Exploring regional pride in the poem ‘Anthem of the North’
Lesson details
Learning outcome
I can explore how Lemn Sissay presents pride for his region in ‘Anthem of the North’ and use this to inspire my own writing.
Key learning points
- An anthem is an upbeat song that has importance for a particular group of people.
- 'Anthem of the North' is a celebration of Northern England.
- Lemn Sissay shows his pride in his region through 'Anthem of the North'.
- Sissay may have been particularly grateful to the North because it supported him through his hardships.
- Sissay crafts a powerful stanza through use of direct address and conscious rhyme scheme.
Keywords
Region - an area of a country or the world, usually with a set of defining features
Anthem - an uplifting song that has importance for a group of people
Direct address - communication that is communicated to a particular listener, usually via the pronoun 'you'
Common misconception
Students may be unfamiliar with the term 'region'.
Help students recognise and learn about their own region.
Teacher tip
There are recordings of Lemn Sissay passionately performing his poem. You could play this for students so they can better understand the feeling in this anthem. Encourage students to perform their short anthems passionately end of the lesson.
Content guidance
Depiction or discussion of sensitive content
Supervision
Adult supervision recommended
Licence
Lesson video
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Prior knowledge starter quiz
6 Questions
Q1.What does it mean to have pride in something?
Q2.What is rhyme scheme?
Q3.Which of the below is second person pronoun?
Q4.What might the term 'anthem' suggest about the mood of a poem?
Q5.What might a poem titled 'Anthem of The North' be about?
Q6.How might the poet of 'Anthem of The North' feel about themselves and the North based on the title of the poem?
Assessment exit quiz
6 Questions
Q1.What is a region?
Q2.What is usually the tone of an anthem?
Q3.In which region did Lemn Sissay grow up in?
Q4.What part of Northern history does Sissay give credit to in 'Anthem of The North'?
Q5.What technique does Lemn Sissay use in Stanza ten of 'Anthem of The North' to appeal to the reader?
Q6.Why might the North of England be particularly important to Sissay?
To help you plan your 7 English lesson on: Exploring regional pride in the poem ‘Anthem of the North’, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your 7 English lesson on: Exploring regional pride in the poem ‘Anthem of the North’, 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 3 English lessons from the Poetry about place and home unit, dive into the full secondary English curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.