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Year 8

Exploring Maya Angelou’s ‘On the Pulse of the Morning’

I can explore Maya Angelou’s ‘On the Pulse of the Morning’, including understanding why and how it was written.

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Year 8

Exploring Maya Angelou’s ‘On the Pulse of the Morning’

I can explore Maya Angelou’s ‘On the Pulse of the Morning’, including understanding why and how it was written.

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Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. In 1993, President Bill Clinton asked Angelou to write, and perform, a poem at his inauguration.
  2. Perhaps President Clinton asked Angelou because of her importance as an American poet and civil rights activist.
  3. Angelou wrote on 'On the Pulse of the Morning', a poem focusing on America's past, and its future.
  4. 'On the Pulse of the Morning' emphasises the idea that Americans should see each other as equals, and practice kindness.
  5. Angelou followed a strict writing routine: rising early and working with minimal distractions for a full morning.

Keywords

  • Inauguration - in politics, when a new leader and government is sworn in

  • Civil rights activist - a person who advocates for social and political equality for those who have been denied equal treatment

  • Renew - to make new again, to restore

  • Jim Crow laws - laws enforced by American states which separated people based on the colour of their skin (late 19th century to 1965)

Common misconception

Every American president has a poem read at their inauguration.

Presidents have choice over some elements of their inauguration. President Clinton was only the second president to have a poem read at his ceremony, and he specifically asked for Angelou to write and perform it.

Consider how you will read the poem in LC1. You could consider watching the whole performance (just under 7 minutes) and then focusing on the final four stanzas when reading. Consider which words you will need to define for pupils: mastodon, Midas and mendicant are three examples to consider.
Teacher tip

Equipment

You will need access to a copy of the final four stanzas of 'On the Pulse of the Morning' by Maya Angelou published in 1993 by Penguin Random House.

Content guidance

  • Depiction or discussion of discriminatory behaviour
  • Depiction or discussion of violence or suffering

Supervision

Adult supervision recommended

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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Starter quiz

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6 Questions

Q1.
In the United Kingdom, the country's leader is called the Prime Minister. In America, the country's leader is called the ('Single poet study: Maya Angelou').
Correct Answer: President
Q2.
Which of these are examples of commands? ('Single poet study: Maya Angelou')
Today is a new day.
We look forward.
Correct answer: Look at each other.
Correct answer: Say hello to each other.
Correct answer: Have hope.
Q3.
Match each word to its meaning ('Single poet study: Maya Angelou').
Correct Answer:pulse,the beat you feel as your blood is pumped through your veins

the beat you feel as your blood is pumped through your veins

Correct Answer:species,a group of animals or plants

a group of animals or plants

Correct Answer:destiny,events that will happen to a person or thing in the future

events that will happen to a person or thing in the future

Correct Answer:ignorance,the state of not knowing something

the state of not knowing something

Q4.
Maya Angelou was a poet and a civil activist ('Single poet study: Maya Angelou').
Correct Answer: rights
Q5.
Select the dates which indicate when Maya Angelou was born, and when she passed away ('Single poet study: Maya Angelou').
1928-1978
1978-2014
1914-1945
Correct answer: 1928-2014
1906-1983
Q6.
The laws were laws enforced by American states which separated people based on the colour of their skin (late 19th century to 1965) ('Single poet study: Maya Angelou').
Correct Answer: Jim Crow

Exit quiz

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6 Questions

Q1.
Maya Angelou wrote a poem called 'On the Pulse of the '. ('Single poet study: Maya Angelou')
Correct Answer: Morning
Q2.
Which president asked Maya Angelou to write and perform a poem at their inauguration? ('Single poet study: Maya Angelou')
President Obama
Correct answer: President Clinton
President Biden
President Kennedy
Q3.
What is true of Maya Angelou's writing routine? ('Single poet study: Maya Angelou')
She wrote at night when she felt most creative.
Correct answer: She wrote in a hotel room she rented, rather than her house.
She used a library of books and the internet to support her.
Correct answer: She would write with the Bible, a dictionary and a deck of cards beside her.
Correct answer: She would start writing early in the morning.
Q4.
What words did Angelou use to describe her writing routine? ('Single poet study: Maya Angelou')
"phenomenal"
"helpful"
Correct answer: "lonely"
Correct answer: "marvellous"
"creative"
Q5.
What is the final word of 'On the Pulse of the Morning'? ('Single poet study: Maya Angelou')
"America"
"future"
"pulse"
Correct answer: "morning"
"freedom"
Q6.
Which sentence uses the word 'renewal' correctly? ('Single poet study: Maya Angelou')
I am hoping a change of scene will renewal my energy.
I renewal so I feel fresh and raring to go.
Correct answer: Each morning, I feel a sense of renewal after a good night's sleep.