Poetry AdventuresKey Stage 1 Lesson Plan – Real and Imaginary Experience Poetry

Additional ResourcesThere is a PowerPoint presentation that can be used alongside this lesson plan (see reverse for details).

NotesThis is a one-hour activity (not including ten-minute suggested break). Alternatively, the introductory work can be done in class (45 minutes) and the poem can be written as homework.

Learning Objectives• Learnaboutnarrativepoetryandrhyme• Drawonexperiences,eitherrealorimagined• Usetheirknowledgetoplan,draftandcomposetheirown poem for our Poetry Adventures competition

Preparation• Photocopypupilentryformandpupilplanningsheet(onecopy per pupil)• Prepareacopyofthenurseryrhyme‘One,TwoBuckleMyShoe’ and‘TheOwlandthePussy-Cat’forclassdisplayinthelesson• Preparethreecolumnsontheboard:‘Liketodo’/‘Wishtodo’/ ‘With’foruseinthelessonNote: if you are using the PowerPoint presentation the examples and columns are included.

Curriculum References: En12d,2e,2f,3d,8b,9b,10b/En23a,6a,6d/En31c,1d,9b,9c,9d

IntroductionThe idea of this lesson plan is to inspire pupils to learn about narrative poetry and rhyme and use these as tools to create their own poembasedonrealorimaginedexperiences.Handoutacopyoftheplanningsheet/entryformtoeachpupil.Explainthattodaypupils will be creating their own poem (slide 1).

Main Teaching Activities

Activity name Slide reference Activity details

What is a Poem?(10 minutes) 2 - 4

Askyourclassiftheyknowwhatapoemisandcantheygiveanyexamples.Showthemacopyof‘One,TwoBuckleMyShoe’andexplainrhymeandhowithasbeenused.Canyourpupilsgiveyouanyexamplesofrhymes–eitheridentifyingapoemthathasarhymescheme, or offering words that rhyme?

Explaining Narrative Poetry(10 minutes)

5Explainthatanarrativepoemtellsastoryanddisplay‘TheOwlandthePussy-Cat’beforereadingitaloudtotheclass.Explainhowthepoemtellsastory–italsousesrhymebutexplainthatrhymedoesn’thavetobeusedtotellastorywithinapoem.

Here, we suggest you take a ten-minute break and in this time encourage the children to do an activity they like or just let them play. This is to help the children think about what they like to do and with who – it may even inspire role play based on what has just been discussed.

Activity name Slide reference Activity details

Idea Generating(15 minutes) 6

Ask each pupil to tell you something they like doing, write these on the board. Go round againandaskthemtotellyouiftheycoulddoanythingortryanything,whatwouldtheydo–this can include going to the moon, living underwater, being a superhero as well as possible experienceslikeflyingaplaneormeetingtheirhero.Writetheseontheboard.Goroundafinaltimeandaskpupilsiftheydidthesethingswhowouldtheymostliketodothemwith–againthiscouldbesomeonefamous,orananimal,ortheirbestfriendorfamily.Writetheiranswers on the board. Each time encourage individuality so the list is varied.

Plot Planning(10 minutes) 7

Ask pupils to think about the adventures they can go on (you can remind them of their earlier suggestionswrittenontheboard).Askpupilsthequestionsfromtheplanningsheet(Wherewould they like to go on their adventure, who would they like to go with, what can they see /hear/taste/feel/smellandwhatisgoingtohappen).Askthemtousetheirsenseswhenthinking about their adventure and ask them to write down their ideas on the planning form, includingtheirideasonwhatthey’dsee/hear/feel/smell/taste).Remindthemtothinkabout colours, what they are feeling and things they may need on their adventure.

Composing a Poem(15 minutes)

8 - 9Now pupils have completed their planning sheet they are ready to have a go at writing theirownpoetryadventure.TheirfinalpoemcanbewrittenupdirectlyontothePoetryAdventuresentryform.ShowclassexamplePoetryAdventures.

Plenary (5-10 minutes)Ask pupils to work in pairs or small groups and to read their poem to one another. Peers are to feedback something they like about the poem and something they think could be improved.

Suggestions• Challengemoreadvancedpupilsbyaskingthemtoincludearhymeschemeorprovidekeywordstheyneedtoincludeintheirpoem.• Prepareaverbsheetandanadjectivesheetfortheclasstoassistwithvocabularyvarietyintheirwriting.• Youngerorlessablechildrencanworkinpairstocreatetheirpoem.• Askpupilstopractise‘telling’theirpoemsandthenreadthemouttotherestoftheclass.• Toextendtheactivity,basedontheclass’academicability,youcoulduse‘TheGruffalo’tohighlightlongerpiecesofrhyming narrativepoetryoruse‘TheListeners’byWalterdelaMaretoshownon-rhymingnarrativepoetryandcomparethecontrasts.

My Poetry Adventure

IputonmyCinderelladressOpenedthefairydoortogocampingintheforestMummyandDaddycamewithme.WesawablackwolfandaredfoxI heard the birds singing and the fairies dancedWecookedourteaonthehotcampfireAnd had a shower in the waterfall.The fairies made us a picnicThe cakes had fairy dust onSoweflewhome.

Dinosaur Adventure

OnceuponatimeThe dinosaur was running in the streets,I wanted it to be mineIt was breaking everything, crash, snap, bang!Ifiredmygunatitanditshrunk,Itwassmallnow,whichwasfine.I put it in my pocket and drove home.I called it Jeff.Jeff lives in the garden and eats lime.Myfriendsthinkhe’sgreattoo.

Example Poems

Download the Poetry Adventures presentation from www.youngwriters.co.uk/poetry-adventures

(What is a poem?)

Today you are going to:

• Learn about narrative poetry and rhyme.

• Write a poem about an adventure either real

or imagined.

Write your poetry adventure See if you can include a Rhyme

Other Words That Rhyme: