HOLY CROSS COLLEGE OF CARIGARA
Rebolledo St. Brgy. Ponong, Carigara, Leyte
Institution: 08074
COLLEGE DEPARTMENT
NAME: KAREN CABALLES
CRS/YR: BSED ENGLISH III
DETAILED LESSON PLAN IN
TEACHING AND ASSESSMENT OF LITERATURE STUDIES
I. OBJECTIVES
At the end of the lesson the students should be able to:
1. Understand the poem 'On my first Sonne', by Ben Jonson.
2. Express a sympathetic attitude towards the author by understanding how the
language and structure of the poem convey Jonson’s grief.
3. Create a short analysis of Ben Jonson's 'On my First Sonne'.
II. SUBJECT MATTER:
a) Topic: On my first Sonne, by Ben Jonson (A written elegy by a father to his son)
b) Reference: Ben Jonson, On My First Sonne1616. Retrieved from
https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/44455/on-my-first-son
c) Teaching Materials: PowerPoint presentation, Laptop, Manila paper
III. PROCEDURE:
Teacher’s Activity
A. PRELIMINARY ACTIVITIES
Student’s Activity
Greetings
Good morning class.
Good morning ma’am!
How are you feeling today?
We’re great ma’am.
Are you all ready for today’s discussion?
Yes, Ma’am.
Okay, great!
Prayer
May I request everyone to please stand up
so that we can have our morning prayer?
And of course for us to be guided.
All right may I request Ms. Niegas to please
lead the prayer?
(Niegas leads a prayer)
In the name of the Father, and of the Son,
and of the Holy Spirit, Amen.
Our Father, Who art in heaven, hallowed be
Thy name; Thy kingdom come; Thy will be
done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this
day our daily bread; and forgive us our
trespasses as we forgive those who trespass
against us; and lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
In the name of the Father, and of the Son,
and of the Holy Spirit, Amen.
Thank you, Ms. Niegas
Classroom Management
Now, class before you seat down please
arrange your seats properly, make sure it is
all aligned and of course pick up the pieces
of paper.
(The students will arrange their seats and
pick up the pieces of paper.)
Okay, thank you! You may now take your
seat.
Checking of Attendance
Class secretary, is there any absentee today?
None, Ma’am.
Wow! Very good, dear students.
Review of Past Lesson
Okay, now let us recall about what we have
tackled last meeting.
Ms. Perez, kindly, give us a recap about our
previous discussion?
Ma’am, last meeting we have discussed
about poetry and the different types of
poetry.
Okay, Very Good! Thank you Ms. Perez.
Mr. Darantinao What is Poetry?
Ma’am, Poetry is an imaginative awareness
of experience expressed through meaning,
sound, and rhythmic language choices so as
to evoke an emotional.
Very Good! Thank you Mr. Darantinao.
Now, Ms. Obaob what are the different
types of poetry?
Ma’am, the different types of Poetry are
Sonnet, Villanelle, Haiku, Limerick, Ode,
Epic Poetry, Elegy, Epitaph, Free Verse,
and Ballad.
Very Good! Thank you, Ms. Obaob
Are we all clear now about Poetry?
Yes, Ma’am.
Motivation
Now, class I want you to find a partner.
With your partner I want you to answer the
question “How does parents feel when
their child dies?” and discuss your answer
with your partner.
You have 5 minutes to discuss with your
partner. After the allotted time, I will ask
one representative per pair to present your
work in class.
(Students start to discuss with their partner)
Okay, Times up! Let us hear first from Ms.
Lagera and Mr. Javines.
We think the parents who loses their child
might suffer from depressed feelings that
are accompanied by intense feelings of
sadness, despair, helplessness, loneliness,
abandonment, and even wish to die.
Good Job! Ms. Lagera and Mr. Javines.
Let us give them a Good Job Clap.
(Students perform Good Job Clap)
Okay, let us now hear from the second pair.
Ms. Perez and Ms. Octavio.
A parents who have lost their child might
suffer Intense shock, confusion, disbelief,
and denial, even if your child's death was
expected. Overwhelming sadness and
despair, such that facing daily tasks or even
getting out of bed can seem impossible.
Extreme guilt or a feeling that you have
failed as your child's protector and could
have done something differently.
Very Good! Ms. Perez and Ms. Octavio.
Let us give them a very good clap class.
(Students perform Very Good Clap)
Now, Let us hear from the last group, Ms.
Obaob and Ms. Niegas together with Mr.
Darantinao since our class in not even.
Nothing can be more devastating than losing
your own child as a Parents. Along with the
usual symptoms and stages of grief, many
issues make parental bereavement
particularly difficult to resolve. And this
grief over the loss of a child can be
exacerbated and complicated by feelings of
injustice. the understandable feeling that this
loss should never have happened. Most
parents experience excruciating pain. Many
parents who have lost their son or daughter
report feeling they can only “exist,” and
every motion or need beyond that seems
nearly impossible. Coping with the death
and loss of a child requires some of the most
challenging work one will ever have to do.
Excellent! Ms. Obaob, Ms. Niegas, and Mr.
Darantinao. Let us give them a very good
clap class.
(Students perform Very Good Clap)
Okay, class how do you find the activity?
Yes, Ms. Niegas?
Ma’am, I find the activity interesting and
quite emotional because we are able to share
our own thoughts about the question given
to us.
Thank you, Miss Niegas It was indeed an
interesting and quite emotional activity for
it brings up death and the feeling of losing
someone’s life.
Moving on class what do you think is the
connection of that activity to our lesson for
today? Remember last meeting we have
discussed Poetry and its different types?
What do you think is the connection of that
to our activity? Yes, Mr. Javines?
Ma’am, Based on our activity which was all
about the death of someone and the feeling
of the bereaved family. And given that we
have discussed Poetry and its different
types. I think our topic for today would be
focusing in one of the types of poetry which
is the Elegy. In which it is a type of poetry
that talks about the experiences and feelings
of the authors when he/she lost someone
that is dear to them.
Excellent! Mr. Javines today, we will be
discussing Elegy. Most importantly we are
going to give emphasize to one of the most
famous elegy by the famous author Ben
Jonson.
Are you familiar with Ben Jonson class?
How about his most famous work, On My
First Sonne?
No, Ma’am.
It’s okay class because, as we proceed to
our discussion today you will be able to
know Ben Jonson. And most importantly to
his famous work On My First Sonne as we
are going to focus on analyzing the central
theme of his famous poem.
B. Lesson Proper
A. Activity
Moving on, let us have another activity
class. I will divide the class into two. And I
will be giving each of you a copy of the
poem “On my first Sonne” Ben Jonson.
Now, I want you to read it. After reading,
answer the following questions with your
group mates and write your answer in a
1half sheet of paper crosswise. Don’t forget
to write the names of your members.
Questions:
1. What is your initial impressions of the
poem?
2. What do you think it is about?
3. What is Jonson trying to say?
(Students start to read the poem.)
You have 6 minutes to finish the activity.
After the allotted time I will be collecting
your papers and ask random students about
your answers. Your time starts now.
(Students start discussing with their groups.
Students finished discussing with their
groups)
Time’s up!
Okay, Pass your paper in front.
(Students passed their paper in front)
Good Job! Everyone.
Now, Mr. Darantinao, what is your answer
in question number one? Read the question
first before answering.
What is your initial impressions of the
poem?
Ma’am, The strongest impression I get from
the poem is sadness. Beyond that, my
impression is that the poem is not meant to
be understood, only to be felt.
Okay, Very Good! Mr. Darantinao.
The poem is indeed filled with sadness. In
very lines you can feel the authors’ agony in
the loss of his child.
Next, Ms. Octavio kindly read your answer
in question number two.
What do they think it is about?
Ma’am, The poem is all about death. In
which the speaker express his mourning and
grief by writing a poem reminiscing the
memory of the dead person.
Precisely, Thank you! Ms. Octavio.
The poem is all about death. A mournful
poem written by the person who have loss
someone who’s dear to them.
Next, Ms. Niegas kindly read your answer
in question number three.
What is Jonson trying to say?
Jonson tries to justify the boy's death by
saying it was his fate and due time by God's
decree. He then consoles himself by
remembering that his son has escaped the
anger and frustration of human life on earth
and is now living in heaven.
Very Good! Ms. Niegas.
Although the poem testifies to Jonson's love
for his son, it also reveals his sense of
stewardship and his belief in man's
dependence on the Divine Good. That his
son is already living in peace at heaven
escaping from the anger and frustration of
human life on earth.
All good.
So today, enable for us to understand the
poem thoroughly we are going to further
examine the poem ‘On my First Son’ by
Ben Jonson. By Knowing the authors
background, examining the structure of the
poem and finding the central theme of the
poem itself.
C. Abstraction
So class, at the end of today’s lesson, we will
be able to obtain the following objectives:
A. Understand the poem 'On my first
Sonne', by Ben Jonson.
B. Express a sympathetic attitude towards
the author by understanding how the
language and structure of the poem
convey Jonson’s grief.
C. Create a short analysis of Ben Jonson's
'On my First Sonne'.
A. Understand the poem 'On my first
Sonne', by Ben Jonson.
B. Express a sympathetic attitude towards
the author by understanding how the
language and structure of the poem
convey Jonson’s grief.
C. Create a short analysis of Ben Jonson's
'On my First Sonne'.
But before we proceed to our discussion I
have a question first,
How does it feel to lose your loved one? A
family member or partner? And How do
you cope up with the pain?
Yes, Mr. Javines?
Worst feeling ever.
It feels like someone cut you open and all of
your insides fell out. You should be dead.
But you’re still alive.
You are not in physical pain. But you don’t
notice it because you are in agony. Your
world is over. It’s almost too much to bear
for one person. Your brain is like scrambled
eggs and you cease all function.
You wait for you to just stop existing. For
your systems to give out. You wait. And
you wait. And wait some more. Until you
realize that you will not cease. And little by
little, you crawl your way back into the
world.
Thank you, Mr. Javines for sharing your
thoughts,
Now, this Poem was written by a father who
have lost his son. In which he wrote this
poem as his tribute to his favorite son.
"On My First Sonne", a poem by Ben
Jonson.
Now, Class let us read first the Poem.
(Students starts reading the poem)
Farewell, thou child of my right hand, and
joy;
My sin was too much hope of thee, lov'd
boy.
Seven years thou'wert lent to me, and I thee
pay,
Exacted by thy fate, on the just day.
O, could I lose all father now! For why
Will man lament the state he should envy?
To have so soon 'scap'd world's and flesh's
rage,
And, if no other misery, yet age?
Rest in soft peace, and, ask'd, say here doth
lie
Ben Jonson his best piece of poetry.
For whose sake, henceforth, all his vows be
such,
As what he loves may never like too much.
Thank you! Everyone.
Do you understand the poem class?
Why do you think so? Ms. Lagera?
Not exactly Ma’am, Because the language
used in the poem is difficult to understand.
Okay, exactly! Thank you Ms. Lagera
It is because, the language is very difficult
in this poem. The poem still have old
English spellings that makes it difficult to
understand.
Enable for us to understand the poem we
need to re-write the poem itself. Re-writing
each lines using simple words will help you
to successfully unlock the meaning of the
poem.
To cut the story short since we do not have
much time, I have here a simple version of
the poem “On My First Sonne” by Ben
Jonson. Now, I want you to read it again.
Goodbye to you, my favorite child, my joy.
I placed too much hope in you, beloved
child.
You were lent to me for seven years and
now I have to pay back the loan—fate
demands it.
Oh, I would give up being a father
altogether now!
Why should we grieve at all? We should,
instead, envy you.
You have escaped so quickly from the
demands of the world and of the body.
You will never have to experience the
torment of aging.
So rest peacefully—and if anyone asks you,
tell them, “Here is the best poem Ben
Jonson ever wrote.”
For your sake, I will vow from here forward
not too love anything too much.
Goodbye to you, my favorite child, my joy.
I placed too much hope in you, beloved
child.
You were lent to me for seven years and
now I have to pay back the loan—fate
demands it.
Oh, I would give up being a father
altogether now!
Why should we grieve at all? We should,
instead, envy you.
You have escaped so quickly from the
demands of the world and of the body.
You will never have to experience the
torment of aging.
So rest peacefully—and if anyone asks you,
tell them, “Here is the best poem Ben
Jonson ever wrote.”
For your sake, I will vow from here forward
not too love anything too much.
Anybody from the class who can gave me
their interpretation about the poem?
Yes, Ms. Perez?
This poem is a reflection of father’s pain
and deep love for his son. The poem begins
when the speaker bids farewell to his seven
years old son whom he considers his right
hand and a real joy. He says that his only sin
is that he hopes too much for his deceased
son that he would grow up and would do
great things in his life. To him, seven years
back, his birth brought happiness and joy for
the family but now he gave his son back to
God. He believes that God loaned his son
for seven years before taking him back.
Upon losing his son, the word ‘father’ does
not please him anymore. As the poem
continues, the speaker puts a question mark
on his mourning. He believes that he should
not mourn for his son’s death because he
has gone to a better place. He has escaped
from the sufferings and miseries of the
world. Although the speaker consoles
himself with this thought, yet he confesses
that he will never love anyone like he loved
his son.
Exactly! Thank you Ms. Perez that was
correct.
This poem is an elegy for Jonson’s son
Benjamin who died at the age of seven
because of the plague. This poem was
published in 1616, few years after the actual
death of his son in 1603.
But before that let us first discuss what is
Elegy. Anybody from the class who has a
prior knowledge about what is elegy all
about?
Yes, Mr. Darantinao?
Very Good, That’s correct Mr. Darantinao.
Elegy: Definition, Characteristics.
An elegy is a special kind of lyrics. A lyric
expresses the emotions of the poet, and the
elegy is an expression of the emotion of
sorrow, woe, or despair. In short, the elegy
is a lament, a lyric of mourning, or an
utterance of personal bereavement and
sorrow and, therefore, it should be
characterized by absolute sincerity of
emotion and expression.
Characteristics
An elegy usually brings comprises of three
stages of grief which are as follows:
 lament where the speaker expresses
grief and sorrow,
 praise and admiration of the idealized
dead and
 Finish with comfort or solace for
those left behind.
Now, since we already tackle what does
elegy mean and its characteristics let us now
go back to the poem “On My First Sonne”
by Ben Jonson.
This poem explains the poet’s profound
sadness. In this poem Jonson is dealing with
the grief by trying to understand death
Ma’am, An elegy is a poem that reflects
upon death or loss.
finality. Breaking with the traditions of the
elegy. Jonson argues that no consolation
will serve in the face of such a tragedy: not
even religion with its promise of eternal life
can comfort him.
Do you agree with Ben Jonson that, "there
will be no consolation will serve in the face
of such a tragedy"?
Yes, Ms. Niegas?
Yes, I somehow agree with Jonson because
losing someone is very painful and we
suffer like there is no cure with that pain,
but if we believe that god has his own plan
for it fortunately we will have the courage to
accept the fact for the goodness of everyone.
Thank you, Ms. Niegas for your opinion.
Afterwards, Jonson turns to religion, hoping
that it will console him. He asks why he
feels grief at all when he should “envy” his
son his new “state.” That is, his son is now
in Heaven, and not only that; by dying
young, he has escaped the “world’s and
flesh’s rage” as well as the “misery” of
“age.”
In other words, death has freed his son from
all the suffering and temptation that human
beings usually endure on earth. The poem
even suggests that the child’s true home was
never on earth. He was simply here on loan:
“Seven years thou ‘wert lent to me”
What does Jonson mean in his line “Seven
years thou ‘wert lent to me”? And Do you
believe that Children are not ours. And thus,
They are God's, on loan to us?
Yes, Ms. Obaob?
Very good, Thank you Ms. Obaob.
In his poem Jonson believes that his child
doesn’t belong to his earthly family or to his
father instead his true home and his true
owner are in Heaven; his true father is God.
But it doesn’t seem to soothe his grief: he
ends the poem as devastated as he was at its
They belong to God. So for us as parents to
surrender our children to the Lord. For all of
us, when we see children around us in the
family of faith in the church to say, “These
children belong to you. Please, oh God, may
they know your love.
beginning. Instead of moving on, heartened
by his religious faith, he closes the poem
with a bitter vow:
“Henceforth all his vows be such / as
what he loves may never like too much.”
In other words, he vows to never again love
anyone or anything as much as he loved his
son. In these lines, Jonson struggle with a
terrible question. He wonders whether it is
worth loving someone at all, given that they
will die and could die at any moment.
So, class I want you to give your opinion
about this, Does it worth loving someone at
all, given that they will die and could die at
any moment?
Yes, Ms. Octavio?
Thank you, Ms. Octavio for your opinion.
Thus, Jonson answer seems to be a firm no.
He fails to help himself recover from his
grief and suggests that all such intense grief
may be impossible to resolve.
Let us now proceed to its Form.
It is 12 lines long divided into couplets
(4lines) that composes 3 stanza. Elegies
don’t have a set form, like the sonnet or the
villanelle.
Although elegies don’t have a set form, they
do tend to follow a narrative pattern. Elegies
start with grief: their speakers have lost
someone or something important. That loss
feels devastating, irreparable. But elegies
usually move toward consolation: the
speaker finds some form of comfort that
helps them move on from their grief.
Love doesn’t mean smothering someone or
treating them as an object. Real love
sometimes means letting someone go or
understanding that they have fallen out of
love with you. If they really love you, they
will come back. Someone somewhere will
die in an hour or the next second. This
person could be you. Life is promised to no
one. No one lives forever. Concentrate on
loving someone this moment, You or that
person aren’t promised another moment of
life.
The poem thus breaks some of the traditions
of the elegy. Instead of finding consolation,
the speaker seems to reject it, overwhelmed
by both grief and love for his lost son.
Next, Rhyme Scheme
“On My First Son” is written
in rhyming couplets. Its rhyme scheme is
thus:
Its rhymes tend to be simple,
straightforward, and strong. There are only
two rhyme words that are more than one
syllable (“envy” in line 6 and “poetry” in
line 10), and all of the poem’s rhymes
are perfect rhymes.
Next is the theme
What do you think is the theme of the poem
On My First Sonne, class?
Yes, Mr. Darantinao?
Ma’am I think the theme of the poem was
all about death and sadness.
Very Good! Mr. Darantinao, thank you.
Okay, The main themes of “On My First
Sonne” are death, grief, faith, and
fatherhood.
Next is the tone
What do you think is the tone of the poem
class? Yes, Mr. Javines?
Ma’am, The tone of the poem is one of
sadness. Jonson is expressing his grief at
death of his oldest son, aged seven.
Very Good! Mr. Javines, thank you.
‘On My First Son’ by Ben Jonson presents
the poet’s loss of his seven-year-old child.
As a father at first his tone is more
sympathetic and grievous. Whereas in the
next to last section his tone turns objective.
His tone has a cold and calm outlook on the
issue of his only son’s death. There is also
firmness in his voice when he says, “Here
doth lie/ Ben Jonson his best piece of
poetry.” It also reflects his
passivity/numbness regarding death.
At last, it highlights the effect of a child’s
death on a father’s mind. The way his tone
changes throughout the poem is a reflection
of the poet’s actual mental state at that time.
And lastly the speaker
“On My First Son” is an autobiographical
poem.
What does autobiographical poem mean?
Yes, Ms. Perez?
Very Good! Ms. Perez, thank you.
In short, The speaker in autobiographical
poetry is not a persona but the poet himself.
He even names himself in the poem. The
poem addresses a real event in Ben Jonson’s
life: in 1603, his seven-year-old son died of
the plague.
Generalization
The elegy is a form of poetry in which the
poet or speaker expresses grief, sadness, or
loss. An elegy usually brings comprises of
three stages of grief which are as follows:
lament where the speaker expresses grief
and sorrow, praise and admiration of the
idealized dead and Finish
with comfort or solace for those left behind.
One of the most famous elegy those times is
the poem ‘On My First Sonne' By Ben
Jonson is a poem about a father who has
lost a young son, and attempts to distance
himself from the tragedy in numerous ways.
Ma’am, Autobiographical poetry can be
defined as one in which the poet gives an
account of his/her life, as well as selfrevelation, self-exploration and “thoughtful
and analytical excursions into the self”
‘On My First Son’ by Ben Jonson is a verse
lament on the dead son of the poet. The poet
in the first few lines talks about his ill fate
to wish too much from his child. He says he
has been justly paid by the death of his son
for such high expectations. Thereafter he
asks himself, why men hate death. They
should envy death as it helps one to escape
“world’s and flesh’s rage” By the final lines,
the narrator has come to accept that he
cannot help but care deeply for the child,
therefore making his attempts to not grieve
uselessly, but he vows that he will attempt
to keep his affections in lesser amounts to
avoid such grief in the future.
D. Application
Class, I have a questions
Does "On My First Sonne" reflect genuine
sadness? Yes, Ms. Niegas?
Yes, the poem "On My First Sonne" reflects
genuine sadness. I think the poem is about
the writer trying to get over the death of his
son and makes people feel sorry for his loss.
Thank you Ms. Niegas for your wonderful
answer.
Is the speaker right to envy his dead son?
The speaker of 'On My first Sonne' envies
Yes, Ms. Perez?
his dead son because his son is in heaven
and has escaped the struggles, frustrations,
and misery of aging experienced in life on
Earth. And I think it is not something to be
envious because, life above earth is so much
better than death or dying. I think the
speaker just use the word envy to lessen his
guilt and agony to his sons’ death.
Thank you Ms. Perez, for your wonderful
answer.
Do you think this poem would help someone
who has lost a loved one? Why/why not?
Yes, Ms. Lagera?
Personally, yes I think this poem will help
someone who has lost a loved one to cope
up with the pain. The poem convey hope,
reassurance that life continues, and that the
memory of the lost person or concept will
persist.
Thank you Ms. Lagera, for your wonderful
answer.
Do you consider "On My First Son" a Yes, Because it serve as a love letter of a
beautiful poem? Explain. Yes, Ms. Octavio? father to his died son. And it is the genuine
feeling of someone to the person he/she
have lost and I think it is one of the thing
that makes the poem beautiful.
D. EVALUATION
Direction: On a worksheet provided. Create a short analysis on every stanza of the poem
‘On My First Sonne' By Ben Jonson.
E. HOMEWORK
Direction:
In a 1whole sheet of paper, create your own Elegy for something or someone you have
lost. Imagine all your memories with them and let your emotions take control of your
words. Remember that it must be quatrain (four lines that make up one stanza) with a
minimum of tree stanzas.
Memorize the elegy that you created and be ready for tomorrows’ individual oral
presentation. Remember that you will be graded based on the rubric below.
25%
2
%
25%
2
%
25%
2
%
25%
2
%