Poetry

I will be able to read and analyze a poem with 85% accuracy or better.

I will be able to recognize a metaphor with 85% accuracy or better.

Turn to page 28-29.

Read the Title and author's corner.

This poem features President Abraham Lincoln and the statue at the memorial created to honor him. In this lesson, we'll explore another example of nonliteral language called a metaphor. Being able to recognize and understand metaphors in a poem deepens our understanding of the poem’s meaning and message.

Read aloud the poem. Then reread lines 1–7. Model how you notice and analyze the metaphor in line 7.

In the first six lines, the poet emphasizes the silence. The huge statue of Abraham Lincoln dominates the memorial, but the man himself is no longer alive and can’t speak to us. But in line 7, the poet calls Lincoln a “voice.” This is a metaphor. A metaphor is an interesting way of saying two very different things are alike. Lincoln cannot literally speak to us, but the memorial reminds us of how he fought for the rights of all people. When people look at the statue, they remember what he stood for and what he fought for, so in that way he is still “speaking” to us today.

I've just shown you how I identify a metaphor in a poem and discuss its meaning. This helps me understand the poet’s message about President Lincoln and how his words and ideas can still speak to people today. Now, you're going to discuss the meaning of another metaphor with a partner.

Review Features of Poetry chart.

The poet refers to time as a “wall.” What do you think the poet means by this? Use evidence from the poem to support your ideas. Partner work.

Share/reflect/feedback

Reread the poem for fluency