Advancing in Poetry Advancing in Poetry    

Lesson 20: Summer

by Christina Georgina Rossetti

Performer: Librivox - Ian King


Winter is cold-hearted,

Spring is yea and nay,

Autumn is a weathercock

Blown every way:

Summer days for me

When every leaf is on its tree;



When Robin's not a beggar,

And Jenny Wren's a bride,

And larks hang singing, singing, singing,

Over the wheat-fields wide,

And anchored lilies ride,

And the pendulum spider

Swings from side to side,



And blue-black beetles transact business,

And gnats fly in a host,

And furry caterpillars hasten

That no time be lost,

And moths grow fat and thrive,

And ladybirds arrive.



Before green apples blush,

Before green nuts embrown,

Why, one day in the country

Is worth a month in town;

Is worth a day and a year

Of the dusty, musty, lag-last fashion

That days drone elsewhere.

    Advancing in Poetry Advancing in Poetry    

Lesson 20: Summer

by Christina Georgina Rossetti

Performer: Librivox - Ian King

Directions

Study the poem for one week.

Over the week:

  • Read or listen to the poem.
  • Review the synopsis.
  • Read about the poet.
  • Complete the enrichment activities.

Synopsis

In Christina Georgina Rossetti's 'Summer,' the narrator discusses why they prefer summer over winter, spring, and autumn. The narrator also describes the plants and animals of summer and the superiority of the country over town.

Concepts

  1. Christina Georgina Rossetti was born in 1830 in London, England.
  2. Zoom in and find Rossetti's city and country of birth, London, England, on the map of Europe.
  3. Rossetti was born into an artistic family. Her father was a poet and a teacher, one of her siblings was an artist and poet, and her other two siblings were writers.
  4. Rossetti was homeschooled by her parents and studied religious books, works of fiction, and fairy tales.
  5. Rossetti published her first poems when she was 18 and a full volume of poetry at age 31.
  6. Rossetti died of cancer in London, England at the age of 64.

Enrichment

Activity 1: Recite Poem Information

Recite the title of the poem and the name of the poet.

Activity 2: Study the Poem Picture

Study the poem picture and describe how it relates to the poem.

Activity 3: Recite the Poem

Practice reciting the poem aloud.

Activity 4: Complete Book Activities   

  • Click the crayon above, and complete pages 126-131 of 'Elementary Poetry 4: Advancing in Poetry.'

References

  1. 'Christina Rossetti.' Wikipedia. Wikipedia.org. n.p.