurative language, and sound devices.
Students will be able to determine the tone and theme of a poem by providing text-based evidence.
Students will be able to write to explain the way an author's language choices function to develop a theme and contribute to the essential message of a poem.
Prior Knowledge: What prior knowledge should students have for this lesson?
Giving the Poetry Devices Quiz per directions in the "Formative Assessment" box serves as a review of poetry devices if teacher feels his or her particular students
need to review before moving on to this lesson #2 of 3.
Teaching the lesson entitled "Close Reading Poetry Analysis Lesson 1: Speaker, Figurative Language, & Sound Devices" is recommended to prepare students for
this lesson #2 of 3. Reviewing the summative writing assessment in lesson #1 will prepare students for the summative writing assessment in this lesson #2.
Guiding Questions: What are the guiding questions for this lesson?
All of the questions below are provided on the Student Handout.
Opening Essential Question:
page 1 of 6 What does the phrase, "All's fair in love and war" mean? Do you agree with this phrase? Explain. Teacher should read in advance: Explanation of Phrase.
Jarrell Poem Before Reading: "What do you think a ball turret gunner is?" If you don't know, take a guess. After Viewing: In what ways is the ball turret gunner like a baby in the
womb? Give two characteristics they share. (This is a guiding question to help students recognize the controlling metaphor of the Jarrell poem.)
Teasdale Poem Before Reading: "What is love? Explain your answer." After Reading: "What kind of love is this poem describing? Provide a text-based reason from the poem." (This is
a guiding question to help students recognize the importance of the similes in the Teasdale poem.)
Revisit Essential Question:
Choose one question to answer and provide support.
Do you think Jarrell would agree that "all fair in war"? Explain your answer.
Do you think that Teasdale would agree that "all's fair in love"? Explain your answer.
Teaching Phase: How will the teacher present the concept or skill to students?
Before starting "Teaching Phase" Follow steps 1 & and/or 2 under "Beginning of Lesson Formative Assessment" section before starting the teaching phase.
Teaching Phase 1. Tell students you will now analyze speaker, figurative language, and sound devices in a single poem and determine how they combine to develop a theme.
2. Pass out Student Handout, and tell students they will be answering all of the questions in the spaces provided on the handout.
3. Ask students to raise their hands if they have ever heard the phrase, "All's fair in love and war."(Please read this before teaching class: Explanation of Phrase.)
Then say, "Think about it for a moment, and complete a 1-2 minute free write on your handout in which you reflect on what the phrase might mean."Discuss as a
whole class and explain the meaning of the phrase. Tell them that this question ties the two poems they are about to read together as one is about war, and the other
is about love.
4. Then in the space provided on the Student Handout have students respond to the guiding question on the Jarrell poem. Allow a 1-minute free-write period for
students to answer.
5. Show the video of ball turret gunner found here: Ball Turret Gunner Video Link. Allow students to correct their answers to the guiding question after viewing and
discussing.
6. Afterward, ask students to answer the after-viewing question in the space provided in a 1-2 minute free-write period.
7. Call on three or four students to share out, and make a list of the responses on the board. Possible answers are:
the turret is under an airplane like a baby is under a mother's belly.
a baby is curled up tightly in a ball in the mother's womb in the same position as a ball turret gunner.
a baby shifts and rolls around within a mother's womb.
Explain to students before reading the poem that the controlling metaphor compares an unborn infant to a ball turret gunner.
8. Hand out a copy of poem "Death of the Ball Turret Gunner" by Randall Jarrell.
9. Explain the text marking code provided on the Student Handout. Review the terms euphony, cacophony, and metaphor. If needed do a quick review of the list on the
board noting ways a ball turret gunner is like a baby in the womb.Model text marking using these examples:
Have students underline "my mother's sleep" as it refers to the speaker's mother and is a birth reference.
Have students circle "fur froze" explaining it is not only alliteration but is cacophony (sounds like the cold it describes, mimics a speaking shiver).
10. Read the Jarrell poem aloud twice so students may text mark on their own.
11. Put students in pairs, and have them compare their text marking. Tell them they may debate their marking and make revisions. Allow 3 minutes.
12. Direct students to look at the Jarrell Model Essay on page three of the handout. Explain that this is an actual student essay response to the prompt at the top of the
page.
13.While students are still in partners, ask them to collaborate to complete the chart on page two as they carefully analyze what the student included in his/her essay.
They may have the same answers but must each complete a chart of their own.
*TEACHER EXPLANATION: In this reverse activity, student teams complete the chart from the essay. Doing this shows students how the chart functions as an
analytical tool to break down the thought process of the essay writer and shows how the essay author interpreted and analyzed the devices, connected them to the
theme, and then wrote the essay. In this activity, the information from the finished essay is simply transferred onto the boxes labeled on the chart.
As a sample entry, guide students in filling in the speaker's point of view section. (LAFS.1112.RL.2.6) Explain how the point of view is ironic, and the way in which
the matter-of-fact tone (understatement) of the final line contrasts with the horror of the words themselves. It's a contradiction, ironic, that the speaker is speaking
after he is already dead.
14. Tell students in advance that teams will be randomly chosen to share a section, so they must fill in all of the Jarrell chart.
15. Circulate from team to team listening to discussions, clarifying, challenging, and correcting misunderstandings on the spot.
16. Choose three groups, one to share each section. Allow the rest of the class to recommend additions or deletions, but require them to provide an explanation and
to reference the sample student essay. Allow discussion and whole-class collaboration. (Keep track of teams who share, and choose different teams to share answers
on the Teasdale chart.)
17. After discussing answers, point out to the class that in order for the student to write the essay, (s)he had to first identify the poetry devices and determine how
they function using the chart. Show students how the essay writer used the chart to help develop a logical organizational structure for the essay.
page 2 of 6 Guided Practice: What activities or exercises will the students complete with teacher guidance?
Before starting Guided Practice, have students work alone during the beginning steps below.
1. Tell students they will now move on to another poem, but this time they will first be completing a chart based on a new poem and will be writing their own
analytical essay.
2. Hand out a copy of "I Am Not Yours" by Sara Teasdale.
3. In the space provided on the Student Handout, ask students to answer the guiding question in a 1-2 minute free-write period.
4. Choose two or three students to respond. Generate a bullet list of different kinds of love. Lead a short discussion about the multiple definitions people have of love,
and point out that there are many different kinds of love and that people expect different things from their partners.
5. Explain the text marking code provided on the Student Handout. Review the term simile. Model text marking using this example:
Underline the simile "lost as a candle lit at noon" explaining how a flame on a candle would disappear in the peak of daylight.
Circle the euphony in only the first and second "lost," and explain the pleasant soft sound of the "s" and the "l" as they are used here.
6. Read the poem aloud twice so students may text mark on their own.
7. Put students in pairs, and have them compare their text marking. Tell them they may debate their marking and make revisions. Allow 3 minutes.
8. Afterward, ask students to answer the after-reading question in the space provided on the Student Handout in a 1-2 minute free-write period.
9. Call on three or four students to share out, and make a list on the board near the first set of answers. Possible answers are:
this love is obsessive based on the repetition of some of the words.
the speaker is not very assertive or a strong individual as he or she seems to want to disappear evidenced by the very first simile.
Point out that in the Teasdale poem the sound devices, similes, and metaphor play an important role in this poem.
10. Now ask students to work with the same partner and complete the analysis chart using the Teasdale poem. Remind them they will be analyzing the poem using
the chart in preparation to write an essay like the sample student essay on the Jarrell poem.
11. Circulate from team to team listening to discussions, clarifying, challenging, and correcting misunderstandings on the spot. Give them about 15 minutes.
12. Choose teams who have not previously shared to share a section after most groups have finished all three sections. Allow the rest of the class to recommend
additions or deletions, but require them to explain and to refer to poem.
13. Collect Teasdale charts and provide feedback per the Feedback to Students section.
14. The next day return Student Handout with comments on their Teasdale chart. See Feedback to Students section.
15. Do the First Closure Activity explained in the Closure box below.
16. Draw students' attention to the model student essay on the Jarrell poem on page three of the Student Handout, and illustrate on the overhead how the exemplar
student essay would be graded using the grading scale on page five of the Student Handout.
Independent Practice: What activities or exercises will students complete to reinforce the concepts and skills developed in the
lesson?
1. The next day, tell students they may use their Teasdale chart, the grading scale, and the sample Jarrell essay to to help write their timed 45-minute essay rough
draft.
Direct students to put their student numbers on their essay rather than their name to allow for anonymous peer comments later on.
2. After students complete the peer feedback activity explained in the Second Closure Activity in the Closure box below, they will independently type a final draft of
their essay for teacher grading--this is the summative assessment.
Closure: How will the teacher assist students in organizing the knowledge gained in the lesson?
FIRST CLOSURE ACTIVITY--After completing charts and reading assignments, but before writing the rough draft: (see Guided Practice box #13
above)
1. Ask students to look back at their answers to the Essential Question: What does the phrase, "'All's fair in love and war' mean?" from the beginning of this lesson.
Clarify the meaning before moving on: Explanation of Phrase.
2. Then ask students to respond to the Revisit Essential Question on page one of the Student Handout. Have students answer in a well-formed paragraph including a
direct answer to the question, a claim, and apt text-related evidence to support their claim.
3. Provide 5 minutes for them to write. Ask student volunteers to share out, and lead a short class discussion on the two poems.
SECOND CLOSURE ACTIVITY--After writing the rough draft:
1. Project the Teasdale Model Essay on the overhead, and model how to score it by writing and commenting on a copy of the scoring rubric.
2. After asking students to attach the grading scale to their essay, collect them, and randomly pass them out to students. Remember to have students write
student numbers rather than names on essay and grading scale for anonymity during peer responses.
3. Direct students to score and make specific and concrete comments on the grading scale in the "peer section" like the teacher modeled using the Teasdale Model
Essay.
4. Ask students to put the peer essay on the floor in the front of the room when they finish.
5. Students will find their own essay after a peer has responded, and then complete a self-score and comments.
6. For homework, students will type the final draft, attach the first draft and grading scale to the final draft, and turn in the following day for teacher grading.
Summative Assessment
The summative assessment (provided on page five of the Student Handout) is a poetry analysis essay.
page 3 of 6 PROMPT: Write a well-developed essay analyzing how figurative language, sound devices, and speaker's voice contribute to the meaning of the poem.
Students will achieve at least a 2 out of 4 on the grading scale provided (4=A, 3=B, 2=C).
Formative Assessment
Beginning of Lesson Formative Assessment Options:
1) Give Poetry Devices Quiz to determine student knowledge of poetry devices.
AND/OR
2) Return the graded paragraphs from the previous lesson entitled "Close Reading Poetry analysis Lesson 1: Speaker, Figurative Language, & Sound Devices" in this
series of three. Review exemplar student paragraphs on the overhead utilizing the paragraph grading scale provided in the previous lesson.
During the Lesson Formative Assessment:
1. The Jarrell and Teasdale charts are formative assessment tools.
2. The essay rough draft is formative assessment to prepare for the summative final draft.
Feedback to Students
Beginning of Lesson Formative Assessment Feedback:
1. Have students take the Poetry Devices Quiz in pen and grade their own quizzes with a colored pen or pencil while you elicit answers from the class--checking them
as a group in a discussion format. Be sure to ask students who share their answers to explain WHY the answer they gave is correct, particularly with the questions
that have examples rather than definitions as the correct answer. Clarify and explain on-the-spot if students have questions about their incorrect answers.
AND/OR
2. Students will review the summative assessment paragraphs from lesson 1 (in this series of 3) which had been previously graded by the teacher using the provided
paragraph scale. Students will have a score and comments to review and self-reflect.
Project exemplars on overhead, constructively critique, and discuss in a whole-class collaborative format. Ask students to justify why the model paragraph earned
an excellent score using the paragraph grading scale provided with that lesson. This will serve as a self-reflection on their previous writing and prepare them for
the summative writing requirement in this lesson.
During the Lesson Formative Assessment Feedback:
1. While students are completing the charts on each of the two poems, teacher will circulate from team to team and monitor student understanding and listen to
discussion and debate among teams on the elements and analysis they include. Teacher will encourage students to argue and explain their choices providing relevant
evidence from the text. He/she will clarify any misreadings or misconceptions as well.
2. Student teams will be chosen to share an assigned section of their charts on the overhead resulting in oral feedback from teacher as well as the whole class in a
discussion format. Students may correct and revise chart entries during these times.
3. Teacher will collect the Teasdale chart at the end of class, and provide at least one positive comment and one corrective comment. Encourage students to ask
questions about teacher notes on the charts after returning them the next day and before moving on.
While checking Teasdale charts keep a log of misconceptions and clarifications that pertain to a majority of students, and provide a mini-lesson at the beginning of
the next class period. An example mini-lesson is to identify one or two commonly unnoticed but important devices, explain them, and ask all of the students to add
to their charts.
4. Students will receive peer feedback on essay rough drafts before writing the final draft.
5. Student-requested conferences can be suggested and recommended to allow furthermore teacher support before students write final draft.
ACCOMMODATIONS & RECOMMENDATIONS
Accommodations:
1. Although the text-marking directions call for circles and underlines, text marking with colored highlighters is an optional strategy to help struggling students visualize
more effectively while reading.
2. Special needs students will be provided with the option of a one-on-one teacher conference to get oral feedback before or after school between writing the essay
rough draft and final draft.
3. Extra time for writing the essay will be afforded to students identified as needing that accommodation.
Extensions:
Students will independently research an additional poem on the topic of love or war by a notable poet and write an analytical essay using the steps and strategies
practiced in this lesson.
Suggested Technology: Computer for Presenter, Internet Connection, Overhead Projector, Speakers/Headphones, Computer Media Player
Special Materials Needed:
Copy "PA2PoetryDevicesQuiz" for each student if using as a formative assessment tool. Page two is the answer key.
Copy "PA2Student Handout" for each student. The model Jarrell is included on handout.
Copy "PA2TeasdaleModel" to project on overhead.
page 4 of 6 Copy "Death of the Ball Turret Gunner" by Randall Jarrell for each student Jarrell Poem.
Copy "I Am Not Yours" by Sara Teasdale for each student Teasdale Poem.
Access and read in advance Explanation of Phrase: "All's fair in love and war."
Computer and projector with sound to show video explaining a ball turret gunner.
Additional Information/Instructions
By Author/Submitter
This is second in a series of three lessons. Doing them in consecutive order would be recommended but not required. The other lessons have been attached as related
CPALMS resources and are listed below.
The first lesson is titled "Close Reading Poetry Analysis Lesson 1: Speaker, Figurative Language, and Sound Devices" (ID 40022)
The third lesson is titled "Comparative Close Reading Poetry Analysis: 'All that lives must die...' - Shakespeare" (ID 37200)
SOURCE AND ACCESS INFORMATION
Contributed by: Deborah Stefanides
Name of Author/Source: Deborah Stefanides
District/Organization of Contributor(s): St. Johns
Is this Resource freely Available? Yes
Access Privileges: Public
License: CPALMS License - no distribution - non commercial
Related Standards
Name
LAFS.1112.L.1.2:
LAFS.1112.L.3.5:
LAFS.1112.RL.1.1:
LAFS.1112.RL.2.4:
LAFS.1112.RL.2.6:
LAFS.1112.W.1.2:
LAFS.1112.W.2.4:
LAFS.1112.W.2.5:
LAFS.1112.W.4.10:
Description
Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English capitalization, punctuation, and spelling when writing.
a. Observe hyphenation conventions.
b. Spell correctly.
Demonstrate understanding of figurative language, word relationships, and nuances in word meanings.
a. Interpret figures of speech (e.g., hyperbole, paradox) in context and analyze their role in the text.
b. Analyze nuances in the meaning of words with similar denotations.
Cite strong and thorough textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences
drawn from the text, including determining where the text leaves matters uncertain.
Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in the text, including figurative and connotative
meanings; analyze the impact of specific word choices on meaning and tone, including words with multiple meanings or
language that is particularly fresh, engaging, or beautiful. (Include Shakespeare as well as other authors.)
Analyze a case in which grasping a point of view requires distinguishing what is directly stated in a text from what is
really meant (e.g., satire, sarcasm, irony, or understatement).
Write informative/explanatory texts to examine and convey complex ideas, concepts, and information clearly and
accurately through the effective selection, organization, and analysis of content.
a. Introduce a topic; organize complex ideas, concepts, and information so that each new element builds on that
which precedes it to create a unified whole; include formatting (e.g., headings), graphics (e.g., figures, tables), and
multimedia when useful to aiding comprehension.
b. Develop the topic thoroughly by selecting the most significant and relevant facts, extended definitions, concrete
details, quotations, or other information and examples appropriate to the audience’s knowledge of the topic.
c. Use appropriate and varied transitions and syntax to link the major sections of the text, create cohesion, and
clarify the relationships among complex ideas and concepts.
d. Use precise language, domain-specific vocabulary, and techniques such as metaphor, simile, and analogy to
manage the complexity of the topic.
e. Establish and maintain a formal style and objective tone while attending to the norms and conventions of the
discipline in which they are writing.
f. Provide a concluding statement or section that follows from and supports the information or explanation presented
(e.g., articulating implications or the significance of the topic).
Produce clear and coherent writing in which the development, organization, and style are appropriate to task, purpose,
and audience. (Grade­specific expectations for writing types are defined in standards 1–3 above.)
Develop and strengthen writing as needed by planning, revising, editing, rewriting, or trying a new approach, focusing
on addressing what is most significant for a specific purpose and audience.
Write routinely over extended time frames (time for research, reflection, and revision) and shorter time frames (a
single sitting or a day or two) for a range of tasks, purposes, and audiences.
Attached Resources
Lesson Plan
Name
Description
The goal of this lesson is that students will be able to identify and analyze speaker's point-of-view, figurative language,
page 5 of 6 Close Reading Poetry Analysis
Lesson 1: Speaker, Figurative
Language, and Sound
Devices:
and sound devices, and the way each functions and contributes to a poem's theme. Close reading skills applied to
three different poems culminate in writing three independent analytical paragraphs. Two handouts are provided--one
for students with graphic organizers and a rubric and the other an answer key. A readers' theater activity is included
as part of the oral reading of the poems, multiple guiding questions including mark-up codes are also provided to allow
for a thorough close reading of the three poems before writing.
The goal of this lesson is that students will be able to analyze and interpret the ways in which an author's style (use
Comparative Close Reading
of poetic devices) develops tone and theme in challenging grade-appropriate poetry. Close-reading skills culminate in a
Poetry Analysis: "All that lives compare/contrast essay analyzing how two poets express a similar theme. The student handout with all of the
must die..." - Shakespeare: activities and questions, links to the poems, and a compare/contrast essay model is provided.
page 6 of 6