My 10 Tips on How to Get a Good Grade
- Relax. You and the poet are human and you both speak English.
- Ignore your notes. Rub them out a week before the exam.
- Read the poem as if you’ve never seen or heard it before.
- Read it again, and hear it in your head.
- Trust your own reaction.
- Remember, in a poem every word counts.
- Bring your experience, your heart and mind to the poem.
- Trust the images that come into your mind.
- Write down your ideas.
- Quote every word or phrase you can find in the poem to prove your point.