Unseen Poetry Revision Booklet
My progress record of the unseen poetry questions
FIRST TASK:
Date:
HOW TO IMPROVE:
SECOND TASK:
Date:
HOW TO IMPROVE:
THIRD TASK:
Date:
HOW TO IMPROVE:
ASSESSMENT PIECE:
Date:
TEACHER FEEDBACK:
Grade:
1
,Index Page
1. Purpose of this booklet.
2. What the exam looks like
3. Understanding the assessment objectives
4. Differences between language, structure
and form
5. The Poetry Moves
6. Annotation of a poem
7. Converting notes into an essay
8. Practice poems for Section C Question 1
9. Section C Question 2: The unseen
comparison
10. Practice poems for Section C Question 2
11. Mark Scheme
12. Sentence starters
13. Core knowledge
14. Other links and resources
2
, The purpose of this booklet.
This homework booklet has been designed as a revision guide. It will help you to
practise the skills you will need to answer the unseen poetry questions.
There are six sample questions which you can work your way through as either
timed or untimed tasks.
The last task is a formal assessment which you can give to your teacher for written
feedback and a grade.
Sample answers have been provided so that you may check your responses
against them to see where your current standard rests.
There are links to online resources which may help to strengthen your
understanding of the unseen poetry questions.
FAQs
What is the unseen poetry question about?
It is about comparing the poets’ ideas and language in two short modern poems
you haven’t seen before. Examiners are interested in what you make of the poems
and how they affect you. You can revise this question by reading through class
notes and practising past questions. This is where this booklet will help you.
When will I be tested on unseen poetry?
The unseen poetry assessment appears on
the English Literature exam on paper 2
section C. How much is the unseen
poetry worth?
It is worth 32 marks in total, which is around 25% of the total English Literature GCSE.
What do I need to do?
You will read a modern poem and write an essay on how the poet presents their
ideas and which methods they use to show these ideas. It is marked equally for
AO1 and AO2. It is worth 24 marks.
Next, you will be asked to read a second, shorter modern poem. You will
compare the poets’ attitudes and how they use language to suggest these. This
piece isWhat the exam looks likeonly marked for A02 and is
worth 8 marks. Aim for 1 -2 SWAn paragraphs.
Part a) In ‘To a Daughter Leaving Home’, how does the p oet present the speaker’s
feelings about her daughter? (24 marks)
3
, Part b) In both ‘Poem for My Sister’ and ‘To a Daughter Leaving Home’ the speakers
describe feelings about watching someone they love grow up. What are the similarities
and/or differences between the ways the poets present those feelings? (8 marks)
Notice, there are two tasks. The first task is an essay on one unseen modern poem. It will be about
familiar topics like family relationships, nature and experiences. Here, you will be assessed for
AO1 (understanding) and AO2 (understanding). The second task is a short comparison with
another poem, which is linked by theme. This task is an extended SWAn, which will assess AO2
only. Students usually pick out one image and one element of the form or structure to compare in
both poems e.g. compare the use of the metaphor and the rhyme in both poems.
It is worth noting at this stage that it is your interpretation of the poem which is important, rather
than knowing the right answer. The unseen poetry section is about giving students a poem they
haven’t had a chance to prepare and seeing what you make of it. The examiners want you to
know that they “are looking to reward a candidate for their comments” and praise the overall
quality of the response. This means you will receive the most marks for engaging with the poem’s
ideas and forming a clear, critical argument on how the poet presents the speaker’s feelings about
it. Marks will be awarded for understanding the poet’s ideas and how the poet uses language,
form and structural choices reinforce those ideas.
Follow this format and you will automatically cover both assessment objectives: AO1
(understanding) and AO2 (language).
Q1) AO1 What the poem is ABOUT:
speaker, form, overall purpose.
Q1 and Q2) AO2. For Q2 Compare
one image and one aspect of form
or structure. TECHNIQUE
Q1) AO2 Analyse the MOOD and
IDEAS through the language choices.
Q1 & 2) AO1 Give YOUR VIEW on the
effectiveness of the poem.
4
My progress record of the unseen poetry questions
FIRST TASK:
Date:
HOW TO IMPROVE:
SECOND TASK:
Date:
HOW TO IMPROVE:
THIRD TASK:
Date:
HOW TO IMPROVE:
ASSESSMENT PIECE:
Date:
TEACHER FEEDBACK:
Grade:
1
,Index Page
1. Purpose of this booklet.
2. What the exam looks like
3. Understanding the assessment objectives
4. Differences between language, structure
and form
5. The Poetry Moves
6. Annotation of a poem
7. Converting notes into an essay
8. Practice poems for Section C Question 1
9. Section C Question 2: The unseen
comparison
10. Practice poems for Section C Question 2
11. Mark Scheme
12. Sentence starters
13. Core knowledge
14. Other links and resources
2
, The purpose of this booklet.
This homework booklet has been designed as a revision guide. It will help you to
practise the skills you will need to answer the unseen poetry questions.
There are six sample questions which you can work your way through as either
timed or untimed tasks.
The last task is a formal assessment which you can give to your teacher for written
feedback and a grade.
Sample answers have been provided so that you may check your responses
against them to see where your current standard rests.
There are links to online resources which may help to strengthen your
understanding of the unseen poetry questions.
FAQs
What is the unseen poetry question about?
It is about comparing the poets’ ideas and language in two short modern poems
you haven’t seen before. Examiners are interested in what you make of the poems
and how they affect you. You can revise this question by reading through class
notes and practising past questions. This is where this booklet will help you.
When will I be tested on unseen poetry?
The unseen poetry assessment appears on
the English Literature exam on paper 2
section C. How much is the unseen
poetry worth?
It is worth 32 marks in total, which is around 25% of the total English Literature GCSE.
What do I need to do?
You will read a modern poem and write an essay on how the poet presents their
ideas and which methods they use to show these ideas. It is marked equally for
AO1 and AO2. It is worth 24 marks.
Next, you will be asked to read a second, shorter modern poem. You will
compare the poets’ attitudes and how they use language to suggest these. This
piece isWhat the exam looks likeonly marked for A02 and is
worth 8 marks. Aim for 1 -2 SWAn paragraphs.
Part a) In ‘To a Daughter Leaving Home’, how does the p oet present the speaker’s
feelings about her daughter? (24 marks)
3
, Part b) In both ‘Poem for My Sister’ and ‘To a Daughter Leaving Home’ the speakers
describe feelings about watching someone they love grow up. What are the similarities
and/or differences between the ways the poets present those feelings? (8 marks)
Notice, there are two tasks. The first task is an essay on one unseen modern poem. It will be about
familiar topics like family relationships, nature and experiences. Here, you will be assessed for
AO1 (understanding) and AO2 (understanding). The second task is a short comparison with
another poem, which is linked by theme. This task is an extended SWAn, which will assess AO2
only. Students usually pick out one image and one element of the form or structure to compare in
both poems e.g. compare the use of the metaphor and the rhyme in both poems.
It is worth noting at this stage that it is your interpretation of the poem which is important, rather
than knowing the right answer. The unseen poetry section is about giving students a poem they
haven’t had a chance to prepare and seeing what you make of it. The examiners want you to
know that they “are looking to reward a candidate for their comments” and praise the overall
quality of the response. This means you will receive the most marks for engaging with the poem’s
ideas and forming a clear, critical argument on how the poet presents the speaker’s feelings about
it. Marks will be awarded for understanding the poet’s ideas and how the poet uses language,
form and structural choices reinforce those ideas.
Follow this format and you will automatically cover both assessment objectives: AO1
(understanding) and AO2 (language).
Q1) AO1 What the poem is ABOUT:
speaker, form, overall purpose.
Q1 and Q2) AO2. For Q2 Compare
one image and one aspect of form
or structure. TECHNIQUE
Q1) AO2 Analyse the MOOD and
IDEAS through the language choices.
Q1 & 2) AO1 Give YOUR VIEW on the
effectiveness of the poem.
4
