Lesson video

Hello, I'm Miss Chu, and in today's lesson we're going to be performing poems written by John Lyons.

How exciting.

I know that you are desperate to get started.

So let's get going.

Today's lesson outcome is: I can perform poems written by the poet John Lyons.

The key words are, my turn, your turn: tone, voice, facial expressions.

Wonderfully said.

Tone refers to the emotion expressed by the poet towards the reader, enhancing the mood or atmosphere of the poem.

Voice is the sound produced through the mouth as speech or song.

Facial expressions are a form of nonverbal communication communicated via the face to convey a range of emotions.

Performing poems written by the poet John Lyons is split into two parts, first preparing to perform and then performing a poem.

So let's start preparing.

"Dancing in the Rain" by John Lyons is our focus poetry collection.

Lyons' poems often use lyrical language, which means that they sound like songs, and they are humorous.

He creates vivid images in his poetry and he draws on his memories and emotions.

John Lyons draws on his childhood in Trinidad and Tobago and the traditions of carnival.

We need to consider these things when performing: tone and meaning; our voice, so that means varying the volume, pitch, pace, rhythm, expression, and intonation, that means how we go up and down with our voice; and we need to use facial expressions; and finally, body movements, actions and gestures.

Tone is the overall mood, style, or feeling that a poem evokes.

The tone of a poem can be inferred by the reader.

Inferred, your turn.

Well done.

What does inferred mean? Or what does inference mean? Well, inference is about working something out, a bit like a detective, from evidence and reasoning in a poem, it's not from the literal explanation.

So in the poem it might not say it's hot and it's humid, but you can work out by what the poet has described.

This is how the word infer is used in a sentence, get ready: I can infer that John Lyons had a positive memory of his childhood from his poetry.

So it's about working something out.

Which of the following has the same meaning as tone in poetry? Is it facial expressions, the mood or the feeling, or is it body movements? Pause the video and have a think.

Okay, get ready to point with me in three, two, one.

It is the mood and feeling of a poem.

Well done.

Let's now read "Granny's Sugarcake" by John Lyons.

Are you ready? "Granny's Sugarcake." (Miss Chu speaking in Trinidadian Creole) Now I would like you to watch John Lyons read "Granny's Sugarcake." Enjoy.

<v ->"Granny's Sugarcake."</v> Now, sugar cake is something I loved when I was a child.

And I was always there when she was making the sugar cake because when you grated the coconut, you have to grate the coconut to mix it okay.

You got to the tiny bits where you can't grate anymore, and that was the bits I was waiting for.

I used to eat those little bits.

And it brings it all back to me.

I mean to say this is what poetry is all about, because it's about memory, it's also about observation; it's fun.

"Granny's Sugarcake." (John speaking in Trinidadian Creole) <v ->Let's do a quick check.

</v> Do you know what the tone of the poem is? How would you represent the tone in your performance if you were going to read "Granny's Sugarcake" to an audience? Pause the video and have a think about those two questions.

Well, I think the tone of the poem gives a sense of happiness, excitement, and fondness.

And we see that through the way he repeats, "Sugarcake! Sugarcake!" and has an exclamation at the end of that, which shows he's so excited to receive the sugar cake that his granny is about to make.

How would I represent the tone in my performance? Hmm.

Well, I'd have to show excitement, so I perform it in a really happy and uplifting way so that the audience can get my sense of excitement and happiness.

Now I'm going to read "Happy Hummingbird Food" by John Lyons.

Are you ready? "Happy Hummingbird Food." "Hummingbird, hummingbird, humming a tune, happy in June, when flowers and roses bloom, sipping nectar, it's favourite food, loved also by bees.

They both enjoy it with a natural ease." Did you like that one? I'd like you now to watch John Lyons read "Happy Hummingbird Food." Enjoy.

<v ->"Happy Hummingbird Food."</v> Now, the introduction, introducing this particular poem, I have to tell you of my experience of actually really enjoy seeing a hummingbird having his food on my grandmother's hedge in Tobago where there are a lot of hibiscus flowers.

And I took a long time just standing looking at them.

Right.

So here we go.

"Happy Hummingbird Food." "Hummingbird, hummingbird, humming a tune, happy in June, when flowers and roses bloom, sipping nectar, its favourite food, loved also by bees.

They both enjoy it with a natural ease." <v ->Let's have a think about these two questions again.

</v> What is the tone of the poem "Happy Hummingbird Food"? And how would you represent the tone in your performance? Pause the video and have a think about these two questions.

I could hear some really good discussions about the tone and how you would perform it.

I think the tone of the poem gives a sense of calmness, tranquillity, and peace.

I definitely felt that when I read it.

So how would I want the audience to feel when I'm reading it? Well, I would perform it in a calm and gentle and soft way as I'm reading it so that they can get that real sense of calmness.

Now I'm going to read "Tadpole Comets" by John Lyons.

"Tadpole Comets." "Tadpoles huddled in a pond afraid of the Caribbean night, its intense darkness.

Candleflies moving about, lighting up and going out, lighting up and going out.

The tiniest tadpole shouted, 'What's that? What's that?' 'They're comets, silly,' cried Billy, the largest tadpole." Now watch John Lyons read "Tadpole Comets." Enjoy.

<v ->"Tadpole Comets."</v> "Tadpoles huddled in a pond afraid of the Caribbean night, its intense darkness.

Candleflies moving about, lighting up and going out, lighting up and going out.

The tiniest tadpole shouted, 'What's that? What's that?' 'They're comets, silly,' cried Billy, the largest tadpole." <v ->What do you think the tone of this poem is?</v> And how would you represent the tone in your performance? Pause the video and talk to the person next to you.

Some really great discussions I could hear there.

I heard someone saying the tone of the poem is humorous and amusing, and it's true.

I agree with them because the frogs, what are the frogs doing? They're having a really funny conversation, aren't they, about comets and candle flies.

How would I represent that the poem is funny and humorous? Well, I would make sure that when I'm performing it, I'm doing in a really light-hearted and entertaining way so that the audience gets my humour.

Which of the following poems by John Lyons creates a sense of family excitement and fondness? Is it "Granny's Sugarcake," "Happy Hummingbird Food," or "Tadpole Comments"? Comets, sorry.

Think about which one of these refers to family.

That's my big clue there.

Pause the video and have a think.

Okay, so you should have pointed to "Granny's Sugarcake." Yes, that's right because it's about his granny making sugar cake, and that causes him to be so excited because he can't wait to eat it.

Task A is you are going to choose a poem to rehearse and perform.

You're going to read the poem aloud several times to familiarise yourself with it.

Experiment with different volumes in your voice, so you could maybe go soft, loud, excited, silly.

And think about the speeds in your voice as well.

You might wanna go slower, faster.

Use facial expressions, your body movements.

This will help you find the most effective way to convey the tone and emotions within the poem.

Practise enunciating clearly.

That means make sure you say the words clearly.

And use pauses for emphasis.

Pause the video and practise.

Well done.

You have chosen a poem and rehearsed it really well, but I want you to pause and reflect.

Did you vary the volume in your voice? Did you vary the speed of your voice? Did you emphasise any keywords and pause at certain points.

Did you use facial expressions? And did you use body movements? Pause the video and have a think about that.

Now we are on to the second part of the lesson, the most exciting part, which is performing a poem.

Right, we are now ready to practise using our voices.

We need to think about these things: volume, pitch, and speed.

Are you ready? I'm going to do a little bit of my turn, your turn.

Starting with volume.

I can speak really loudly.

I can speak really loudly.

I can speak really quietly.

I can speak really quietly.

Great.

Next one.

Ready? I can speak in a really high voice.

I can speak in a really high voice.

Well done.

I can speak in a really low voice.

I can speak in a really low voice.

Well done.

Ready for speed? I can speak really quickly.

I can speak really quickly.

Not sure why I went high pitched there.

I can speak really slowly.

I can speak really slowly.

Well done.

Really good at using your voice.

I will now read "Happy Hummingbird Food," and I'm going to focus on my voice's volume, pitch, and speed now that I've practised those three aspects of my volume.

Are you ready to watch to see if I can get those aspects right? Okay.

"Happy Hummingbird Food." "Hummingbird, hummingbird, humming a tune, happy in June, when flowers and roses bloom, sipping nectar, its favourite food, loved also by bees.

They both enjoy it with a natural ease." Did I get the volume, pitch, and speed right for this poem? Did I evoke the right tone? Now it is your turn.

Read "Happy Hummingbird Food" focusing on your voices, volume, pitch, and speed.

Good luck.

Pause the video and have a go.

Well done.

That was excellent.

Now let's practise different facial expressions.

We need to think about this range of human emotions: happiness, sadness, shock, and fear.

Are you ready to show me your different facial expressions for these emotions? My turn, then your turn, okay? Happiness.

Your turn.

Oh, lovely smiles.

Sadness.

Your turn.

Lovely.

Remember to have your mouth turned down, looking down.

Shock.

Your turn.

Good job.

And fear.

I guess they're quite similar.

Fear.

Your turn.

Super! Now I will read "Tadpole Comets" focusing on my facial expressions.

So make sure you are looking at my face.

Ready? "Tadpole Comets." "Tadpoles huddled in a pond afraid of the Caribbean night, its intense darkness.

Candleflies moving about, lighting up, going out, lighting up and going out.

The tiniest tadpole shouted, "What's that? What's that?' 'They're comets, silly,' cried Billy, the largest tadpole." What did you think? Do you think that I used my face well enough to bring across the humorous side of the poem? Hope I did.

Now it's your turn.

I want you to read "Tadpole Comets" and focus on your facial expressions too.

Pause the video and give this a go.

Wow, that was fantastic.

Now let's warm up our bodies for some movement.

My turn and then your turn.

Ready? Let's start with our wrists.

Your turn.

Hands.

Your turn.

Doing a great job there.

Arms. Stretch to the side and up.

Your turn.

Good job.

And now we will have to stand up for this one.

But you're going to have to stand with your legs apart and you're going to just bend down, touch your toes if you can, and then stretch up again.

Bend down, touch your toes, stretch up again.

And then you might want to stretch to the side.

You'll turn and stretch to the other side.

Ooh, that felt nice.

Now I will read "Granny's Sugarcake" focusing on my body movement.

Are you ready? "Granny's Sugarcake." (Miss Chu speaking in Trinidadian Creole) Now it's your turn.

Read "Granny's Sugarcake" focusing on your body movement.

Off you go.

Pause the video.

Task B.

You're going to choose a poem to rehearse and perform.

Use the success criteria to help you.

I have considered the tone and meaning of the poem.

I have used my voice appropriately to match the tone and meaning of the poem.

And I have used facial expressions to match the tone and meaning of the poem.

And finally, I have used appropriate body movements to enhance my performance.

Pause the video and give this the best go you've ever given it.

Okay.

Hopefully you have remembered to do these things.

Did you consider the tone and meaning of the poem? Did you use your voice appropriately to match the tone and the meaning of the poem? Did you use facial expressions to match the tone and meaning of the poem? And did you use appropriate body movements to enhance your performance? If you did, a super well done to you.

It is important to prepare for performing a poem by analysing the text first to develop a full understanding.

Performing a poem requires the performer to use their voice to make the poem interesting to listen to.

Performing a poem requires the performer to use facial expressions and body movements to bring the poem to life.

The tone of the poem must be carefully thought about before a performance.

Well done.

I hope you really enjoyed performing a poem written by the poet John Lyons 'cause I certainly did with "Granny's Sugarcake." Goodbye.