MFKLessons MusicalTour All

9th and 10th Grade Lesson Plan
Magical Musical Tour:

Using Music Lyrics to Teach Literary Elements
Overview
This series of lessons was designed to meet the needs of gifted children for extension beyond the
standard curriculum with the greatest ease of use for the educator. The lessons may be given to
the students for individual self-guided work, or they may be taught in a classroom or a homeschool
setting. Assessment strategies and rubrics are included at the end of the unit. The lessons were
developed by Lisa Van Gemert, M.Ed.T., the Mensa Foundations Gifted Children Specialist.
Introduction
Literary elements and terminology are the vocabulary of literary analysis, and fluency with them is
crucial to a students ability to enter the conversation about literature. This entire unit teaches
literary elements as illustrated by popular music lyrics, which could be considered to be one of the
most common short-story formats. The unit should be taught over an extended period of time and
is most effective broken down and connected to literature the students are reading.
Learning Objectives
After completing the lessons in this unit, students will be able to:
Define and recognize literary elements.
Identify literary elements in use in literature.
Describe the authorial intent of figurative language.
Preparation
Make overhead transparencies of lyrics (unless a document camera is available).

Gather songs and/or videos of songs.
(Please note the Mensa Foundation is not responsible for any content on outside links; efforts were
made to check the appropriateness of lyric and video sites, but one should always surf with care.)
Make copies of the Literary Elements and Terminology handout, which is included at the
end of this section, as well as copies of any class materials you would like to use from the
lessons.
The Extension section includes a Password-type review game, an assignments page that
you can cut into thirds and hand out, and a quiz.
Magical Musical Tour-Introduction page 1

2009: This lesson plan is the property of the Mensa Education & Research Foundation,
www.mensafoundation.org. It is provided as a complimentary service to the public. Reproduction and
distribution without modification are allowed. Images, links and linked content referenced herein are the
property of the originating entities.
Materials
White boards
Rope/yarn
Songs: (All songs are available through legal download. Please obtain music and lyrics
legally. Alternately, you could have students view videos of the songs on a site like
www.youtube.com. Suggested links to lyrics and video are included with each lesson.)
1. 100 Years by Five for Fighting
2. Annies Song by John Denver
3. The Dance by Garth Brooks
4. I am a Rock by Simon and Garfunkel
5. Cats in the Cradle by Harry Chapin
6. Jack and Diane by John Cougar Mellencamp
7. Fast Car by Tracy Chapman
8. Someday by Steve Earle
9. Dont You Want Me? by The Human League
10. Breaking Us in Two by Joe Jackson
11. Higher Love by Steve Winwood
12. Please Come to Boston performed by Kenny Chesney
13. Walking in Memphis by Marc Cohn
14. I Love L.A. by Randy Newman
15. Lullaby by Shawn Mullins
16. Summer Breeze by Seals & Croft
17. Brandy by Looking Glass
18. Richard Cory by Simon & Garfunkel
19. The Devil Went Down to Georgia by The Charlie Daniels Band
20. Ironic by Alanis Morrisette
21. Dont Take the Girl by Tim McGraw
22. Higher by Creed
23. Same Old Lang Syne by Dan Fogelberg

Literary Elements and Terminology

The stuff you need to know to sound like you know what youre talking about
Literary Elements
Characters: The people in the story that the writer created particularly for that story. The
protagonist is the central or main character who causes or is the center of most of the action the
one who struggles for something. The antagonist may be a person or an abstract quality, such as
fate or nature; it is someone or something that struggles against the protagonist. A foil is a
secondary character who contrasts with a major character. If the character changes during the
story, it is a dynamic character. If the character does not change, it is a static character.
Narration: The telling of the story. Each story has a narrator who talks about the events and
characters and who describes the setting. This is called the narration. The narrator is not
necessarily the author. Just because a story is told using I doesnt mean the narrator is the
author. Every narrator has a point of view (see below).
Point of View: The focus from which the story is told. It can be first-person or third-person point of
view, and it can be all-knowing (omniscient) or limited.
First person point of view: the narrator speaks using "I."
Third person point of view: the narrator uses pronouns such as he or she.
Omniscient: the narrator knows everything about everyone what they think and feel and
what their psychology is like. This is also called all-knowing, just like Mrs. Van.
Limited Omniscience: the narrator knows as much as the reader (or maybe a little bit
more). Sometimes this is called selective
omniscience.
Plot: The pattern of action in a story. It has specific parts,
or elements.
Exposition: the presentation of essential
information regarding what has occurred prior to
the beginning of the story. This is the backstory.
Inciting Incident: The act or action that sets the
story and conflict in motion.
Rising Action: The part of a story that begins with the exposition and sets the stage for the
climax. A conflict often develops between the protagonist and an antagonist.
Climax: The decisive moment in a work of literature, the climax is the turning point of the
plot to which the rising action leads. This is the crucial part of the work, the part that
determines the outcome of the conflict. (Its a realization, decision, action, etc.)
Falling Action: The falling action is the series of events that take place after the climax; the
protagonist must react to the changes that occurred during the climax of the story.
Resolution: The part of a plot that occurs after the climax and that establishes a new norm,
a new state of affairs the way things are going to be from then on. The author often ties
up the loose ends of the story to have the plot reach a conclusion.
Setting: The time, place, and culture in which the story takes place.

Style: The selection of words, sentence structures, and language arts that the writer uses for
details and descriptions. The way the writer uses language such as irony, symbolism, and
metaphor.
Suspense: Stories are often suspenseful. The author creates suspense by causing readers to be
concerned for the characters and/or uncertain of their fates.
Theme: The major idea of the story. This is what the story is about, what it means.
Terminology / Vocabulary
Alliteration: The practice of beginning several consecutive or
neighboring words with the same sound (Sally sells seashells by
the seashore).
Allusion: Reference to something in the past (the Bible,
mythology, etc.) that the writer assumes the reader will recognize.
Apostrophe: Figure of speech in which the absent or dead are
spoken to as if present and the inanimate as if animate.
Archetype: A character, action, or situation that is a prototype or pattern of human life generally; a
situation that occurs over and over again in literature
Coming-of-age story: A type of novel where the protagonist is initiated into adulthood through
knowledge, experience, or both, often by a process of disillusionment. Understanding comes after
the dropping of preconceptions, a destruction of a false sense of security, or in some way the loss
of innocence. Some of the shifts that take place are ignorance to knowledge, innocence to
experience, false view of world to correct view, idealism to realism, or immature responses to
mature responses.
Connotation: The feelings and attitudes associated with a word.
Denotation: Dictionary definition of a word.
Flashback: A description of scenes representing events that happened before the point at which
the story opens.
Foreshadowing: The dropping of hints by the author of things to come.
Hyperbole: A deliberate, extravagant, and often outrageous exaggeration.
Imagery: A word or group of words in a literary work that appeal to one or more of the senses:
sight, taste, touch, hearing, and smell.

Irony: Something that is not what is expected. Can take these forms:
Situational: when something happens differently than what is expected.

Verbal: the use of words to express something different from and often opposite to their
literal meaning. Can take the form of sarcasm, understatement, or hyperbole.
Dramatic: when the audience knows something the characters dont know.
Metaphor: Comparison of two like objects without using the words like, as, than, or verbs like
resembles.
Mood: The emotional quality of the story that influences the attitudes of the characters and the
readers.
Onomatopoeia: Use of words that mimic the sounds they describe (e.g. hiss, buzz, bang).
Paradox: A statement that seems absurd or self-contradictory but turns out to be true.
Personification: Attributing human characteristics to things that are not human.
Pun: Play on words that are identical or similar in sound but have different meanings.
Sarcasm: The use of verbal irony in which a person appears to be praising something but is
actually insulting it.
Satire: Use of humorous devices like irony, understatement, and exaggeration to highlight a
human folly or a societal problem.
Simile: Comparison of two unlike things using words such as like, as, than, or verbs like
resembles.
Symbolism: The use of symbols to stand for something else; the symbols
may be people, objects, or the action itself.
Tone: The authors attitude toward his characters, their actions, and his
plot. Tone may be playful, formal, intimate, angry, serious, ironic,
outraged, baffled, tender, serene, depressed, etc.
Understatement: Deliberate lessening of impact and truth to make a point.

Lesson 1. An Introduction
Discuss the importance of vocabulary. Ask if students would want a brain surgeon to operate on
them who said, Oh, Im going to use this thing-a-ma-jig to cut a hole in your whatchamcallit.
Brainstorm professions or activities that have their own vocabularies.
Explain that literature is one of those things that has its own vocabulary and that we all need to
agree what the meaning is of the terms we use to talk about what were reading.
Discuss how songs are literature because they are poetry. They have a rhythm, they often rhyme,
and they are a great place to find examples of literary elements and terms. Most songwriters would
be ecstatic if they knew that you were looking at their songs this way, instead of just letting the
words float in and out of your head randomly. You honor music when you view it this way.
Play 100 Years by Five for Fighting:
video: (song plays with lyrics on screen): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Lu_uyulrZI
lyrics: http://www.stlyrics.com/songs/f/fiveforfighting1527/100years464953.html
Show overhead of lyrics without commentary.
Next, play it again, this time using a lyric sheet with commentary, pausing and discussing it as you
go through.
Commentary Suggestions (in order of appearance)
(Bolded terms are included in the Literary Elements handout or will be discussed in future lessons)
Whos the I, or the narrator, in this song, and whos the you?
Figurative language: Theyre not literally on fire. What is he saying? Are they really
returning from Mars?
You cant literally buy time. What does he mean?
Note the paradox of an "I" being a "they."
Notice the imagery of being an age for just a moment. It helps create a sentimental,
melancholy tone.
What is this sea? What is this crisis? How can you chase years? Do you see how this
character is dynamic? Hes changing.
Allusion: Astronomically any star that rises after midnight is a morning star, although it
usually refers to the planet Venus. Remember that Venus was the goddess of love.
If you have 100 years to live, whats half time?
Imagine your life as a day. If the sun is getting high, what comes next?
Death is a part as gentle as the others.
Heres the theme: every day is a new day a new moment.
Notice use of hey narrator trying to get attention.
Knowing the theme, who do you think the audience for this message is?
Notice that there is a plot. What is the inciting incident, do you think?
Is this a coming-of-age story? If so, what is the shift? Is this character static or dynamic?
Magical Musical Tour-1.1

Lesson 2. Figurative Language

Before introducing the songs that contain similes and metaphors, spend one lesson on the
following figurative language introduction.
Pre-Assessment
Give students a list of ten examples of figurative language; a sample page with two
handouts is included in this lesson. Have the students mark each example as a metaphor,
simile, or personification using the letters M, S, and P.
Using white boards, read out the example and have students write the letter they chose on
the board. Scan for correctness. Students getting nine or more correct should do the twopage enrichment activity included in this lesson; the other students should participate in the
teacher-led activity that follows.
Teacher-led Activity
Sub-objective I
Simile
Information with
Examples or Model
Show the Simile overhead included in this lesson, which begins

with lines from Shelleys Adonais
These lines are a simile: a comparison of two things indicated
by the words like, as, than, or even a verb such as resembles.
A simile expresses a similarity. For a simile to exist, the things
being compared have to be dissimilar. It isnt a simile to say
your fingers are like mine because that is a literal observation.
It is true. But to say your fingers are like sausages is to use a
simile.
Questions and/or
Activities
Sub-objective II
Metaphor
Information with
Examples or Model
Questions and/or
Activities
Show examples on overhead and have students indicate S for

simile or NS for not simile on their white boards.
Show the Metaphor overhead included in this lesson, which

begins with the line my love is a red, red rose
A metaphor is a statement that one thing is something else,
which, in a literal sense, it is not. Is my love really a rose? No.
A metaphor doesnt use like, as, than, or verbs like resemble. It
will often use some form the verb to be.
Show examples on overhead and have students indicate M
for metaphor or S for simile on their white boards.

Sub-objective III
Information with
Examples or Model
Personification
Show the Personification overhead included in this lesson,
which begins with the lines Death, be not proud, though some
have called thee mighty and dreadful
Can death really be proud? When we give a thing, an animal,
or an abstract term like truth or nature human characteristics,
we call that personification.
Questions and/or
Activities
Show examples on overhead and have students indicate M

for metaphor, S for simile, or P for personification on their
whiteboards. (serves as assessment)
Synthesis
Play Youre the Poet (see the handout included in this

lesson): give them a line with instructions to pick words to fit it,
creating a metaphor, simile, or personification.
Show overhead prompts. Give ten seconds for students to
come up with words, and then call on them to share.

Figurative Language
Mark each of the following as an example of metaphor (M), simile (S), or personification (P). When
you finish, please turn your paper over.
1. Like a thunderbolt he falls _____
2. My love is like a red, red rose _____
3. My mother is a witch _____
4. Her love was stronger than rope _____
5. Her presence was a roomful of flowers/ Her absence is an empty bed ____
6. He was as rich as Hades _____
7. His words are honey to my ears ______
8. His car is as ugly as sin _____
9. This class is a bear _____
10. My teacher is an angel _______
Figurative Language
Mark each of the following as an example of metaphor (M), simile (S), or personification (P). When
you finish, please turn your paper over.
1. Like a thunderbolt he falls _____
2. My love is like a red, red rose _____
3. My mother is a witch _____
4. Her love was stronger than rope _____
5. Her presence was a roomful of flowers/ Her absence is an empty bed ____
6. He was as rich as Hades _____
7. His words are honey to my ears ______
8. His car is as ugly as sin _____
9. This class is a bear _____
10. My teacher is an angel _______

Simile
Life, like a dome of many-colored glass,
Stains the white radiance of Eternity.
(Shelley, Adonais)
1. My love has red petals and sharp thorns.

2. Youre as mean as Hera.
3. Hes wonderful.
4. This is taking longer than a twelve-inning game.
5. This room is as messy as a dump!

Metaphor
Oh, my love is a red, red rose.
(Burns, A Red Red Rose)
1. He is a pig.
2. He eats like a pig.
3. My son is as smart as a whip.
4. My sisters boyfriend is a cow.
5. Shes a doll.

Personification
Death be not proud, though some have called thee/
Mighty and dreadful, for thou art not so
(Donne, Death Be Not Proud)
1. Beauty followed her through her life.

2. My love is as endless as the sea.
3. Hope is the thing with feathers/
That perches on the soul.
4. My mother is a princess.
5. Spring stirs the soul.

Youre the Poet

I am as tired as a ______________.
My sister is a ______________.
Youre as cool as a _________________.
The computer ___________ at me.
This class is as ________ as a ________.
The rainbow ___________.

Enrichment Activity
I. Simile and Metaphor
Identify the two things the poet is comparing and then describe what it is the poet thinks
they have in common. Be specific.
1. Think of the storm roaming the sky uneasily
like a dog looking for a place to sleep in,
listen to it growling.
Elizabeth Bishop, Little Exercise
2. The scarlet of the maples can shake me like a cry of bugles going by.
Bliss Carman, A Vagabond Song
3. Hope is the thing with feathers

That perches on the soul
And sings the tune without the words
And never stops at all.
Emily Dickenson, Hope

II. Youre the Poet!

Now you try it. Create an example of a simile, a metaphor, and personification using the
prompts given below. Then, try to make up completely original examples.
1. Simile: My love is as _______________ as a __________________.
2. Metaphor: School is a _________________________________________.
3. Personification: The fog _______________________________.
(hint: begin with a verb)
Original Examples:
1. Simile
2. Metaphor
3. Personification

Lesson 3. Simile
Ask a student to define simile. Work until you get a good definition (comparison of two things using
like, as, than, or a verb like resembles).
Remind students that the purpose of similes, like all figurative language, is to help the reader or
hearer to truly feel what the writer is trying to convey. We use our senses to do that, so figurative
language usually involves the use of senses.
Explain that John Denver wrote this lessons featured song for his first wife, Annie, and it went to
number one on the charts in 1974. Because students will probably not be familiar with his work,
you may want to mention that he was killed in a plane crash in 1997 when the small plane he was
piloting crashed into Monterey Bay off the coast of California. (Death intrigues them.)
Play Annies Song with lyrics showing, then play it again, pointing out and discussing similes
through commentary:
lyrics: http://www.stlyrics.com/songs/j/johndenver2053/anniessong97435.html
video: (song and pictures)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C21G2OkHEYo
wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Annie's_Song
Dont mention their divorce until after they have heard it all.
What is a night in the forest like? What senses would be engaged?
What is the difference between the mountains in spring versus winter? How is this an
appropriate image for love?
When is it fun to walk in the rain? What kind of rain works for this? How can a person make
you feel like this?
What happens when it rains in the desert? What image of Annie is Denver trying to convey
with this simile?
Why a sleepy ocean? Why not a stormy ocean? Is the ocean always blue? So, why does
he say she fills him up like a blue ocean? Why not green or grey?
How does this line change for you when I tell you that John and Annie eventually divorced?

Lesson 4. Metaphor
Ask a student to define metaphor. Work until you get a good definition (comparison of two things
without using like, as, than, or a verb like resembles saying that something actually is
something else, not that it is just like it in some way).
Remind students that the purpose of metaphors, like all figurative language, is to help the reader or
hearer to truly feel what the writer is trying to convey.
Challenge students to find out what the dance is being compared to in this song.
Play The Dance by Garth Brooks:
video: (music video with spoken intro) http://video.yahoo.com/watch/4271078/11479509
lyrics: http://www.planetgarth.com/lyrics/the_dance.shtml
As for ideas on what the dance is. If a student comes up with life or the good things in life,
discuss this idea. How is life a dance? Is it like a single dance or can it also be compared to a
dance in the larger sense like a prom or homecoming event? If students do not come up with the
metaphor, play the song again with commentary, and then ask again at the end.
Have students fill out one of the life is metaphor handouts included in this lesson, and then pass it
to another student. Have that student list three ways this metaphor is true.
Do you see how this is a literal dance?
Heres the figurative dance. Think of this broadly. What would he miss? How is it a dance?
Regarding being a king, what type of figurative language is he using here?
For Another Class Period

Play I am a Rock by Simon & Garfunkel:
video: (song plays with lyrics): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PKY-smJ6aBQ
lyrics: http://www.stlyrics.com/songs/s/simongarfunkel11136/iamarock387772.html
Ask students to identify the figurative language used here. Bring out that it is a metaphor because
he is saying that he actually is a rock, he is an island, not that he is simply like one.
Play it a second time with commentary. Have students fill out one of the I am a ______ metaphor
handouts included in this lesson, and then explain how it is true.


Regarding the first line, the use of words like this creates what we call tone the mood or
feeling of the piece. What is a shroud? What is the tone of this song already?
Why does he say hes built the walls?
What is he afraid of? How is he a rock? How is he an island?
Regarding the Dont talk of love verse: Ah! A hint of some past pain. What do you think it
was? A girl? Not winning the lottery? English class?
Regarding I touch no one and no one touches me: What is the effect or purpose of this
last couplet here? Shakespeare often ends important scenes with couplets, so pay attention
to them because theyre often a signal of a key idea.
The entire song is a metaphor. The man is a rock; he is an island. He starts the song saying
he is; how does he prove it? What kind of picture do you get from him saying that, as
opposed to him saying, Im kind of a loner?

Metaphors I
Life is a(n) _______________________________.
Ways in which this is true:
1.
2.
3.
Metaphors I
Life is a(n) _______________________________.
1.
2.
3.
Metaphors I
Life is a(n) _______________________________.
1.
2.
3.

Metaphors II
I am a(n) _______________________________.
Metaphors II
I am a(n) _______________________________.
Metaphors II
I am a(n) _______________________________.
Metaphors II
I am a(n) _______________________________.

Lesson 5. Imagery
Have students look up the definition of imagery in a textbook glossary or dictionary. (A short
definition is also included in the Literary Elements handout.)
List the five main senses on the board.
Play Summer Breeze by Seals & Croft, asking them to look for use of language that appeals to
the senses:
video (artists performing song): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TEF470mXqU4
lyrics: http://www.stlyrics.com/songs/s/sealscrofts3407/summerbreeze163725.html
Discuss that imagery is one way authors convey tone. Tone is the authors attitude towards the
subject or story. In this song, what is the authors attitude towards his home? What specific words
tell you this?
Also point out the wonderful personification of July dressed up and playing a tune.

Lesson 6. Narration
Distribute the narration handout on the following page and discuss. Using pieces of rope or string,
have groups demonstrate the four types of narration.
Play Cats in the Cradle by Harry Chapin and have students discuss first-person POV:
video (artist performing song): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zlHdjjHNEC8
lyrics: http://www.stlyrics.com/songs/h/harrychapin1785/catsinthecradle85409.html
wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cat's_in_the_Cradle
Play Jack and Diane by John Cougar Mellencamp and have students discuss POV:
video: (song plays with lyrics): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=feeHTm-dYGg
lyrics: http://www.stlyrics.com/songs/j/johnmellencamp2062/jackndiane1192646.html

An Explanation of Narrative
The point of view of a story is the relationship between the narrator and the story, including the
characters in it. In the diagrams below, the circle represents the story; A, B, and C are characters.
If the line from the narrator to the character ends in an arrow point, the narrator can enter that
characters mind.
First Person Narrative:

The main character tells his own story. The narrator
refers to himself by using the pronoun I.
Narrator
C
Third Person Omniscient:

The narrator is all-seeing, all-knowing. All thoughts
are revealed. The author enters the characters
minds as an observer of the inner man. The story is
told in the third person (he/she/it/they).
Narrator
B
C
Third Person Limited Omniscient:

The story is told in the third person, but as seen
through the eyes of one character only. The author
only enters the mind of one character, not all of
them. This is the most common form of point of
view.
Narrator
B
C
Third Person Objective:

The story is told in the third person and the thoughts
of the characters are not revealed. This viewpoint is
often called the door keyhole technique because
its like looking at the story playing out in front of you
as if you were looking through the keyhole of a door.
The characters reveal themselves through what
they say about themselves and others and through
their actions.
Narrator
B
C

Lesson 7. Conflict
Have students get out their Literary Elements handout and discuss conflict. Emphasize the
difference between internal and external conflict. Make sure that students understand that every
story has a conflict and that identifying the conflict will help them find the theme.
Play Fast Car by Tracy Chapman once through and ask students to identify at least two conflicts
in the song and what types of conflict they are. Discuss students findings. Play the song again with
commentary.
video: (artist performing song): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Orv_F2HV4gk
lyrics:
http://www.stlyrics.com/songs/t/tracychapman3939/fastcarbytracychapman350004.html
Starting with the first verse, whats the conflict here? She wants to go anywhere. What
does that say about where she is?
If she feels like shes not living now, how does she feel? What type of conflict is that?
Her "old man" introduces a new conflict. What is it?
Regarding her mother, heres an instance of one conflict leading to another. Her dads
alcoholism is what type of conflict? It can be more than one. What are the types of conflict
going on here with her mother? Then what did that conflict lead to?
A decision is always required when theres a conflict.
Was she drunk? If she wasnt, what do we call it when she says she feels like she was?
Notice the time jump. What are the conflicts now?
Notice the second time jump. What are the conflicts now?
The repetition of the image of the fast car in the song is what we call a motif. It repeats
itself over and over, changing purposes through the song. We saw this to some extent in
The Dance. What is the role of the car here? How does it change through the song? How
does she see the car at first? What about at the end of the song?
Play Someday by Steve Earle and have students work in pairs to identify conflicts. Compare them
to the conflicts in Fast Car.
video: (song plays with lyrics): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e2lLV4cAnkQ
lyrics: http://www.stlyrics.com/songs/s/steveearle3667/someday174856.html
Commentary Notes
Types of conflict: boredom, being caught in a cycle and in a nothing town
Allusion: over the rainbow to the pot of gold
Decision: Whether to leave
Different ways to leave: talent or transportation
Is he going to do it? When? Is that a promise kind of word?

Play Dont You Want Me? by Human League and ask students to identify the conflict in this song.
Bring out the differences between the conflicts in the songs. (After Fast Car, the conflict in here
should be easy to identify. How do the two people in the song see the conflict differently? Is it
common to see both sides of a conflict in a song?)
video (artist performing song): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gpbOkyuyADU
lyrics: http://www.stlyrics.com/songs/h/humanleague1871/dontyouwantme88647.html
Play Breaking us in Two by Joe Jackson:

video: (music video): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6C-xazgqpPc
lyrics: http://www.stlyrics.com/songs/j/joejackson2046/breakingusintwo97116.html
Have students compare that conflict with Higher Love by Steve Winwood. (Is this an internal or
external conflict? What does he want? Remember that conflict involves decision; what is his
decision here?)
video: (music video): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gdTHa8m1EFo
lyrics: http://www.stlyrics.com/songs/s/stevewinwood3673/higherlove175165.html
Discuss all four songs in terms of conflict, using the chart on the next page.
For assessment, play Please Come to Boston by Kenny Chesney. Have students identify the
internal and external conflict.
video (artist performing song):
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x2r5en_kenny-chesney-please-come-to-boston_music
lyrics:
http://www.stlyrics.com/songs/k/kennychesney2150/pleasecometoboston1061925.html
Note: This is a good element to assign students to find their own examples of in songs they listen
to.

Types of Conflict
Song
Internal
(man vs. self)
External
(which type[s]?)
Decision
Fast Car
Someday
Dont You
Want Me?
Higher Love

Lesson 8. Setting
Ask if any of the students have ever watched Survivor. Ask if they think the show would be as
interesting if it were set in some small town in the middle of nowhere with a one-stop low price
store and nothing else. Would they watch Survivor: The Small Town Edition?
Discuss the ways in which the setting is crucial. Would it be different if you lost a child in the halls
at school versus losing him or her in the middle of the Sahara desert? Why?
Explain that setting is the world in which the story exists. It is the place, the time, the culture, and
the environment in which a story occurs. Some authors describe the setting with a lot of detail, and
others let the reader find out about the setting in bits and pieces. Frequently in music there is a
setting for the song.
Explain that you are going to play a song about a place, and you want them to look for things in the
song that are specific to the setting. Play Walking in Memphis by Marc Cohn:
video (preformed by Cher, with lyrics):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r9zF7NSchsk&feature=PlayList&p=7EF2C48F665F6354
&playnext=1&playnext_from=PL&index=28
lyrics: http://www.stlyrics.com/songs/m/marccohn2482/walkinginmemphis117635.html
Count the number of things the students recorded and compare with the following:
Commentary Notes
References to Elvis and the father of blues music
Reference to Home of the Blues, birthplace of rock
More references to Elvis and features of his home
References to local food, music, figures and locations
Discuss the types of details he uses to describe Memphis. Ask if this is what everyone who lived in
Memphis would emphasize (blues, music, etc.).
Explain that the same setting can be seen in different ways by different people. Play I Love L.A.
by Randy Newman:
video: (music video): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=slMTiDZuVp0
lyrics: http://www.stlyrics.com/songs/r/randynewman3207/ilovela218040.html
Then play Lullaby by Shawn Mullins.
video (artist performing song): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LoWEpKBgNM8
lyrics: http://www.stlyrics.com/songs/s/shawnmullins3457/lullaby165910.html
Commentary Notes
What do the names of the stars tell you about when this took place?
Note the juxtaposition of devils and angels; what does Los Angeles mean?
What is the similarity between Nashville and LA?
Discuss the different ways they see the same place. What details do they use to support their
views of the same town?
Have students write a description of their town or school that is positive (in the vein of I Love L.A.)
and then one that is negative (like Lullaby).
Note: You can pair this lesson with a comparison reading of a traditional version of Cinderella and
a reading of The Persian Cinderella by Shirley Climo. The settings can be compared and
discussed.

Lesson 9. Character
Discuss characterization, using the outline that follows on the next page.
Play Brandy by Looking Glass:
video (artists performing song): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7-dleViv2nc
lyrics: http://www.stlyrics.com/lyrics/charliesangels/brandyyoureafinegirl.htm
Discuss the two characters in the song. Who is the protagonist? Who or what is the antagonist?
Who do we sympathize with? Are the characters flat or round? Are they static or dynamic? Analyze
the characters using the outline.
Play Richard Cory by Simon & Garfunkel:

video (artists performing song): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=euuCiSY0qYs
lyrics: http://www.stlyrics.com/songs/s/simongarfunkel11136/richardcory362829.html
Give students time to analyze the characters (both the narrator and Richard Cory) using their notes
and the outline. Collect and discuss. Emphasize the concept of the foil.
Note: This would be a good lesson to have students find a song of their own that describes a
character and have them analyze it using the handout for guidance (answering some of the same
questions discussed in class).

Characterization
Types of characters
Protagonist: the central or main character who causes or is the center of most of the action.
Antagonist: someone or something against which the protagonist struggles; may be a
person or may be an abstract quality, such as fate or nature.
Static: does not experience basic character changes during the course of the story.
Dynamic: experiences changes throughout the plot of a story. Although the change may be
sudden, it is expected based on the storys events.
Foil: character whose traits are in direct contrast to those of the principal character
highlights the traits of the protagonist usually a minor character, although if there are two
protagonists, they may be foils of each other.
Stock/stereotyped: a character who possesses expected traits of a group rather than being
an individual.
Flat: not fully developed; we know only one side of the character.
Round: fully developed, with many traits bad and good shown in the story. We feel
that we know the character so well that he or she has become a real person.
Character
Round
Flat
Dynamic
Static
Considered the best type of character

development. Usually the protagonist.
Development is considered well-done.

Often found in protagonists in books for
younger children.
Characters cannot be dynamic and flat, in

a flat character we do not know enough
about them to recognize a change. If a flat
character seems to change, it is usually
due to poor writing.
In very simple books, or in fairy tales, the

protagonist may be flat and static. Also
appropriate for minor characters in other
books.
How we learn about characters

Direct characterization: the writer makes direct statements about a character's personality
and tells what the character is like.
Indirect characterization: the writer reveals information about a character and his
personality through that character's thoughts, words, and actions, along with how other
characters respond to that character, including what they think and say about him.
Physical description.
Speech and actions of the character.
Direct comment from the narrator.
Speech and actions of other characters.
Themes of literature/analyzing characters
Motivation: cause of actions.
Behavior: actions of the character.
Consequences: results of actions.
Responsibility: moral, legal, or mental accountability.
Expectations: what is expected of the character/what the character expects.
Lesson 10. Plot

Using the Literary Elements handout, discuss plot development including plot elements, setting,
style, suspense, and theme.
Plot elements include:
Exposition, or backstory
The inciting incident
Rising action
The climax, or turning point
Falling action
Resolution
Play The Devil Went Down to Georgia by the Charlie Daniels Band:
(Please note: some popular versions include PG-13 language at the end of the final verse)
video (artist performing song): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tnepPZChA5U

lyrics:
http://www.stlyrics.com/songs/c/charliedanielsband5781/thedevilwentdowntogeorgia480195
.html
Play again, marking and discussing the plot elements.

Commentary Notes
Whats the inciting incident?
What conflict develops out of the rising action?
How do setting and style affect the conflict? How do they affect the suspense?
How does the presentation, or plot, deal with the fact that the contest is musical, not verbal?
What is the theme of this plot?

Lesson 11. Irony

Using the Literary Elements handout, discuss the three types of irony:
Situational when something happens differently than what is expected.
Verbal the use of words to express something different from and often opposite to their
literal meaning. Can take the form of sarcasm, understatement, or hyperbole.
Dramatic when the audience knows something the characters dont know.
Play Ironic by Alanis Morrisette and have students identify the types of irony in the song:
video: (music video): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8v9yUVgrmPY
lyrics: http://www.stlyrics.com/songs/a/alanismorissette156/ironic7189.html
Play Dont Take the Girl by Tim McGraw and ask students to identify the underlying irony in the
song (the boy changes his mind completely about her situational):
video: (music video): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2-TXBniRz1g
lyrics: http://www.stlyrics.com/songs/t/timmcgraw3880/donttakethegirl184372.html
Get a classroom discussion going about whether either of these songs exhibits dramatic irony. If
the consensus is no, ask for examples of other works that do feature dramatic irony.

Lesson 12. Allusion

Explain that allusion is a reference to something in literature, history, mythology, religion, or cultural
knowledge that assumes the reader or hearer knows what is being referred to. For example, if I
say it is raining so hard I should build an ark, what is that a reference to? (Noahs ark).
Explain that you are going to play a song that has a core allusion Higher by Creed:
video: (music video): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p64r2HF0-A0
lyrics: http://www.stlyrics.com/songs/c/creed923/higher43081.html
Ask if they can identify the allusion. Ask them to rate, on a scale of one to ten, how well they
understand whats going on in the song.
Play the song again, discussing the allusions using the following commentary.
Is he literally in another world? No, this is figurative language.
Is he literally hungry? Look at the word that shows you what he means by hunger.
Wheres a place that is high, blind men see, and has streets paved with gold?
So, what does he want? He wants to make what on earth?
What does he think it will take to make that happen?
Play the song again and ask them to rate, on a scale of one to ten, how well they now understand
whats going on in the song.
Explain that this shows just one small example of how understanding allusions can increase your
understanding of what you read.

Lesson 13. Putting It All Together

Have students get out their Literary Elements handouts.
Play Same Old Lang Syne by Dan Fogelberg, asking them to note as many elements as they can
on this one run-through:
video (artist performing song): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IhjYbfK9vrk
lyrics: http://www.stlyrics.com/songs/d/danfogelberg985/sameoldlangsyne45496.html
Read through the lyrics, letting students identify elements, giving small prizes (stickers, candy, etc.)
for accurate identification.
Optional: Tally each class periods totals and then give a prize to the class with the highest total
(bonus on literary elements test?).

Extension
Literary Terms Quiz
Hand out the quiz that begins on the next page.
Password-type Game
Print out the five pyramids that appear in the following section.
Explain that Password is a TV game show that has aired on various occasions since the 1960s.
Two teams, each consisting of one celebrity player and one regular contestant, competed. The
word to be guessed (the "password") was given to one player on each team and was shown to the
studio audience and home viewers. On each team, the player who was given the password gave a
one-word clue from which his/her partner attempted to guess the password. If the partner failed to
guess the password within the allotted five-second time limit, or if an illegal clue was given (two or
more words, a hyphenated word, or any part or form of the password), play passed to the opposing
team. The game continued until one of the players guessed the password correctly or until ten
clues had been given.
To play the review game:
Have students divide into two groups.
Have each group select two players. Have the four people come forward to the front of the
class.
Place an overhead transparency of the first pyramid on the projector with the words
covered.
Have the first pair face each other. Arrange it so that the person who will be giving the clues
can see the projector but the receiver cannot.
Reveal words one at a time, with the giver trying to get the receiver to say the word. Make
sure to set a timer. The giver can decide to pass and return to a term.
Next, allow the other team to play, using the next sheet, and so on.
While the game is played, other students should be thinking about how they would do it
themselves, so it is an effective whole-class review.
You can also have the giver and receiver switch places or rotate students in to play.
Magical Musical Tour-Extension page 1

Literary Terms Quiz

______ 1. Archetype
a. dictionary definition of a word
______ 2. Protagonist
b. verbal irony in which a person appears to be

praising something but is actually insulting it
______ 3. Antagonist
c. when elements of a statement contradict each

other
______ 4. Static
d. the perspective from which a narrative is told
______ 5. Dynamic
e. a character, action, or situation that is a prototype

or pattern of human life
______ 6. Denotation
f. the use of words that mimic the sounds they

describe
______ 7. Connotation
g. the character with whom readers identify (usually

the main character)
______ 8. Flashback
h. the time and place in which events take place
______ 9. Foreshadowing
i. a character that changes in response to actions

through which he or she passes
______ 10. Imagery
j. use of any object, person, place, or action that both

has a meaning in itself and stands for something
______ 11. Plot
k. a person says one thing while meaning another
______ 12. Point of view
l. beginning several consecutive words with the same

sound
______ 13. Setting
m. the adversary character (the one fighting against

the main character)
______ 14. Suspense
n. words or phrases which appeal to the senses

______15. Theme
o. a form of personification in which the absent or

dead are spoken to as if present
______ 16. Tone
p. a play on words similar in sound, but different in

meaning
______ 17. Hyperbole
q. comparison of two different things or ideas using

the words like or as
______ 18. Verbal irony
r. the central message of a literary work
______ 19. Situational irony
s. use of hints or clues to suggest future action
______ 20. Dramatic irony
t. a scene that interrupts the action to show a previous

event
______ 21. Sarcasm
u. a character that changes little over the course of a

narrative
______ 22. Satire
v. the feelings and attitudes associated with a word
______ 23. Symbolism
w. a deliberate, extravagant, and often outrageous

exaggeration
______ 24. Apostrophe
x. the sequence of events or actions in a story
______ 25. Metaphor
y. the writers attitude toward a subject, character, or

audience
______ 26. Paradox
z. quality that makes the reader uncertain or tense

about the outcome of events
______ 27. Pun
aa. the reader knows something important that the

character does not know
______ 28. Simile
bb. use of humorous devices like irony,

understatement, and exaggeration to highlight a
human folly or problem

______ 29. Alliteration
cc. a situation turns out differently from what one

would expect
______ 30. Onomatopoeia
dd. comparison of two unlike things NOT using like or

as

denotation
protagonist
suspense
setting
imagery
archetype
Magical Musical Tour-Game page 1

connotation
antagonist
theme
alliteration
plot
static

pun
simile
paradox
dynamic
apostrophe
satire

symbolism
onomatopoeia
hyperbole
metaphor
verbal
irony
situational
irony

point of
view
dramatic
irony
foreshadowing
flashback
tone
sarcasm

Assessment
Literary Terminology Lyrics Assignment
Print out the sheet of three assignments that appears at the end of this section, cut into thirds and
distribute to the students. Then assess their responses according to the following rubric.
Rubric for Literary Terminology Lyrics Assignment

Instruction
4 Excellent
3 Good
2 Fair
1 Poor
Score
Appropriate
song chosen
Lyrics copied on
every other line
of paper
1 element
identified
correctly
2 element
identified
correctly
3 element
identified
correctly
4 element
identified
correctly
5 element
identified
correctly
All five elements
written in
different color
ink on line above
Magical Musical Tour-Assessment page 1


1. Choose a song that is appropriate for the assignment. Appropriate
is defined as a song with no profanity and no references to drugs,
sex, or killing people.
2. Copy the lyrics on every other line of wide-ruled notebook paper.
3. Using your Literary Terminology handout, analyze the lyrics, identifying the
elements from descriptions in your handout. You must have at least five of the
elements identified (for example, you could choose the narrator, imagery, figurative
language, tone, and style). If you cannot find five, choose a different song.
4. Write these elements in a different color ink on the line above where it appears in the
song.

3. Using your Literary Terminology handout, analyze the lyrics, identifying
the elements from descriptions in your handout. You must have at least five of the
song.

3. Using your Literary Terminology handout, analyze the lyrics, identifying
the elements from descriptions in your handout. You must have at least five of the
song.
Magical Musical Tour-Assessment page 2

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9th and 10th Grade Lesson Plan

Magical Musical Tour:

Make overhead transparencies of lyrics (unless a document camera is available).

Magical Musical Tour-Introduction page 1

Magical Musical Tour-Introduction page 2

Literary Elements and Terminology

Magical Musical Tour-Introduction page 3

Magical Musical Tour-Introduction page 4

Situational: when something happens differently than what is expected.

Magical Musical Tour-Introduction page 5

Magical Musical Tour-1.1

Lesson 2. Figurative Language

Show the Simile overhead included in this lesson, which begins

Show examples on overhead and have students indicate S for

Show the Metaphor overhead included in this lesson, which

Magical Musical Tour-2.1

Show examples on overhead and have students indicate M

Play Youre the Poet (see the handout included in this

Magical Musical Tour-2.2

10. My teacher is an angel _______

Magical Musical Tour-2.3

1. My love has red petals and sharp thorns.

Magical Musical Tour-2.4

Magical Musical Tour-2.5

1. Beauty followed her through her life.

Magical Musical Tour-2.6

Youre the Poet

Magical Musical Tour-2.7

3. Hope is the thing with feathers

Magical Musical Tour-2.8

II. Youre the Poet!

Magical Musical Tour-2.9

Magical Musical Tour-3.1

For Another Class Period

Magical Musical Tour-4.1

Commentary Suggestions (in order of appearance)

Magical Musical Tour-4.2

Magical Musical Tour-4.3

Magical Musical Tour-4.4

Magical Musical Tour-5.1

Magical Musical Tour-6.1

First Person Narrative:

Third Person Omniscient:

Third Person Limited Omniscient:

Third Person Objective:

Magical Musical Tour-6.2

Magical Musical Tour-7.1

Play Breaking us in Two by Joe Jackson:

Magical Musical Tour-7.2

Magical Musical Tour-7.3

Magical Musical Tour-8.2

Play Richard Cory by Simon & Garfunkel:

Magical Musical Tour-9.1

Considered the best type of character

Development is considered well-done.

Characters cannot be dynamic and flat, in

In very simple books, or in fairy tales, the

How we learn about characters

Lesson 10. Plot

video (artist performing song): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tnepPZChA5U

Play again, marking and discussing the plot elements.

Magical Musical Tour-10.1

Lesson 11. Irony

Magical Musical Tour-11.1