William Blake: Songs of Innocence and Songs of Experience

William Blake claimed that “without contraries is no progress.” His Songs of Innocence and Songs of Experience is a perfect illustration of this idea since the poems in it were meant to be read side-by-side to give the reader a full picture of the duality of human existence. In this lesson set, your students will examine the following poems from this collection:

· "The Lamb"

· "The Tyger"

· "The Chimney Sweeper" (Songs of Innocence)

· "The Chimney Sweeper" (Songs of Experience)

· "London"

· "The Sick Rose"

You’ll find two copies of each poem—one with detailed line-by-line annotations and explanations for you to use as you teach, and one version without annotations that you can copy and hand out to your students.

The lesson ends with a writing lesson—What’s Your Social Issue? This encourages students to examine the social issues that matter most to them in much the same way that Blake championed the poor chimney sweeps who fired his imagination.

This lesson set includes everything you'll need including:

• 24 pages of detailed lecture notes with pictures of each PowerPoint/Google Slide embedded at the appropriate spot so you’ll know what part of the presentation to show.
• 18 slide PowerPoint/Google Slide compatible presentation (includes images of Blake’s watercolor drawings for each poem).
• How to Read a Poem Handout
• Romanticism Characteristics Handout
• Songs of Innocence & Songs of Experience.  You’ll find two versions—one with line-by-line annotations and explanations for you to use as you teach, and one version without annotations that you can copy and hand out to your students. This set includes the following poems:
  • "The Lamb"
  • "The Tyger"
  • "The Chimney Sweeper" (Songs of Innocence)
  • "The Chimney Sweeper" (Songs of Experience)
  • "London"
  • "The Sick Rose"

• Writing Lesson—What’s Your Social Issue?
• William Blake links

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• Introduction to British Romanticism, 1798-1850
• William Blake: Songs of Innocence and Songs of Experience
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• John Keats Poetry Pack
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• George Gordon, Lord Byron Poetry Pack
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• Frankenstein Novel Pack
• Frankenstein Graphic Organizer
• Frankenstein Team Micro-Presentation: An Interactive Introduction to the Novel
• Frankenstein Digital Flip Book: The Creature & Teenage Angst
• X Marks the Spot: Xenophobia & the “Othering” of the Creature in Frankenstein
• Frankenstein Science Research Poster Assignment
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• Daily Agenda Slides—Frankenstein Edition/Editable Morning Work Slides
• Mary Shelley Poster
• Byronic Hero Handout—FREEBIE
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Literature Classroom Décor Posters:

• Beowulf Poster
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PRODUCT KEYWORDS: William Blake, British literature, British Romanticism, Romantic poetry, ELA, English, English Language Arts