Lesson video

Hi, everyone.

My name's Mrs. Tweedie, and I'm here to teach you today's poetry lesson.

You'll need a quiet space to work, and someone, or the screen, to talk to for our discussions.

Let's get started.

The learning outcome for today is, I can describe some of the key imagery used in a poem depicting a coastal setting.

And the poem today is "Eastbourne" by Joseph Coelho.

Here are keywords, my turn, your turn.

Imagery, this is the use of language to create a mental picture or sensory experience for the reader or listener.

Atmosphere, this is the feeling or mood created in a section or whole of a text.

Visual, this is anything relating to the sense of sight.

Aural, this is anything relating to the sense of hearing.

Tactile, this is anything relating to the sense of touch.

Well done, and thanks for your participation.

Our lesson is split into two today.

We will start with exploring imagery.

"Eastbourne" was written by Joseph Coelho and released in 2017 as part of his poetry collection, "Overheard in a Tower Block." Here you can see a photo of Joseph Coelho.

The accompanying illustration of the poem is by Kate Milner.

Joseph Coelho is an award-winning performance poet, playwright and children's author.

He grew up in a tower block in Roehampton in South-west London with his mother and sister.

He wrote his first poem in year eight and kept writing from then on.

Wow, he started writing poetry so young.

Some of you will be going to secondary school very soon.

Joseph's poetry is known for using engaging and emotive themes such as identity, family and friendship.

In 2022, he was appointed Children's Laureate.

This is a very prestigious and highly acclaimed prize given to writers.

Eastbourne is a Victorian resort town on England's southeast coast.

And you can see it here placed on the map of England.

It is known for its picturesque setting.

This means beautiful setting, a setting that you might want to draw or paint, on the English channel and the nearby South Downs National Park, which features stunning landscapes like Beachy Head, the highest chalk sea cliff in Britain.

Here is a picture of Beachy Head, the highest chalk sea cliff in Britain.

And on the left you can see a photo of Eastbourne's seafront.

Let's discuss.

Having discovered a little bit about Eastbourne and drawing in anything from your general or personal knowledge, what do you think the poem might be about? Pause the video as you discuss with someone nearby or to the screen.

Welcome back.

Now discuss, do you think Coelho will describe the town in a positive or negative way? Pause the video as you discuss this second question.

Welcome back.

I hope you enjoyed your discussions.

This child says, "I think the poem might be about a trip that the poet took to Eastbourne.

Depending on the weather, it might be described as a place of excitement and wonder, if it's set in the sunshine, or perhaps quite sad and dreary, if it's set in the rain." I like the way this child is thinking, thinking carefully about the context and the place and the weather to predict what the poem "Eastbourne" by Joseph Coelho might be about.

I wonder, was this response similar or different to your own? Let's check your understanding.

Which of the following statements are true about Eastbourne? A, Beachy Head is situated near Eastbourne.

B, Eastbourne is located in the South-West of England.

C, Eastbourne is a Victorian resort town.

Pause the video as you decide which are true.

Welcome back.

How did you get on? A and C were the correct statements.

Beachy Head is situated near Eastbourne, and Eastbourne is a Victorian resort town.

A resort town refers to a holiday destination that developed during the Victorian era, and this was the era when Queen Victoria was the reigning monarch.

Now, the poem Eastbourne contained some language which may be unfamiliar to us.

Let's take a look.

Ebbing, my turn, your turn.

Ebbing, well done.

This means when the tide, the sea's tide or movement is moving away from the shore.

Fossils, well done.

Here's a photo of a fossil in sandstone.

Fossils are remains or impressions of plants or animals that are preserved in rock.

I wonder if any of you have ever seen a fossil, either on a beach front or in a museum, or perhaps in a nature documentary? Pregnant, well done.

This means filled with or full of.

Amulets, amulets are objects believed to bring good luck or protection, so they are good objects that bring us good fortune or luck or protection.

Synced, good.

This means happening at the same time.

At the moment your learning is synced with my teaching, it's happening at the same time.

Silhouettes, well done.

These are dark shapes seen against a lighter background.

Now we have a treat.

We're going to watch Joseph Coelho in real life introducing and reading "Eastbourne." Enjoy his recital.

<v ->When I was a kid, my family would often go on holiday</v> to a little beach town called Eastbourne.

I remember the windswept beaches and the amusement arcades and the fish and chip shops, and the seagulls, and having a huge amount of fun there.

This poem is inspired by one of those holidays.

"Eastbourne." "Kicking the pebbles along Eastbourne Beach as the orange pink of sunset plays with the ebbing tide, my mother asks, 'What do you want to do when you're older?' There is every colour of pebble beneath my feet, grey lumps of flint winking their sharp, shining cores, gritty ovals of sandstone pregnant with fossils, worn amulets of glass of every sparkle.

They crunch and shift under synced steps as we stroll, towels wrapped around sand-dusted bodies.

The sea sings with the pebbles, knocking a tone from each, forming a hushing melody.

Sunburst dip into the wispy clouds, bounced from the greens, blacks and purples of the rock pools, shine red and gold and white from the sea.

There is every colour in the sun.

My baby sister toddles alongside my grandmother, the years between them like the ghosts of waves already ebbed and the years to come like the promise of tides, as their silhouettes whisper in the sunshine.

'What do I want to be when I'm older?' The question bounces around my head like light and wind and water and time and I smile, 'I don't know.

'" <v ->Welcome back.

</v> Wasn't that wonderful to hear the real poet reading his poem? Now it's your turn to read the poem.

It's available in the additional materials to this lesson, or you can refer to pages 71 to 72 of the accompanying text to this lesson.

To begin, read the poem silently in your head, then read out loud, alternating each verse with a partner or somebody around you.

Once you've done all of that, you're going to discuss your first impressions of the poem, what you liked about it, and what you thought about it.

Enjoy your reading of "Eastbourne" by Joseph Coelho.

Pause the video now.

Welcome back.

Alex says, "I liked how Joseph Coelho describes the sights and sounds of the beach.

He focuses on small objects such as pebbles and colours to bring the scene to life." Thanks, Alex, and I hope that you all had a really good read as well and enjoyed discussing your first impressions of "Eastbourne", the poem.

Let's check your understanding.

Is this true or false? The poet describes "Eastbourne" using negative imagery.

Pause the video now as you decide.

Welcome back.

This was false.

He does not use negative imagery to describe "Eastbourne" and let's think about how we know.

Which is the best justification? A, Joseph Coelho writes about sunsets and objects which sparkle.

Or B, Eastbourne is on the English channel.

Pause the video as you decide which is the best justification.

Welcome back.

You were right.

The best justification was A.

Joseph Coelho writes about sunsets and objects which sparkle, which is positive imagery to describe "Eastbourne", not negative.

Well done.

"Eastbourne" is a free verse poem.

It can be described as having six main verses, also known as stanzas, with three lines of dialogue.

When exploring poetry about a specific place, we can focus on the imagery that the poet uses to tell the reader about the location.

Imagery is the writer's use of highly descriptive and vivid language that appeals to the senses, our senses of sight and hearing, et cetera, to paint a picture.

Imagery includes metaphors, similes and personification, all of which you will have come across before in your English lessons and wider knowledge.

By making specific language choices, poets can enhance meaning in their poems and create a specific impression, and you already will have a specific impression of Eastbourne, the place, from your reading and from your watching of Joseph Coelho's reading of the poem.

Let's take a further look at some of this imagery used in the poem.

Let's start with verse one.

"Kicking the pebbles along Eastbourne beach as the orange-pink of sunset plays with their ebbing tide, my mother asks, 'What do you want to do when you're older?'" The poem begins by the speaker describing a time when he was walking along the beach with his mother.

The sun is setting, and the water recedes, or goes back, or as Joseph Coelho uses the word, the tide is ebbing.

In verse two, "There is every colour of pebble beneath my feet, grey lumps of flint winking their sharp, shining cores gritty ovals of sandstone pregnant with fossils, worn amulets of glass of every sparkle." Such beautiful language.

Even just the words coming out of my mouth forces me to read it slowly and calmly and gently and with a positive tone in my voice.

Let's explore verse two.

At the beginning the speaker describes the pebbles as colourful and winking.

Can you have a go at winking now? Well done.

It's a lovely way to personify the pebbles, to bring them to life and give them a human quality.

And in the second set of lines of verse two, the texture of the sandstone rock is gritty.

This is a highly descriptive adjective.

Glass is compared to amulets, and you'll remember amulets from earlier on in the lesson.

These are precious objects thought to bring good luck.

Let's continue to look at the imagery in the poem "Eastbourne" in verse three.

"They crunch and shift under synced steps as we stroll, towels wrapped around sand-dusted bodies." Some beautiful alliteration there in synced steps.

Again, that forces my voice to slow down and really clarify those beautiful words.

The speaker captures the sound and feel of walking on pebbles.

Here again in verse three.

"The sea sings with the pebbles, knocking a tone from each, forming a hushing melody." You can see again that Coelho uses alliteration in sea, sings, and the poet uses auditory imagery to describe the soothing sounds of the waves.

He's appealing to my sense of hearing.

Let's have a look at verse four.

"Sunbursts dip into the wispy clouds, bounce from the greens, blacks and purples of the rock pools, shine red and gold and white from the sea.

There is every colour in the sun." In the first line of verse four sunlight merges with the clouds, a highly descriptive image being painted in my mind.

And then vibrant colours describe the rock pools and sunset.

He refers to the colours of green, black, purple, red, gold and white in isolation.

And then in that final line he describes every colour in the sun being present.

Again, it's like a image is being painted in my mind by Coelho.

And in verse five.

"My baby sister toddles alongside my grandmother, the years between them like the ghosts of waves already ebbed and the years to come like the promise of tides, as their silhouettes whisper in the sunshine." It's so evocative, isn't it? The poet describes the difference in age between his sister and grandmother using a simile.

The poet then describes the future as predictable, saying, "As sure as the tides is the future." And in verse six, "'What do I want to be when I'm older?' The question bounces around my head like light and wind and water and time, and I smile.

'I don't know.

'" Beautiful ending to a beautiful poem.

The poet reflects on the question posed at the start of the poem using this abstract imagery.

I love the idea of the question bouncing around the head.

So, now we've read through the poem and explored some of the imagery in a bit more detail.

How would you describe the mood of "Eastbourne", the poem? Pause the video now as you reflect on everything that we've read together, and you can refer to the text in the additional materials or your text to help you.

Welcome back.

I hope you enjoyed having a wonderful discussion about this beautiful descriptive poem.

This child says, "I think the mood of the poem is calm and peaceful, because the imagery of the beach, sunset and sea creates a sense of beauty and tranquillity." Tranquillity meaning calmness.

I absolutely agree.

When I was reading the poem out loud to you, I felt my voice and my whole being become calm and peaceful and gentle.

The words force that gentleness from us as the reader.

And Jim says, "I think the mood of the poem is thoughtful, because the speaker reflects on a memory while considering a question about their future." Lovely idea, Jim.

I wonder if yours was similar or different to these.

It's time for task A.

I would like you to read the poem aloud.

Use our exploration of the language and imagery in the poem to help emphasise the atmosphere and mood as you read.

We've talked about calmness, tranquillity, gentleness, and all that beautiful description.

Think about your use of volume, how loud or quiet your voice is, tone, how your voice fluctuates up and down, and facial expressions to keep the audience engaged.

Enjoy feeling the words coming out of your mouth and feeling your persona coming gently and calmly as you read this poem.

Pause the video now.

Welcome back.

How did you get on? I hope you enjoyed reading the poem aloud.

Wasn't it wonderful to feel Joseph Coelho's words in your mouth coming out into a performance with an audience? Did you create a suitable atmosphere? Did you use volume, tone and facial expressions to keep the audience engaged? Take a moment to self-reflect now.

Well done.

It's time for the second half of our lesson, discussing imagery.

As we know, Joseph Coelho uses vivid imagery throughout the poem "Eastbourne" to create a strong impression of what the coastal town is like for the reader and listener.

Here is a picture of Eastbourne pier.

Coelho's specific language choices helped create an impression of Eastbourne that is peaceful and beautiful.

His writing appeals to our senses to create a vivid or bright or descriptive picture, which includes aural, these appeal to sound.

Visual, these appeal to sight.

And tactile, these appeal to touch, descriptions.

And we had a look at those in the first half of our lesson.

Let's check your understanding so far.

Refer to the poem to support.

Are the following nouns in the poem described using aural, visual or tactile descriptions? A, sunset.

B, sandstone.

C, melody.

Are each of these nouns aural, visual or tactile? Pause the video now as you decide.

Well done.

A, sunset is a visual description.

B, sandstone is a tactile description.

C, melody is an aural description.

A melody is a tune.

Well done.

Discussing the language choices and imagery that Joseph Coelho uses in the poem "Eastbourne" helps us to understand the poem better and also helps to us to explain how the poem has been successful.

When discussing the language and imagery, we can choose the words or phrases that we think are important, explain what they mean or what they show, and describe the effect of the language or the impression it creates.

Now remember, in poetry our ideas and discussions will all be different, because we are all unique, and that's okay.

Our responses to poems will be personal to us.

Now, I'm going to discuss some language from verses one and two and show you how we can appeal to the imagery to enhance our discussions.

In verses one and two the poet uses metaphor to compare the glass on the beach to amulets.

The glass isn't really amulets.

It's a metaphor that Coelho is using to describe the glass as a positive thing, bringing good luck or good fortune to the reader.

This emphasises the shiny reflective quality of the glass pieces and makes them appear precious and intriguing.

Now it's your turn.

You're going to discuss some language from verses one and two just like I did.

You can choose the same or a different example to mine.

Remember to choose the words or phrases that you think are important.

Explain what they mean or what they show, and describe the effect of the language or the impression it creates.

Pause the video now.

Welcome back.

How did you get on? I hope you enjoyed that.

This child says, "The use of colour, oranges and pinks, by the poet immediately sets a warm peaceful tone.

By describing the sun setting, I think the poet or speaker is reflecting on the day's events." Lovely ideas.

Perhaps yours were similar, perhaps yours were different.

That's okay.

Now I'm going to discuss some language from verses three and four.

The poet uses personification to describe the sea singing with the pebbles.

This soothing melody might represent the poet or speaker's own feelings and emotions about the memory.

Now it's your turn to discuss some language from verses three and four.

You can choose the same as mine or a different example.

And remember again to choose the words or phrases that you think are important.

Explain what they mean or what they show, and describe the effect of the language or the impression it creates.

Pause the video now.

Welcome back.

Alex says, "The use of aural description, the pebbles being crushed underfoot, creates an auditory experience for the reader or listener who might have experienced familiar sounds themselves." I wonder if yours was a similar or a different discussion point to Alex's.

And now I'll discuss some language from verse five and six.

The poet describes the difference in time between the younger sister and grandmother using a simile.

Perhaps the ghosts of the waves emphasise that the years have already gone by for the grandmother.

There is no right or wrong answer here with poetry, as it can be interpreted in different ways.

Now it's your turn to discuss some language from verses five and six.

You can choose the same as mine or a different example, and remember to choose the words or phrases that you think are important.

Explain what they mean or what they show, and describe the effect of the language or the impression it creates.

Pause the video now.

Welcome back.

How did you get on? Aisha says, "The description of the poet or speaker's younger sister toddling next to their grandmother creates a heartwarming image." I agree, it does make my heart feel warm.

"The accompanying illustration also depicts this tender and loving connection." I wonder if yours was a similar or different discussion point? Whichever way it went, I hope you enjoyed discussing some of that beautiful language throughout the poem.

Now it's time for task B.

You're going to discuss which example of imagery you think is the most powerful, and why.

When explaining your choice, you can refer to the following.

Sensory engagement, so how this bit of imagery appeals to the senses, auditory, visual, or tactile.

Emotional impact, what emotions and feelings the imagery evokes in you, that means stirs up in you.

And personal connection, does this particular imagery resonate with you personally? Can you link it to some of your real-world experience or to another poem that you've read or to a text that you've read? There are many other aspects that you can refer to when describing imagery.

These above are just a few examples to help you, so you're going to discuss with somebody near you which example of imagery you think is the most powerful, and why? Pause the video now.

Welcome back.

I hope you loved your discussion.

Andy says, "I think the description of the sunbursts is most effective.

It gave me a sense of wonder and appreciation of the natural beauty of Eastbourne." Thank you, Andy.

Yes, sunburst is such a wonderful word, so precise, so descriptive, and paints that very vivid picture in my mind.

And here another child says, "I think the description of the silhouettes is most powerful.

The use of whisper suggests a quiet sound creating a contrast between the brightness of the light and the softness of the sound." I wonder what your responses were.

Our ideas will be different, because we are all unique, but the most important thing to take away is how much rich discussion we can take away from such wonderful poetry as "Eastbourne" by Joseph Coelho.

Let's summarise our learning today.

"Eastbourne" was written by Joseph Coelho and released in 2017 as part of his poetry collection "Overheard in a Tower Block." Eastbourne is a Victorian resort town on England's southeast coast.

Imagery refers to the use of language that evokes vivid mental pictures in the reader's mind.

In the poem, Coelho uses sensory language to paint a vivid image.

The use of positive imagery creates a peaceful and serene atmosphere as the poet or speaker reflects on their day.

I have loved teaching you this lesson all about "Eastbourne" by Joseph Colo, and I look forward to seeing you in a future lesson soon.

Bye-bye.