Lesson Plan for 'The Second Coming' by W.B. Yeats

Lesson Plan for 'The Second Coming' by W.B. Yeats

Learning Objectives

At the end of the lesson you will be able to identify and analyze key imagery and themes in W. B. Yeats's poem 'The Second Coming'.
At the end of the lesson you will be able to synthesize your understanding of 'The Second Coming' by writing an analytic text on the poem's themes and your personal responses.

What do you already know about W.B. Yeats and his poetry?

Introduction to W.B. Yeats and historical context

Biography of W.B. Yeats
Historical context of 'The Second Coming'

Predicting the poem's content

Engage students in predicting the themes and imagery based on the title and historical context

Class reading and vocabulary discussion

Read 'The Second Coming' as a class
Discuss vocabulary and its impact on imagery and themes

Group analysis of stanzas

Break into groups to analyze specific stanzas for imagery and themes

Group presentations on imagery and themes

Each group presents their findings on the imagery and themes within their assigned stanzas

Reflecting on the poem's imagery and themes

Individual reflection on the presented imagery and themes

Review of previous lesson's key points

Recap main points from the previous lesson

Modeling of text structure

Demonstrate how to structure an analytical text

Brainstorming for personal analytic writing

Encourage students to brainstorm ideas for their own analytical text

Drafting and peer review of texts

Students draft their analytical texts and peer review each other's work

Revising texts and sharing reflections

Revision of analytical texts and sharing personal reflections on the writing process

Understanding the writing process and further text development

Discussion on the writing process and guidance for further text development

Definitions

Imagery: Visually descriptive or figurative language used in literature.
Themes: The central topics or messages presented in a literary work.
Close Reading: Careful and detailed interpretation of a text, focusing on individual words, syntax, and the associations they bring up.
Literary Analysis: The practice of examining and discussing literature to understand its messages and elements.
Symbol: An object, character, figure, or color used to represent abstract ideas or concepts.
Stanza: A grouped set of lines within a poem, often with a set pattern of meter and rhyme.

Write down 3 things you learned in this lesson.

Have students enter three things they learned in this lesson. With this they can indicate their own learning efficiency of this lesson.

Write down 2 things you want to know more about.

Here, students enter two things they would like to know more about. This not only increases involvement, but also gives them more ownership.

Ask 1 question about something you haven't quite understood yet.

The students indicate here (in question form) with which part of the material they still have difficulty. For the teacher, this not only provides insight into the extent to which the students understand/master the material, but also a good starting point for the next lesson.