‘Praise Song My Mother’ Lesson Objectives: - to begin to understand what this poem is about

‘POETRY PAINTS PICTURES WITH WORDS’ Look at the images (Pictures) that follow. In this poem the poet compares her mother to each of these objects. Can you think why? WRITE DOWN your ideas as we discuss them.

Water

Moon

Sunrise

Red Gill

Flame Tree

Crab’s Leg and fried Plaintain

Praise Song for My Mother You were water to me deep and bold and fathoming moon’s eye to me pull and grained and mantling sunrise to me rise and warm and streaming the fishes red gill to me the flame tree’s spread to me the crab’s leg/the fried plantain smell replenishing replenishing Go to your wide futures, you said GRACE NICHOLS