in music, a combination of sounds that sound nice

the beat, flow, or pattern of a piece of music or writing

the number of beats in a word; for example, "rise" has one syllable, "history" has three syllables

in music, a combination of sounds that don't sound nice.

repetition of similar sounds in two or more words.

Refining poems: harmony and dissonance

English

An introduction to Maya Angelou's distinctive voice: ‘Life Doesn’t Frighten Me’

Writing a poem inspired by Maya Angelou's 'Life Doesn't Frighten Me'

Exploring Maya Angelou’s ‘Phenomenal Woman’

Exploring Maya Angelou's figurative language in ‘Phenomenal Woman’

Exploring Maya Angelou’s ‘Still I Rise’

Performing Maya Angelou's ‘Still I Rise’

Exploring Maya Angelou's 'Caged Bird'

Performing Maya Angelou's ‘Caged Bird’

Exploring Maya Angelou's 'Equality'

Exploring Maya Angelou’s use of figurative language

Maya Angelou’s influences: exploring ‘Sympathy’ by Paul Laurence Dunbar

Exploring Maya Angelou's 'Woman Work'

Exploring Maya Angelou’s ‘On the Pulse of the Morning’

Exploring Maya Angelou's 'On Aging'

Maya Angelou's poetic voice

Analytical paragraphs: Maya Angelou’s poetic voice

Finding my own voice: planning a poem inspired by Maya Angelou

Finding my own voice: writing a poem inspired by Maya Angelou

Finding my own voice: performing a poem

In 'Single Poet Study: Maya Angelou', pupils study a body of work by a single poet, in order to explore what makes her style and voice unique, giving Angelou her identity as a writer. In the second  Power and Conflict Poetry unit, pupils study the identity cluster of poems, including works by Agard, Dharker and Rumens, all of which use poetic voice to explore questions about personal identity.

In 'Poetry about Place and Home', pupils use spoken word poetry to explore their relationship to the city that they live in. In 'Single Poet Study: Maya Angelou', pupils explore how spoken word poetry can be used to express personal and political views. 

In this unit, pupils read and discover the work of Maya Angelou. They explore some of Angelou's most famous poems, such as 'Caged Bird' and 'Still I Rise', and practise writing and performing poems inspired by her work. As the unit develops, pupils find their own distinctive poetic voice.

Single poet study: Maya Angelou

Discriminatory behaviour or images, whether on the grounds of race, gender, disability, religion or belief or sexual orientation, or otherwise.

Depiction or discussion of discriminatory behaviour

Historic or outdated representations of people that may portray inequality or injustice.

Depiction or discussion of sex or sexual body parts, including sex education.

Depiction or discussion of sexual content

How many syllables does the word dissonance have? ('Single poet study: Maya Angelou')

Which of these words is a synonym for rhythm? ('Single poet study: Maya Angelou').

Which of these words is the best antonym for dissonance? ('Single poet study: Maya Angelou').

Maya Angelou read her work out loud after writing in order to hear any "{{ }}". ('Single poet study: Maya Angelou').

I was pleased with the song: it had a harmonious melody.

Everyone left because the song sounded disharmonious.

We had a harmonious meeting: everyone agreed with each other.

He asked if I wanted to go, and I said harmoniously.

My teacher said my essay was very harmony.

Which of these sentences uses the word harmony, or its forms, correctly? ('Single poet study: Maya Angelou')

He asked if I wanted an ice-cream and I said dissonantly not.

I couldn't barely hear the music because the volume was so dissonant. 

I put my hands over my ears to block out the dissonant sounds.

The poem needed work: some lines were dissonant.

The song sounded great: undisonant and rhythmical.

Which of these sentences uses the word dissonant, or its forms, correctly? ('Single poet study: Maya Angelou')

Maya Angelou wrote a poem called 'Still I {{ }}' ('Single poet study: Maya Angelou').

the beat, flow or pattern of a piece of music or writing

the repetition of similar sounds in two or more words

a repeated line, or set of lines, in a poem

Match each method to its definition ('Single poet study: Maya Angelou').

What is the refrain in the Maya Angelou's poem 'Still I Rise'? ('Single poet study: Maya Angelou')

How many syllables does the word rhyme have? ('Single poet study: Maya Angelou')

How many syllables does the word harmony have? ('Single poet study: Maya Angelou')

What books did Maya Angelou have next to her when writing her poems? ('Single poet study: Maya Angelou')

Refining poems: harmony and dissonance

Lesson outcome

Content guidance