South Carolina ETV

Making Connections between Robert Frost's Life and His Poetry (Grade 10)

Master Teacher

Sharon E. Glass

Time Allotment

Four 50-minute periods

Overview

To appreciate and to understand writers' works, students must have a "working knowledge" of authors' lives in order to "make connections" between the two. Thus, through Internet-based interactive activities, students will become acquainted with Robert Frost's life in order to allow them to appreciate fully how his background influenced his poetry.

To allow students to make such "connections," they will visit Web sites, which will expose them to Frost's life. They will then apply their knowledge of his life to specified poems and analyze these in relation to theme, setting, and use of imagery as dictated by Frost's background.

Subject Matter

English

Learning Objectives

Students will be able to:

  • apply reading comprehension skills in determining key facts about Robert Frost's life
  • apply technology skills—Internet
  • work in groups in order to identify key aspects of Frost's life
  • work in groups in order to analyze Frost's poetry in relation to his life

South Carolina Standards

These Standards can be found online at Office of Curriculum Standards.

Grade 10

I. Reading/Literature

A. The student will read and critique literary works from a variety of eras in a variety of cultures.

  • Explain similarities and differences of structures and images as represented in the literature of different cultures.
  • Identify universal themes prevalent in the literature of all cultures.

C. The student will read and critique a variety of poetry.

  • Compare and contrast the ways in which poets inspire the reader to share emotions expressed in poems.
  • Paraphrase the meaning of selected poems.

E. The student will expand a rich vocabulary through experiences with varied, meaningful texts.

F. The student will demonstrate confidence, independence, and flexibility in the strategic use of syntax and semantics and other conventions of language for reading a range of simple to complex print.

G. The student will read critically and creatively for sustained periods of time.

H. The student will select and enjoy a wide variety of print materials representing a wide range of traditional and contemporary works.

I. The student will recognize, evaluate, and demonstrate variations in intent, purpose, and audience in written text.

II. Listening

D. The student will expand a rich vocabulary through listening.

E. The student will recognize, evaluate, and demonstrate variations in intent, purpose, and audience in media presentations.

F. The student will recognize and demonstrate qualities of effective communication.

  • Listen, question, and respond appro- priately during conferences and interviews.
  • Analyze and synthesize information from various sources.

G. The student will select and enjoy a wide variety of nonprint materials representing a wide range of traditional and contemporary works.

H. The student will evaluate effectiveness, contribution, and appropriateness of dialect and diction in non-print sources.

III. Speaking

A. The student will create and deliver oral presentations for specific audiences.

  • Choose appropriate form for presen- tations, such as speech, monologue, debate, scene from play, and video.

B. The student will participate in and report small-group learning activities.

  • Assume responsibility for specific tasks.
  • Participate in the preparation of an outline or summary of the group activity.
  • Include all group members in oral presentation.

C. The student will use inferential and critical thinking to create spoken responses to a variety of texts across the curriculum.

Media Components

Web Sites

The Robert Frost Web Page provides several links pertaining to Robert Frost's life. It also provides the full text of many of Frost's poems.

A Closer Look at Robert Frost provides information on the poem "The Oven Bird" by Robert Frost. The explanation of the poem provides insight into other Frost poems that deal with "nature" themes.

Equipment

One computer for each student in the computer lab

One computer for each group in the computer lab

Prep for Teachers

Preview the two Robert Frost Web sites, The Robert Frost Web Page and A Closer Look at Robert Frost .

Arrange for the computer lab.

When using media, provide students with a Focus for Media Interaction, a specific task to complete and/or information to identify during or after viewing of video segments, Web sites, or other multimedia elements.

Introductory Activities

Step 1: Tell the students that they will be expected to use all of the information gathered from the assigned Web sites in answering the following question (which is their Focus for Media Interaction): "How did Robert Frost's life [his childhood, his family, his interests/hobbies, his various occupations, the places he lived, his education, and his travels] affect the themes, settings, and imagery of his poetry?"

Step 2: Directions: Working independently, students are to go to the following Web site,

The Robert Frost Web Page. Students are to locate the "Biography" link on this page, where they are to read the information on Frost's life and note in writing the pertinent facts about his childhood, his married life, his occupations, his travels, his education, and his interests.

Step 3: Next, students are to go to the Web site, A Closer Look at Robert Frost to read about Frost's poem "The Oven Bird." Once again, students are to note details from this page in order to relate their findings to selected Frost poems.

Learning Activities

Step 1: Place students in groups of five each. Tell them to use the information from their Web sites to analyze various Frost poems in relation to his life. This relates directly back to the "inquiry question."

Step 2: There are two options for the groups once the biographical information has been read and notes have been taken:

A. Each group will be assigned a specific poem, which can be located at the bottom of The Robert Frost Web Page. Click on the scroll arrow at the bottom of the page to locate the poem specifically assigned to the group. Assigned poems are—

  • "The Road Not Taken"
  • "Fire and Ice"
  • "Out, Out"
  • "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening"
  • "Mending Wall"

Once the group locates the assigned "poem" from the site, they are to explain in terms of their notes from the biographical information and the poem "The Oven Bird" how the various components of Frost's life affected the following aspects of the assigned poem:

  • theme(s)
  • setting(s)
  • imagery

B. Each group will be asked to select a poem from The Robert Frost Web Page. Using the scroll arrow at the bottom of the Web site, the group will locate a "poem" that they all wish to analyze in relation to Frost's biography and the poem "The Oven Bird." They will indicate how Frost's life affected the following aspects of the poem the group chose:

  • theme(s)
  • settings(s)
  • imagery

Culminating Activity

Step 1: Once the groups complete the analyses of their assigned and/or chosen poems, they will present to the class their analyses of the poems in relation to the poet's life and his poem "The Oven Bird" in order to address the original "inquiry question: "How did Robert Frost's life [his childhood, his family, his interests/hobbies, his various occupations, the places he lived, his education, and his travels] affect the themes, settings, and imagery of his poetry?"

Step 2: Students will also create an illustration for their assigned or "selected" poem.

Cross-Curricular Activities

Science: Students could take a nature walk to brainstorm topics in order to create a poem about nature as Frost might have done during his lifetime.

Art: Students could read different Frost poems and then illustrate them based on the themes and imagery found in each.

Geography: Students could research different New England sites and then create maps for these areas, inclusive of keys/legends.

Community Connections

Hold a community poetry festival on a Saturday or Sunday afternoon. Invite community leaders to read several of Frost's poems, as well as other nature poets' works. A renowned poet could be invited to read selections as well.

Poems written by students could be displayed throughout school halls and cafeterias.

Student Materials

  • paper
  • pen, pencils
  • colored pencils, crayons
  • white paper and/or construction paper for illustration purposes
NTTI

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Columbia, SC 29201-4761
Phone: 803-737-3545