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      Identifying how poets reminisce and remember loved ones

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      Lesson details

      Learning outcome

      I can identify similarities and differences between 'Eden Rock’, 'Climbing My Grandfather’ and 'Before You Were Mine’.

      Key learning points

      1. The poets reminisce on memories of familial relations.
      2. The poets convey the admiration they felt towards their loved ones.
      3. The poets present the process of reminiscing on a loved one as complicated and multifaceted.
      4. Duffy and Waterhouse reflect on childhood memories, but Causley creates ambiguity, possibly symbolising the afterlife.
      5. Exploring differences within similarities can result in a nuanced analysis.

      Keywords

      • Familial - related to to familial bonds and relationships

      • Reminisce - recall past experiences or events with fondness or nostalgia

      • Ambiguous - unclear or having multiple interpretations

      • Multifaceted - having many different aspects or facets

      • Tentative language - words or expressions used to convey uncertainty

      Common misconception

      All three poems reflect on memories of a loved one who is now dead.

      Causley's use of an uncanny setting implies that the two parents are now in the afterlife, guiding the speaker's "[c]rossing", however Duffy and Waterhouse use language linked to death/loss ("ghost", "pulse") but do not imply the relative has died.

      Teacher tip

      Encourage students to use different coloured pens to mark out any similarities or nuanced differences they can see across all three poems.

      Equipment

      You will need access to 'Eden Rock' (Causley), 'Climbing My Grandfather' (Waterhouse) and 'Before You Were Mine' (Duffy). They can be found in the AQA Love and Relationships Poetry Anthology.

      Content guidance

      Depiction or discussion of sensitive content

      Supervision

      Adult supervision recommended

      Licence

      This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2025), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0
       except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions
       (Collection 2).

      Lesson video

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      Prior knowledge starter quiz

      Download starter quiz questions (PDF)

      6 Questions

      Q1.
      'Before You Were Mine' focuses on...

      the speaker's childhood memory of their Grandfather.
      Correct answer: the speaker's perspective on how motherhood affected their mother's life.
      an uncanny scene between the speaker and their parents.
      a fragmented relationship; the speaker yearns to be reunited with their lover.
      an illicit affair that the speaker now regrets their part in.

      Q2.
      'Eden Rock' is set in...

      various locations in Scotland where the poet travelled extensively.
      Wales, where the poet grew up and went to school.
      Correct answer: a fictional location, rumoured to be based on the Cornish landscape.
      London during the Victorian era.
      the speaker's childhood home.

      Q3.
      'Climbing My Grandfather' conveys a multifaceted impression of the Grandfather, as familiar and ...

      intimidating
      self-conscious
      Correct answer: mysterious
      eccentric

      Q4.
      Match each of these key quotations to the correct poem.

      Correct Answer:"scramble",'Climbing My Grandfather'

      'Climbing My Grandfather'

      Correct Answer:"Thermos",'Eden Rock'

      'Eden Rock'

      Correct Answer:"relics",'Before You Were Mine'

      'Before You Were Mine'

      Q5.
      Which of the three titles include possessive pronouns?

      Correct answer: 'Climbing My Grandfather'
      'Eden Rock'
      Correct answer: 'Before You Were Mine'

      Q6.
      What does the word ambiguous mean?

      explicit; clearly stated from the start
      constantly changing or adapting
      two opposite ideas found near to or next to each other
      Correct answer: uncertain, unclear; open to multiple interpretations
      consecutive lines of poetry that begin with the same word(s)

      Assessment exit quiz

      Download exit quiz questions (PDF)

      6 Questions

      Q1.
      Complete this sentence: 'In 'Climbing My Grandfather', Waterhouse presents the Grandfather as an ambiguous figure because the speaker's descriptions of him are .'

      multiplicitous
      tentative
      Correct answer: multifaceted
      explicit
      implicit

      Q2.
      'Climbing My Grandfather', 'Eden Rock', and 'Before You Were Mine' all show examples of which type of relationship?

      romantic
      fragmented
      parental
      Correct answer: familial

      Q3.
      'Climbing My Grandfather', 'Eden Rock', and 'Before You Were Mine' describe...

      the end of a relationship.
      Correct answer: childhood memories.
      a moment in the future.
      a moment of conflict.
      a moment of realisation.

      Q4.
      In 'Eden Rock', the speaker refers to his parents as "mother" and "father". This implies...

      they have a really close relationship because they are his parents.
      Correct answer: their relationship is detached and less familiar.
      he doesn't want people to know their real names.

      Q5.
      Which of the following statements contains correlative conjunctions?

      Waterhouse implies that speaker admires his grandfather
      Correct answer: Both Waterhouse and Causley use the present tense to describe a childhood memory
      Duffy use four stanzas whereas Waterhouse uses only one unbroken stanza
      All three poems describe familial relationships

      Q6.
      Which of these quotations from 'Eden Rock' helps to create a sense of the uncanny?

      Correct answer: "somewhere"
      "Tweed"
      "Thermos"
      "drifted"
      "beckon"

      To help you plan your 10 English lesson on: Identifying how poets reminisce and remember loved ones, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...