Lesson video

Hello, my name is Mrs. Tipping and I'm really looking forward to learning with you today all about lettering and graphic design.

We're going to do lots of thinking, talking and exploring together in this lesson.

So shall we get started? Let's go.

By the end of today's lesson, you'll be able to design and create a concrete poem using words and images.

Before we start, I would like to introduce you to some key words.

We'll be using these key words during the lesson, so it might be a good idea to write these words down.

The key words we'll be using today are concrete poem, mental imagery, form, metaphor, simile.

I'm going to say those words again, and I would like you to repeat them after me.

Concrete poem, mental imagery, form, metaphor, simile.

Good job.

Now let's think in more detail about what these keywords mean.

Let's take a look at each of their definitions.

A concrete poem is a type of poem where the arrangement of words creates a visual image.

Mental imagery means using words to create visual images in the mind.

Form is the shape or visual appearance, structure or constitution of an object.

Metaphor is a figure of speech where a word is applied to an object or action.

A simile is a figure of speech, comparing one thing with another thing, using like.

Pause the video here to make a note of these key words.

And when you are ready to continue, press play.

These are the learning cycles that we'll be working through together in today's lesson.

What is a concrete poem? And creating a concrete poem? So let's first explore what a concrete poem is.

A concrete poem is a type of poem where the arrangement of words creates a visual image.

For these types of poems, the overall shape is necessary for its meaning.

Here is a poem about the ocean.

"The ocean, vast and deep.

A world where secrets keep.

Its waves crash with mighty roar.

A symphony forevermore.

The sun reflects on water's face.

A golden glow, a warm embrace.

The tide rolls in and the tide rolls out.

A rhythmic dance that never doubt.

It shapes the shore with gentle hands.

A sculptor of these many lands." Close your eyes and imagine the ocean.

What sounds do you hear? What colours can you see? This poem describes the ocean as a powerful and mysterious place.

It helps us imagine the movement of the waves, the way the sunlight reflects on the water, and how the tide moves in and out like a dance.

As we explore this poem, think about how the ocean is described and how it makes you feel.

Pause the video here and give yourself a moment to think about this, and then press play when you are ready to continue.

Now let's see the same poem turned into a concrete poem.

Now taking a look at that, discuss with a partner how changing the shape of the poem changed how you understood or felt about it.

Pause the video here and have that discussion and press play when you're ready to continue.

What did you say during your discussion? Perhaps you talked about how the words are in that wave-like structure.

It looks like the flow of the ocean, doesn't it? Let's take a moment to pause and check our understanding.

A concrete poem is a poem about building and construction, where the arrangement of words forms a visual image, with rhyming words.

Pause the video here to finish that sentence and press play when you're ready to continue.

If you said, a concrete poem is a poem where the arrangement of words forms a visual image, you are absolutely right, well done.

Poetry can be used to express emotions and ideas through writing.

By using descriptive words and phrases, poems can create mental images, which can be seen in the mind's eye even with your eyes closed.

Mental imagery can be helpful to make sense of what we hear, read and write.

Aisha recently went to the beach.

Try closing your eyes and see if her story creates any mental imagery.

So close your eyes now.

"I went to the beach.

It was a bright, sunny day with a clear blue sky.

The ocean waves washed and bashed against the shore.

It was warm, but I could feel a cool breeze on my skin.

I could hear the seagulls squawking in the distance, and the salty smell of fish and chips was in the air." So did Aisha's story create any mental imagery for you? Pause the video here and have a quick discussion with your partner and press play when you are ready to continue.

What did you think? Well, Lucas and Sofia are discussing their responses to Aisha's description.

Lucas says, "I could see the colours of the sky, the sun and the sea vividly, even with my eyes closed." Sofia said, "I could feel the coolness of the breeze and almost taste the fish and chips." How about you? Did you agree with Lucas or Sofia, or did you have your own mental imagery? Many kinds of writing, including poems and stories can evoke mental imagery in the mind of the reader or listener.

In a concrete poem, text is arranged to create a visual image which is seen through its shape or form.

By combining descriptive words and phrases that create mental imagery with a visual form, even more meaning can be conveyed about a subject.

Let's take a moment here to pause and check our understanding.

Why is the shape important in a concrete poem? It is only for decoration.

The shape is unimportant to the poem's meaning.

It helps convey the poem's meaning visually.

Pause the video here and have a go answering that question and press play when you are ready to continue.

What did you think? If you said the shape is important because it helps to convey the poem's meaning visually, you are absolutely right, well done.

This brings us to our first learning task.

I'd like you to follow these steps.

I'd like you to create a simple sketch of an object you like.

Make a list of words that describe your chosen object, and then experiment with arranging these words in a way that resembles the object's shape.

So pause the video here and follow those three steps and press play when you are ready to continue.

How did you get on? Shall we take a look at an example? So you might have created a simple sketch of something like a tree maybe, and made a list of words that describe that object and experimented with how you arranged them so it looked like that object's shape.

So can you see with the tree, we've got things like shade, shoots, sticks, trunk, bark, forest, canopy, acorn, evergreen, branches, growth, ground, roots.

So can you see in this example how the shape of the tree has been created by arranging those descriptive words like tall, green and branches, and even repeating some of those words too.

Well done for having a go at doing a descriptive object drawing.

This brings us to the second part of our lesson.

We're going to have a go at creating a concrete poem.

So we will create our own concrete poems where the words and layout will help to show the meaning of the poem.

As well as using descriptive words and phrases to create mental imagery, you might also use metaphors and similes.

A metaphor is a figure of speech, which is used to describe something as if it was something else.

So some examples of metaphors might include a broken heart.

The test was a piece of cake.

They hit the nail on the head.

Have you heard of any of those metaphors before? Now, a simile is where one thing is compared to another, often using the word like.

So, as busy as a bee.

Life is like a box of chocolates.

They are like a breath of fresh air.

Let's take a moment to pause and check our understanding.

Which object might you use the words bright, glowing, and electric to describe.

A, B, or C? Pause the video here and have a go answering that question and press play when you are ready to continue.

What did you think? If you said B, you are absolutely right.

The light bulb.

That's a good way of describing it.

Bright, glowing, or electric could use any of those words.

Now, text in a concrete poem can be arranged in many different ways, including an outline, in straight lines and in angles and sizes.

Can you see how all of that text still creates some kind of circle? Concrete poems can vary in length, and not all of them contain many lines of text.

So here you can see some examples of some short concrete poems. We've got one that's like a drop, an elephant.

We've got this last one, bird flight in my sight.

To help make the form of a concrete poem recognisable, it can be useful to create a pencil sketch or make a cardboard template of the object before you start writing.

So if I was going to use a light bulb, I could create a cardboard template of that light bulb or just do a light sketch of it, and this ensures that the text of the poem is positioned in alignment with the overall form.

Let's take a moment to pause and check our understanding.

Looking at this statement, do you think it's true or false? You don't need to plan a concrete poem.

You should just start by writing.

Is that true or false? Pause the video here and have a quick discussion with your partner and press play when you're ready to continue.

If you said that that is false, you are absolutely right.

Now thinking about why this statement is false, hmm.

Pause the video here, give yourself a moment to think.

How would you explain why this statement is false? And press play when you're ready to continue.

What did you think? Well, if you said sketching the form and planning some descriptive words or phrases for your object can help when making a concrete poem, you're absolutely right, well done.

This brings us to our final learning task.

I'd like you to first of all, choose an object to use as the subject of your concrete poem.

I'd then like you to prepare a list of descriptive words and phrases you could use for your chosen object that helps create mental imagery.

Then have a go at writing a poem about your object using descriptive words, metaphors, and similes.

Now it's optional, you could use an existing poem to turn into a concrete poem instead of writing your own.

But pause the video here and have a go at this part of the learning task and press play when you are ready to continue.

How did you get on? Were you able to choose an object for your concrete poem and write a list of those descriptive words and have a go at writing it using metaphors and similes? I would like you to now have a go at making a cardboard template or lightly sketch the form of your object on paper.

Then I'd like you to arrange and position the poem within your drawing in pen and consider using an outline, straight lines, or different angles and sizes like we can see below, and rub out any of the pencil lines to complete your concrete poem.

So you can see we've got outline, straight lines, or angles and sizes.

Those are the choices you can make in terms of how you write your poem out onto your object.

So pause the video here and have a go at that.

Make sure you give yourself plenty of time and press play when you're ready to continue.

How did that go? Did you manage to get your poem onto your object okay? Let's take a look at an example.

Did you create a concrete poem with a recognisable form? Did you use descriptive words, phrases, metaphors, and similes to help create mental imagery in your poem? In this example, the form of a light bulb is created by arranging the text on its outline, and the poem was made using descriptive words, metaphors, and similes about a light bulb.

Well done for having a go at creating your own concrete poem.

I hope you enjoyed it.

Before we finish this lesson, let's summarise what we've learned about creating a concrete poem.

Concrete poems arrange text into a shape that conveys meaning.

The form of a concrete poem is as important as the words used.

By using descriptive words, phrases, metaphors, and similes, text can be written in ways that help to create mental imagery.

Planning is essential to effectively combine words and shapes in a concrete poem.

Thank you for joining me in this lesson today.

I hope to see you in the next one.

See you next time.