Lesson video

Hello and welcome to today's lesson.

My name is Ms. Watson and I am so glad that you've decided to join me today.

I'm really looking forward to this lesson because you are going to be doing some creative writing.

You're gonna be writing a poem based on one of Maya Angelou's poem, and I absolutely love when students do creative writing.

So when you're ready, we'll get started.

So the outcome of today's lesson is that you will be able to write a poem that is inspired by Maya Angelou's poem, "Life Doesn't Frighten Me." Let's look now at the five key words that will unlock your learning.

They are methods.

Now that is the tools that a writer uses to craft their work.

So refrain and figurative language, they would be two examples of writer's methods.

And a monosyllable, that is a word that have only one syllable, one beat, for example, bad, big, run, fun.

And figurative language, that's non-literal phrases and words which develop a writer's meaning.

Simile and metaphor, are both examples of figurative language.

And a refrain, that is a repeated line or group of lines in a poem.

And that the word intangible, that means something that can't be touched.

For example, a noise is intangible.

We can hear it, but we can't touch it.

Now all those words are gonna be really useful.

So if you would like a little bit of time to familiarise yourself with those words, please feel free to pause the video while you do that, and then join the lesson when you're ready.

So let's look at the outline for today's lesson.

We're gonna start by planning a poem and then you are going to write a poem.

So let's start with the plan.

And the poem you'll write today is in response to this prompt, write a poem about facing your fears inspired by Maya Angelou's, "Life Doesn't Frighten Me." So first you will need to find the poem and then you will need to read it.

And then I would like you to discuss the following.

What fears do you want to write about in your poem? And are there any methods that Angelou uses that you would like to mimic? Pause the video while you do that, or if you are working by yourself, pause the video and make some notes.

Now before you start to plan, it would be really helpful for us to consider the focus of each stanza in Angelou's poem.

So stanzas one and two, that focuses on intangible, scary things like noises and shadows.

And stanzas three and four, these are scary creatures and some are mythical.

That means not real, but not all.

And in stanza five, the speaker scares creatures away using monosyllabic language.

That's single syllable words.

And stanza six is the refrain, which is also the title of the poem.

And then stanza seven and eight are about dangerous people and animals.

So real things, not mythical things and tangible things, not intangible things.

And stanza nine is about everyday challenges.

For example, the challenges that we might face every day in our lives, in our classrooms. And stanza 10, the speaker admits that she can be afraid of dreams. And then in stanza 11, there is a description of magic powers.

And for that description of magic powers, Angelou uses figurative language really effectively.

And stanza 12 is the refrain.

And then the refrain is repeated again in stanza 13.

So let's move on.

Now, the Oak pupils, Jun, Alex, Izzy and Jacob thought about the structure of Angelou's poem, and then they had a discussion about how they would use it to inspire their own poem.

I'm gonna share with you what they said.

So Jun said he really liked how each stanza had a focus and he'd like to mimic that.

And he says, but my ideas will all be about the night because I think that that can be a scary time.

And Izzy said, I'd like to have a stanza where the speaker's power is revealed using figurative language just like Angelou in stanza 11.

And Alex liked the way that Angelou uses a refrain, but at the end of it, it slightly changes.

And there's something about that slight change that adds interest and maybe a little more depth to the poem.

That's what Alex really likes.

And Jacob says that Angelou uses lots of monosyllables, which makes the poem have a really powerful beat.

Some really interesting and thoughtful responses to the poem and how it could be inspirational there.

Let's move on.

I would like you to have a discussion around this question.

How will angel's poem inspire you? And these questions could help guide your discussion.

What ideas would you like to focus on in your poem? How many stanzas might you need to explore these ideas? What are some of the words, phrases, and methods you might include? For example, figurative language or monosyllabic words.

How will you include a refrain and explain why you would or would not like your poem to rhyme? So please now, will you pause the video and have a discussion, or if you are working by yourself, just pause a video and make some notes in response to those questions.

Off you go.

Now, after his discussion, Jun uses a table to develop his plan.

So stanza one and the details, and he summarises stanza one as being about the darkness of a bedroom at night.

And then he has the details, darkness pervades, that means fills every corner of the room.

And I don't quake that means shapes, slightly old fashioned word, but rather interesting.

I don't quake with fear, that's what he's going to use as a refrain.

And then he moves onto the noises and they're mysterious rustling, scuffling, tapping, and then he repeats, I don't quake with fear.

And I would like to take a little bit of time to unpick this plan to see what he does well.

So there is a clear focus.

We know that stanza one is going to be about the darkness of a bedroom at a particular point that is a brilliantly clear focus.

And there are three or four ideas in note form, which is fine, absolutely what you need.

And methods are referred to refrain and repeat.

And there is also here a focus on vocabulary, pervades, quake, rustling, scuffling, tapping, okay? So great, useful, excellent table to develop the plan.

Let's have a check for understanding.

Example A and example B, which pupil has the most appropriate plan for one of their stanza's of their poem inspired by Life Doesn't Frighten Me.

Is it example A, is something that's scary? And the detail is figurative language.

Mimic a few things from Angelou, e.

g.

language.

Use monosyllables, e.

g.

run, shake, and user refrain.

And here's example B and stanza five, creatures from fairytales.

And here's the detail, wolves, hungry and cunning, howl and snarl, witches crafty spells.

Refrain, I'm yet more cunning, I'm yet more crafty.

Disappear, dissolve.

Which one of those is the most appropriate plan, the more appropriate plan? Have a think, make your choice.

That's right, it's B, it's much more detailed.

It actually tells you which stanza it is, it's stanza five.

And there is a clear focus, creatures from fairytales as opposed to a rather vague focus, which is something that's scary.

And rather than saying general things like figurative language, it actually tells you what those creatures are going to be.

And it doesn't just say it's going to use a refrain, it writes out the refrain.

Well done if you've got that right, let's move on.

So it's over to you now, time to plan.

I'm gonna give you a reminder of the prompt.

It's to write a poem about facing your fears inspired by Maya Angelou's, "Life Doesn't Frighten Me." You could reread, Life Doesn't Frighten Me.

That might help you as you're planning.

And I would like you to use the table to plan each stanza.

Make sure you number what stanza it's going to be and make sure your details are specific.

Here's a little checklist for each stanza.

To have a clear focus, 3 to 4 details in note form to decide on your methods and to be clear which powerful vocabulary you are going to use.

So it's time now to pause the video, while you gather together everything you need and off you go.

Welcome back, what excellent focus, well done.

Now this room was the plan for one of Jun's stanzas.

And it met the checklist.

It met the checklist because it had a clear focus and because there were 3 to 4 details in note form.

And he referred to methods that he was going to use that was very clear, and there was a good strong focus on vocabulary.

And now, what I would like you to do is to read over your plan and to ensure that each one of your stanzas meets the checklist.

Here it is.

You can pause the video while you do that and then return and we will continue to the next part of the lesson while you will be writing the poem.

Off you go.

So we're making fantastic progress today.

You should now have a plan that you are ready to write.

And so let's get on and think about writing it.

So here is a stanza from Jun's poem.

I'd like to read it to you and I'd like you to follow along while I read.

The darkness pervades every nook and cranny, but I don't quake with fear.

There may be rustling and scuffling, and tapping and knocking, but I don't quake with fear.

No, fear doesn't quake me.

Now Jun reads through his stanza twice out loud.

And then he says this, "I like my vocabulary and the way I have played with the refrain." You see that the refrain changes slightly at the end, but I want to edit the opening line and the middle.

And I also want to consider the beat and rhythm of Angelou's poem to inspire me.

I think that is a really good reflection.

Jun has made a really good reflection on his poem, both what he likes and what he would like to change.

And here is Jun's second draught.

Let me read it to you.

You follow along.

Darkness pervades every nook, every cranny, but I don't quake with fear.

There may be rustling and scuffling, troubling taps and unknowable knocks, but I don't quake with fear.

No, fear doesn't quake me.

And how would you say that he has improved the stanza? The first draught is now here, and what I would like you to do is to focus on the methods that he has used in his second draught.

Pause the video while you have that discussion, or if you're working by yourself, just pause the video and make a few notes.

So well done, that was a really interesting discussion.

I like the way you picked up things like the vocabulary 'cause he's really developed the vocabulary in the middle.

Unknowable knocks has a nice sort of sound to it.

And troubling taps, he's used the alliteration there.

And by having darkness pervades instead of the darkness, it makes the poem really start with the idea of the dark.

And all that is scary about the dark.

Let's move on.

So now we are going to have a check for understanding.

Draught one and draught two of a line of a pupil's poem, which has been inspired by Life Doesn't Frighten Me.

I'm gonna read them both to you and then I'm gonna ask you a question.

So silver wolves with glistening teeth, they are snarling to frighten me.

That's draught one.

And then silver wolves with glistening teeth, snarl and howl and glare.

That's draught two.

What method has the pupil relied on in draught two to improve their work? Is it A, figurative language? B, monosyllabic language? C, refrain? Have a think, make your choice.

Did you say monosyllabic language? Because that's right.

Snarl and howl and glare are all one syllable words and used well, one syllable words are very powerful.

They have a kind of an immediacy and a great sort of beat to them.

Well done.

Let's move on.

And now, it's over to you to write your poem.

You are going to use the plan you made in learning cycle one, and you're gonna write the poem.

Just another reminder of the prompt.

Write a poem about facing your fears inspired by Maya Angelou's, "Life Doesn't Frighten Me." And of course, you could rely on the methods and ideas in Life Doesn't Frighten Me to inspire you.

So what you need to do now is pause the video, make sure you have everything you need, and then when you're ready off you go and write your poem.

Happy writing.

Welcome back, I loved seeing your focus there and I love seeing the pleasure you took in playing with the words and finding a refrain that worked for you.

Now, I would like you to recall Jun's evaluation of one of his stanzas.

Here's the stanza, and you remember he said about it that he liked the vocabulary and he liked the way that he played with the refrain, but he wanted to edit the opening line and he wanted to edit the middle.

And he wanted to consider the beat and rhythm of Angelou's poem to inspire him, to inspire him to create a better second draught.

And we said at the time that that was a really good piece of reflection because he both saw what he liked, what he thought he had done well, but he could also see that there was room for improvement and he knew why he wanted to make that improvement.

And so I would like you to do the same.

What I would like you to do is to read your poem aloud twice.

And then I want you to select just one stanza from your poem that you would like to improve.

And using the sentence status that I'm gonna give you, I would like you to evaluate its strengths and what you would like to improve, and then you're gonna complete the improvements.

So you're gonna use the same sentence structures that Jun did.

I like, I also like and I want to improve.

So do steps 1 to 3 first and then complete the improvements.

I am sure that you are going to be very, very pleased with the finished result.

So you need to pause the video now, gather everything you need.

When you finish, I'd like you to return for the end of the lesson.

Off you go.

Now, before we say goodbye, I would like to summarise what you have been learning today.

You have been learning that Maya Angelou uses stanzas and a refrain to structure her poem, "Life Doesn't Frighten Me." And you've also been learning that Life Doesn't Frighten Me, uses monosyllables at points for effect.

And you've also learned that you can use a poet's work to inspire your own creativity, and you did that so well.

You can plan each stanza of a poem by considering its focus and the details, including the methods you would like to include and you have learned that reading your poem aloud can help you identify areas you would like to improve.

It's been an excellent lesson.

Really, really good focus and really good learning.

I wish you a fantastic rest of the day and I look forward to seeing you again in another lesson.

Bye for now.