Look at the titles and the illustration. Close your eyes and think of what you see in autumn. What might a farmer see at harvest time? What kinds of things are yellow? Share your ideas with a partner.
1. Close your eyes and listen as your teacher reads “Under the Harvest Moon.” Create a picture or series of pictures in your head. Make a quick sketch or write a description of what you saw. Go back and read the poem on your own. Add additional details to your mind pictures.
2. Read “Theme in Yellow” on your own. As you read, make another picture or series of pictures in your mind. Again make a quick sketch or description of what you saw.
If you are having trouble visualizing, do a think aloud with a partner. Read the first four lines of “Under the Harvest Moon.” Stop and think aloud about these lines. What questions do you have? How do you feel when you read these lines? What images or experiences come to mind? Talk about the lines with your partner. Then read the next four lines. Again pause to think aloud. Continue this way until you have read the whole poem. Follow the same procedure for “Theme in Yellow.”
With a partner, compare the pictures you made as you read. Compare and contrast the pictures you created for the two poems.