Poems About Place Pre-Reading

English 10 Name: Poems About Place Pre-Reading

Your Task: Before we read the poem, “Chicago,” by Carl Sandburg, complete the two activities below. Both of these activities are DUE on Monday, February 1st.

Task #1: Writer’s Notebook In your Writer’s Notebook, write a detailed description of the town you live in. Write your description in full sentences and include lots of detail. The goal is for people to be able to imagine what the town is like just based on your description. Address all of the following points and answer all of the questions below in your description. Be prepared to share your description!  What does the town look like? Use imagery to “paint a picture” of your town.  Describe the people who live in your town.  What kind of work do these people do?  Give the town a “personality” – is it angry, sad, humble, etc.?  Compare your town to something using a simile or a metaphor.  What negative things do people say about the town? o How do you respond to these things?  What positive things do people say about the town?

Task #2: Background Information Read the attached Biography of Carl Sandburg and the information about the Historical Context; then, answer the questions that follow. Be prepared to discuss what you have learned!