Understanding 'Winter Swans' by Owen Sheers
I can explain how Sheers presents a change in the speaker’s romantic relationship with another person.
Understanding 'Winter Swans' by Owen Sheers
I can explain how Sheers presents a change in the speaker’s romantic relationship with another person.
These resources will be removed by end of Summer Term 2025.
Lesson details
Key learning points
- Sheers depicts a relationship which is initially fragmented as the couple are physically and emotionally separated.
- By the end of the poem the couple have salvaged their relationship and are reunified.
- The inconsistent form followed by a final couplet could mirror the changing status of the relationship.
- The setting at the start of the poem reflects the couples despairing and hopeless emotions.
- The poem is from a wider collection entitled 'Skirrid Hill' which means 'shattered mountain'.
Keywords
Fragmented - broken into pieces; lacking togetherness or unity
Unified - formed or integrated into a whole; cohesive or combined
Hope - an optimistic expectation; a longing for a positive outcome
Despair - overwhelming sadness; a loss of hope
Salvageable - something that can be saved or repaired
Common misconception
Form and structure are the same thing.
Form deals with the 'poetic rules' that govern a poem and helps us to categorise it along with other similar poems whereas structure deals with how the ideas in the poem are ordered and organised.
To help you plan your year 10 english lesson on: Understanding 'Winter Swans' by Owen Sheers, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your year 10 english lesson on: Understanding 'Winter Swans' by Owen Sheers, 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.
We use learning cycles to break down learning into key concepts or ideas linked to the learning outcome. Each learning cycle features explanations with checks for understanding and practice tasks with feedback. All of this is found in our slide decks, ready for you to download and edit. The practice tasks are also available as printable worksheets and some lessons have additional materials with extra material you might need for teaching the lesson.
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 4 english lessons from the 'Love and Relationships' unit, dive into the full secondary english curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.
Equipment
You will need access to the poem 'Winter Swans' by Owen Sheers. This can be found in the AQA Love and Relationships Poetry Anthology.
Content guidance
- Depiction or discussion of sensitive content
Supervision
Adult supervision recommended
Licence
Lesson video
Loading...
Starter quiz
6 Questions
Exit quiz
6 Questions
Broken into pieces; lacking togetherness or unity
Formed or integrated into a whole; cohesive or combined
An optimistic expectation; a longing for a positive outcome
Overwhelming sadness; a loss of hope
Something that can be saved or repaired