From Pop to Poems – Using the familiar (song lyrics) to teach unfamiliar texts (poems) Zanita Thompson zthompson@nghs.

1. From Pop to Poems – Using the familiar (song lyrics) to teach unfamiliar texts (poems)Zanita Thompsonzthompson@nghs.school.nz

2. Main objectives • to build students’ confidence in analysing familiar texts (pop songs) first then unfamiliar texts. • to teach students how to use TEEPEE to analyse texts convincingly and perceptively for Excellence.

3. Prior knowledge - I can define these language techniques (features): • Metaphor and extended metaphor • Personification • Simile • Direct address • Concrete noun • Symbolism • Vivid Verb • Connotation • Imperative • Cliché • Rhetorical question

4. Techniques - definitions 1. Metaphor/extended metaphor – a direct comparison between two very different things, usually impossible. An ‘extended’ metaphor is long/developed. 2. Personification – a type of metaphor, where a thing (inanimate object) is compared to a person or has human characteristics. 3. Simile – a comparison between two different things, using ‘like’ or ‘as’. 4. Direct address – use of 2nd person pronouns ‘you’ to talk to the reader. 5. Concrete noun – a noun (thing) you can see or touch. Many similar nouns may indicate an extended metaphor. 6. Symbolism – use of a concrete noun to represent an abstract noun (idea/feeling) or organisation. 7. Vivid Verb – a verb (doing word) which is specific and has impact. May have a positive or negative tone. 8. Connotation – ideas or feelings associated with a word. 9. Imperative – a command. 10. Cliché – a cheesy/overused saying. 11. Rhetorical question – a question asked for effect.

5. ‘Firework’ by Katy Perry http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QGJuMBdaqIw

6. Do you ever feel like a plastic bag, Drifting through the wind, wanting to start again? Do you ever feel, feel so paper-thin Like a house of cards, one blow from caving in? Do you ever feel already buried deep? Six feet under screams, but no one seems to hear a thing Do you know that there's still a chance for you? 'Cause there's a spark in you Chorus You just gotta ignite the light, and let it shine Just own the night like the Fourth of July 'Cause baby you're a firework Come on, show 'em what you're worth Make 'em go "oh, oh, oh!" As you shoot across the sky. Baby you're a firework Come on, let your colours burst Make 'em go "oh, oh, oh!", You're gonna leave 'em all in awe, awe, awe You don't have to feel like a waste of space You're original, cannot be replaced If you only knew what the future holds After a hurricane, comes a rainbow  Maybe the reason why all the doors are closed So you could open one that leads you to the perfect road Like a lightning bolt, your heart will glow And when it's time you know (Chorus) Boom, boom, boom Even brighter than the moon, moon, moon It's always been inside of you, you, you And now it's time you let it through.

7. Examples of techniques • Metaphor/extended metaphor – ”You’re a firework” • Simile - “Do you ever feel like a plastic bag/drifting through the wind/wanting to start again?” • Direct address - “Do you know that there's still a chance for you?” • Concrete nouns - A spark, The light, The Fourth of July, A firework, The sky, the moon • Vivid Verb – Drifting, Wanting to start, Blow, Buried, Screams, Shoot, Burst, Leave • Connotations – The first 4 verbs are negative and the last 3 verbs are positive. • Symbolism - “After a hurricane, comes a rainbow” – a rainbow is a (cliché) symbol of hope. • Imperative - show ‘em what you’re worth • Cliché - “You don't have to feel like a waste of space/ You're original, cannot be replaced.” • Rhetorical question – ”Do you ever feel already buried deep, Six feet under screaming, but no one seems to hear a thing?” • Repetition –”You’re a firework”

8. Zoom in on techniques - use convergent thinking T - What is the most important technique (language feature) used? E - What is the most important example of that technique?

9. Answer for Zoom In - TEE • Technique = metaphor • Example - “You’re a firework” (The title!) Now highlight all words/phrases to do with fireworks.

10. Answer for Zoom In - TEE Because there are so many words connected with fireworks, it is an extended metaphor. Firework There’s a spark in you ignite the light, and let it shine Just own the night like the Fourth of July (American Independence Day) As you shoot across the sky.  Come on, let your colours burst You're gonna leave 'em all in awe, awe, awe.

11. Zoom In - TEE • Technique = extended metaphor • Example - “You’re a firework” “There’s a spark in you.” N.B. This will only get you N2 for the question. You need to show you understand the example for A3+. E - Explain the most important examples of that technique.

12. Possible Answer for Zoom In - TEE • Explain - The audience ‘you’ is being compared to a firework, which is bright and loud, and creates a spectacular display for others to admire. The message is to appreciate “the spark” (life) in you and don’t hide but be confident and make your mark upon the world as you “ignite the light and let it shine”. N.B. This will get you a maximum of A4. You need to show understanding of other techniques for M5+.

13. TEEPEE – How to analyse texts convincingly and perceptively for Excellence.

14. Zoom out to the poet’s purpose - use divergent thinking P – Purpose Thinking about all these techniquesand examples, why do you think the author wrote this song?

15. Possible Answer - Purpose P – Purpose To encourage the audience to believe in their potential – “there’s a spark in you”.

16. Elaborate E – Elaborate Tone – is it positive or negative, amusing or serious? Respond – what is its effect on you? It makes me feel ... Links to wider world (beyond the lines). What do we learn about the world or human nature from it?

17. Possible Answer for Elaborate E - Elaborate Telling the audience using direct address (‘you’) that they are metaphorically a firework inspires us to have hope for the future (“a rainbow”), to believe that we have innate value (‘spark’) and contrary to negative pressures (“feel buried deep”) we have potential to excel in life and make our mark on the world (‘boom, boom, boom’).

18. Evaluate E – Evaluate Is it successful? Why?

19. Possible Answer for Evaluate • Evaluate – At times, all teenagers feel like they are undervalued (“a waste of space”), powerless (“one blow from caving in”), “drifting” through life without purpose, without being heard (“but no one seems to hear a thing”), so this song, with its positive message, (“there’s still a chance for you ... Your heart will glow’) has universal appeal. The use of the extended metaphor of fireworks with their positive connotations and connections with celebrations (‘the fourth of July”) match the purpose of the text in making the audience appreciate their lives and have hope for the future.

20. Peroration • Using TEEPEE to analyse texts helps students to provide sufficient detail and depth for Excellence. • If they can perceptively analyse a familiar text, they can tackle an unfamiliar text.

21. Unfamiliar Text “For Albert Wendt (On His Birthday)” By Karlo Mila

22. Unfamiliar Text – Firstly … Scan the text’s subject by first reading the sub-content: Title - What does it reveal? Footnotes - What do the source notes and glossed words reveal?

23. Secondly - Zoom in on TEE Read this unfamiliar text and like we did with our song: • Identify the most important technique, then • Underline the most important examples of that technique.

24. For Albert Wendt (On His Birthday) By Karlo Mila you dare to fish beyond the coral reefs of our understanding your net pulls in poems flicking salty tales you find nuanua in the eye of hurricanes celebrate thunder we prefer not to hear and relish the quicksilver laughter of lightning you shake the tree of the frangipani and as the flowers fall from grace you string them into sentences ants and all your narrative is a needle that pierces the thickest skin the ink of your pen blending with our blood tattooing stories of altered genealogies between the lines of our naked bodies Source: Karlo Mila, Dream Fish Floating (Huia: Wellington, 2005) Glossed words nuanua – Samoan word for rainbow Tattoos in many Polynesian cultures are used to represent a person’s genealogy, whakapapa or family history. Note: Albert Wendt is a celebrated Samoan poet and writer who lives in NZ.

25. Zoom In - TEE T - What is the most important technique used? E - What are the best examples to use? E - Explain the examples.

26. Zoom In - TEE T - Extended metaphor E - “your narrative is a … tattoo”? (The last stanza) E - Explain the examples.

27. Zoom In - TEE E - Explain the examples. Wendt’s storytelling as a needle tattooing the story of Polynesian cultures onto society is apt. The image of his pen acting as a needle to write the stories of the culture, affecting even those with “the thickest skin”, lets the reader know Wendt’s stories are being heard. His stories blend old and new as well as different perspectives and have left a permanent mark on her life.

28. Zoom out - PEE P - Purpose Why did she write the text? (Check the title!) E – Elaborate Tone Response Links to wider world (Beyond the lines) E – Evaluate Successful? Include quote bites throughout your answer.

29. Zoom out - PEE P - Purpose Mila wrote the poem “for Albert Wendt on his birthday” as a gift to show her appreciation for his stories and to praise him for his craft.

30. Zoom out - PEE E – Elaborate Birthdays are a time to celebrate a person and Mila’s poem celebrates the writing and imagination of this man using direct address (“you”) in recognition ofthe gifts his life has brought to us all but especially those of Polynesian culture. The four different extended metaphors in each stanze use concrete nouns which have links to Wendt’s Samoan culture (fish, coral reefs, net, nuanua, frangipani) which shows her appreciation for his culture. The overall tone is appropriately positive to show that she likes the way he challenges them “Dare to fish..” is imaginative “beyond … our understanding” and optimistic “you find nuanua in … hurricanes”. She is specific in her praise of him.

31. Zoom out - PEE E – Evaluate Mila’s beautiful poem successfully crafts extended metaphors to illustrate her strong appreciation of Wendt. She shows how his “narratives” have the power to get under the “skin”, unsettle but ultimately enlighten in a sacred ritual which will leave its mark (“tattooing”) upon current and future generations (“genealogies”). His poems are therefore powerful and permanent.

32. Top Tips for Tackling Unfamiliar Texts • The title is usually an important clue of the main idea the writer wants us to think about. • A footnote will tell you the source of the text, which can give you a clue about the audience and purpose. • Glossed words give useful definitions. • Identify the most important language features and write notes/underline the text. (Don’t choose alliteration!) • Read the questions carefully and underline key words.

33. Remember: Use TEEPEE to analyse texts convincingly and perceptively for Excellence.

34. Remember … Poems are like songs without the music. “Poetry: the best words in the best order.” Samuel Taylor Coleridge

35. More Familiar Texts – Group work • Read the lyrics to this familiar song and • Use TEEPEE to convincingly and perceptively analyse the text.

36. “Battle Scars” by Lupe Fiasco & Guy Sebastianhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_mPd_SDAryQ&feature=player_detailpage

37. Hope the wound heals but it never doesThat's cause you're at war with loveYou're at war with love, yeahChorus: These battle scars don't look like they're fading, Don't look like they're ever going awayThey ain't never gonna change, These battle...Never let a wound ruin meBut I feel like ruin's wooing meArrow holes, they never close from Cupid on a shooting spreeFeeling stupid cause I know it ain't no you and meBut when you're trying to beat the odds upBeen trying to keep your nods upAnd you know that you should knowAnd let her goBut the fear of the unknownHolding another lover strongSends you back into the zoneWith no Tom Hanks to bring you homeA lover not a fighterOn the front line with a poemTrying to write yourself a rifleMaybe sharpen up a stoneTo fight the tanks and drones of you being alone

38. I wish I never looked, I wish I never touchedI wish that I could stop loving you so muchCause I'm the only one that's trying to keep us togetherWhen all of the signs say that I should forget herI wish you weren't the best, the best I ever hadI wish that the good outweighed the badCause it'll never be over, until you tell me it's overThese battle scars, don't look like they're fadingDon't look like they're ever going awayThey ain't never gonna changeThese battle scars, don't look like they're fadingDon't look like they're ever going awayThey ain't never gonna changeThese battle...(Then just leave)You shouldn't have but you said it(And I hope you never come back)It shouldn't have happened but you let itNow you're down on the ground screaming medicThe only thing that comes is the post-traumatic stressesShields, body armours and vests don't properly workThat's why you're in a locker full of hurtThe enemy within and all the fires from your friendsThe best medicine is to probably just let it winI wish I couldn't feel, I wish I couldn't loveI wish that I could stop cause it hurts so muchAnd I'm the only one that's trying to keep us togetherWhen all of the signs say that I should forget herI wish you weren't the best, the best I ever hadI wish that the good outweighed the badCause it'll never be over, until you tell me it's over(Chorus)Cause you've set me on fireI've never felt so alive, yeahHoping wounds heal, but it never doesThat's because you're at war with loveAnd I'm at the point of breakingAnd it's impossible to shake itSee, you hoped the wound heals, but it never doesThat's cause you're at war with loveHope it heals, but it never doesThat's cause you're at war with love!Chorus

39. Techniques - definitions 1. Metaphor/extended metaphor – a direct comparison between two very different things, usually impossible. An ‘extended’ metaphor is long/developed. 2. Direct address – use of 2nd person pronouns ‘you’ to talk to the reader. 3. Concrete noun – a noun (thing) you can see or touch. Many similar nouns may indicate an extended metaphor. 4. Symbolism – use of a concrete noun to represent an abstract noun (idea/feeling) or organisation. 5. Vivid Verb – a verb (doing word) which is specific and has impact. May have a positive or negative tone. 6. Connotation – ideas or feelings associated with a word. 7. Hyperbole – exaggeration for effect. 8. Rhetorical question – a question asked for effect. 9. Emotive language – words that stir emotion in the audience. 10. Allusion – reference to another literary work or text.

40. What poems link with the song “Battle Scars”? Poems: “Shoved at Memorial Park”

41. Shoved at Memorial Park By Marcel Currin A big kid is eyeballing my son. The big kid is four years old. I hate him already. Fletcher is two and a half, Trip-tropping over the playground, A tiny fish on a busy reef. Whirling colours of children Swirling over ladders, platforms, slides, Riding and fighting the eddies. Fletcher in baggy shorts. Finding the gaps For a quiet turn on things. He knows about stairs and ovens and knives But who is this large And fierce boy? From the shadow of his oversized cap He watches the talk, The nudge, and then The shove. Noisy fish flapping overhead. My son at the bottom of a hard new world. Glossed word Eddy a small whirpool Source: Marcel Currin, “Shoved at Memorial Park”, in Emma Neale (ed), Swings + roundabouts: poems on parenthood (Aucklan: Godwit, 2008), p68.

42. “Perfect” by Pinkhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=212iYwq0nQ0&safe=active

43. Made a wrong turn, Once or twice Dug my way out, Blood and fire Bad decisions, That's alright Welcome to my silly life Mistreated, misplaced, misunderstood Miss "no way, it's all good", It didn't slow me down Mistaken, Always second guessing Under estimated, Look, I'm still around Chorus Pretty, pretty please Don't you ever, ever feel Like you're less than perfect. Pretty, pretty please If you ever, ever feel Like you're nothing You are perfect to me. You're so mean, When you talk, About yourself, You were wrong. Change the voices, In your head Make them like you Instead. So complicated, Look happy, You'll make it! Filled with so much hatred Such a tired game. It's enough, I've done all I can think of Chased down all my demons, I've seen you do the same. Chorus The whole world stares so I swallow the fear, The only thing I should be drinking is an ice cold beer. So cool in line and we try, try, try, But we try too hard, it's a waste of my time. Done looking for the critics, cause they're everywhere They don't like my jeans, they don't get my hair We change ourselves and we do it all the time. Why do we do that, Why do we do that...Why do we do that? Why do I do that? (Why do I do that?) Chorus

44. “Titanium” by David Guettafeaturing Siahttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JRfuAukYTKg&safe=active

45. You shout it out,But I can't hear a word you sayI'm talking loud not saying muchI'm criticized but all your bullets ricochetYou shoot me down, but I get up[Chorus:]I'm bulletproof, nothing to loseFire away, fire awayRicochet, you take your aimFire away, fire awayYou shoot me down but I won't fallI am titaniumYou shoot me down but I won't fallI am titanium[Sia:]Cut me downBut it's you who'll have further to fallGhost town and haunted loveRaise your voice, sticks and stones may break my bonesI'm talking loud not saying much [Chorus:]I'm bulletproof, nothing to loseFire away, fire awayRicochet, you take your aimFire away, fire awayYou shoot me down but I won't fallI am titaniumYou shoot me down but I won't fallI am titaniumI am titaniumI am titanium[Sia:]Stone-hard, machine gunFiring at the ones who runStone-hard as bulletproof glass[Chorus:]You shoot me down but I won't fallI am titaniumYou shoot me down but I won't fallI am titaniumYou shoot me down but I won't fallI am titaniumYou shoot me down but I won't fallI am titaniumI am titanium

46. “Take It Easy” by Stan Walkerhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uMT_kr-F7ZQ&safe=active

47. Stronger days, Bitter nights,Cold hands, Warm heart,Walking round,But you're staring at the ground,Take hold, fall apart.ChorusLittle by little,Someone blows the whistle,It don't matter in the end,So just slow it all down, slow it all down.You gotta take it easy, easy,Live your life,Take on any kind of weather you and me together,We'll be fine,You gotta take it easy, easyTake your time,It's just you and me together any kind of weather,We'll be fine,Open road, broken down,Bright lights, dark town,Stand up then you fall again,You will find a way in the end.ChorusYou gotta take it easy, easy,Live your life,Take on any kind of weather you and me together,We'll be fine,You gotta take it easy, easy,Take your time,It's just you and me together any kind of weather,We'll be fine,

48. “Mirrors”by Justin Timberlakehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U41KPUfOSFk&safe=active

49. What poems link with these songs? • “Titanium” by David Guetta • “Perfect” by Pink • “Haunted” by Taylor Swift • “Take It Easy”by Stan Walker • “Mirrors” by Justin Timberlake