William Carlos Williams: Poems Lesson Plan

How Tone Is Created

Kind of Activity:

Group Work

Objective:

Students will better understand the role of certain literary techniques in establishing tone in poetry.

Common Core Standards:

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.11-12.4, CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.11-12.4, CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.L.11-12.3, CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.L.11-12.5

Structure:

Have a student read "The Yellow Flower" aloud to the class. As a class, discuss the tone of the poem, deciding on 2-3 adjectives that adequately portray it.

Break students into small groups of 2-3. Each group will be assigned one of the following 10 literary techniques:

diction
alliteration
repetition
enjambment
imagery
hyperbole
structure
allusion
metaphor
...