Practise comparing two poems on theme and technique. Try each before revealing; both poems in each task are our own original writing.
1Poem A ends 'the sea gives nothing back'; Poem B ends 'the tide returns what it can'. Both are our originals about loss. Write the opening of a comparative essay on how each presents loss.
Show plan, model opening & checklist
Plan: Set up a comparison, not two separate readings. Name a point of similarity and a key difference to develop.
Model opening: Both poems treat loss through the image of the sea, yet where Poem A insists 'the sea gives nothing back', framing loss as final, Poem B's tide 'returns what it can', allowing a fragile hope.
Checklist:
- Compares from the first line
- Names a similarity and a difference
- Embeds evidence from both poems
- Sets up a developed comparison
2Write a comparative body paragraph on how our two original poems present the city, one calling it 'a lit hive', the other 'a maze that forgets you'.
Show plan, model opening & checklist
Plan: Build the paragraph around one point of comparison; move between both poems rather than one then the other.
A trial lesson can start from your child's attempt at Comparing poems practice tasks, with feedback from an experienced teacher.
Model opening: Both poets personify the city, but to opposite effect: the 'lit hive' suggests energy and belonging, while the 'maze that forgets you' turns the same streets into a place of isolation.
Checklist:
- Integrated comparison within the paragraph
- Moves between both poems
- Analyses technique and effect
- Uses connectives of comparison
3Write the conclusion to a comparison of two of our original poems about time, one hopeful and one resigned. Draw your reading together.
Show plan, model opening & checklist
Plan: Synthesise the comparison; reach a balanced overall judgement; avoid new evidence.
Model opening: Ultimately, both poems agree that time cannot be held, yet they part on what that means: one urges us to spend it freely, the other simply to accept its passing.
Checklist:
- Synthesises rather than repeats
- Reaches a balanced judgement
- Keeps both poems in view
- No new analysis added
See the worked annotated model response for comparing poems, or the method in our comparing poems skills guide.