Literature in English SS 2 Curriculum Guides – Poetry – J. P. – “Agbor Dancer”

THEME – POETRY – “AGBOR DANCER” – J.P. CLARK

TOPIC 1 – BACKGROUND AND SETTING 

INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS

A picture of Agbor dancer displayed in the class; costumes, drums and props as may be needed.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

By the end of the lesson, students should be able to:

1. recount Clark’s biography after reading through available material(s).

2. See cultures reflected in cultural shows such as dance and masquerade.

CONTENTS OF THE LESSON

FOCUS LESSONS 

Author

A Nigerian poet of Delta State origin. One of the pioneers of modern African poetry. Picks his subjects from the riverine areas, showing his interest in his cultural displays, essential aspects of life among various groups of Nigeria.

LESSON PRESENTATION

TEACHER’S ACTIVITIES

The teacher,

1. asks questions on details of Clark’s biography emphasing those relevant to the understanding of the poem.

2. relates the describe dance in the poem to cultural values and customs of ethnic groups in Nigeria.

 

 

STUDENT’S ACTIVITIES

The students,

1. describe a cultural dance they have witnessed and mention the significance of it.

2. relate background of poet and poem to their own experiences.

LESSON EVALUATION

Students to,

1. identify 2 or 3 values attached to cultural dance in Nigeria.

2. perform a cultural dance in groups.

THEME – POETRY – “AGBOR DANCER” – J.P. CLARK

TOPIC 2 – FORM 

INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS

The poem

 

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

By the end of the lesson, students should be able to:

1. recognize the standardisation.

2. identify the linkages between the stanzas.

3. identify the build – up of the story from the last stanza.

CONTENTS OF THE LESSON

FOCUS LESSONS 

A poem of 4 stanzas with 5 lines in each stanzas.

Stanza 1

describes the girl dance and the drum that produce the music she dances to, stressing the way her whole person is absorbed in the dance.

Stanza 2

Directs attention to the complex movement of her body in the dance.

Stanza 3:

Returns to the idea of the relationship between the dancer and the music stressing not only the beauty of the girl and her dance but also her purity of the type that no longer exists and therefore cannot be expressed in writing or by words of mouth.

Stanza 4

Concludes by expressing the poet’s regret at having been so early uprooted from his culture, a situation which makes it impossible for him to join the girl in this dance which involves all about their culture.

Each of the stanza is sentence long, with no punctuation marks at the end or within the lines. This gives the poem a fast  movement.

LESSON PRESENTATION

TEACHER’S ACTIVITIES

The teacher leads the students to discuss the subject of each stanza and get them to show the relationship between the stanzas.

 

 

STUDENT’S ACTIVITIES

The students,

1. identify the relationship between the stanzas.

2. work in group to produce flow chart showing the thematic build up from Stanza 1 – 4.

LESSON EVALUATION

Students to,

1. discuss the effect of the form of the poem on the development of the theme of the poem.

ii. list key linkage between the stanzas.

THEME – POETRY – “AGBOR DANCER” – J.P. CLARK

TOPIC 3 – LANGUAGE, STYLE, NARRATIVE TECHNIQUE AND SYMBOLISM

INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS

The poem

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

By the end of the lesson, students should be able to:

1. pick out and comment on the features which make the poem different from a paraphrase.

2. identify rhyming words and word groups with similar sound.

CONTENTS OF THE LESSON

FOCUS LESSONS 

1. The poem contains a number of descriptive adjectival words used because of their sound – throb, tripling, maze, trance, trenchant etc.

2. The images appeal mostly to senses of sight and hearing.

3. There are rhymes and words with musical effect.

LESSON PRESENTATION

TEACHER’S ACTIVITIES

The teacher,

1. guides the students to identify words used with special effect, that are used for describing and which appeal to various senses of the reader.

2. creates rhymes and musical effect.

 

 

STUDENT’S ACTIVITIES

The students,

1. make a list of words and state the effect of each word.

2. identify a rhyming scheme.

3. work in group using words/phrases to create a rhythm that can be danced to.

LESSON EVALUATION

Students to,

1. describe the special feature of the poem.

2. work out the rhyming scheme of the poem.

3. use improvised drums to produce a dancing rhythm.

THEME – POETRY – “AGBOR DANCER” – J.P. CLARK

TOPIC 4 – SUBJECT MATTER

INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS

The poem

 

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

By the end of the lesson, students should be able to:

1. explain the poem in their own words.

2. explain the poem in their own words.

3. describe the key incidents in the poem.

CONTENTS OF THE LESSON

FOCUS LESSONS 

1. A description of a Agbor girl doing a traditional dance in a trance-like response to rhythm of the drums.

2. The poet expresses his own interest in the values represented by this dance by expressing his desire to join the dance that involves earth, sky and flesh or entire life of the people .

LESSON PRESENTATION

TEACHER’S ACTIVITIES

The teacher,

1. gives a model reading of the poem to the class.

2. calls the students’ attention to areas of interest.

 

 

STUDENT’S ACTIVITIES

The students,

1. read the poem aloud to the class.

2. read the poem aloud to the class.

3. write descriptions of the dancers.

LESSON EVALUATION

Students to,

1. write a personal reaction to the peom.

2. describe the key incident – the dancing girl.

3. draw a picture of a girl dancing a traditional dance.

THEME – POETRY – “AGBOR DANCER” – J.P. CLARK

TOPIC 5 – THEME 

INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS

The poem

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

By the end of the lesson, students should be able to:

1. identify some of the themes of the poem.

2. identify some of the themes of the poem.

3. link the themes with their personal experiences.

CONTENTS OF THE LESSON

FOCUS LESSONS 

1. Idealisation of the dancing girl and the dance, which represents the culture that the poet sees as most worthwhile.

2. The poet’s regret that he is not part of the culture of his people.

LESSON PRESENTATION

TEACHER’S ACTIVITIES

The teacher,

1. leads the students to discover the themes.

2. groups students to work out the themes.

 

 

STUDENT’S ACTIVITIES

The students,

1. identify the themes of the poem.

2. work in groups to discuss themes in relation to their experiences.

LESSON EVALUATION

Students to,

1. list some of the themes identified in the poem.

2. write a poem using similar themes.