Reading and responding to 'There are things that lurk in the Library' by Joseph Coelho
I can give a personal response to the poem and read it aloud.
Reading and responding to 'There are things that lurk in the Library' by Joseph Coelho
I can give a personal response to the poem and read it aloud.
These resources will be removed by end of Summer Term 2025.
Lesson details
Key learning points
- Joseph Coelho’s poems are easy to read and engaging, with playful rhythms and subjects that young readers can relate to.
- Joseph Coelho often writes poems with imaginative themes.
- The poem ‘Things that Lurk in the Library’ is about the magic and wonder of libraries, books and reading.
- The poet uses personification to create vivid imagery and a sense of the mystery and magic of libraries.
Keywords
Personification - a way of describing a non-living thing as if it acts or feels like a human
Figurative language - the use of metaphors, similes and personification to create imaginative and symbolic meaning
Common misconception
Pupils may find it difficult to find examples of personification and explain the impact of using this.
You could show the whole poem on the slides and work as a class to find different examples, before children work in pairs to find more examples at their tables.
Equipment
You need a copy of the poem ‘There are Things that Lurk in the Library’, which is in the 2017 Otter-Barry Books edition of ‘Overheard in a Tower Block’ by Joseph Coelho, for this lesson.
Licence
This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2024), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).
Lesson video
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