When We Two Parted - teaching resource

When We Two Parted 

This two-lesson mini-unit of work explores Byron’s ‘When We Two Parted’ in detail. Designed to teach pupils studying the AQA GCSE English Literature Love and Relationships Anthology, this resource analyses the poem in depth and explains how to write a comparative essay in the exam. 

The resource is made up of a 71-slide editable PowerPoint presentation and eight worksheets. The two lessons contain the following:

Lesson One

Making predictions – From the title alone ‘When We Two Parted’, what do you think the poem is about?

Context – Learning the importance of context. How knowledge of context helps us understand the poem in detail. Here we explore Lord Byron, the Byronic hero, the Romantic movement and the social and historical context – the age of revolution.

First Contact – An initial reading of the poem with a glossary included. A 2022 retelling of the narrative in modern prose. Comprehension questions with answers to assess understanding. A general summary/synopsis of the poem.

Exploring Meaning – Analysing the poem in more detail. Exploring key quotes and discussing them with comprehensive questions that delve deeper. Model answers are provided.

Essay Writing – An essay question task to assess initial understanding. Includes model answers and peer assessment opportunities.

Lesson Two

Themes – Analysing the poem’s themes: love and the end of a love affair, secrecy, abandonment, disillusion, fidelity, separation and pain and suffering.

Language – Exploring Byron’s use of archaic language, semantic fields and poetic techniques. A line by line annotation of the poem and comprehension questions with detailed answers.

Structure and Form – How Byron uses the lyric form, perspective, punctuation, rhyme and enjambment and how he structures the stanzas and uses a cyclical narrative.

The GCSE Exam – How to write a comparison essay with model responses. Comparing ‘When We Two Parted’ with ‘Porphyria’s Lover’ and ‘Neutral Tones’.

To preview the full resource (view all slides and worksheets), click on the images.

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