Comparing two poems on similar themes, 'Richmond Park' & 'The Old Farmer's Song'
I can compare and contrast two poems depicting a rural setting.
Comparing two poems on similar themes, 'Richmond Park' & 'The Old Farmer's Song'
I can compare and contrast two poems depicting a rural setting.
These resources will be removed by end of Summer Term 2025.
Lesson details
Key learning points
- ‘Richmond Park’ is a free verse poem; the poem offers contrasting views of the setting it describes.
- 'Richmond Park' is based on a place which is near to where the poet grew up.
- ‘The Old Farmer’s Song’ can be described as a fixed verse poem; it has a consistent rhyme scheme.
- Both poems describe the harshness and beauty of rural life.
- We can compare and contrast poems with similar themes or messages, noticing the impact that they have on us as readers.
Keywords
Theme - a big idea, topic or message that recurs within a text
Imagery - the use of vivid and sensory language that appeals to the reader's senses, creating vivid mental pictures and enhancing the emotional impact of the poem
Compare - involves identifying similarities between two or more things, ideas, themes or texts
Contrast - involves identifying differences between two or more things, ideas, themes or texts
Common misconception
Pupils may find it challenging to visualise the two settings being described by the poets.
Additional photographs could be provided to develop understanding of the two locations.
To help you plan your year 6 english lesson on: Comparing two poems on similar themes, 'Richmond Park' & 'The Old Farmer's Song', download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your year 6 english lesson on: Comparing two poems on similar themes, 'Richmond Park' & 'The Old Farmer's Song', download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs.
The starter quiz will activate and check your pupils' prior knowledge, with versions available both with and without answers in PDF format.
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The assessment exit quiz will test your pupils' understanding of the key learning points.
Our video is a tool for planning, showing how other teachers might teach the lesson, offering helpful tips, modelled explanations and inspiration for your own delivery in the classroom. Plus, you can set it as homework or revision for pupils and keep their learning on track by sharing an online pupil version of this lesson.
Explore more key stage 2 english lessons from the Poetry of place unit, dive into the full secondary english curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.
Equipment
You need a copy of the poems ‘Richmond Park’ in the 2017 Otter-Barry Books edition of ‘Overheard in a Tower Block’ & ‘Old Farmer’s Song’ in the 2022 Bloomsbury edition of ‘Let’s Chase Stars Together’.
Licence
Lesson video
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Starter quiz
6 Questions
when the tide is moving away from the shore
impressions of plants or animals preserved in rock
happening at the same time
referring to the countryside, often characterised by open spaces
referring to cities or towns
referring to areas located near or along the coast
Exit quiz
6 Questions
a big idea, topic or message that recurs within a text
the use of vivid and sensory language that appeals to the reader
involves identifying similarities between two or more things
involves identifying differences between two or more things
to obscure or cover up
developing thick and toughened areas on the skin
the side areas of an animal's body between the ribs and the hip