Lesson on Lazy Jane by Shel Silverstein

(TESOL Worksheets--Comprehensible Input, Word Patterns, Poetry, Listening)

Google Drive folder HERE
Lazy Jane Poem (drive, docs, pub)
Slideshow: slides, pub
Worksheet: drive, docs, pub
Write the poem from memory: docs, pub
Lady Jane analysis: docs, pub
Video HERE

This lesson is based out of ideas in Beyond the Sentence by Scott Thornbury.  Specifically Classroom Applications page 15-16.  (I posted this activity once already in my re-review of that book.)
On those pages, Scott Thornbury suggests that teachers take a short poem, and dictate it to the students, and then have students analyze the poem for all the possible grammar features.
I used Lazy Jane by Shel Silverstein.  It's a short poem which reads (in its entirety): Lazy, lazy, lazy, lazy, lazy, lazy Jane. She wants a drink of water, so she waits and waits and waits and waits and waits for it to rain. 
(I chose this poem because it was very short, and because my students had previously re-acted positively to it when I had used it on my Poem a Day project).
Adjusted slightly from the directions in Beyond the Sentence, I first showed my students the vocabulary on the Slideshow.  (They already knew all the words, but I figured it would help to prime these words.)  Then we did a dictogloss.  (First listening was for gist.  Then the second was a dictation.  Students checked answers with their partners, and then listened again.  Then check with larger groups.  Each group wrote their versions on the board, and then if need be I read the poem again and they corrected their version).
Then, following the suggestions in Beyond the Sentence, students' attention was directed to the language features.  First they completed the first worksheets, and then feedback on Google Slides.  Then the second worksheet, and then feedback on GoogleSlides.
Then, all the material was put away, and students were instructed to re-write the poem from memory.
The last worksheet (when the students put in all the missing function worksheets) is, according to Scott Thornbury's instructions, meant to be done about a week later, so students have to focus on the grammar, and can not simply rely on memory.
This analysis of the poem here was my first draft.  I initially filled out the analysis for everything Scott Thornbury suggested, but in the real lesson I edited out some of Scott Thornbury's ideas.

Lazy Jane Worksheet

Listen to the teacher, and write the poem below:

Listen to the teacher, and write the poem below:

Find these words in the poem:

Nouns (3)
Pronouns (2)
adjectives (1)
verbs (3)
prepositions (2)
conjunctions (2)
articles (1)

1. Which nouns are countable nouns?

2. Which nouns are uncountable nouns?

3. Look at the poem.

Lazy, lazy, lazy, lazy, lazy, lazy Jane. (1)She wants a drink of water, so (2)she waits and waits and waits and waits and waits for (3)it to rain.

What does each pronoun refer to?  (1)She = ________________

 (2)She = ________________

 (3)it=  ________________

4. What preposition usually goes together with “drink” ?

5. What preposition usually goes together with “wait” ?

6.  What tense are the verbs in?

Lazy, lazy, lazy, lazy, lazy, lazy Jane. She (1)wants a drink of water, so she (2)waits and waits and waits and waits and waits for it (3)to rain.

What tense is each verb in? (1)wants = ________________

        (2)waits = ________________

        (3)to rain=  ________________

7. Classify these words into types (object, subject, V1)

she	waits	for	it	to	rain
	waits	for		to

Write in the missing words:

Lazy, lazy, lazy, lazy, lazy, lazy Jane. She wants ____ drink ____ water, ____ she waits ____ waits ____ waits ____ waits ____ waits ____ ____ ____ rain.

1. How many sentences are there?  2
2. How many words are there in total?  28
3. Which words are repeated?  How many times? Lazy (6X), Waits (5X), And (4X), She (2X)
4. Identify the word classes:

Noun: Jane, drink, water

Pronouns: it, she

Adjectives: lazy,

Verbs: wants, waits, to rain

Prepositions: of, for

Conjunctions: so, and

articles: a

5. How many countable nouns are there? 2 (Jane, drink)

6. How many uncountable nouns are there 1 (water)

7. Identify the tense, aspect, and voice of each verb phrase:

wants: present tense, simple aspect, active voice, 3rd person singular

waits: present tense, simple aspect, active voice, 3rd person singular

to rain: infinitive, simple aspect, active voice

8. Identify any collocations--ie words that you think might co-occur frequently: a drink of water, wait for

9. Identify any figurative or idiomatic use of language: it to rain (dummy operator)

10. Identify any cohesive devices: so (causal relationship),

11. Identify any pronouns and their referents: she (refers to Jane), she (refers to Jane), it (dummy operator)