Robert Frost's "Choose Something Like a Star" and John Keats' "Bright Star" provide the text for a two-part instructional activity in which class members analyze the effects of style on meaning in poetry. Randall Thompson's song cycle from Frostiana "Choose Something Like a Star," provides an audio accompaniment to the poem.

Concepts

poetry, robert frost, john keats, poetic devices, figurative language, allusions

Show More Show Less

Additional Tags

english language arts

Show More Show Less

Instructional Ideas

• Use as a warm-up exercise to prepare class members for the AP® exam
• Using the 1988 AP® prompt, ask class members to craft an essay in which they compare the two poems

Classroom Considerations

• Draws heavily on test prep materials provided by Pearsons and College Board but does not credit those sources
• Randall Thompson's song cycle is available as a video
• Class members should have experience analyzing poetry and comparing different poems with similar subjects
  
  

Pros

• The detailed plan is carefully scaffolded

Cons

• Neither the text of the required materials nor links to them are provided

Common Core

RL.9-10.4 RL.9-10.10a RL.11-12.4 RL.11-12.10a L.9-10.5.a L.11-12.5.a