In evaluating some of Heaney's prose writings about the art of poetry -- what I have called his 'Poetics' -- the paper explores how those ideas could enhance the teaching of poetry in the upper post-primary schools. The paper is divided into four closely interconnected sections. The first section evaluates Heaney's thoughts about the potential…

Centred on a carefully chosen selection of Heaney's Troubles poems, this paper explores pedagogical opportunities that the poems present in the context of upper post-primary classrooms in Northern Ireland's divided schools. Five poems are evaluated in total. These are: "The Other Side", "A Constable calls", "The Toome…