7th & 8th grade teachers -try this poem, "A Football Game", from The Student's Anthology

FOR BJC STUDENTS [GRADE 7 OR 8]   A POEM FROM THE STUDENT'S ANTHOLOGY

A Football Game

      by Alice Van Eck

 

It's the might, it's the fight

Of two teams who won't give in-

It's the roar of the crowd

And the "Go, fight, win!"

It's the bands, it's the stands,

It's the color everywhere.

It's the whiff, it's the sniff

Of the popcorn on the air.

It's a thrill, it's a chill,

It's a cheer and then a sigh;

It's that deep, breathless hush

When the ball soars high.

Yes, it's more than a score,

Or a desperate grasp at fame;

Fun is King, win or lose-

That's a football game!

             From The Student’s Anthology

Weak Questions on “A Football Game” [Avoid assigning this type]

1. What nationality is Alice Van Eck?

2.  Quote an exclamatory sentence from the poem.

3.  Quote a line that tells what the players wanted.

4. What did the crowd at the game chant?

5. Who cheered, sighed and then went quiet? Explain

     why.

6. What could spectators at the game smell?

7. What is the meaning of ‘soar’ in the third stanza?

8. What happens when the ball soars high at the game?

9. How does the poet describe fun?

 

Stronger Questions:

1.         The poem appeals to our senses. Identify THREE senses it talks about and say how the poet brings these senses alive.  

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2.         Do you think the speaker is most likely a football player or a spectator? Explain.

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3.         What is the figure of speech used in the third line of the last stanza? Explain this figure of speech.

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4.         (a)The poem has a rhyme scheme. What is it?

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(b) Where can you also find rhyming words in the poem? Give examples from

two stanzas and say how these rhyming words add to the ideas Alice Van Eck wants to get across to the readers.

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Creative Expression Assignments

1.  Think of a sport, other than football, that you enjoy. Write a poem about it. Use a definite rhyme scheme and descriptions that include at least three of the five senses.

                                                       Now write two Creative Assignments of your own.

2.

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3.

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