Poetry Is the Type of Thing a Poet Writes

Poetry Packet

“Poetry is the type of thing a poet writes.”

Robert Frost

Part I: Elements of a poem

1. What is Poetry? It is a ______which expresses ______and ideas using ______and ______.

2. Rhythm - ______

______

 Sometimes the rhythm is a ______one, and sometimes it’s more ______, but it’s not there by accident. Poets arrange their words in such a way as to create those ______.

 Unlike a song, poems don’t have drums. The rhythm is set by the ______or ______in the words.

 In most words that have more than one ______, one of the syllables is pronounced more strongly than the others. We say that this syllable is ______or ______3. Meter - ______

______.

Iamb - a unit of rhythm in poetry that consists of one syllable that is ______followed by one syllable that is ______or ______.

 An iamb = Two syllables : da DUM.

 Iambic dimeter = Two iambs: da DUM / da DUM

 Iambic trimeter = Three iambs: da DUM / da DUM / da DUM

 Iambic tetrameter = four iambs:

da DUM / da DUM / da DUM / da DUM

 Iambic pentameter = Five iambs:

4. Rhyme - ______. In poetry, rhyme is often at the ______of a ______.

-Eye rhyme -rhymes only when ______. For example, “through” and “rough.”

-End rhyme, the rhyming of the ______syllables of a line. 5. Rhyme Scheme - A “rhyme scheme” is a way of describing the ______in a poem.

Each new sound at the end of a line is given a letter, starting with “A,” then “B,” and so on. If an end sound repeats the end sound of an earlier line, it gets the same letter as the earlier line.

My cat is nice.

My cat likes mice.

My cat is fat.

I like my cat.

What is the rhyme scheme of this poem:______

Let’s try another…

My cat is nice.

My cat is fat.

My cat likes mice.

I like my cat.

What is the rhyme scheme? ______Or another...

My cat is gray.

My cat is fat.

My cat is cute.

I like my cat.

Rhyme Scheme: ______

6. Figurative Language - Most poems make use of the types of figurative language we’ve learned: ______,

______, ______,

______.

Other types of figurative language poems use are alliteration and assonance.

Alliteration - ______

______

______. Assonance is when a writer repeats the ______sounds in the stressed syllables of words.

Example: ”My rabbit whacked my ear.” The words “rabbit whacked” are an example of assonance because they both contain a “short a” sound on the stressed syllable.

Note: Alliteration and assonance do not have to have the same letters; just the same sounds. So for example, “falling phone” is alliterative and “flying high” is assonant, because they repeat the same sounds even though they don’t repeat the same letters.

Exercise:

1. Read the following poem.

2. Underline the alliterative words in each line.

3. Circle the assonant words in each line.

Hint: Sometimes words can be both alliterative and assonant. My Puppy Punched Me In the Eye

My puppy punched me in the eye. My rabbit whacked my ear. My ferret gave a frightful cry and roundhouse kicked my rear.

My lizard flipped me upside down. My kitten kicked my head. My hamster slammed me to the ground and left me nearly dead.

So my advice? Avoid regrets; no matter what you do, don’t ever let your family pets take lessons in kung fu.

–Kenn Nesbitt

Famous Poets: Part II - Styles of Poetry

1. Couplet – A two-line poem or ______, usually rhyming.

In the world of mules There are no rules. Ogden Nash

2. Ballad – A ballad tells a ______, often coming from local history or legend and often involving lost love or tragedy. Some are written in couplets, others in six-line stanzas. Some are set to ______.

A bunch of the boys were whooping it up In the Malamute saloon; The kid that handles the music-box Was hitting a jag-time tune; Back of the bar, in a solo game, Sat dangerous Dan McGrew, And watching his luck was his light-of-love, The lady that’s known as Lou. Selection from “The Shooting of Dan McGrew” by Robert W. Serice

Well the south side of Chicago Is the baddest part of town And if you go down there You better just beware Of a man name of Leroy Brown

A selection from “Bad, Bad, Leroy Brown,” by Jim Croce 3. The Sonnet – There are two types of sonnets: Italian and Shakespearean. Both are ______lines long, usually written in ______Pentameter (5 iambs, 10 syllables, accent on every other syllable).

 The ______sonnet has a rhyme scheme of abab, cdcd, efef, gg.

 Three ______and a rhyming ______.

Shall I compare thee to a summer's day? (Sonnet 18) Shall I compare thee to a summer's day?

Thou art more lovely and more temperate.

Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May,

And summer's lease hath all too short a date.

Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines,

And often is his gold complexion dimmed;

And every fair from fair sometime declines,

By chance, or nature's changing course, untrimmed;

But thy eternal summer shall not fade,

Nor lose possession of that fair thou ow'st,

Nor shall death brag thou wand'rest in his shade,

When in eternal lines to Time thou grow'st.

So long as men can breathe, or eyes can see,

So long lives this, and this gives life to thee.

William Shakespeare

4. Haiku – three unrhymed lines and ___ syllables, arranged in lines of ______They often describe scenes in nature.

In the rains of spring, An umbrella and raincoat “Spring Rain,” by Buson 5. Limerick – A ______-line poem with a rhyme scheme of ______. It has a bouncy rhythm and is usually humorous.

There was an old lady whose folly Induced her to sit in a holly; Whereupon, by a thorn Her dress being torn, She quickly became melancholy Edward Lear

6. Acrostic – descriptive poems in which the _____ letter of each line spells out the ______of the poem.

Can’t Avoid Trouble Paul Janeczko

7. Concrete Poem – The words of the poem are arranged in the ______of the subject.

Amelia Cramped in the cockpit likeabirdinabox theicecakedwings theicecakedwings shebringsjuice toothbrush&comb couragethewill tofly15hours without stop throughdarkdanger the Atlantic Sky

“Amelia Cramped” by Monica Kulling

8. List Poem – takes a simple, every day ______in order to describe something in detail. It can be rhymed or unrhymed.

Home address: “Shady Lawn” Working hours: Dusk till dawn Hobbies/Sports: Likes to climb Special skills Making slime Selection from“Slug File” by Avis Harley