1. 1A very strong opening statement that creates a feeling of safety
*1A very strong opening statement that creates a feeling of safety. Compare it to the last line. What is this an example of?
*1We are prepared: we build our houses *2squat,
Sink walls in rock and roof them with good slate.
The *3wizened earth had never troubled us
With hay, so as you can see, there are no stacks
Or stooks that can be lost. Nor are there trees
Which might prove *4company when it blows full
*5Blast: *6you know what I mean - leaves and branches
Can raise a *7tragic chorus in a gale
So that *6you can listen to the thing you fear
Forgetting that it pummels your house too.
But there are no trees, no natural shelter.
You might think that the sea is company,
Exploding comfortably down on the cliffs
But no: when it begins, the flung spray hits
The very windows, spits like a tame cat
Turned savage. We just sit tight while wind dives
And strafes invisibly. Space is a salvo.
We are bombarded by the empty air.
Strange, it is a huge nothing that we fear.
*2There are lots of words about safety and security in the first two lines. The end-stopping reinforces this feeling of security, which disappears with the enjambment in the rest of the poem..
*3The island seems barren – nothing grows there.
*4The word “company” is used here and on line 12, to emphasise the loneliness of the setting.
*5The plosive sound has a greater impact because it comes at the start of the line.
Level 3 –Identify what the poem is about and select evidence to confirm this
Level 4– Identify what the poem is about and select poetic devices, considering the impact
Aspiring level 5-Identify what a poem is about, selecting poetry devices, exploring their impact and considering alternative viewpoints.

2. Be a collaborative learner
*1We are prepared: we build our houses *2squat,
Sink walls in rock and roof them with good slate.
The *3wizened earth had never troubled us
With hay, so as you can see, there are no stacks
Or stooks that can be lost. Nor are there trees
Which might prove *4company when it blows full
*5Blast: *6you know what I mean - leaves and branches
Can raise a *7tragic chorus in a gale
So that *6you can listen to the thing you fear
Forgetting that it pummels your house too.
But there are no trees, no natural shelter.
You might think that the sea is company,
Exploding comfortably down on the cliffs
But no: when it begins, the flung spray hits
The very windows, spits like a tame cat
Turned savage. We just sit tight while wind dives
And strafes invisibly. Space is a salvo.
We are bombarded by the empty air.
Strange, it is a huge nothing that we fear.
*6The narrator speaks directly to the reader in a chatty tone. What is the impact?
*7In a Greek tragedy, a “chorus” comments on and explains events. What does having no trees as a chorus suggest?
Are you able to identify the volta?
Level 3 –Identify what the poem is about and select evidence to confirm this
Level 4– Identify what the poem is about and select poetic devices, considering the impact
Aspiring level 5-Identify what a poem is about, selecting poetry devices, exploring their impact and considering alternative viewpoints.

3. Become a Holgate Challenger
*8This violent verb describes the wind. What is the effect?
We are prepared: we build our houses squat,
Sink walls in rock and roof them with good slate.
The wizened earth had never troubled us
With hay, so as you can see, there are no stacks
Or stooks that can be lost. Nor are there trees
Which might prove company when it blows full
Blast: you know what I mean - leaves and branches
Can raise a tragic chorus in a gale
So that you can listen to the thing you fear
Forgetting that it *8pummels your house too.
*9But there are no trees, no natural shelter.
You might think that the sea is company,
*10Exploding comfortably down on the cliffs
But no: when *11it begins, the flung *11spray hits
The very windows, *12spits like a tame cat
*12Turned savage. We just sit tight while *11wind dives
And *13strafes invisibly. Space is a salvo.
We are bombarded by the empty air.
Strange, *14it is a huge nothing that we fear.
*9Caesura slows the pace of the line and emphasises the second “no”. Why might Heaney have done this?
*10Oxymoron juxtaposes the feelings of fear and safety.
*11The assonant “I” sounds and sibilant sounds in lines combine to imitate the hissing and spitting of the sea. What is the impact?
*12This simile shows how familiar things become frightening during the storm.
Become a Holgate Challenger
*13This is language normally used to describe war. The wind is compared to a fighter plane attacking the island. What is the impact?
*14The storm is invisible – there's nothing solid there. This contrasts with the solid rock mentioned in the second line of the poem.
Level 3 –Identify what the poem is about and select evidence to confirm this
Level 4– Identify what the poem is about and select poetic devices, considering the impact
Aspiring level 5-Identify what a poem is about, selecting poetry devices, exploring their impact and considering alternative viewpoints.