When we get back to school after a two-week break, it can be practically impossible to start something big, whether that is a unit, a project, or a book study. Instead, you might want to begin the new year by gently guiding your students back into the swing of things. This is why I typically begin by including a New Year’s Poem analysis or two, along with making resolutions activities!
So, let’s slow down a bit and give us, as teachers, a bit of a break.
Do something rigorous, rewarding, and relevant that doesn’t require too much from us or our students.
Keep reading for a New Year’s Poem & Resolutions Activities your students won’t likely forget!
Need help with Test Prep? Check out this FREE Pack of 3 Test Prep Activities to help students achieve success on standardized tests!
New Year’s Poem
Ring Out, Wild Bells (from In Memoriam)
By Lord Alfred Tennyson
Ring out, wild bells, to the wild sky,
The flying cloud, the frosty light:
The year is dying in the night;
Ring out, wild bells, and let him die.
Ring out the old, ring in the new,
Ring, happy bells, across the snow:
The year is going, let him go;
Ring out the false, ring in the true.
Ring out the grief that saps the mind
For those that here we see no more;
Ring out the feud of rich and poor,
Ring in redress to all mankind.
Ring out a slowly dying cause,
And ancient forms of party strife;
Ring in the nobler modes of life,
With sweeter manners, purer laws.
Ring out the want, the care, the sin,
The faithless coldness of the times;
Ring out, ring out my mournful rhymes
But ring the fuller minstrel in.
Ring out false pride in place and blood,
The civic slander and the spite;
Ring in the love of truth and right,
Ring in the common love of good.
Ring out old shapes of foul disease;
Ring out the narrowing lust of gold;
Ring out the thousand wars of old,
Ring in the thousand years of peace.
Ring in the valiant man and free,
The larger heart, the kindlier hand;
Ring out the darkness of the land,
Ring in the Christ that is to be.
7 New Year’s Poem Activities
1. Read Aloud
Before analyzing Lord Alfred Tennyson’s New Year’s Poem “Ring Out, Wild Bells,” you may want to take the time to read this poem aloud to your students first. In fact, you might want to read it several times before beginning any sort of poetry response activity.
Personally, I love reading poetry aloud. It forces me to slow down, accentuate certain words, and use a dramatic tone…like I’m not dramatic enough already!
If you can find an audio version online, that might make it a little easier. Or if a student has the desire or ability to read to read and will practice the poem ahead of time, you could also take that route.
Start slowly and give it time! Hopefully, students will appreciate the effort.
Check out 8 Poetry Elements ANY Student Can Learn!
2. Poetry Analysis
Imagery is the number one reason I enjoy reading poetry. It catapults us in a text by appealing to the five senses: sight, sound, taste, touch, and smell. As you begin reading Tennyson’s or any New Year’s Poem, try examining it for imagery.
The first stanza is perfect to analyze through the lens of imagery:
Ring out, wild bells, to the wild sky,
The flying cloud, the frosty light:
The year is dying in the night;
Ring out, wild bells, and let him die.
When students consider and visualize the image that is painted here through sight and sound, they will more easily be able to connect with the poem! Encourage students to use their creative abilities by drawing these lines individually or in pairs. Then, answer the question: Why does the poem begin this way?
Going line by line or stanza by stanza is the BEST strategy for tackling difficult poems.
Click to get this New Year’s Poem & Activity Resource to make starting out the year easy!
3. Poetry Test Prep Quiz
I don’t particularly enjoy standardized tests, but I recognize that they are inescapable for the time being. Instead of racing through a bunch of reading test prep resources in the spring, why not incorporate it throughout the year as a part of what you love teaching?
I like to do this by including test prep questions and answers every week in my classroom through short stories, narratives, plays, books, and poetry!
It is so easy to do if you are reading rich, diverse texts. See the example below for the New Year’s Poem by Lord Alfred Tennyson!
PERSPECTIVE
With which statement might the speaker of the poem agree?
A. Meditating on the past is unimportant when setting goals at the start of the new year.
B. People should aim to become better versions of themselves in the new year.
C. Negative individuals should be avoided when planning for the new year.
D. Preparing for the future contributes to a successful new year.
If you want all of the questions, see here!
4. New Year’s Poem Acrostic Templates
Acrostic poems are a great tool for beginning poetry writers. They provide a framework but also offer students flexibility in crafting their own poems.
As a class, you could brainstorm words related to the New Year and create acrostic poems! When students write their own New Year’s Poem, the process of writing and reading poetry becomes more relevant!
Including this fun, easy activity with time to share their poetry will make January overall more manageable.
5. Poetry Annotations
Annotation is a vital strategy when tackling the poetry reading process because it forces students, in a good way, to connect with a poem instead of being a nonengaged bystander.
You can annotate for pretty much anything, and your students may even like coming up with their own system as a class!
You may want to focus on the following as you teach poetry annotation:
- Repeated diction and syntax
- Figurative language
- Important or impactful words/phrases
- Words, phrases, and ideas that are unclear
Select 1 or all 4! Ensure that students will do something with their annotations afterward, whether linked to a reading or writing assignment, to make the most of everything.
6. New Year’s Poem Lines QuickWrite
Before reading Tennyson’s New Year’s Poem, have students reflect on one line in the poem or the first stanza. For the quickwrite, they can try the following:
- Paraphrase a line or two.
- Summarize the first stanza.
- Identify the overall tone of the speaker in the first line or two.
- Reflect on the first line in terms of a universal idea.
- Consider whether or not the line is a good way to begin a poem.
- Predict what will happen next.
The quickwrite doesn’t have to be long; 5-10 minutes is plenty of time to create a paragraph or get some sentences down on paper. The goal is simply to activate critical thinking!
7. Making Resolutions Activity
If your students have not thought about making resolutions for the new year, this is the perfect time!
I make goals all of the time:
- When I start a new book reading plan…
- When I want to lose weight…
- When I start a new school year…
- When I see January…
In order for our students to be successful in life, we need to intentionally teach our students how to make resolutions effectively.
Start off with 3 areas of students’ lives and create a goal for each! You can take a day or just 30 minutes in a class period to create goals or resolutions!
Some areas of life could link to relationships, physical health, education, extracurricular activities, finances, generosity, etc.
Here are some examples, but your students will probably be better at identifying creative resolutions for other classmates:
- Read 10 books this year.
- Run a 5K in the spring.
- Get on the honor roll.
- Try out for a sport.
- Learn a new language.
- Save $100.
- Volunteer 5 times.
- Get and keep a part-time job.
- Plant a garden.
- Limit screen time to an hour a day.
- Write a short story.
- Create a social media video.
- Make a new friend.
- Develop a hobby.
Begin with realistic, attainable resolutions and create a simple plan to enact these resolutions! You may even have students post these resolutions throughout the classroom so they remember their goals.
Coming back to these plans and resolutions is key if we want our students to be and feel successful. Reminding students at the start of each month is a great way to keep the momentum going.
New Year’s Poem & Activity Resources
Celebrate the New Year 2025 in style! This New Year’s Poem, Resolutions, Goals, and Activities BUNDLE provides relevant and easy-to-teach resources to help middle and high school students get back into the swing of things after winter break!
Read a New Year’s Poem or 2 and guide students in reflecting on, visualizing, and writing about New Year’s Resolutions in different areas of their lives!
Do you need more fun lessons and activities to teach a New Year’s Poem? Check out my store Kristin Menke-Integrated ELA Test Prep!
