Junior Cycle Irish T2 requires studying four prescribed poems or songs. Higher Level exam tasks assess personal and communicative responses to literature.
Prescribed Course Requirements
Circular 0086/2024 sets the literary requirements for the final examination:
- You study four poems or songs across second and third year with your teacher.
- Texts studied in first year cannot count toward this selection.
- At least one CBA 1 portfolio piece must use a prescribed literary text as a stimulus.
Preparing Poems and Songs
Prepare your chosen texts across these core areas, selecting what answers the examination prompt:
| Gné | Ceist Threorach | Nath Cabhrach |
|---|---|---|
| Téama (Theme) | What idea is explored? | Is é ... príomhthéama an dáin. |
| Mothúchán (Emotion) | What feeling is evoked? | Mhothaigh mé ... sa téacs. |
| Íomhá (Image) | What picture is created? | Cruthaíonn an file íomhá de ... |
| Teicnící (Techniques) | What devices are used? | Úsáidtear meafar nó samhail. |
| Freagra pearsanta | What is your reaction? | Thaitin an dán liom mar ... |
Comprehension and Personal Response
Practise understanding extracts, explaining personal responses and writing from a literary stimulus.
Close Reading
- Scan the extract to locate the specific line or verse requested.
- For aimsigh sampla amháin, select one clear detail from the text.
- For cén fáth?, give the exact reason using information directly from the extract.
- Check whether the prompt asks about the speaker, a character, or yourself.
Personal Response
- State your view clearly (Thaitin an dán liom or Níor thaitin).
- Support your opinion with direct evidence or quotations from the text.
- Include a relevant personal experience when invited.
Literature as a Creative Stimulus
A poem or song extract can serve as the stimulus for a communicative writing task:
- Identify the required format, audience, and register before writing.
- For a story, build events around the stimulus.
- For an account of school actions, describe relevant practical steps: Úsáidimid buidéil in-athúsáidte chun plaisteach a laghdú.
- Keep your Irish clear and accurate, with correct verb forms and spelling.
Key terms
- Téama
- The central idea or message of a poem or song.
- Mothúchán
- The feeling expressed by the writer or evoked in the reader.
- Íomhá
- A visual word-picture created by descriptive language.
- Meafar
- A metaphor; describing one thing directly as another.
- Samhail
- A simile; comparing two things using 'chomh ... le' or 'cosúil le'.
- Friotal
- The diction and linguistic style chosen by the writer.
- Freagra pearsanta
- A personal response; expressing a reasoned opinion of a text.
Check yourself
What term describes an imaginative comparison where one thing is said to be another?
Meafar (metaphor).
A poem explores growing older and makes its reader feel lonely. Identify the theme and the emotion.
Theme: growing older. Emotion: loneliness (uaigneas).
Identify the technique used in the phrase 'chomh bán le sneachta'.
Samhail (simile).
What is the audience and format when writing a requested 'cuntas' for 'suíomh idirlín na scoile'?
A written account for the school community and other website readers.