Creative Lesson Plan - Aaron Lee's "Road-Works"

I did this for my NIES lesson observation with my IP students. 

"Road-Works" is divided into 4 stanzas, each with its own set of images that are tied closely to the issues explored in the poem. 

As my CT and I have previously discussed that the class is generally weaker in paying attention to the use of imagery, I decided to draw their attention to the images in "Road-Works" through a "creative" manner. For each stanza, I prepared a package with materials related to the corresponding images.

E.g. I put in an orange, a bag of sand, a piece of paper, and pictures of machines in a paper bag for the first stanza - 

Sometimes it is hard

to believe that creatures of flesh and bone
may tear up the roads like paper,
peeling the rind of the earth
as carelessly as eating an orange.
When they fall to the ground and devour it,
the scenario is one
of blasted sand, harsh talk
and machinery.

Each paper bag is accompanied with a question slip specific to the stanza and is selected randomly by a group representative. Students are instructed to make use of the realia in ways that can help them understand the poem better. The group that got the bag above started peeling the orange, tearing paper and feeling the rough texture of sand. During the group presentation session, they shared with their classmates how they made use of these objects to arrive at their understanding of the stanza. 

Overall, I found this method to be effective in engaging and sustaining their interest. It also helped to direct their attention to the use of imagery in the poem.