Robert Burns
Lesson plans and teaching resources

|Biography and Background| |Poetry|

Biography and Background

Burns Country: The official Robert Burns site
The complete e-texts, how to have a Burns supper, and a wealth of biographical information.

Burns National Heritage Park
Biographical and historical information. Click on the "Teachers" link for printable handouts: timeline, clothing, cottage, education & religion, farming, health, and the language.

Burns Night
Everything you need to celebrate January 25, the birthday of Robert Burns. Includes order of events, recipes, and tips for handling the haggis. While you're at the site, click around for more biographical information and links to poems.

Robert Burns at 250
This symposium from the Library of Congress began with a keynote address by Alex Salmond, First Minister of Scotland, and a talk on "America's Bard" by Robert Crawford, professor of literature at the University of St. Andrews. Crawford's address was followed by readings of Burns' poetry and performances of his songs by renowned Scottish scholars and performers Margaret Bennett and Ed Miller, and award-winning Scottish journalist and broadcaster Billy Kay.

Poetry

Lonely as a Cloud
This lesson on similes is designed for grades 6-8. It uses Burns's "A Red, Red Rose."

Robert Burns
Text of poems.

Robert Burns
A very extensive collection of poems.

"To a Mouse, On Turning Her Up In Her Nest With The Plough
Roll your mouse over the Scottish words to see a translation in 4 languages.

Unraveling Burns
Using "To a Louse" and "To a Mouse," students examine the role of dialect in poetry.