Lesson video

Hello everyone, my name is Mr. Brown, and I am here with your English Lesson for today, and we are going to be writing a kenning poem, a kenning poem about big and small objects.

So today's lesson, you will learn about what a kenning is, what a kenning poem consists of, and how you can write your own one.

So lots to do today.

Let's get started.

The outcome for today's lesson is, "I can understand what a kenning poem is and how to write one." The keywords we have are kennings and riddle.

So let's say those together.

My turn, then your turn.

Kennings.

Riddle.

Fabulous, now, a kenning, kennings are phrases of two words that replace a noun and are often used in poetry.

A riddle is a type of poem that works like a puzzle.

Today we will start by understanding what a kenning poem is and then move on to writing a kenning poem.

Let's start today's lesson with a game called, Mystery Object.

Hope you're ready to play.

Your job is to work out what the mystery object is that's being described.

Let's start with an easy one.

This object is round, bouncy, and fun to kick, throw and catch.

What's the mystery object? You can pause the video if you need to.

If not, you can tell me, what do you think? Okay, let's see if you're right.

This object is round, bouncy, and fun to kick, throw and catch.

It is of course a ball, well done, if you said a ball.

A ball is the mystery object.

Let's try one that's a little bit harder.

This object has a face and hands, but can't clap.

What is the mystery object? Has a face and hands, but can't clap.

What do we know that has a face and hands, but it can't clap? It can't maybe move its hands? Ooh, I think I know.

Do you have an idea? Well done, if you said a clock.

A clock has a face, a clock face, and has hands, they move around the clock to tell us what the time is.

But of course, they can't clap.

It's a clock.

Let's try another one, shall we? This is a really tricky one.

This object has lots of black and white keys, but none of them open any locks.

So the object has lots of black and white keys, but none of them can open any locks.

What is the mystery object? Pause the video if you need to, you may need to discuss with a partner.

What do you think? Well done if you said a piano.

Of course, a piano has lots of keys and they are black and white, but none of those keys are like keys to open a lock.

So these were riddles.

In this game, you were reading riddles and using the clues to work out what the objects were.

Now, riddles work like puzzles.

They describe something without saying directly what it is.

Sometimes they can also use words with double meanings, like keys for example.

We know there are keys on the piano, but there's also a key we use to open a lock.

They are fun to read, they make you think and can be an interesting challenge for yourself.

Let's check your understanding.

What object is this riddle describing? This object is always on the table at dinnertime, but you never eat it.

Is it a shoe, a sausage, or a plate? This object is always on the table at dinnertime, but you never eat it.

What is it? A shoe, a sausage or a plate? Pause the video and decide now.

Welcome back.

So let's have a look through our options.

A, a shoe.

Is a shoe ever on the table at dinner time? I don't think so.

It's not A.

B, a sausage.

Now a sausage might be something that you have for dinner, but it wouldn't always be on the table at dinnertime.

And in our riddle it says, "But you never eat it." And of course, if a sausage was on our plate, we would eat it.

So it's not B, it is C.

Well done, if you said C, a plate, A plate is always on the table at dinnertime, because that's what we put our food on.

But do we eat the plate? Absolutely not.

Well done, if you managed to solve this riddle.

Let's play the Mystery Object game again.

But this time the riddle will look a little different.

Can you work out what object is being described here? Round-bouncer, goal-seeker, smile-maker, game-changer.

It's a ball, a game.

So it's a ball.

But this time the riddle looked quite different, didn't it? Round-bouncer.

Well, yeah, it is round and it bounces.

Goal-seeker.

Yeah, the ball is seeking out the goal in a game of football.

Smile-maker.

Absolutely, a ball can make us smile as we are playing with, it's fun.

And game-changer.

So the ball changes the game, whether you're playing football or basketball or tennis.

The ball is what changes the game.

Let's have a look at another one.

What mystery object is being described here? Mouse-chaser, window-watcher, lap-warmer, gentle-purrer.

Hmm, you might want to pause the video to be able to have a discussion about what object you think is being described.

Let's see if you are right.

Well, well done, if you said a cat.

Of course, a cat is a mouse-chaser.

Chases mice.

Window watcher.

Cats like to sit in the window, don't they, looking outside.

Lap-warmer.

Yeah, a cat would sit on your lap and warm your lap.

And gentle-purrer.

Cats do like to gently purr.

Now, you may not be aware of this, but in this version of the game, you were reading kenning poems. Kenning poems are just like riddles and they hint at the subject of a poem, rather than telling the reader.

This means that the reader has to use the clues in the poem to work out what the poem is about.

Just like a riddle.

Kenning poems are there to be enjoyed and for the readers to have fun while trying to work out what each kenning is about.

Let me check your understanding.

Kenning poems are like, which of these? A, jokes, B, riddles, C, song lyrics.

Kenning poems are like which of these, A, B, or C? Pause the video and decide now.

Welcome back, let's see if you're right.

So kenning poems are like, which of these? Well, they are like riddles, B.

They are like riddles because they do not tell the reader exactly what is being described.

The reader has to kind of challenge themselves and work to work it out.

So we know what kenning poems are, but what is a kenning? A kenning is a two word phrase that can be used to replace a noun, and they're often used in poetry.

For example, instead of using the noun dog, we can call the dog a tail-wagger or ball-chaser.

These are kennings.

Kennings are created by putting two words together to make a noun phrase.

The second word in the noun phrase often ends with a suffix, -er, E-R, -er.

The two words are often joined by a hyphen.

For example, the words mouse and chaser can be joined together with a hyphen to make the noun phrase mouse-chaser.

The phrase can be used as a noun to refer to something or someone which commonly chases mice.

Let's check your understanding.

Which of these is a correctly written kenning about a tree? Is it A, leaf-holder, B, rain catcher, or C roots-branches? Which of these are the correctly written kenning about a tree? Pause the video and decide now.

Welcome back, so let's have a look.

Now, roots and branches, C.

Well, that can't be a kenning because the second word doesn't end with a suffix -er.

So let's rule out C.

Now we are left with A and B, leaf-holder, rain catcher.

One of these has a hyphen in between and one doesn't.

Now we said that kennings often do have hyphens in between.

So A is the right answer.

Leaf-holder is a correctly written kenning about a tree.

A kenning poem consists simply of a list of kennings.

Each one is referring to the same thing.

There is no set length.

Each kenning starts a new line and often has a capital letter, but no commas or full stops are used.

For example, morning-bringer, day-starter, light-giver, warmth-bringer.

Hmm, what do you think that kenning poem could be about? Morning-bringer, day-starter, light-giver.

What gives out light? Warmth-bringer, what brings warmth, gives light, starts your day? Ah, of course, it is the sun.

Well done, if you said the sun.

Time for a Task.

Let's read two kenning poems. Try to work out what is being described in each.

After you've read them, spend some time discussing what you enjoyed about the poems with your partner.

Was there one you preferred? If so, why? Here are your two poems. I will read you them one at a time.

The first one, wave-rippler, sand-tickler, ship-guider, sunshine-catcher, seaweed-dancer.

And the next one, star-chaser, galaxy-explorer, astronaut-transporter, planet-hopper, fuel-guzzler.

Okay, over to you.

Pause the video and discuss these two kenning poems. Can you work out what is being described in each? Did you like them? Which one did you prefer and why? Have that discussion with your partner now.

Welcome back everyone.

How did your discussions go? Let's see what the answers were.

Let's see how you might have got on.

So we had wave-rippler, sand-tickler, ship-guider, sunshine-catcher, seaweed-dancer.

This person thinks, "I think the poem is about the sea.

I loved how it described the sea as tickling the sand and made me imagine waves tickling a beach playfully." Yes, it is about the sea.

Well done, if you said the sea.

How about this one? Star-chaser, galaxy-explorer, astronaut-transporter, planet-hopper, fuel-guzzler.

"I think this poem is about a rocket and I can picture it shooting through space." Yeah, shooting through space, transporting astronauts, exploring galaxies, hopping from planet to planet.

Well done, if you said a rocket.

Let's move on to writing a kenning poem.

Now we know about kennings, we are going to write a kenning poem ourselves.

Deciding what to write your kenning poem about is the first step to take.

Kennings can be about anything, but for this unit, we are focusing on writing poems about big and small objects.

I will now generate a list of big objects that I could use to write my kenning poem about.

We want the subject to be interesting to describe and something everyone will be familiar with.

For example, the sun, the sea, a rocket, a mountain, a skyscraper, a tree, a cloud, a football stadium.

These are all excellent ideas to use to write a kenning poem about.

This person thinks, "I think a skyscraper could be a great topic for a kenning poem because they're so tall and in every city around the world." Now it's over to you.

I would like you to write a list of small objects that we could write a kenning poem about.

And remember, these objects should be interesting to describe and something everyone will be familiar with.

So give me a list of small objects that we could write our kenning poems about.

Pause the video and write this list now.

Welcome back, I'm intrigued to see your list.

Have a look at mine, a pebble, an old coin, a key, a feather, a toy car, a seashell.

These could all be things that you could write a kenning poem about.

And these are all small objects.

Look through your lists and choose one object, big or small to write your kenning poem about.

It should be an object that you feel passionate to describe.

It has to be something you are interested in and want to write a poem about.

For my kenning poem, I'm going to use the following object to write about.

I'm going to use a seashell.

If you haven't already, choose your object now.

Let's generate ideas for writing kennings about seashells.

First, we need to think of all the ideas we associate with seashells.

So when I say to you, "Seashells," what do you think of? So I think of something that moves around the ocean.

It doesn't stay in one place.

A seashell is constantly being moved by the waves around.

It's found on the beach.

So it's something that we as humans, would find on a beach.

You can hear the sea inside a seashell.

I dunno if you've ever done this.

If you hold a seashell to your ear, it's like you can almost hear the sea.

Waves wash them onto the beach.

That's how they're transported onto the beach.

They are the home for a crab.

So sometimes crabs live in shells.

And they are used on a necklace.

So now it's my turn to write a kenning poem about a seashell.

Let's have a look at what I've come up with.

Wave-rider, beach-sleeper sun-bather, sea-whisperer, ocean-roamer.

But I need your help.

I want you to check that I have written my kenning poem correctly.

Now we know a kenning poem consists of two words.

A kenning rather consists of two words joined to make a noun phrase.

The second word in the phrase, often ends with the suffix -er, E-R.

Now all of my kennings that I've written are two words.

They have a hyphen joining them, and the second word ends in a suffix -er, great.

A kenning poem consists of a list of kennings.

There is no rule to the length of a kenning poem and no commas or full stops are used, which I have done that all correctly, great.

Now it's your turn.

I would like you to write your own kenning poem about a big or small object.

Use your knowledge of kennings and how to write kenning poems to guide you.

Once you've finished, read your poem to a partner to see if they can work out what object your poem is about.

Do you remember at the start of this lesson, we talked about riddles? Well, kenning poems are like riddles.

So read your kenning poem to your partner to see if they can work out the riddle.

And finally, ask your partner to tell you which was their favourite kenning from the poem, and explain why.

So three tasks for you to do.

Over to you.

Pause the video and have a go at these tasks now.

Welcome back, let's have a look at how you got on.

So here is an example of a kenning poem, door-opener, lock-whisperer, secret-revealer, mystery-unraveller, friend-connector.

Hmm, what do you think that kenning poem is about? "I think this poem is about a key.

My favourite kenning is lock-whisperer, because I like the image of a key whispering to a lock to get it to open." I really liked that kenning.

Let's have a look at another kenning poem.

Sky-floater, wind-dancer, rain-carrier, sun-hider.

What do you think that kenning poem it's about? Let's have a look at an example answer.

"I think this poem is about a cloud.

My favourite kenning is wind-dancer, because I like the idea of the clouds dancing through the sky as they are pushed by the wind." Fabulous, and I'm sure your kenning poem was excellent and a really interesting riddle for your partner to solve.

Let's summarise the learning we've done today.

A kenning is a two word phrase that can be used in place of a noun.

A kenning poem is a poem consisting of a list of kennings.

A kenning poem is like a riddle, and the reader can work out what the poem is about.

Brilliant work, today.

I am sure you wrote a fantastic kenning poem, and that's now a skill and a knowledge about kenning poems that you can use to be able to write kennings in the future too.

I'll see you again very soon.