National Poetry Day 3 October 2024 Invictus William Ernest Henley GCSE Unseen Poem

This lesson can be used as a one-off resource for National Poetry Day 2024 which allows students to look at the poem ‘Invictus’ by William Ernest Henley. It is suitable for KS4 students, but can easily be modified for KS3 pupils. There are several tasks, looking at context, language and structure. Activities include finding evidence in the poem to support ideas, looking at the use of contrast in the poem and finally writing their own inspirational poem. However, this lesson can also be used as a resource for the Unseen section of the GCSE Literature specification.

‘Invictus’ is a well-known and thought-provoking poem which is inspirational in its content. The resource can also be used in a cross curricular way to include PSHE, as students are encouraged to consider the poet’s personal life and his life as a disabled writer in Victorian society.