Final Assessment

Roots and Water

M.L.O

To prepare for and plan your essay.

Choose two poems where the style and language of the poem seem particularly suited to what the poet has to say, and explain

in each case why you think this.

For each poem:• Make it clear what the poet is writing about. • Refer to anything you know about the context of the

poem which helps you to understand the poems. • Remember to comment in detail about how the poem

is written, referring to particular words and phrases. • What do you think the poet has to say about the past,

and the way it relates to the present?

Choose two poems which deal in some way with the experience of migration, and show how this is explored in the imagery of the poems.

For each poem:• Make it clear what the poet is writing about. • Refer to anything you know about the context of the

poem which helps you to understand the poems. • Remember to comment in detail about how the poem

is written, referring to particular words and phrases. • What do you think the poet has to say about the past,

and the way it relates to the present?

Choose two poems which made you think about your own sense of cultural identity, and explain what you found interesting in the poems.

For each poem:• Make it clear what the poet is writing about. • Refer to anything you know about the context of the

poem which helps you to understand the poems. • Remember to comment in detail about how the poem

is written, referring to particular words and phrases. • What do you think the poet has to say about the past,

and the way it relates to the present?

Choose two poems which deal with the experience of living between two cultures, and show how this experience is reflected in the language of the poems.

For each poem:• Make it clear what the poet is writing about. • Refer to anything you know about the context of the

poem which helps you to understand the poems. • Remember to comment in detail about how the poem

is written, referring to particular words and phrases. • What do you think the poet has to say about the past,

and the way it relates to the present?

Show how the poet's sense of cultural identity is explored in two of the poems you have studied.

For each poem:• Make it clear what the poet is writing about. • Refer to anything you know about the context of the

poem which helps you to understand the poems. • Remember to comment in detail about how the poem

is written, referring to particular words and phrases. • What do you think the poet has to say about the past,

and the way it relates to the present?

deal in some way with the experience of migration, and show how this is explored in the imagery of the poems.

‘Presents from My Aunts in Pakistan’ deals with the experience of migration; show how this is explored in the imagery of the poem.

• In writing about Moniza Alvi's poem, you could include short paragraphs about:

• The poet's personal history, and how this links with the situation described in the poem.

• The imagery of Pakistan and the imagery of England.• What the poem says about the girl's thoughts and

feelings.

deal in some way with the experience of migration, and show how this is explored in the imagery of the poems.

‘Unrelated Incidents’ makes you think about your own sense of cultural identity; explain what you found interesting in the poem.

• In writing about Tom Leonard's poem, you could include short paragraphs about:

• The argument about language and power which the poem puts forward.

• The dialect in which the poem is written, and the effect and significance of this.

• What the poem led you to think about.

deal in some way with the experience of migration, and show how this is explored in the imagery of the poems.

Choose any poem other than ‘Half-Caste’. Write about the poem and its effect on you.

You may wish to include some or all of these points:•the poem's content - what it is about•the ideas the poet may have wanted us to think about•the mood or atmosphere of the poem•how it is written - words or phrases you find interesting, the way the poem is structured or organized, and so on•your response to the poem

Preparation

• Review your notes about each poem.• Choose which poem(s) you are going to write

about.• Collect a copy of any poem you don’t already

have, if needed.• Explode the poems, and make notes about

them in a chart.• Annotate the poem(s).• Highlight any quotations you may use.

How to analyse a poem

1. Look for words which are used in an interesting way.

2. Pick out key words that let you know the content – what the poem is about.

3. Look at the structure – what shape does the poem have, how many stanzas does it have?

How to analyse a poem

4. Can you figure out what ideas the poem had that he/she wanted to share?

5. Pick out key words that let you know the mood – how the poem makes you feel, how the characters feel, and how the poet was feeling.

6. Now give your response, which means say whether or not you think all of the other 5 things were effective or not!

If you want to know where to start investigating a poem...

Annotate

Planning

As part of your assignment, you must hand in:• Your explosion chart 10%• Your annotated poems 10%• Your plan 10%• Your first draft 10%• Your final draft 60%

Paragraphs

Every paragraph you write must follow this structure:

• P point – this is your topic sentence which tells the reader what your paragraph is about.

• E evidence – this is a quotation or example which proves your point.

• E explain – this is where you explain why you have made your point, and how your evidence shows that you are right.

Your essay planEssay title:Poems selected:Introduction:Section: (use the bullet points which accompany your essay title as a guide)Paragraph 1P:E:E:Paragraph 2P:E:E:Etc...Section:Paragraph:P:E:E:Etc...Conclusion: