Skip to content
Oak National Academy
Oak National Academy
Teachers
Pupils
icon-background-square
New
New
Year 10
AQA

Understanding the poem ‘Walking Away’ by Cecil Day-Lewis

I can explain how Cecil Day-Lewis conveys the significance of a past parting between the speaker and their child.

Download all resources
arrow-right
Share activities with pupils
arrow-right
icon-background-square
New
New
Year 10
AQA

Understanding the poem ‘Walking Away’ by Cecil Day-Lewis

I can explain how Cecil Day-Lewis conveys the significance of a past parting between the speaker and their child.

Download all resources
arrow-right
Share activities with pupils
arrow-right
warning

These resources will be removed by end of Summer Term 2025.

Switch to our new teaching resources now - designed by teachers and leading subject experts, and tested in classrooms.
View new resources
arrow-right

Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. The speaker, a father, reminisces on the moment their child left to go to school after his first football match.
  2. The speaker feels apprehensive about this parting, worrying the son is not ready.
  3. The moment of separation was not the worst the speaker has experienced, but was the most impactful.
  4. The speaker acknowledges and accepts that letting a child experience independence is a crucial part of parenting.
  5. The poem is semi-autobiographical and Day-Lewis originally dedicated it to his eldest son, Sean.

Keywords

  • Reminisces - recalls past events or experiences, often with nostalgia or sentimentality

  • Insecurities - feelings of doubt, uncertainty, or inadequacy about oneself or one's abilities

  • Pathetic fallacy - using descriptions of natural elements to emphasise a particular mood or emotion

  • Independent clause - contains a subject and verb, expressing a complete thought that can stand alone as a sentence

  • Dependent clause - contains a subject and verb but cannot stand alone as a sentence

Common misconception

Some pupils may think the parent and child never spoke or saw each other again after this moment in the poem.

The separation described in the poem isn't just physical but rather emotional. Day-Lewis describes a moment where the speaker feels like they lost a part of their son because he had grown up and gained his independence.

Track the structure of the poem by encouraging students to pick out the most important key words from each stanza and map these out across the poem.
speech-bubble
Teacher tip
equipment-required

Equipment

You will need access to the poem 'Walking Away' by Cecil Day-Lewis. This can be found in the AQA Love and Relationships Poetry Anthology.

content-guidance

Content guidance

  • Depiction or discussion of sensitive content
supervision-level

Supervision

Adult supervision recommended

copyright

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

Skip lesson video

Loading...

Starter quiz

Download starter quiz

6 Questions

Q1.
What is being described here: 'the place or type of surroundings where something is positioned or where an event takes place.'?
characterisation
Correct answer: setting
voice
narrative
Q2.
A dependent clause is...
Correct answer: a group of words that does not express a complete thought
a group of words that does express a complete thought
a group of words containing a two subjects
Q3.
What is being described here: 'the projection of human emotions onto non-human objects found in nature'?
personification
hyperbole
Correct answer: pathetic fallacy
Q4.
If you feel 'insecure' this means...
Correct answer: uncertain and anxious
calm and confident
sad and lonely
Q5.
A group of words that are related in meaning are known as a...
Correct Answer: semantic field
Q6.
A is a direct comparison between two things using the verb 'to be'.
Correct Answer: metaphor

Exit quiz

Download exit quiz

6 Questions

Q1.
'Walking Away' is thought to be semi-autobiographical. Who did Cecil Day-Lewis write the poem for?
Correct answer: his son
his father
his grandfather
Q2.
Starting with the first, put these key ideas from 'Walking Away' into the order they appear in the poem.
1 - the speaker watches their son play football
2 - the speaker describes their son walking away to go to school
3 - the speaker suggests their son is not quite ready to be independent
4 - the speaker says this is their most painful parting
5 - the speaker knows that letting their child go shows their love
Q3.
How is the day in the memory described at the start of the poem 'Walking Away'?
cloudy
Correct answer: sunny
windy
Q4.
Which word from 'Walking Away' best suggests the speaker doesn't think his son is quite ready to be fully independent?
Correct answer: "half-fledged"
"eddying"
"loosened"
Q5.
What does it mean to 'reminisce'?
have feelings of doubt or uncertainty
use descriptions of natural elements
Correct answer: recall past events or experiences
Q6.
Which themes are explored in the poem 'Walking Away'?
Correct answer: parenthood
Correct answer: loss
power