Dear class,
You are going to  appreciate a  poem by Robert Frost.This is in line with our determination to demystify poetry and make you better teachers .  Follow the rubric carefully and provide your responses as required.


THE ROAD NOT TAKEN
By Robert Frost

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,

And sorry I could not travel both

And be one traveler, long I stood

And looked down as far as I could

to where it bent in the undergrowth:

then took the other, just as fair,

And having perhaps the better claim,

Because it was grassy and wanted wear:

though s for that passing there

Had worn them really about the same,

And both that morning equally lay

In leaves no step had trodden black.

Oh, I kept the first for another  day!

Yet knowing how way leads on to way,

I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sigh

somewhere ages and ages hence:

Two roads diverged in a wood, and I-

I took the one less travelled by,

and that has made all the difference.

Pre Activity

Here are some words from the poem. Using the on line dictionary check and understand what they mean. What do you think the poem will be about?

WOOD                    WORN                          DIVERGED             UNDERGROWTH             GRASSY              

Using your experiences infer what the title: THE ROAD NOT TAKEN points to

Discuss this in groups of four (Include all your names) and post your responses on the classroom blog .Make sure you comment on each other’s entries. Your comments must be short and constructive.

Listen to the audio version of the poem to check.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a5140uJOUDE

While activity: Understanding the poem

1. In your groups discuss the following questions and make short notes on your note-making app

(One note):

1. What is the difference between the two roads?
2. Is the persona happy with his choice?
3. Do you think it was a difficult decision?
4. What does the poem mean?

2. Frost uses nature as a background. He usually begins a poem with an observation of something in nature and then moves toward a connection to some human situation." How does this quote help you understand the poem? “Yet knowing how way leads on to way, / I doubted if I should ever come back.”                         
3. Explain the meaning of this quote in your own words. Why does the persona say he will “be telling this with a sigh / somewhere ages and ages hence?”   

4. Look at this line from the poem: “Two roads diverged in the wood and I-I took the one less travelled by…” Why does the persona repeat the word I twice? What effect does it have?

Post Activity:

Reflect on what the poem has to offer you by making constructive comments as you  respond to these questions on the classroom blog (collaborative activity)

1. Do you like the poem?
2. Many   people consider this their favorite poem. Why do you think so?
3. A moral is something you can learn from a story, a poem or an experience. Does this poem have a moral?
4. Have you made any major decisions in your life?
5. Did you take the road less travelled by?

We are going to share our experiences about poetry using an online platform called a blog. We shall also learn how to write constructive blog posts.


Read the following poem and share your reflections about it.

An African Thunderstorm

From the west
Clouds come hurrying with the wind
Turning sharply
Here and there
Like a plague of locusts
Whirling,
Tossing up things on its tail
Like a madman chasing nothing.

Pregnant clouds
Ride stately on its back,
Gathering to perch on hills
Like sinister dark wings;
The wind whistles by
And trees bend to let it pass.

In the village
Screams of delighted children,
Toss and turn
In the din of the whirling wind,
Women,
Babies clinging on their backs
Dart about
In and out
Madly;
The wind whistles by
Whilst trees bend to let it pass.

Clothes wave like tattered flags
Flying off
To expose dangling breasts
As jagged blinding flashes
Rumble, tremble and crack
Amidst the smell of fired smoke
And the pelting march of the storm.


David Rubadiri

1. What is the poem about?
2. Comment on the tone, mood and atmosphere in the poem
3. Describe the rhythm  in the poem.

Note:This is not a one time activity. We shall discuss question 1 until I am satisfied with your responses. Your task will be to comment on and make the responses of your colleagues better.-Critique, improve and contribute.

Happy Learning!