ELA Standards (Nebraska)

LA.10.RP.1 – Analyze the development of two or more implied or explicit themes over the course of a literary text or texts.

LA.10.SL.1 – Initiate and participate in structured discussions and collaborations about grade-level topics and texts.

LA.10.W.3 – Write in a variety of literary forms to convey real or imagined experiences or events, themes, and perspectives in which the development, structure, and style are appropriate to the task, purpose, and audience.

Summary of Materials

All of the materials for week one seek to establish a baseline understanding of poetry and poetic elements as well as arguments of what is and is not considered poetry.

Readings

Hirsch, Edward. “How to Read a Poem.” Poets.org, 2007. From Internet Archive; loads slowly.
This piece goes into the analysis of poetry and how it can vary greatly from poem to poem.

Whitcraft Learning Solutions. Poetry Terms and Poetry Forms. Whitcraft Learning Solutions, 2015.
This guide showcases a long list of the tenets of a wide range of different types of poems as well as another overview of poetry. This can be used as a reference tool throughout the entire lesson plan.

Videos

Khan Academy. “Khan Academy – The Elements of a Poem.” 10 Apr. 2020. YouTube.
This is a great introduction to what a poem entails and some elements to look for. This should be one of the first resources reviewed in the week.

Kovacs, Melissa. “What Makes a Poem ... a Poem?” 20 Mar. 2017 YouTube.
This is a great way to demonstrate the many forms of poetry that exist and the many ways “poetry” can be defined.

Discussion Questions

1. What makes a poem a poem?
2. How can you tell when something is prose or poetry?
3. How can poetry be used as a rhetorical strategy?
4. What do you feel when you read a poem?

Suggested Activities

1. Write a poem in the style of one of the listed types, following the rules.
2. Create a poster about one of the poetic elements discussed. Use examples and images that convey this message.
3. Have a mock trial where you put a piece of literature on the block and one side has to defend why it is poetry and the other has to argue that it is not.
4. Host a poetry slam where students recite a poem they found online, or one they have written themselves.

ELA Standards (Nebraska)

LA.10.RP.3 – Analyze how the author's choices related to perspective or point of view contribute to the meaning, significance, or aesthetic of a literary text.

LA.10.RP.4 – Analyze how an author uses text structure, including the manipulation of time (e.g., foreshadowing, flashbacks) to create literary effects such as mystery, tension, and suspense.

LA.10.RP.8 – Read and comprehend a wide range of literary texts of appropriate complexity at the high end of the 9-10 grade band proficiently, with scaffolding as needed at the high end of the range

Summary of Materials

All of the materials for week two seek to provide examples of poetry from the Victorian era that enact a wide range of poetic elements discussed in the previous week. Two of the poets, E. Pauline Johnson and Rabindranth Tagore, are from minoritized groups and discuss dualities of identity and social injustices in their work. Tennyson, a highly-regarded white British poet of the time, is utilized as a comparison of the other two to further showcase how different topics and poetic elements are used differently.

Readings

Anonymous. “Kanien’keha:Ka Peoples in Canada: The 18th and 19th Century Struggle against Cultural Erosion.” Huron University College, 2022.
Written by a group of student researchers at Huron University College, this piece provides context of the Canadian government and the Kanien’keha:Ka (Mohawk) Tribe during the time in which E. Pauline Johnson would have been writing her poetry. This piece also offers key background information that students can use to have a conversation of what rhetorical strategies and messages Johnson chooses to convey within her poetry. Finally, the website defines some words and phrases with which students may be unfamiliar such as “indigeniety” and “First Nations.”

Blackwell, Fritz. “The British Impact on India, 1700-1900.” Asia in World History: 1750-1914, vol. 13:2, Association for Asian Studies, 2008.
This piece provides a short overview of the history of British colonial rule in India and is likely necessary for students to read to understand the writings of Rabindranth Tagore in the context of colonialism.

Johnson, E. Pauline. Flint and Feather (Collected Verse). 1912. Revised and Enlarged Edition, The Musson Book Co., Limited, 1913.
This is an extensive collection of the poems of E. Pauline Johnson (Tekahionwake). There are a wide variety of poems found in this collection that students can use to identify different types of poems. Johnson’s poems also often deal with colonialism, empire, and biraciality and can lead to fruitful discussions regarding how poetry can be used to make students feel and understand perspectives of which the students were unaware. Below is a list of poems from the book I would highly recommend using:

• “A Cry from an Indian Wife.” This poem is a dramatic monologue. It tells the story of a Native woman who is upset that her husband is leaving her to fight colonial forces.
• “The Onondaga Madonna.” This is a lyric poem that reflects on a Native woman looking at her newborn child and reflecting on how they both are expected to assimilate and lose their culture.
• “Ojistoh.” This narrative poem tells the story of a Native woman captured by colonial forces and the story of her subsequent killing of them. The poem plays with perspective and sympathies, which provides a great way to look at poetic elements.

Anonymous “Rabindranth Tagore.” Poetry Foundation, 2018.
This page introduces the poetry of Rabindranth Tagore. Students can look through the page and find any of Tagore’s poems. The page also offers some background on Tagore, including his significance in the fight against Britian’s colonial rule of India. Below is a list of poems of that are highly recommended.

• “Where the Mind is Without Fear.” This lyric poems imagines a world in which colonialism and racism no longer exists, and Tagore’s nation is free.
• “Freedom.” This poem is an ode that questions what it would mean to be truly free. Although Tagore speaks of freedom from colonialism, he also argues that one must have a free mind that exists without prejudice.
• “The Sunset of a Century.” This poem discusses the end of the 19th century and how colonial rule has affected it as well as what the next century may bring.

Anonymous. “Lord Alfred Tennyson.” Poetry Foundation, 2017.
This page introduces the poetry of one of the most renowned poets of the Victorian era, Lord Alred Tennyson. Tennyson’s works embody what many consider to this day to be “proper” Victorian poetry. Tennyson also often addresses empire and colonialism, but more so with a romantic eye. A poem that would be particularly interesting to study in the context of this lesson plan is “Ulysses,” which tells the story of a king dreaming of future conquests and pursuits. Students can also look through the page and explore other poems by Tennyson.

Videos

Brant Historical Society. “ E. Pauline Johnson.” 6 May 2021. YouTube.
This video goes over some background information regarding the poet E. Pauline Johnson.

Manson, David. “The Victorian Poets: Verse That Rivalled the Romantics.” 18 July 2023. YouTube.
This video gives an overview of some of the tenets of Victorian poetry. It is important to note this is a Eurocentric view and should be discussed and looked at critically alongside the poetry of E. Pauline Johnson and Rabindranth Tagore.

Brown, Nia. “The Intersection of Poetry and Social Justice.” 28 Feb. 2022. YouTube.
This video is a TED talk by a college student named Nia Brown who describes her process of writing poetry to enact social justice.

Discussion Questions

1. What are some differences between the E. Pauline Johnson, Rabindranth Tagore, and Lord Alfred Tennyson?
2. How does the tone shift between the three poets when discussing colonialism and imperialism?
3. After reading the poetry this week, what patterns and characteristics do you notice exist in Victorian poetry?
4. How can poetry be used as a rhetorical strategy to enact social justice?
5. How does positionality affect poetry?

Suggested Activities

1. Write a poem that speaks to your own positionality and triumphs or struggles in life.
2. Create a poster for this week about one of the poets. Showcase some biographical facts, quotes, and images that represent them.
3. Create a timeline of historical events that surround one of the poems read in the week. Try to select events that seem relevant to the poem and explain what makes them relevant.
4. Write an analysis describing what poetic elements and style of poem one of the authors utilizes, and why the author chose to use those elements over others.