Discussion of the earliest poetry in Colonial New England. Describes common themes and forms and identifies specific poets of the period.

Click through this site to find a brief biography of Henry Vaughan, a chronology of his life, links to his works, and essays about his works.

This site contains links to texts of many works by Richard Lovelace. "The world will have forgotten all the great masterpieces of literature when it forgets Lovelace's three verses to Lucasta on his going to the wars." --Thomas Aldrich

Edward Hirsch's poem "Fast Break" captures a single slow-motion play on a basketball court. In this video [6:06] excerpted from Poetry in America, join Hirsch, host Elisa New, NBA players Shaquille O'Neal, Pau Gasol, and Shane Battier, and a group of pick-up basketball players as they use basketball to understand poetry, and poetry to better understand the game of basketball. Hirsch himself reveals how he shaped his couplets to represent offense and defense, teamwork and rivalry, enduring friendship and human mortality. Shaquille does the play by play, heading this episode's team of on-court interpreters who explore "Fast Break" as sport, art, and lens on human character.

Build a greater understanding of poetry and poet's voice. Develop and interpret a poem for a oral performance. Links include presentation rubrics and participation rubric.

This lesson will help students use ISearch as a library catalog. This is the first lesson of three lessons. In this lesson the teacher will mostly be demonstrating on a screen. Students may need devices to try a search if time allows. 

A nice, easy-to-read page with info on John Donne. Gives good insight into the metaphysical style of poetry with links to several of his poems. RL.9-10.10a&b text complexity

An introduction to J.C. Herbert Grierson's book, Metaphysical Lyrics & Poems of the 17th Century. This provides a good explanation of metaphysical poetry as a type, and you can access the rest of the book which is a collection of the poetry, by clicking on the Content link at the top of the page.

This site houses three poems in full text from the great American poet Archibald MacLeish (1892-1982 CE), as well as criticism on two of his most famous. The three pieces are 'Baccalaureate', 'Two Poems from the War', and 'An Eternity'.

Account of the rise of modernist Persian poetry and its influence on the imagist movement. Links to authors and works.

In this video [4:03] excerpted from Poetry in America, ponder W.H. Auden's World War II era reflections on suffering in "Musee des Beaux Arts" with Ambassador to the United Nations Samantha Power, with journalist and ethicist David Brooks, with poet, professor, and painter Peter Sacks, and with host Elisa New. How are ordinary people to regard, and respond to, suffering they have not caused? Who can help us find the way? The statesman, the journalist, the poet, the painter?

This online lesson makes use of concrete poems to teach the structure and form of poetry. Uses a "Columbus Day," theme for the lesson, but can be used any time of the year.

Lesson that gently encourages the teaching of poetry in "nonthreatening" ways. Stresses reading and listening, discussion, and the examination of the sound and sense of poetry.

Travel back to 1914 when Chicago's skyscrapers and Chicago's poets were defining modernist reach and audacity. In this video [7:46] excerpted from Poetry in America, host Elisa New considers the rise of the skyscraper -- and the emergence of the modernist poem -- in an episode featuring celebrated architect Frank Gehry, Chinese visionary and real estate developer Zhang Xin, poet Robert Polito, and student poets from around the United States. And what about today? Can a building, as Sandburg asserts, have "soul," and who gives it that soul?

This site is a collection of copyright-free literature ranging from nursery rhymes to philosophy to literature from many time periods and cultures. There are more than 6,000 texts, and over 1,100 of them are accompanied by audio readings. The site was originally designed to help English language learners, as users can hear as well as see the texts. It is also useful for those who are hearing-impaired, as well as anyone who is looking for simple access to these texts.

Explore the world of British Literature from the Romantic Period. This site focuses on information on the authors of the romantic period, as well as links to their works. Check it out.

Biographical information about Anne Bradstreet's life. Includes details about her works and their publication history. Includes a brief bibliography and the text of eleven of her works.

Self-checking interactive tutorial puts reading comprehension skills to work by asking learners to make inferences, predict what happens next, and identify the main ideas in a series of short reading passages. Related materials include several videos and a downloadable worksheet.

Excellent teaching resource that attempts to teach poetic concepts to middle schoolers by using riddles. Discusses riddles' use of metaphor, simile, and imagery, and relates these concepts to the students' understanding of poetry. Includes student interactives, worksheets, and handouts.

Links from this site access biographical information concerning Thomas Campion, texts of his works, articles and essays about his works, and a list of other available sources.