I use this for 9th grade English speaker class, after Pesach.
Feel free to use this in your class!
Don't Quit
When things go wrong as they sometimes will,
When the road you're trudging seems all uphill,
When the funds are low and the debts are high
And you want to smile, but you have to sigh.
When care is pressing you down a bit -
Rest, if you must, but don't you quit.
Life is queer with its twists and turns,
As everyone of us sometimes learns,
And many a fellow turns about
When he might have won had he stuck it out.
Don't give up though the pace seems slow -
You may succeed with another blow.
Often the goal is nearer than
It seems to a faint and faltering man;
Often the struggler has given up
When he might have captured the victor’s cup;
And he learned too late when the night came down
How close he was to the golden crown.
Success is failure turned inside out---
The silver tint of the clouds of doubt,
And you never can tell how close you are,
It may be near when it seems afar;
So stick to the fight when you're hardest hit -
It's when things seem worst that you must not quit.
John Greenleaf Whittier
Vocabulary
trudging
stuck it out
care is pressing
another blow
faint and faltering man
the golden crown
afar
Questions
What is the main image in the first stanza?
What is hard about going uphill?
What does "funds are low" mean to you? How much money is that?
Debts can be something necessary, or excessive. How do you manage your debts?
Is it difficult for you?
What twists and turns have you had in your life?
Which of them were beneficial?
Which twist and turns you thought was a bad thing?
What does "another blow" mean?
How long do you try to do something until you turn to something else?
Explain one time that you gave a task that extra push, and succeeded?
How do you ignore doubt when you are doing a difficult task?
After reading this poem, how do you feel different about success and failure?
For more information go here: http://www.yourdailypoem.com/listpoem.jsp?poem_id=1820
Lesson Plan
by Rachael Alice Orbach,
Professional English Teacher
Don't Quit
When things go wrong as they sometimes will,
When the road you're trudging seems all uphill,
When the funds are low and the debts are high
And you want to smile, but you have to sigh.
When care is pressing you down a bit -
Rest, if you must, but don't you quit.
Life is queer with its twists and turns,
As everyone of us sometimes learns,
And many a fellow turns about
When he might have won had he stuck it out.
Don't give up though the pace seems slow -
You may succeed with another blow.
Often the goal is nearer than
It seems to a faint and faltering man;
Often the struggler has given up
When he might have captured the victor’s cup;
And he learned too late when the night came down
How close he was to the golden crown.
Success is failure turned inside out---
The silver tint of the clouds of doubt,
And you never can tell how close you are,
It may be near when it seems afar;
So stick to the fight when you're hardest hit -
It's when things seem worst that you must not quit.
John Greenleaf Whittier
Vocabulary
trudging
stuck it out
care is pressing
another blow
faint and faltering man
the golden crown
afar
Questions
What is the main image in the first stanza?
What is hard about going uphill?
What does "funds are low" mean to you? How much money is that?
Debts can be something necessary, or excessive. How do you manage your debts?
Is it difficult for you?
What twists and turns have you had in your life?
Which of them were beneficial?
Which twist and turns you thought was a bad thing?
What does "another blow" mean?
How long do you try to do something until you turn to something else?
Explain one time that you gave a task that extra push, and succeeded?
How do you ignore doubt when you are doing a difficult task?
After reading this poem, how do you feel different about success and failure?
For more information go here: http://www.yourdailypoem.com/listpoem.jsp?poem_id=1820
Lesson Plan
by Rachael Alice Orbach,
Professional English Teacher
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