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Author

Solli Raphael

Grades

3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th, 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th

Subjects

English Language Arts, Visual and Performing Arts, Social-Emotional Learning

Regional Focus

Global, Oceania

Format

YouTube Video

"Let's Make More Minutes Count"

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Synopsis
  • This video features Australian slam poet Solli Raphael delivering his poem with music and images in the background.
  • This poem focuses on climate change, plastic pollution, and policy change. 
Teaching Tips

Positives

  • This video features black-and-white photographs of climate protests interspersed with Raphael delivering his poem.
  • Background music adds urgency and intensity to the mood of the poem.

Additional Prerequisites

  • Solli Raphael was 13 years old when this video was produced.
  • Greenpeace Australia Pacific produced this video.
  • Solli Raphael's poem references several Australian landmarks, including the Adani coal mine, the Great Barrier Reef, and the Great Australian Bight.

Differentiation

  • Language arts and creative writing students could watch this video for inspiration before writing their own climate-related poems. Students could include elements pertinent to their location (e.g., students in California could focus on wildfires).
  • English language arts students could analyze Raphael's poem, noting the use of figurative language and other poetic devices.
  • This video could be used in a variety of settings to motivate and inspire students to take climate action.
  • Related poetry videos include "Earthrise" by Amanda Gorman, "Dear Future Generations: Sorry" by Prince EA, and "What Happened When We All Stopped" read by Jane Goodall.
Scientist Notes

Plastic pollution and e-waste are global environmental problems. This resource calls on the government and individuals to halt plastic pollution and implement actions to protect biodiversity, forest and marine resources, and the natural environment. This resource is recommended for teaching.

Standards
  • English Language Arts
    • Reading: Literature (K-12)
      • 5.RL.4 Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including figurative language such as metaphors and similes.
      • 6.RL.4 Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including figurative, connotative, and technical meanings.
      • 7.RL.4 Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including figurative, connotative, and technical meanings; analyze the impact of rhymes and other repetitions of sounds on a specific verse or stanza of a poem or section of a story or drama.
      • 8.RL.4 Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including figurative, connotative, and technical meanings; analyze the impact of specific word choices on meaning and tone, including analogies or allusions to other texts.
      • 9-10.RL.4 Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in the text, including figurative, connotative, and technical meanings; analyze word choice and the impact on meaning.
      • 11-12.RL.4 Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in the text, including figurative, connotative, and technical meanings; analyze the impact of word choice on meaning and tone, including words with multiple meanings.
    • Speaking & Listening (K-12)
      • 9-10.SL.3 Evaluate a speaker's perspective, reasoning, and use of evidence and rhetoric, identifying any fallacious reasoning or exaggerated or distorted evidence.
      • 11-12.SL.3 Evaluate a speaker's point of view, perspective, reasoning, and use of evidence and rhetoric, assessing the stance, premises, links among ideas, word choice, points of emphasis, and tone used.
  • Social Sciences
    • Social Science Analysis (K-12)
      • 4.24 Explain individual and cooperative approaches people have taken, or could take in the future, to address local, regional, and global problems as well as predict possible results of those actions.
      • 6.27 Assess individual and collective capacities to take action to address local and regional issues, taking into account a range of possible levers of power, strategies, and potential outcomes.
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