Lesson 40: Literary Analysis and Original Poem: Plan Essays

Group students in pairs.

Think-Pair-Share

• Say these Directions: Today, we are stepping back to study how LaRocca’s poems are crafted so you can choose a poem that gives you something meaningful to analyze. However, we’re not just noticing craft; we’re asking how LaRocca’s choices reveal connections in Reha’s life.

The Performance Task asks you to write a literary analysis and then create an original poem using an intentional craft move.

• Ask: Which poem stays with you because of one image, symbol, or powerful word choice? What does that choice accomplish?

  • “Family Ties” stays with me because of the word ties. It works like a symbol because it shows how family members stay connected even after loss. It reveals that Reha’s connection to Amma continues through memory and love.

• Say: Turn to your partner. Partner A, share the poem and the exact image, symbol, or word choice you remember most, and what it seems to do. Partner B, listen for how that choice reveals a connection, then switch.

Connection to Today’s Learning:

We are moving from remembering poems to studying how LaRocca builds meaning, because strong analysis starts with noticing where the craft reveals meaning and connection.

Guide students in moving from naming literary devices to explaining their effect.

Language Study

• Say these Directions: A strong literary analysis tells the reader what the image or symbol accomplishes. When we say what the device accomplishes, we begin writing commentary instead of summary.

Display page 106 of Red, White and Whole and direct students to read the line below.

Begin analyzing this line from “The River” on page 106 by looking at each of its three phrases:

“the river of life in our veins” (p. 106)

Display and briefly discuss the phrase using the table below.

• Ask: Based on these phrases, what does the line mean as a whole, and what does it help us understand about Reha’s connection?

  • The phrase shows that blood is not just something physical—it becomes a symbol of shared life and connection between Reha and Amma.

Teach: From Naming Craft to Explaining Craft

• Say: If I only write “This is symbolic imagery,” I have named a tool, but I have not explained the work that tool is accomplishing. I want to ask a stronger question:

  • What does this image make the reader feel, notice, or understand?

• Say: In the phrase “the river of life in our veins,” (p. 106) LaRocca turns blood into something moving, shared, and full of life. That matters because it changes blood from a literal fluid into a symbol of connection between Reha and Amma.

• Say: So my explanation would sound more like this:

  • The image of blood as a river reveals that their connection is still flowing between them, even during fear and illness.

• Say: That is the difference between labeling craft and analyzing craft.

• Ask: If a writer only says “This is symbolic imagery,” what is still missing from the analysis?

  • What is missing is the effect. The writer still needs to explain what the image makes us understand about Reha, her family, or the connection in the poem.

• Say: In your journal, write one sentence that begins to explain what the line “the river of life in our veins” phrase accomplishes. This is the kind of commentary you will use in your literary analysis essay.

You may use one of these sentence starters to help you:

• The symbolic image turns ___ into ___.

• This suggests ___.

• This reveals ___.

Connection to Today’s Learning:

Now that we have practiced explaining what one line accomplishes, we are ready to hunt for more places where LaRocca’s craft reveals meaning and connection across several poems.

Part A: Craft Hunt Across Poems (W.7.5) (14 minutes)

Arrange students in pairs.

Use the five selected poems from Red, White, and Whole: “Two,” “The River” (the one after “Dr. Andrews”), “Close Enough,” “Family Ties,” and “Aerogramme” in this next activity. Students should annotate directly on the poems or on journal paper.

Collaborative Idea Board

Say these Directions: Read these poems again with a writer’s eye. Read specifically for lines where LaRocca makes meaning happen through an image, a symbol, or a word choice that carries extra weight. Mark at least two places across the poem set, and next to each one, jot what it accomplishes. Use words like reveals, suggests, emphasizes, or turns to explain the effect.

Teach: Spotting Examples of Craft in Poetry

• Say: When I do a craft hunt, I do not write vague notes like “good imagery.” I circle the exact phrase, title, or word that seems loaded. Then I ask myself:

  • Why this one?

  • What job is it doing in this poem?

• For example, if I notice the repeated title “Two,” I do not stop at repetition. I explain that the title turns a number into a feeling of split identity and emotional division.

• Say: That kind of note is useful later, because it gives me analysis I can actually build into an essay.

• Ask: Which exact phrase, title, or word in one of these poems does the most work, and what does it accomplish?

  • In “Family Ties,” the title itself reveals that family is both a bond and something that keeps connecting people even after loss. It helps show that Reha is still tied to Amma through memory and love.

• Say: With your partner, share one annotation each. Then, agree on two entries to add to our collaborative idea board. Each entry must include:

  • The poem title

  • The exact word or phrase

  • A note explaining what it accomplishes using a precise verb (such as reveals, suggests, emphasizes, or turns). Do not just name the device.

Provide students with a confidence continuum (i.e., 1–5). As needed, model how to demonstrate a level of confidence using the continuum.

Connection to Today’s Learning:

• Say: The shared class list helps students move from broad poem preferences to choosing a poem where you can clearly explain how craft reveals a meaningful connection (the first step in writing your literary analysis). Now that you’ve identified several strong examples of the poet’s craft, choose the poem where you can most clearly explain how a specific image or symbol reveals a meaningful connection.

Part B: Choose Your Poem and Write a Working Claim (W.7.2a, W.7.2.b, W.7.4) (16 minutes)

Display the Connections in Verse performance task prompt and briefly read aloud the key expectations.

Quick Write

Say these Directions: Review the performance task prompt as I read the key expectations aloud.

• Write a multi-paragraph literary analysis essay explaining how one poem from Red, White, and Whole uses imagery or symbolism to show an important connection.

• Then write a short original poem about a connection in your own life, using one symbolic image and a craft move we studied.

• Include a brief author’s note explaining your choices.

Teach: Choosing a Poem That Gives You Something to Say

• Say: A strong poem choice is not always your favorite poem. It is the poem where you can best explain how a specific image or symbol reveals a meaningful connection, and where you have enough evidence to support your analysis.

• Say: So I ask myself three questions:

  • What exact image or symbol stands out?

  • What connection does it help me understand?

  • Can I explain more than just what happens in the poem?

  • If the answer is yes, then I probably have a poem that can support a strong essay.

• Say: My goal is to leave today with a working claim that points me toward analysis, not toward mere summary.

Display the following writing model if needed for support and guidance:

I am choosing “Close Enough” for my essay because the image of “the river of life in our veins” does more than describe blood. It turns blood into a symbol of family connection and sacrifice. This image reveals that Reha is no longer only afraid of blood; she uses it to stay connected to Amma through love and action.

• Ask: Which poem are you considering right now, and why is it a strong candidate for analysis?

  • I am considering “Two” because the title itself reveals division. It starts as a number, but it grows into a symbol of Reha feeling split between worlds and later split by grief.

• Say: Review the performance task prompt and star one poem from today’s set or another unit poem you know well. In your journal, write a 2–3-sentence working claim. Sentence 1 should name the poem and the exact image or symbol that reveals a meaningful connection.

• Say: Sentence 2 should explain what it reveals about Reha and the connection in the poem.

• Say: Sentence 3 can name another detail you may use as evidence. Use precise analytical verbs such as reveals, suggests, emphasizes, or turns. Use this frame if it helps: I chose ___ because the image or symbol of ___ reveals ___, and it is a strong choice because it appears across the poem or connects to multiple moments I can explain.

• Say: Make sure your claim explains not just what the image or symbol reveals, but why this image or symbol is strong evidence for your analysis (for example, it repeats, connects across moments, or carries central meaning).

• Say: As you draft, check your work for these three things: Did I name the exact poem? Did I name a specific image or symbol? Did I explain what it reveals instead of only describing what happens in the poem?

Connection to Today’s Learning:

By the end of this section, every student should have a poem choice and a working analytical claim that can be expanded into a full literary analysis essay.

Have students write two sentences identifying a key symbol and beginning its analysis.

Check for Understanding

Say these Directions: Before you leave, write two sentences about your chosen poem. In sentence 1, identify one specific image or symbol in the poem. In sentence 2, begin to explain what it reveals about Reha and why this is the strongest choice for your analysis. Cite the poem title and the exact word or phrase.

• In “Family Ties,” the title itself works like a symbol because it turns family into something that still holds people together after loss. This is the strongest choice for my analysis because the title connects to multiple moments in the poem, and it reveals that Reha’s connection to Amma does not end when Amma is gone but continues through memory and love.

Optional Sentence Starter:

I chose to write about ___ from the poem “___.”

Instruct students to reread their selected poem from Red, White, and Whole and complete the following tasks in their Journal:

• Annotate two more details that could support your claim.

• For each detail, jot one note explaining what the language accomplishes (not just what it says).