Myths about teaching can hold you back
- Year 4
Performing 'I'm an Orchestra' by Laura Mucha
I can mark up a poem before performing it.
- Year 4
Performing 'I'm an Orchestra' by Laura Mucha
I can mark up a poem before performing it.
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Lesson details
Key learning points
- In the poem ‘I’m an Orchestra’, Laura Mucha compares the emotional life of a human to an orchestra.
- Poets might use devices such as repetition, rhyme or alliteration to enhance the sound of the poem read aloud.
- A metaphor is a way of describing something by saying that it is something else.
- Alliteration is when words that begin with the same sound are placed close together.
- Marking up a poem for performance involves adding notes to guide delivery, emphasising elements like tone & pace.
Keywords
Orchestra - a large group of musicians who play many different instruments together and are led by a conductor
Rhyme - the similarity of sounds between the ending syllables of words, creating a musical quality and pattern
Metaphor - a poetic device that makes a comparison between two things by stating that one thing is another
Alliteration - the repetition of the same sound found at the start of words that come close together
Marking up - the process of adding notes to guide delivery of a poem
Common misconception
Pupils may find it hard to mark up their own poems.
Model marking up the poem as a class, highlighting the different areas you might annotate. Pupils could mark up the poem in pairs or small groups.
To help you plan your year 4 English lesson on: Performing 'I'm an Orchestra' by Laura Mucha, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your year 4 English lesson on: Performing 'I'm an Orchestra' by Laura Mucha, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs.
The starter quiz will activate and check your pupils' prior knowledge, with versions available both with and without answers in PDF format.
We use learning cycles to break down learning into key concepts or ideas linked to the learning outcome. Each learning cycle features explanations with checks for understanding and practice tasks with feedback. All of this is found in our slide decks, ready for you to download and edit. The practice tasks are also available as printable worksheets and some lessons have additional materials with extra material you might need for teaching the lesson.
The assessment exit quiz will test your pupils' understanding of the key learning points.
Our video is a tool for planning, showing how other teachers might teach the lesson, offering helpful tips, modelled explanations and inspiration for your own delivery in the classroom. Plus, you can set it as homework or revision for pupils and keep their learning on track by sharing an online pupil version of this lesson.
Explore more key stage 2 English lessons from the Laura Mucha: performance poetry unit, dive into the full primary English curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.
Equipment
You need a copy of the poem ‘I’m an Orchestra’, which is featured on pages 24-25 in the 2021 Otter Barry edition of ‘Being Me written by Liz Brownlee, Matt Goodfellow and Laura Mucha, for this lesson.
Licence
Lesson video
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Prior knowledge starter quiz
6 Questions
Q1.True or false? ‘Doing Nothing’ is a poem found in the poetry collection ‘Dear Ugly Sisters’.
Q2.Complete this sentence: ‘Doing Nothing’ explores the poet's inner thoughts as they engage in the practice of...
Q3.Select the correct definition of 'rhythm'.
Q4.True or false? ‘Travel by Book’ is a fixed verse poem.
Q5.What does Laura Mucha suggest you do the night before performing?
Q6.What does Laura Mucha suggest you do just before performing?
Assessment exit quiz
6 Questions
Q1.Match the keywords to the correct definition.
the similarity of sounds between the ending syllables of words
a poetic device that makes a comparison between two things
the repetition of the same sound found at the start of words
Q2.Match the following words from the poem 'I'm an Orchestra' to their definitions.
a deep, pleasant sound
a sound that is loud, harsh and often unpleasant to hear
percussion instruments consisting of small, tuned bronze disks