New
New
Year 4

Reading and responding to 'First Snow' by John Mole

I can give a personal response to the poem and give some evidence to justify my ideas.

New
New
Year 4

Reading and responding to 'First Snow' by John Mole

I can give a personal response to the poem and give some evidence to justify my ideas.

Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. ‘First Snow’ describes a changed landscape as a narrator explores their surroundings.
  2. Rhetorical questions are included in each verse.
  3. 'First Snow' uses the rhyme scheme: ABBA.
  4. John Mole uses imagery to create a picture or impression of the scene in the reader or listener’s mind.

Common misconception

Pupils may find it challenging to identify different poetic techniques or examples of figurative language.

Pupils could text mark a physical copy of the poem with their thoughts and ideas. Highlighters could be used to mark rhetorical questions.

Keywords

  • Rhetorical question - a question asked that does not expect an answer, but rather makes a point or creates emphasis

  • Rhyme scheme - the pattern of rhyming words or sounds at the end of each line in a poem, often represented using letters to indicate the rhyme pattern (e.g., AABB, ABAB)

  • Imagery - the use of language to create a mental picture or sensory experience for the reader or listener

Pupils could explore additional poems written about snow, including 'Winter' by by Judith Nicholls, 'Snow' by Robert Hull and 'Lady Winter's Rap' by Grace Nichols.
Teacher tip

Equipment

You need a copy of the poem ‘First Snow’ which is featured on pages 14 & 15 in the 1994 Puffin edition of ‘Back by Midnight’ written by John Mole, illustrated by Peter Bailey 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).

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6 Questions

Q1.
What words are usually associated with the noun snow?
Correct answer: cold
hot
humid
Correct answer: frozen
Correct answer: icy
Q2.
What is the most appropriate definition of an impression?
to communicate a message directly or indirectly
Correct answer: initial feelings about a person, place or thing, gained from reading a text
a lesson that can be learnt from a story or experience
Q3.
True or False? All poems in a poetry collection have to be created by the same poet.
Correct Answer: False, false
Q4.
Who is the poet of 'When the Wind Blows'?
Correct answer: John Foster
Robert Browning
Christina Rossetti
Q5.
Rhythm in poetry refers to which of the following?
the loudness or softness of the voice when speaking or reading a poem
a single line or a group of lines within a poem
Correct answer: the pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables in a line of verse
Q6.
A rhetorical question is __________ ?
a punctuation mark used to express strong emotion
a sentence that includes direct speech
Correct answer: a question asked that does not expect an answer

6 Questions

Q1.
Which perspective is the poem 'First Snow' written in?
Correct answer: first person
second person
third person
Q2.
Match the keywords to their definitions.
Correct Answer:rhetorical question,a question asked that does not expect an answer

a question asked that does not expect an answer

Correct Answer:rhyme scheme,the pattern of rhyming words at the end of each line in a poem

the pattern of rhyming words at the end of each line in a poem

Correct Answer:imagery,the use of language to create a mental picture or sensory experience

the use of language to create a mental picture or sensory experience

Q3.
‘First Snow’ has five verses with __________ lines in each.
3
Correct answer: 4
5
6
Q4.
Order the following events that occur in the poem.
1 - The narrator notices that it has snowed “unexpectedly”.
2 - Snow is continuing to fall onto the ground.
3 - A bird shakes snow off its wing.
Q5.
True or False? The rhyme scheme of the poem 'First Snow' is ABBA.
Correct Answer: True, true
Q6.
Which objects is the snow compared to in the poem?
Correct answer: tears
blanket
sugar
Correct answer: handkerchief
Correct answer: elbow