‘The door’

READING

ACT IVITY

1 Look at the four pictures below and complete the picture inference jigsaw task in your activity book (see page 42).

2 In a similar way to the picture activity you just completed, it is also possible to infer meaning from things people say in everyday speech, songs and poems. Complete the inference skills jigsaw tasks in your activity book (see pages 43–45).

‘The door ’ by Miroslav Holub PRE-READING: COMMUNICATING Look at the pictures and answer the questions below. 1 What do you think of when you see an open door? 2 What do you think of when you see a closed door? 3 What are the similarities between the two doors? 4 What are the differences between the two doors? 5 Watch a short visual version of the poem: edco.ie/3qyx Then complete the personal response quad in your activity book (see page 46). When you’ve jotted down your response, share your thoughts with your partner. ACT IVITY ©The Educational Company of Ireland

84

All about ‘The door’

Miroslav Holub (1923–1998) was a Czech poet who also worked as a scientist. Holub wrote poetry while living in great poverty during a difficult time in his country’s history, when it was under communist rule. His work was only published when communism fell. His poems were translated into thirty different languages and won praise around the world.

‘The door’ by Miroslav Holub Go and open the door. Maybe outside there’s a tree, or a wood, a garden, or a magic city. Go and open the door. Maybe a dog’s rummaging. Maybe you’ll see a face, or an eye, or the picture of a picture. Go and open the door. If there’s a fog it will clear. Go and open the door. Even if there’s only the darkness ticking, even if there’s only the hollow wind, even if nothing is there, go and open the door. At least there’ll be a draught. Translatedby: Ian Melvin READING 1 Complete the poem summary task in your activity book (see page 47). 2 Describe the speaker in this poem. 3 What is the subject of this poem? 4 Does this poem have any particular rhyme scheme or rhythm? 5 Complete the inference jigsaw task in your activity book (see page 48) and answer the question that follows. ACT IVITY ©The Educational Company of Ireland

READING

6 How did the poem make you feel at the end? Inspired? Motivated? Nervous? Explain your answer. 7 What technique is the poet using in his poem when he refers to the door: simile or metaphor or personification? Explain how you know this. 8 Change the adjectives and nouns in the stanzas of the poem below to make the opening of the door seem menacing and scary.

Go and open the door. Maybe outside there’s a tree, or a wood, a garden, or a magic city.

Go and open the door. Even if there’s only the darkness ticking, even if there’s only the hollow wind… WRITING Create your own version of ‘The door’. Your poem should also be about possibilities and taking chances on the unknown. Writing Tips Think about what possibilities may await you in life if you take a chance and pursue them. Then think of what images might represent these choices. For example, if you want to pursue a career as an actor, you might use an image of a stage to represent this. Use the writing frame in your activity book (see page 49) to help you structure your writing. ACT IVITY ‘The Sky is low – the Clouds are mean’ by Emily Dickinson All about ‘The Sky is low – the Clouds are mean’ Emily Dickinson (1830–1886) is one of America’s most famous and important poets. She spent most of her life isolated at home and was considered an eccentric by locals. Only 8 of her 1800 poems were published during her lifetime. PRE-READING: CHALLENGING VOCABULARY Create two sentences using the word ‘diadem’ that show you understand what ? ©The Educational Company of Ireland it means.