Reading and responding to 'The Tyger' by William Blake
Lesson details
Learning outcome
I can describe the imagery and themes in the poem and give some evidence to justify my ideas.
Key learning points
- ‘The Tyger’ is a poem written by William Blake in 1794 as part of the collection titled ‘Songs of Experience’.
- Imagery may be interpreted differently depending on the reader or listener's experiences.
- The poem uses symbolism; the use of symbols that represent ideas beyond their literal meaning.
- The poem references two animals: the lamb and the tiger; these can symbolise a range of emotions and themes.
- A take-away idea within a text may link to themes that are explored and developed in it.
Keywords
Theme - a big idea, topic or message that recurs within a text
Symbolism - the use of objects, actions or ideas to represent deeper meanings or concepts
Imagery - the use of language to create a mental picture or sensory experience for the reader or listener
Atmosphere - the mood created in a section or whole of a text
Common misconception
Pupils may find some examples of imagery and language challenging to understand.
It may be useful to provide a visual sheet accompanying the poem, exploring some of the more complex terms (anvil, furnace).
Teacher tip
Depending on the cohort, pupils could text mark examples of imagery prior to doing this as a whole class.
Licence
Lesson video
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Prior knowledge starter quiz
6 Questions
Q1.True or false? William Blake's writing was influenced by the Industrial Revolution.
Q2.Where was William Blake born?
Q3.Which two creatures are mentioned in the poem 'The Tyger'?
Q4.Which of the following words from the poem rhyme?
Q5.True or false? The poem describes a hunt between a tiger and its prey.
Q6.Which themes are frequently found in William Blake's poetry?
Assessment exit quiz
6 Questions
Q1.Match the following keywords to their definitions.
a big idea, topic or message that recurs within a text
the use of objects, actions or ideas to represent deeper meanings
the use of language to create a mental picture or sensory experience
Q2.Another word for the atmosphere of a poem is the ...
Q3.Which of the following traits can be associated with the lamb?
Q4.True or false? The tiger is described as weak.
Q5.Match each theme to how it is conveyed in the text.
the tiger is depicted in its natural habitat
the tiger's presence evokes feelings of fear
questions are used in the poem about the origin of the tiger
Q6.True or false? The questions raised in the poem are all answered.
To help you plan your 5 English lesson on: Reading and responding to 'The Tyger' by William Blake, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your 5 English lesson on: Reading and responding to 'The Tyger' by William Blake, 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 Poetry inspired by animals unit, dive into the full primary English curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.