Long Story ShortEnglish resourcesPlay today's

English resources/Power and Conflict/Poppies

Poppies

A mother pins a poppy on her son and lets him leave for war.

3 key quotes from Poppies, by Weir. Learn this one first: “spasms of paper red” (Weir, Poppies).

This poem in five words

Motherletshersongo

Hide these. Ask the class for their five. Then show them. Then play today's sentence.

The quotes

3 big quotes in this poem.

spasms of paper red

Weir · Poppies · conflict · loss · memory

Paper poppies on a blazer. Spasms sounds like pain. A mother pins one on her son.

I was brave, as I walked with you, to the front door

Weir · Poppies · loss · conflict

The front door is her front line. She has to be brave to let him go.

the world overflowing like a treasure chest

Weir · Poppies · loss · conflict

To the son, leaving is exciting. To the mother it is loss.

← Before thisRemains: Soldier cannot forget killingNext →War Photographer: Photographer develops pain; readers forget
← All 15 poemsNow play today's Long Story ShortOne real news sentence. Keep five of its words. Two minutes. Free. No login.Play now
The words of the book come from the AQA Poems Past and Present anthology, Power and Conflict cluster (poems quoted briefly for study; older poems are public domain). Every quote was checked against it. Paintings and drawings are public domain, from Wikimedia Commons, credited under each one. Notes by Akash Wadhwani. Copy it. Print it. Share it. No sign-up.
Spotted a mistake? akash@sheets.works