Use Music as an Introduction to Poetry and to Teach Figurative Language
By Tracee Orman
Teaching poetry can be intimidating because so many students have negative connotations associated with poetry. Is it because it’s used heavily in state testing? Is testing ruining poetry for our students?
Regardless of the reason, it’s tough to overcome as an English teacher.
So how do we bring joy back into our poetry units?
I am a huge proponent of using music in some shape, way, or form, in all my units. Poetry is no exception. In fact, it’s the BEST unit to use music because aren’t song lyrics essentially poems? I believe they are.
One song that is my go-to even after all these years is Katy Perry’s “Firework.” Not only is it a recognizable, upbeat song, but it covers ALL of these:
• Imagery devices: simile, metaphor, personification, hyperbole
• Sound devices: alliteration, assonance, consonance, onomatopoeia, rhyme
• Rhetorical devices: anaphora, epistrophe
• Tone/mood
• Theme
It makes it easy to use for so many different grade levels; younger students can focus on a select few devices to identify and analyze while older students can practice deeper analysis on how these devices work together to bring meaning to the song.
How to Introduce It:
🎶 The procedure I use for introducing the song as a poem is by playing it, of course. Poems are meant to be heard, so song lyrics should be heard, as well. You can have your students follow along with the lyrics on the first listen. Then play it again and have them try to identify the different imagery, sound, and rhetorical devices in the song. You can have students work in pairs if they are struggling.
🎶 After students are able to identify the devices, have them explain what it means. You can go over them as a group or in small groups. Play the song again, having students look with fresh eyes and ears.
🎶 Finally, discuss the tone/mood and how the devices work together to help create that. Ask them if they notice a shift in the mood at any point in the song. Discuss how the actual music (not the lyrics) contributes to this or creates irony.
If you’d like this lesson and all the handouts that will guide your students step-by-step, you can get it FREE by opting in to my email list.
You can also use the song to practice figurative language anytime. There are enough examples that you have a set lesson ready-to-go to use with any unit.
Next Steps:
I usually analyze at least one more song* before I have students choose their own school-appropriate song to analyze. Not every song is going to have a variety of devices used, so I usually tell them their song must have at least 3 different devices.
What happens next is amazing. Students are looking at lyrics of numerous songs, scanning for poetic devices. Little do they know they are reading and thinking critically. It’s a fun, sneaky way for them to further practice identifying devices in context.
I hope this helps and I’d love to chat more with you about use song lyrics for an introduction to poetry or anytime! Join our conversation on Instagram.
For additional poetry activities, check out these activities:
*Wake Me Up Poetry Analysis by Tracee Orman
Figurative Language in Song Lyrics by Presto Plans
