NATURE AND THE POET

    TEACHING POETRY

• Each and every human being is part of nature, even if we live all of our lives in a huge city.  Everyone that sits under a tree in summer, smells flowers in a field, climbs a snowy mountain or walks through a grassy park is affected by nature in some way.   Many poets include descriptions of nature in their poems.  They describe the world around them in writing for a purpose.  They not only try to show us what they see, they try to make us understand how they feel.  Not only are they connected to nature but they see life reflected in it. There is more meaning in nature than just the plants and animals around us.  Robert Frost is a  famous American poet who used nature in his poetry to make us think about life.
  
  DIRECTIONS:
  1.  Look at the following sites for examples of nature IN FROST'S LIFE. Look at the landscape around where he wrote.
  Literary Traveller - New England
  The Leaves of New England
  Colors of New England
  2. Then look at these sites about Frost.
  Robert Frost Website
  Frost in Cyberspace
  Frost's 2 Most Popular Poems
  Listening Booth--Poetry Exhibit
  3. Choose a poem you like.  Read it carefully.
  4.  Use the ideas in the poem to help you write about the connection between human beings and the natural world.
   
  POEM BY FROST: (Write the name of the poem)
  
  
  
  
  THE POET'S BACKYARD:  Since we don't all live in the exact area that Frost lived in, it is difficult  to really feel the way he did about nature.  Some people have never seen snow or been in a forest like the ones in New England.  After looking at some pictures of New England, write about your impression of Frost's "backyard".
  
   
  
  
  FEEL THE IMAGERY:  What sights, sounds, smells and sensations of nature are described in the poem  you chose?  What do you feel when you read about them?  What does Frost mean by the descriptions?  How does he want you to feel about them?  Write about some of the best examples here:
  
   
  
  
  THE POETIC EFFECT:  Consider the images and  ideas from above.  What overall picture of nature does  it create (for example, is nature harsh, peaceful, unpredictable, loving?)  How does it affect you?
  
   
  
   
  CONCLUSIONS:  What conclusions can you draw about the poet's response to nature and its relationship to human beings?
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

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  Follow-up activities:
  Perform a dramatic reading of your poem and share your insights on its themes and ideas about nature with the class.
  

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