Hello, everyone, it's lovely to see all today.

My name's Dr.

Clayton, and I'm going to guide you through a learning journey today.

So today's lesson is called Analysing the Poem "With Birds You're Never Lonely." We're going to be considering how Antrobus uses language, form, and structure in order to communicate this message about connections between humanity and nature.

Now, analysing poets are my favourite things to do, so I'm really looking forward to talking through this lesson with you today.

Now you'll need a copy of the AQA Worlds and Lives Anthology with you for this lesson, so make sure you have that to hand.

So if you're ready, grab your pen, laptop, whatever you using for this lesson and let's get started.

So by the end of the lesson, you'll be able to explain Antrobus uses language, form and structure to present his viewpoint.

So we have five words today we're going to focus on as our keywords they've identified in bold throughout the learning material and I'll try to point 'em out to you as well so you can see them being used in context.

Our first key word is couplet, and that means a pair of successive lines of verse, typically rhyming and of the same length.

We're gonna be thinking in this lesson about how Antrobus plays with this form to create meaning.

Now, one way we might talk about having an idea about a text is to use our second keyword, which is conceptualise, and that means to form a concept or idea of something.

So you might say that we conceptualise Antrobus of couplets as.

Our third keyword is fragmented, and that means the actual process of breaking something into small parts.

We're going to apply that to Antrobus plays with a couplet form throughout the poem.

Our fourth keyword is cyclical and that means occurring in cycles being recurrent.

When we apply this to a text, we might mean that the opening of a text is echoed in the ending of a text and therefore forms a circle from beginning to the end.

We're going to look at how Antrobus begins and ends the poem and the same conceptual space and how we might interpret that.

Finally, our fifth key word is pensive, and that means deeply or seriously, thoughtful, often with a tinge of sadness.

We're going to think about how analysis of the language and form and structure of with words you're never lonely creates this pensive tone and what that tone might be saying about the relationship between humanity and nature.

So I'll just give you a moment to write down those key keywords and their definitions, so pause the video and write them down now.

Fantastic, let's get started with the lesson, so we have three learning cycles in our lesson today.

For our first learning cycle, we're going to consider Antrobus of language, specifically colour imagery and personification, and think about how he's creating contrast to now the natural world in the urban world are presented and how we might interpret that.

For our second learning cycle, we're going to think about analysing Antrobus use of couplets.

Now it plays with a couplet form in order to express a viewpoint around making connections in the natural world and in the urban world.

Finally, for our third learning cycle, we're going to accept the cyclical structure of the poem, now it begins in ends in a modern urban space.

But why there might be a different tone at the end of the poem to the beginning of the poem.

So we're going to begin by considering some of the colour imagery in the poem.

Now, I love looking colour imagery, because I think it really creates this evocative sense of atmosphere and it really helps to understand the emotional connection the poet wants to have, 'cause we all instinctively respond to certain colours in certain ways.

So the colours from the poem are yellow, black, white, brown, green and grey.

Now I want us to think about why Antrobus might attach certain colours to certain spaces.

Now, the only colour associated with a modern urban world is grey.

How might we interpret that? Now, if you're working with someone else, you might talk about your ideas with them.

If you're working through this by yourself, you might just think about your ideas.

So pause the video, consider what the colour grey might say about the urban modern world.

It's fantastic ideas everyone.

I really like some people's ideas.

The grey feels like a cold colour to them, and I absolutely agree.

Grey to me gives me two main impressions.

Firstly, it gives the impression of coldness and lovelessness that implies there's no warmth and no energy to the urban world, but it also suggests this idea of blankness that creates a sense of dullness and lack of vitality around the urban world.

Moreover, the grey colours associated with the singular tree in the urban space the speaker zooms in on.

And that adds a sense of unnaturalness, the urban modern world, because we think of trees as green and brown rather than grey.

So if we look at our list of colours, that means that Antrobus associates, yellow, black, white, brown and green with nature.

So what I'd like to think about is what might having this many colours associated with nature mean? For the moment just think about what it means to have multiple colours associated with nature rather than zooming on individual words, so pause the video.

Consider what having multiple colours in nature might mean? Amazing thoughts there.

Now you might have thought that having multiple colours suggest somewhere that elicits a multitude of emotions and reactions and to me that's just a sense of vitality, 'cause it's just a place that's complex and full of energy, particularly 'cause the colours are so different from each other.

So to me this reflects the diversity in the complexity of nature through these multiple colours associated with it.

Now we're going to delve a little deeper into the colour imagery and think about what those individual colours might suggest about nature.

So just a reminder, the colours associated with nature are yellow, black, white, brown and green.

Now we might see brown, yellow, and green as traditionally natural earthy colours because we think of trees and plants as being brown and green and we think of light in the sun being yellow.

So I'd like us to focus on white and black because those to me stand out as colours I wouldn't necessarily associate with nature.

So pause the video, think about how we might interpret the association of black and white with nature.

Some great thoughts there, everyone.

Now we might immediately think of black and white assisting an absence and emptiness because they like the dynamism and energy of other colours.

However, we might interpret black as meaning strength 'cause it's a solid block of colour that nothing can penetrate.

We might think of white as assisting purity 'cause we think of it as something unspoiled and clean.

So these colours could reflect Antrobus, wants us to see nature as both a strong and a pure space.

Now we're going to consider some of the other imagery associated with nature and think about how we might interpret it.

So three quotations that stood to me were sun-syrupped, endless and sturdiness.

And what I'd like you to do is think about how we might interpret these quotations.

What do they suggest about nature? So pause the video, take a few moments to consider.

Fantastic work everyone.

Let's start with sun-syrupped.

I think this is actually one of the best descriptive phrases I've ever come across, 'cause to me there's something so warm and sensory about that phrase.

It's just something drenched in sunlight, which is sort of warm and light image.

Now syrup also says something sweet.

So you might think of nature as a pleasant place because of it and also a place of energy, because sugar does boil and it does give us energy, now let's think about the word endless.

To associate nature with the notion of continuing forever gives it connotations of constancy and durability.

It's just something stable that continues indefinitely and that might be a comforting image, 'cause just nature will remain constant, but it also could create the sensation of unfathomable to us, 'cause we might not be able to comprehend the idea of nature continuing forever, so it could create a sense of awe and fascination with nature.

Finally, the word sturdiness to me, just something strong, something solid, something dependable and not just in a physical sense, but also something resolute and that's just an emotional strength as well.

So all of these words create the impression of nature as a warm, dependable place, but also as a place which you have some sense of a (indistinct) as well.

Now for a quick check for understanding.

So is it true or false that the colour imagery implies the urban space has vibrancy and energy? Pause video, make your selection now.

The correct answer is false.

Now I'd like to justify that answer.

So is it the A, the colour yellow associated with the urban space implies an unnatural sickness that feels unhealthy or B, the grey colour associated with the urban space implies a lack of vitality and a space devoid of life and energy.

Pause the video, make a selection now.

Now we might think the colour yellow could suggest a sense of sickness and unhealthiness, but the only colour associated with the urban space is grey, therefore the correct answer is B.

The grey colour associated with the urban space implies a lack of vitality and a space devoid of life and energy, so very well done if you got that right.

Fantastic work everyone.

One of the first task of the lesson, I'd like us to bring together what we've said in this learning cycle about the language and think about the contrast between nature and the urban space in the poem.

I want us to think about what it might mean for Antrobus overall message about finding connections.

I'd like you to write a short answer explaining your ideas and you might consider what the language says about the spaces themselves, so remember what we said about the colours associated with spaces.

Think about what those colours mean and what emotional response they might create.

You also might then think about what the language might mean for making connections within those spaces, so pause the video and write a short answer now.

Welcome back everyone.

Now what I'd like us to do is have a look at one of the answers from my Oak pupil Sophia and I'd like you to give it a what went well and an even better if.

So Sophia wrote, I think the language associated with nature specifically the personification of nature, shows that nature is alive and full of energy, whereas the language connects to manmade objects and their lack of personification shows they're flat and lifeless.

So pause the video gives Sophia's answer a what went well and an even better if.

Some great ideas everyone.

You might have said the war went well as that Sophia has considered the effects of language and we might interpret the natural and urban spaces through it or through the lack of it.

The even better if you might have said, that Sophia hasn't considered what this means for the idea of connections that runs through the poem.

So you might rewrote Sofia's answer to I think the language associated with nature, specifically the personification of nature shows that nature is alive and full of energy, whereas the language connects to manmade objects and their lack of personification shows they're flat and lifeless in terms of connections, it applies that we can create connections with nature because it has sentience, whereas the urban world has no such sentience and therefore trying to create connections with manmade objects will ultimately leave us feeling isolated and lonely.

Now this type of peer assessment is really useful exercise, 'cause it's far easier to critique someone else's work, See what went well and what could be improved.

Then to critique your own work, it means you can then reflect on your own work and carry those ideas into your next piece of work.

Fantastic work everyone now does second learning cycle.

We're going to consider Antrobus use of couplets and what that might say about the idea of connections within the poem.

So if we look at the form of Antrobus with birds, you're never lonely, you'll notice it's written in couplets, now couplets is one of our keywords.

It means a pair of successive lines of verse, typically rhyming and of the same link.

So the poem is largely made up of stances that are two lines long.

Now we're going to consider how we might conceptualise the use of couplets in the poem.

So how might we form an idea about Antrobus use of couplets in the poem? As you might remember from the definition, typically a couplet comprises of rhyming lines are the same length and rhyme.

They can also form a complete grammatical unit where the couplets form one complete sentence.

We might represent it like this, where the two lines are the same length.

There's a full stop at the end which forms a closed couplet because they form a complete sentence.

So what I'd like you to think about, is what might a typical couplet say about connections? So think about the fact that a typical couplet is a pair of lines that rhyme that the same length and they often form a complete sentence.

So if we said that two people are in sync and form a complete unit, what would that mean for their connection? Pause the video, take a few moments to consider.

Excellent work everyone.

Now you might have thought that the use of rhyming lines at the same length could signify connections equal and synchronised.

Furthermore, if the couplet forms a complete grammatical unit, it could represent a connection or relationship that's whole and complete, so typical couplet indicates a connection that is equal and complete.

So now let's think about how Antrobus plays with a couplet form.

We might represent some of the couplets and with birds are never lonely like this.

Now if you look at the couplets in the poem, you might notice they aren't the same length, they don't rhyme and many don't form grammatical units.

So what I'd like you to think about is how might we interpret Antrobus use of couplets in terms of connections.

So if you think about a relationship where people aren't in sync and they don't form a complete pair, what would you think about their connection? Pause the video, take a few moments to consider.

Some great ideas everyone, you might have thought that perhaps Antrobus is trying to represent the idea that the speaker in the poem is struggling to form connections with others, because they aren't in sync with other people and they aren't forming a complete pair with anybody else rather than showing a sense of wholeness.

The poem shows a sense of fragmentation and that's one of our keywords, it means the action process are breaking something into small parts.

Therefore we might interpret this fragmentation of the couplets as representing the idea.

The speaker hasn't formed a connection, they continue to search for someone or something to complete them.

Now for a quick check for understanding.

So we might interpret Antrobus use of couplets as suggesting the A, the speaker feels complete and satisfied with their life and their relationships.

B, the speaker feels incomplete but has given up on trying to form connections with others.

Or C, the speaker is failing to form connections but continues with their struggle, so pause the video and make a selection now.

The correct answer is C, the day that Antrobus algebras is playing with a couplet form, it's just the speaker might not be successful in their search, but they do desire that connection.

So very well done, if you got that right.

You might have noticed that while the majority of with words you're never lonely is written in couplets, the final line is not.

The final line is a continuation of the previous couplet, so it doesn't form a complete sentence and it stands alone.

Now what I'd like to do is answer the following questions to consider how we might interpret the final line.

So question one, what might the singular nature of the line suggest about the speaker and connections? What might the fragmented nature of the line? It's just about the speaker connections.

And number three, arguably the perm advocates for humans forming connection with nature.

So why do you think that doesn't happen in the poem? Pause the video and answer the questions now.

Welcome back everyone, now we're going to read through one of our old people's answers and I'd like to think about how well Jacob's ideas align with your own ideas.

So question one was, "What might the singular nature of the line just about the speaker and connections?" And Jacob said, "It might indicate the speaker hasn't found a connection." Question two was, what might the fragmented nature of the line, so just about the speaker and connections and Jacob said, "The enjambment and the fragmented nature of the line could indicate the speaker doesn't feel complete by themselves, they're still searching for that connection that will make them feel whole." Finally, question three was that "Arguably, the poem advocates for humans forming connection to nature.

Why do you think that hasn't happened in the poem?" And Jacob said, "The only natural image in the urban space, the end of the poem is a singular tree that feels lifeless.

Therefore, perhaps as beaker suggesting we haven't included nature in our lives in a way that makes it possible for us to form meaningful connections." So pause video.

Consider how well Jacob's ideas align with your own ideas.

Welcome back everyone, it's always good to share ideas in English, because that allows us to potentially see something in a different light, because we all interpret text differently.

And part of the beauty of English is seeing how other people interpret it, 'cause it allows us to briefly see the world through someone else's eyes.

Amazing work everyone, we're now the final learning cycle.

We're going to think about how entropy is a cyclical structure and what that might mean for understanding of the poem.

Now if we consider the journey of the speaker through the poem, we might represent it like this.

We move from the urban space to the natural space and then back to the urban space.

Now what I'd like you to do is read back through the poem and think about which words or emotions we might associate with each of these phases in the poem.

So pause the video, take a few minutes to consider.

Fantastic work everyone.

Now we might see the first urban space as somewhat overwhelming, because the first thing we hear is the noise of the coffee machine and how it's preventing communication.

That coupled with the image of the man reading alone, creates the impression of an isolated and lonely space.

Then when we move to the natural space, we still have this feeling of being overwhelmed through the noise, but we also get a sense of connection and emotion through the way that nature is harmonising together and a connection that the Maori people have with a natural space.

Finally, when we turn to the urban space, the speaker is now questioning the world around them and considering how nature must feel because of humanity's actions.

Therefore, we might see it as being reflective pensive.

Remember that pensive is one of our keywords and it means something deeply or seriously thoughtful, often with a tinge of sadness.

So let's think about what that feeling of pensiveness at the end of the poem might mean.

Even though the speaker begins and ends the poem in a busy urban space, arguably there's a shift in mood from the beginning to the end.

We shift from the speaker feeling isolated and lonely to feeling pensive.

So what I'd like you to do is think about why you think that shift in mood has occurred.

What might its significance be? So pause the video, take a few moments to consider.

Fantastic work everyone.

Now like Alex, you might have thought the shift in mood seems to have been caused by the speaker's time in the forest.

The experience has made them reflect on the relationship between humans and nature.

The pensive feeling at the end of the poem, it's just that the speaker feels sad, but what the relationship to humans and nature looks like.

Now as well as a shift in mood.

There's also a shift in perspective from the beginning to the end of the poem.

The speaker starts by using the pronoun I, but then a shifts to saying they at the end of the poem.

So what I'd like to think about is how might we interpret this shift? How might it connect the speaker's reflections on the relationship between humanity and nature? Pause the video, take a few moments to consider.

Some great ideas there Ron.

Now we could interpret this shift suggesting that before their experience in nature, the speaker was concerned with themselves because they were saying, I are thinking about the world from their individual perspective.

However, after their experience in the forest, they're now concerned with the trees and the plants.

Then habit, urban spaces and how they must feel isolated and lonely.

So (indistinct) from the speaker, seeing the world from the individual perspective to now seeing the world through nature's perspective.

So now for a quick check for understanding which Oak pupil's interpretation of the shift in mood is the most accurate.

So Sam says, "The shift in mood signals the speaker wishes humanity would be more connected with nature." And Izzy says, "The shift in mood signals the speaker's happy to be back in the urban space." so pause the video and make a selection now.

Now the mood at the end of the poem shows the speaker shifting for their perspective to folks who are seeing the world through nature's eyes.

So Sam's interpretation that the shift in mood signals the speaker wish you to be more connected with nature is the more accurate interpretation, so very well done if you got that right.

Amazing work, everyone went outta the final task of the lesson.

So for our final task, we're going to consider the final line of the poem.

Now this is a really useful exercise for any poem, this shows you what the final impression of the poem is that the poet wanted you to see.

So the final line, the speaker talks of the gods, the treason nature cannot control.

So what I'd like you to do is think about who you think the gods are and what that might mean for the relationship to humans and nature.

So pause the video, take a few minutes to discuss.

Welcome back everyone, now we're going to consider two of our Oak pupils ideas.

I'd like you to think about which one aligns more with your own interpretation of the final line.

So Laura said, "I think that Gods are humans.

It's just something spiritual or fundamental is lost when humans interfere with nature." And Sophia said, "I think that Gods are humans as well, but I think that humans perceive themselves superior to nature when in fact the attitude is merely making us feel isolated and lonely." So pause the video, 'cause at who's ideas you agree with more.

Fantastic work everyone.

It's great to see two different interpretations side by side, 'cause it helps you become more convinced and certain of your own ideas.

Amazing workday, everyone.

Here's a summary of what we covered.

Antrobus use of colour imagery, it's just that nature is full of life and energy.

Antrobus use of personification implies nature is able to form connections while manmade objects are not.

These are fragmented couplets could suggest the speaker has yet to form a connection, but that the desire one, the cyclical structure could show how the speaker's journey has transformed the way they think about nature and mankind.

And the final line could be a critique of how humans perceive their relationship with nature.

I really hope you enjoyed the lesson everyone, and hope to see you for another lesson soon, goodbye.