Lesson video

Hello everyone.

My name is Mr. Brown and I'm here with your English lesson for today, and we are going to be writing.

Writing our very own poems. How amazing is that? We are going to be writing free verse poems about big objects.

So let's get started.

The outcome for today's lesson is I can write a free verse poem about a big object.

The key words we will use are repetition, free verse, alliteration and simile, let's set this together.

My turn and then your turn.

Repetition, free verse, alliteration, simile.

Fantastic.

Well done.

Let's have a look at some definitions, shall we? Repetition in poetry involves the repeated use of sounds, words, phrases, or structural elements that are repeated for emphasis or for a particular effect.

Free verse is a poem with no set rhyme or rhythm.

Alliteration is the repetition of the same sound found at the start of words that come close together.

A simile is a poetic device that compares two things using like or as highlighting similarities and creating a vivid imagery.

So today's lesson, we will start by preparing to write a free verse poem and then move on to writing a free verse poem itself.

There are many different forms of poetry, including some we have looked at before.

These include rhyming poems, haikus, kenning poems, sonnets, acrostic poems. How many of these forms of poetry have you read before? Can you describe any of them? Discuss with a partner, pause the video and have that discussion now.

Welcome back.

I hope that was an interesting discussion and you were able to tell your partner about the different forms of poetry that you've read before.

Let's check our understanding which of these are forms of poetry? Is it A non chronological reports, B, kenning poems, and C, haikus.

A, B, C, which of these are forms of poetry? Pause the video and decide now.

Welcome back.

Okay, let's see if you found the right answers.

There were two correct answers.

If you've only got one, quickly pause the video and see if you can find the other one.

Okay.

The correct answers are B kenning poems and C, haikus.

Non chronological reports are not forms of poetry, they are nonfiction text.

We are going to learn about another form of poetry.

However, this form does not follow strict poetic rules like the other forms do.

The form of poetry, which does not follow any poetic rules is known as free verse.

Free verse poems are any poem that does not rely on consistent patterns of rhyme or rhythm.

As a result, free verse tends to follow the rhythm of natural speech.

So the poem may sound more like how a person might speak.

In free verse poetry, poets may still use poetic techniques such as alliteration, repetition, and similes to create their desired effect.

They may also use rhyme, but it's usually irregular and doesn't follow a particular pattern.

So in some poems, rhyming poems, you will notice that there is perhaps a word at the end of each line that rhymes with a word at the end of the line before.

This would not happen in a free verse poem, if there are any words that rhyme that is more by chance rather than a poet following a particular structure.

Discuss this free verse poem about a big object.

I will read that to you now.

After the rain colours soar, across the sky, they leap lovingly.

Red, orange, yellow, green, the brightest colours ever seen.

Blue, indigo and violet too, an arch, like a bridge to a secret land.

Nature's promise after the storm, nature's gift after the rain, I would like you to discuss with a partner what is this poem about and how did the poem make you feel? Of course in your answers, use as much evidence from the poet itself as you can.

So pause the video and have these discussions now.

Welcome back.

Okay, let's have a look at an example answer.

So this person says, I think the poem is about a rainbow.

I agree, actually, I did think the poem was about a rainbow because it talks about after the rain colours soar, and I know that rainbows happen after rain is finished and the sun comes out.

After the rain colours soar across the sky, they leap lovingly, and then we've got the colours list it happen, we red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, violet too.

And then this was a key line, an arch.

So an arch is that shape an arch, like a bridge to a secret land.

So I agree.

I think the poem is about a rainbow.

The poem made me feel peaceful and full of wonder at how special rainbows are.

So this person really enjoyed the poem made, it made them feel peaceful and full of wonder at how special rainbows are.

I wonder if the poem had that effect on you.

Now, although they do not follow poetic rules or set structure, free verse poems may still include a range of poetic techniques such as alliteration, similes, repetition, and rhyme.

A poet will try to have an impact on the reader.

A poet will try to make the reader feel a certain way.

A poet will try to make certain words or phrases memorable.

A poet can do this by using a poetic technique called repetition.

Repetition is when a single word or group of words is repeated for effect.

Did you notice the use of repetition at the top of this page? Did you notice when I said a poet will try to have an impact on the reader? A poet will try to make the reader feel a certain way.

A poet will try to make certain words or phrases memorable.

I repeated the phrase, a poet will try to, it was repeated three times that was done to make emphasis on how much a poet is trying to do different things.

So I used repetition.

Time for a task, look through the poem with a partner and try to spot examples of these poetic techniques.

So we're looking for alliteration, similes, repetition, and rhyme.

Your job is to read through this poem and discuss with a partner.

Can you see examples of alliteration where words that start with the same sound are used close together? Can you see similes using like or as to be able to make similarities and comparisons? Any repetition, so phrases that are repeated over and over and rhyme are there any rhyming words there? Over to you.

Pause the video and see if you can find these different poetic techniques now.

Welcome back.

Okay, let's see if you found some.

So alliteration, we had across the sky, they leap lovingly.

So it's been a purposeful choice by the poet to put two words that start with a ooh sound.

They leap lovingly, that's alliteration.

Similes, ah, we have an arch, like a bridge to a secret land.

So I'm comparing the arch, the rainbow, to a bridge to a secret land and I'm using a like to do that, and that is a simile.

Repetition we have after the rain colour soar, nature's after the rain.

So the poem begins with the phrase after the rain, and it ends with the phrase after the rain.

So we've got some repetition and rhyme.

Red, orange, yellow, green, the brightest colours ever seen exactly green and seen rhyme.

Let's move on to writing a free verse poem.

When preparing to write a poem, a poet should spend time developing their ideas.

This is an important planning process to go through and involves taking ideas of things that may be included in a poem and extending them by adding detail and emotive language.

That's language which helps the reader or listener to feel an emotion.

Here are the ideas I generated in the last lesson for the big object I chose to make the subject of my poem a theatre.

So I chose a theatre and the ideas I generated were bright lights and smoke effects, the feel of the soft seats, lofty velvet curtains, a huge stage, enormous audience, and the sound of the vast orchestra.

So these were the ideas I had for things that I might include in my poem.

What was the big object you chose to be the subject of your poem? If you haven't done so already, generate ideas for your object.

These should be ideas that you may wish to include in your poem.

Share your ideas aloud with a partner.

If you haven't done these yet, pause the video and do these now.

Welcome back.

Hopefully you have now chosen your big object generated ideas and shared with a partner here as an example.

Aisha says, "My chosen big object is an escalator.

An idea I have is to include the height of the escalator in my poem." What's a really nice idea, Aisha? We'll now extend these ideas by adding detail and emotive language, and I'm going to show you what that looks like.

So let's start with bright lights and smoke effects.

Hmm, let's go for a sea of bright lights.

So that is an example of detail.

I'm adding detail.

I'm not saying that there's just one bright light.

I'm saying there is a sea of them, which is a poetic way of explaining that there are lots of them.

It looks like a sea of them because they all blend into one vast long lion of lights, a sea of bright lights and a river of smoke effects.

Now, the reason that a river works really well for smoke effects is movement.

The way that smoke moves through the air is a little bit like the way that water moves along through a river.

So that's why they have come to mind.

Now, I've also gone for a watery theme because I've got sea and river, which are both the examples of bodies of water.

So these are the kind of examples that I am pulling together, adding detail to my ideas.

Now, I'm not saying any of these are gonna go into my poem, but this is how I'm thinking when I'm adding those details.

Okay, luxurious feel of soft seats.

I thought the word luxurious added a great detail here.

Those lofty velvet curtains.

I've got a pair of lofty velvet curtains part to reveal the magic.

And then in brackets, I've just put excitement because this is when I really want the excitement to come through when I'm talking about those curtains opening at the start of a show.

Okay, huge stage.

Let's extend that by saying huge stage weights patiently.

So this is personification.

This is when you say that something that's just an object is not human, you give it a human quality.

Now, the stage isn't actually waiting patiently.

It doesn't have the capabilities to do anything patiently.

It's just a stage.

It's not real, it's not a human.

So I'm using personification to just add that element and help the reader to be able to have an image of the stage just waiting, waiting, waiting for the show to start.

And this is something that I am doing to increase that excitement.

I'm talking about the curtains parting to reveal the stage waiting patiently.

Okay, enormous audience, eager, buzz of excitement.

So I'm always trying to think from a sensory point of view where I can get some senses in there and awaken the senses of my reader and that noise of the audience talking to each other before a show starts.

It's a bit like a kind of buzz, like when you are standing close to a group of bees, there is a buzzing noise, and that's what it feels like in the theatre.

You can't hear the individual conversations.

You can just hear that lots of people are talking and it makes a buzzing noise.

So I've got an eager buzz of excitement.

And then the sound of the vast orchestra.

So this is musicians warming up before the show.

So I'm going to get that moment again.

We're starting to really create an atmosphere of before the show here, aren't we? The curtains parting, the stage waiting patiently, musicians warming up before the show.

Excitement, buzz of excitement.

That's the atmosphere I'm wanting to create.

Look at my extended ideas.

Are there any opportunities for me to plan to use repetition in my poem about a theatre? So have a look at how I've extended my ideas.

Can I use repetition anywhere? Are there any words or phrases that you think I might be able to repeat more than once? Ah, I can see something.

I've got an ego, buzz of excitement and a pair of lofty curtains or parts to reveal the magic.

Excitement, yeah, excitement seems to be the recurring theme.

That's my opportunity for repetition.

Okay, I'm gonna keep that in mind when I get to writing.

My extended ideas seemed to reflect a general feeling of excitement.

This is definitely something I feel within a theatre before a show starts, and I want the reader to feel the same.

I am trying to, through my poem, convey a feeling to the reader.

I can use repetition to emphasise this feeling.

I can plan words or phrases that I might use in my poem to emphasise this feeling.

So I'm planning now my repetition.

Phrases like excitement builds or excitement is in the air or excitement fills the theatre.

These are all good phrases that I can use in my poem to be able to repeat so that I am using repetition, but to emphasise that feeling of excitement before a show starts.

Now it's over to you.

I want you to extend your ideas on your own mind map.

For example, Aisha says, "My idea is to include the height of the escalator in my poem, I can extend this and build a negative feeling by describing the escalator as going on and on and on." So maybe some repetition there too.

"To emphasise just how high it seems to go." Interesting.

Okay, so that's Aisha's idea.

Your turn now to extend your ideas on your mind map.

So pause the video and do this now.

Welcome back.

Okay, let's have a look at another example idea that someone's extended.

"My idea is to include a toolbox in my poem about my granddad shed.

I will extend this by describing the toolbox as a treasure chest.

Really nice idea.

This will further create a positive atmosphere." Great idea from Andeep to be able to use this toolbox as the object and extend it by referring to it as a treasure chest.

And what I really love is as a poet, he's thinking, and this will further create the right atmosphere, the atmosphere that I want, which is a positive atmosphere.

Every choice we make as a poet should be contributing to creating that atmosphere for our overall poem.

I will now read my free verse poem about a theatre out loud.

I know I want the reader or audience to feel excited, so I will try to incorporate that into how I read the poem.

Okay.

A colossal theatre stands proud, an enormous eager audience buzzes, a sound forms from a vast orchestra, excitement builds.

A sea of bright lights illuminate, a river of smoke begins to dance, a pair of lofty velvet curtains part excitement builds.

Okay, so I really tried to be able to get the reader to feel or the audience to feel the excitement that I feel before a show starts when I'm sat in a theatre.

Now we all respond to poems in an individual way because we are all unique.

This is the fantastic thing about poems. Everybody feels differently about them and nobody is right or wrong.

It's your own opinion and how you feel.

Let's have a look at how some people responded.

So Jacob says, "The poem made me feel excited to visit a theatre.

The poet achieved this through repetition and repeating the phrase, excitement builds." Yes.

Did you notice I repeated the phrase excitement builds two times at the end of each verse? I'm glad that that was noticed and that the feeling of excitement was picked up by Jacob.

Okay, Izzy says, "My favourite phrase was, a river of smoke begins to dance because I could really picture the smoke effects moving through the air as if dancing." Which is of course is something you would see in a theatre.

You would see people dancing.

So it's a really nice way of showing how smoke moves, being able to put that image in the reader's head of it, moving like a river, meandering back and forth.

And then of course, dancing is something that would happen in the theatre.

So the smoke is almost starting the show.

We can look at it like that.

And then June says, "I enjoyed the way the poem built the anticipation as if we were sat in the theatre waiting for a show to stunt." And I'm really pleased because that is exactly what I was going for.

That feeling of anticipation as if we're all sat there.

I even tried to, when I repeated excitement builds the second time, really bring it down.

So it's almost just a whisper like it would be in a theatre if the show was about to start, you might say to someone, okay, the show's starting.

That's the detail that we can go into as poets to achieve our purpose and have the desired effect on the reader or the audience.

Okay, time for a check.

What did you notice about how the poem was read out loud? Did the reader manage to convey a feeling of excitement? If so, how was this achieved? So here's an example.

Izzy says, "The poem was read in a way that built excitement for me.

This was because the poet used pauses to create suspense and a magical tone of voice." Thanks, Izzy.

It's really nice of you to say.

Okay, it's over to you now.

Have a discussion with the person next to you.

What did you notice about how the poem was read? Did the feeling of excitement pass on to you? Did you feel it? If so, why did you feel it? How was it achieved? Okay, pause the video and have that discussion now.

Welcome back.

Okay, I hope those discussions were positive and I hoped you saw a few things that you can magpie take for yourself and use in your own writing and reading, because now it is your turn to write your free verse poem about your big object.

Here are some poetic techniques that you may wish to include, alliteration, similes, repetition, rhyme.

I would love to see some of those in your free verse poem too.

It's important to remember that this is your free verse poem, and you can create it however you wish you are in charge.

You should still try to create the intended atmosphere, whether that's positive or negative, and show the feelings that you have as the poet about your chosen object, okay? It's free verse poetry.

So you are in control.

I can't wait to see what you come up with.

Pause the video and write your free verse poem about your big object now.

Welcome back everyone.

How did you get on? How did you find it? Writing a free verse poem, did you manage to get in any alliteration or similes, repetition, or even rhyme? I would now like you to read aloud and share your poem.

What was your favourite line, phrase or extended idea in your poem? Take a moment to pause the video and read aloud and share your poem now.

Welcome back.

I hope you enjoyed hearing each other's poems as well.

Let's have a look at one more poem, and this is from Aisha.

This is her escalator poem.

The escalator stands tall inside the station, with metal teeth as sharp as knives, its rumbling growl that echoes through the air, each step a journey into the unknown.

It swallows tired commuters whole and goes on and on and on and.

Okay, well done, Aisha.

Let's see what she had to say.

So she loved her last line.

She says, I like my last line where I use repetition to emphasise how the escalator is never ending.

I loved that the way she said and it goes on and on and on.

And I really liked this, how she didn't say, and on one more time, she just said and, and then she left it there really clever with an ellipsis that dot, dot, dot at the end, just to show that this is continuing.

The escalator is keeping on.

It's going, it's going, it's going on and on and on.

Really nice.

Very clever.

Liked it a lot.

Aisha, well done.

Okay, let's summarise the learning we've done today.

There are many different forms of poetry, including haikus, Kenning poems, and free verse.

Free verse poems do not require the poet to follow poetic rules.

Repetition is when a single word or group of words is repeated for effect.

Poems can evoke a positive or negative feeling.

Brilliant work today.

I loved how creative you were and how you took the opportunity to write a free verse poem and make it your own with both hands.

Well done.

I will see you again very soon.