Washday for the clouds

Washday for the clouds

Pencil and paperOnline interactive
Overview
Using this Resource
Connecting to the Curriculum
Marking Student Responses
Further Resources
This task is about reading a poem and writing about what it means.
Read the poem "Washday for the clouds"100 New Zealand Poems for Children, 1999 and answer the questions below.

Question 2Change answer

a)  This poem says that clouds are like sheets. What are two ways clouds are like sheets?
     
     

Question 2Change answer

b)  This poem gives clues about what the weather is like at different times.
     Fill in the chart below to show what the weather is like at different times in the poem.
Time Weather
Last night
Today
Tomorrow
 

Question 2Change answer

c)  In this poem the sky is described as if it is a person.
 
     What does the sky do in this poem which makes it seem like a person?
          

Question 2Change answer

d)  The end of this poem says "there will be dragons and castles in the sky." What does this really mean?
     
Task administration: 
This task can be completed with pencil and paper or online (without auto marking).
 
If you are using pencil and paper to administer this task, you could give students the option of drawing pictures in part b).
Copyright: 
Source: '100 New Zealand Poems for Children', Illustrated by David Elliot, Edited by Jo Noble. Random House, 1999.
Reproduced with permission. 
Level:
2
Curriculum info: 
English, Making meaning, Reading
Key Competencies: 
Thinking
Keywords: 
poetry, comprehension, personification, metaphor, analysis
Description of task: 
Students explore the language of personification and metaphor in the poem called 'Wash day for the clouds'. The questions require the students to think about the metaphors and personification. Text provided.
Curriculum Links: 
Links to the Literacy Learning Progressions for Reading:
This resource helps to identify students’ ability to:
  • use comprehension strategies
  • recognise and unpack figurative language

as described in the Literacy Learning Progressions for Reading at: http://www.literacyprogressions.tki.org.nz/The-Structure-of-the-Progressions.

Learning Progression Frameworks
This resource can provide evidence of learning associated with
Making sense of text: processing system, set 3
Reading for literary experience, set 3
within the Reading Learning Progressions Frameworks.
Read more about the Learning Progressions Frameworks.
Answers/responses: 

 

Y4 (11/2000)

a)

Any 2 similarities, e.g.,

  • They are white.
  • They fly/move/change shape in the wind.
  • They are soft/thick/woolly/fluffy (i.e., flannelette sheets).
  • They cover the sky/are big.
  • They are thin.

2 correct – difficult

1 correct – easy

b)

Last night – any 1 of:

  • Rainy/wet
  • Stormy/thunderstorms

Today – Windy/west wind

Tomorrow – any 1 of:

  • cloudy
  • fine/sunny/warm.
  • windy

moderate

 

moderate

moderate

c)

Any 1 of:

  • Drying his washing.
  • Rinsing his sheets.

difficult

d)

Any 1 of:

  • The clouds will look like dragons and castles.
  • There will be clouds in the sky.
  • The clouds will form pictures in the sky/will make shapes.

moderate