Revise, Edit, Justify

Overview

This is lesson 5 of 6 in Poetry: Craft, Revise, Perform. Students use selective peer feedback to make substantial changes to a poem’s content, style, poetic features and tone, then explain how their decisions improve impact on an intended audience.

Learning intentions

• WALT request feedback about a specific aspect of our poem.
• WALT identify, adapt or reject advice thoughtfully.
• WALT revise beyond proofreading, then edit for clarity and accuracy.
• WALT explain how language, structure and sound choices shape audience response.

Success criteria

• I can ask a focused feedback question.
• I can make a substantial revision to imagery, lineation, sound, structure or tone.
• I can edit spelling, punctuation, formatting and clarity.
• I can explain which feedback I used, adapted or declined, and why.

Curriculum links

• Creating and shaping written texts for a clear purpose and audience.
• Developing ideas, language features, structure and tone to create effects.
• Speaking, listening and responding constructively in collaborative learning.
• Reviewing, editing and justifying choices as part of an intentional writing process.

Lesson structure (60 minutes)

1. 0–10 min – Notice the impact of revision Open with the before-and-after poem comparison. Display a short original excerpt beside a revised version. Model thinking aloud: strengthen an image, remove a cliché, alter lineation and shift the tone. Ask: “What changed?” and “How might the audience respond differently?” Students briefly annotate one change.

2. 10–18 min – Establish feedback protocols Use the respectful feedback protocol to teach four expectations: be specific, evidence-based, kind and connected to the writer’s purpose. Emphasise that writers retain agency: feedback is advice, not an instruction. Model turning “This bit is boring” into “The middle loses tension because the image becomes general; could you replace it with a precise detail?”

3. 18–25 min – Choose a feedback focus Distribute the focused peer-feedback and revision rationale sheet. Students choose two questions from the menu, such as: “Where could my imagery become more specific?”, “Does the tone stay purposeful?”, “Which line break creates the strongest effect?”, or “Where might the audience need more clarity?” Year 7 students select from teacher-approved questions; Year 8 students may write their own.

4. 25–42 min – Hold peer conferences Organise groups of three. In each round, assign a writer, responder and recorder; rotate roles so each student receives feedback. The writer reads the poem and states the two questions. The responder gives evidence-based comments, while the recorder captures useful suggestions and the writer’s response. The teacher circulates, models precise language and holds brief conferences with students needing support.

5. 42–55 min – Revise, then edit Students revise independently using a different-colour pen or digital text colour so changes are visible. Require at least one substantial change beyond proofreading, such as replacing an image, reshaping a stanza, changing line breaks, developing subtext or adjusting tone. Students then edit for spelling, punctuation, clarity, line breaks, sound and formatting, using the checklist on the focused peer-feedback and revision rationale sheet.

6. 55–60 min – Justify decisions Students complete the rationale section on the focused peer-feedback and revision rationale sheet. They name one piece of feedback they used, one they adapted or declined, and explain how the final choice improves meaning or audience impact. Invite two students to share a revision and its intended effect.

Resources

• the complete revision and feedback slide deck
• the focused peer-feedback and revision rationale sheet
• Students’ current poem drafts and devices or exercise books
• Different-colour pens or digital highlighting tools
• Dictionaries and classroom thesauruses
• Peer-feedback protocol displayed or printed
• Teacher-selected before-and-after poem excerpt
• Timer and group-role labels

Assessment

• Listen for focused feedback questions and evidence-based responses during conferences.
• Compare first and revised drafts, noting substantial changes to content, style, features or tone.
• Collect the revision rationale to assess selective use of feedback and understanding of audience impact.

Differentiation

• Year 7 students use a short checklist, sentence stems such as “I noticed…” and “Have you considered…?”, and a teacher-selected feedback focus.
• Year 8 students give and receive more nuanced feedback about coherence, subtext, tonal shifts and audience positioning.
• Permit oral feedback, anonymous digital comments or teacher-mediated conferences for students who find face-to-face feedback difficult.
• Provide an excerpt, read-aloud option, speech-to-text, extra planning time and a reduced editing focus for EAL learners and students requiring SEN support. Offer extension through experimenting with competing lineations or tonal choices.