Ms. Lara • English Department
Curie High School • Chicago, IL
teacher@mlara.com 773•535•2138

poetry

 


HOMEBRITISH LITERATURE TRANSITIONAL ENGLISHEXPRESSIONS LINKS CURRICULUM
UNIT GOALS
ACTIVITIES

The goal of this unit is to expose students to poetry and its impact on our daily lives.

How to read poetry:

  • Look at the title. Does it give any clues to the meaning of the poem? Is the title unusual?
  • Read the poem over a few times.
  • Read this poem out loud.
  • Circle any words that you do not know, and then look them up.
  • Look for external references to historical events, people, myths, etc.
  • Rewrite the poem, a summary of what you think it means, in a few sentences.
  • Break the poem into sections (a line, several lines, or a stanza) for analysis.
  • List the different writing strategies and tools that author uses.
Strategies and tools:
  • figurative language (metaphor, simile, personification)
  • patterns (repetition of worlds or symbols, arrangement and number of lines, etc.)
  • "sound" (rhyme, rhythm)
  • tone
  • imagery
  • word choice
STATE GOALS

2.A.4a  Analyze and evaluate the effective use of literary techniques (e.g., figurative language, allusion, dialogue, description, symbolism, word choice, dialect) in classic and contem­porary literature representing a variety of forms and media.
2.A.4c  Describe relationships between the author’s style, literary form (e.g., short stories, novels, drama, fables, biographies, documen­taries, poetry, essays) and intended effect on the reader.

.LINKS
Online Writing Ezines Poetry
eratio post modern poetry
Gumball Poetry
Poetry 180
Favorite Poem Project